A Pawn's Passage

There were two main reasons why Qi Xuansu did not end up like Liu Futong this time.

One reason was that Su Yan remained neutral. She did not act rashly like Su Ran did.

Another reason was that the people from the Lu family were not fearful of his fifth-rank Daoist priest’s identity. They were actually intimidated by the official letter from Ziwei Hall, which was personally signed by Sage Donghua. That was because fifth-rank priests were common, but it was not often that Sage Donghua personally appointed a fifth-rank priest.

In this regard, Qi Xuansu and Zhang Yuelu were very similar—both had higher positions compared to their ranks. Zhang Yuelu was a fourth-rank Daoist priest who was promoted to Deputy Hall Master by the Earthly Preceptor, while Qi Xuansu was a fifth-rank Daoist priest who was promoted to superintendent by Sage Donghua.

Generally speaking, it was more common for high-ranking priests to hold lower-level positions. The positions of Deputy Hall Masters, Deputy Palace Masters, and Deputy Mansion Masters were normally held by ordinary second-rank or third-rank masters.

The reasoning was not overly complex. The Golden Tower might have deemed the individual’s ability insufficient for a position corresponding to their Daoist rank and assigned them a lower-ranking role. It could also be that a particular position was exceptionally critical, prompting the Golden Tower to deliberately assign a high-ranking Daoist priest to ensure more governance.

There were also special circumstances. During major crises, the Golden Tower Council might temporarily appoint high-ranking Daoist priests to lower positions to leverage their authority for more decisive action and swift response. This approach avoided unnecessary bureaucratic delays. Once stability was restored, adjustments would be made to return to the standard hierarchy.

However, it was extremely rare for low-ranking Daoist priests to hold high-level positions. Most were temporary appointments in urgent situations, such as the death of a Deputy Hall Master, where a superintendent would momentarily take over the Deputy Hall Master’s command. In most cases, people like this had a promising future.

Most superintendents were fourth-rank Daoist priests. However, Qi Xuansu was only in the fifth rank. In addition, he was personally appointed by Sage Donghua and arranged to participate in the investigation of the Yanqing Merchant’s Association.

Anyone could tell that whoever caught the attention of Sage Donghua would have a bright future. Thus, if Lu Fu’an continued to seek trouble, he would have to face Sage Donghua.

Qi Xuansu never expected that his lie back in Fengtai County—when he claimed that Sage Donghua would like to send his regards to the Lord Commander—would actually come true. He initially said that to muddle the situation, but it turned out that fate had brought him under Sage Donghua’s radar.

Seeing that Qi Xuansu refused to accept the cash notes, Lu Fu’an dared not utter another word and quickly fled from Huasheng Hall in despair with his people in tow.

Huasheng Hall, which seemed bustling with customers earlier, immediately became peaceful again.

Su Yan was still expressionless. She was also a superintendent within the Nine Halls and superior to Qi Xuansu in terms of rank, so she was not afraid of offending him.

She thought that Qi Xuansu was probably a descendant of the Quanzhen Sect’s Qi family since he was tied to Sage Donghua.

After that episode, Su Yan signaled Qi Xuansu to follow her to the duty room in the back hall. Since she found out that Qi Xuansu was also from the Daoist Order, the duty room was no longer off-limits to him.

The layout of Su Yan’s duty room was simple and far inferior compared to the corrupt Liu Futong’s. It was not much different from an ordinary study, but it had some plants that added a touch of color to an otherwise dull room.

After they took a seat, Su Yan asked, “Aren’t you Wei Wugui? How did you change your name? How did you suddenly become a Daoist priest?”

Qi Xuansu had already thought of an explanation. “I have always been in the Daoist Order. I just used an alias and went undercover to investigate the case. Now that my task is temporarily done, I will be heading to Jinling Prefecture to resume my duties, so there will no longer be a need to continue hiding.”

“Can you disclose the progress of the case?” Su Yan asked, “To be honest, one of my cousins ​​was also involved, but she is already dead. She had just transferred to the Huasheng Hall branch of Purple Immortal Mountain less than half a year ago. But I don’t know if she was silenced or if she had died for other reasons. We’re clueless as we haven’t been informed of anything.”

Qi Xuansu felt nervous. However, he maintained a calm front. “Superintendent Su, you should be familiar with the rules. Before the case is closed, I’m not allowed to disclose the progress without permission from above. Please forgive me.”

Su Yan was reasonable. Although she did not hide her disappointment, she still nodded in understanding. “It’s fine.”

She stopped probing about the case. Instead, she asked, “What was that fight about?”

Qi Xuansu roughly recounted what happened.

After Su Yan heard this, she remarked, “This Young Master Lu family is indeed despicable. Not only does he force women to entertain him, but he is also a sore loser who can’t keep his word. What a disgrace to the Lu family!”

At this time, Qi Xuansu put the jade pendant on Su Yan’s desk. “Superintendent Su, will you please appraise this pendant? I’ll sell it if the price is right.”

When it came to business, Su Yan was not polite to Qi Xuansu. “The Lu family said the original price of this pendant was 5,000 Taiping coins. High-grade spiritual objects are indeed worth this price, but in my opinion, this pendant’s applicability is low, so only those who are not short of money will buy it. In addition, it’s a secondhand product, so I can’t buy it at the original price. As such, I can only offer you 2,500 Taiping coins for it.”

Qi Xuansu was willing to accept 3,000 Taiping coins, so he immediately rebutted. “This is a genuine spiritual object, so I think it’s too much to slash the price by half even if it is secondhand. These prodigal sons will buy it for their own use and will pay any amount regardless if it’s secondhand.”

Su Yan shook her head. “Even if it is for the princess’s own use, it is still a secondhand item, not brand new.”

Qi Xuansu proposed. “Why don’t you round it up to 3,000 Taiping coins? I’ll sell it.”

The two of them haggled back and forth for a long time over 500 Taiping coins. Finally, Su Yan came up with a compromise. “Why don’t we both take a step back? I’ll offer you 2,000 Taiping coins and throw in two more Mystery Jars, which can be regarded as 3,000 Taiping coins. If you don’t agree, then I can only offer you 2,500 Taiping coins. Alternatively, you can go to the black market to check out the price.”

Qi Xuansu was aware of the difference between this jade pendant and his flaming cutlasses. It was difficult to sell something that was valuable but had no market. Moreover, he had to leave for Jinling soon, so he might not have time to go to the black market.

After careful deliberation, Qi Xuansu finally agreed to Su Yan’s offer. He also vaguely felt that Su Yan was trying to clean up the inventory of Mystery Jars.

Since Qi Xuansu still had hopes for the conservation of luck, he still wanted to try his hand for the Three Bing and Three Ding Fire Technique. After all, it would be too wasteful to own a treasure but not have the ability to use it.

Su Yan did not lie to him. When these Mystery Jars were shipped, there was a randomized list attached, recording the contents of these jars. However, the individual jars were not labeled, so Su Yan was curious about what Qi Xuansu would get.

She immediately asked a subordinate to send over the contract for Qi Xuansu to sign. After that, she handed over the money and led Qi Xuansu back to the familiar warehouse.

This time, Qi Xuansu randomly picked a Mystery Jar and ripped open the sealing talisman.

As the burst of light faded, a discontinued 200-Taiping-coin cash note appeared on the table.

“Congratulations!” Su Yan smirked, no longer bothered to hide her reactions.

Qi Xuansu’s face twitched slightly as he silently put away the old cash note and comforted himself. At least I didn’t lose everything. I might as well keep it as a souvenir.

He had one more Mystery Jar left.

Qi Xuansu casually picked one from the shelf, took a deep breath, and opened the seal again.

This time, a bright light flashed, revealing an old, thread-bound book on the table.

Seeing a book, Qi Xuansu was overjoyed. He stared at the cover intently and saw “The Three Bing and Three Ding Fire Technique” written clearly on it.

The Three Bing and Three Ding Fire Technique was an average-attainment method. This book was also just a copy that could be printed at will. If Qi Xuansu had gotten this book without the replica of the Nine Yang Fiery Dome, he would not have been so excited. But when paired with the substandard treasure, their combined value was better than a high-attainment method.

Qi Xuansu clapped hysterically and grinned from ear to ear. “Superintendent Su, you really are a woman of your word!”

This time, Su Yan’s face twitched. “Your wish finally came true.”

Qi Xuansu cupped his fists. “Same to you!”

Not long after, Qi Xuansu left the Huasheng Hall branch with an additional 2,000 Taiping coins, a copy of the Three Bing and Three Ding Fire Technique, and a satisfied smirk on his face.

After returning to Sycamore Villa, Qi Xuansu spent most of the day studying the Three Bing and Three Ding Fire Technique. With his Guizhen-stage cultivation, it was not difficult to practice an average-attainment method, so he got the hang of it soon, enough to control the replica of the Nine Yang Fiery Dome. However, there was still a long way to go before he could master this technique.

Once he learned how to control the substandard treasure, he could shrink it to the size of an ordinary bell and hang it around his waist. He no longer had to carry it in a box. In addition, the bell could emit light as long as he injected magical power into it, acting as a lamp even when it was not used as a weapon to attack an enemy.

Qi Xuansu was pleased with his very first treasure.