A Pawn's Passage

Madam Qi had been residing in the Sycamore Villa as of late, leading an idle and dull life like a retired old lady. To pass the time, most old ladies in their twilight years often turned to religion, with Buddhism being more common, as it provided both spiritual solace and a way to kill time.

But Madam Qi was not one for such things. She would rather slit her own throat than count prayer beads or chant sutras at a clay figurine. Even if one replaced the Buddha with the Primordial Daoist Ancestor, she would not change her mind.

Her way of passing time was chain-smoking, so much so that the room was thick with smoke. If someone opened a window, people might think the room was on fire.

Li Qingnu absolutely hated this smoky atmosphere, but her opinion did not matter. No one could actually win in a debate with Madam Qi, so all Li Qingnu could do was play the role of a dutiful daughter.

Madam Qi was truly the head of their household.

Thinking of this, Li Qingnu suddenly felt excited for her famously formidable future sister-in-law to join their household because things would surely get interesting. That woman was not one to back down easily, and she came from the powerful Zhang family, so she might not fear Madam Qi at all. Li Qingnu could also finally relax a little if Madam Qi had a new sparring partner.

Besides, the one caught in the middle and taking all the flak would be Qi Xuansu, so Li Qingnu looked forward to watching him make a fool of himself. He could be proud and ambitious for now. Sooner or later, he would be caught between two mighty women. Li Qingnu did not believe for a second that he could manage both of them.

In truth, Li Qingnu was used to being waited on. Serving others did not sit well with her. So she would gladly let Qi Xuansu take care of Madam Qi in her old age. After all, Madam Qi often gave him the best.

Even real siblings needed to settle accounts, let alone ones who were not truly related. There was a saying that it was not poverty that breeds resentment, but unfairness. Li Qingnu did not exactly hate Qi Xuansu, but every time she compared himself to him, she felt a little aggrieved.

But she would never dare voice such thoughts aloud. It was not because she feared upsetting Madam Qi, who was carefree and would never take offense at things like that. The problem was giving Madam Qi the opportunity to guilt-trip her into handing over private savings as compensation. Though Madam Qi would not be emotionally hurt, she would still make Li Qingnu pay for it. Last time, Madam Qi conned Li Qingnu into giving Qi Xuansu a rare collector’s edition of the Holy Xuan Cards.

On this particular day, Madam Qi put away her pipe and sat behind her desk, handling accounts. Some belonged to the Seven Treasure Pavilion, some to the Qingping Society, and a few to some scattered small businesses. She always did the accounting personally and never delegated money matters to others. As a Pseudo-Immortal, she had boundless energy. Moreover, with her Heavenly Calculation, she could manage all these ledgers, no matter how complex they were.

Before long, Li Qingnu entered, came up to the desk, and said softly, “Madam Qi, the soul-searching has yielded results.”

Madam Qi set down her brush, looked up at Li Qingnu, and asked, “What’s the outcome?”

Li Qingnu handed a compiled file to Madam Qi as she spoke. “Interestingly enough, the one who gave her the order was someone named Li Mingxing. Although he’s from the Li family, he was acting on his own this time. The higher-ups in the Li family weren’t aware of it. I had someone investigate his dealings and found that he was merely an intermediary in this situation.”

Madam Qi opened the file. “So the real mastermind is someone else.”

Li Qingnu nodded. “Following the trail from Li Mingxing, I found he had close ties with the Heavenly Court, which is connected with the Li family. I reached out to a few connections in the Heavenly Court and kept digging. It turns out the Heavenly Court was just another intermediary. Eventually, the trail led to Nanyang. Beyond that, the details became vague. I think this involves complicated personal grudges.”

Nanyang referred to regions like Borneo and Sunda. Compared to the Central Plains, the Daoist presence there was weaker, and the Heavenly Court had long been active in these areas.

Madam Qi sneered. “Don’t tell me it was some Nanyang natives who, upon hearing of a Daoist rising star, decided to strike and ruin his future?”

Li Qingnu’s heart stirred as she tentatively asked, “Madam Qi, do you mean the Borneo Daoist Mansion or the Lingnan Daoist Mansion?”

Madam Qi scoffed. “No need to guess. It’s definitely the Borneo Daoist Mansion.”

Li Qingnu was surprised. “How did Tian Yuan get tangled up with the Borneo Daoist Mansion? He hasn’t even been to Lingnan, let alone Nanyang. The Borneo Daoist Mansion is also closely tied to the Quanzhen Sect. Could this be about the Quanzhen Sect’s internal strife?”

The Quanzhen Sect was often described as a miniature version of the Daoist Order, inheriting most of its strengths and flaws, including internal power struggles. So Li Qingnu’s speculation was not baseless.

Madam Qi set the file aside. “A while back, Pei Xuanzhi told me that Tian Yuan got into a small scuffle with someone from the Wang family when he went to report to Ziwei Hall. On the surface, it looked like Tian Yuan suffered a loss, but Pei Xuanzhi later had someone give that Wang brat a proper beating. The Wang family was clearly in the wrong, so they didn’t fuss about it, though they were left humiliated. Later, Pei Xuanzhi even compensated Tian Yuan with a Youyi Cloud Robe, so all in all, Tian Yuan came out ahead. That’s why I didn’t dwell on it. But looking back now, it seems the Wang family has been plotting this for some time. They think just because they’ve established themselves in Borneo, they’re someone important. They actually believe they’re the top dog over there, huh?”

Madam Qi had spent too many years in Jianghu, so her speech had a mix of street slang. Fortunately, Li Qingnu dealt with all kinds of people regularly and had no trouble understanding her.

Li Qingnu said, “If it really was the Wang family, then their intentions are truly sinister. They pulled strings to make the Li family and the Heavenly Court act as intermediaries. So even if their scheme was exposed, it would just look like the Li family was picking on Tian Yuan. The Li family already has plenty of enemies, so what’s one more? If Tian Yuan strikes back and clashes with the Li family, the Wang family can just sit on the sidelines and watch the show.”

Madam Qi let out a cold snort. “That’s just the extent of their ambition. They’re stranded overseas, far from Jade Capital, so they’re naturally narrow-minded since they’re used to playing tyrant in their own backyard. From what I’ve heard, this mess started because the Wang family was in the wrong. Yet they insist on kicking up a fuss and flexing their muscles. Is it because they think they can bully a widow and an orphan like us?”

Li Qingnu could not help but choke from trying to stifle a laugh. She thought to herself, Madam Qi’s remarks are getting more and more exaggerated, trying to act as if she’s a helpless widow who only gets bullied by others... I’ve certainly never seen a widow daring to bargain with Sage Cihang or slam the table in front of Sage Donghua. Though they are technically a widow and an orphan, one is a Pseudo-Immortal and the other is a third-rank Deputy Hall Master. This mother-son pair is anything but weak!

Still, Li Qingnu understood that this was just Madam Qi’s habitual way of occupying the moral high ground so she could maneuver freely afterward.

As for the altercation with the Wang family, Li Qingnu did not know the full details, like how Sage Donghua had compensated Qi Xuansu. But she had heard some rumors. “From what I heard, the whole thing started over jealousy. Apparently, Wang Danqing fancied my future sister-in-law, which is why he picked a fight with Tian Yuan. But he was weak and ended up at a loss.”

Madam Qi scoffed. “What sister-in-law? Nothing’s set in stone yet.”

Li Qingnu laughed. “Tian Yuan has already met the Heavenly Preceptor and visited the Dazhen Mansion twice. You even personally met with Sage Cihang. How is this not considered set? I’d say it’s nailed down.”

Madam Qi snorted. “I’m annoyed now that you’ve brought this up. Su Yuanyi isn’t an easy character. She’s a calculating fox. She wants me to be the one setting the stage for her. Hah! In her dreams! Just wait and see—there’s still plenty of scheming to come. Also, that Zhang girl isn’t any better. Tian Yuan’s been under her influence lately and hasn’t even been listening to me!”

Li Qingnu chuckled. “I think Miss Zhang is secondary. The main thing is Tian Yuan’s wings have grown strong. He wants to fly out from under his mother’s shelter.”

Madam Qi waved her hand, unwilling to continue the topic. “Ugh, let’s not talk about this and get back to the main topic. Based on the timeline, Tian Yuan met with the Heavenly Preceptor right after leaving Ziwei Hall. At that time, the Heavenly Preceptor had already suppressed the issue. The girl’s false accusation happened before Tian Yuan’s conflict with Wang Danqing. That means the Wang family’s scheme came first, and the direct conflict happened later. It wasn’t a spur-of-the-moment thing. What are your thoughts?”

Li Qingnu immediately understood that this was a test from Madam Qi. She put away her smile and responded seriously, “According to the law, any soul-searching done without authorization can’t be used as evidence. Plus, the trail goes cold in Nanyang. We don’t have solid proof that the Wang family is behind this, so we can’t make this public. The only thing we can do is return the favor in private.”

Madam Qi nodded in approval. “Go on.”

Li Qingnu continued, “The Wang family tried to use the Li family as a cover, so let’s use a borrowed knife to kill. We can leak this matter to the Li family and hint that the Quanzhen Sect is planning revenge on them. Normally, the Li family might not react much, but right now, it’s a critical moment for them. Li Changge is under investigation due to Zhang Juquan’s suicide, and Yao Pei has him firmly in her grasp. If the Quanzhen Sect wants revenge, Li Changge would be their first target, and the Li family won’t accept that. Plus, with the current war in Fenglin raging, their top priority is ensuring victory. Everything else is secondary. So they’ll definitely want to thoroughly investigate this and resolve the misunderstanding quickly.

“Once the Li family finds out the Wang family is behind this, they won’t just let the Wangs walk away unscathed because it’ll set a bad precedent for future offenders. So someone needs to be made an example of. The Quanzhen Sect won’t protect the Wang family either. After all, the Wang family was trying to target their own in the first place.”

Madam Qi nodded again. “Very good, let’s proceed then. I’ll handle matters on the Quanzhen Sect’s and Yao Pei’s end. As for leaking the information to the Li family, that’s your job. Be careful, though. Make it look completely incidental, as if someone found out by accident. Don’t expose yourself.”

Li Qingnu obliged.