A Pawn's Passage

After such a torrent of empty words, one could clearly see Xie Jiaofeng’s experience in bureaucratic bumble. He could slide past anything and would never answer directly, as slick as an eel.

However, Qi Xuansu insisted on forcing him to take a stance. How could he possibly allow Xie Jiaofeng to slip away so easily?

So Qi Xuansu said, “This time, I came to Lion City with 500 Spirit Guards. I originally planned to send 300 of them to bring those slave-traffickers back, but I worried that the daytime assassination attempt might repeat itself. It seems my head is still worth quite a few Taiping coins, enough to attract many people’s attention.”

Xie Jiaofeng originally wanted to say, “Chief Deputy Qi, you may rest assured, as the Tianfu Palace is absolutely safe.”

But just as the words reached his lips, he suddenly jolted awake. This was a promise he absolutely could not make, as it was akin to signing a military pledge. It would be fine if nothing happened, but should a second assassination occur, he would have to bear the full responsibility.

The first attack could still be excused as unexpected and unforeseeable, but a second attack would leave no justification at all. The Golden Tower Council might even add “failing to correct known faults” to his list of crimes.

Unlike the daytime incident, he also would not have Qin Hengjun to share the blame because Tianfu Palace was his turf, and the Black Robes could not even enter.

Cold sweat broke out all over Xie Jiaofeng’s body as he forcefully swallowed back the words he almost blurted out of habit. However, Qi Xuansu’s question still demanded an answer. The pressure Qi Xuansu was exuding as a superior could crush Xie Jiaofeng flat. Even though Xie Jiaofeng knew full well that Qi Xuansu was forcing him to take sides, he knew perfectly that this was a trap. But he still had no choice but to grit his teeth and jump into it. Between two harms, it was best to choose the lesser.

Thus, Xie Jiaofeng said, “Naturally, their duty comes first as Spirit Guards, since your safety is our priority, Chief Deputy. We must prevent an incident like today’s from happening again.”

He deliberately paused, then added in a tentative tone, “Perhaps...we could have the Tianfu Palace’s Spirit Guards provide support?”

Even now, Xie Jiaofeng was still doing everything possible to distance himself from liability, because he framed it as a request for instruction. The decision and responsibility would lie with Qi Xuansu now that the ball is in his court.

If Qi Xuansu agreed, and a second assassination took place, Xie Jiaofeng would have grounds to argue that he had sent his guards to apprehend the traffickers under the Chief Deputy’s orders, which was why Tianfu Palace was understaffed. Hence, he could not shoulder the full blame, and the one who issued the order must bear the main responsibility.

For Xie Jiaofeng to maintain a firm foothold in the Poluo Daoist Mansion under Wang Jiaohe’s rule as the fourth Deputy Mansion Master and to firmly occupy the critical post of Lion City, he was clearly capable.

Qi Xuansu’s goal was to force Xie Jiaofeng to declare his allegiance publicly, not to punish or entrap him. So he paid no mind to Xie Jiaofeng’s attempts to shift responsibility and simply said, “Very well. Have Superintendent Han and Superintendent Lu bring Tianfu Palace’s Spirit Guards over.”

Seeing that Qi Xuansu agreed, Xie Jiaofeng finally breathed a small sigh of relief. He did not dare linger and quickly made an excuse to gather the Spirit Guards. He took the chance to leave, fearing Qi Xuansu might pose yet another impossible problem.

To Xie Jiaofeng, he felt as if he had shot himself in the foot with this visit. He had barely salvaged anything and nearly trapped himself in the process.

Qi Xuansu summoned Han Yongfeng and Lu Yuting and gave them instructions.

Aside from giving them the exact location, the main point was to move quickly and covertly, giving the Nanyang United Trading Company no time to react. However, when escorting the prisoners back, speed was no longer important. Instead, they should create some noise and make sure everyone in Lion City learns that these arrests were carried out by the Spirit Guards of Tianfu Palace.

In this way, even if Xie Jiaofeng never verbally declared a stance, everyone would assume he had openly sided with Qi Xuansu and chosen to abandon Wang Jiaohe. Xie Jiaofeng could no longer slip his way out.

Having realized this earlier, Xie Jiaofeng showed reluctance and kept deflecting questions. But with Qi Xuansu grasping his weakness, he was still maneuvered into position.

After receiving their orders, Han Yongfeng and Lu Yuting led the Tianfu Palace Spirit Guards toward the warehouse without a moment’s delay.

Zhang Yuelu had no intention of revealing herself now. After all, showing up publicly would be of little use, as she was the Second Deputy of the Lingnan Daoist Mansion. She had no authority over Xie Jiaofeng and the others regardless of her high status. Even someone like Li Changge would face the same limitations. After all, procedures, systems, rules, and regulations were what maintained an organization and could not be openly broken.

The assassination attempt on Qi Xuansu was a violation of the rules. Burning down Zhenwu Temple was also a violation. However, since the mastermind had not been caught and there was no evidence, those acts did not count as open violations.

However, if caught, it would mean the end of their Daoist life at the very least. In the worst case, they would have to live on in another identity. But that would depend on their skill.

Now, Chen Shuhua, who openly violated the rules, had become a fugitive. Qi Xuansu and Wang Jiaohe were still fighting within the boundaries. Thus, it was not a matter of the two of them stepping out to duel to determine a winner. Rather, both sides were competing over matters involving the Nanyang United Trading Company.

Qi Xuansu would handle the matters in the open, so having Zhang Yuelu step out would add nothing. But by remaining hidden and leveraging the Ziguang Society, Zhang Yuelu could provide far greater assistance in the investigation.

Moreover, Qi Xuansu was already exposed, with countless eyes watching his every move. His presence alone was already a massive target. If Zhang Yuelu appeared beside him, the target would only become larger. Thus, it was better to let Qi Xuansu draw the fire so that Zhang Yuelu could operate more freely.

Early the next morning, all of Lion City had learned of some news.

The Tianfu Palace had raided a warehouse belonging to the Nanyang United Trading Company. They arrested 3 stewards and more than 50 private soldiers, and successfully rescued over 40 slaves of various origins.

It was a publicly acknowledged consensus that the Daoist Order strictly forbade slave trade because it was inhumane.

Thus, in a single night, Xie Jiaofeng was hailed across Lion City as “Justice Xie.”

Everyone said his allegiance to Chief Deputy Qi was not just lip service. He acted decisively and immediately, not even waiting a full night.

More importantly, the conflict between Sage Qi and Sage Wang was no secret. Deputy Mansion Master Xie had now pointed his spear straight at Wang Jiaohe.

Xie Jiaofeng knew his own hardship, yet had no way to voice it.

But then, he thought again, Since I’m already on this pirate ship with no way to turn back, my only option is to charge ahead to the bitter end. I have to go all out to destroy Sage Wang and let Sage Qi win. I’m not losing out. At the very least, I’d get some merit.

Once he thought of this, Xie Jiaofeng became energized. Without waiting for Qi Xuansu’s orders, he proactively sent people to summon senior managers of the Nanyang United Trading Company, demanding they give an explanation. If they failed to provide a reasonable explanation, then they should not blame the Daoist Mansion for being ruthless. Arrests would be made according to the law, even including shareholders of the company.

This was exactly what Qi Xuansu wanted. After such a chain of actions, regardless of what Xie Jiaofeng truly thought or whether he would bear grudges later, Xie Jiaofeng was now aligned with Qi Xuansu in pace and direction.

Meanwhile, Qi Xuansu instructed Han Yongfeng to begin interrogating Steward Gao, Steward Sun, and Steward Chen, intending to break through from these three and obtain solid evidence.

In this kind of evenly matched struggle, many people remained on the fence. Whoever gained a significant advantage first could win the support of this neutral faction. That advantage could then transform into dominance. But if the situation remained deadlocked, with neither able to overpower the other, the outcome would likely be mutual compromise.

Among the neutral faction, Qi Xuansu placed great importance on the Taiping Bank, or Manager Hu, to be exact.

Manager Hu’s name was Hu Songting. His ancestors were from Luzhou and were anti-piracy ministers of the former dynasty. Sage Cihang was from Jiangzhou, just one river apart from Luzhou. In both the former dynasty and the current one, Luzhou, Jiangzhou, and Wuzhou all fell under the jurisdiction of the Jiangnan Governor. Thus, in this aspect, Hu Songting and Sage Cihang were essentially from the same hometown.

For this reason, Qi Xuansu had used Sage Cihang’s painting during his previous visit to secure Hu Songting’s support. Hu Songting accepted the painting and even led Qi Xuansu into the main vault of the Taiping Bank’s Nanyang headquarters.

Unfortunately, the sudden upheaval in Thanglong Prefecture forced Qi Xuansu to abandon the effort halfway, hurrying back and leaving the plan unfinished.

Now that Qi Xuansu had returned to Lion City, he naturally intended to finish what he had started.

After all, Qi Xuansu did not wish to attack from a single angle. He wanted multiple points of advance—investigating the slave trade and the accounts.

Many of the Nanyang United Trading Company’s finances flowed through the Taiping Bank. So if he could find a breakthrough point from the Taiping Bank, he would essentially grasp half of the company’s fatal weakness.

Thus, Qi Xuansu visited Hu Songting’s residence once more. This time, he brought three companions—Chen Jianchou, Little Yin, and Spirit Guard Jia Yin.

Earlier, Spirit Guard Jia Yin felt that having him serve as Qi Xuansu’s temporary guard was excessive. After all, who in their right mind would dare attempt assassination except Chen Shuhua? Now that Chen Shuhua was forced to hide, she certainly could not kill Qi Xuansu. Yet he could never have imagined someone would actually dare attempt an assassination in Lion City, under countless watchful eyes. If not for that little girl beside Qi Xuansu, Qi Xuansu would have been gravely injured even if he had survived the blast.

So, after Spirit Guard Jia Yin heard news of Qi Xuansu’s assassination attempt, he no longer cared about the many affairs of the Old Port Pacification Commission Office. He hastily delegated matters to his deputy and immediately rushed to Lion City.

This was precisely why the assassins acted with such urgency. They knew that Qi Xuansu was in his most vulnerable moment, with his cultivation gravely damaged and Spirit Guard Jia Yin not yet by his side. Once Spirit Guard Jia Yin arrived, they would no longer have any good opportunities.

After Spirit Guard Jia Yin arrived, the one who felt most relieved was not Qi Xuansu, but Xie Jiaofeng. He could finally breathe a sigh of relief.

Now, Xie Jiaofeng knew he had no way to turn back. Whether or not someone attempted another assassination on Qi Xuansu, Xie Jiaofeng could only walk this single road to the very end.