A Pawn's Passage

Chapter 1426: Cheng Lixue

During the banquet, Qi Xuansu naturally took the main seat at the head table. If he did not sit there, no one else would dare to, so he did not bother declining. Cheng Lixue and Mo Qingdi sat to his left and right.

Cheng Lixue had made considerable effort recently. Though he did not interact much with Qi Xuansu, he maintained a good relationship with Chen Jianchou.

Chen Jianchou could read the situation well. Since Qi Xuansu did not dislike Cheng Lixue and acknowledged him as a classmate, Chen Jianchou would not shut him out either.

This time, Qi Xuansu did not bring Chen Jianchou along, leaving him in Jade Capital to manage affairs. As a result, Cheng Lixue naturally stepped in to act like a secretary.

At the banquet, everyone came forward to toast Qi Xuansu. They would down their drinks, but they would never force him to drink. Aside from his high status, his alcohol tolerance was well known. Without using cultivation to resist the effects, he could drain a whole jar of Dreaming Death and still stand steady, something only a few could manage.

Even so, Cheng Lixue still helped him to deflect drinks. Whether Qi Xuansu needed it was one thing, but showing the gesture mattered.

Compared to Cheng Lixue’s social finesse, Mo Qingdi was awkward and stiff. Even when people toasted him out of courtesy toward Qi Xuansu, he struggled, switching from baijiu to yellow rice wine, then to red wine, barely keeping up. In the end, Qi Xuansu had to help him out with a few words to ease the situation.

As the banquet reached its halfway point, Qi Xuansu and Cheng Lixue remained clear-headed, while Mo Qingdi was practically sliding under the table. Qi Xuansu did not mind and simply asked Shi Yu to escort him back to rest.

With the effects of alcohol, people grew less restrained and began opening up, sharing the hardships they had endured over the years.

Some felt underpaid while taking on too many responsibilities.

Some had unbearable supervisors, and others had drunkards as husbands.

Some men also struggled with unvirtuous wives and unfilial children.

After venting their grievances, they looked toward Qi Xuansu with a certain expectation in their eyes.

Qi Xuansu simply listened, offering no response.

Relieving suffering and hardship was a task that could never truly be finished.

Moreover, Qi Xuansu could only help in emergencies, not in enduring poverty. If a classmate faced life-or-death danger, he would not hesitate to lend a hand. But beyond that, he would refrain.

Still, Qi Xuansu could not help but feel a trace of regret.

At this point, no one could jump out to mock him anymore. According to the typical storylines Mo Qingdi would write, his classmates should have been unaware of his current status, looking down on him and mocking him, until he revealed his identity and shocked them into awe and unease. The female classmates who once overlooked him would then feel regret and complicated emotions. Only then would he feel satisfied and vindicated for finally releasing the frustrations in his heart.

But now, there was no such opportunity. These classmates were far too shrewd to give him one.

Cheng Lixue was perceptive. Seeing that Qi Xuansu did not want to deal with such matters, he stepped in to handle them on his behalf.

Acting as the bad guy among classmates did not matter, as none of them could do anything to him. Some might even seek his help. What mattered was appearing dependable in front of Qi Xuansu.

He did not hope for much. All he wanted was the chance to step in as Qi Xuansu’s secretary if one day Chen Jianchou was reassigned.

In fact, Qi Xuansu had already considered reassigning Chen Jianchou. It was not due to any shortcomings but because keeping Chen Jianchou by his side was a waste of talent. Chen Jianchou was crucial for managing Nanyang, and Zhang Yuelu would eventually leave as well. If Qi Xuansu were to rise like the fifth-generation Grand Master and one day preside over Zixiao Palace, Chen Jianchou might turn into another Wang Jiaohe.

Qi Xuansu was already thinking about his power base. If one day the Daoist Order fractured and rival factions rose, his true strength would not be titles or status but Nanyang. No matter how high he climbed in the Golden Tower Council, Nanyang would remain his foundation. It was something he must hold onto at all costs.

As for Cheng Lixue, Qi Xuansu had a favorable impression of him. He was capable, even if his character had some flaws. After all, no one was perfect. Qi Xuansu himself was not a saint, so he would not demand perfection from his subordinates either.

At tonight’s gathering, Cheng Lixue served Qi Xuansu exceptionally well, understanding his thoughts, anticipating his needs, and acting ahead of time. The moment Qi Xuansu lifted a hand, Cheng Lixue already knew what he intended and had prepared accordingly.

He was following behind, yet thinking ahead.

Such attentiveness required immense mental and physical energy. It might not be exhausting for a day, but over a year, or ten years, it would wear anyone down. Most people simply could not sustain it.

So, setting aside romantic or emotional factors, men often understood how to serve other men best, though most never had the chance to experience it. Women, on the other hand, often relied on emotional connection and affection rather than pure attentiveness to win favor.

As such, there was no reason for Qi Xuansu to dislike an attentive person like Cheng Lixue.

He did not mind giving Cheng Lixue an opportunity and deliberately entrusted him with a task.

Some people did not hold high status, but some insisted on making others believe they were important figures. So some people like to boast about their “special” relationships with influential figures, dropping big names until others assume they were close. When in reality, they might only be casual acquaintances.

Qi Xuansu would undoubtedly be used by certain classmates in this way to elevate their own status. But he did not want anyone using his name to deceive others or gain advantage. Thus, he instructed Cheng Lixue to handle it.

As for how Cheng Lixue dealt with it, Qi Xuansu would not interfere. He only cared about the outcome.

Cheng Lixue readily agreed.

Secretaries typically handled matters like this. It also served as a test. If Cheng Lixue handled it well, Qi Xuansu would consider entrusting him further.

Since Mo Qingdi and Shi Yu had left early, Song Yu naturally took the seat beside Qi Xuansu.

Qi Xuansu did not have much personal feelings toward this senior sister. But he now found himself inclined to guide her back to a better path.

So he asked, “Senior Sister Song, what have you been doing lately?”

Song Yu quickly replied, “I dare not accept being called your senior sister, Tian Yuan.”

Song Yu’s response was reasonable, as everyone knew Qi Xuansu had just become Sage Donghua’s disciple, so his only official senior sister was Yao Pei.

Yet earlier, she had accepted it when Qi Xuansu addressed her like this in front of everyone.

The underlying intention was not hard to guess.

She then added, “Last year, I returned to the Daoist Palace and became a Silver-Green Instructor.”

Song Yu paused briefly, unable to show too much gratitude yet unable to hide the subtle, appreciative glance at Cheng Lixue. “I owe it to Brother Cheng for helping.”

Qi Xuansu nodded. “Oh, good. Compared to the outside world, the Daoist Palace is something of a sanctuary.”

At this point, Qi Xuansu thought of his former instructor, who had passed away long before he rose to prominence. Back then, Qi Xuansu was still traveling with Madam Qi and had no formal means of communication. By the time he received the news, the funeral was already over. He had not even made it in time for the seventh-day rites.

After asking a few more questions, he was surprised to find that Song Yu and Cheng Lixue had a fairly good relationship.

Conservatives tended to stay clean in romantic relationships, while the free-spirited had no such concerns.

Even without Zhang Yuelu in the picture, Qi Xuansu would not have accepted Song Yu.

Zhang Yuelu was the same. When Li Tianzhen pursued her, she rejected him outright, especially since he had entangled relationships with multiple women.

Madam Qi was also conservative at heart. Despite her bold words about keeping male companions, in reality she was similar to figures like Sage Cihang and Sage Donghua. This was common at the highest levels of the Daoist Order, as higher cultivation often diminished desire and increased restraint.

It was foreseeable that Little Yin would also grow up conservative. With so many such elders around, it would be strange otherwise. Moreover, Qi Xuansu and Zhang Yuelu certainly would not allow it.

Of course, Qi Xuansu did not interfere with how others chose to live.

After the banquet, everyone lingered, chatting casually.

Perhaps because Qi Xuansu’s reputation of being a devoted man was too solid, attempts to smear him through scandals with women were no longer convincing. So the rumors evolved. Now, people whispered that he did not like women at all but preferred men. Chen Jianchou’s rise was due to such a relationship.

In these rumors, Zhang Yuelu was once again painted as the pitiful wife, destined for a loveless life. Some even claimed she preferred women, suggesting that Qi Xuansu and Zhang Yuelu merely maintained a façade, covering for each other, which explained their delayed marriage.

Only Sage Donghua’s immense authority prevented people from fabricating similar rumors about him. Otherwise, they might even claim Qi Xuansu’s rise was tied to this. The same restraint applied to Sage Cihang.

As soon as Qi Xuansu sat down, it was all men.

Shi Yu was not present. Song Yu sat beside Cheng Lixue, while a few other female classmates kept their distance.

There was nothing inherently wrong with liking men, but Qi Xuansu genuinely had no such inclination.

He glanced at Cheng Lixue, as if wanting to say something but holding back.

Maybe next time, he should arrange for a few women to be present.

After all, swinging from one extreme to another was not ideal.

In the end, Qi Xuansu said to Cheng Lixue, “The Daoist Order values balance between yin and yang. Too much yin isn’t good, but too much yang isn’t sustainable either.”