A Pawn's Passage-Chapter 682: Reinstatement

After Madam Qi left, Qi Xuansu removed the bronze mask from his face but kept wearing the White Fox Mask as he returned to the inner city alone.

It was only today that he learned Sage Cihang’s real name was Su Yuanyi. After all, “Sage Cihang” was a title passed down through generations. If all went as expected, Zhang Yuelu would become the next Sage Cihang, and over time, people would forget her original name. This was even more so for the Grand Master. Since there could only be one at a time, there was no need to include names. Future historical records would refer to them simply as the Grand Master of a certain generation.

Among the six top figures of the Daoist Order, Qi Xuansu already knew the names of the Heavenly Preceptor, the Imperial Preceptor, Sage Donghua, and Sage Cihang. He still did not know the names of the Earthly Preceptor and Sage Qingwei. Sage Qingwei was so mysterious that to Qi Xuansu, his presence felt even fainter than Li Changge or Li Tianzhen.

Sage Qingwei should belong to the You-generation of the Li family. But then again, he might not follow the generational naming pattern at all, which was also a tradition in the Li family. For instance, the Holy Xuan, Donghuang, as well as Li Ruoshui and Li Qingnu, all lacked generational names. It just depended on the personal preference of whoever named them.

Qi Xuansu had not given the end of the era much thought. The reason was simple. If the sky were to fall, there were taller people to hold it up. Even if he wanted to be a pillar supporting the heavens, he simply was not qualified. So it was better to let the Daoist bigwigs like Sage Donghua worry about such matters. All he had to do was follow their orders.

Qi Xuansu returned to the main branch of the Taiping Inn in the Imperial Capital. He tidied himself, removed all disguises, and entered a meditative state in place of sleep.

After becoming a Heavenly Being, one rarely needed to sleep, perhaps once every ten days. Most of the time, meditation, inner cultivation, qi refinement, and introspection replaced rest. This gave Heavenly Beings ample energy and time for political maneuvering and official duties by day and cultivation and training by night without compromising either.

A typical closed-door meditation was usually for studying or practicing a specific technique. For instance, Qi Xuansu trained in the Demonic Blade, which was not tied to cultivation level. Even after mastering it, his realm would not change. Alternatively, he could use fast-track methods such as merging with a Xuan Jade or taking a Blood Pill.

Such cultivation was essential but painfully slow. If Qi Xuansu could not obtain more Xuan Jades and relied solely on effort, he would only reach the Wuliang stage sometime after 35. He might hope to enter the Zaohua stage around 50 and the Pseudo-Immortal stage after 60.

There was no helping it. The Cicada Shedding Realm was just a minor transformation, barely giving him the qualifications of a Banished Immortal. Compared to the true prodigies, the gap remained huge. It was said that Donghuang became a Heavenly Being by 20. At Qi Xuansu’s current age, Donghuang had already reached the Zaohua stage, and he did it without relying on any elixirs or external aids.

Thus, Qi Xuansu believed that if he was to rise above the rest, he would still have to rely on the Xuan Jade.

After daybreak, Qi Xuansu got himself ready and returned to Haosheng Southeast District. He did not know how Zhang Yuelu was teaming up with Yao Pei to go against Li Changge in their contest of wits and power, but it would likely come down to Qian Xiangyun in the end.

At that moment, Qi Xuansu encountered Han Yongshuang, the special envoy from the Golden Tower Council.

A special envoy was not an official position. Han Yongshuang was also an eighth-generation disciple and a fourth-rank Jijiu Daoist master, so Qi Xuansu addressed her as an equal. “Daoist Han.”

“Congratulations, Superintendent Qi,” Han Yongshuang said with a faint smile. Without unnecessary words, she handed a document to Qi Xuansu.

Qi Xuansu accepted it with both hands, then heard Han Yongshuang continue, “This is the reply just transmitted from the Golden Tower Council via the rapid post talisman, approving your reinstatement. You may continue your duties as the Superintendent of the Imperial Capital Daoist Mansion.”

“Thank you, Daoist Han,” Qi Xuansu said in gratitude.

After Han Yongshuang left, Qi Xuansu read through the entire document again. Most of it was standard bureaucratic jargon, with only the final paragraph being of real importance. In summary, Qi Xuansu was innocent, trustworthy, and thoroughly tested. Thus, his reinstatement was approved.

Since his reinstatement was confirmed, he should now pay a formal visit to his superior, Shi Bingyun.

Qi Xuansu returned to his room, changed out of his regular robes into the formal attire of a fourth-rank Jijiu Daoist master, and departed for the Yuhuang Palace in Xuanshang North District.

When Qi Xuansu arrived at the gates of the Yuhuang Palace, he did not encounter any obstruction, mockery, malice, or contempt from opportunistic onlookers.

After all, there were no fools within the Imperial Capital Daoist Mansion, only shrewd minds. Ever since the investigative team arrived in the Capital, it was clear that the political winds had shifted. If Qi Xuansu were truly to be punished severely, would Deputy Hall Master Zhang have been sent to handle the case? So when they saw Qi Xuansu in formal attire standing outside the Yuhuang Palace, even without official word from the Golden Tower Council, they could more or less guess the outcome.

The Daoist priests and Spirit Guards all came forward to offer congratulations, celebrating Qi Xuansu for clearing his name and returning to office.

Some even went a step further to curry favor with him.

Everyone knew that Deputy Mansion Master Qian had recently run into some trouble. Whether she could keep her post was still uncertain. After all, while changes in a Daoist’s rank were taken very seriously, official appointments were much more fluid. If Deputy Mansion Master Qian were to lose her position, who would fill the vacancy? The answer seemed self-evident.

As a result, the gazes directed at Qi Xuansu grew increasingly fervent.

Qi Xuansu returned each greeting with a cupped-hand salute and entered Yuhuang Palace amidst a chorus of congratulations.

At that moment, Li Changge was in Li Ruoshui’s office, watching the scene outside the palace gates from above through the window. He gently tapped the window frame with his fingers and smiled. “The human heart flows like water, and the people’s will drifts like smoke.”

Although Li Ruoshui was of a lower generational rank than Li Changge within the family, she ranked higher in the Daoist hierarchy. As a result, the two disregarded seniority and treated each other as equals in their interactions.

Li Ruoshui said, “Local Daoist mansions are different from Jade Capital. Even as the Mansion Master, the scope of one’s authority is plainly set. There are policies from above and countermeasures below. Most subordinates have been rooted here for decades, so they’re all tightly knit and unified. It won’t be easy to assert your authority. That’s why we often have to go with the flow and act in harmony with the people’s will.”

Li Changge said nothing and simply looked out the window.

Li Ruoshui continued, “To put it plainly, it means enticing them with benefits and distributing those benefits among the crowd. After all, the world revolves around profit, and people are driven by gain.”

Li Changge remarked, “Jade Capital understands this all too well, which is why it seeks to replace more than half the personnel in the Imperial Capital Daoist Mansion.”

Li Ruoshui nodded. “If you don’t share benefits, then you must display unpredictable power—play political games and implement divide-and-conquer strategies. But really, what’s the point of dividing them? The ones above have already done that for us. Who belongs to whom is practically set in stone.”

Li Changge withdrew his gaze. “Daoist Qi has been reinstated.”

“As expected. After all, the key witness, Monk Yan Xiu, is dead. He was asking for it since he dared to meddle in Daoist affairs as an outsider,” Li Ruoshui said expressionlessly.

“I’m going to meet with Deputy Hall Master Zhang and Deputy Palace Master Yao to discuss the matter concerning Deputy Mansion Master Qian.” Li Changge turned to leave.

Li Ruoshui did not try to stop him and simply asked, “Do you need me to do anything?”

“If it’s not too troublesome, please assign some proper tasks to Daoist Qi. It might be best to let him continue reforming the public morality of the Imperial Capital. He’s familiar with it, well-practiced, and has achieved good results. Leave the matters that involve the Imperial Court to us.” Li Changge suggested.

Li Ruoshui smiled faintly. “Of course it’s no trouble.”

Li Changge left the office.

Li Ruoshui called in her secretary and instructed, “Have Deputy Mansion Master Shi and Superintendent Qi come over in half an hour.”

“Yes, Mansion Master,” the secretary acknowledged her and retreated to carry out the order.

Qi Xuansu first returned to his own office, where Ke Qingqing and Wang Chongnian, who had been handling his responsibilities during this time, offered him another round of congratulations.

Qi Xuansu joked, “Old Wang, you’re not mad that I came back too soon and didn’t let you enjoy your fill of being a Superintendent, are you?”

Wang Chongnian gave a bitter smile. “Our days weren’t easy with you gone. All of us were hoping you’d return soon, Superintendent Qi.”

Qi Xuansu smiled back. “Notify the Spirit Guards that I’m going to meet with Deputy Mansion Master Shi.”

Both acknowledged the order.

Qi Xuansu’s office was separated from Shi Bingyun’s by an artificial hill. He just had to cross it to get there.

Today, Shi Bingyun had not gone out and was reading in her office. Upon hearing that Superintendent Qi had requested an audience, she was not particularly surprised and simply allowed him to enter.

“Sage Shi,” Qi Xuansu greeted with a bow.

“Sit.” Shi Bingyun placed the Extensive Records of the Taiping Era on her desk and pointed to the chair across from her.

Qi Xuansu did not stand on ceremony and sat down directly.

Shi Bingyun said, “I’ve already heard the news about your reinstatement and the matter with Monk Yan Xiu. Is there anything you’d like to tell me?”

Qi Xuansu paused for a moment before saying, “Last night, there was a violent clash in South City. I wonder if you’re aware of it, Sage Shi.”

Shi Bingyun glanced at him. “Of course I’m aware. Both sides deployed over ten Heavenly Beings, so it’s hard not to notice. But by the time our people and the Tianchen Division arrived, both parties had already retreated, leaving only corpses behind. Since it was just secret societies tearing each other apart, and they did not cause too much collateral damage, the Daoist Mansion decided to handle it quietly.”

Qi Xuansu admitted, “I happened to be in South City last night.”

“‘Happened to,’ huh?” Shi Bingyun chuckled, clearly unconvinced. “Were you sneaking around the capital again behind Qing Xiao and the Yao girl’s backs?”

“Well, it wouldn’t be impossible.” Qi Xuansu bore Madam Qi’s attitude, not caring if Shi Bingyun believed him or not. Besides, Madam Qi had said that if the story did not hold up, Yao Pei could help smooth things over.

He continued, “I saw someone fleeing toward the outskirts of the Imperial Capital, seemingly wounded. So I followed, hoping to profit from it by dealing the last blow, maybe snag a Heaven merit for free. But to my surprise, that person ended up going all the way to Wuxing Mountain.”

“Wuxing Mountain?” Shi Bingyun’s expression instantly turned solemn.

Qi Xuansu gave a rough account of what he had seen the night before. “From what I could tell, it was most likely a permanent Yin-Yang Gate. Sneaking inside would be extremely difficult.”

Shi Bingyun nodded and praised, “Your insight is impressive with solid theories. That was indeed a permanent Yin-Yang Gate. This is a major discovery, and I’ll make sure you receive merit for it.”

Qi Xuansu silently thanked Madam Qi in his heart.

Just then, Shi Bingyun’s secretary arrived to report, “Deputy Mansion Master, the Mansion Master has requested your presence along with Superintendent Qi.”