A Pawn's Passage

Madam Qi suddenly remembered something. “By the way, Sun Yongfeng is somewhat like me in the way that we both like shiny stuff. Quite vulgar, I know. But you get it, right?”

Qi Xuansu immediately grasped the implication behind Madam Qi’s words and hesitated. “But this isn’t appropriate. It’ll encourage bad behavior.”

Unexpectedly, Madam Qi did not argue with Qi Xuansu as he had anticipated. Instead, she nodded in agreement. “Indeed, the Daoist community has repeatedly emphasized the need to eradicate such behavior.”

Qi Xuansu also nodded. “That’s right.”

Madam Qi shrugged. “Anyway, it’s not like I want to get into Tiangang Hall. I don’t want to progress further either, so you have to handle this yourself. If there’s nothing else, let’s end the conversation here. I still have a few accounts to settle.”

"Don’t worry, Madam Qi.” Qi Xuansu hastily added, “I was just joking.”

Madam Qi chuckled. “It’s alright. I was just joking too.”

Qi Xuansu was completely helpless against Madam Qi.

Madam Qi then assumed the demeanor of an elder and spoke solemnly. “Tian Yuan, heroes sometimes end up with tragic deaths while the bad guys get rewarded. We are all insignificant individuals who can’t change the world or go against the status quo. We can only struggle to stay alive and go with the flow.

"You can only help others when you are rich. When you are poor, help yourself first. What you need to consider now is not helping the world, but yourself. Got it?”

"Yes,” Qi Xuansu obediently replied. “I understand.”

A smile reappeared on Madam Qi’s face. “Great. When you go, bring 200 Taiping coins with you, preferably in the form of cash notes. Coins are too conspicuous and will attract unnecessary trouble.”

Qi Xuansu asked, "Madam Qi, should I pay for the 200 Taiping coins myself? Or will it be reimbursed by the Qingping Society?”

Madam Qi stared straight at Qi Xuansu as if she did not hear him.

Qi Xuansu looked around and saw that no one was paying attention to him, so he raised his voice slightly and repeated his question.

Madam Qi looked puzzled and spoke to herself. “Hello? Hello? Tian Yuan, can you hear me? Why can’t I hear you talking? Is the time for the formation over? Or is there a quality issue with the mother-child talisman? Ugh! I knew that cheap things couldn’t be good. You should’ve bought a few good-quality ones since it’s the Society’s money anyway.”

Qi Xuansu watched as the mother-child Talisman in his hand slowly turned to ashes, and Madam Qi’s figure disappeared with the flames. He sighed helplessly.

The wind grew colder. Everything seemed chilly because his heart was cold.

Qi Xuansu had no choice but to take out two large notes from his chest pocket and put them into his sleeve pocket. Then, braving the wind and snow, he headed toward the distant Jade Capital.

This was how the three large cash notes that Qi Xuansu had just acquired were used. He still had 100 Taiping coins, one medium note, four small notes, ten loose notes, and some loose change in silver.

In fact, Qi Xuansu had some savings, but he traveled often and constantly put his life at risk. He could not risk other people benefiting from his money if something were to happen to him one day.

So, he exchanged his savings for Wuyou coins, which held their value better and did not have a time limit like cash notes, then gave them to Madam Qi for safekeeping. If he met with an accident one day, he wanted Madam Qi to use this money to buy him a decent coffin and keep the remainder for her old age.

Although Madam Qi was a moneygrubber, she had principles, so Qi Xuansu trusted her.

Qi Xuansu walked along the smooth road paved with white marble, heading toward the city that was obviously not built by human hands.

Although Jade Capital was far away, Qi Xuansu could vaguely see the outline of the city through the wind and snow. It was surrounded by colorful and auspicious clouds that intermittently blocked the view of the city.

The city was built against the mountains, so the deeper one went into the inner city, the higher the terrain was, with no obstruction from the city walls.

As Qi Xuansu got closer, he could see countless palaces on the mountainside, layer upon layer.

Deep within the city, there was a tower that pierced through the clouds, called the 33 Heavens by the Daoist community. The part covered by clouds was said to be the legendary Ascension Platform, where the previous Grand Master ascended to immortality.

Even if placed on a vast plain, such a majestic city would be difficult to build, let alone on the peak of the Kunlun Mountains. According to the Daoist records, this city was indeed not built by humans. Instead, it was left behind by the Primordial Daoist Ancestor after the Daoist Order, led by the Holy Xuan, defeated the Confucian School and became the orthodox government in the world. Apparently, this city appeared out of thin air.

Qi Xuansu did not quite believe this explanation and considered it a myth created by later generations to glorify the Holy Xuan.

However, he dared not voice this thought and kept it in his heart because he did not want to cause any trouble.

Soon, Qi Xuansu arrived at the moat in front of the Jade Capital.

This moat was called the Taixu River. It was difficult to imagine how the Daoist disciples dug up this moat on the top of the mountain. Some parts of the moat had even separated from the mountain and were suspended mid-air, resembling a silver river flowing endlessly. This scene alone was enough to convince a newcomer to the Jade Capital that they had entered a fairyland.

After crossing the Taixu Bridge, which was wide enough for eight horses to walk side by side, he arrived at the gate of the Jade Capital. There were armored Spirit Guards stationed there, responsible for checking the visitors’ credentials.

This was not a difficult task since Qi Xuansu’s identity as a Daoist disciple was genuine. As long as his Qingping Society identity was kept a secret, nothing would happen to him.

After checking Qi Xuansu’s credentials, the Spirit Guard let him pass.

The Jade Capital was surrounded by a formation so that it was like spring all year round. After entering the city, Qi Xuansu felt relieved and comfortable that he no longer had to endure the biting cold.

Although Qi Xuansu had been to the Jade Capital before, it was a long time ago. At that time, he had just left the Wanxiang Daoist Palace and was noticed by his master during the three-year assessment period. Qi Xuansu and his master lived in the Jade Capital for a while until his master was killed. After that, Qi Xuansu left the Jade Capital, so he had limited knowledge about this city.

The structure of Jade Capital and Xuan City was like an upside-down “T.”

The uppermost area was where Xuan City was located, with the highest terrain. The lower half was the Jade Capital, with lower terrain.

Xuan City was shaped like a small square within a larger square. The small inner square was the Purple Mansion.

Qi Xuansu had never been to Xuan City or the Purple Mansion, so he did not know much about them. However, he was familiar with the Jade Capital. Unlike the complex roads of Xuan City and the Purple Mansion, Jade Capital’s layout was very simple, adopting the layout of ancient city blocks that resembled a chessboard.

He remembered that there were a total of 24 blocks, each named after the Great Daoist Ancestors, such as Elder Chongyang, Elder Chunyang, Elder Chongxu, and so on. Previously, Qi Xuansu and his master lived in Haichan Place, which was relatively low in ranking among the 24 blocks. It was considered part of the Lower Eight Blocks.

Qi Xuansu was going to Nanhua Place, which was named after Daoist Master Nanhua. It ranked among the top in the 24 blocks, second only to the top-ranked Taishang Place, and was on par with Haotian Place.

These three blocks, along with Xuanyuan Place, Guangcheng Place, Chongxu Place, Tongxuan Place, and Dongling Place, were collectively known as the Upper Eight Blocks, where many Sages bought properties for occasional stays.

Qi Xuansu walked slowly along the road leading north to south through the entire Jade Capital.

This north-south main road was called Shangqing Street, and there was also an east-west main road called Yuqing Street. Together, they formed a cross, dividing the Jade Capital into four equal parts comprising six blocks each. The cross’s intersection was a huge market square called Taiqing Market, or Taiqing Square.

The Nanhua Place that Qi Xuansu was heading to was located northwest of Taiqing Square.

At this moment, Qi Xuansu was at the south end of Shangqing Street. From there, it was about 10 kilometers to Nanhua Place.

Just then, a crisp sound of bronze bells rang out. A goat cart passed by Qi Xuansu and gradually slowed down to walk side by side with him.

There were no horse-drawn carriages in Jade Capital, only goat carts, deer carts, and ox carts, which corresponded to the three levels of cultivation. Among them, goat carts were the lowest level and could be used by Daoist believers, children, and ordinary Daoist disciples. Moreover, the goats used for pulling carts were very peculiar, big, and strong. The combined strength of two goats was equivalent to that of an ordinary horse.

The coachman was an ordinary Daoist believer, sitting about 30 centimeters off the ground on the cart shaft. He asked, “Sir, do you need a ride? It costs 10 Ruyi coins per 500 meters.”

"Send me to Nanhua Place.” Qi Xuansu stopped and took out two small silver coins from his bag.

As the most widely used currency, Taiping coins had a total of three sizes. The default, most commonly mentioned Taiping coin was the big silver coin, worth one yuan. In addition to this, there were medium coins and small coins. All three had the same Taiping engravings, but the medium and small coins were much smaller and thinner, with much less silver content compared to the big coin.

In terms of value, the medium Taiping coin was worth half a yuan. The small Taiping coin was worth one-tenth of a yuan.

Ruyi coins were made of 95 percent red copper, 4 percent lead, and 1 percent tin. The exchange rate was 1,000 Ruyi coins for one big Taiping coin, 500 Ruyi coins for a medium Taiping coin, and 100 Ruyi coins for a small Taiping coin.

Ten Ruyi coins per half a kilometer meant that ten kilometers would cost 200 Ruyi coins, which was equivalent to two small Taiping coins.

The coachman stopped the cart to take the money and invited him in. “Please get on the cart, sir.”

The structure of this goat cart was not much different from that of a horse-drawn carriage, with two big wheels and a square carriage. The windows and door had curtains for privacy. There were also four-wheeled carts in Jade Capital, but they were more expensive. For someone like Qi Xuansu, who was traveling alone, a two-wheeled cart was more cost-effective.

Qi Xuansu got on the goat cart and put down the curtains.

Jade Capital was a good city, but it lacked the liveliness and warmth of a normal city. It felt cold and impersonal.

Qi Xuansu was getting more and more curious about Madam Qi’s identity. A long time ago, he had asked Madam Qi about her past, but she had always avoided the topic. Qi Xuansu stopped pursuing it. But Madam Qi mentioned that she was quite familiar with the Jade Capital, so perhaps she had lived in the Jade Capital for some time.

Could Madam Qi also be a member of the Daoist Order?

If so, what was Madam Qi’s status in the Daoist Order? Judging from the occasional display of her cultivation level and her familiarity with various halls of the Daoist Order, Qi Xuansu guessed that she definitely had a higher rank than he did. Perhaps she was a fifth-rank Daoist priest or even a fourth-rank Jijiu Daoist master.

If Madam Qi was not a Daoist priest, then she could have been one in the past. What reasons made her leave such a stable order?

Qi Xuansu thought about these things as the goat cart moved steadily. After nearly half an hour, he could see Nanhua Place in the distance.