A Pawn's Passage

Qi Xuansu and Liu Hu had just arrived in front of the city gate when they saw many standing cages in the open space not far away, each with a prisoner restrained inside.

The prisoner’s head, with a metal collar clamped around the neck, protruded from the circular opening at the top of the standing cage. Their hands were shackled on either side of their necks. A gag was forced into their mouths, with ropes tied tightly behind their heads to secure it in place.

Many Green Phoenix Guards were standing around the cages, armed with sabers, guns, and crossbows.

An excited crowd had gathered around.

From time to time, the Green Phoenix Guard would push the crowd back behind the designated line. The people in the front row would retreat, but there were just too many people behind them, so the crowd continued to surge forward.

Watching public executions was a custom that had been passed down for thousands of years.

There was even a temporary wooden platform built to supervise the execution.

According to the rules of the previous dynasty, civil officials were always responsible for supervising executions. However, the Great Xuan Dynasty handed this responsibility to the Green Phoenix Guard.

The person in charge of the execution this time was a Green Phoenix Guard major. He stood with a saber in hand, his face as unfeeling as a rock as he looked up to the sky.

He was waiting for three-quarters past noon, the best time for killing due to the peak yang energy from the sun at its zenith.

At the moment, it was not yet noon. The sky was blue, and the sun was still rising. Many in the crowd also followed suit and looked up at the slowly rising sun.

The Green Phoenix Guard responsible for the execution did not use a saber because the Imperial Court had reduced the number of beheadings and dismemberments as punishment. Since there was also an increase in criminals, cage hanging became popular.

This cage hanging meant that the floor of the cage could be removed by a mechanism at the rear. So, the executioner only needed to pull the handle behind the cage, retracting the floor and causing the prisoner to fall. As such, the prisoner’s neck would be stuck at the circular opening on top of the cage until they suffocated to death.

Death by shooting was a punishment reserved for the military.

Qi Xuansu did not expect to see such a scene when he first arrived in such a prosperous town. Letting his curiosity take over yet again, Qi Xuansu walked toward the crowd.

He saw an old man sitting on a rock by the edge of the crowd, fumbling with his hookah.

“Sir, why is it so lively here today?” Qi Xuansu asked the old man.

The old man did not even raise his head as he said impatiently, “Can’t you see? They’re all waiting for a public execution!”

Qi Xuansu probed further. “I know it’s a public execution, but who is being executed?”

The old man finally took a puff of shisha. “Wokou.”

“The pirates?” Qi Xuansu was startled.

Bohai Prefecture was the hinterland of Jiangbei. It was the Donghai Navy’s territory, which meant that it was deeply influenced by the Li family. They were at odds with the Nanhai Navy, which was associated with the Cihang lineage, so why did the Li family start killing pirates?

The old man exhaled another cloud of smoke as he explained, “They claim that they are Wokous, but these are just regular Wa people hired by the pirates. Our navy has ironclad ships, so these pirates shouldn’t have been able to slip past them. They rarely appear on land and mainly rob ships out at sea."

“Most of these people here have never seen a Wokou before, so they rushed over to watch the fun. But I heard that the Wa people in this gang of pirates were almost all dead. The remaining leaders are actually from the Central Plains. The government even issued an order to arrest the pirates and execute them on the spot.”

Qi Xuansu was surprised. “Execute them on the spot without a trial?”

“Yes, justice will be served on the spot.” The old man became more excited as he spoke. “These pirates are causing harm to the country and the people, so our officers don’t need to waste time getting their confessions and filing cases. Those pirates were caught and executed immediately!”

“Wow, direct execution…” Qi Xuansu dragged his voice, pretending to be shocked and confused.

The old man smirked. “Yes, fast and efficient!”

Qi Xuansu finally figured it out.

The Nanhai Navy wanted to catch these pirates alive, while the Donghai Navy wanted them dead.

It was clear that these two major forces were still at odds with each other.

After Qi Xuansu figured this out, he lost interest in the execution and entered the city with Liu Hu.

Although the inspections were much stricter now with the Wokou infiltration, Qi Xuansu could get through the city gates unimpeded using his identity as the Black Robes. The armor he carried in a bundle was also mistaken for the Black Robes’ armor.

Sycamore Villa occupied a vast area, almost the same size as the mansion of officials and wealthy businessmen. It was a paradise inside, with many small, independent courtyards that were serene and tastefully decorated.

They had all kinds of services, including prostitutes, musicians, tailors, craftsmen, and servants, catering to all needs so that customers would not want to leave.

Many powerful people would rent a small courtyard and hire a dedicated mistress, not just for physical enjoyment but to escape from reality. After all, the gentry who frequented this villa did not lack women in their lives. All they wanted was some tranquility in their busy lives.

Such a well-known place was not difficult to find. However, this type of place was not open for business at noon. Unless one already had a reserved courtyard and a mistress, one would not be allowed entry before business hours.

Qi Xuansu certainly did not have the funds to rent a courtyard there. Since Sycamore Villa was backed by the Li family, Qi Xuansu did not want to attract unnecessary attention.

Thus, he decided to first visit a Huasheng Hall branch in the city to sell the imitation armor.

Although Bohai Prefectural City was large, it was not difficult to find the Huasheng Hall branch because it was typically located in the most prosperous area of ​​the city. It had a grand facade and was located next to the Tianji Hall branch.

Qi Xuansu entered the gate of Huasheng Hall carrying Hong Lang’s imitation armor and Wang Baoyue’s arm cannon. Before a Daoist priest from Huasheng Hall could ask what he needed, Qi Xuansu had already taken the initiative to speak. “I have a broken Imitation Spirit Guard Armor and an item made from Western Arcane Alchemy. Do you want them?”

The Daoist priest standing behind the counter was stunned upon hearing this.

“Please wait a moment.” The Daoist priest quickly turned around and went behind the screen to the back hall.

After a while, the superintendent of this branch came out. She was a fourth-rank Jijiu Daoist master who looked to be in her forties.

Qi Xuansu did not waste any time explaining and merely spread the set of imitation armor on the floor.

The superintendent only glanced at it before looking away. “The objects from the Eight Tribes are not valuable. This armor is also incomplete and damaged, so it’s considered scrap metal. I can only offer you 300 Taiping coins, nothing more.”

Qi Xuansu had expected this. The real big ticket item was Wang Baoyue’s arm cannon.

Thus, he unwrapped it, revealing the arm cannon.

The superintendent initially had a nonchalant attitude. But after seeing the thin metal tubes that resembled the meridians of the human body, she narrowed her eyes, and her expression became serious.

“May I ask where did you get this?” The superintendent asked.

Qi Xuansu replied honestly, “I teamed up with a friend from Tiangang Hall to kill a pirate. This was removed from the pirate’s body.”

The woman was not at all shocked. Instead, she kneeled down and examined the prosthetic arm carefully.

The surface of this prosthetic arm was originally covered with a layer of skin-like material, making it look like a real arm. However, Wang Baoyue’s body and clothes were completely incinerated by the flames in the forest outside Wannian County, so the original metal body of the arm cannon was revealed.

The superintendent held the arm cannon and inspected it thoroughly. She murmured, “Using metal to replace a human limb and integrating firearms into it. Not only that, it can connect to one’s internal organs, using the body’s essence to replace projectiles. What a novel and admirable idea!”

Qi Xuansu said, “I haven’t asked for your name yet.”

The woman returned to her senses and replied, “My name is Su Yan.”

Qi Xuansu immediately thought of another superintendent of Huasheng Hall with a similar name—Su Ran.

Thinking of this, Qi Xuansu expected that Su Yan was most likely from the Qingqiu lineage of the Taiping Sect.

Although the Holy Xuan originally decided that the Quanzhen Sect would be responsible for creations, everything in the Daoist Order was intertwined. There were also many Zhengyi Sect and Taiping Sect disciples who participated in innovation projects.

Knowing her identity, Qi Xuansu felt a little guilty and coughed slightly. “Superintendent Su, how much do you think this thing costs?”

Su Yan looked away from the prosthetic arm and faced Qi Xuansu. “Although the Western Arcane Alchemy is rare, the Daoist Order doesn’t lack samples. I can only offer you 2,000 Taiping coins within my authority.”

Qi Xuansu was not satisfied with the price, so he asked, “Can we barter?”

“Yes.” Su Yan answered happily, “You can exchange any items of equal value. I will also offer you our internal discounts on those items to top it off.”