A Pawn's Passage

Zhang Yuelu understood what her father was implying. “There can’t be two suns in the sky.”

Qi Xuansu asked hesitantly, “Uncle, are you talking about the Imperial Court?”

Zhang Juqi nodded and explained, “During the former Wei Dynasty, the Confucian School hid behind the scenes and controlled the Imperial Court. If there was something that did not suit their liking, they would change the emperor. The so-called emperor was just a marionette in their hands.”

He proceeded to tell Qi Xuansu the history of the Imperial Court, the Confucian School, and the Daoist Order.

Confucianism was deeply integrated into the Wei Dynasty Court. The Confucians did not intervene directly, but they placed constraints on the royal family through civil officials and many covert means. During the reigns of the previous emperors, Taizu and Taizong, it was still manageable, as the nobles related to the royal family were influential enough to compete with the civil officials.

However, during the reigns of emperors Renzong and Xuanzong, civil officials gradually suppressed the noblemen’s military officers. By the reigns of emperors Xianzong, Xiaozong, and Wuzong, the power of civil officials reached its peak. Except for Emperor Xianzong, the deaths of Xiaozong and Wuzong were all related to the Confucians.

For instance, the chief physician of the Imperial Medical Office at that time was a Confucian spy. He successively caused the deaths of two emperors. However, he managed to escape unscathed. The Minister of State back then clashed with the Chief Imperial Physician, but the former was dismissed from office.

Emperor Shizong was an outsider who inherited the throne. He was not born in the palace and was raised by women. He was the younger brother of Xu Wugui, the Earthly Preceptor. They were equally smart, but even Emperor Shizong was controlled by the Confucians.

The mentor of Emperor Shizong, also his strategist, contributed greatly to Emperor Shizong’s ascension to power. Emperor Shizong promoted him from the position of Grand Historian of the Royal Household to a consultant of the Imperial Cabinet and the Minister of Rites. However, he fell seriously ill and died within four months.

Emperor Shizong ascended the throne at the age of fourteen, but for more than ten years, he had no heir. He had to seek assistance from the Daoist Order to take Daoist elixirs before he finally had his first son at the age of 26. If Emperor Shizong had not sought help from the Daoist Order, he would have followed the same fate as Emperor Wuzong, who died without leaving an heir.

Yet even so, Emperor Shizong’s eldest and second sons died successively. Emperor Shizong had eight sons and five daughters, but when he passed away in old age, he only had one son and one daughter remaining. The rest of his children died. Even in ordinary households, it was rare for so many children to die prematurely.

“In addition, Emperor Shizong also faced palace coups and assassination attempts, narrowly escaping death. As he lay there dying, everyone made excuses to avoid saving him, intending to watch him die. Fortunately, a Daoist Sage rescued Emperor Shizong.

“Several months later, this Daoist Sage died suddenly, reportedly from fright. There were also countless occurrences of ‘accidents,’ like palace fires and drowning. With so many incidents, is everything really accidental? From this, it can be seen how deeply the Confucians controlled the Imperial Court. However, the emperors also fought back, with the Green Phoenix Guard, the eunuchs, and even with the support of the Daoist Order.

“The Imperial Court had a back-and-forth struggle with the Confucians. To some extent, they managed to suppress the influence of Confucianism. As a result, the Daoist Order was able to participate in court politics, laying the foundation for the dominance of Daoism over Confucianism later on.”

Zhang Yuelu had known of this a long time ago, so she was not surprised. She just sipped on her cup of tea, looking bored.

On the contrary, this was the first time Qi Xuansu had heard this story. While shocked, he vaguely guessed what Zhang Juqi was going to say.

The Confucians controlled the Wei Court behind the scenes, so how did the Daoist Order get to control the Great Xuan Court? How did the Great Xuan emperors view Daoism?

Qi Xuansu could not help but sigh and repeat Zhang Yuelu’s words. “There can’t be two suns in the sky.”

Zhang Juqi stopped smiling. “There is only one sun in the sky, but besides the sun, there is also a moon that shines on everything on the ground.”

Qi Xuansu learned a lot at the Wanxiang Daoist Palace, but he focused more on physical training, so he was not so proficient in literature. But he still understood what Zhang Juqi was implying. “Uncle, are you talking about the Confucian principle of the moon’s reflection in a thousand rivers?”

Zhang Juqi glanced at Qi Xuansu with admiration. “Indeed. There are countless reflections of the moon in rivers, but in fact, it’s the same moon. It goes to show that all things originate from the same principle.”

Qi Xuansu hesitated before asking, “Uncle, are you saying that the Daoist Order is the moon? Although it is overshadowed by the sun, it can still be reflected as long as there is a body of water, right?”

Zhang Juqi said, “I dare not make a rash assertion about what the Daoist Order is like. I’m afraid that even the Deputy Grand Masters dare not make such a claim. But perhaps that is how the Imperial Court views the Daoist Order. Can the earth accommodate so many moons?”

Qi Xuansu remembered what Zhang Yuelu once said and borrowed it. “The Imperial Court is the sun, and the Daoist Order is the moon, like yin and yang that coexist in harmony to achieve perfection. Isn’t this exactly the Holy Xuan’s and Emperor Gaozu’s intention?”

Zhang Yuelu, who was drinking tea, thought this sounded familiar, so she glanced at Qi Xuansu.

Qi Xuansu just pretended not to notice her gaze.

“But what if some people don’t think so?” Zhang Juqi asked, “What if some people don’t recognize the original intentions of the Holy Xuan and Emperor Gaozu?”

Qi Xuansu was speechless.

Zhang Yuelu interjected. “Ultimately, most practices must be enforced. If one can’t win on the battlefield, it’s pointless no matter how much debate there is.”

Zhang Juqi glanced at his daughter helplessly. “We can’t continue the conversation, then.”

Zhang Yuelu changed the topic and took out the Qianqiu Light Ink that she had prepared.

Although Zhang Yuelu paid for both gifts, one of them was given in the name of Qi Xuansu, so Zhang Juqi could not open it in front of the guest due to etiquette. However, he could open his daughter’s gift at any time.

His eyes lit up as soon as he unwrapped it. “I heard from your cousin that you gave your cousin-in-law a piece of this ink too, but you didn’t give her anything. She was saddened by it and complained to us. So I was wondering if you would have forgotten my gift as well.”

Zhang Yuelu snorted. “They’re an entity, so it should be enough to prepare one gift. What’s more, Yuyue is rich and lacks nothing. I really don’t know what I can get for her.”

“This can’t be a valid reason.” Zhang Juqi shook his head helplessly. “Qing Xiao, you ought to change your attitude.”

Zhang Yuelu did not care.

Obviously, the relationship between this father-daughter pair was not as restrictive as the Confucian practice.

Zhang Juqi excused himself. “Tian Yuan, please wait here while I go to the study.”

“Don’t mind me, Uncle.” Qi Xuansu stood up.

“Dad, I’ll go with you and bring the gift over.” Zhang Yuelu took the gifts aside and followed her father.

Zhang Juqi did not refuse. They were not like other families with countless servants waiting on them. They only had a few servants responsible for ordinary housework, and they did most of the minor things by themselves whenever possible.

Thus, Qi Xuansu was left alone in the living room. Not long after, two women came into the residence.

Qi Xuansu recognized one of them as Zhang Yuyue. The other woman was much older, resembling Zhang Yuelu, but her expression was far colder. She lacked warmth and was unapproachable. On the other hand, Zhang Yuelu was more naive and idealistic, making her seem friendlier.

This other woman was the famous Madam Tantai Qiong. She had a different temperament from her daughter, and her attitude toward Qi Xuansu was opposite that of her husband, Zhang Juqi.

Qi Xuansu never expected that he would come face-to-face with this formidable woman in such circumstances. Tantai Qiong waved to Zhang Yuyue, who looked at Qi Xuansu with a smug smile before leaving the living room.

Upon seeing them, Qi Xuansu stood up and saluted Tantai Qiong respectfully.

Tantai Qiong did not seem very arrogant, but she was blunt. “You must be Qi Xuansu, right? If I remember correctly, you’re 24 years old and from the Wanxiang Daoist Palace. You are currently a deacon of Tiangang Hall and a seventh-rank priest, but you will soon be promoted to the sixth rank and get to enjoy the treatment of the fifth rank. Your master was Qi Haoran, a fourth-rank Jijiu Daoist priest who was killed by The Inn’s assassins.”

Qi Xuansu nodded. “It seems that you’ve done your homework, Auntie.”

Tantai Qiong’s tone remained calm, showing no emotion. “For an orphan from the Wanxiang Daoist Palace, it’s certainly not easy to go from being in the seventh rank to enjoying the treatment of the fifth rank in just four months.”

Qi Xuansu had an untimely realization that the thought of fear was far more terrifying than the fear itself. The fear before the knife struck was even worse than after being stabbed. Before he met Tantai Qiong, he felt anxious, but after seeing her, he felt somewhat relieved.

He nodded. “It is indeed not easy. There were many a time when I was just a hair’s breadth from death and we almost couldn’t meet. But I guess you would’ve preferred that, as it would’ve saved you a lot of trouble.”

Tantai Qiong flashed a fake smile. “Risks and opportunities always go hand-in-hand. You’re standing in front of me well and alive, and you’ve even improved your cultivation level. Perhaps after a few incidents, I will have to salute you for having a higher rank than me. By then, I dare not speak like this anymore.”

Qi Xuansu bowed slightly and said, “You’re exaggerating, Auntie.”

Tantai Qiong shrugged. “I can’t say if I’m exaggerating for the time being, but in this regard, you are indeed very similar to Qing Xiao. She will always talk back to me when I say something to her. No wonder she likes you. After all, birds of a feather flock together.”

Qi Xuansu could not tell whether Tantai Qiong’s words were praise or criticism, so he remained silent. However, he still felt that it was more derogatory than complimentary. Tantai Qiong seemed to speak of Zhang Yuelu as if the latter were her enemy rather than her daughter.

Tantai Qiong added, “I know my daughter best. I thought Qing Xiao would find a random person to fool me this time just to get away from my meddling because she never likes these things. I don’t have a choice but to tolerate her perfunctory attitude since she’s grown up and has caught the attention of the Earthly Preceptor. She’s even a Deputy Hall Master of Tiangang Hall now, with real power.

“She’s on the same level as me, so she won’t put so much effort into fooling me either. She can delay her marriage and continue with her duties in Tiangang Hall, and I won’t be able to control her. But what surprises me is that she seems serious this time.”