A Pawn's Passage

Early the next morning, Qi Xuansu left Taiping Inn and headed to Longmen Prefecture’s Garrison Chief Military Office, where Wild Bodhisattva was.

In terms of rank, the Garrison Chief was second only to the Chief General, with a status equivalent to Deputy Protector Qin Wubing. However, Longmen Prefecture was located in the middle of the Central Plains, which had been at peace for a long time. Thus, it had a much smaller number of troops compared to the generals in Xizhou.

Wild Bodhisattva was an aide to Mei Rulin, the local Garrison Chief. Although Wild Bodhisattva had no rank, the Garrison Chief regarded him as a confidant and friend.

This time, Mei Rulin tried several times to persuade Wild Bodhisattva to stay, but Wild Bodhisattva was determined to leave Longmen Prefecture. Mei Rulin had no choice but to part ways with his friend.

Finding the Garrison Chief Military Office was simple. After arriving, Qi Xuansu reported Wild Bodhisattva’s other pseudonym, which was ordinary, like his own made-up name, Wei Wugui.

After a while, Wild Bodhisattva came out to greet Qi Xuansu and explained, “I have been here to hand over some matters. Apart from drinking, I have no time to relax.”

Qi Xuansu did not know how to answer, so he could only nod in acknowledgment. To Qi Xuansu, having time to drink was considered relaxing enough.

“Follow me.” Wild Bodhisattva turned around and entered the Garrison Chief Military Office.

The Black Robes at the door did not even stop to ask for Qi Xuansu’s identity. This showed that Wild Bodhisattva had a high status in the Garrison Chief Military Office, similar to the Garrison Chief himself.

Wild Bodhisattva said, “The Mei family is a relatively new family that only came to power in the past hundred years, producing several generations of loyal ministers and generals. Mei Rulin came from the Ru generation, which clashed with the Li family’s Ru generational name.”

Qi Xuansu scoffed. “Is the Li family offended by such a small matter?”

“The Li family didn’t say anything, but they’re known for being the Donghai Weirdos for a reason.” Wild Bodhisattva laughed.

Qi Xuansu could not help but sigh. “It seems that notoriety also has its benefits. They can do whatever they want just because they already have a bad reputation.”

“You can’t say that.” Wild Bodhisattva did not fully agree with Qi Xuansu’s statement. “The Li family is not all bad. They have a mixed reputation. After all, several influential figures, like the Holy Xuan and the Primordial Daoist Ancestor, hail from the Li family, so no one dares to openly criticize the Li family’s behavior. At most, people will only talk about it behind their backs.”

Qi Xuansu smiled and did not argue.

His understanding of the Li family was superficial. All he knew about the Li family was that they were powerful and ruthless. The only Li family members he heard of were the talented Holy Xuan and Donghuang; the current head of the family, Li Changgeng, who was also the Great Sage of the Taiping Sect; Sage Qingwei; the arrogant young master, Li Tianzhen; the adopted son, Li Minghuang, who abandoned Zhang Yuyue; and lastly, the genius named Li Changge, who was suspected to be the recipient of all the Xuan Jades collected by the Li family.

Other than that, he knew nothing about this prestigious family.

Qi Xuansu followed Wild Bodhisattva to a small courtyard, where many servants and clerks were coming and going with boxes. Some were taking down various files from the bookshelves, sorting them into categories, and putting them into boxes.

It seemed that Wild Bodhisattva had been “busy” watching these people work. He did not have to pack them himself, but he had to keep an eye on the sensitive files here.

Wild Bodhisattva instructed them. “Send the packed boxes to the warehouse first. You all can sort out the rest tomorrow.”

“Yes, sir.” Several servants responded. They stopped sorting the files and went to carry the boxes instead.

Qi Xuansu could not help but ask, “Brother, did you encounter any difficulties in leaving since you have access to all these secrets?”

“Not really. An enemy from many years ago showed up, so this time, I’m going to seek vengeance. If it goes well, it won’t take me long. If it doesn’t go well, it may be several months or years. The worst-case scenario is that I’ll die. Who can say for sure?” Wild Bodhisattva shrugged.

Although Qi Xuansu was used to seeing people die, he was still saddened to hear this. It was no wonder Wild Bodhisattva asked Madam Qi to help send his adopted daughter away.

Wild Bodhisattva was clearly making arrangements for the worst-case scenario. If he could come back alive, he would bring his adopted daughter back. But if he could not, at least his adopted daughter would not be left on the streets.

After a brief explanation, Wild Bodhisattva instructed the servants. “You all can leave now and continue tomorrow.”

All the servants responded in unison.

Wild Bodhisattva led Qi Xuansu out of the side door and walked to his residence, which was only one street away from the Garrison Chief Military Office. It was a two-entry residence, where Wild Bodhisattva lived with his adopted daughter and two old servants.

After Wild Bodhisattva decided to leave Longmen Prefecture, he had already dismissed the two old servants, giving them 100 Taiping coins each, which was enough for them to settle down elsewhere. Thus, Wild Bodhisattva and his adopted daughter were the only ones left in the house.

When they came to the entrance, Wild Bodhisattva stretched out his hand and drew a talisman that Qi Xuansu did not recognize. The light on the door flashed as a certain formation was lifted. Then he pushed the door open and entered the courtyard.

A young girl about 14 or 15 years old came out to greet them. She was not a stunning beauty, but she had animated eyes.

“Father!” The girl greeted Wild Bodhisattva. Her gaze fell on Qi Xuansu, a little curious and fearful.

A faint smile appeared on Wild Bodhisattva’s face. “He’s my friend, you can call him—”

“Wei Wugui.” Qi Xuansu took the initiative to tell her his name. “Since I’m older, you can call me Brother Wei.”

“Nice to meet you, Uncle Wei.” The girl bowed.

Qi Xuansu coughed awkwardly. They had a 10-year age gap, so it was also appropriate for her to call him “Uncle.”

Wild Bodhisattva laughed. “Well, if you count Madam Qi as my generation, then you kids are indeed the same generation. But since I introduced you as my friend, she will naturally call you ‘Uncle.’”

Qi Xuansu nodded awkwardly, feeling so old. After all, 25 years old was not considered young because most people married and became fathers before their thirties. In their thirties, they would grow a beard.

Thinking of this, he could not help but touch his chin. He did not have a beard, a wife, or a child. That was why Madam Qi called him a bachelor. Moreover, compared with those women who married in their teens, Zhang Yuelu was not young either. It was no wonder Tantai Qiong was eager to arrange a marriage for her.

At this time, Qi Xuansu did not know that Zhang Yuelu had been confirmed as Sage Cihang’s successor. So she had a bright future and no longer had to worry about marriage.

Wild Bodhisattva beckoned to the girl and introduced her to Qi Xuansu. “Her name is Liu Hu. She doesn’t have a courtesy name yet. Since you’re an elder, you can call her by her full name.”

Qi Xuansu nodded and got to the point. “Where should I escort Liu Hu to?”

Wild Bodhisattva replied, “Head up north to Zhili and look for Crimson Lips.”

Qi Xuansu said in surprise, “Li Qingnu?”

Wild Bodhisattva did not expect Qi Xuansu to know this. “Oh, so you know her. I guess that saves me the trouble of explaining who she is. This escort trip is divided into three segments. You will be responsible for the first segment, from Zhongzhou to Zhili. Li Qingnu is in charge of the second segment. Some people from Liaodong will take over the third segment from Zhili to Youzhou.”

Qi Xuansu nodded slightly as he connected the dots.

If he remembered correctly, the former Jiangnan Daoist Mansion Master was transferred to Liaodong after the major Jiangnan case.