A Pawn's Passage

Qi Xuansu and Liu Hu set off from Longmen Prefecture on March 15th. In the blink of an eye, it was already late spring.

Huzhou was located in the south, so it was already warm. Many pedestrians had changed into lighter summer wear.

In the previous Wei Dynasty, there were detailed regulations on the type of clothing one could wear based on one’s status and occupation. For example, merchants were not allowed to wear silk and satin, and commoners could only wear flat-toed shoes. Only Confucian scholars and Daoist priests could wear Daoist robes.

However, in this dynasty, all these rules were abolished. There were only regulations on the color of clothing. Black was not allowed to be used casually. It could only be used by the Imperial Court and the Daoist Order. Instead, the bright yellow that symbolized the imperial family in the past was allowed to be used by the public.

Since these were peaceful and prosperous times, the streets were full of silk and satin. Many wore bright colors as they strolled through the market. There were also people wearing garments that looked like court robes. The only difference was that there were no animal symbols in the front symbolizing one’s rank, and they were not black.

There were also some Colored Eye businessmen wearing the clothes of the Central Plains gentry.

This was a very different scene from the troubled times of war and famine, where all one could see were corpses and starving people trading their children for food.

This was the reason the Daoist Order and the Great Xuan Dynasty managed to overthrow the Confucian School and the Wei Dynasty to rule the empire.

Zhang Yuelu left Shenxiao Temple in a carriage and headed for Taiping Inn, which doubled as a restaurant.

Yuan Chongzong, the most famous gentry in Jiangling Prefecture, had rented out the main building of the Taiping Inn to entertain guests. This was common.

However, this banquet was duller than usual. In the past, they would invite some courtesans to perform and liven up the atmosphere. However, there were no hired women in sight today; only the Kun Opera troupe specially invited from Jinling Prefecture to entertain the distinguished guests.

In addition, the guests invited were not ordinary people. The people in attendance included the local magistrate, prefect, Green Phoenix Guard senior major, and a group of gentry and wealthy businessmen from Jiangling Prefecture.

By mid-morning, carriages were already parked outside the gate of the Taiping Inn.

In the Great Xuan Dynasty, human-powered sedan chairs were banned. Young people and military officials liked to ride horses, while the older gentlemen and women would generally take carriages.

These carriages were influenced by the customs of the Western Continent, with two horses and four wheels. The carriages increased in size and became more ornate, with carved beams and painted pillars, inlaid with gold and jade, and bells hanging from the four corners of the eaves.

The inside of the carriage was like a lavish room with all kinds of furnishings. One could even read, write, and handle official duties from the carriage. There were also various tea sets and stoves fixed with special buckles to prevent spillage from the occasional bumps in the road.

It was rare to see a luxurious carriage on normal days, let alone so many gathered together in one place, not to mention their expensive thoroughbred horses. The rich and noble were seen chatting and laughing around the lobby, exuding an air of opulence.

Compared with these ornate carriages, Zhang Yuelu’s carriage was low profile and inconspicuous, not attracting any attention.

Zhang Yuelu attended the banquet alone. She got out of the carriage, looked around, and scoffed. “How extravagant...”

The lobby of the Taiping Inn had been cleared. There was a special screen in front to protect the guests’ privacy. It resembled a peacock spreading its tail. The floor was also covered in carpets from the Western Region.

Behind the screen was a staircase leading to the second floor. It was very spacious, easily accommodating six people walking side by side. The main banquet was located on the second floor.

However, at this time, there was no one else on the second floor except for the servants. Everyone attending the banquet was in the lobby on the first floor, drinking tea and chatting while waiting for the banquet to start.

That was because the two important people of the day had yet to arrive. One of them was the host, Yuan Chongzong, and the other was today’s guest of honor, Zhang Yuelu.

Zhang Yuelu was not wearing her formal Daoist attire. Instead, she wore women’s casual attire that leaned toward the conservative side. But she did not wear a veil because she did not like to conceal her face halfway.

In her opinion, if a woman did not want to show her face, she should just wear a mask instead of a veil.

There were not many female guests present, but there were still some, since it had become a norm for women to show up at events.

Zhang Yuelu came to the gate and handed the invitation to the steward of the Yuan Residence, who was welcoming the guests.

The steward initially thought that Zhang Yuelu was a young lady from a wealthy family, but after opening the invitation, he could not conceal his shocked expression.

After all, not many had seen Zhang Yuelu’s true appearance. Most of them had only heard about her. Everyone assumed that she would be arrogant and flashy because of her status as the Junior Tiangang Hall Master, with all Daoist priests from Shenxiao Temple accompanying her. No one expected that Zhang Yuelu would show up alone.

When the steward finally came to his senses, he announced loudly, “Welcome, Deputy Hall Master Zhang!”

Everyone chatting and waiting in the lobby was startled. They quickly stood up one after another.

At the same time, the steward bowed slightly and led Zhang Yuelu into the lobby on the first floor.

Zhang Yuelu looked around. She was not at all shy or afraid. Instead, she was exuding a confident and oppressive aura that seemed to overwhelm the guests.

Many guests were in awe and wary of Zhang Yuelu because she was able to hold such a high position at her young age. This was not just something that could be explained by good fortune alone.

There were so many descendants in the Zhang family. Why should they promote a woman from a small branch?

So many people died in the major Jiangnan case, but why was she the one who survived to the end?

Sage Cihang had so many disciples, but why did she choose Zhang Yuelu to be her successor?

All these showed that Zhang Yuelu was not easy to deal with.

Yuan Chongzong was not there, but his son Yuan Shangdao was. But before the son of the host could speak, Zhang Yuelu had already asked, “Forgive me for my ignorance, who is Old Master Yuan?”

Everyone looked at each other while Yuan Shangdao cupped his hands in salute and said, “My father is old and frail, so he will be arriving later. I hope you will forgive us for the lack of hospitality, Deputy Hall Master Zhang.”

Zhang Yuelu smiled. “I find it interesting that a guest arrives before the host does. But it’s alright. After all, I was raised to respect the elderly. I understand.”

After that, Zhang Yuelu walked toward the second floor, as if she owned the place.

It was not because she did not understand basic etiquette. It was because she knew that what she was about to do would be offensive, so there was no need for superficial pleasantries.

The remaining people on the first floor did not follow Zhang Yuelu upstairs. They were at a loss for what to do.

Many of the guests frowned and thought that Deputy Hall Master Zhang was too arrogant.

Yuan Chongzong used most of his life to achieve his current status by building his reputation and countless connections. But Zhang Yuelu was only in her early twenties.

No matter how promising her future was, she was still only a fourth-rank Daoist priest. So they thought that it was too early for Zhang Yuelu to act so arrogantly.

She was like an Imperial Prince who was expected to be the Crown Prince. It did not mean that the Imperial Prince could regard himself as the Emperor and ignore the important court officials before his coronation.

Since Yuan Chongzong was old, Yuan Shangdao was considered the head of the Yuan family. He should have been the one to welcome Zhang Yuelu this time.

Yuan Shangdao was much older than Zhang Yuelu, about the same age as her father, Zhang Juqi. Although Yuan Shangdao could not regard himself as an elder, he could offer her a friendship as her peer.

That way, Zhang Yuelu would become Yuan Chongzong’s junior, establishing an invisible order of seniority. If so, Yuan Chongzong would take on the identity of an elder to negotiate with her.

However, Zhang Yuelu’s arrogant attitude and dismissal threw Yuan Shangdao’s plan out the window.

In addition, Yuan Shangdao originally wanted to test Zhang Yuelu on behalf of his father, Yuan Chongzong. There were only a handful of people in the Daoist Order who were allowed to be named after the constellations. The famous Imperial Preceptor, Li Changgeng, was one of them.

Thus, Yuan Shangdao wanted to see if Zhang Yuelu was as legendary and unique as the rumors. Was she worthy of her fame? Or would she fail to live up to her reputation?

Yuan Shangdao summoned the steward and whispered a few words.

Not long after, a luxurious carriage slowly approached the Taiping Inn.

Everyone went out to greet the man, while Zhang Yuelu stood on the second floor and looked out of the window.

She muttered, “How ostentatious...”