A Pawn's Passage

Xu Kou gulped down a bottle of vintage Western red wine from the 23rd year of the Jiushi Era, which cost at least 20 Taiping coins. Normally, Xu Kou would not spend so much on a bottle, but since Shen Yugui was footing the bill, he drank to his heart’s content.

Finally, he left the brothel with satisfaction, under the brothel manager’s forced smile.

In fact, Xu Kou had underestimated the price of this bottle of red. The imports cost 20 Taiping coins each. If sold in a restaurant, the price would be at least doubled. If sold in a brothel or villa, it would be at least tripled or quadrupled. So, a bottle of red wine like this would cost at least 100 Taiping coins. If Xu Kou wanted to buy a bottle, it would be way more than his initial estimate of half a month’s salary.

Of course, 100 Taiping coins for a Daoist superintendent with a “side income” was nothing. Even someone like Liu Futong could amass 100,000 Taiping coins in three years. Even though there were disparities in authority among superintendents at different locations, superintendents were still quite powerful.

As long as it was not the shunned Requiem Division, other superintendents would have no problem earning an additional income of several thousand Taiping coins a year. Those who were brave could even earn tens of thousands of Taiping coins a year.

While Xu Kou was enjoying the tipsy feeling brought by the expensive wine, Qi Xuansu took inventory of his weapons.

List of weapons:

- Divine Dragon Pistol

- 4 rounds of Grade-B Series Two Dragon Eye Bullets

- 15 rounds of Grade-B Series Three Dragon Eye Bullets

- 1 spiritual cutlass

- a handful of ordinary armor-piercing projectiles

- Qing Yuan

- 7 Phoenix Feathers

- 6 Bliss Needles

Due to his current disguise as Wei Wugui, Qi Xuansu could not use Qing Yuan rashly for fear of exposing his real identity.

Qi Xuansu was not confident that he could capture Wang Baoyue alive, but he was certain that he could kill that pirate leader if they ever met again.

In their first fight, Qi Xuansu underestimated the enemy and was caught off guard by the arm cannon. Apart from using the Tantai Fist Intention, he had only fired one shot and one of the Seven Phoenix Feathers at the pirate leader. That was why Wang Baoyue could escape easily.

However, Qi Xuansu was no longer alone. With Xu Kou around, Qi Xuansu knew that they could easily capture Wang Baoyue alive if they worked together.

Xu Kou noticed Qi Xuansu checking his gear and thought that the latter looked like a hunter preparing to enter the mountains. He chuckled. “It won’t be difficult for the two of us to capture that pirate. The key is whether the Green Phoenix Guard can determine that pirate’s hiding spot.”

Qi Xuansu hung the single cutlass on his waist and asked, “Brother Xu, do you think Wang Baoyue has other accomplices here?”

Xu Kou was startled. “Brother Wei, what do you mean by this?”

Qi Xuansu mused, “Well, I always thought it quite fishy for the Black Robes and the Green Phoenix Guards to cast such a large net just to capture a pirate. What’s so special about this pirate anyway? Moreover, it’s even more unbelievable that this pirate leader managed to escape such an extensive web repeatedly. I have a feeling that the pirate has a backer. The real question is: who wants to capture Wang Baoyue, and who wants to protect him?”

Xu Kou pondered for a moment before he said, “Brother Wei, what you said makes sense. This isn’t as simple as arresting the pirates. It’s more like a contest between two major forces. If Wang Baoyue has an accomplice, then his accomplice must have considerable influence in this area. Are you suspicious of Shen Mingshu?”

“We can’t jump to conclusions, but we also can’t rule out this possibility.” Qi Xuansu continued, “Shen Mingshu should be from the Shen family of the Taiping Sect, which is inextricably linked to the Li family. If that’s the case, will you still get involved, Brother Xu?”

Xu Kou said, “I’ve already agreed to help the Green Phoenix Guard, so I can’t break my promise. Also, I don’t really care about the conflict between the two forces. What I do care about is getting my revenge because that pirate shot at me.”

Qi Xuansu chuckled. “We’re the same, Brother Xu. I’m a petty person who will retaliate if people try to kill me.”

Xu Kou laughed. “That’s the way it should be!”

“How do you think the Green Phoenix Guard will find him?” Qi Xuansu asked.

“If I remember correctly, they have captured one pirate, so I think they will use that pirate to get to Wang Baoyue.”

Qi Xuansu recalled the half-naked pirate in the cargo ship that was fished out of the Grand Canal after being shot. That was the distraction technique employed to divert the Green Phoenix Guard’s attention from Wang Baoyue, who was on the passenger ship at the time.

Countless pirates either died at sea or were killed after landing by the Black Robes. So, the few people who managed to escape with Wang Baoyue were most probably his confidants. With the Green Phoenix Guard’s torture methods, they would most probably be able to extract a confession out of that pirate.

While the two men were talking, Liu Hu had returned.

Xu Kou suggested, “Let’s rest at an inn for the night and wait for their news tomorrow. At most, we will get the news within the next few days. If the Green Phoenix Guard still has no clue, they can’t blame us for just standing by.”

Qi Xuansu had no objections, so the three of them went to an inn in Wannian County.

The night was uneventful for the trio, but the Green Phoenix Guards had a sleepless night.

The next day, a Green Phoenix Guard major came to see Xu Kou and Qi Xuansu, looking exhausted.

Xu Kou asked, “Any results?”

Major Zhang dismissed the others before he reported, “We’ve put everything we have to use, and the Black Robes have tightened the net. We can confirm that Wang Baoyue has not escaped the county.”

Xu Kou was originally from the Green Phoenix Guard, so he knew what the major meant.

“That pirate is a tough nut to crack, but even the toughest nuts can be ground into powder.” The major continued, “That pirate doesn’t know Wang Baoyue’s exact hiding spot, but he has a local contact.”

Xu Kou probed, “Who is the contact person?”

The major replied, “A local salt merchant has built a manor outside the city, but we suspect that the salt merchant is just a fake identity. To avoid alerting the enemy, we have not taken any action yet.”

Qi Xuansu suddenly interjected. “Major Zhang, are you familiar with Shen Mingshu, the local bigwig?”

Major Zhang was startled. “Brother Wei, do you suspect that I am one of Shen Mingshu’s men?”

Qi Xuansu’s suspicion was not groundless. After all, Shen Mingshu had appeared with several Green Phoenix Guards behind him when he came to fetch his son, so it was hard not to be suspicious of the Green Phoenix Guard’s allegiance.

Major Zhang said calmly, “I’m from the Zhang family, born in Shangqing Prefecture, Wuzhou. Shen Mingshu is from Huainan, Luzhou. How can we possibly be on the same side? But Shen Mingshu has been operating here for many years, and there are many Green Phoenix Guards who interact with him, so I have no choice but to turn a blind eye to it.”

Qi Xuansu immediately understood what Major Zhang meant.

It was not unusual for a Daoist disciple to become a court official. Li Sanxin, whom Qi Xuansu had fought in Fengtai County, was also a disciple of the Taiping Sect that served as a Green Phoenix Guard.

The Zhang family represented the Zhengyi Sect. Like Zhang Yuelu, Major Zhang was from the smaller branches of the big Zhang family. It was difficult to make a name for himself within the conservative Zhang family, so Major Zhang left the Daoist Order and joined the Green Phoenix Guard.

Major Zhang was no ordinary major. He was a Seal-Holding Major, which had more authority than some Senior Majors. In Luzhou, the Lieutenant Colonel was from the Taiping Sect, but he did not have the authority to appoint, remove, or detain personnel. That was why the Luzhou Green Phoenix Guard’s Offices were not all loyal to the Taiping Sect.

In Wannian County, Major Zhang was backed by the Zhengyi Sect, strong enough to compete with Shen Mingshu. However, there were also disadvantages. The Shen family had been based in Wannian County for many years, so they would have planted a spy in the Major’s Office. Given the circumstances, Major Zhang knew that he could not defeat Shen Mingshu, so he needed to ask Qi Xuansu and Xu Kou for help.

Qi Xuansu thought about this briefly before saying, “I originally thought that you were doing it for the merit, Major Zhang. But it turned out that you’re also involved in Daoist Order’s infighting.”

At this point, Qi Xuansu stretched out his hand and pointed at Xu Kou. “Brother Xu here is from the Taiping Sect, so I don’t need to say more about the relationship between the Taiping Sect and the Zhengyi Sect.”

Major Zhang looked solemn. “Well, since you’ve mentioned this, I feel like I should be honest with you. After the incident, I have already contacted Deputy Hall Master Zhang, who happened to be in Jinling Prefecture. When she heard that the two of you were handling this case, she was very relieved and assured me that you two can be trusted.”

Qi Xuansu and Xu Kou suddenly felt uncomfortable. One coughed slightly, while the other looked at the ground.

Xu Kou felt a little guilty for badmouthing Zhang Yuelu. But it was not a big deal. Even if Zhang Yuelu heard what he said about her, nothing would happen. After all, Zhang Yuelu had always maintained an appropriate distance from all her subordinates, except for Qi Xuansu. As long as it did not involve issues of principle, she was still easy to talk to.

On the other hand, Qi Xuansu felt conscience-stricken for what he had done to Zhang Yuelu even in their last fight, not to mention all the lies he had told her. He could not even begin to imagine what the consequences would be like if Zhang Yuelu ever found out the truth. If his identity was exposed, she would certainly not hold back against him.

Qi Xuansu gathered his thoughts and nodded. “In that case, let’s go there together.”