A Pawn's Passage

Qi Xuansu took Liu Hu to a Taiping Inn after leaving the Huasheng Hall branch. Since Qi Xuansu was broke, Liu Hu took the initiative to pay for the room.

After settling down in the guest room, Qi Xuansu opened the suitcase that Su Yan had given to him for free. It contained a bottle of Jade Liquor, a beautiful and neatly folded women’s dress, a golden-red bell, a collector’s edition of The Female Sword Immortal, and a bottle of wine.

These were what he “bought” for 3,000 Taiping coins.

It was not considered a loss because the replica of the Nine Yang Fiery Dome alone was worth 7,000 to 8,000 Taiping coins. No matter how he calculated the total, he would have still made a profit. However, Qi Xuansu felt like he had suffered a loss mainly due to the last item—a bottle of wine.

He felt that he could have avoided spending his last 1,000 Taiping coins. But after winning the substandard treasure, Qi Xuansu let the greed get to his head, so he could not control himself. That was why Qi Xuansu still felt like he made a loss even if he made a profit overall.

On the contrary, Su Yan’s mood improved significantly after seeing the last Mystery Jar item, so much so that she even gave Qi Xuansu a suitcase for free.

The so-called collector’s edition of The Female Sword Immortal could technically be sold for 300 Taiping coins. But that was only IF there was a collector and an appraiser who knew the value of this book. Otherwise, it was just a valuable item without a market.

Qi Xuansu spent about an hour picking out the last Mystery Jar in hopes of getting the manual for the Three Bing and Three Ding Fire Technique. But in the end, what came out of the Stupid Jar was a bottle of wine. One could only imagine his disappointment at the time.

He was so despondent that he did not even bother asking what the wine was for. He merely took his things and left.

Thus, Qi Xuansu finally had a chance to take a good look at that bottle of wine.

Judging from its appearance alone, its height was about the same as that of a Western wine bottle. However, Western wine bottles were tall and slender with sloping shoulders and a long, narrow neck. However, this bottle was like a taller and slimmer version of the ordinary pot-bellied wine jar. It was emerald green and opaque, quite unremarkable in every sense.

Qi Xuansu examined the bottle, seeing no other writing except “wine” stamped on it. There were no other labels at the bottom or on the seal of the bottle. It was like homemade wine that was stored in a random bottle.

He tried sniffing the mouth of the bottle, but the seal was tight, so he could not smell anything.

Qi Xuansu felt a little helpless. He regretted not asking Su Yan what this wine was for earlier. After all, he had to know the contents if he wanted to sell it at the market rate.

He also could not open the seal for a taste because it was a one-time seal. Since it was not resealable, the wine could lose its flavor. If so, he would not be able to sell it anymore.

While he was racking his brain for ideas, Qi Xuansu thought, Wait, doesn’t Zhang Yuelu like drinking? I can give it to her as a gift!

He originally wanted to prepare a gift for Zhang Yuelu. After all, he felt guilty for deceiving her. He was also unsure of what Zhang Yuelu’s reaction would be after learning that he had come back from the dead.

Although she was also not the type to let things go just because of a gift, it was worth a shot.

He was planning to give her the women’s dress from the Mystery Jar, but he felt that it could be seen as inappropriate since clothing was considered an intimate gift. Zhang Yuelu bought him a cloak back then, but that was only because it was cold at the time, and he did not have a nice cloak to see her family with. He figured that Zhang Yuelu would be short of dresses, so it would have been awkward if he gifted her a dress out of the blue. Therefore, he decided it was best to find a more suitable time to give the dress to her.

Qi Xuansu also could not buy another gift for her because he barely had any money on him. Thinking of this, Qi Xuansu decided that this bottle of wine should do.

Like the saying that one’s qualities were often affected by the company they kept, Qi Xuansu took after Madam Qi in this regard.

Madam Qi was generous in giving Qi Xuansu the Xuan Jade and the Auxiliary Heart, which were both priceless, but she withheld Qi Xuansu’s monthly salary from the Qingping Society and his commission for jobs. In the same way, Qi Xuansu dared to risk his life to save Zhang Yuelu, but he was so thoughtless in gifting.

The next step was to wait for sundown, when Sycamore Villa was officially open for business.

However, there was another problem: getting into Sycamore Villa required money that the destitute Qi Xuansu did not have. He only had enough to afford a simple meal, but not at the famously lavish Sycamore Villa.

Fortunately, Liu Hu offered to get them into Sycamore Villa, as she had more than enough savings.

Qi Xuansu did not want to make a fool of himself, so he acquiesced to this arrangement.

When it got dark, the two of them left the Taiping Inn and went to Sycamore Villa.

At this time, Sycamore Villa was no longer deserted. It was bustling with traffic and very crowded. The guests in the villa were either rich or noble.

Before leaving, Qi Xuansu took off his white fox face mask and used his true appearance. He then gave the white fox face mask to Liu Hu. The girl changed her clothes, transforming into a handsome boy.

This way, the two men would not attract attention in the Sycamore Villa because it was not unusual for a teenage boy to visit such places with a chaperone.

These upscale brothels often hold poetry and literary gatherings, where many elegant scholars recite and compose poems and discuss worldly affairs over drinks. During the event, the popular courtesans would perform for the guests.

This had become a tradition for thousands of years.

However, Sycamore Villa was different today. Instead of poetry gatherings, there was a fighting competition.

Sycamore Villa occupied a vast area, which included a field large enough to hold not just fighting competitions but even horse racing. Even though the land in Bohai Prefecture was not as expensive as that of the Imperial Capital, it was definitely not cheap. Being able to have such a large open space in Sycamore Villa was a demonstration of the Li family’s wealth.

The organizer of the fighting competition was Li Qingnu, the Finest Courtesan. The winner would get a private meeting with her. However, whether they could spend the night together would depend on the wishes of the Li family, not the courtesan herself.

In any case, Li Qingnu was a celebrity. Even if the winner was not allowed to touch her, it would have been an honor to be able to have met the Finest Courtesan in private, earning the person bragging rights.

Naturally, not just anyone could participate in this fighting competition. Just watching the fight would cost 100 Taiping coins, which was equivalent to a flying ship ticket.

Qi Xuansu and Liu Hu had already spent 100 Taiping coins each just to enter the Sycamore Villa. Watching the fighting competition would incur another 100 Taiping coins each, totaling 400 Taiping coins. Qi Xuansu’s commission was only 1,000 Taiping coins, so he still made a loss on this deal. Thinking of his empty sleeves, Qi Xuansu hesitated.

However, Liu Hu had taken out two large cash notes and handed them to the servant responsible for greeting the guests.

The servant immediately led the duo to the field and gave them a token so that they could enter and exit at will.

There was a 300-meter-square bluestone-paved area in the middle of the lush field of grass. Since the weather was nice and warm, most people were sitting on the grass in the open air, with lanterns hanging all around to light up the area. There was also a specially made insect-repellent incense, so wisps of smoke were faintly visible, adding an ethereal effect to the field.

Qi Xuansu and Liu Hu had arrived late, so they had to find a seat in the back row.

Liu Hu asked in a whisper, “Uncle Wei, are we going to compete in the ring?”

Although Qi Xuansu had told her that Wei Wugui was just a fake identity, Liu Hu still habitually called him Uncle Wei.

Qi Xuansu shook his head. “We’re not fighting. This competition is organized by Li Qingnu, so she’ll show up eventually. We just need to wait for her to spot me.”

He suddenly thought of something and patted his knee gently. “Li Qingnu mentioned once that she can’t escort you to Liaodong personally because that’ll draw too much attention. Is that woman holding this competition to look for candidates that can send you to Liaodong?!”

Liu Hu was speechless for a moment.