A Pawn's Passage

Zhang Yuelu’s answer perfectly resolved the dilemma posed by Zhang Jucheng, and the effect was immediate.

After receiving Zhang Yuelu’s reply, Zhang Jucheng went to meet the Heavenly Preceptor.

He agreed to take the position of the Jiangnan Daoist Mansion Master and let Zhang Yuelu become the Second Deputy Wuzhou Daoist Mansion Master.

Although these personnel changes would be scheduled after the war in Fenglin ended, a consensus had to be reached early in order to begin preparations.

After all, personnel changes at this level were not simple matters. They involved extensive compromises and negotiations. Even with the Heavenly Preceptor personally orchestrating it, effort was still required.

The Holy Xuan disapproved of autocratic rule by a single individual, so the Daoist Order’s power structure was designed for collective leadership, from the Golden Tower Council down to the Deputy Daoist Mansion Masters.

The Golden Tower Council was the highest governing body of the Daoist Order—a collective, not a single person. The Heavenly Preceptor could not simply declare Zhang Jucheng the Chief Deputy Jiangnan Daoist Mansion Master with a word, as that kind of authority was reserved for the Grand Master. Setting aside his time as the Great Sage Lunzhi, the Heavenly Preceptor held only about one-third the power of a Grand Master.

The Holy Xuan had underestimated the ingenuity of later generations in exploiting loopholes. Successive Grand Masters used their authority over appointments to have the heads of the Nine Halls concurrently serve as the Deputy Palace Master at the Zixiao Palace. They would then issue orders as Palace Masters of the Zixiao Palace instead of as the Grand Master, thereby circumventing the Golden Tower Council. Unless the Golden Tower Council formally initiated procedures to depose the Grand Master, there was no way to restrain the Zixiao Palace.

This was precisely why Zhang Yuelu believed that only by becoming the Grand Master could she truly reform the Daoist Order.

The Heavenly Preceptor agreed to the matter, as he was satisfied by Zhang Yuelu’s way of handling it.

Involvement in politics required learning to compromise and yield. Charging forward might be the Jianghu way of solving problems, but it certainly did not suit any court.

Since Zhang Yuelu aspired to reach the pinnacle of the Daoist Order rather than live freely as a wandering Immortal, this was the only way to break the deadlock.

The Heavenly Preceptor signaled that Zhang Jucheng could now meet with Zhang Yuelu, as they had yet to speak face to face.

As long as the three generations could reach an agreement, then the Heavenly Preceptor’s arrangement for the Zhang family could be considered a general success. At the very least, the framework would be in place. The rest would be about filling in the details.

As for anything beyond that, he would neither concern himself nor be able to.

After all, these children and grandchildren had their own fortunes. The Heavenly Preceptor did not want to worry for nothing. Even the Holy Xuan could not manage the hundred years after his passing.

All the Heavenly Preceptor could do was act in good conscience and play the role of a peacemaker. In this life, he had let down many people and might even be remembered with scorn, but the one thing he could take pride in was living up to the Zhang name.

On the other side, Madam Qi swaggered down from the flying ship, raising her eyes to gaze at the distant Jade Capital.

To say she walked with a swagger did not mean she swayed her hips like some seductive vixen. Rather, she swung her large sleeves dramatically as she walked. If one were to describe her gait, it would not be flirtatious but arrogant.

It was the kind of arrogance that could easily provoke a beating in the streets.

Some might say that Jade Capital was a city with the most Immortals, so what gave her the right to act so arrogantly?

That might be true, but Immortals did not stroll into Jade Capital on foot. They went directly to the Purple Mansion or the Zixiao Palace. In fact, not even Pseudo-Immortals or Zaohua-stage Heavenly Beings would walk into the city. They would not even live in the outer city of Jade Capital but in Xuan City.

From this perspective, Madam Qi was indeed a unique figure, and she had every right to be a little arrogant at this time.

Madam Qi pulled down her sunglasses slightly, revealing her eyes behind the dark lenses as she looked around.

Qi Xuansu had once specifically asked her why she liked wearing those oversized sunglasses.

Her answer was that when she first roamed the world, she was not as carefree as she was now. Afraid of being recognized, she wanted something to conceal her face. To her, sunglasses served the same purpose as a veil; only one covered the top half of the face, while the latter covered the bottom half.

Many women liked wearing veils to give off that mysterious and alluring vibe, but a veil could not really conceal anything. It was more like a prop for seduction, so she thought it was tacky. Thus, Madam Qi refused to go with the flow and chose sunglasses instead. Over time, it became a habit, as if the sunglasses had become part of her body.

To be honest, it had been many years since she last came to Jade Capital.

But Jade Capital had not changed one bit. It was exactly the same as it was decades ago.

Even many of the people had not changed because in Jade Capital—where longevity and even immortality were common—birth, aging, sickness, and death were not everyday occurrences.

A place like this stirred up old memories and a sense of nostalgia for one’s lost youth.

When Madam Qi left, she was about Zhang Yuelu’s age. Now that she had returned, she was already at Su Yuanyi’s stage of life.

Her return this time was, naturally, for the sake of her son.

With these thoughts in mind, Madam Qi swaggered to the city gates.

The Spirit Guard at the gate had long noticed this eccentric woman. Setting aside her arrogant demeanor, even her attire did not resemble that of a Daoist. Ever since the fifth-generation Grand Master standardized Daoist appearances, those with bizarre clothing or eccentric acts have become rare sightings.

Thus, the Spirit Guard stopped Madam Qi and asked her to present her Daoist certificate.

Madam Qi rummaged through her satchel for a while and actually pulled out a certificate.

It listed her as a fourth-rank Jijiu Daoist master who was a wandering Daoist, and her name was Yao Qi.

Though it would have been easy for Madam Qi to forge one, the certificate was real. She had used it back in the day, and that was also her real name.

The Yao family favored two-character names without following the generational naming system.

Madam Qi had been an unplanned child and the seventh in line. So her name, “Qi,” simply meant seven.

“Mage Yao.” The Spirit Guard examined the certificate several times and found nothing wrong with it, though it did seem extremely old. At the time it was issued, Sage Donghua was not yet the Ziwei Hall Master.

Madam Qi snatched the certificate back in one sharp motion and glared. “You done with that?”

Intimidated by her presence, the Spirit Guard dared not object and even stammered a little, “Y-Yes...”

Madam Qi put away the certificate and bragged. “Don’t be fooled by how old I am and that I’m still just a fourth-rank Jijiu Daoist master. My son and daughter-in-law are both third-rank Deputy Hall Masters! My in-law is a second-rank Taiyi Daoist master too. I’m here to visit them.”

Generally, Daoist priests were ranked above Spirit Guards, and no third-rank Spirit Guard would be posted at a city gate. So the gatekeeper could only nod submissively, though he inwardly grumbled. At her age, her son must be 30 at most. How could he be a third-rank Deputy Hall Master at that age? And a similarly ranked daughter-in-law? Hah! Who is she trying to fool? Though it’s possible, those kinds of people usually came from major clans. What kind of matriarch from a major clan is still a fourth-rank Jijiu Daoist Master?

“I left home young and returned old.” Madam Qi murmured as she strolled down Shangqing Street toward Taiqing Market.

At Taiqing Market, she browsed a few shops without spending a single Ruyi coin, then headed to Phoenix Tower, where she booked a room and ordered a banquet table.

From the perspective of a fourth-rank Jijiu Daoist master, the banquet was quite decent. But judging from Madam Qi’s wealth and the identity of her intended guest, it was rather modest.

But that was just her style—avaricious and stingy.

Madam Qi took out a mother-child talisman and said, “I’ve arrived at Phoenix Tower. You can come over now.”

A simple acknowledgment came from the other end, and the conversation ended.

Soon, a woman dressed in plain white attire arrived at the private room.

The woman waved her hand, signaling for the attendant who led her over to leave.

Finally, Madam Qi took off her sunglasses and stood up to greet the woman.

Neither brought attendants, suggesting this was a very private meeting.

“Zhi Sheng, how many years has it been since we last met?” Madam Qi spoke first.

The visitor was none other than the Sage Cihang, Su Yuanyi, whose courtesy name was Zhi Sheng.

“Roughly 30 years, I’d say. What should I call you? Mogul Yao? Or something else?” Sage Cihang joked.

Madam Qi said, “Just call me Madam Qi. That’s what everyone calls me.”

Only the Earthly Preceptor knew what Madam Qi’s courtesy name was. Over time, everyone simply referred to her as Madam Qi.

“Alright then, Madam Qi,” Sage Cihang replied with a slight smile.

The two women took their seats.

Just from appearance alone, Sage Cihang and Madam Qi seemed like people from two different worlds. The former embodied every worldly fantasy of a female Immortal—graceful even with age, exuding a celestial charm. The latter was more like an ordinary mortal. Stare at her too long, and one might think she resembled a nagging housewife.

Yet these two women sat across from each other as equals.

Madam Qi went straight to the point. “You know, someone like me can’t just walk into Jade Capital casually. I only dared to come now because the Earthly Preceptor is on rotation as the Great Sage Lunzhi. If Li Changgeng were presiding over Jade Capital, I wouldn’t have dared. What if he arrested and executed me? That would turn a joyful event into one of mourning. According to Confucian tradition, my son would have to wear mourning clothes and grieve for three years.”

Sage Cihang said, “You’re here to discuss the children’s marriage.”

“Isn’t it normal for a grown man to marry and a grown woman to wed?” Madam Qi said righteously.

Sage Cihang nodded. “I agree in principle, but I have one condition.”

Madam Qi asked, “What condition? Is it the betrothal gift? If so, you can rest assured. I’ve accumulated a decent fortune over the years. I can’t say that I can rival a nation’s wealth, but buying a house in Taishang Place and offering 100,000 Taiping coins isn’t a problem.”

Sage Cihang replied, “Don’t play dumb with me. I’ve never cared about gifts and dowries. You know exactly what I mean.”

The expression on Madam Qi’s face slowly faded. She rolled her eyes. “Like master, like disciple. In the end, you two just want to take him away from me and make him yours. I toiled, watered, and nurtured a dying sapling back to life, and now you want to reap the fruit!”