A Pawn's Passage

Qin Hengjun arranged another carriage for Qi Xuansu. The journey afterward proceeded with extreme caution, almost like a military march. The second-in-command of the Nanting Protectorate seemed ready to send scouts ahead, just to ensure absolute safety.

There was no helping it. Qi Xuansu might not be frightened after the fact, but Qin Hengjun truly was. If Qi Xuansu really died in Lion City, Qin Hengjun would be in trouble.

Xie Jiaofeng was distressed as well. A failed assassination attempt carried far fewer consequences than a successful one. But this incident disrupted his entire plan to quickly send Qi Xuansu off to the next city.

However, with this assassination, Qi Xuansu would not leave and might even stay in Lion City for an extended period to thoroughly investigate the matter.

The longer Qi Xuansu stayed, the more likely other messy problems would surface, leading to a whole nest of trouble. Worse still, this assassination attempt might alarm the Golden Tower Council, which would be an even bigger disaster that could derail his entire career.

He had struggled for most of his life to claw his way up to the position of Deputy Mansion Master. If this matter were not handled well, he might have to retire to the mountains early.

Even though this sudden incident did not cause irreparable or catastrophic damage, its impact was enormous.

It would not take long before the entire Lion City heard about it.

Qi Xuansu sat in the new carriage. Beside him was Little Yin, completely covered in soot. Every time she spoke, only her row of white teeth and the glint of her eyes could be seen. Chen Jianchou, who had been thrown back from the impact, only suffered superficial injuries, so he came back into the carriage.

All the case files Qi Xuansu had with him had been burnt to ash, so he currently had nothing to read. Fortunately, they were only copies with backups stored elsewhere.

Qi Xuansu had no choice but to sit quietly, resting with his eyes closed.

At the same time, he contemplated the possible causes and consequences of this sudden incident.

Who would want to assassinate him?

Some might immediately suspect the Nanyang United Trading Company, which had the motive and capability. The woman who blocked the road had also mentioned the Company, successfully piquing Qi Xuansu’s interest. Clearly, they all knew what Qi Xuansu was after.

All signs pointed toward the Nanyang United Trading Company, but Qi Xuansu felt that the Company was unlikely to be responsible.

After all, the Wang family was the major shareholder of the Company. Wang Jiaohe, the head of the Wang family, also had a very clear strategy that they should delay and wait for the Fenglin war to end. That way, the Taiping Sect would be free again and could then restrain the Quanzhen Sect.

Chen Shuhua had already defected, and the Wang family was gravely weakened. This tumor that was the Wang family had reduced to a mere ulcer, no longer capable of shaking the Daoist Order’s foundation. They now fell within the threshold that the Taiping Sect could tolerate while still big enough to act as a counterweight to the Quanzhen Sect. Thus, the Taiping Sect had the motivation to keep the Wang family alive.

Under such circumstances, the Wang family would certainly not choose direct confrontation. They would tuck their tails between their legs and cut their losses to preserve the core. They would be low-key and cautious.

Even if their subordinates failed to grasp the situation or understand the gravity of things, they would just behave as they always had. They would never dare attempt to assassinate Qi Xuansu.

Only Wang Jiaohe had the authority to order such a killing. Unless that old fox had lost his mind, how could he possibly choose this moment to act?

The Wang family seemed to have a motive, but in truth, they had none.

Thus, Qi Xuansu preliminarily concluded that the Nanyang United Trading Company was unlikely to be behind this.

Instead, it looked more like an intentional attempt to pin the blame on the Company—a misdirection to confuse everyone.

After ruling the Company out, Qi Xuansu considered another possibility. Could this be an intimidation tactic?

This was also unlikely, because an assassination was too extreme if the purpose was just to intimidate him.

After all, no one could guarantee Qi Xuansu would not be harmed. If he were actually blown to pieces, the culprit could not possibly say that they only meant to intimidate him. Would those closely tied to Qi Xuansu—Madam Qi, Sage Donghua, and the Heavenly Preceptor—accept this excuse?

Thus, no one would use such an extreme method just to make a statement.

It would have been possible if it were a dud round. But even a dud was too risky. Firearms were strictly controlled by both the Daoist Order and the Great Xuan Court. Regardless of the outcome, even an attempt would trigger a full investigation and drag countless people into it. The price was far too high for merely scaring Qi Xuansu.

Thus, Qi Xuansu leaned toward one conclusion. This was a real assassination attempt on him. Someone must have learned that his cultivation was severely damaged and planned accordingly. What they did not expect was that Little Yin happened to shield him at the critical instant, absorbing most of the blast. Thus, combined with Qi Xuansu’s own hardened physique, he survived with only shock, not injury.

Some might wonder, how could that tiny girl shield Qi Xuansu? In truth, Little Yin was extremely elastic. Back in Fenglin, she had stretched her mouth wide enough to swallow demons several times her size. Her entire body could stretch and expand, like tropical rubber. That elasticity was what allowed her to cover Qi Xuansu entirely at the moment of explosion.

After all, Little Yin was not human. She merely looked like one on the outside.

In truth, Qi Xuansu did have a suspect in mind, though he lacked evidence—Li Tianzhen.

The use of firearms indicated that the mastermind held considerable power within both the Daoist Order and the Imperial Court, because only such people could make requisitions for firearms, and there were not many who met such criteria.

The Li family was one of them.

Moreover, that inferno night at the Zhenwu Temple in Jinling Prefecture was seared into Qi Xuansu’s memory. Back then, every member of the Heavenly Court had carried a Sun-Shooting Rifle, their firepower overwhelming the stationed Spirit Guards and breaking their lines.

Where had those rifles come from?

Surely, the Heavenly Court had not forged them themselves. Making a high-quality gun barrel was enormously complex. It was not merely technical skill but an entire system of processes and supporting industries. Even if the Heavenly Court could somehow make firearms, they could never produce the Dragon Eye Series Ammunition, which was another manufacturing line altogether.

In truth, the situation was obvious. Someone within the Daoist Order had supplied firearms to the Heavenly Court.

With such recent precedent, and with Li Tianzhen conveniently voyaging in Nanyang, he became Qi Xuansu’s top suspect.

As the Li family’s hidden blade, Li Tianzhen possessed both the capability and the nerve to order Qi Xuansu’s assassination. Add to that the various entanglements between the two—including the hatred of “stealing his woman”—Li Tianzhen certainly lacked no motive to kill Qi Xuansu.

Had Li Tianzhen come to Lion City himself? Or was he directing things from afar?

Just as Qi Xuansu pondered these things, the carriage halted. This time, it was not because someone blocked the road. They had arrived at Tianfu Palace.

Qi Xuansu stepped down from the carriage. His brand-new second-rank Taiyi Daoist hechang had not survived the explosion, so he removed it entirely, leaving only his Youyi Cloud Robe. His golden lotus crown was also gone, so his hair hung loose. His face was also smudged with soot.

Beside him stood a tiny black shadow—Little Yin. She was so charred that she nearly blended in with the black carriage next to her, unless she opened her mouth.

Originally, Xie Jiaofeng had arranged for young Daoist attendants to welcome Qi Xuansu—a display meant to highlight the Sage’s approachability. However, the children froze at the sight before them.

Was this really Sage Qi? Were they mistaken? Wasn’t he supposed to have come from Thanglong Prefecture? Why did he look as if he had just crawled out of a trench on the Fenglin battlefield? He even carried faint traces of gunpowder smoke on him.

Granted, Sage Qi had indeed returned as a war hero from Fenglin. But this was a bit absurd.

Qi Xuansu smelled like gunpowder because he had just been hit squarely by a cannon blast. There was no smell of blood either because any blood would have been vaporized in an instant.

Fortunately, Xie Jiaofeng had gotten out of his carriage by then. Already in a foul mood, he became even more furious at the sight. He forgot about the decorum of a Deputy Mansion Master and shouted, “What are you all standing around for? Are you waiting for the honored guest to welcome you instead?!”

The stunned crowd finally snapped back to their senses. Confirming that the sorry-looking man was indeed Sage Qi, they hastily switched into the formation they had rehearsed to welcome Chief Deputy Qi for his inspection.

Xie Jiaofeng was still furious and wanted someone to vent at. He fixed his sights on a superintendent and barked, “What the hell are you doing leaving Sage Qi standing there like that? Do you still want this post or not? If you don’t, get out now! There are plenty of people waiting to take your place!”

Though Deputy Mansion Master Xie came from a scholarly Confucian family, his speech and demeanor bore little scholarly refinement. Aside from his bureaucratic air, he carried a noticeable hint of Jianghu roughness. Clearly, he was a man with stories.

The superintendent felt wrongly accused and complained, “Deputy Mansion Master Xie, your anger isn’t justifiable. None of us expected Sage Qi to show up dressed like that...”

The moment those words left his mouth, Xie Jiaofeng’s anger flared again. “You motherfucker!”

He lowered his voice and spoke again. “Sage Qi was attacked by assassins on the way and blasted by a cannon. He may be unharmed, but he’s bound to be angry. You fools still can’t read the room?! If you don’t want this job, hand in your resignation now. I’ll approve it on the spot. There’s a long line of people waiting to take over!”

Finally, the superintendent was stunned speechless.

Another superintendent quickly stepped in to smooth things over. “Deputy Mansion Master, please calm down. This isn’t the time for internal quarrels. There are still many programs ahead in welcoming Sage Qi.”

The first superintendent added, “Deputy Mansion Master, it’s my fault. Please let me finish my task in welcoming Sage Qi and carrying out your instructions. You can’t possibly replace me with someone in the middle of this, right?”

Only then did Xie Jiaofeng calm down slightly. “Well? Get moving then! Or do you want me to direct things personally?”

The two superintendents immediately turned and hurried off.

Xie Jiaofeng did not remain idle either. He strode quickly in the direction Qi Xuansu had gone.