A Pawn's Passage

Qi Xuansu said, “This matter is not simple. It may look like a minor issue on the surface, but in reality, it is extremely serious. If an institution does not act according to established procedures and does not operate within the framework of Daoist rules, can it still be called an institution of the Daoist Order?

“I’m not being an alarmist. A case involving a high-ranking Daoist was handled without reporting it to the Daoist Mansion. This is not merely a procedural violation; it is scheming and ill-intentioned. I can’t help but ask, what exactly are you trying to do? Today, you deal with a high-ranking Daoist behind the Daoist Mansion’s back. Tomorrow, will you start taking measures against Deputy Mansion Masters as well? Are you a branch of the Daoist Hall or someone’s independent kingdom?

“Chen Shuhua is a cautionary example—disloyal to the Daoist Order, outwardly compliant but secretly defiant toward the Daoist Mansion, deceiving superiors, and concealing the truth. She caused immense harm to the Daoist Mansion. We cannot fail to learn from this lesson. Now someone wants to repeat the same pattern, and the Daoist Mansion absolutely cannot stand by and do nothing.”

These words were extremely grave.

No one dared to speak rashly.

Qi Xuansu swept his gaze around the hall once more. “I’ve said what I needed to say. Now, everyone may speak freely and express their views.”

Many noticed that Wu Burong’s face had gone pale. She was clearly under tremendous pressure.

After a moment, Wang Jiaohe finally spoke. “Chief Deputy Qi’s words are highly meaningful, serving as a warning to all of us. In my view, there are indeed cliques and factions forming within our Daoist Mansion, bearing an uncomfortable resemblance to the partisan strife of the old Confucian School. I have also heard about Chen Jianchou’s case and have consulted the relevant colleagues. Frankly speaking, it is indeed shocking.

“As far as I know, after Chen Jianchou was taken away for investigation, someone made covert moves behind the scenes to secure a fourth-rank Daoist Priest Kindred status for him. Small maneuvers like this are not unusual. What is astonishing is that it actually succeeded. Chen Jianchou has already obtained a fourth-rank Daoist Priest Kindred status. From the submission of the official letter by the Ziwei Hall branch to the approval by the Ziwei Hall headquarters, the entire process took less than two days. This is clearly a special treatment. Could there be some hidden dealings here?”

As Wang Jiaohe spoke, many people were watching Qi Xuansu’s expression. Anyone could see that Mansion Master Wang was directing his spearhead at Chief Deputy Qi, yet Qi Xuansu showed no obvious reaction and was calmly flipping through a file.

When Wang Jiaohe finished speaking, Qi Xuansu closed the file in his hands and replied unhurriedly. “I come from the Ziwei Hall and am fairly familiar with its workings, so I can address your doubts, Mansion Master Wang. Chen Jianchou was indeed handled as a special case, but it has little to do with our Poluo Daoist Mansion. Chen Jianchou was personally commended by Sage Donghua due to his meritorious contributions. Thus, when the application was submitted, the headquarters of Ziwei Hall naturally expedited it. Surely, you’re not suggesting that Sage Donghua is engaging in factional strife within the Poluo Daoist Mansion?

“In fact, the ones who were not in a hurry were our local branch. They originally intended to wait until this year’s major examination concluded before resolving Chen Jianchou’s rank. That was my stance as well. However, my colleagues from the Ziwei Hall headquarters sternly criticized us, saying that there’s no guarantee that Chen Jianchou will definitely pass. That’s why it’s better to grant him a Daoist Priest Kindred status first, and once he passes, convert it into a Daoist rank of the same level.

“I thought about it and felt that it really did make sense. Even I wouldn’t dare guarantee that Chen Jianchou will definitely pass the examination. In all matters, one must consider both possible outcomes. That is why I had the colleagues from the Ziwei Hall local branch send a letter to the headquarters. Since the headquarters had repeatedly urged us, the procedures on their side had already been prepared, so it took less than two days.

“Sage Donghua personally commended Chen Jianchou for discovering two Ancient Immortals’ divine descents and reporting it to Great Sage Lan. Thus, Great Sage Lan personally took action and destroyed two Immortal-level divine incarnations. The remains of that battle are still outside the city, so anyone who doubts it can go and see for themselves. It’s thanks to Great Sage Lan and Chen Jianchou that Thanglong Prefecture is still standing. That is why the Ziwei Hall granted the highest-tier Heaven merit to Chen Jianchou. Frankly speaking, even I feel inferior by comparison. With such achievements, Sage Donghua would naturally commend him and publicize it widely.

“Due to this, I am doubtful when people say that Chen Jianchou colluded with secret societies. A member of a secret society actively sabotaging an Immortal-level divine descent planned for many years by two Ancient Immortals simply does not add up. But of course, guilt or innocence must ultimately be determined by evidence, just as I said earlier. This is not within the scope of our discussion today.”

Great Sage Jiang glanced at Qi Xuansu with some surprise.

He had not expected this young man to be so seasoned and calm, holding his own against Wang Jiaohe without faltering. Given Qi Xuansu’s age and experience, this truly spoke of exceptional talent.

Indeed, everyone’s talents were different. Some people’s gifts lie in the pursuit of longevity, with rapid advancement in cultivation, while others manifest their talents in different areas. Seen in this light, Qi Xuansu’s particular strength lay in his mastery and application of rules.

Every institution had its own rules. First, one must learn not to violate them and act within their bounds. This merely preserved one’s life. The next step was to use the rules to protect oneself and strike at others.

Clearly, Qi Xuansu had already reached the second stage.

Of course, the prerequisite for all of this was being an insider, because that was when rules offered protection. Otherwise, everything was meaningless. If others refused to follow the rules, they could simply bend them and strike back.

Qi Xuansu continued, “Perhaps some people would say that failing to report to the Daoist Mansion was merely an oversight. But I have also heard that when Chen Jianchou was arrested, not a single person in the Beichen Hall headquarters knew about it. Deputy Hall Master Yong Yan and Deputy Hall Master Dan Jin, did you two know about this matter?”

Li Changge shook his head and said, “This case has nothing to do with the Beichen Hall headquarters. I only learned of it from Deputy Hall Master Dan Jin recently.”

Li Zhuyu added, “I happened to hear about this matter and assumed it was assigned by the headquarters, so I sought clarification from Deputy Hall Master Yong Yan, the headquarters, and Sage Qingwei. I can state with certainty that the headquarters had no such intention. Moreover, Sage Qingwei did not even know of Chen Jianchou’s existence, so how could he possibly have ordered an investigation into Chen Jianchou?”

Qi Xuansu then turned toward Xu Jiaorong, who was participating in the council remotely. “Second Deputy Xu, you are the Second Deputy in charge of law, overseeing both the Fengxian Hall and the Beichen Hall branches. Did you know about this matter?”

Xu Jiaorong replied, “I didn’t know about it beforehand because I was still in East Shakya at the time. To avoid any conflicts of interest, I didn’t intervene and only made some indirect inquiries. There were no written procedures or formal documents related to this matter.”

Qi Xuansu said, “I can treat failing to report this afterward as an oversight. But how is not seeking approval beforehand acceptable? Even if Chen Jianchou is not a high-ranking Daoist, he is still my secretary, privy to many Daoist Mansion secrets, and a meritorious contributor to the Daoist Order commended by Sage Donghua. Yet he was arrested without any higher-ups knowing about it. Does this conform to the rules? The Daoist Order does not believe in bypassing procedures to handle cases and casually pronouncing guilt.”

Qi Xuansu slammed the table. “How dare you be so reckless? If you dare arrest someone without seeking approval, would you also dare to extract confessions by torture? If so, then this is precisely what we should be discussing today. Taking it a step further, is this an isolated incident, or is it a common practice here? If it’s the latter, then we must take it seriously and reflect deeply on our actions!”

Finally, Qi Xuansu glanced at Wang Jiaohe. “I’ve said everything I needed to say. I wonder whether Mansion Master Wang still has any questions.”

Wang Jiaohe clearly had not expected Qi Xuansu to be so sharp. For a moment, he did not know how to respond and could only remain silent.

Wang Jiaohe had intended to use a minor issue to infer something greater, but Qi Xuansu immediately countered by elevating the matter to a fundamental question of principles.

Whether Chen Jianchou was guilty or innocent was not discussed, because he was Qi Xuansu’s secretary, so any defense by Qi Xuansu would inevitably be seen as being biased.

Qi Xuansu instead raised the issue to the level of institutional discipline and morality, questioning whether there was any abuse of power.

The key point was that Qi Xuansu’s words were grounded in reason and evidence, making them very difficult to refute.

Although Wang Jiaohe had prepared some arguments, he could not bring them forward at this moment, leaving him in a passive position.

Since Wang Jiaohe did not speak, Qi Xuansu pointed out. “Superintendent Wu Burong, are you present?”

Wu Burong slowly rose to her feet. “Chief Deputy Qi, I can explain—”

Qi Xuansu raised a hand to interrupt her. “There’s no need to explain anything to me. Explain it to the Daoist Mansion.”

Left with no choice, Wu Burong said, “When we investigated Chen Jianchou, we did not yet know that he held a fourth-rank Daoist Priest Kindred status.”

Xie Jiaofeng interjected, “Superintendent Wu, did you know that Chen Jianchou is Chief Deputy Qi’s secretary and that he is a meritorious contributor acknowledged by both Great Sage Lan and Sage Donghua? Did you consider the risk of leaks? Did you consider the broader impact? Would it really have been too much to inform the Daoist Mansion beforehand? If Sage Donghua were to come on inspection and ask to see the hero of Thanglong Prefecture, only to discover then that the person had been locked up by you, what would Sage Donghua think? Wouldn’t that put the Daoist Mansion in an extremely awkward position?

“Even if you didn’t know beforehand, you should have known afterward, right? I saw the Ziwei Hall’s public notice all the way in Lion City. Are you telling me you didn’t see it in Thanglong Prefecture? If you knew, why didn’t you remedy the situation? What exactly are you trying to do by not seeking approval beforehand and not reporting it afterward? Today, you conduct a secret investigation. Tomorrow, will it be a secret execution?”

Another Deputy Mansion Master also spoke up. “Matters like this must be corrected immediately and dealt with seriously, not just this one case, but all similar cases as well. Whatever needs to be changed must be rectified as soon as possible. If you won’t change, then the Daoist Mansion will replace you with someone else who will, Superintendent Wu.”