A Pawn's Passage

Qin Hengde could not help but widen his eyes. What is Qi Xuansu trying to do? Is he planning to clash with the Black Robes?

Ever since the time of the Holy Xuan and Emperor Gaozu, the Daoist Order and the Imperial Court had claimed to be one entity. Though the Spirit Guard and Black Robes belonged to different systems, on a broader scale, they were allies or even comrades-in-arms. If the Spirit Guard and Black Robes clashed, it would be nothing short of internal bloodshed.

Soon, the Spirit Guards had taken control of the entire Oriental Autumn Villa. Guests, prostitutes, and attendants alike were gathered under watch. The rest of the Spirit Guards arranged themselves into formation, using the courtyard’s structure as defense.

These Spirit Guards had only recently been assigned to the Imperial Capital Daoist Mansion. Many were elite soldiers fresh from the Western Region frontlines, seasoned in combat.

Qi Xuansu was so certain the Divine Central Guards would send troops, not because of the reasons he had stated openly, but because he had realized something. Given how cleverly Li Ruoshui had orchestrated everything, she likely ensured nothing was left to chance. Perhaps the moment he led his team out of the Yuhuang Palace, Li Ruoshui had already dispatched someone to inform Commandery Prince Langya that Qi Xuansu was going to strike Oriental Autumn Villa. Faced with such a warning from the Mansion Master, Commandery Prince Langya would not sit idle and would surely come to assert his presence. When the Black Robes arrived to block Qi Xuansu, even if he had not meant to target the prince, he would have a hard time explaining himself.

Not to mention, Li Ruoshui had specifically assigned 300 more Spirit Guards to Qi Xuansu, so who knew if some among them harbored ill intent? When facing the Black Robes, it would be all too easy for a “misfire” to occur, creating an irreversible situation.

This was the complicated entanglement between the Imperial Court and the Daoist Order.

So Qi Xuansu made arrangements to counter this. Of the 300 new Spirit Guards, he left 200 stationed at their original post, far enough from Oriental Autumn Villa to prevent their intervention. If anyone dared to act without orders and caused serious consequences, he could later absolve himself by citing insubordination and unauthorized action. Shi Bingyun and others would then have grounds to retaliate.

Another 100 Spirit Guards were left inside the brothel to oversee the prostitutes, attendants, and guests, not facing the Black Robes directly. The remaining 400 were Shi Bingyun’s men, whom Qi Xuansu could trust.

Qi Xuansu dared to act this way because he had powerful backing. Without the support of Sage Donghua and Shi Bingyun, even if subordinates acted on their own, the blame would still fall on him.

Simply put, facts and logic only mattered when both sides were evenly matched. When strength was lopsided, facts could be ignored, logic became nonsense, and laws became scraps of paper. Only fists held true.