A Pawn's Passage

After the banquet ended, Lei Xiaohuan deliberately sought out Qi Xuansu to offer her apologies.

Had Qi Xuansu not known Lei Xiaohuan well, he might have thought she had planned everything from the start.

Naturally, Qi Xuansu did not blame Lei Xiaohuan for anything. In truth, even without her involvement, Qi Muyu would have found some other way to approach him. It was only a matter of time.

Lei Xiaohuan told Qi Xuansu that although the Quanzhen Sect mainly managed the overland trade routes through the Western Region, with maritime commerce now flourishing, the overland routes had declined. As a result, Daoists from the Quanzhen Sect had also turned to maritime trade.

Qi Muyu was also involved in that field, focusing on trading with Nanyang and having many business dealings with the Wang family. However, she had probably caught wind of certain rumors, which was why she now sought out Qi Xuansu.

That made things rather interesting. What exactly had Qi Muyu heard? If it were only the news that Qi Xuansu would be appointed as the Deputy Poluo Daoist Mansion Master, then Qi Muyu probably just sought a normal business partnership. But if she had heard that the Quanzhen Sect planned to move against the Wang family, then she was betting everything on Qi Xuansu.

In truth, Qi Xuansu had no desire to be entangled with Qi Muyu at all. However, she had Qi Jiaozheng as a backer. Since Qi Jiaozheng was a powerful regional lord, it would not be wise to offend him without reason. Thus, Qi Xuansu could only play along with polite pretense.

Although there was no proof that Qi Jiaozheng was directly behind this or even aware of it, Madam Qi had once taught Qi Xuansu an important truth. What was spoken might not matter, but what was left unspoken always did. No matter what, Qi Muyu had invoked Qi Jiaozheng’s name, so Qi Xuansu had to show due respect. However, how he would do so required careful consideration. It had to be reasonable and lawful so no one could hold anything over him, yet sufficient to earn the Qi family’s gratitude. That was no easy task.

Now was not the time to probe too deeply into the old grievances between his master and the Qi family. Qi Xuansu’s rise had been too rapid, so his foundation was still shallow. He had already made enemies of the Li family, making it unwise to provoke yet another foe. He needed to stabilize his own influence first.

Moreover, judging from Qi Muyu’s attitude, there did not seem to be any deep, irreconcilable hatred. If his master truly had a life-and-death feud with the Qi family, they would have long since silenced him. There would have been no need for Shen Yuzu to hire assassins. If the Qi family truly bore such enmity, their approach to Qi Xuansu would not have been one of active cooperation. Rather, they would not allow him to live.

Thus, Qi Xuansu surmised it had probably been a quarrel of pride. His master had left the Qi family in a fit of anger, perhaps without Qi Jiaozheng’s knowledge. The last time he met the head of the Qi family, the man had not even heard of the name “Qi Haoran,” which seemed to confirm this conjecture.

After seeing Lei Xiaohuan off, Qi Xuansu ran straight into Qi Muyu again, who invited him to a private banquet, which consisted of only the two of them. It was an occasion to speak of practical matters away from others and a way to build closer relations.