The Empress’s Gigolo

The Nineteen Streams, originally deserted and with hardly a trace of human life within five kilometers, suddenly bustled with activity beginning two months ago.

All kinds of wooden material and carts filled with cement were piled up together. Unknown to the civilians, the first batch of factories in Dayao had been built within these two months.A countless number of bullock carts and hand carts went in and out each day.Besides the different types of fish cooked at high heat at the Nineteen Streams before being sent to the new military barracks, there was quartz sand, borax, boric acid, barite, barium carbonate, limestone, feldspar, and various kinds of mineral rocks being delivered from afar.It was a lively scene, bustling with noise and excitement.Correspondingly, dozens of miles away, there were two new barracks where 40,000 recruits were being trained.When Ren Baqian and the empress arrived at these two new barracks, the attention on him was only second to that given to the empress.”Is he that little fellow?””We can strangle him to death with one hand. It should be him.””This rascal…”

“How about throwing a stone at him?””You are seeking death. Her Majesty is here… although I also feel like doing it.”An unknown number of people were secretly cursing him.They joined the army to eat meat, but ended up eating fish. As a result, some of the bones inside the fish weren’t stewed soft enough, and their throats were often poked. Furthermore, the taste was bad.This situation was due to the diabolical idea of that little fellow. It was simply lacking in virtue. Since entering the barracks, Ren Baqian had sensed the hostility from all around. They came from these recruits with their muscular bodies, bronzed skin, and fierce looks.Although he was forewarned by the empress, the hostility was like copper needles poking him and was very hard to accept.

“I am innocent….” Ren Baqian felt aggrieved and whispered to the empress beside him.At present, many people didn’t even have enough to eat.

Thinking of an idea to guarantee sufficient food and nutrition should have garnered gratitude from you all, but engendered hostility instead.

It was like a dog biting the hand of its master.”You cannot be considered innocent. The idea came from you after all,” the empress answered thoughtlessly.

“At that time, it was difficult to provide rations for 20,000 recruits, not to mention 40,000,” Ren Baqian protested. “If this wasn’t done, it would be impossible to provide for 40,000 recruits, let alone the others.” Ren Baqian felt even more aggrieved.”So you came up with this idea…” the empress phrased it differently.”Your Majesty, your humble servant did this for the country.” Ren Baqian felt completely depressed and wronged.”Therefore, the idea was hatched, and these people didn’t hate the wrong person.” Ren Baqian was left speechless.

How should he continue with this conversation?

No matter how one viewed it, the idea certainly came from him.Those recruits joined the army in order to have meat, but ended up eating fish. Whatever the reason, the idea came from Ren Baqian, so naturally, they hated hm.In some ways, they weren’t wrong.Ren Baqian was unable to do anything about it.

.

The empress seemed to unintentionally catch his hand to pinch it, which was supposed to be considered consoling him, before letting go of his hand.The empress said softly, “You cannot expect everyone to understand your intentions.”

The empress’s actions were very fast, but it was still seen by many people. Each and everyone of them looked up at the sky and pretended not to see.

Ren Baqian knew that the empress was right.Even in a modern society, not everyone was enlightened, much less in such a backward world. The aim was to educate those who had never read a book and had come out of the mountains for the very first time.He understood this, but it didn’t stop him from feeling aggrieved.These were two different matters.He walked around the two barracks, looked at their conditions, and watched their demonstrations.The first barracks was clearly better than the second barracks. At least it was more organized, and their demonstrations were more impressive.The first barracks had trained for more than five months, and after the empress’s inspection, they would be sent as the first batch of new soldiers to the Protectorate of the Northeast.As for the second barracks, these recruits needed four more months of training before they were ready. After 12 days of delay, the empress set out on her imperial chariot to a ferry crossing where three large ships were waiting.

The ships were really huge, 45 meters in length and a building that was three storeys high. The ship should have previously been luxurious since there were many carvings, but it had been used for a long time. The hull was very old with patches in many places.On the other half of the ship, there were long propeller shafts which acted as the sail to propel the ship.

“Your Majesty, be careful.” Ren Baqian saw that the empress was trying to go up the gangway and used his hands to support her. The people around them rolled their eyes in disapproval. Even if the ship was twice the height, it shouldn’t be a problem for her. Was there a need for his gallantry?The expression on the empress’s face regarded this as an unnecessary act, but she was actually rather pleased. Ren Baqian touched the arm of the empress through the light muslin and actually didn’t entertain any funny ideas. He was carefully looking at the ramp as it trembled with every step and wondered whether it would break all of a sudden.He viewed the whole ship from the deck. This ship was colossal in size considering the technology available in this world.Even though the ships as seen from above and below were clean, they were very old.”Du Laoliu, be more cautious.”

“Ahh? How come this step ladder is so shaky? I feel like I am going to fall. Tie Xun, please give me a hand!” Two barely audible voices came from behind.

Ren Baqian turned to look across the side of the ship and saw Du Laoliu squinting at a teenager below.He took out a gun. Bang! “Ahh!”

“Master, I was wrong!” Du Laoliu stood akimbo with his head lowered while apologizing sincerely. “A man must not scream for help even when there is danger.”

“You know too much!” Ren Baqian said faintly.

Bang!

“Ahhh!”

The people below saw the figure of Ren Baqian disappear from the ship’s side. They silently recited what Ren Baqian said and told themselves not to forget this imposing phrase.Ren Baqian put the gun in his waist, walked beside the empress, and asked, “Where did this ship come from?”He didn’t think the ship was built by Dayao because the style was different, the carvings were very refined, and the damaged lacquered portions had not been repaired.He wondered about this possibility, Was this ship left behind by the Hao Nation?

In that case, it would be at least 70 years ago. Anything soaked in water for so long was very likely to have decayed. “Zhuo Yue sent it here some years ago,” the empress replied.Ren Baqian jogged his memory and recalled that Zhuo Yue was a Protector General of the Protectorate of the Southeast. He had heard that there were many rivers in the Chen Nation, and it was obvious where the ship came from

“It is time for a change. Don’t you think this ship is rather unsafe on the river?” Ren Baqian asked. The deck emitted creaking sounds as he stepped on it.”Zhuo Ye is already searching for an appropriate ship and will send it here after it is found.”Ren Baqian kept quiet.

There was no need to ask anymore. Right from the start, they didn’t even consider custom making their own ship or whether other people would want to sell ships to them.He reckoned that Zhuo Yue’s way of buying a ship was to offer one tael of silver, put a knife to the other party’s throat, and ask them whether they wanted the ship or the money.He reckoned that an ordinary person wouldn’t be able to sail this ship by looking at how majestic it was. This ship was certainly very expensive.

The speed of the ship wasn’t very fast, and it would take about one hour to sail through over ten kilometers of the river. However, it was stable and hardly any bumps could be felt.

Ren Baqian and the empress stood at the bow of the ship and looked at the surroundings of the Nineteen Streams. It was unfolding on a magnificent scale. He felt inspired and was thinking of reciting the poem, “The river flows eastward…”At this moment, he heard singing coming from afar.”The long river flows under your feet, the wind and the waves rushed to the horizon…”Of the sounds that reached his ears, Ren Baqian could only make out these two sentences. What was strange was the fact that the voices came from somewhere parallel to the ship and not from the opposite shore.

Ren Baqian turned to look all around and finally saw a small speck on the river far away.Perhaps it was someone sliding on the river in the same direction as them, but kilometers away.If not for the singing, they wouldn’t have spotted him.The movement was smooth, as if someone was skating. Although it wasn’t clearly seen, the speed was fast, and it certainly wasn’t someone swimming.”Is it possible to walk on water?” Ren Baqian was shocked as he hadn’t expected to see such a person in Dayao.”Hand me the binoculars,” Ren Baqian told his guard.Using the binoculars, Ren Baqian was able to see the whole scene.

One man wearing a purple shirt was sliding on the river. Ren Baqian couldn’t make out his face or ascertain his age.With both hands behind his back, looking up at the sky, and his shirt flying in the wind, this person’s posture was like a flying immortal. From this action alone, it could be seen that he wasn’t an ordinary man.Ren Baqian’s expression became strange as he took a more detailed look.A piece of wood was floating on the water, and the front part of the wood was tied with a string to a flying sword one meter above the water. It was like a water buffalo pulling the man on the plank.His illusion of a floating immortal was instantly shattered like a soap bubble bursting.