The Empress’s Gigolo

“What’s the point of talking about those things that nobody knows about?” Tu Yu immediately felt a little indignant after Du Laoliu’s sarcasm was thrown at him.

“You won’t understand even if I explain it, hence there isn’t a need to waste my breath!” Du Laoliu stretched his arms and lifted his head as if he was despising the other party.

Ren Baqian was very familiar with this expression since Tong Lan always had this look on her face.

“What can you guys produce, you bunch of trash?” Tu Yu raised his voice, infuriated by Du Laoliu’s expression.

The people in the surroundings didn’t stop their argument, but were instead excited to watch the show.

Du Laoliu and Xu Peng had gradually drifted apart from them after attending the school and were currently not in the same boat anymore.

“At least the salt you’re eating now was produced by Yagui in the mountains!” Du Laoliu laughed.

“That has nothing to do with you either. I can only say that the gigolo indeed has some capabilities.” After Du Laoliu pressured him with this matter, Tu Yu’s imposing manner immediately decreased by a fair bit. However, he still gritted his teeth and said, “But that’s all that he can do! He can’t even beat a normal person in a fight, not to mention you bunch of trash.”

Du Laoliu got annoyed after being called trash a couple of times and said with an ashen face, “Whether or not we are trash, you are in no position to judge. It takes someone with brains to govern Great Xia (TLC. Dayao?) and not someone with brawn. Yagui is indeed not very strong in his martial arts, but he can achieve much more than you people. At present, even though we haven’t achieved much, the things that our teacher has created are far more useful than 100 of you!”

After Du Laoliu was done talking, he stood up proudly from his chair and said, “We are leaving!”

Xu Peng sneered as he stood up and swaggered off with Du Laoliu.

However, after just taking a couple of steps, they heard a bang from the table behind them as it came flying toward them. They weren’t able to defend against it in time as it smashed into their backs. The dishes were scattered all over and much of the food stained their bodies.

“Ha! What can trash like the two of you do?” Tu Yu sneered.

“You…!” Xu Peng got up from the ground and glowered at him.

“What? The one with the bigger fists is the boss! This is how it was in the past and how it still is now!” Tu Yu burst out laughing. “You guys are simply trash that has been abandoned. Do you really think that you can learn something from that gigolo?”

“Xu Peng, let’s go!” Du Laoliu repressed his rage and shot a glare at Tu Yu before dragging Xu Peng along to leave.

“Oh yes, you fancy Shi Jiyue right? My father went over on my behalf to ask for her hand in marriage, and her father has agreed!” Tu Yu burst out in laughter again.

Du Laoliu immediately stopped in his tracks upon hearing this and clenched his fists firmly.

“According to the customs in Dayao, our families are well-matched in terms of social status. How could a piece of trash like you deserve her?” Tu Yu added.

“Tu Yu!” Hong Xian shouted coldly.

“Hong Xian, this doesn’t concern you! This is between me and him! Correction, I’m just informing him about my business with Shi Jiyue. He can come over and attend the ceremony later!” Tu Yu glanced over at Hong Xian, seemingly unafraid of her, and continued, “Besides, I don’t think you are related to this piece of trash in any way, right?”

“Hmph!” Hong Xian simply scoffed coldly and stopped talking.

“Laoliu, let’s go! I’ll go find out more with you!” Xu Peng tugged on Du Laoliu.

“What are you going to ask about at my wife’s house?” Tu Yu ridiculed.

Du Laoliu pursed his lips tightly and walked down the stairs without looking back.

Xu Peng followed along and check on him worriedly.

“You picked on Du Laoliu today because of Shi Jiyue, right? I knew that you fancied her from the start. It doesn’t matter that you picked on him, but if those things you said about the Principal of the Black Bamboo Academy reach his ears, you will only stand to lose,” someone commented.

“Hmph! They are merely the facts. What can he do to me?” Tu Yu knitted his eyebrows and remained unyielding.

“Let’s go.” As Hong Xian stood up and left, a few others followed her.

“I kind of liked what you said.” Liu Ruoyao patted Tu Yu on the shoulder before quickly catching up with the others.

After that, Du Changkong’s two cousins got up and left as well.

One after another, more than 10 people left. The second floor was immediately half empty.

The remaining people felt no interest in staying after seeing this, so they stood up and left successively.

When the dishes were served, the only people left in the building were Ren Baqian and the empress.

They subsequently removed their disguises after seeing that there was nobody else around.

The empress looked at Ren Baqian and asked, “Are you angry?”

“Not worth it!” Ren Baqian shook his head. Actually, after seeing his students being treated like this, it was impossible for him to not be angry.

On the contrary, he completely didn’t mind the things that Tu Yu said about him.

However, after some careful thought, the opinions of those youngsters probably reflected the thoughts of most of the officials in the imperial court.

After all, it wasn’t easy to change a perception that was decades, centuries, or even millennia old. Their eyes and their thoughts had been deceived for a long time. Unless they were like the empress, who had experienced and seen the impact of modern technology for herself and explored the world of the future, how many of them could actually understand?

Even when new products entered and changed their lives, many people would still continue their existences while staying close to the perceptions they had always had. They would eventually be reduced to being obsolete.

Needless to say, at the present, only the empress and a few people understood the many things that Ren Baqian did. The majority of the aboriginals were clueless.

A heavy burden and a long journey!

What Ren Baqian needed to do was change this world, step by step. He had to change the people’s lives and make them embrace the changes to this world. Then, they would choose to get with the times or face elimination.

“I know and understand many things, but since the officials of the imperial court don’t even understand these things, it’s pointless to even talk about the rest of the people,” the empress said as she lifted Ren Baqian’s hand from the table. Her voice sounded consoling.

“I know.” Ren Baqian smiled. “Actually, the impression that Du Laoliu gave me in the past was that he was energetic and lively, yet impulsive. I didn’t have great expectations for him. Today, he made me gain a whole new level of respect for him. He actually knew how to use his brain and was also a glib talker.”

“I thought that you might still be moody. After all, you have done a lot of things.” The empress looked closely at Ren Baqian’s face. He was smiling as if he really wasn’t angry at all.

“I’m not so childish that I would squabble with a kid!” Ren Baqian turned his wrist around and held the empress’s hand. He used his fingertips to draw circles on her palm. “Naturally, they will know in a few years’ time.”

“Your Majesty, those students of mine are much more precious than these people”

“I have high hopes for them too!” The empress nodded.

“So, is Your Majesty going to bestow him with a marriage or something?” Ren Baqian asked.

“Didn’t you just say that you wouldn’t squabble with a kid?!” The empress immediately withdrew her hand and looked at him with disdain.

“Just casually asking!” Ren Baqian laughed out loud. “In order for them to grow up, they have to experience all sorts of things and gain all sorts of understanding. Just like this incident, they must know that time and tide wait for no man. Also, they have to work hard for themselves! Actually, looking at it from another perspective, I actually have to thank that Tu Yu. Oh by the way, how is he related to Minister Tu?”

“How would I know about such things?” the empress replied casually.

Ren Baqian nodded and placed this matter to rest. He originally wanted to let the empress mingle with the people while incognito and anger the younger generation from the officials’ families. In the end, what he saw was an argument. His two students’ encounter made him understand the opinions of many people and even gave him a sense of urgency that time and tide waited for no man.

How could he possibly allow his students to put up with this? It would prove the incompetence of their principal.

After the duo finished their meal, they put their disguises back on, left the restaurant, and snuck into the crowd once again. Not long after, they heard Tong Zhenye’s thunderous voice ask, “Your Majesty? Why are you out of the palace today. Furthermore, why are you in that attire?”

They saw Tong Zhenye sitting on a fork-horned cow while looking surprised as he stared in their direction.

The crowd first went quiet before they followed Tong Zhenye’s gaze. The bystanders looked at them and kicked up a commotion.

Both Ren Baqian and the empress were shocked that they had actually bumped into this fellow when they were out for some fun!

“You didn’t bring any bodyguards along with you, Your Majesty?” Tong Zhenye leaped down from his mount and walked toward them, shouting as he made his way.

“The empress is here?”

“We actually saw the empress!”

The empress frowned and looked murderous. She finally had the chance to come out for some fun, yet this wretched man had to ruin it!

“I remember asking you to wait for me at the Hanyuan Palace Hall a few days ago. Why didn’t I see you when I woke up?” the empress asked coldly as she removed her scarf.

“It indeed is the empress!” The people nearby suddenly crowded around and filled up the entire street, looking at the empress with zealotry and adoration. The news of the empress appearing on the street was still spreading into the distance.

“Huh?” Tong Zhenye was puzzled by her question.