The Empress’s Gigolo

On his way to the Ministry of Works, Ren Baqian suddenly heard a familiar sound. It was as if the air was being slashed.

Ren Baqian was very familiar with this sound.

This applied to both the tune and the musical instrument.

“Pomp and Circumstance.”

Played on an erhu.

Ren Baqian was momentarily stunned as besides himself, there was only one other person in this world who knew how to play this kind of music.

Looking in the direction that the music was coming from, he saw a restaurant with its second floor window open.

Before he could get close, he heard catcalls coming from that window.

“What kind of sound is that? It sounds very unpleasant!”

Ren Baqian’s face turned black. This was a criticism of something he was passionate about.

To be fair, the music was not bad. The jumping notes were like hopping elves, and the sound was only slightly worse compared to when he played. The person who made that comment was either stupid or malicious.

Ren Baqian didn’t go in through the front door. In a flash, he barged in from the window.

Dong!

The erhu was playing a staccato when it suddenly stopped.

This was because the musician had been knocked down by Ren Baqian…

Ren Baqian felt his knees hitting something and looked down to see a girl lying on the floor.

“Even though it sounded bad, there was no need to hit her.” The people who denounced the music earlier were now rebuking Ren Baqian. The little girl looked weak and puny, so this kick (it looked like a kick to the crowd) wasn’t well received.

Although this girl wasn’t an aboriginal, there were many people from the Jing Tribe in Lan City and the aboriginals displayed a surprising sense of justice.

“This is too much!”

“Isn’t he the principal of Black Bamboo Academy?”

“The principal of the academy shouldn’t beat others up. Furthermore, she is a little girl.”

Ren Baqian didn’t know whether to laugh or to cry. This was an accident. He accidentally kicked her as he jumped in.

It was definitely not intentional.

It was due to his efforts that the people of the Jing Tribe were able to live in Lan City.

Then again, why was she playing the erhu on the other side of the window.

On the ground was his only disciple, Zhan Caixian.

One of her hands was holding her head while the other was holding the erhu. Her eyes were brimming with tears that were about to fall, but she held back for a long time before weakly calling out, “Master!”

She had been waiting for a very long time and had learned about Ren Baqian’s habits when in Lan City. After she found out that Ren Baqian was coming back, she came here specifically to wait for him.

She wasn’t able to station herself near the academy, but Ren Baqian often visited the Ministry of Works, so she prepared to wait here for him for a few days. She didn’t expect to meet him on the first day or to receive such an enthusiastic welcome from her master… kneeing her in the body!

“It was an accident…” Ren Baqian was embarrassed. He pulled her up with his hands and rubbed her head a few times as if coaxing a child.

“Does it still hurt?”

“It hurts!” Zhan Caixian couldn’t bear it anymore and let her tears fall.

Ren Baqian was at a loss. Those who didn’t know the situation would think the worst.

“You are such a big girl, yet you are crying like a baby!” Ren Baqian chastised her.

Zhan Caixian hugged the erhu and said while sobbing, “You kicked me!”

Ren Baqian turned to look at the five or six hunks that sat there and watched this scene. This group of people understood the situation after hearing these words. After all, even the weakest among them was at the Man Wheel level, and their eyes and ears were sharp.

The aboriginals were straightforward, but not deaf.

“This is a reunion of master and student and also an accident.” Ren Baqian cupped his hands,

“Our respects to Principal Ren.” When some people stood up and cupped their hands, the rest also stood up. After all, he was the husband of the empress and should be given some respect.

Moreover, the reputation of Black Bamboo Academy was quite high now.

They did not have much respect for scholars, but they were very respectful toward scholarly warriors.

Ren Baqian was victorious against a Cardinal Heaven expert last year and threw a big bomb at the end. This gained him much respect from the aboriginals.

Ren Baqian was in no hurry to go to the ministry. He seated her on a chair and observed her while letting her cry. After two years, she had grown up.

She was a little green before, but now, she was as bright as a polished gem.

There were many beautiful women, but she had preserved her innocence. It was hard to find someone as pure and sincere as her.

If there was another such person, it would be the third most powerful expert in the world, Li Yuanzhu, whom he had met before.

That Daoist priestess gave him the impression of being pure, but compared to Zhan Caixian, she was steadier, more profound, and unfathomable.

Besides looking pure, Zhan Caixian appeared as fragile as a flower that needed plenty of care.

He carefully estimated her strength to be at the Man Wheel level, but this wasn’t enough for her to travel safely to Lan City. Some other people should have accompanied her.

After a quarter of an hour, she finally stopped sobbing, and her face was full of red patches.

There was a big bump on her forehead.

Ren Baqian got one of his guards to apply some black mud cream to this contusion, and it should disappear shortly.

However, putting this black paste on a lady like her was like putting on a piece of dog-skin plaster.

“Does it still hurt?” Ren Baqian asked Zhan Caixian casually after she had calmed down. She was a big girl now and should be about 18 years old. Fancy her crying and snivelling just because of bump on her forehead.

Still, he weighed over 150 kilograms and the added force of his momentum from jumping up…

Okay, she was forgiven.

“It hurts!” Zhan Caixian said without hesitation.

Ren Baqian felt like he was asking for it. Why did he mention this?

“Why did you come here?”

This time, Zhan Caixian could reply normally and answered, “Master is getting married! Many people wanted to send you gifts, so I followed them here…”

Ren Baqian was rather surprised to learn that there were people bearing gifts for him.

However, he felt that it was only natural after thinking about it.

After all, he was still remotely controlling the Rearguard Commandery. Plus, the survival of the Jing Tribe was mainly due to him.

It was only right for them to send him gifts.

Ren Baqian didn’t have the idea that he did his duties honorably and didn’t accept bribes.

This was gratitude!

However, he was surprised that his disciple wanted to see him.

‘Did your mother come?” Ren Baqian remembered that her father was still in the Yun Nation catching rebels, so she could only follow her mother here.

Unexpectedly, Zhan Caixian shook her head and replied, “Uncle Zhu accompanied me here.”

She explained, “He is the uncle staying at our house. He’s an Earth Wheel expert now and can accompany me. Although my mother wanted to come, she couldn’t make it. We came in a caravan with about 100 people and didn’t meet with any danger.”

“How long have you been here?” Ren Baqian asked with a laugh. His wedding was supposed to take place in the third month, but it was the end of the ninth month now.

“It has been half a year… We heard that you and the empress went to the mountains and that the wedding was delayed, so we stayed here.”