The Empress’s Gigolo

Ren Baqian sat in a chair, opened the box beside him, and saw the black tokens inside. The edge of the tokens were carved with images of an ichthyosaurus. On the front were three blood-red characters: “Rearguard Commandery.” On the reverse side, there were two red characters: “Baihu.”

Each token was no bigger than a palm, weighed about 100 grams, and was made entirely out of an alloy.

“The token given to each of you is your identity. When meeting people from the court or anyone from the Rearguard Commandery, present your token to identify yourself first.” Ren Baqian gave out the tokens as he spoke.

After receiving the tokens, the recipients found them to be meticulously crafted. The lines were fine, had no traces of hammering or carving, and were impossible to copy.

After seeing them collect their tokens properly, Ren Baqian calmly said, “I have two tasks for all of you to complete.”

“Please speak,” the crowd below him immediately said.

They had received these tokens as a confirmation of their identity and would have to obey whatever orders Ren Baqian gave them.

Ren Baqian never said that the Rearguard Commandery would be like a city gate that anyone could enter and exit at will.

From his past record, everyone could guess what would happen if they thought of quitting.

Ren Baqian stood up to open the box on the floor, took out a few binoculars, and distributed them to the crowd.

“Try them out,” he commanded.

Everyone took the strange items handed out by Ren Baqian. After a while, someone asked, “Sir, how do I use this?”

Ren Baqian picked one up, put it in front of his eyes, and looked outside. The crowd immediately understood.

One person placed the binoculars in front of his eyes and looked out from the courtyard, then exclaimed in surprise as his expression changed.

This didn’t only happen to one person, but also to a few after him.

Through this handheld device, the wall in the distance appeared as though it was in front of them. Small damaged areas and weeds growing on the wall could be seen clearly.

“Senior Qi, what happened?” someone asked softly.

As everyone knew, these were Earth Wheel experts who weren’t easily surprised. Their amazement when they used these devices caused the people beside them to feel bewildered.

“Take a look for yourself!” Senior Qi handed over the binoculars to him.

Some of the other used it to look at faraway things, but some guys used it to look at the people across from them and received a fright.

One viewer saw two black holes full of weeds and only realized that he was looking at someone’s nostrils after retreating a few steps.

Everyone passed the binoculars around so that they all had a chance to look. The crowd was full of amazement.

Even though this device couldn’t improve their strength, it was certainly very useful.

“This is a pair of binoculars. Everything within sight will be magnified to be ten times larger or nearly ten times larger. Even faraway objects the size of an insect can be clearly seen.

Another item, called the night vision device, can spot human bodies in the distance at night. No matter how well hidden the person is, they will be discovered instantly.”

I need a few people to observe the enemy movements at the Wang Estuary. There is no need to get close, and you only need to monitor their setup. With these two items, all of you can maximize your safety.”

“Sir Ren, I’m willing to go,” someone immediately said. Everyone clearly knew that they certainly couldn’t choose to work whenever they wanted. Even back in the days when they were in their sects, they couldn’t act this way.

This was the first task given by Ren Baqian. As such, he let them sign up voluntarily, but those who showed initiative were certain to be favored by him.

The binoculars and the addition of the so-called night vision devices had enhanced safety to the maximum. Those present were all Earth Wheel experts and as long as they weren’t surrounded, they would have no difficulty escaping if required.

If one didn’t strive for such an opportunity, then what was the point of working under Ren Baqian.

“Sir, your subordinate is willing.”

Everyone began to speak. Some addressed themselves as “I,” some as “subordinate,” and some used their names. It was quite confusing.

A total of over 20 people volunteered.

“That’s it then. You guys go to the vicinity of the Wang Estuary and Ghost Ridge to check the situation. It would be best to clarify the composition of their forces as well as their activities.” Ren Baqian displayed a smile.

Knowing that these people were previously martial artists and not conversant with military matters, he added, “Count the number of people there by observing the smoke from the kitchens. After all, they can’t be eating cold food outside every day and will surely need to cook…”

Ren Baqian told them briefly what to look for based on his previous experiences. They were quite surprised that this fellow knew such things.

Everyone was suddenly uplifted. They wouldn’t forget the events of these past few days.

“As for the rest, I have another task for you guys. Have you recruited any Tiqi like I told you to?”

“They have been recruited.”

“Good. Send them to the 37 cities in the north with at least ten people in each city to monitor the situations there. If there are problems, report back immediately. If rebellious groups try to form within the cities, kill without mercy.

At the same time, we need to recruit manual laborers from the cities. Go undercover in each city and gather information. We need to be fully aware of the slightest sign of trouble, not only now, but even in the future. You will be given jurisdiction over certain areas, and if these areas have problems, I will hold you responsible!” Ren Baqian threatened.

“Yes!” Everyone became solemn.Ren Baqian sat leisurely in his chair after speaking and was prepared to dismiss everyone because he had nothing more to say.

Right at that moment, a red silhouette appeared at the doorway.

“Your Majesty!” Ren Baqian stood up and cupped his hands to greet her. Her silk dress seemed to have two holes, and Ren Baqian was about to ask her what had happened when she coldly threw two heads on the floor.

Ren Baqian was taken aback and asked softly, “Your Majesty, these are… ?”

The empress ignored him and simply departed from the doorway.

“Qing Xuanjun! Fox Rouge!” The people beside him were shocked when they found out who the heads belonged to.

“Well?” Ren Baqian recalled hearing these names before. They were two of the 18 Spirit Wheel experts from Tianjing Basin. Most people thought that Fox Rouge was a woman when they heard his name, but he was actually a man. He was called Master Fox when he was young and liked to use makeup even when he grew old. As such, he was secretly called Fox Rouge by many.

If he remembered correctly, Zuo Cheng had been injured by these two a few days ago.

“Sure enough, they are the two people mentioned,” everyone whispered.

“Aren’t they supposed to be at the Wang Estuary?”

“Qi Zixiao went to the Wang Estuary?”

Everyone displayed shock. Did the empress go to the Wang Estuary to kill these two Spirit Wheel experts? Even though they already knew that the empress was very strong as was proven previously in the battle at Mount Wu, they were still shocked.

To be able to go to the Wang Estuary, kill two people, and come back without any injuries was a feat that terrified them.

With such a top master like the empress and also the winged cavalry, the revolutionary troops in the south wouldn’t be able to resist. They had made the right choice to surrender or else they would have ended up like these two.

When Ren Baqian snorted, the person who spoke earlier knew that he had made a mistake, so he lowered his head and apologized, “It was a slip of the tongue. Please forgive me, Sir.”

Ren Baqian squinted at him, took note of his face, and said, “Since the two Spirit Wheel experts in the Wang Estuary are dead, you guys can go there without worry.”

“Yes!” Those heading to the Wang Estuary had their morale boosted.

With the strongest enemy experts dead, the remaining forces would be no threat at all.