The Empress’s Gigolo

As Ren Baqian entered the courtyard, a huge man with copper-colored eyes and a head full of short fuzz grabbed him by the shoulders.

Ren Baqian nodded.

“We’ll be counting on you from now on,” The large man said while he shook him by the shoulders.

Ren Baqian felt his words sounded oddly like someone’s last words.

The large man laughed heartily. “I don’t have to deal with those bast***s anymore. I always want to crush them to death.”

Seeing how happy he was reminded Ren Baqian of someone who was suddenly released from prison after receiving a three-year sentence.

Ren Baqian stared at him with glazed eyes.

No mistake, this must be the original Honglu Deputy that got complaints for breaking the legs of four people.

Ren Baqian wondered why he felt so miserable dealing with foreigners during his time with the Honglu Bureau.

The large man continued laughing for a long time before slapping Ren Baqian’s shoulders again. “Boss Gu is waiting for you. Head into the bureau and make a right turn towards the largest building inside.”

Right after that the large man walked off with his head held high.

Ren Baqian followed his directions, walking past a row of buildings before seeing another shorter row. On the right stood the largest building, its doors wide open.

“Sir.” Ren Baqian asked Tie Dao and Teng Hulu to wait outside while he walked up to the front door and shouted.

Gu Daxiong was sitting behind a desk with his legs propped up on it. The entire desk was empty apart from his two feet.

“Come in.” Gu Daxiong raised his head and waved at Ren Baqian.

“I suppose you’ve met Qi Zhi?”

“I think so.” Ren Baqian opined that the large man from just now was probably Qi Zhi.

“Mmm, he really got off the hook this time. From now till the end of Her Majesty’s birthday, after that group of people have left, you’ll be in charge. My only demand is that they do not disturb me. Other than that, you may handle them as you please. You can bash them up if you’re unhappy, as long as you don’t kill any of them.” Gu Daxiong threw a token on the table.

Speechless, Ren Baqian picked the token up.

“As for your official robe, go find Gu Shou to get a set altered. Manpower wise, just grab any idler you find in the courtyard. All I ask for is to not be disturbed.” Gu Daxiong grinned widely as he reiterated his only demand.

All Ren Baqian could do was nod in agreement.

Looks like he’s really throwing everything to me.

Dayao’s officials were indeed different from other nations’ cunning officials.

“Sir Gu, may I ask when Her Majesty’s birthday is? How many more days till then?” Ren Baqian cupped his hands and asked.

“Just another twenty-two more days. Foreign guests should start arriving within a day or two. A handful of them will stay with their country’s ambassadors or have them make the necessary arrangements. You’ll have to handle the rest of them.”

“Where should I arrange for them to stay?” Ren Baqian questioned.

In order to plan, there first must be somewhere to house them.

“Look for Gu Shou, he’ll tell you where to put them up.” Gu Daxiong answered.

“If they try to start something or cause an uproar…”

“Beat whoever you need to, bash whoever deserves it. They’re the ones who decided to come over, nobody begged them to come,” Gu Daxiong interrupted.

Upon seeing his reaction, Ren Baqian decided he would act on his own accord when the time came.

“One last question, Sir Gu. What if the other party is an expert? Your subordinate lacks the skill to defeat anyone,” Ren Baqian asked. He was not particularly pleased with the idea of being hit to death by them and getting buried by the empress.

Gu Daxiong eyeballed Ren Baqian suspiciously.

As much as he did look rather frail and unable to fight, surely the empress would not send a weakling here?

Furthermore, he was the Storyteller of Qingxin Palace Hall.

The old lady there was terribly powerful.

“Hang on.” Gu Daxiong got up and walked towards the door. He gave Ren Baqian a good fling as he walked by, almost making him do a 360-degree flip.

.

“Why do you have so little strength?” Gu Daxiong gave Ren Baqian a puzzled look.

Ren Baqian was flung back many steps by Gu Daxiong. He sighed as he looked at Gu Daxiong’s honest bewilderment.

Gu Daxiong walked to the door and shouted, “Xiong Pi, get your a** over here now.”

What an astounding voice he had. It was a voice that shook the heavens and the earth, it made the entire Honglu Bureau jump.

“Boss, I’m here, I’m here.” A robust voice came closer and closer.

The owner of the voice stood at the door, blocking out a good half of the sunlight that was streaming in. Ren Baqian felt as though a wall had appeared in the doorway as the room descended into darkness.

Standing at the door was a humongous man who was more than two meters tall. He was bald, half-naked, and wore a loincloth. His incredibly ripped body was full of wild beasts’ slash marks.

Gu Daxiong’s physique was like a bear, but the man standing in the doorway was at least one size bigger. Xiong Pi truly lived up to his name, which meant brown bear. The brown bear was one of the largest subspecies of bears.

Compared to this guy, Caretaker Shi was only about as strong as a baby chick.

“Xiong Pi, this is our bureau’s newest deputy. You’ll follow him around for the following days and beat up whoever he asks you to beat.”

“Oh, greetings deputy,” Xiong Pi said as he cupped his hands slowly. His voice was rather melancholic and he sounded fairly simple-minded.

Ren Baqian stepped up beside Gu Daxiong to get a better sense of Xiong Pi’s size. Xiong Pi’s arm was almost as thick as Ren Baqian’s waist.

He gave off King Kong vibes just by standing still, crushing others with his mere presence.

Seeing his scars up close made the experience much more terrifying.

If a fighter’s prowess could be judged by his appearance, Ren Baqian would rate Xiong Pi nine out of ten. The one mark was deducted so that he would not be too arrogant.

“No one below heaven grade can defeat him.” Gu Daxiong patted his chest twice, making a drum like sound.

Xiong Pi gave an “earnest” smile, revealing strips of meat stuck between his teeth.

Heaven grade, that’s probably the measure of strength in this world?

The heaven in heaven grade likely implies a high level of strength. I wonder what grade the empress is.

Ren Baqian cupped his hands towards Gu Daxiong gratefully, “Many thanks to you sir.”

“No problem. Seeing how weak your tiny physique is, it’s probably better that he’s around you.” Gu Daxiong waved his hands.

“Where should I go to find Gu Shou?”

“That building all the way in the back.” Gu Daxiong pointed towards the left of the bureau’s main entrance.

“Many thanks, I’ll take my leave.” Ren Baqian walked out the door with Xiong Pi trailing behind him. Ren Baqian turned his head to look at Xiong Pi who was a lot taller than him. In order to see his face, Ren Baqian had to look up. As they walked, Ren Baqian could sometimes feel the earth shudder under Xiong Pi’s steps.

“I leave myself in your care for the next few days. We must all handle the higher ups’ orders well together,” Ren Baqian said to Xiong Pi

“Deputy, I’ll settle anyone you want.” Xiong Pi said with his “earnest” smile.

Mmm, so that’s what it means to express good reasoning in a coarse manner.

Ren Baqian nodded his head satisfactorily as they walked all the way to the end to look for Gu Shou. Upon entering the room, Ren Baqian saw a Gu Daxiong that was one size smaller. This mini-me even had the exact same mannerisms and was sitting on a chair with his legs propped up on the table.

Definitely his biological child, there’s no doubt about it.