Chapter 1 A Problematic Man

Wang Beiwang turned his head and asked the man in cloth clothes with graying temples. After a closer look, the man’s appearance had been slightly altered. His eyebrows were thickened with charcoal, and a layer of light gray was applied to his face. The scar on his left cheek seemed to be fake, not like a real wanted criminal.

The experienced Wang Beiwang suspected that the other party's identity was problematic. Either he was a wanted criminal or a spy from the Northern Dynasty.

In times of war between two countries, it was common practice for the Northern Dynasty to send spies to the capital to gather intelligence and cause trouble in secret.

When Xu Changlao was young, he served in the military. Wang Beiwang learned swordsmanship from him and occasionally heard Xu Changlao talk about his past military life.

"Yuanshi Tianzun?" the man asked again.

According to Wang Beiwang's personality, he would have investigated the other party's identity, but now, although he was not a wanted criminal, he was even more sensitive than a wanted criminal.

It was better to avoid trouble, so Wang Beiwang turned to leave, but remembering the昏君 (hūn jūn - inept ruler)’s instructions, he turned back and said, "That's right, I am Yuanshi Tianzun."

Then, the two stared at each other, and nothing more was said.

Wang Beiwang waited for the other party to ask: Where is Yuanshi Tianzun? But the other party just wouldn't open his mouth.

In the silent stillness, the man with graying temples muttered, "With your silly appearance, how could you be Yuanshi Tianzun? Who taught you to say these words?"

Wang Beiwang sneered, "Your Excellency has a thieving brow and rat-like eyes, hardly someone who could be associated with Yuanshi Tianzun."

After the greeting, he examined the other party, pondered for a few seconds, and said, "Come with me."

He understood that the 昏君 (hūn jūn - inept ruler)’s words were a password, and only the 昏君 (hūn jūn - inept ruler)’s contact could understand it.

The man with graying temples followed. Wang Beiwang led him back the way he came. A quarter of an hour later, they returned to the entrance of the Red Sleeve House. The pimp stopped them, looking at Wang Beiwang with disgust: "Go, go, go. Go beg for food somewhere else."

Wang Beiwang kept a low profile: "Go in. Turn left after entering, all the way to the back."

He didn't go in himself, but stood at the door looking inside, signaling the middle-aged man to enter the hall. Ignoring the madam's greetings, he went straight to the 昏君 (hūn jūn - inept ruler)’s table, vaguely hearing the little girl Jiang Jingwei happily shout, "Brother Red Chicken."

In the hall, Zhang Yuanqing looked at Hong Ji Ge, who was devouring his food, and asked, "Why are you the only one? Where are the others?"

He had ordered a table full of dishes, but Xiao Yuan and Xiao Yi hadn't arrived.

"Don't know!" Hong Ji Ge said, "I didn't see them."

"Didn't see them?" Zhang Yuanqing frowned. "According to the agreement, you should have met last night?"

"I didn't go at all." Hong Ji Ge said as he ate, "The broken shoes you gave me almost killed me. After escaping from the palace that day, they kept pestering me to dance, making me follow them. I don't know how to dance at all. I danced all night and couldn't do it well, and got kicked all night. Seven or eight of my bones were broken. I couldn't take it anymore, so I ran away, and they chased me. There was no way for me to escape. Hmm, is there any congee? Tell the chef to make me a bowl."

"No, continue," Jiang Jingwei said with great interest.

"The chicken is from the day before, not fresh, and it's not white cut chicken either." Hong Ji Ge reluctantly swallowed the chicken, then continued, "There were city defense troops everywhere during the night curfew, and I couldn't attract attention during the day. There was really no way. I had to bite the bullet and pay the price, so I ran into a house, knocked out the owner, and then got trained in the courtyard by those broken shoes. They trained me for two whole days. I used three or four tubes of生命源液 (sheng ming yuan ye - life essence fluid). Yesterday, I finally managed to finish a tap dance and fainted. When I woke up, I rushed here."

"I thought of the beginning, but never expected this ending," Zhang Yuanqing said with emotion. "Your dancing talent is really awful."

Hong Ji Ge said angrily, "Is that the point!"

Jiang Jingwei asked, "Did that family also faint for two days?"

Hong Ji Ge was furious, "You can't grasp the point either. The point is that I was trained by a pair of broken shoes for two days and almost died."

He finished the white congee in one gulp and said, "I injected a little生命源液 (sheng ming yuan ye - life essence fluid) into them. They won't die."

"Give me back the red dancing shoes. This prop is a divine artifact. Young man, you can't handle it." Zhang Yuanqing couldn't wait to take back the prop.

Hong Ji Ge hurriedly opened his item bar and discarded the red dancing shoes like a hot potato.

Zhang Yuanqing picked up the red dancing shoes and solemnly put them into the item bar, saying, "If they were by my side, I wouldn't have suffered so much these past few days. Eat quickly, and come with me to do something after you finish eating."

On the way to the Red Sleeve House, Wang Beiwang had already found out that three hundred young girls were being held in the刑部 (xíng bù - Ministry of Justice)’s dungeon.

Only the刑部 (xíng bù - Ministry of Justice)’s dungeon could accommodate so many people. This was not a secret. Any city defense soldier or guard could find out, and even the people in the city knew it. After all, everyone knew someone who worked in the imperial court.

Hong Ji Ge ate heartily and asked vaguely, "Aren't we waiting for the Palace Master and Xiao Yuan? Damn it, Sun Miaomiao and Guan Ya haven't been found, and the Queen is also gone. There are fewer and fewer people."

Zhang Yuanqing pondered for a moment and said, "We can let Wang Beiwang go outside for a few more rounds. Maybe Xiao Yuan and the Palace Master are also looking for us."

Hong Ji Ge asked, "Who is that idiot?"

"NPC," Jiang Jingwei said.

"He's a侠士 (xiá shì - chivalrous hero)," Zhang Yuanqing corrected.

Hong Ji Ge said "Oh," his eyes sweeping the corridors on the second floor, and said with a smirk, "What a great place. If we're not in a hurry, I'd like to listen to some music here."

Zhang Yuanqing said regretfully, "Brothels are not open during the day."

Hong Ji Ge also looked regretful. Wang Beiwang, who was at the door, squatted on the ground, fiddling with a broken bowl, observing from time to time, waiting for the 昏君 (hūn jūn - inept ruler)’s orders.

Tsk, how did I become a subordinate of the 昏君 (hūn jūn - inept ruler)? I should kill him. Hmm, it's all for Xiu'er that I'm enduring him for a few days. Wang Beiwang stroked his hard, short beard, thinking that was the reason.

At this moment, he saw three strong men wearing short clothes, with bright eyes, walking from a distance, heading directly towards the Red Sleeve House.

One had a thin face and bright, sharp eyes; one was stocky and looked honest; and one had a full beard and eyes like copper bells, with restlessness between his brows.

They carried weapons wrapped in cloth strips on their backs, and their steps were steady.

As a somewhat famous swordsman in the martial world, Wang Beiwang's eyes narrowed, and he instinctively felt alert and hostile.

He could see that the three strong men were all martial artists and had considerable skills.

The thin-faced man among the three strong men seemed to sense something and glanced at Wang Beiwang, who was squatting at the door, then retracted his gaze and stopped paying attention.

Watching the three men enter the Red Sleeve House, Wang Beiwang stood up.

"Are you three gentlemen visiting the Red Sleeve House for the first time, or do you have an acquaintance here?" the pimp greeted them eagerly, asking the standard question.