Translator: YHHH Editor: X_X
This was the first New Year that Ren Baqian spent in the other world, and enjoying a hotpot feast at Yangxin Palace Hall was he and the empress’s only activity. The hotpot base from Earth was combined with the unpolluted wild vegetables and fresh meat from the other world.
This was a well-matched combination from both worlds.
The resulting delicious taste was also unparalleled.
Of course, the most important factor was the person he was eating with.
It was doing the right thing with the right person at the right time.
For example, Ren Baqian was looking at the empress, who was giggling away at this time.
Ren Baqian’s eyes were losing their focus, and he was a little wobbly. As such, he knew he had drank too much.
The empress didn’t look much different from usual, but her face was flushed, and it was evident that she also drank too much.
And the flush on her face only added to her gorgeous look.
There were four bottles of wine on the floor. One bottle was for Ren Baqian and three bottles were for the empress.
However, Ren Baqian failed to stop himself from drinking too much.
“Your Majesty, let me tell you, the most important thing I have ever done in this lifetime was getting acquainted with you… Most of the blessings for my next life have already been used up in this life, and I have also accepted this fact…” Ren Baqian said incoherently.
However, the empress didn’t mind as this was what she liked to hear.
“I must thank Heaven for arranging so many good things in my life, and I am most satisfied with this one. I am very grateful and will offer incense, fruits, vegetables, and three types of sacrificial animals. This is called offering sacrifices to Heaven…” Ren Baqian continued.
“It is similar to giving a red-packet when people pull strings for you. When someone does you a favor, no matter what, you’ll still have to reciprocate. Otherwise, who will care about you in the future? It is the same with heaven…”
The empress poured herself a cup of wine, listened quietly to him boasting, and before long, finished another jar.
Ren Baqian rambled for a long time before finally stopping due to exhaustion.
The empress got someone to tidy up before lying on the sofa to watch a television series. Unexpectedly, she took out a packet of popcorn from somewhere.
Until now, Ren Baqian had no idea how much rations she had stocked up. In any case, she would eat some snacks while lying on the sofa to watch television series from time to time.
The big hall was very spacious, and the sound emitted from the laptop generated echoes.
However, there was also another sound in the big hall which was quite disruptive.
“Hoo…Hoo…” The empress was often distracted by it.
Ren Baqian was seated on the floor, and he slept while leaning on the sofa.
“Send him back to Pingle Park,” the empress waved her hand and ordered.
“Yes!” Qing Yuan reluctantly took her eyes away from the laptop as the plot was at a crucial moment.
The empress laid on the sofa, looked at the colorful flashing lights above her and continued to watch the television series in contentment.
…
The next day Ren Baqian woke up with a slight headache. He was given some green vine water and felt much better after drinking it.
Today was the first day of the New Year in this world, which also signified that it was the day of the lantern-grabbing contest.
As it was still early, Ren Baqian took out two boxes from under his bed, inspected them after opening them, and then closed them again.
He strolled to Yangxin Palace Hall to visit the empress, and it was rare that she woke up late like this. She had just woken up when Ren Baqian arrived, looked very groggy and wasn’t quite mentally alert yet. Such a situation was rarely seen.
“Your Majesty… you stayed up watching the television series all night again…” Ren Baqian lamented.
“Ahh!” the empress lightly yawned. The normally domineering empress was yawning like a little kitten.
“How are the preparations for the lantern-grabbing contest?” The empress casually asked.
“Wait for my heroic performance!” Ren Baqian raised his thumb, and his teeth were flashing.
It was like seeing the character from Naruto, Might Guy, in person.
[Naruto is a Japanese manga series written and illustrated by Masashi Kishimoto. There is also an anime version as well.]
Hearing him say this, the empress felt more awake. She looked at Ren Baqian who was full of confidence and then shook her head, hoping that the result wouldn’t be too miserable.
The empress had long known who was in Ren Baqian’s team and the arrangements made.
With regards to Ren Baqian taking the “tooth gate” position, the empress had her reservations. She would be satisfied as long as he could even touch the lantern platform.
After lunch, Ren Baqian went back to Pingle Park. First, he put on a skin-tight clothing. Then, he donned his armor and wore a robe over it. Before he could even move, he already felt unbearably warm.
The temperature of Lan City during wintertime was about 23 to 24 degrees Celsius, and wearing a robe was bearable, but, the addition of skin-tight underclothing made him about to perspire.
However, he couldn’t be naked while changing his clothes. Unlike the characters in Magical Girl, with their halo screen around them, he would be butt-naked.
Two boxes were hung on the back of the fork-horned cow, and Ren Baqian brought some people to the practice arena which was outside the palace. He and the Du brothers arrived at almost the same time.
The Du brothers wore underpants that were made from animal hide. Their tops, which swung from left shoulder to the right waist, was also made from animal hide. The right half of their bodies rippled with bulging muscles while the thick blue veins and arteries on the muscle surface were just like dragons.
Based on their appearance, Ren Baqian gave them nine points. He gave them one less point in case they get too proud.
But after thinking for a while, these few people couldn’t even defeat one little Lolita. As such, it made Ren Baqian feel that they were good-for-nothings.
The five of them then squatted at the corner of the wall in Slavic style as it was cooler over here.
“Who is going to buy some bowls of shaved ice? Xu Wei, find someone to buy a few bowls and don’t wait for the heat to kick in and knock us out before the contest starts,” Ren Baqian shouted loudly. He was the only one whose forehead was perspiring profusely.
After the past few months, shaved ice had become a relatively common product in Lan City.
It was rare that Caretaker Shi had a business mind, but in this instance, he actually opened a total of ten shops across almost every district.
After a while, the five of them continued squatting in a row and slurped shaved ice.
After waiting for exactly one hour, Tong Lan finally arrived. The two young members of the Tong Family came along. One was Tong Tiehou and the other was Tong Tiecheng. They followed Tong Lan’s lead, and one look was enough to know they were useless.
Tong Lan stood on the back of the fork-horned cow with her white satin dress drifting in the wind. On top of that, her good looks gave one the impression of a fairy.
“Why do you always stand on the back of the fork-horned cow!” Ren Baqian asked curiously.
Tong Lan looked at Ren Baqian liked she had seen trash and didn’t respond.
“Is it because you are shorter than others when you sit on the back of the cow? Or is it because you look more sophisticated and grander when you stand on its back?” Ren Baqian carelessly speculated.
“Hmmph!” Tong Lan raised her little face and continued to ignore him.
Tong Tiehou and Tong Tiecheng both gave Ren Baqian a thumbs-up
Ren Baqian widened his eyes. Was that really the right reason?
Sure enough, no matter how a Lolita looked, they would experience eighth-grade syndrome.
[Eighth-grade syndrome – describes teenagers around the age of fourteen that try to look cool to impress people around their age. It’s more like a growth phase for some teenagers.]
This was especially true for Tong Lan who possessed great power.
“Do you want to play Five in a Row?” Ren Baqian beckoned with his hands.
“What is Five in a Row?” The little Lolita instantly showed her curious nature. After all, she was a little girl full of curiosity.
“Come, it is like this.” Ren Baqian drew a Five in a Row board on the ground and taught everyone how to play.
Five in a Row was an easy game to pick up, and even with the aboriginals’ IQ, they were able to learn easily. Before long, they crowded around in a circle as Ren Baqian and the little Lolita played the game.
“Childish!” Tong Lan gave a look of despise after losing ten games in a row.
“Such a big man yet you are still playing such a childish game. Such a useless guy.”
“Sir Ren, why are we here so early today?” Du Changkong touched the back of his head and finally recalled this matter.
As soon as he said that, everyone else also remembered that they were supposed to discuss the tactics for the contest. Why did they end up playing Five in a Row for the entire afternoon?
“When the time comes, both of us will charge forward and the rest will cover us.” Ren Baqian said casually. “With our strength and my meticulous preparation, if we do not crush them, they will crush us. I have thought about this for many days and feel there is no need for any strategy. Everyone will act according to the situation.”
Everyone looked obliquely at him and assumed they would certainly be crushed.
Tong Lan covered her face with her little hand. She felt that her first time participating in the lantern-grabbing contest had ended before it had even started.
