Twenty minutes later.
Yang Qiu stared at the "newly made over" Rex for a few seconds, then silently averted his gaze.
Rex himself didn't have much of a reaction, though the two attendants that Mia had asked to help Rex turned pale.
"Don't be nervous. I don't have any intention of blaming you." Yang Qiu nodded at the two ladies. "Mia, send the two ladies back to rest."
"Yes, Mr. Lord." Mia gave a curtsy.
Yang Qiu waited for the three ladies to leave the room before he burst out laughing.
Rex: "…"
"I'm sorry." Yang Qiu smiled. "Go wash that stuff off your face and hands. It's really… too funny."
Rex trudged to the bathroom expressionlessly…
The "upper-class aesthetics" of this world were still stuck in the first stage after the arrival of the industrial era.
It was as if… they were trying to emulate that delicate, fragile demeanor of pampered aristocrats.
Yang Qiu had gotten two former high-end hostesses to dress Rex up like a noble. The two had vigorously applied layers of makeup to Rex's hands, face, and neck, combed his hair to a glossy sheen, and even adorned his forehead with decorations. It was indeed their best effort.
However, Rex wasn't the sort suited for this elegant style. Although he had rather standard facial features, his skin was dark and rough, while his stubble was thicker than Yang Qiu's after the latter's six decades on the run. On top of it all, Rex's physique leaned toward the muscular side. Even after shaving off his beard and applying makeup, he looked more like a clown about to take the stage…
The former proprietor of "Elegant Dreams" had transformed his office into an exceedingly plain and elegant space. Were it not for the unusual and bizarre instruments hidden behind the cabinet's secret doors, one would never guess that the owner of this office was a sadistic pervert deserving of the death penalty.
Yang Qiu claimed the high-backed sofa that once belonged to the previous owner, sipping on the high-quality tea from the cabinet and indulging in the premium snacks stored in the pantry. After finishing them, he wore a look of disgust and said, "This is far too sweet, almost sickening."
Inspector Lowell didn't even touch anything. He felt incredibly uncomfortable just entering this building, which had formerly been a brothel. Sitting on the genuine leather armchair felt as if he were sitting on a bed of needles.
"Relax, my friend. Weisshem wasn't at fault. The shops and compounds built on this street had no responsibility either. The wrongdoers are those who use these buildings improperly. As long as we deal with those who have done wrong and prevent anyone from misusing these buildings, this place won't be a hideout for filth but a simple residence instead."
Lowell didn't want to hear him talk about all this and coldly said, "Are you still sticking to your original plan? It's not that I have a problem with Rex, but he seems more like an adventurer than a pampered aristocrat."
"I feel the same," Yang Qiu surprisingly agreed. "In that case, let's give Rex a different persona. He's a nobleman's illegitimate son who's relentlessly ambitious and remarkably talented. He despises crawling to his noble father like his other illegitimate siblings, always scheming to gain favor. Instead, at a young age, he embarks on journeys, making a name for himself as the shining star of the Viscount Rex family… What do you think?"
Lowell: "…"
Lowell really wanted to say mockingly, "Have you spent the last three hundred years mastering the art of deception?" But he feared that getting into a debate over the definitions of deception and deceivers would be futile, so he kept his mouth shut.
Rex washed off the exaggerated makeup and emerged dripping from the bathroom when he heard Yang Qiu ask him, "Rex, how was your geography when you were studying? How many places have you been to before the Sorenson Mountains?"
"Um…"
When the two former "Elegant Dreams'' hostesses returned to their assigned rooms, others gathered nervously around them. "How was it? Did they make things difficult for you?"
"Did they say what will happen to us?"
One of the former hostesses clutched her blouse and exhaled. "…It was alright. That, um, that man referred to as Lord and mage was quite… pleasant."
Her partner chimed in, "They didn't say much. Miss Mia just told us not to think about it and get some rest."
"How can we not think about it?" One of the ladies that had been waiting anxiously frowned. "There are so many of us. The food we would consume in one day is immense. Can they really just provide for us without expecting anything in return?"
"Did Miss Mia not say anything else?"
"Forget it. I think Miss Mia doesn't seem to hold any status among them and her words don't count for much."
"But… that Mr. Rex did say he wouldn't make us do… what we used to do before," one of the women who had been outside said weakly.
The woman who had voiced her opposition couldn't help but scoff and turned to the others. "Do you believe such words?"
The six women that had been just chattering a moment ago fell silent.
"What… what can we do?" a younger woman sobbed. "Even if we wish to escape, there's nowhere to go…"
The women exchanged glances in silence and, after a while, quietly dispersed, returning to the makeshift beds created by combining chairs and stools.
"Just get by one day at a time," a slightly older woman croaked. "We've never had a future to begin with, so why bother thinking so far ahead?"
Outside the room, Mia sighed.
Just as Rex said… providing food alone doesn't put everyone at ease, a worried Mia contemplated and left.
In the quiet hallway, every room Mia passed by seemed to emit faint, almost imperceptible sobs. No loud wailing, no heart-wrenching cries—just hushed sobbing as if the person crying was afraid of being discovered. The cautious restraint in their tears weighed heavily on Mia as she traveled alone down the corridor.
After descending the stairs and hearing no more of these faint cries, Mia actually felt a sense of relief.
"Mr. Rex?" Noticing Rex emerging from a corridor on the ground floor, Mia asked in surprise, "Aren't you supposed to be with Mr. Lord and the others?"
Rex's face showed a subtle hint of embarrassment. "Um… Yang seemed to have come up with another plan. They don't need me."
"Ah…?"
"Enough about that," Rex quickly changed the subject. "There was a burly male enforcer here originally, the one who protected the ladies. Do you remember where he was assigned?"
Mia certainly remembered the man called Ben. He was the strongest man among all the people under Taranthan's protection. "I know him. He's together with the orcs."
Ben, though covered in whip scars and far from healthy, would still be capable of posing a threat to others. Mia couldn't simply let such a person stay with the other human male sex workers. When she allocated rooms, she placed Ben on the same floor as Ossirian and provided him with a single room.
Rex and Mia made their way to the floor where the orcs were staying. They first checked on Ossirian and then proceeded to find Ben.
Ben was sitting alone on a thin cotton mattress, lost in thought. Since the previous night, everything that transpired left this enforcer with nine years of experience in this scene completely bewildered…
Undead had taken over the entire street, and his boss, his colleagues, and even the customers he had once fawned over were lined up in the streets like livestock. When Ben saw this through the window, he had to pinch his thigh to check if he was dreaming.
It was just… too crazy!
Weisshem rarely received noble guests, given its remote location, and respectable folks weren't inclined to undertake arduous journeys just for momentary pleasures. However, Weisshem did have its fair share of well-connected patrons!
There were merchants with noble backing, officials from Indahl, and sycophants with connections to the aristocracy—these were all common sights in Weisshem!
There wasn't a need to mention others. His boss, Garcia Greene, had the backing of a viscount, and even mid-tier Indahl officials were polite to him.
However, even such people with status had been all tied up like pigs and thrown onto the streets!
Ben had also seen his boss, Greene. His clothes were covered in blood, with a swollen face that was almost unrecognizable.
Hearing footsteps coming toward the storage room he was in, Ben snapped out of his daze and stood up in a hurry.
None of the rooms were locked from the inside, but no one dared to leave and move around wantonly… There were too many undead outside, after all. Even the most arrogant and unreasonable individual wouldn't dare be willful in the presence of skeletons that would make people tremble in fear even in broad daylight.
The door was pushed open, and the man who had smashed the establishment's signboard not too long ago entered.
He was very young and didn't have a bulky physique, but he was very strong. There was a heavy aura about him that exceeded his age and could cause those with keener senses to crumble.
Ben had once been a trainee warrior, but he hadn't been able to embark on the professional path because of his family background. With just his naked eyes and senses, he could tell that the man before him was a very strong and terrifying warrior. Every muscle in Ben's body tightened instinctively.
While Ben was sizing up Rex, Rex was also scrutinizing Ben.
The man with bloodied clothing before him had a large build similar to Antony's. He had a fierce face but didn't have the murderous aura of someone who had killed before. Given his instinctive defensive posture, Rex reckoned he had undergone some training but stopped at a basic level—his muscles were really messy and largely useless other than for threatening civilians.
Mia came in after Rex and was startled by the tense atmosphere between the two. She quickly broke the silence and said, "Hello, Ben. This is Mr. Rex.
"Mr. Rex, Ben is a good person. When we came in, a lady named Sybil was vouching for him, saying that Ben was different from the others. A few other ladies also said the same thing, and it was thanks to Ben protecting them that they were able to survive."
Rex gave Mia a reassuring smile, then extended a hand to Ben. "Charlie Rex."
Ben felt the heavy aura instantly disappear. He secretly heaved a sigh of relief and reached out to shake Rex's hand. "Ben." After a pause, he added, "My mother was a laundry woman. She was raped when inebriated. I don't know who my father is either."
The other party had announced his full name, and Ben did not want this great warrior to misunderstand that he was hiding something.
Rex nodded and didn't say anything rude or sympathetic.
Everyone lived with wounds that others could not see. For most who insisted on eking out their own path, rashly showing them sympathy could be considered offensive.
"We are from Taranthan, and we serve the Lord of Taranthan, Black Mage Yang," Rex went straight to the point. "Yang is currently solving the issue of Weisshem's ownership. If nothing unexpected happens, this land will soon belong to Yang, and the people here will become the subjects of Taranthan."
Ben: "…"
Ben had no idea how exactly to react without incurring the wrath of this great warrior who was clearly saying the stuff of daydreams…
Speaking of which, when did the great wilderness next door have a lord?
With a slight smile, Rex said, "I understand this sounds incredulous, but it isn't something we need to concern ourselves with. Right now, the issue is returning Weisshem back to normal so that the townsfolk of Weisshem don't have to worry about where to get their next meals."
Hearing this, Ben's tensed-up facial muscles relaxed slightly, and he revealed a look of surprise.
In feudal China, there was a saying that the poor studied while the rich practiced martial arts. This was a simple saying that was easy to understand; if one wanted to train a strong body, their family had to have a certain level of economic conditions.
This principle also held true in this world. If one wanted to become a professional-level combatant, they couldn't be born into a poor family. Otherwise, they would be like Ben, having to give up their dreams halfway, regardless of how talented they were.
Rex was such a great warrior at such a young age, so he definitely had some family background. Such a person knowing that ordinary townsfolk couldn't afford even a day's worth of ration pleasantly surprised Ben.
Ben didn't think that ownership of Weisshem could change so easily, but having lived in this town for the past nine years, he didn't wish for the place to be thrown into chaos. He perked up and asked, "Mr. Rex, what can I do?"
Rex was very satisfied with the sincere reaction of this quick-witted bouncer after hearing that the town would be restored to order. Smiling, he said, "Change into something that won't scare people and follow me."
After Ben changed into a new coat, Rex brought him to the first-floor office of Garcia Greene, the former proprietor of the establishment, then drew out a heavy snakeskin bag of copper coins from under the table.
The undead were only interested in gold (actually, it was Yang Qiu that only collected gold), while the original hostesses of the place didn't dare take anything too conspicuous or heavy, only dividing up silver coins, silverware, and some small pieces of art. When Rex had gone to gather them based on the principle of not wasting anything, he had also managed to collect several tens of thousand copper coins that even a tricycle couldn't fit them all…
These copper coins were crudely made and far inferior to the exquisite copper coins (game coins) that the undead recognized, but they were still currency.
Rex took out over a thousand of these crude copper coins and piled them on the table before saying to Ben, "You and Mia ask the people in this building and next door if they have anything they need to be purchased. Get them to elect some representatives and use this money to buy things from the shops run by fellow townspeople."
Ben: "??"
Rex then said to Mia, "In a town like this, there should be country folk coming in to sell produce. Remember to go visit the town's gate and purchase more vegetables."
"Yes." Mia nodded.
Rex patted the dumbfounded Ben on the shoulder. "Go. Protect our Mia well and don't let her get hurt. Otherwise, the undead will go crazy."
"Yes, Mr. Rex," Ben replied, immediately breaking out in a cold sweat.
Rex wasn't trying to scare him. If Mia died, all the undead would lose 100 points of territorial prestige. Given their obsession with the said prestige, Rex didn't dare imagine what these lunatics would do. Otherwise, he wouldn't have taken such a big detour to get Ben, who was recognized by the hostesses as a former enforcer, to be Mia's bodyguard.
Despite the appearance of a familiar face in Ben, the former hostesses were still very vigilant. Many refused to leave their rooms with the excuse that they didn't need to buy anything. Mia and Ben went around the two establishments, and the only ones willing to go onto the streets with them were young Brook and the orcs, Ossirian and Lyka.
With no other choice, Rex could only look for a few undead willing to do trivial tasks (casual players) and assigned a quest assisting Mia in purchasing… If a few tricycle loads of necessities weren't purchased, the townsfolk would find it difficult to believe that they, foreign forces, had the intention to stay here permanently to restore order.
After watching the procurement team with skeletons in their midst leave on four tricycles, Rex, who was standing at the door, turned around and observed the two buildings that were still quiet despite having hundreds of people living inside.
When the skeletons occupied the streets, some townspeople living in the north and east residential areas of the town were bold enough to hide in the alleys and steal glances.
When Hal and the others escorted the "prisoners of war" to the militia headquarters, many townsfolk also peered through their windows or peeped through the cracks of the door.
The prosperity of the main street supported half the town. Local family inns, small restaurants, grocers, and snack hawkers—all relied on those loaded pleasure-seeking customers or their servants for business.
Moreover, most of the "conquered" militia were from local families… These outsiders that had taken over their town couldn't exactly be considered welcome.
However, Rex still had confidence in restoring order to the town and firmly believed that gaining the townspeople's trust was only a matter of time.
Yang was slightly peeved with Rex's inability to play the role of a "respectable noble bastard" well and, in the end, had to resort to coercion to make Inspector Lowell assume the role…
Still, Yang held high hopes for Rex, instructing him to stay behind and carry out the task he had assigned earlier: vetting the militia members and gradually granting some of them their freedom.
Of course, this did not mean immediate release; instead, they would be integrated into a new security force under the leadership of the new lord of Weisshem. Ceasing the red-light district businesses didn't mean that Yang was giving up on Weisshem's economy. The new town hall would provide generous salaries to those who obeyed the new lord.
Rex, who had been living at the bottom rungs of society since he turned 16, understood what the common folk in the lower strata desired. As long as they could lead a normal life and have enough to eat, the common people did not care who ruled over them.
What truly concerned Rex was the several hundred former sex workers housed in the two grand buildings behind him.
The Chinese had a "warning" for "heartless b*tches," and there was a similar saying in this world—"Never trust a whore."
Even the most innocent and naive girl (or boy) who dabbled in the red-light district held no credibility. Why? The reason was simple—people who had to make a living in such places lived a world of lies every single day.
When they were deceived, their suffering went unnoticed because they were the lowest of the low in society. And if they didn't remain silent, even if they screamed their loudest, nobody would hear their confessions.
Patrons would never admit how many lies they had told these whores or the number of hearts and dignities they trampled on. If asked, a simple "I was just playing along" was enough to gloss over their ugly faces.
If, by some chance, a patron was deceived by one of these whores, they would angrily repeat the phrase "never trust a whore" a hundred times over to let everyone know their anger after being duped…
Asking these people who were treated poorly by customers every day and were considered despicable, dirty, ugly, and obscene people in human society to open their hearts and trust the promises of others… was way too naive.
Rex was a somewhat idealistic person, but he wasn't naive. A naive person could not have managed to retain his "father-son severance fee" despite losing his protection and strategically improving his own strength to outshine others.
Yang allows them to retain the belongings they have acquired and money in hand. That's the main reason why these people have not resisted our arrangements more fiercely, Rex silently thought to himself as he scrutinized the two buildings.
But money in hand doesn't truly put their minds at ease. Especially those humans… The damage done to their bodies by the fattening drugs is too severe. They lack even the most basic self-defense abilities, and even a teenager could easily rob them of their money. Of course, they would be restless.
We have to think of a way out for them, helping them build the confidence to survive without selling their bodies and just relying on their own skills. Only then can they truly believe that they can return to a normal life.
Rex contemplated all these as he entered the courtyard of the former "Elegant Dreams" establishment and inspected the tricycles parked along the courtyard wall.
When leaving Exile Town, Yang had instructed Rex to find a place to sell the cargo on these tricycles and convert it all into gold coins.
Now that Yang had so much gold, he had probably forgotten to inquire about the cargo. Nevertheless, Rex still intended to sell these items.
The vibrant and exquisitely patterned, thick and fine fabrics (which were actually cheap surplus curtain fabric by the meter), complete sets of alloy tableware (essentially stainless steel), entire boxes of soft towels (bought wholesale for two yuan each), various plastic utensils, plastic shoes, soap, toothbrushes, and so on… All of these were everyday items that, once displayed in the market with price tags, would instantly cause a frenzy.
"Someone buys, someone sells; that's what makes a market. When selling such high-demand goods, you need someone who can handle the market," Rex mused as he organized a portion of the items and filled up four tricycle carts. Then, he used the imprint matrix to call for Hal.
After waiting for about ten minutes, Hal, who had been assigned to guard the prisoners at the militia headquarters, reluctantly made his way over with a grumpy expression.
"What do you want?" Hal asked irritably.
He's indeed in a bad mood… Rex thought to himself.
That was well understandable. Yang hadn't been kind to them; he treated these former bandits as if they were potential sexual predators, keeping them strictly away from the people living inside the two establishments within a three-meter radius—regardless of whether Hal and his group had any such intentions. Being treated this way was bound to make them furious.
Apologizing silently in his mind, Rex pointed at the four tricycles he had set aside. "Yang asked me to find a way to revitalize this town. Can you help by taking these goods to the town's market and selling them, Hal?"
Hal: "…"
A fuming Hal glared angrily at Rex, conveying the clear message on his face: If it weren't for my inability to take you down, you would be a corpse right now!