Chapter 366 - Buying People (2/2)
Shopkeeper Xu finally revealed his motive for coming here as he deepened his smile and said, “This afternoon, the royal prince came to my master’s estate to inquire about the most well-known trafficker matron in the city. He said he wanted to buy a few people! This family of four was personally chosen by Royal Prince Yang for you. The older two are a couple, and they have two children. The husband is thirty-three years old and the wife is thirty-one years old. Their older daughter is fifteen years old and the younger son is thirteen years old. Royal Prince Yang has already investigated their background; they have a clean background. They’re used to hard labor and can endure hardships. Try to use them first, and if you feel that they’re unsuitable, then you can just sell them off. He will pick a few useful ones from Prince Jing’s Estate…”
For Royal Prince Yang to treat the Yu Family with such kindness by personally helping them pick out a few people, it seemed that the Yu Family held an important place in Royal Prince Yang’s eyes. The prefectural magistrate told him they must have a good relationship with the Yu Family, and they mustn’t slight them.
While Shopkeeper Xu was speaking, Yu Xiaocao had been observing the family standing behind him. Although the man wasn’t tall, he looked like an honest man with good strength. The woman also had an honest expression on her face as she stood there with her head down and hands slightly shaking. The little girl had a nice appearance. Her eyes were crystal clear, but her hands were rough. At first glance, it seemed like she was accustomed to hard work and labor. The thirteen year old boy was almost the same height as his father, he also appeared honest and simple.
“Can you tell me why you would sell yourselves?” Selling themselves meant that they would be second class citizens for their entire life. They had to obey other people’s commands. In addition, their grandchildren and future generations cannot participate in the imperial examinations. This was equivalent to burying the future of their future generations…
The man stepped forward and replied, “My name is Huang Dachui. We lived in Linda Village, which is more than fifty kilometers south of the prefectural city. Originally, our family had ten mu of poor land, so we were able to barely make ends meet. But this spring, a steward working for Old Master Wang in our village had taken a fancy to my daughter and asked her to be his concubine. We were unwilling, so he found a group of local ruffians to destroy our house. The ruffians had beat my father until he was seriously hurt, and my mother is now bedridden from anger. Last year was a disaster year, and my family endured until spring with much difficulty. But who would’ve thought we would encounter such trouble! In order to treat my parent’s illness, I sold all the land that my family owned. However, my father and mother still didn’t make it. After taking care of my parents’ funeral, I took my family to the prefectural city to rely on some relatives and to avoid the steward from the Wang Family. When we arrived here, we found out that our relatives’ family had moved away. The steward from the Wang Family brought a group of people and chased after us...we didn’t have any choice, so we decided to sell ourselves…”
Huang Dachui was ashamed that he was unable to protect his family and also for making this decision.
“Father! It’s all Daughter’s fault for causing the downfall of the whole family. Daughter is willing to be Steward Wang’s concubine…” The girl’s delicate and pretty face was filled with tears. The rims of her eyes were red, and her fists were clenched tightly.
“Shut up! How many times have I told you not to mention this matter again! None of Steward Wang’s concubines had a good ending! If a father sold off his daughter to save his life, is he still considered to be a human?” Huang Dachui frowned and appeared mournful.
The young girl looked at her younger brother who was slightly taller than her and cried, “But if we sell ourselves, then Younger Brother can’t continue studying. Younger Brother’s teacher said that he is very talented. If he continued studying hard, then he might even be able to receive a high rank in the imperial examination! I don’t want to ruin my brother’s future because of my selfishness!”
“Sister! Don’t talk about it anymore. Haven’t we discussed this before? Do you think I’ll be able to feel at ease if I used your life to exchange for my future? I don’t want that kind of future!” No wonder the young boy’s hands were less calloused, and his skin was much fairer than his family’s. It turned out that he had been studying for a few years!
Yu Xiaocao carefully observed the family for a while and realized that the people the Young Royal Prince had selected were quite reliable. She was finally able to cut in their conversation, “Why don’t you...discuss the matter again as a family and then give me a definite answer?”
Huang Dachui’s son looked at her firmly and said, “There’s no need for further discussion. We have been bought by your family and we have already signed the slave contract. In the future, our family will be your servants. You can use us as you please!”
Shopkeeper Xu hurriedly delivered the slave contract to her and said, “The seller said that these people haven’t been trained yet. They don’t know how to properly speak or do things according to the rules, how about...let me send them back and find a few people that are more suitable for you?”
Yu Xiaocao took the contracts and shook her head gently, “There’s no need! They are good enough! Listen, my family doesn’t have many rules, but we need people with good character, capable of working, and listens well! If you work honestly, then we definitely won’t maltreat you. If you steal or act dishonestly, then I can only apologize and ask you to return from where you came from!”
The four people listened and promised that they would work hard. Shopkeeper Xu’s mission was completed, so he left first.
“Huang Dachui, I want you to follow my father first and get used to the process. In the future, I will leave the job of transporting things from Dongshan Village to you! Dachui’s wife, I want you to follow my oldest paternal aunt and help her out with her chores. Huang Xiaomei, you can follow me and work at the pickled vegetables shop!”
“...Young…Young Miss, what about me?” Huang Xiaohu asked softly.
Yu Xiaocao glanced at him and said, “My younger brother had just passed the county-level exams this year. He doesn’t have a book boy. In two days, I will bring you to Tanggu Town. But, I don’t know if Rongxuan Academy allows their students to bring their own book boy.