Chapter 4: Chapter 4: Human Trafficker
"The government can't force its citizens to live in mountainous areas. If they try, people will rebel, and those people aren't wicked criminals—they're just ordinary citizens."
"There's nothing special about this area. What was the government thinking, forcing people to live here?"
"It's to prevent the land from being stolen by enemies and to increase the amount of farmland."
"Is there an enemy behind this mountain?"
"Behind this mountain, there are two others mountain, and beyond them, there's a sea. In short, it's very safe. The mountains act as a natural wall against pirates or enemy invasions."
Danny Malbaum then returned to his village, while the other exiled prisoners and bailiffs saw him approaching.
"Hello, sir, what's your name?" asked the leader of the bailiffs, his instincts urging him to show respect.
"My name is Hao Ruofei. What's yours, and why have you come here?"
"Oh, Sir Ruofei, these are exiled prisoners. They're being sent to Zhou Village."
"Zhou Village? I live there—you can follow me."
Upon hearing this, the bailiffs agreed to follow him. They conversed and asked questions about the village, and Hao Ruofei told them the truth about it.
"No wonder that treacherous magistrate wanted to send us there," said one of the prisoners.
Before Guts could ask, the bailiff explained what had really happened. Guts' face changed when he heard. He had heard some details from Jarvis, but learning the full story made his blood boil. When he was a policeman, he despised this kind of scum.
They then met the village leader to arrange accommodations, but there were no houses available. The only option was an empty horse stable that hadn't been used. Luckily, the space was large enough to hold all 343 people, who were forced to live there.
Though they weren't happy about it, it was better than nothing. At least it sheltered them from the sun and rain. This village had never received exiled prisoners before. The former minister had noticed that the locations for exiled prisoners were different now—they should have been sent to a desert, not here.
Before the bailiffs left, they handed over 100 taels of silver to a scholarly family. "Master, please accept this money. When my family was in trouble, you helped us. This is my way of repaying you." Though reluctant, the family accepted the money, as they had none of their own.
Coincidentally, the scholarly family's house was in front of Hao Ruofei's home, and suddenly they heard a loud noise.
"No, Father, you can't do this! My brother won't let you sell me!" shouted Hao Dani.
"Is this your daughter? She's really beautiful."
Hao Dani is Hao Ruofei's younger sister. (Her name follows the old tradition where girls were often not given proper names, instead called by birth order or simple names like Dani, Erni, Sanni, or Liuni.)
Hao Ruofei and Hao Dani inherited their mother's looks, making them the most attractive people in the village. However, many didn't see Hao Ruofei as good-looking because of his tough demeanor. They only saw him as someone not to be messed with.
Hao Dani, on the other hand, resembled their mother, and thanks to the care of an artificial intelligence, she became even more beautiful. The AI looked after her, sometimes using online shops to buy apples, meat, and grains so that Hao Dani could eat well. It also taught her how to read.
Yes, the AI was really smart. It met a village scholar and forced him to teach Hao Ruofei. If the scholar refused, Hao Ruofei would punch him. Sometimes, Hao Ruofei would bring roasted meat as a gift of thanks, which made the scholar happy. His family couldn't afford meat, as they used their money for his studies. After that, the scholar willingly taught Hao Ruofei more, and to everyone's surprise, Hao Ruofei was incredibly smart. He only needed to be taught something once to remember it. So, it's no surprise that Hao Ruofei could teach his sister, Hao Dani, who grew into a sensible and honest girl under his protection.
Hao Dani's voice was very loud, and Guts could hear it. He then stormed into the house forcefully.
There were around 20 thugs with her father, Hao Ning.
"Little girl, your father has agreed to sell you. He lost 80 taels of silver and agreed to sell you for 90 taels," said one of the thugs.
The thugs ran a business of gambling and trapping families. Normally, a person could be sold for 10 taels, and a beautiful woman for 20 taels, so they initially rejected Hao Ning when he offered to sell his daughter.
But after seeing Hao Dani's face, they felt they had hit the jackpot. Even in town, there was no one more beautiful than Hao Dani. If they could sell her to the magistrate, they could receive 150 taels—no, maybe even 300 taels.
Ex-generals and several men wanted to stop the thugs, but their bodies were still weak, and it wasn't illegal to sell a person as a slave. They were stuck, watching helplessly as the scene unfolded.
The villagers stood at a distance, afraid to intervene. Several men who admired Hao Dani felt dejected. They liked her, but their mothers had forbidden them from marrying her.
There were only two families with the Hao surname, making the Hao clan very small compared to the Zhao, Lin, and Wang clans. Other clan leaders wouldn't assist unless asked directly.
Suddenly, there was a loud thump.
"Stop! What are you doing to my sister?" shouted Hao Ruofei.
The thugs, who had been grabbing and trying to molest Hao Dani, stopped and looked at Guts with a hint of fear.
"Stop? Her father has sold her to us," one of the thugs responded.
Hao Ning looked both foolish and frightened when Guts glared at him, but then he relaxed, knowing there were 20 men, and thinking Guts couldn't stop them all.
"Hao Ning, how dare you sell my sister! From now on, I'm no longer your son," Guts declared, charging forward and punching Hao Ning until his teeth broke.
"It was this man who has debt with you. I give you a chance. You can bring Hao Ning and sell him as a slave, or you will die here."
At first, the thugs were afraid, but then they remembered that they had coerced other people and beat them into submission many times. So the leader bravely talks to Hao Ruofei, "Boy, it's too late your sister has been sold to us."
'Jarvis, please scan him and show me what he had did' 'ok host'. When Hao Ruofei heard what this leader had done to other people, he felt very angry, and then he also heard that man's words. "Guys, beat him and break his legs. How dare he stop us?"
Guts then used his dragon slayer to cut the leader's arm, and with another swing, he cut his legs. Then, with fast movement, he beat them all and broke a few bones. The villagers, the bailiff, and the prisoner who was watching were scared silly.
"So you guys wanted to die here or leave here with this man?" he pointed to Hao Ning.
"We will leave here." They wanted to run, but guts stopped them and told them to bring Hao Ning and the leader's arms and legs.
Hao Dani finally cried. Her brother has saved her once again. Every time people bully her, her brother will always fight back with the bully. This time her father wanted to sell her, and once again, her brother came to protect her.
"Ok Dani you are safe", don't cry I will always protect you. Look i purposefully cut his legs, those who lost legs their life will become difficult"
"The leader who heard this feel angry, he wanted to get revenge but suddenly he remembered they had Hao Ning as a punch bag"
(Guys, I have wrote this for a long time. Always in my computer, so i decided to publish it weekly)
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