Manager Cohen led Xiao Chen and the others into a large and comfortable carriage. This carriage already had the prototype of modern European carriages. The carriage was square with windows on both sides. The four of them sat opposite each other and could see the monotonous street scene of the slave camp from the window.
Cohen is completely different from the talkative Inda. He is a quiet person, but he can speak in detail if the guests have any questions. After hearing that Xiao Chen wanted to use slaves as guards, he thought for a while and said, "Master Xiao, ordinary slaves are not good guards. You need to find a group of trained warriors. We have some prisoners of war from the Purple Eagle Empire. They can be a good group of people with a little training."
"Use prisoners of war? Is this safe? Will they defect?" Xiao Chen asked.
"Speaking of escaping, prisoners of war are no different from other slaves. If they stay with you, they will have more hope than escaping. Why would they run away?" Cohen asked, "Besides, the Purple Eagle Empire people have very distinct looks. They are paler and taller than us southerners. We usually brand their faces with your emblem, so it is difficult for them to sneak back to the empire. You know, all lords and checkpoints will hang runaway slaves without hesitation."
"What he said is true." Kalanda added, "Few slaves can escape back to the empire alive. As long as the master is not too harsh, they may live longer if they stay. The most terrifying thing is not being bought, but being rented out by slave traders. That is simply a walk through the gates of hell. Right, Steward Cohen?"
"Captain Kalanda, some of the claims are just rumors," Cohen replied expressionlessly.
"Oh? Then please clarify it for me." Luo Ling was quite interested in this topic.
Manager Cohen ignored the two magicians and a soldier staring at him and just shook his head and said, "Miss Luo, these matters are not my responsibility. I'm afraid my explanation will not satisfy you."
"Then, Kalanda, what do you say?" Luo Ling asked Kalanda again.
"After slave traders received a large number of slaves, they often could not sell them quickly, so they would rent the slaves to some lords to work. This way, not only did they not have to support them, but they could also earn extra rent..." Kalanda paused here.
"But, because the slaves are rented, the lord won't treat them well?" Luo Ling continued.
"They will use them to death! Because even if the slaves die while being rented, the money paid to the slave traders is much cheaper than the price of buying the slaves. I have seen slaves who were taken to mine stones. Only six out of ten came back, and many of them were injured."
"If all the slaves die, won't the slave traders lose money?" Xiao Chen asked puzzledly.
Luo Ling shook her head and said, "You really have no business sense. How can slave traders do business at a loss? They must have supporting plans. For example, slaves with special skills will definitely not be used to open mines."
"Yes, the best slaves are not rented out to work. The beautiful ones will be dressed up and taught to serve. The strong ones will receive military training. It is difficult to find buyers for the old, weak and sick ones anyway, so it is always worthwhile to exchange them for rent before they die of exhaustion... right?" After saying this, Kalanda looked at Cohen with a somewhat unfriendly expression.
"What you said may be true, or it may not be, but my evaluation cannot change anything." Cohen bowed slightly and said, "It will only waste your time. The car is coming soon, let's go pick someone."
Seeing that Cohen was keeping his mouth shut, Xiao Chen could only nod and say, "Then let's go and see the prisoners."
After Luo Ling got off the car, she took Kalanda behind her and asked her softly, "How do you know so much about slaves? Don't tell me you heard it from hearsay. Most people definitely don't know these inside stories."
Kalanda hesitated and replied, "I have introduced many people to buy slaves here."
Luo Ling glanced at Kalanda and saw that she was not shy at all. "I believe you are doing this not just to be a broker."
"I will only introduce some trustworthy good people to you. If they buy the slaves back, their lives may be much better."
"But there are so many slaves..."
"I know I can't change anything big, but I can change the fate of a few people. You know, even if the fate of one person gets better, that is, it is also a very extraordinary thing."
Changing a person's fate is also a very extraordinary thing. Luo Ling silently recited this sentence, and suddenly felt that this sentence was heavy but powerful.
"Once, I asked a kind-hearted knight to buy a sick female slave so that she would not die in the slave camp. Later, she became the knight's maid, and later he had a child with a male servant. I have seen the child, he is like his mother, with a pair of light green eyes, like gemstones. If it weren't for what I did, this child would never have the chance to come into this world."
"No wonder you volunteered to bring us here. You've done a great thing." Luo Ling looked at her and saw the determination in the female warrior's eyes. "But I think there must be a reason why you started doing that."
"This is... because I bought Katarina from the slave market. Her father died in the mine. From her, I learned a lot about the experiences of slaves..."
After getting off the carriage and walking a few steps, they came to an area surrounded by a fence. Four warriors stood guard at the door with spears in their hands.
Xiao Chen looked inside. The camp was half the size of a football field. Most of the houses were two or three-story stone houses. Unlike other houses in Suero, these houses had very few windows, and the few that did were so small that even a cat couldn't climb out. The camp was empty. Apart from the armed patrol guards, there was almost no one else outdoors.
"This is where the merchants keep their slaves." Cohen stood at the door and pointed at several other camps nearby. "Master Dain's camp is not the largest here, but it is definitely the best quality. Our chamber of commerce has connections with the military, so we have the best slave warriors."
As he was talking, three large carts came out from a side road and slowly walked towards a camp across the street. The cart was very similar to the ancient prison carts in the movies. The back carriage was made of wooden strips as big as bowls, and the space between the strips was just enough to stretch out an arm. Some rags were hung on the carriages, blocking everyone's view, but you could still vaguely see some ragged people evacuating or lying or sitting. In front and behind the car were more than twenty riders dressed as mercenaries.
Cohen glanced at the tall, thin, one-eyed middle-aged man walking in front, then glanced back and forth at the convoy and frowned.
"Manager Cohen, is there anything strange about this team of people?" Xiao Chen noticed the surprise in Cohen's eyes.
"It's nothing, sir. They are just mercenaries transporting slaves to the Oaks family across the street. I just didn't expect that One-Eyed Val had changed to a new mercenary group, and these people who came here with him are very unfamiliar to him." Cohen replied.
"I also know One-Eye Val. He is a scum among the mercenaries." Kalanda's tone was full of contempt. "I heard that he has kidnapped people from the mountains and made them slaves."
Xiao Chen's eyesight was very good now. He noticed that Val looked like he had lost all his money in gambling. His face was wrinkled from top to bottom. The faces of the people around him were not very good either. They all seemed a little... nervous. What was even more noticeable was that there was a man in a black cloak riding a horse next to Val. He was completely hidden in the cloak. He had no armor or weapons on him, but he had a unique demeanor.
Could it be a magician? A magician was actually involved in the slave trade
Xiao Chen's gaze seemed to have attracted the man's attention. He turned his head and looked over here. No one else could see the face under the shadow of the cloak. Only Xiao Chen saw a pair of narrow and bright eyes. Those eyes did not look like those of humans, but had a strange charm.
That's a woman... Xiao Chen narrowed his eyes and tried to secretly use his mental power to cast a detection spell. This spell also came from the inheritance of the ring and could roughly understand the strength of a person's mental power.
"Xiao Chen, why are you in a daze?" Luo Ling pushed him.
When Xiao Chen came to his senses, he found that the convoy had already passed by and entered the Oaks camp. Xiao Chen was a little scared. The woman's eyes seemed to contain a spiritual power that countered his aggressive spiritual power and made him lose consciousness for a long time. If this was a battle, it would be enough for him to die many times.
"Ha, don't I just like to daydream?" Before turning around, Xiao Chen cast another glance at the convoy, feeling vaguely uneasy.
Cohen brought Xiao Chen and the other two into a large house in the camp. The house was a corridor structure, the corridor was dark, and there was even some water and moss on the ground. Only a little light came in from some small windows, and the air was filled with an uncomfortable smell, which reminded Xiao Chen of the cattle pen in a farmer's house.
Xiao Chen's dark vision came into play again. Through the wooden gate, he could clearly see the rooms where the slaves were held. Most of the rooms were empty, with only straw mats on the ground. Most of the slaves were lying or sitting. If it weren't for the occasional movement of scratching lice, it would be difficult to tell whether they were alive or not.
"Manager Cohen, are these the soldiers you want to give me? I think they are almost dead." Xiao Chen said dissatisfiedly.
"My lord, they are just lazy. When the food is served, you will see how energetic they are." As if to prove his words, two guards dragged a large bucket of porridge in. The surrounding rooms suddenly became lively. The slaves stood up and crowded to the door. They stretched out their ceramic bowls and slapped the railings with their hands. Some of them howled like wild animals fighting for food. The two guards each took a horse whip from their waist and whipped the hands that were stretched too long. After more than a dozen screams, the room slowly became quiet.
"For a soldier, the most important thing is discipline, but what I saw was a group of beasts." Xiao Chen said with a serious face.
"These are mostly bandits, brigands, and mercenaries. They are naturally not worthy of your attention. Please continue to follow me. I have prepared something better for you."
After passing through the corridor and coming to a heavy wooden door, Cohen used a key to open a large lock and led Xiao Chen into a very large backyard.
It turned out to be a training ground, with archery targets, dummies and stone locks. A breeze blew through, making people feel relaxed and happy. The sun shone in the yard, which seemed like a completely different world from the prison behind.