Chapter Ninety-One: Zhao the Great Benefactor

No matter how astonished the manager was, Zhao Hengyi insisted on buying every woman and child in the slave market.

To everyone else, it was the act of a madman beyond all reason.

Seeing that Zhao Hengyi had made up his mind, and with Liu, the shopkeeper from the Grand Passage Trading House, standing by as witness, the manager finally ordered his people to count the numbers.

There were 289 grown women, 59 girls, and 34 elderly women. Aside from the six blacksmiths Zhao Hengyi had specifically asked them to reserve, there was not a single man among all the slaves waiting to be sold.

This alone revealed how grotesquely distorted the population balance of the Great Yan Kingdom had become. Even among slaves up for sale, whether they were strong male laborers, boys, or old men, none were left behind; there were always buyers waiting.

Of course, this also had much to do with the fact that a woman could be easily recruited outside so long as she was given enough food to keep her alive.

The entire market fell into a flurry of activity because of Zhao Hengyi’s lavish purchase.

All these women had to have their indentures verified and the proper papers processed. Some of the more famished even had to be given a few mouthfuls of rice porridge.

Zhao Hengyi had never had the habit of making people work on empty stomachs. From the Splendor Inn across the street, several fine banquet tables were ordered and delivered straight to the slave market. If people were going to labor themselves to death, they at least had to eat and drink their fill first.

All told, the nearly four hundred women and children cost only seven hundred taels of silver. Even at a friendly price, it still showed just how worthless women were in this damned Great Yan Kingdom!

“Ladies, I am buying you back to put you to work.”

“The work is hard, manual labor, and tiring, but you will not have to serve others. If any of you want to go into a noble household as a maid and live an easier life, you may choose to decline now.”

“Once you sign your indenture, there will be no turning back. Think it through before you decide.”

Most of the women in the slave market had fallen into it because they could not pay their taxes. A few came from once-wealthy families that had gone into decline. They were not necessarily women of rich households; some may even have been maids or servants before.

Zhao Hengyi made everything clear in advance because he was worried some of them might have other plans.

Yet not a single woman wished to remain in the slave market. Whether they were little girls or elderly grandmothers, all were willing to follow Zhao Hengyi, this strange new master, away.

In Zhao Hengyi’s view, these women’s plight was caused by the damned world of the Great Yan Kingdom, and their fall into such a miserable state had much to do with everyone’s present outlook and ingrained way of thinking.

To others, buying these women was easy enough. Feeding so many mouths, however, would be a tremendous expense.

But Zhao Hengyi had bought them to work in his weaving workshop. These women would not only support themselves through their own labor, but also earn wages. As for Zhao Hengyi, the owner, he would naturally earn even more.

Everyone said women were money-losing burdens, but in truth, it was only because the inept had never discovered each person’s value.

In the Great Yan Kingdom, women made up the larger share of the population.

In any country, any society, only by giving the majority of its people the dignity and opportunities they deserved could that society and country continue to function normally.

In less than half a day, word that Zhao Hengyi had bought every woman in the slave market spread like wildfire through every street and alley.

Most people thought that Shopkeeper Zhao was simply too kind-hearted to bear seeing the women in the market suffer, and that he was doing a good deed.

Others, more clear-minded, felt that Zhao Hengyi had bought so many women only to discover in the end that he could not support them and would let them fend for themselves.

Of course, there were also those with dark minds, hiding in corners and silently accusing Zhao Hengyi of licentious excess.

The Liang family, one of the major cloth merchants in Jiangling City, watched from the shadows and, upon learning that Zhao Hengyi had bought every woman in the slave market, young and old alike, immediately grew anxious.

“Old Master, that Zhao fellow buying so many women at once will surely require a great increase in the number of looms. By then, the cloth shop opened by the Marquis of Dangyang will have even more stock to sell!”

“So what?”

“He has those new looms. Once production rises, it will surely drive down the cloth prices throughout Jiangling Prefecture. Our family won’t be able to compete with him!”

“There are plenty of cloth shops in all of Jiangling Prefecture, not just our Liang family. Even if people are anxious, it is not our family’s turn to panic.”

“But that Miao Xiaoyu...”

“Don’t worry. The materials will be gathered very soon. So long as we keep Zhao and the Marquis of Dangyang from getting their raw materials, then even with looms and workers, they’ll be useless.”

“The Old Master is wise!”

In Jiangling City, there were not only allies who guessed Zhao Hengyi’s purpose in buying so many women.

With so many documents and procedures to complete, even with the entire slave market working at full tilt, they remained busy until sunset.

Zhao Hengyi even invited a doctor to treat the women’s injuries.

More than a quarter of them had wounds on their bodies. Though they were all superficial, if left untreated they could easily become infected and worsen.

The women had their first full meal in the market, and there were even ointments for treating wounds so they could apply them to one another. All of them were quietly delighted, thinking this new master must surely be a compassionate and benevolent man.

The next morning, the nearly four hundred women and children set out in a grand procession with Zhao Hengyi, heading out of the city and toward Elm Willow Bay.

To prepare enough food for so many people along the way, Zhao Hengyi bought more than a dozen large carts. He was generous with the draft donkeys as well, choosing only the strongest with the best teeth. These carts and donkeys would still be useful upon returning to Elm Willow Bay, and buying them in Jiangling City was far more convenient than purchasing them locally in Dangyang County.

Under the gaze of nearly half of Jiangling City, Zhao Hengyi’s procession slowly made its way to the city gate.

At that moment, more than a dozen horsemen in hunting attire came galloping down the road on tall steeds.

“By order of the Princess of Xiangcheng, the Women’s Army has come to escort Shopkeeper Zhao out of the city!”

Leading them was none other than the little peach-blossom girl with her pretty face faintly flushed. The blush on her cheeks made her look even cuter than usual. No one knew whether she had grown rosy from riding hard all the way here, or from being stared at unblinkingly by some detestable scoundrel.

Among the crowd lining the streets to watch, many burst into applause and cheers at the sudden appearance of the Women’s Army.

In recent years, the Women’s Army had wiped out many bandit threats around Jiangling City, and their reputation was far stronger than that of the Ningwu Army stationed nearby.

With the Women’s Army vouching for him, with the Princess of Xiangcheng, no less capable than any man, vouching for him, everyone’s earlier guess was confirmed: this Shopkeeper Zhao who had bought every woman and child in the slave market truly was a great benefactor!

The city garrison naturally would not stop them at such a time, and Zhao Hengyi’s large procession passed through the gate without incident.

There were simply too many women and children to move quickly. Fortunately, the large carts drawn by the big green donkeys allowed the children and the elderly to take turns resting when they grew tired.

By noon, the procession had not yet gone very far from Jiangling City.

After instructing his men to set up the pots and cook the meal, Zhao Hengyi walked up to Lu Jiu-niang, who was dressed as a guard, with a smile. “That will be thirty taels, please.”