"Hey! New goods have arrived! New goods are here!"
The man's shouts, accompanied by the sound of gongs and drums, echoed through the street. People in the marketplace flocked around, making the area bustling with excitement.
Everyone recognized the man beating the gong—Zhao Instructor from the magistrate's office. When he shouted "New goods have arrived," it meant someone was being sold.
The crowd peered behind him and, sure enough, saw a large cage with a woman inside. The woman was dressed in thin, tattered clothes covered in blood stains. Her head hung low, long hair tangled and disheveled, hiding her face. Her hands were tied up and bound to opposite sides of the cage. She remained motionless, appearing lifeless.
"Anyone want to buy? Ten silver taels!" Zhao Instructor called out loudly, seeing the crowd gather.
"Ten taels? Are you robbing us? Why so expensive?" someone in the crowd grumbled, drawing murmurs of agreement. In this Small Town, five silver taels was enough to support an average family for a year.
Zhao Instructor didn't like hearing this and immediately retorted, "This is a young girl, mind you. Ten silver taels is just right!"
"Young girls aren't rare. They're everywhere. How can she be worth ten silver taels? Unless she's as beautiful as a celestial maiden," the earlier critic spoke up again.
Someone who had been staring intently at the cage noticed the woman hadn't moved at all and shouted, "Zhao Instructor, why isn't this girl moving? She's not dead, is she?"
Another person quickly chimed in, "Oh my, she looks like she's been abused. What if she really is dead? Zhao Instructor, you're trying to sell us a corpse for ten silver taels? That's not right!"
"Nonsense!" Zhao Instructor's eyes bulged at these words, making the troublemakers shrink back.
"I, Zhao Qiang, never do such despicable things. Watch closely."
With that, Zhao Instructor picked up a wooden stick from the ground, walked to the cage, and poked the woman inside. The woman's body moved slightly, but her head remained drooped.
"No response. Could she really be dead?" The crowd started to buzz with chatter.
Hearing the discussions, Zhao Instructor grew anxious. If the woman was dead, wouldn't he suffer a huge loss? Gritting his teeth, he jabbed the stick hard at a wound on the woman's shoulder. Finally, she regained consciousness, slowly lifting her head.
"See? She's alive. Stop the nonsense," Zhao Instructor secretly breathed a sigh of relief.
As the woman raised her head, revealing her face, the crowd gasped in shock. Both of her cheeks bore dark red scars the size of a palm, looking as if they had been branded with a hot iron. The wounds hadn't fully scabbed over, with dried blood mixing with fresh blood, the flesh raw and exposed—a truly horrifying sight.
"Her face is ruined, and you still dare to ask for ten silver taels?" someone shouted after seeing the woman's face.
Zhao Instructor felt a bit uneasy. He knew the woman wasn't worth that much, so he changed his offer, "Alright, five silver taels. Who wants to buy her for five silver taels?"
No one responded. An experienced older man who had been observing for a while spoke up, "I reckon there's something wrong with this girl's hands and feet too."
Following his words, the crowd looked closer and indeed noticed something odd about the woman's limbs. They turned to Zhao Instructor, demanding an explanation.
Seeing that he couldn't hide it anymore, Zhao Instructor admitted, "Her hands and feet have indeed been broken, but they might heal with some care."
The crowd just laughed, "Haha... Who would spend five silver taels on a woman with a ruined face and broken limbs?"
No one noticed that the caged woman had raised her head, her eyes scanning the surroundings as warily as a wolf's.
Where was this place?
Hadn't she died?
Why did everyone's clothing look so strange?
Questions kept arising in her mind.
However, right now, the most important thing was that she realized she was being sold as merchandise. She was injured, every part of her body aching. She hadn't eaten in a long time, her throat was parched, and she had no strength left in her body. Even her consciousness was hazy. How could she escape?
Seeing that no one was buying, Zhao Instructor lowered the price again, "Three silver taels, just three silver taels. This woman looks like she can bear sons. Buy her, and you'll have two children in three years, guaranteed."
He couldn't go any lower; if he did, he wouldn't be able to repay his gambling debts. Zhao Instructor looked at the crowd expectantly, hoping for some desperate bachelor to buy her.
"Oh my, Zhao Instructor, looks like you're bound to lose money this time!"
"Hehe, I want to see which fool would buy this half-dead woman."
"I think she's about to die. Zhao Instructor, why don't you come buy a straw mat from me? When she dies, you can wrap her up and bury her. It'll save you trouble!"
As the mocking comments kept coming, Zhao Instructor's face darkened with anger.
At this moment, the woman in the cage began to struggle, moving her wrists as if trying to break free from her bindings.
Since she wasn't dead, she had to fight with all her might to survive!
Zhao Instructor, already in a foul mood, saw her moving and felt his anger surge. He took the stick and deliberately jabbed at her wounds, "What are you squirming for? You money-losing wretch, stay still!"
Blood seeped from the wound, and a wave of pain washed over her. She felt dizzy and lightheaded. Based on her past experiences, it was probably due to an infected wound, coupled with low blood sugar from not eating.
What could she do? Having narrowly escaped death, was she going to perish in this strange place?
"Zhao Instructor, stop hitting her. I'll buy her."
A clear, pleasant male voice came from the crowd. Everyone turned to see who the fool was.
Hearing that someone wanted to buy, Zhao Instructor immediately put down the stick and turned around. A young man with refined features stepped out from the crowd.
Some recognized him as Liu Ming'an, the scholar who sold calligraphy and paintings by the bridge.
Liu Ming'an took out some silver from his pocket, exactly three taels, "Zhao Instructor, I'll buy her."
A woman's voice called out from behind, "Oh dear, Ming'an, don't waste your money on this!"
Liu Ming'an turned around to see it was Aunt Qian, who often asked him to write letters for her.
Aunt Qian tried to persuade him earnestly, "Ming'an, you're such a fine young man. It would be easy for you to find a wife. Why buy a woman with a ruined face and broken limbs?"
Zhao Instructor was anxious to get rid of this hot potato. Seeing Aunt Qian potentially ruining his deal, he strode over in two quick steps, snatched the silver into his palm, and warned the old woman sternly, "Old woman, mind your own business!"
He then turned to Liu Ming'an with a beaming smile, "Young master, this woman is yours now."
Zhao Instructor crawled into the cage, untied the woman's hands, and dragged her out.
The young woman's body went limp, and she was about to collapse to the ground. Liu Ming'an quickly stepped forward to catch her, supporting her with effort and letting her lean against him for support.
"Miss, are you alright?" Liu Ming'an asked softly.
The person in his arms looked up at him. Her piercing eyes were like arrows, sending a chill down Liu Ming'an's spine. However, in the next moment, she fainted and lost consciousness.
Seeing this, Aunt Qian shook her head and sighed, "Oh my, you've really gotten yourself into quite a predicament."
Liu Ming'an smiled good-naturedly but didn't respond.