On the Seven Towers

Steward Cohen took Xiao Chen and others into a large and comfortable carriage. This carriage already had the prototype of modern European carriages. The carriage was square and had windows on both sides. The four of them sat opposite each other, and from the window they could see the monotonous street scene of the slave camp.

Cohen is completely different from the talkative Inda. He is a quiet person, but if the guests have any questions, he can talk in great detail. After hearing that Xiao Chen hoped to use slaves as guards, he thought for a while and said: "Master Xiao, ordinary slaves cannot be used as guards. You have to find a group of trained warriors. We have some prisoners of war from the Purple Eagle Empire here. Let's take a moment." With more training, they will become a good group of people.”

"Using prisoners of war? Is this safe? Will they defect?" Xiao Chen asked.

"When it comes to escaping, there is no difference between prisoners of war and other slaves. If they live with you, there is more hope than escaping. Why do they want to run?" Cohen asked, "What's more, the appearance of the Purple Eagle Empire people is obvious, they are better than us The southerners are paler and taller. We also generally brand their faces with your emblem, and it is difficult for them to sneak back to the empire. You know, all lords and levels will not hesitate to hang escaped slaves."

"He is telling the truth." Kalanda added, "Very 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 to be bought. But being rented out by a slave merchant is like walking at the gate of hell, isn't it, Manager Cohen?"

"Captain Karanda, some of the statements are just rumors." Cohen replied expressionlessly.

"Oh? Then please clarify." Luo Ling was quite interested in this topic.

Steward Cohen ignored the two magicians and a soldier who were staring at him, and just shook his head and said: "Miss Luo, these matters are not under my control, and the explanation I give may not satisfy you."

"So, Karanda, tell me?" Luo Ling asked Karanda again.

"After slave merchants accepted a large number of slaves, they often couldn't sell them quickly, so they would rent the slaves to some lords to work, so that not only did they not have to support them, but they could also earn extra rent..." Kalanda said here. Dayton.

"But, because the slaves are rented, the lord won't treat them well?" Luo Ling continued.

"I will use them to death! Because even if the slave dies while renting, the compensation paid to the slave dealer is much cheaper than the price of buying the slave. I have seen slaves who were dragged to mine stone mines, and among the ten slaves, the most Six came back, many with injuries.”

"If all the slaves die, won't the slave traders lose money?" Xiao Chen asked confused.

Luo Ling shook her head and said, "You really have no business skills. How can a slave trader do a loss-making business? They must have supporting plans. For example, slaves with special skills will definitely not be used for mining."

"Yes, the best quality slaves are not rented out to work. The beautiful ones will be dressed up and learn to serve others. The strong ones will receive military training. The old, weak, sick and disabled will have a hard time finding buyers anyway, and their work will be tiring. It's always cost-effective to be able to get back the rent before you die, right?" After Karanda said this, she looked at Cohen with a somewhat unkind expression.

"What you said may be the truth, maybe not, but my evaluation can't change anything." Cohen bowed slightly and said, "That will only waste your time, adults. The car is coming soon, let's go pick someone up."

Seeing that Cohen was tight-lipped, Xiao Chen could only nod and said, "Then let's go see the prisoners of war."

After Luo Ling got out of the car, she pulled Karanda behind and asked her softly: "Why do you know so much about slaves? Don't tell me that it was just hearsay. Most people definitely don't know these inside stories."

Karanda hesitated and replied, "I have introduced many people to come here to buy slaves."

Luo Ling glanced at Karanda 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 good people who are trustworthy. If the slaves are bought back by them, their lives may be much easier."

"However, there are so many slaves..."

"I know I can't change anything big, but I can change the fate of a few people. Do you know that even if one person's fate changes for the better, that's something extraordinary."

Changing a person's destiny is also a very unusual thing. Luo Ling recited this sentence silently, and suddenly felt that this sentence was heavy but powerful.

"Once, I asked a kind-hearted knight to buy a female slave who fell ill 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 I’ve seen that child, he has the same light green eyes as his mother, like gems. Without the things I did, this child would never have had the chance to be in this world.”

"No wonder you volunteered to bring us here. You did an amazing thing." Luo Ling looked at her and saw the persistence in the female warrior's eyes, "But, I think there is always a reason for you to start doing that. ”

"This is...because Catalina, I bought her from the slave market. And her father died in the mine. From her, I learned about the experiences of many slaves..."

After getting off the carriage and walking a few more steps, everyone came to a place surrounded by a fence. There were four warriors standing guard at the door holding spears.

Xiao Chen looked inside. This 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 few windows, and the few that were so small that even a cat couldn't climb out. The camp was empty. Except for the armed patrol guards, there was almost no one outside.

"This is where the merchants guard their slaves." Cohen stood at the door and pointed to several other nearby camps. "Master Dain's is not the largest here, but it is indeed the best quality. Our chamber of commerce has military connections, so we have the best slave warriors."

As he was talking, three carts came out from a fork in the road and slowly walked towards a camp diagonally opposite. The cart was very similar to the ancient prison carts in the movie. The back carriage was made of bowl-sized wooden strips, and the space between the wooden strips was only enough to stretch out an arm. Some rags were hung on the carriage, 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 20 riders dressed as mercenaries.

Cohen glanced at the tall, thin, one-eyed middle-aged man walking in front, and then glanced back and forth at the convoy, frowning.

"Manager Cohen, is there anything strange about this group of people?" Xiao Chen noticed the surprise in Cohen's eyes.

"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 were very unfamiliar with him." Cohen replied.

"I also know One-Eyed Val, he is a scum among mercenaries." Karanda's tone was full of contempt, "I heard that he has kidnapped people from the mountains to be slaves."

Xiao Chen's eyesight is very good now. He found that Val looked like he had lost all his money in gambling. His whole face was wrinkled from top to bottom. The faces of the people around him were not very good either, and they seemed a little... nervous. What was more noticeable was that a man in a black cloak rode a horse beside Val. He was hidden in the cloak, without armor or weapons, but with a unique demeanor.

Could it be a magician? There are actually magicians involved in the slave trade?

Xiao Chen's gaze seemed to have triggered 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. The eyes did not look like humans, but they had a strange charm.

It was a woman... Xiao Chen narrowed his eyes and tried to secretly use his mental power to release a detection spell. This spell also came from the inheritance of the ring, and it could roughly understand the strength of a person's mental power.

"Xiao Chen, why are you in a daze?" Luo Ling pushed him.

Xiao Chen came to his senses and found that the convoy had already walked over and entered the Oaks camp. Xiao Chen was a little scared. The woman's eyes seemed to contain a spiritual power, which countered his aggressive mental power and made him fall into a long period of absent-mindedness. If this was a battle, it would be enough for him to die many times.

"Ha, don't I like to be in a daze?" Before turning around, Xiao Chen cast another glance at the convoy, feeling 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 very 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 the farmer's house.

Xiao Chen's dark vision worked again. He could clearly see the room where the slaves were imprisoned through the wooden fence door. 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 action 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 delivered, you will see their vitality." As if to confirm his words, two guards dragged a large bucket of porridge in, and the surrounding rooms suddenly became lively. The slaves turned over and climbed up, squeezed to the door, stretched out their ceramic bowls, and slapped the railings with their hands. Some people howled like wild animals snatching food. The two guards each took a horse whip from their waists and slapped several hands that were stretched too long. After more than a dozen screams, the room slowly quieted down.

"For a soldier, the most important thing is discipline, and what I saw was a group of wild beasts." Xiao Chen said with a gloomy face.

"These are mostly bandits, mountain bandits, and mercenaries. Naturally, they are not worthy of your eyes. Please continue to follow me. I have prepared better things for you."

Through this corridor, they came to a heavy wooden door. Cohen opened a big lock with a key and took 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.