We have fought to the Arctic Circle, and you want me to inherit the throne?

It was already afternoon when we arrived in Yecheng.

Seeing the majestic city walls from afar, Li Che ordered his men to set up camp on the spot and only brought fifty guards into the city in disguise.

These fifty people are all experts in performing the task of "hiring" people, and are relatively convenient to use.

Li Che simply organized them into guards to be responsible for his own security.

In order not to attract attention, Li Che took off his slightly luxurious brocade robe and put on an ordinary scholar's blue shirt.

Except for Yang Shu, Hu Qiang, Qiu Bai and others, the rest of the guards were divided into small groups, hidden in the crowd, and guarded secretly.

The teahouse was on the street. Chang Ningxue was fiddling with the teacup boredly, her eyes occasionally looking towards the city gate.

Suddenly, a gentle voice sounded: "Miss, may I ask for directions?"

Chang Ningxue looked in the direction of the voice and saw a graceful young man standing in front of her.

He was dressed in a long green robe, his eyebrows were like the crescent moon, his eyes were like bright stars, his temperament was noble and elegant, and it was hard not to like him.

Chang Ningxue smiled sweetly: "Where are you looking for, sir?"

"There is a shortage of servants at home, and I want to find a place to buy some more people." Li Che replied.

Hearing Li Che's words, Chang Ningxue's face suddenly turned cold.

Although she was naturally spoiled, she couldn't stand this kind of human trafficking, and immediately said angrily:

"I don't know, you can look for it somewhere else."

Li Che was slightly stunned, but not angry.

He casually grabbed Qiu Bai, who was about to move, and said in a gentle tone, "I'm sorry for disturbing your pleasure, young lady. Goodbye."

After saying that, he turned around and left with everyone.

Before leaving, Hu Qiang took a few glances at Chang Ningxue and confirmed that she was not the wife that His Highness liked. Then he quietly put away the sack around his waist.

Chang Ningxue stared at Li Che's back, thought for a moment, and suddenly stood up:

"You guys wait here. If Li Che arrives, please inform me immediately."

"Miss." Several women in black beside her hurriedly tried to dissuade her, "Where are you going?"

"I don't think that boy is a good person. He looks suspicious. Let's go and take a look." Chang Ningxue replied hurriedly and chased into the crowd.

Several women in black looked at each other, sighed helplessly, and hurriedly followed.

Not long after Li Che said goodbye to Chang Ningxue, he learned the location of the human market from a local scholar.

Daqing prohibits human trafficking and has issued relevant laws, but the enforcement of the laws is not in place.

After all, the wealthy and powerful families need a large number of people as slaves, and ordinary people can only sell themselves when they can no longer survive.

Therefore, the law is ineffective and the government often turns a blind eye to it.

The so-called human market is where these human traffickers trade.

What Li Che didn't expect was that such a violation of the law could be done so blatantly!

The human market is set up in the bustling market with no intention of concealing it!

"Sir, do you need some more servants?"

When the city manager behind the counter saw the visitor, his eyes suddenly lit up and he came over attentively.

"The shop has concubines, singing boys, dancing girls, cooks, needlework girls, and maids for menial tasks—everything you could possibly want."

"Oh? Everything?" A smile appeared on Li Che's lips.

"Sir, you may not know that our shop is the largest market in Yecheng. Just tell us what you want and we will make sure you are satisfied."

The steward looked Li Che up and down and smiled even more attentively.

The young man in front of me is obviously a wealthy man from a prominent family.

As the manager of a pawn shop, knowing people is your most important skill.

He was dressed in fine silk, and the jade pendant on his waist was lustrous and of great value.

Not to mention the entourage behind him. Although the maid is young, she has a pretty face and will surely become a beauty in the future.

The guard was a big and strong man. If he were sold in the human market, he would be worth at least a hundred taels of silver!

No matter what, this is definitely a rare big customer.

Li Che didn't bother to pay attention to the wrinkled-faced steward and walked straight into the house.

As soon as I entered the door, a foul smell hit me in the face, mixed with sweat and filth, which was disgusting.

Inside the house, there were rows of wooden cages, holding all kinds of slaves, including men, women, young and old, all naked and looking emaciated.

Under the wooden cage, there was filthy stuff that had been trampled hard and dried by the slaves, forming brown and black lumps.

Just across the wall from them was a pen where cattle, sheep and other livestock were sold.

There is still room for livestock, and it is a bit cleaner than the wooden cages for people.

However, these people were piled together like cargo, without any dignity at all.

"Sir, sir," the steward followed closely behind, saying with a flattering smile, "They are all low-class goods, polluting your eyes. I will take you to see the best beauties."

"Oh?" Li Che's smile widened. "People can also be called 'goods'?"

"Of course. These people are worth less than livestock. They'll all be sold to prostitutes as slaves. There are also those untouchables who can't have children and will pick out a favorite to take home and raise. It only costs the price of a livestock."

The steward spoke as if he was discussing something quite ordinary.

Behind Li Che, Qian Bin and Uncle Yang both had expressions of horror, Qiu Bai remained silent, and Hu Qiang was tearing the pancake in his hand with all his might.

Qiu Wen clung tightly to Li Che's thigh, her eyes full of fear.

"Slaves are kept in the same pen as cattle and horses." Li Che stroked Qiuwen's hair and murmured.

The steward was slightly stunned, then gave a thumbs-up: "Young Master, you have great literary talent, that's exactly what you said."

Li Che looked at him deeply, smiled kindly and said, "Lead the way, let's go see the 'high-quality' stuff you mentioned."

"Okay, okay, please come this way, sir." The steward led Li Che inside attentively.

Li Che looked at these numb 'goods' indifferently, with mixed feelings in his heart.

He didn't say anything else and followed.

The steward chattered on and on:

"What kind of goods do you want to see, sir? If you want to buy a concubine, we have beautiful girls, exotic beauties, and slender women from Jiangnan. They are all first-class goods."

"If you want to buy some servants and guards, we also have barbarian warriors captured from the grasslands, Nanyue, and Tubo."

"If the family lacks a weaver or a craftsman, we have everything we need."

"Take a look at them all." Li Che replied with a smile.

"Okay, please come this way." Hearing Li Che's words, the manager's eyes brightened a little.

After going around a few walls, the area behind becomes much more spacious.

The slaves here were separated by fences, with one person in each compartment.

The first person Li Che saw was an exotic dancer wearing only a tube top. When she saw the person coming, she immediately swayed her body, trying her best to show off her graceful figure.

The slaves in the other compartments also stood up, the women were naked, and the men were trying their best to flex their muscles.

The tooth dealers, whips in hand, glanced coldly at the 'goods'.

Li Che's gaze swept over these people one by one, and finally stopped on a little girl.

The little girl looked about seven or eight years old, with empty eyes and her bare back covered with scars.

She just stood there silently, her unfocused eyes colliding with Li Che's.

Li Che felt an inexplicable pain in his heart, as if his heart was grabbed by an invisible hand.

"Sir, have you made your choice?" The manager's voice sounded behind him.

Li Che took a deep breath and said to the steward behind him: "It's chosen."

"Which one do you want?" The steward's face lit up with joy.

"I want too much, I'm afraid you can't make the decision." Li Che said softly, "Go find your master, I will talk to him personally."

The steward was stunned for a moment: "This...I'm afraid it won't work. Our master is of noble status and never comes to places like this."

Li Che interrupted, "Just say I want them all and give him a big gift, isn't that okay?"

The steward's face lit up with ecstasy when he heard this: "I want them all. Are you kidding, sir?"

"Of course it's true, but I don't have this gift with me, so I need to borrow it from you."

Li Che turned around and stared at the steward with a smile.

The latter saw the coldness in Li Che's smiling eyes and suddenly felt uneasy:

"What... do you want to borrow?"

"I need your head for a favor!"