How could I possibly be confined in a cage?

"It was already mid-April in the lunar calendar. A quarter past four in the morning, the morning star finally disappeared from the slowly moving wispy clouds, and the creatures in the honeycomb-like cubicle shop were already wriggling..."

Qingru read the newspaper that had just been delivered, and the more she read, the more gratified she became.

"It's Mr. Xia's work! Ha, it's Mr. Xia's work, it's finally published!" Qingru shouted happily, running to share the news with Guo Zixing and the others.

Mr. Xia's work has finally been published? This news exploded like a bomb among the crowd. Guo Zixing and the others were overjoyed, especially Guiying and the others, who were moved to tears.

"That's wonderful! Mr. Xia's work has finally been published. We finally have a place to voice our grievances." Guiying cried until her eyes were swollen.

Mr. Xia's "The Bonded Laborer" gave them hope and a sense of power to rediscover justice.

"Yes, the more people see his work, the fewer people will fall for it."

"Yes, those women still working in the yarn factory can see hope now." The group gathered together and discussed animatedly, as if they had just been rescued.

The uproar caused by this article was even greater than Qingru had imagined. With the Marshal's Mansion backing it up, the article was not suppressed; instead, it became the hottest topic of conversation among the common people.

For a time, stories about "The Bonded Laborer," Mr. Xia, and the girls and foremen described in "The Bonded Laborer" became popular topics of conversation.

This article attracted the attention of many readers, especially many patriotic writers and intellectuals, who responded one after another, and finally drew the attention of the authorities.

People from above were sent down to investigate, and to their astonishment, they discovered that the article described the reality as less than one ten-thousandth of what actually happened. The blood and tears of those women were described in words that brought tears to people's eyes. Some even said that the people described in "The Bonded Laborer" were the author himself!

The inspectors were furious! They finally decided to crack down on the "indentured servant" system in these factories. This article awakened the public and sparked another wave of the labor movement.

Unable to withstand the pressure, the government decided to rectify the cotton mills. After Guo Dashuai's approval, Guo Zixing immediately led his men to seal up the Dongyang Cotton Mills and sent all the suffering women back to their hometowns.

"One hundred and twenty, one hundred and twenty-one, one hundred and twenty-three... no, one hundred and twenty-two, ouch~ where did I get to?" Guiying rubbed her head, feeling a headache coming on.

She was literate enough to be recruited by Qingru. Rescuing the bonded female laborers was indeed inspiring, but the follow-up work was not easy. Qingru had to register each person and send them back to their place of origin, which was no easy task. The police station was short-staffed, and anyone who could be used was called in.

You wouldn't believe it until you investigate. The textile factory had two thousand female indentured workers, not including regular workers like Zhang Yan.

After sealing off the yarn factory, he ordered Hayakawa Namio and the other owners behind it to settle their wages, and then ordered people from various places to come and take them back.

However, despite the repeated clean-up efforts, some women still had nowhere to go. Some were rejected by their families because they had too many mouths to feed, while others simply didn't want to go back. In short, these women lost their cotton mills and now had nowhere to go.

“This is bad,” Qiu Shuang said, frowning.

Guiying asked, "Now that the yarn factory has been shut down, what will happen to all these people?"

"How about we take them in for a while?" Qiu Shuang suggested.

"But what will happen after you take them in? Are you planning to support them for the rest of their lives? What are you thinking?" Xiao Fuzi said irritably.

"If you have a good idea, just say it!" Qiu Shuang rolled her eyes, clearly unconvinced.

"Alright, you two can go argue somewhere else. You interrupted me again, and now I have to start counting again from the beginning." Guiying had already counted several times and was quite annoyed.

After finishing the last file, Qingru finally looked up from the pile of documents. "Stop arguing. Let's get the people sorted out first. Director Guo will have a solution."

Now that this important matter has been accomplished, Guo Zixing's reputation has risen considerably in the eyes of Commander Guo.

During his trip to the capital for the meeting, Commander Guo's achievements were truly remarkable. He not only cracked a textile factory case but also rescued so many female workers—a significant accomplishment. Not only among the other warlords but also among the common people, Guo Zixing was seen as an extremely upright figure. Commander Guo promptly promoted him, and he is now the police chief.

Qingru was quite efficient; she compiled a list of homeless women in just two days and handed it over to Guo Zixing for review.

Guo Zixing then showed it to Commander Guo, who asked, "Hmm, what are your plans for arranging these people?"

Guo Zixing had already prepared his answer and stepped forward to reply, "I plan to arrange for these people to work in factories run by our own people. They are young and don't know any other ways to make a living. Even if we release them all, few of them will be able to find jobs to support themselves. So let's make the most of them and put them in suitable factories so that they can earn a living on their own."

Upon hearing this, Commander Guo pondered for a moment and said, "This is indeed one possible solution. However, won't the workers be overly worried and unwilling to stay?"

Guo Zixing said, "I've considered what you said. Perhaps they're too badly injured to go back to the factory, but they're a minority. These days, even those who have been to school aren't guaranteed a suitable job, let alone them. Anyone who's reasonable won't refuse. If there are any others left, we'll just have to send them to the charity hall for now, and they'll be out of our reach after that."

"Hmm, what you said makes sense. In that case, let's do as you say." Commander Guo nodded. "You've worked hard these past few days, take a good rest for a couple of days."

Guo Zixing felt somewhat uncomfortable with the lack of concern shown by Commander Guo. He nodded in agreement and then took his leave.

After dealing with the female worker's matter, Guo Zixing had some free time. When he returned to the villa, he saw that Qingru's room was still brightly lit.

What are you doing so engrossed in?

Qingru looked up and saw it was him, and stopped what she was doing. "It's nothing, I just finished organizing these documents. By the way, did the Dongyang Textile Factory give you any trouble?"

"What a joke! This is Guo family territory. Why would I be afraid of them?"

"I've just heard that people from Japan are not easy to mess with. If they cause trouble, you won't be able to explain yourself."

"Why are you suddenly bringing this up?" Guo Zixing asked suspiciously. Would Qingru also pay attention to current events and upheavals?

“You forgot, you said the reason my father has been imprisoned is because Commander Guo suspected him of colluding with the Japanese.”

Guo Zixing was taken aback, only then remembering that he had indeed given this reason when he was trying to fob off Qingru. Recalling how he had kept Qingru by his side in the first place for her family's so-called "treasure," he realized he had long forgotten about it, and was somewhat unaccustomed to Qingru bringing it up again.

"Well, actually I don't believe it either. Judging from your character and conduct, you don't seem like the kind of person who would betray your country. But Namio Hayakawa has indeed been working hard for your father's sake. Do you think it's possible that there's no connection?"

Qingru didn't know how her father got involved with Suchuan, and couldn't explain it for a moment.

"Then, could you let me see my dad? I want to ask him myself, maybe I can find out something?" Qingru looked at him hopefully.

Guo Zixing looked away. "I'm afraid that won't work, but I'll make arrangements for you. Just going into prison like this won't convince the public."

Qingru's eyes immediately dimmed a bit. "Alright, I will find evidence to prove my father's innocence. There's one more thing, Niu Da and Niu Er, could you let me interrogate them?"

Guo Zixing could no longer refuse, so he nodded and agreed to her request.

The next morning, Guo Zixing took Qingru and Zhang Xun to the prison. "Niu Da and Niu Er are being held in separate prisons. When you go to interrogate them, I will have Zhang Xun protect you secretly. Don't be afraid."

Qingru took a deep breath, encouraged herself, and stepped into the prison.

The prison environment was not good; it was dimly lit. Only because she came did they light many candles, casting long, indistinct shadows.

This was an environment Qingru had never experienced before, so she couldn't help but feel a little nervous. As they passed the first floor, the prisoners' eyes lit up with lustful gleams upon seeing a new face. Qingru walked ahead uncomfortably, trying her best to appear calm and composed.

"This is where Niu Da is being held. Who do you want to see first?"

"Niu Da, I suppose." At least Niu Da wasn't as vicious as Niu Er, and still had a sliver of pity for his son.

Niu Da was taken to a secret room alone, where he and Qingru were the only two people. Niu Da was tied to a chair, with only his head able to speak and move.

Upon seeing that it was Qing Rulai who was interrogating him, Niu Da immediately flew into a rage, "It's all your fault, you bitch! If it weren't for you, would my own son have betrayed me?"

“If you hadn’t been so bewitched that you sold your wife and children, Xiao Erlang wouldn’t have been so righteous as to betray his own family. You sold his mother and sister right in front of him. Do you think he hates you?”

"Hmph." Niu Da snorted coldly, clearly unconvinced.

"Not only are you blinded by lust, but you also cruelly drove Xiao Erlang to the mountains to herd cattle. He's only eight years old. How will he make a living in those deep mountains? Have you ever thought about that?"

“Didn’t I raise him? He sold his mother and only kept him. If he weren’t my son, I would have beaten him to death long ago.”

Qingru couldn't believe there were such unreasonable people in the world, as if everything he did was perfectly reasonable. "Forget it, it's a waste of time to explain anything to you. You'd better tell me everything about how many people you sold and where they went."

"Didn't I already say? This is the only time, no more. I was arrested by the police as soon as I took this step. I've never done this before."

“You have trafficked people more than once. There are records of you in the surrounding villages. Where you and Li Niang have gone over the years, and whose children you have lobbied, are all recorded. You can’t deny it. After the New Year, you should be executed.”

Niu Da's eyes finally shrank back slightly, but he quickly hardened again, "You're forcing me to confess. Even if you were to execute me in the market, I would still say the same thing."

"Whether you plead guilty or not is not important. What is important is that the victims you sold to the yarn factory have all returned home. I believe that your sinful little courtyard will soon be demolished by the angry villagers. You might even be removed from the Niujia Village genealogy."

"That's impossible!" Niu shouted. How could those women have escaped?

"Do you think those girls can't get out of the textile factory once they're in? Let me tell you, there's no shortage of people with a conscience in this world. I went undercover and gathered evidence of their abuse, and they've now been returned to their hometowns."

Niu Da stared at Qingru in disbelief, as if trying to find a hint of a joke on her face. Unfortunately, Qingru remained calm throughout, even ignoring his anger, which made him realize that what Qingru said might actually be true.

"You actually have that kind of power?"

“I told you back then not to mess with me, but you didn’t believe me, or rather, you were too confident.”

Qingru looked at him coldly, as if she had no warmth at all. "By the way, has anyone told you that your beloved Li Niang is dead?"

“I said it…” Niu Da closed his eyes in despair.

Qingru added another strong dose of medicine, "I wonder if they told you that Liniang was killed by her second sister-in-law. She died in the deep mountains and forests, and no one took care of her. By now, she is probably just a pile of bones."

Niu Da slumped back in his chair, "Stop talking."