[{"data":1,"prerenderedAt":-1},["ShallowReactive",2],{"origin-heir-to-the-kingdom-of-1-4-billion-citizens":3,"chapter-heir-to-the-kingdom-of-1-4-billion-citizens-heir-to-the-kingdom-of-1-4-billion-citizens-chapter-16":6},{"origin":4,"title":5},"chinese","Heir to the Kingdom of 1.4 Billion Citizens",{"chapter":7,"nextChapterSlug":19,"prevChapterSlug":20,"totalChapters":21,"novelImage":22},{"id":8,"novel_id":9,"title":10,"slug":11,"index":12,"content":13,"wordcount":14,"created_at":15,"updated_at":15,"volume":16,"translator":17,"content_hash":18},2270891,4434,"Chapter 16: I Am the True Villain","heir-to-the-kingdom-of-1-4-billion-citizens-chapter-16",16,"\u003Cp>“What a terrifying gaze!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Sensing the scorching, nauseating stare, Anliya instinctively stepped back.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But Mills continued to fix his blazing eyes on her—not because he had fallen in love at first sight, but because he believed he had found a mountain of gold.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Golden hair + blue eyes + delicate features + snow-white skin = ?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Such a girl, beautiful as if blessed by the gods, if properly adorned and taken to the Slave Capital, could fetch at least one—no, three gold Sol!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>If you fabricated a noble lineage for her and added a touch of luck, you might even sell her for ten gold Sol at once!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Thinking of this, Mills felt his blood boiling.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He had a hunch: if this deal made him rich, his professional rank might rise again.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Even as a lowly merchant, once he reached the third-rank Morning Star tier, those haughty nobles who looked down on him would have to maintain a facade of harmony and treat him as an honored guest.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Knight Lord, the coins I lost I offer as tribute to the great Lord Hughes. In the name of Lord Hughes’ mercy, may I take one person from this village that robbed me as my slave?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Mills declared firmly.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>At this, Solin, who had been about to leave, paused, a flicker of surprise in his eyes as he seriously weighed the pros and cons.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>If he refused, he couldn’t guarantee the merchant wouldn’t spread rumors after leaving the domain, damaging his lord’s reputation.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>If he agreed, there was no real loss—peasants who couldn’t pay taxes were meant to be sold into slavery anyway; losing one more wouldn’t affect next year’s harvest yield.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Who cared what these peasants thought?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>As a noble knight, Solin felt he had already shown these peasants more than enough mercy.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Fine, Clayman. Do as you say. But if you dare speak ill after leaving the domain, beware my sword.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Solin patted the hilt of his waist sword, agreeing to Mills’ request while issuing a warning.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Good, good, good! By the gods, Lord Hughes is surely as kind and generous as the legends say—otherwise how could his knight be so noble?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Hearing this, Mills was overjoyed, repeating “good” three times in quick succession.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“I want her as my slave!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Mills swiftly extended his finger, precisely pointing at Anliya, the petite girl in the crowd.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The girl’s face turned as white as paper.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>For a girl of barely fifteen, nothing was more terrifying than being sold into the Slave Capital.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>In bards’ tales, it had become a hell for female slaves—reports of sexual violence, horrific torture, and unspeakable atrocities never ceased coming from there.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Instinctively, terrified Anliya turned toward a direction in the crowd—where her true master, to whom she had pledged loyalty and would likely one day give her body and soul, stood.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Seeing the frightened, pleading look in his eyes, like a wounded beast, Xia Mingyu gave a slight nod and returned a reassuring gaze.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>At this, Anliya’s color slowly returned; she stood still, her heart now free of fear.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>She had someone to rely on—and that someone was formidable.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“What a beautiful girl.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Solin gazed at Anliya, calm amid the crowd, his eyes flickering with admiration.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He hadn’t expected such a lovely girl to exist in this poor little village.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Thinking of it, Solin felt a pang of regret—he shouldn’t have agreed so quickly.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Not because he desired her, but because everything valuable on his lord’s land belonged to his lord—and this girl was no exception.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But if he truly presented her to his lord, his life would become unbearable—after all, the lord’s lady was a woman of considerable cunning.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>With this thought, Solin made his decision. He still had to collect taxes from the next village.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Clayman, consider yourself lucky. Take this beautiful girl and leave quickly. Remember what you just said.” Solin waved his hand.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“May the gods bless you, generous Knight Lord!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Hearing this, Mills was ecstatic. He immediately dashed toward Anliya.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>This sight sent every villager’s and Luo Bote’s hearts racing to their throats.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>If they allowed the village’s most beautiful blossom to be dragged away by this vile Clayman trader, they would never forgive themselves for the rest of their lives.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Come with me, sweet girl. I’ll find you a noble master worthy of your beauty. You’ll live a far happier life than this!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>As Mills reached out to grab Anliya’s arm, he coaxed her with words.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Though he knew full well what kind of monsters the nobles and wealthy merchants of the Slave Capital were, he still needed to paint a false picture to prevent her from resisting or killing herself.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Stop! Anliya-sister already has a master—a noble and exalted personage!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>At that moment, Boge Chu burst from the crowd, stepping in front of Mills and shouting.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He would not tolerate this disgusting Clayman trader touching his sister—it was an insult to her, and to His Highness.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Seeing this, Mills did not retreat; instead, his expression brightened further.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He had recognized the boy—the one wearing the Hunter tag—was one of the two bandits who had robbed him days ago!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Though far less valuable than the girl, selling him to the Slave Capital should still fetch two or three silver Sol.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Knight Lord, he’s the bandit who robbed me! Please arrest him!” Mills called out loudly.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Solin frowned slightly. Though he had no desire to meddle in Mills’ affairs, as a knight, he had a duty to punish bandits within his domain.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>After all, if they dared rob a trader today, who knew when they’d target the lord himself?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Solin leapt off his horse and drew his longsword.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Swish!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The next instant, his body blurred into a shadow, lunging at Boge Chu like a wolf pouncing on prey.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Boge hastily pulled out the small knife hidden in the inner seam of his right pant leg to defend himself—but the knight’s blade was too fast!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Clang!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>A flash of cold light—and Boge’s knife was instantly knocked from his hand.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Stop. I was the one who robbed the Clay merchant.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>As the situation spiraled out of control, Xia Mingyu stepped forward from the crowd and spoke quickly.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Today was New Year’s, I was dragged to visit relatives, got back in the afternoon, and only finished writing now (*^▽^*) It’s the end of the month—don’t let your monthly votes go to waste, folks, drop some!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>(End of Chapter)\u003C\u002Fp>",1075,"2026-06-19T22:18:43.340Z",1,"Qwen3-Next 80B","75545d0e80808591208ab2de273a11ad801c2c56ba22d1af367fe78a2377586b","heir-to-the-kingdom-of-1-4-billion-citizens-chapter-17","heir-to-the-kingdom-of-1-4-billion-citizens-chapter-15",186,"https:\u002F\u002Fnovelzhen.com\u002Fimages\u002Fcovers\u002Fheir-to-the-kingdom-of-1-4-billion-citizens-cover.jpg"]