Chapter 747: The Permanent Debt Sale of Captured Bandit

On the side of the open ground where the civilians were.

Not long after Jier rode his horse to town to attend to business, several empty carriages carrying people arrived at the entrance of the open ground.

The carriages were painted with the golden fruit logo of the Wealth Fruit Merchant Guild. Seeing this, the few Security Guard of Duoen Town who were dozing at the entrance of the open ground immediately woke up, slapped each other to rouse their companions, and then stood straight beside the small campfire they had lit.

The person who arrived was a subordinate of the "withered Aolier" gentleman.

Although he was a subordinate, the position of an ordinary Steward already held some status in Duoen Town. At least, it was not something these Security Guard, who had previously lived by the blade and worked as Bandit, could compare to.

They understood very well that Security Guard who started as Bandit would remain Security Guard for their entire lives. At most, their children might have it much better than they did, not having to spend their entire childhood in their home Cunzi going hungry.

And eventually ending up on the path of a Bandit out of necessity.

"Greetings, Mr. Steward!"

The few Security Guard still knew how to salute and offer greetings. However, they spoke in a timid and awkward manner, and their voices were not synchronized. This did not elicit a smile in response from the young Steward being greeted.

Simply waving his hand, the young Steward led the capable Shop Assistant who had disembarked from the carriages and walked openly to the entrance of the open ground.

"Please have someone in charge come out."

He did not walk straight in, because he was stopped at the entrance by the Armed Civilian using weapons. These people wore patched animal-hide coats and held ordinary weapons that, while damaged, were relatively sharp. It was not that he feared the strength of these mediocre Armed Civilian, but rather that there were many of them, and he did not want to invite trouble.

Hearing the newcomer say this, the young man leading the group of Armed Civilian responsible for the safety of the entrance side responded, told them to wait a moment, and ran into the open ground himself.

At this moment, the open ground was no longer the empty, embarrassing sight of people sitting on the ground that it had been when they first arrived yesterday.

Several rectangular, natural-colored tents had been set up in the middle of the open ground, and in the very center, there were several carriages surrounded by a fence, as well as a colorful domed tent.

It looked somewhat like a Yingdi now.

The Squad Leader responsible for the entrance quickly found Xueya Site; he had originally wanted to find the more capable Bata'er Jiaoshi. But the Priest himself was sitting cross-legged in the middle of the Yingdi, looking deep in Meditation and ignoring people. So he told Xueya Site about the visitor, as this was exactly what Jier had instructed him to handle.

Thus, he walked over.

"Clear the way and let them in first. They are here to handle the business Jier Knight instructed."

Once Xueya Site said this, the Armed Civilian holding weapons who had blocked the entrance put down their things, retreated to both sides of the entrance to the open ground, sat back down, or patrolled along the wooden fence of the open ground.

"Hello, I am Jier Knight's companion, Xueya Site, a Caravan guard of many years."

Xueya Site introduced himself. Hearing his introduction, the people from the Wealth Fruit Merchant Guild all relaxed.

So he was a Caravan guard; they were very familiar with such people. The Steward and Shop Assistant of the Merchant Guild then introduced themselves briefly, and upon learning that they were there to process the captured Bandit, Xueya Site quickly had a dozen thin Bandit with their wrists bound brought over.

Originally, these Bandit were not this thin; it was purely because after being captured, the Armed Civilian guarding them gave them little to eat and would occasionally beat them to vent their anger, which made these Bandit, who were each fierce before, look not only thin but also much more "docile" in spirit now.

The young Merchant Guild Steward assigned to be in charge of this matter walked around the captured Bandit: "Why are they so thin? Too thin and weak, they won't be able to do any work."

As soon as he finished speaking, the previously listless captured Bandit immediately perked up and shouted one after another: "We have strength, we have strength! Never mind working in the fields, let us shovel dung or do the work of oxen and horses, and we eat little and work much!"

"Quiet! Quiet!"

Unable to stand the shouting of these captured Bandit, the Armed Civilian responsible for guarding them immediately went up and slapped them a few times, causing the Bandit to immediately shut their mouths and lower their heads, taking the beating obediently. They had to be obedient; if they dared to talk back, they would be beaten and scolded continuously. With their wrists and arms bound, they could not beat these Armed Civilian who held sharp blades, especially the young Knight behind these civilians.

Many Bandit had been terrified by the Knight's slaughter that night, and coupled with the Armed Civilian beating and scolding them, these people had become much more obedient.

This scene made the Merchant Guild Steward who came to select people smile; he had never seen such obedient Bandit before.

In Duoen Town, one could often see scattered Bandit who had broken up, and even if these guys couldn't pull a single coin from their pockets, it was often difficult to change that habit of not caring about anything and wantonly using violence.

And the former Bandit who could be selected as Security Guard in Duoen Town were a small number of people who had been selected and disciplined by the Merchant Union for a long time. Most of the scattered Bandit either committed crimes in Duoen Town and had their hands and feet broken by shops, unable to act fierce and forced to hang around in the slums. Or, after they sold the last of their wealth after breaking up, they honestly returned to their home Cunzi in groups.

But that was in the past.

The situation recently was a bit different; after some Bandit Group near Duoen Town broke up, they often did not wash their hands of it, but were absorbed by guys sent by Bandit Group from further away to recruit new people, using benefits to attract them into other newly emerged or established Bandit Group in the surrounding area.

"It's fine, as long as they look spirited."

After the young Merchant Guild Steward said this, he walked closer to the captured Bandit with Xueya Site and let the Shop Assistant from the Merchant Guild, who knew how to select people, go up and check them.

Two sturdy Shop Assistant rolled up their long sleeves, revealing many tattoos on their arms, and without ceremony, one went behind a Bandit whose wrists were bound and used their sturdy arms to tightly clamp the Bandit's arms.

The other took a metal tool hanging from his waist and reached directly toward the Bandit's face.

The Bandit, trapped from behind, immediately became nervous and wanted to shout, but the unknown tool reaching toward his face made him afraid to open his mouth.

But this thing was aimed right at his mouth.

The metal tool was similar to a reverse-mounted pair of pliers, but the very front was made of wood and bone, so that it would not hurt the examinee's mouth and teeth when reaching in for an inspection.

"Open your mouth obediently, I won't hurt you, fellow."

The Shop Assistant who said this had no expression on his face, and the captured Bandit whose arms were clamped also refused to open his mouth. Although he didn't know what this was for, he just wouldn't open his mouth.

"You chose this yourself, hmph."

The sturdy tool was pushed directly and forcefully onto the captured Bandit's mouth, and with its special structure, the Bandit, who had his lips tightly closed, still had this thing reach into his mouth. The pliers opened in reverse, and led by the tool, the Bandit was still forced to open his mouth in humiliation.

Subsequently, amidst the Bandit's resistance, the Shop Assistant carefully inspected the inside of the Bandit's mouth with his eyes.

"Missing one tooth on the left, others have wear, but are intact." He shouted this to the others behind him.

Another Shop Assistant beside the young Merchant Guild Steward then took a wooden tablet the size of a palm in his hand and used a small brush dipped in ink to write down the key points of the record on the wooden tablet: 【Tooth wear, missing one on the left.】

Withdrawing the oral inspection tool that humiliated the person being inspected, the Shop Assistant directly tore open the clothing on the Bandit's body, ripped it into pieces fiercely, and tossed it aside.

This made the Bandit start cursing, but the two didn't care at all; they had been cursed at by all sorts of people before, and they were long used to it. These guys who were to be sold like slaves would not have a good end anyway.

Regardless of the Bandit shouting and twisting, the Shop Assistant who clamped his arms from behind kept this guy in front of him firmly under control.

"Old scar on the chest, but it doesn't matter. Bruises on the left arm, also old scars. Same on the right arm, still old scars."

The upper body inspection was finished, and anticipating something, the captured Bandit gritted his teeth, steeled his heart, closed his eyes, and stopped shouting.

"That's it, you're all people to be sold, just accept the inspection honestly."

As the Shop Assistant spoke, he directly untied the Bandit's hemp rope belt and, in front of dozens of people around, stripped the Bandit completely naked.

"That thing is uninjured, old scars on both legs, but it doesn't matter."

Finally, the Shop Assistant squatted down, pulled off the sour and smelly animal-hide shoes on the Bandit's feet, and without finding it unpleasant, checked the Bandit's feet.

"Toes are not missing, no rotting parts, no old scars."

After saying this, the man stood up and took two steps back. Immediately after, the sturdy Shop Assistant who had clamped the captured Bandit's arms released them, and he himself examined the Bandit's hands: "Fingers are intact, no old scars."

Once the Bandit was free, he immediately opened his eyes and lunged fiercely at the Shop Assistant in front of him.

But when the rope tied behind his wrists was tugged and pulled by someone, he could only rage helplessly on the spot.

He began to curse.

But this Bandit, who lacked much education, could only repeat those same few curse words over and over, which had absolutely no impact on the two people performing the inspection.

After the inspection, the Merchant Guild Shop Assistant who had been writing something on a wooden board finished the last stroke and read the result aloud: "One captured Bandit, no name, permanent debt term, slight old wounds on the body, one tooth missing, physique thin but relatively strong. Therefore, the final price is three Gold Coins and eight Silver Coins."

After the Merchant Guild Shop Assistant finished shouting, he looked toward the young Merchant Guild Steward leading the team.

The Steward felt that a healthy Bandit with a permanent debt term was indeed worth that much money, so he nodded.

Afterward, the Merchant Guild Shop Assistant who had recorded and announced the price tied the wooden board to the Bandit's neck with a rope. Someone else brought over a wrist-style Lock that completely bound the arms; once this thing clamped onto the arms, it was very difficult for the arms to escape on their own.

The bare-bodied Bandit, wearing the wooden board, was driven in a daze by people using thorny wooden sticks toward the empty horse-drawn carriages that these people had arrived in.

Subsequently, the second Bandit also seemed to accept his fate and let people inspect him obediently.

Soon, the voice of the Merchant Guild Shop Assistant who was recording on the wooden board shouted again, his voice devoid of any emotion, as if he were describing not a person, but a head of livestock: "One captured Bandit, no name, permanent debt term, no wounds on the body, but teeth are severely worn, physique thin and not strong. The final price is three Gold Coins."

Xueya Site frowned and asked the Merchant Guild Steward in charge of these matters in a low voice: "Why is the price difference so large?"

The other party answered in a friendly manner: "With worn teeth, it is difficult for him to eat properly. Although it is good that there are no wounds on his body, not being strong enough is also a point that reduces the price. Both of these are very important; the tooth issue reduces the price by six Silver Coins, and the not-strong-enough physique reduces the price by four Silver Coins."

Xueya Site pursed his lips, feeling that there was a small problem, but he could not find where the problem lay. So, in the end, he could only nod and accept the price.

In any case, Jier had said before that these Bandits were all obtained for free, so whatever money they could be sold for was fine. The money from the sales would later be used to reimburse the expenses advanced by the Knight for purchasing daily necessities for the civilians.

As the sun rose higher, a light breeze carrying the fragrance of flowers in spring gradually blew across the open ground outside the town.

Many civilians gathered in front of the open ground, watching the sale of the captured Bandits.

They commented on the Bandits one by one with happy expressions on their faces. They were all damned fellows; letting them live was already an act of mercy by the Knight. Many people wished they could kill one every day to sacrifice to their deceased family and friends.

However, some Armed Civilians in the squads watched for a while and felt that someone seemed to be missing. Once they recalled, they remembered that there was still one foolish, insane Bandit who was not on the field. Therefore, someone soon took a group of people to search toward the back of the open ground, and among a pile of female civilians, they found that insane Bandit who was disheveled and not even wearing pants.

"You are not allowed to take him away!"

Some were unwilling; these days, they had treated this young, handsome, foolish Bandit as their own toy and private possession. Many girls whose husbands and lovers had died in the previous attacks were in need of such a handsome young man who would not resist or refuse to vent the hatred in their hearts.

Before this person died, he could not be handed over or snatched away.

Knowing that this group of people would not easily give in, the Armed Civilian Squad Leader leading the team immediately brought up the words of Knight Jier: "I advise you to honestly let go. This person is a captured Bandit; not only did he kill our people, but all these days he has been eating our food, drinking our water, and, hmph, sleeping with our women!"

Before he could finish his sentence, he was interrupted: "What do you mean sleeping with our women? Look clearly, it is I, your sister, who is sleeping with him!"

"Enough." The Squad Leader's face turned red as he waved his hand and explained haphazardly: "I don't care who slept with whom; in any case, the brothers in front are currently selling all the captured Bandits to the local Merchant Guild. The price is not low! A sloppy Bandit can sell for over three Gold Coins, hmph, this guy is also a Bandit and a prisoner, so he must be sold!"

"No! We don't agree!"

The girls were used to seeing the ugly men in the Cunzi; this was the first time in their lives they had encountered such a handsome young man who would not refuse them, so how could they give up like this?

Even if he didn't belong solely to one of them, the sisters could take turns; they could not let go of this.

"Hmph! I knew it would be like this, but this is the will of Knight Jier! And Mr. Xueya Site said that the Bandits hurt us, and by selling them, that money will be exchanged for various supplies for everyone to use together."

The Squad Leader shouted loudly to the young girls around him who were moved by his words: "Think about it, these people killed our people and committed great crimes! And isn't it better to exchange them for money to get supplies that everyone can use than to keep them? Hmph! They can even eat the same God-given grain as us every day; do they deserve it? They don't deserve it at all! Some of these people look handsome and have good faces, but while committing great crimes, are they qualified to eat the grain bestowed by the great Agricultural God? Huh?"

After being talked to like this, many women who were not firm enough—mainly those who hadn't even touched that handsome Bandit—spontaneously backed off.

It was all because those few sisters in charge of guarding him never let go; many of them wanted to touch and kiss that handsome face.

But there was no opportunity.

Since the sisters wouldn't let go, then no one should enjoy him.

Thus, in the end, only a few women in their twenties gathered around the Bandit Weier, making a final resistance.

But as soon as the Squad Leader saw that the timing was right, he immediately waved his hand, and a dozen strong young men rushed up, two surrounding one, carrying away the women who were resisting to the end, and letting others drag the foolish Bandit, who had lost more than a circle of weight these days, toward the open ground in front.

"Put pants on him! Put pants on him!"

The Squad Leader shouted loudly.