Ling Qingyu rubbed her chin. This man and the few close by were all big and buff. They must be pretty strong. The only thing is that the color on their faces didn't look too good. She guessed it must be due to malnutrition. Even though their clothes barely covered their bodies, they still carried an air of strength. These people were not commoners. She planned to sail the next day. If these people start some trouble, she had no way of controlling them. But in the current situation, these people will make the best sailors. They have strength and also look trained.
"Okay. Big brother, if you agree, I will employ you to be a group leader. Other than the labor fees, when the ship gets back, you will also get a share of profits." Ling Qingyu took out three bills of a hundred silvers from her pouch and gave them to Gu Yu. "Other than the pre-payments, this one hundred silvers bill is my loan to you. You can use it buy some products to sell in foreign lands."
Gu YU was shocked. He received the silver bills and smiled, "Head Ling isn't afraid of me taking the money and running?"
"You are not that type of person." Ling Qingyu looked at him directly then shrugged. "If you run away, then it is my fault for misjudging you. I'll just have to accept it."
"Hahaha," laughed Gu Yu. "This little girl is quite good. Okay. I, Gu Yu, will sign this contract with you."
Zheng Xi had a pre-written contract book. But after hearing Gu Yu's price, he subconsciously looked at Ling Qingyu full of complaint. However, other than Gu Yu's group, no one approached them. These people were definitely big. One of them can fit two normal people. He could only reluctantly give them the stated payment on the contract. After Gu Yu's people pressed their fingerprints, these people officially became their employees.
"Head Ling," said Gu Yu as he wiped the finger paint off his hands and returned one of the the hundred silver bills to Ling Qingyu. "Gu Yu is a rough person. I don't know which goods can earn me money. Why don't Head Ling help me take care of this."
Ling Qingyu was speechless. A hundred silvers of goods traded in foreign lands would give a return of two thousand silvers. This was a heavenly gift to a sailor. Even more, this silver was given by her. She couldn't imagine that she would even have to buy the goods herself too. Isn't this taking too much advantage? But, sweeping her gaze across the people behind him, Ling Qingyu suddenly understood. This world is full of those who would look down on people. With their status, dressed in rags, even if they were to bring money to people, there would still be doubt about the legitimacy of the money.
"Okay." Ling Qingyu received the bill and said, "Why don't I tell Zheng Xi to exchange your hundred silver bills for smaller bills or real silver?"
"Then I'll have to trouble Head Ling." Gu Yu formally showed his respects.
Ling Qingyu saw that he had a good posture and smiled lightly before leaving with Zheng Xi.
"Brother Gu," said a young girl hurrying over. She saw the contact in Gu Yu's hands and urgently said, "Brother Gu, quickly return that. How can you go sailing? Going out to sea is a trip where nine out of ten won't return. You can't do something so dangerous. If something were to happen to you, then what will my mother and I do?"
"Miss Mei," Gu Yu stopped her. With a hand, she also blocked this girl from throwing her body on him. He faintly said, "The prepayment we received will be enough to pay off the courtyard and satisfy the your expenses. Brother Mei should be able to find his way to you soon. Then, your family will be reunited again."
After these words, he turned and left.
Mei Hong wanted to catch up and say more but was blocked by Zhang Dahu.
Zhang Dahu laughingly said, "Miss Mei, please go back. This place is too dirty. It will stain your eyes."
Mei Hong stomped her foot. "I'm going to tell my mother."
After Mei Hong was far away, Zhang Dahu spat, "What kind of a person is she!"
—
"Three hundred liang silvers!" Zheng Xi was very unhappy and said out loud, "Miss, you are too generous. Even if they have great strength, it's not like one can actually substitute for two. After your upgrades, the ship has thirty positions. So, we would still need thirty people. Now, half of our budget is gone. What will we do about the other twenty people?"
Ling Qingyu suddenly stopped walking. Zheng Xi wasn't paying attention and collided against her. He quickly asked respectfully, "Miss, are you okay?"
Ling Qingyu glared at him. I am wearing men's clothes, yet you keep calling me miss. I don't have time to argue with you. She pointed forward and asked, "Who are those people?"
Not far from Yongding Bridge is the seawall. Right now, there were groups of people in the mud. The people there appeared emaciated. If Gu Yu's group could said to be malnutritioned, then these people were skeletons. Their bodies were also covered by wounds. From a quick look, one would mistake them for corpses.
Zheng Xi frowned and whispered, "They are probably prisoners. I heard that a group of repeat offenders was sent to Quan Province since they didn't have enough people to maintain the seawall this year."
Ling Qingyu heard this and lowered her head. Then she quickly walked past with Zheng Xi. Yet, she kept glancing over and saw a few young men. She wondered what crimes these youngsters could have committed to deserve such heavy penalties.
Two guards were walking toward them. One carried a blade in his hand while another carried a claw. As they walked, they conversed, "We finally finished fixing this part of the wall. Now we can report in."
"What will we do about those prisoners? Most have died. Only around twenty left."
"Just throw them into the sea. We would have to shelter and feed them if if we keep them. Who knows which official these people angered. The top brass said not to leave a single person alive."
When Zheng Xi heard these words from the guards, he realized trouble was brewing. As expected, his Miss stopped and walked toward them. With an honest smile, she greeted them. "Good day officers."
The two guards paused. After seeing her holding forward an ingot of silver, their faces immediately brightened. They laughingly said, "This little brother, what do you need?"
"I have just come to Quan Province after hearing maritime trade can make me rich. So, I rented a small ship with some people. Right now, the ship needs some laborers. I would like to buy some useful ones. I only need them to pull the lines. I wonder if you officers have any recommendations?" Ling Qingyu slightly bent at the waist subserviently to earn their liking.
"Oh? This little brother wants to try sea shipping?" The guard evaluated Ling Qingyu, weighed the ingot, then smiled. "Maritime trade isn't easy. Nine out of ten will die. Little brother, do you have any good sailors?"
"This is the first time for me. I found some sailors with experience, but for some reason, they all left for the Xie family's ship. Now I am helpless. Since I had already gambled all my assets on this, I have to make the trip to earn my money back." Ling Qingyu bent even lower.
The two guard exchanged a glance. They had some idea of the situation. This guy was obviously a clueless beginner. They had heard that the Second Master Xie wanted to monopolize the Quan Province's maritime trade. Yesterday, they had dealt with Ding Budong. It is possible that this little brother won't be able to find a single experienced sailor at the moment. Without experienced sailors, if anything happens, they would be lost, or even dead in a storm. This little brother was obviously greedy for profit. To want to go out to the sea like this. No wonder no one dared to get on his ship in this town. And it's also no wonder why he would be eyeing these dying prisoners. Since the prisoners will die anyway, they might as well make some money.
"There are around twenty people here. If little brother wants to buy them, you can have them all for a hundred silvers." The guard waved his hand and spoke pridefully.
"I can buy all these prisoners?" asked Ling Qingyu suspiciously as she slowly withdrew the bill from her pouch.
"Hehe, these are all displaced prisoners. They can be owned with a deed. You would have to go to the court for the paperwork. But…" The guard paused and looked at Ling Qingyu, hinting that she should understand his meaning.
Ling Qingyu nodded repeatedly and handed over the bill. Then, she said to Zheng Xi, "Go complete the process with these officers. Don't leave a cent out of the money for the court."
Zheng Xi had an ugly expression and glared at Ling Qingyu with a dissatisfied look. Afterwards, he followed one of the guards away.
The other guard said to Ling QIngyu, "If little brother can return safely, then you will be rich. Let me congratulate you first."
Ling Qingyu bowed her head and nodded again. "Thank you for these fortunate words. I will count a hundred silvers of my commodities as yours and give you the profit when I get back."
The guard laughed and thought, this little brother may be young, but he is a clear person. But it is unlikely for them to come back. Of course, he wouldn't say these words. "Then thank you very much little brother. I work for the magistrate of the Quan Province. My name is Zhou Zhou (different Chinese characters). You can find me by asking for Zhou Lao Er. How do you plan to settle these people? I suggest you not to loosen their ankle chains. You also shouldn't give them enough food to be full. It's fine as long as they don't starve to death. They are all fierce people. If you want them to obey, you can't be soft. Oh, here. Count this as a gift from big brother." As he spoke, he retrieved a whip from his back. There were still dark blood stains on the barbs.
Ling Qingyu saw the whip and shivered. Just seeing it was uncomfortable.
Zhou Zhou saw her reaction and laughed. With a flick, the whip rang out on a man's body to the side. It immediately left a glaring blood streak.
With the crack of the whip, the people on the ground trembled. Then some struggled to crawl up.
Ling Qingyu tried to suppress her hand from shaking as she took the whip. It was heavy. Her hand dropped after receiving it and almost dropped it. This made Zhou Zhou laugh even harder.
Zhou Zhou saw Ling Qingyu's face pale and waved, "Little brother can go back first. You can tell your servant to take these people." He gave her the whip, but didn't mention anything about a key for the shackles.
Ling Qingyu said her goodbyes before finally going back to her courtyard with the whip in hand.