Bought a Slave

A hectare of land was not especially large. Xu Yi finished inspecting it in less than an hour.

When he returned to Butler Wenlai, Xu Yi took a document from his bag and handed it over.

"Butler Wenlai, this is our plan for using the land during the first year of the lease. Please take it back for the Viscount to review. If he finds anything unsatisfactory, he can let us know, and we can make appropriate changes based on his suggestions."

Xu Yi remained thoroughly respectful on the surface.

He knew very well that society on the Sains Continent was still part serfdom, part feudalism, and quite different from Earth. If he wanted to accomplish anything here, there were certain rules he had to follow.

Sure enough, Butler Wenlai's expression softened a little at Xu Yi's respectful manner. He accepted the plan and nodded. "Very well. I'll take it back for the Viscount to review. There's no need to be too nervous, though. The Viscount is a generous man. As long as you don't do anything to displease him, he generally won't interfere with what you do."

"Then I'll have to thank you for putting in a good word for us, Butler Wenlai."

With the atmosphere improved, matters proceeded much more smoothly. Butler Wenlai merely skimmed the plan before producing a land lease for Xu Yi to sign.

Once Xu Yi had signed his name, Butler Wenlai finally showed a trace of a smile and extended his hand. "Excellent, Mr. Xu Yi. This land is now yours to use for the next year. I hope you'll make good use of the opportunity the Viscount has given you."

"I certainly will."

The three exchanged a few more pleasantries. Xu Yi was about to leave with Heinz when a piercing scream suddenly came from the distance.

All three froze and looked northwest, toward the sound.

Another scream followed. Carried on the wind with it came loud, desperate cries and the sharp crack of a whip.

"Let's take a look!" Without stopping to think, Xu Yi ran toward the sound.

Heinz hesitated, then looked at Butler Wenlai beside him. "Butler Wenlai, it sounds like it's still on the Viscount's land, doesn't it?"

The closer they got, the clearer the sounds became. Each crack of the whip was chilling, and the anguished cries that accompanied it made their hearts sink.

Xu Yi was much younger than Butler Wenlai and Heinz, and he had set off first. Before long, he reached the source of the noise. He looked up, and fury seized him.

On a patch of wasteland, three burly men had surrounded a thin child who looked no more than fourteen or fifteen. Each held a whip and was lashing the child without pause.

Countless bloody welts covered the child's body. In some places, the flesh had split open. The sight was horrific.

At first she had still been able to scream, but now she could not even make a sound. She no longer had the strength to roll away; her body merely convulsed with each lash.

"Stop!" Xu Yi roared, rushing forward without a second thought. "Are you trying to beat her to death?"

The three men clearly had not expected anyone to come charging in. They stared at Xu Yi in surprise, then stopped, apparently wary of the mage's robe he wore.

But when Xu Yi crouched to help the child up, one of the men blocked him.

"Hey, what are you doing? We're disciplining a household slave. Whoever you are, you've got no right to interfere!" the man barked.

"A household slave?" Xu Yi stared at the child on the ground in shock. This is Viscount Leslie's land. Then this child...

"Is she one of Viscount Leslie's slaves?"

The man gave Xu Yi a surprised glance. "If you know who the Viscount is, you should know better than to stick your nose in. This little bastard lost one of the Viscount's oxen. Beating her to death would be letting her off easy!"

"An ox?" Xu Yi's brow tightened. "She lost one ox, and that means she deserves to die?"

"You don't know a damn thing!" the man scoffed. "Harvest is less than two months away, and this little bastard went and lost an ox now. That could seriously affect the harvest! Besides, do you know how much an ox costs? Forty Gold Coins! We couldn't get half a Gold Coin for this little bastard if we sold her. So yes, she's getting off easy!"

"But you can't beat her to death. Killing her won't bring the ox back."

"No kidding! We know that. This is punishment, understand? If we don't punish her, the others might do the same thing. How's the Viscount supposed to farm his fields then?"

Xu Yi frowned. He knew there was no reasoning with them. Besides, slaves had no legal protection on the Sains Continent, so he truly had no standing to stop them.

With that in mind, Xu Yi looked back. Seeing Butler Wenlai and Heinz approaching behind him, he steadied himself.

The three burly men followed Xu Yi's gaze and saw Butler Wenlai too.

As guards on Viscount Leslie's estate, they naturally recognized Butler Wenlai, whom the Viscount trusted so much. Startled, they hurried over to greet him.

Butler Wenlai and Heinz arrived a moment later. One glance at the scene was enough for them to understand what had happened.

"Mr. Xu Yi, this is a private matter for our household. Please don't interfere." Butler Wenlai's tone was calm, but it left no room for refusal.

Xu Yi frowned deeply. By the rules of the Sains Continent, he knew he had neither grounds nor standing to get involved.

But he could not possibly stand by and watch a child beaten to death.

Xu Yi looked to Heinz for help, only to see him give a slight shake of his head. Clearly, Heinz did not want him to interfere either.

The three men were about to bring their whips down again. Xu Yi grew desperate, then an idea flashed through his mind. "Wait! Butler Wenlai, can I buy him?"

"Buy?" Butler Wenlai froze, then frowned deeply. "Xu Yi, I've already told you this is our household's private matter. Do you really intend to interfere?"

"No, no, that's not what I mean." Xu Yi waved his hands. "I just remembered how inconvenient it is living alone. I've wanted to buy a slave to serve me for some time, but I haven't found a suitable one. Since this slave belongs to the Viscount, I thought I'd take the opportunity to ask him to sell her to me as a favor. What do you think? Given the Viscount's trust in you, surely you can make a decision about a single slave?"

Butler Wenlai's face darkened. He was about to refuse when Xu Yi suddenly stepped in and threw an arm around his shoulders.

The unexpected move made Butler Wenlai's brows shoot up. He was about to lose his temper when Xu Yi leaned close and whispered in his ear, "A ten-percent stake. If you agree to sell me this slave today, I'll give the Viscount a ten-percent stake in the Magic Fan factory I'm about to establish. What do you say?"

Butler Wenlai stared at Xu Yi in astonishment. Seeing how serious he looked, with no hint that he was joking, the butler asked, "Mr. Xu Yi, you'd really give up a ten-percent stake for a mere slave? I don't know what that share of your factory would be worth, but Magic Fans are selling so well in Bunta City that it can't be a small sum."

Xu Yi smiled faintly. "Consider it a moment of indulgence."

Butler Wenlai gave Xu Yi a searching look. "You're certain you want to do this?"

Xu Yi nodded firmly. "Certain."

Butler Wenlai nodded, slipped free of Xu Yi's arm, and waved to the three men. "Let him go."

The three men exchanged glances, then obediently stepped aside.

Butler Wenlai glanced at the slave on the ground before turning back to Xu Yi. "Mr. Xu Yi, she belongs to you now."

Xu Yi laughed and reached into his pocket. "Thank you, thank you. How much do I owe you for her?"

A strange smile touched Butler Wenlai's lips. He shook his head. "You've been so generous, Mr. Xu Yi. On the Viscount's behalf, I can hardly be stingy. She's yours as a gift to mark the start of our partnership."

"In that case, please convey my thanks to the Viscount."

After Butler Wenlai and the three men left, Xu Yi and Heinz lifted the slave from the ground and carried her into the carriage.

On the way back, Xu Yi told Heinz what he had given up to save her. Heinz nearly jumped out of his seat.

"Have you lost your mind?" Heinz pointed at Xu Yi, beside himself with frustration. "Xu Yi, by our estimates, if everything goes smoothly, that Magic Fan factory will make at least five thousand gold coins a year! Giving Viscount Leslie a ten-percent stake is the same as handing him at least five hundred gold coins! We're only paying a hundred gold coins a year to lease that hectare of land from him!"

Xu Yi motioned for Heinz to sit down and smiled. "Actually, even if this hadn't happened, I'd been looking for a chance to give Viscount Leslie a stake. This gave me a natural reason to do it. In fact, it worked out just as I wanted."

Hearing how casually Xu Yi spoke, Heinz calmed down a little, though he was still puzzled.

"Why?"

"Why?" Xu Yi chuckled and pointed at the vast wasteland outside the carriage window. "Heinz, look carefully. This land is Viscount Leslie's private territory. You know what that means, don't you? If he wants to, he can throw us out whenever he likes. Our contract won't matter, because that's the damned privilege of the nobility."

"I thought about this long ago. If we want to operate here for the long term, we need Viscount Leslie's genuine support. But why would a noble Viscount sincerely support us? There's only one answer: we have to tie our fortunes to his. Only when his interests align with ours will he truly support us, or at least refrain from holding us back. To be honest, ten percent is too little. If I could, I'd give him twenty percent. But that would be too conspicuous, and our relationship has only just begun, so there's no need to rush."

Heinz stared blankly at Xu Yi for a while, then shook his head and sighed. "Xu Yi, I had you all wrong."

"Oh?"

"I thought you were just a magical genius. Now I see you're even more of a shrewd businessman than I am."

"Ha! I'll take that as a compliment."