Free Web NovelChapter 446: Chapter 446: Human Traffickers
"Mancao, watch the fire for me." The woman called out to Yi Roujing and the others, then went to the kitchen.
"I thought the little girl was being abused by her family, but her mother actually seems quite warm-hearted," Ding Anmin murmured softly. "Big Sis, let’s go. We shouldn’t drink this brown sugar water either, let’s save it for the little girl."
"Hmm," Yi Roujing nodded; she hadn’t planned on drinking it anyway.
"Child’s father, you’re back."
Yi Roujing and Ding Anmin were just about to get up and leave when they heard the woman’s loud voice from outside. They went out to see a tall and stout man bringing a big hen through the door.
The man glanced first at Yi Roujing and Ding Anmin who were walking out of the main room, a glimmer of surprise and interest flashed in his eyes. If one didn’t look closely, they’d have missed it; Ding Anmin didn’t catch it, she thought the man looked honest as he smiled at them a bit foolishly.
"W-wife, w-who are they, how, how did they get into our, our house?" The man asked curiously, stumbling over his words, he was a stutterer.
Once the man learned that they had brought Mancao back, he was overjoyed and immediately went to slaughter the hen he was holding.
"Stay, stay, for, for dinner." The man smiled sincerely, a person who easily dispelled others’ wariness.
"Big Sister, Big Brother, there’s no need to be so polite, it was just a small effort on our part," Ding Anmin laughed sheepishly, scratching her head. "We’re all..."
"Who doesn’t have little ones at home? And such a sensible child, we’ve all grown up looking after siblings; how could we not help when we see that?" Yi Roujing smiled, picking up where Ding Anmin left off. "It’s not just the two of us today, our family is at the Department Store, and they’ll worry if we don’t go back."
Even though Ding Anmin found Yi Roujing’s words a bit strange, she never contradicted her sister-in-law; whatever the sister-in-law said was how it was.
"Big Brother, Big Sister, we’ll head back today," Yi Roujing said with a smile, "We’ve bonded with Mancao, we’ll come visit her again in a few days."
"Hey, why so rushed? At least have some brown sugar water," the woman hurriedly walked out of the main room, carrying a mug.
"Give it to Mancao, she needs the nutrition," Ding Anmin said earnestly.
"Oh, she won’t miss out," the woman shoved an enamel cup into Ding Anmin’s hands, leaving her feeling a bit embarrassed and thinking it rude to refuse further, so she began drinking.
Yi Roujing sighed inwardly and took the cup, sipping it. Seeing her, the woman’s smile grew even broader, her eyes full of calculation.
"Hey, hey, why do I feel dizzy?" Half of the brown sugar water in Ding Anmin’s enamel cup was gone, and no sooner had she spoken did she slump to the ground limp. Yi Roujing followed suit, stumbling briefly before collapsing just a tad later.
"These two are real finds. I’ve handled many girls, but these two are top-notch, especially this one, looking all delicate and weak. Isn’t that just what men like?"
Listening to the woman’s completely altered voice, Yi Roujing realized they had truly fallen into a trafficker’s den today.
"Click—" The sound of a door lock opening.
"Stutter, bring them in." The woman instructed.
"C-coming."
Yi Roujing felt her collar tighten, and she was easily lifted and carried into a room, then placed on a floor covered with straw.
Soon, she heard the door closing and locking.
"We’ve hit the jackpot this time." The woman’s exuberant voice gradually faded into the distance.
Yi Roujing opened her eyes, her body unmoving, taking in her surroundings. The room was dim, with light only peeking through the door cracks. Around her lay several people, their breaths long and steady, likely drugged and deeply asleep, unaware of anything.
Yi Roujing sat up, discreetly spat out the brown sugar water she had kept in her mouth. Strewn on the straw lay several people. Upon closer inspection, besides herself and Ding Anmin, there were five young women around twenty, along with four children, all quite young.
Yi Roujing first checked the four children, three boys and one girl, all around five years old. Judging by their clothes, they likely came from well-off families, as none of them had patches on their clothing.
The remaining five young women varied, some wore dresses, while others wore simple cloth attire, but all were undeniably pleasant-looking.
After checking everyone present, Yi Roujing began to thoroughly inspect the room. Besides the locked door, there was a window securely nailed with boards.
Hearing footsteps approaching from a distance, Yi Roujing calmly lay back in her original spot, her posture unchanged.
The lock clicked open, and the door creaked. The woman entered again, specifically checking on Yi Roujing, noting no signs of movement and her deep sleep, she smacked her lips, "I thought this girl should be waking up soon, seeing as she drank so little brown sugar water. Seems like she’s weak."
As she spoke, the woman kicked Yi Roujing’s leg lightly. Though the force wasn’t great, Yi Roujing knew the body would instinctively react when asleep. Her completely relaxed body bounced slightly with the woman’s force, putting the woman at ease, even derisively called her a "pampered lady."
Of course, this return visit to Yi Roujing was incidental; the woman came to take the watches off Yi Roujing and Ding Anmin’s wrists, "Must be from wealthy families, these are imports. Even second-hand they’ll fetch quite the price."
After taking the watches, pocketing them, the woman locked the door again.
Yi Roujing hoped they would sell everything soon, then Xu Ancheng and the others could surely trace and find them.
If acting solo, Yi Roujing was confident of escaping. But with Ding Anmin, alongside so many young women and children, Yi Roujing could only sigh inwardly and begin looking for a way to contact the outside.
Based on Yi Roujing’s sharp instincts, this might just be one of several hideouts. She recalled the human traffickers she encountered on a train when she first arrived in Jing City. Back then, she hadn’t infiltrated the enemy’s lair, only had brief contact with the traffickers. Xu Ancheng had told her those people had all been arrested; this group might be another faction.
After searching, Yi Roujing found no weak spots, but she chose a corner anyway, removed the hairpin from her hair, and started digging. The sounds were not loud; they shouldn’t be heard outside.
"Ah—"
Yi Roujing paused her actions, covered the three-centimeter deep hole with straw. Resignedly, she resumed lying precisely as before.
"What are you yelling for, girl? If you keep making a fuss, I’ll lock you up too." In the yard, Mancao was hit with a stick by the woman, who then threw a baozi at her feet, "You did well today, this is your reward, eat up, and continue finding them for me tomorrow. If the goods are as good as today’s, I’ll give you two baozi, and your sister will get something to eat too."
