The village elder looked as though he were about to cry. Trembling, he got out of bed and went to the small box where he hid his silver. With a shaky hand, he slowly took out the money and reluctantly handed it to her.
Wu Caiwei snatched it and left quickly. The village elder reached out his hand, his mouth opening and closing, but no words came out. When he was alone in the room, he plopped onto the floor and sobbed uncontrollably.
Wu Caiwei didn't dare to stop. She rode her horse at top speed to the ferry crossing. From a distance, she saw a cargo ship slowly departing, and in her anger, she punched a tree beside her.
She hurried to a nearby village and found a fisherman's boat. She threw down enough silver, boarded the small boat, and followed them.
Although she had been through many worlds, this was her first time rowing a boat. At first, she could only watch helplessly as the boat spun in the water. Once she had grasped a few techniques, she saw the cargo ship getting further away and began to row with all her might.
As she got closer and closer to them, the water suddenly churned with wind and waves. The cargo ship was large and stable, able to withstand it, while Wu Caiwei's small boat tossed and swayed. She desperately tried to keep it from capsizing. By the time the lake calmed down, several hours had passed, and she was drenched in sweat.
She looked around, but there was no sign of the cargo ship. When she reached Huzhou, there was no trace of it at the pier. The village elder had said his son would bring July here. Wu Caiwei quickly steered her small boat ashore.
Walking through the bustling streets, she didn't know where to go. This was her first time in Huzhou, so she had to ask someone for directions.
When others heard she was going to a brothel, they looked at her strangely and waved her away, indicating they didn't know.
There were also kind souls who, though they thought she was too eager for sex and heading to such a place in broad daylight, still told her the location. Wu Caiwei followed their directions to the street of brothels. This place was very quiet during the day, with only occasional passersby; not a single person could be seen. Even the large doors of the brothels were closed.
There were so many brothels, she didn't know where to start looking. Besides, she didn't know if they had sold the person here at this hour. Perhaps after arriving, they would rest for a while and come at night, or perhaps the person wasn't sold here but to a broker, and transported to Yangzhou like the original owner to become a Yangzhou slender horse, or perhaps entered a wealthy family as a maid.
Wu Caiwei was in a dilemma, afraid that if she went to knock on their doors, she would alert them. If they didn't dare to sell here and resold her elsewhere, wouldn't that be an even greater loss?
After thinking for a moment, she rented a courtyard near the pier, disguised herself, and watched the people coming and going at the pier.
After waiting for about three days, she saw a plainly dressed man approaching timidly from a distance.
Wu Caiwei directly stepped forward and blocked his path. Liu Dacai was sure he didn't know this person. Could it be that he had lost money and someone had found out and wanted to rob him? He couldn't help but be startled. He quickly clutched his chest and shouted, "Who are you? Why are you blocking my way?" Su Dan Novels.
The pier was already crowded and bustling. Their commotion immediately attracted the attention of others.
Wu Caiwei seemed to ignore the pointing fingers. She put her hands on her hips, full of indignation, "What? You owe me money and now you refuse to recognize me? You're carrying a bag, you're not planning to run away, are you? Come on, I'm taking you to the magistrate to explain yourself."
As Wu Caiwei spoke, she pulled him back. Liu Dacai was anxious. His affairs couldn't withstand an investigation by the authorities.
"I really don't know you, you've mistaken me for someone else." He said, trying hard to break free from her grasp, but no matter how he struggled, her strength was greater than his. Liu Dacai was so desperate that he almost cried.
"Liu Dacai, is it? I'd recognize you even if you turned to dust."
"How do you know my name?" Hearing her call his name, he was truly surprised. He looked again, still sure he didn't know her.
"You owe me money, of course I know you. Trying to default and run away is impossible."
Seeing that the two seemed to know each other, the crowd found nothing more to watch, shook their heads, and went about their business.
Wu Caiwei dragged him to a secluded place. Only then did Liu Dacai finally break free from her hand. "Brother, you really have the wrong person. I truly don't know you."
Wu Caiwei crossed her arms and looked at him maliciously, "It doesn't matter if you don't know me. I know you're Liu Dacai, and I know the woman you brought with you has an improper background. Tell me, where did you sell her? How much silver did you get?"
"I don't know what you're talking about." Hearing this, Liu Dacai broke out in a cold sweat. It turned out there were people in this world who knew what business he was in. He had clearly hidden it well, but he hadn't expected to be discovered. He didn't know how much the other party knew. If he was really dragged to the authorities, he would have nowhere to die.
Seeing that the other party was a distance away, he took off and started running, determined to get away from him.
Wu Caiwei picked up a nearby stick and flung it with all her might. The next moment, the stick hit Liu Dacai's leg, and he lunged forward.
He tried to get up and run again, but when he looked up, he saw a pair of feet in front of him. He knew he had met a tough opponent today and felt a sense of despair.
Wu Caiwei dragged him all the way to the county yamen and beat the summoning drum. Naturally, she didn't reveal her true identity, only saying that she had been in a secluded alley and had inadvertently seen two people talking in hushed tones. When she got closer, she overheard them talking about human trafficking. Today, she saw him hurrying to leave the pier and felt something was wrong, so she captured him and reported him to the county yamen.
When Liu Dacai heard that what the other party said was false, and that he had never spoken to anyone in an alley, he quickly defended himself. The county magistrate felt that any criminal, when brought before him, would initially lie and would never admit to what they had done, and he clearly was the same.
After administering the torture, Liu Dacai gritted his teeth and insisted that he had really not done it.
Wu Caiwei revealed that she had seen him bringing a woman on a cargo ship to Huzhou. She described the appearance of the cargo ship. Soon, the magistrate, based on the date and the description of the cargo ship provided by Liu Dacai, found the owner of the cargo ship.
The ship owner confirmed that he had indeed brought a woman that day, but the woman was very heavily wrapped, claiming she was ill and could not be exposed to the wind. However, the woman's clothing that was exposed showed that she was petite and looked like a country woman, dressed very plainly.
They had arrived with two people and left with only one. The magistrate became increasingly suspicious of Liu Dacai. He employed various tortures, believing that he would eventually confess.