I was a stepmother in ancient times, and I led my whole family to wealth.

Chapter 169 Robbery, Rescue

After robbing two brothels, Dongfang Jin arrived at the third one. As he passed a woodshed, he heard a childish voice.

"Sister, I'm hungry."

Dongfang Jin stopped in her tracks. "The child? Ruyi, check what's wrong."

"Jin-jie, there are five girls inside, about seven or eight years old."

Dongfang Jin frowned. How could there be a child in a brothel? [So young?]

[In a place like this, they must have been trafficked.]

Yes, human trafficking was rampant in ancient times, and the most people sent to such places were those who were actually trafficked.

In ancient times, with its strong preference for sons and lack of family planning, if a boy went missing, the family might look for a girl. But a girl? Probably not…

At that moment, another voice, choked with sobs, said, "Hungry, what can we do? We're all hungry."

We've tried to escape before, but in the end, we still got caught.

Then another hoarse voice came out: "Just bear with it a little longer. Even if we manage to escape, where can we escape to?"

We were all sold by our stepmothers. Think about it, even if we managed to escape, where could we go?

As a woman without any powerful backing, she ultimately faced the fate of being sold.

"Waaah, I'd rather be sold as a child bride than stay in a brothel," a girl sobbed softly.

"Do you think we wanted this? It's just that we were unlucky and were born as girls, and we all ended up with the same wicked stepmother."

Not only were they mistreated by their stepmothers, but they were also sold by them.

"Sister, I'm scared."

"Don't be afraid, you have an older brother at home, I think he will definitely not abandon you."

"Just hold on, endure it, and wait for your brother to come find you."

Hearing these words, Dongfang Jin felt a pang of sorrow and grief. "Ruyi, should we save her?"

[It's possible to save them, but I'm wondering how.]

Dongfang Jin frowned. "Ruyi, I want to save them. Could you send them into my spatial dimension and take them with you?"

Ruyi sighed, "It's possible, but once they enter, they'll face the risk of being discovered by Ruyi Realm."

If any of them let something slip, you know what you'll face.

It might attract the attention of those forces in the martial arts world. The imperial court might not fight over it, but they also won't get involved in the struggles within the martial arts world.

Didn't you hear Long Er say that the imperial court and those martial arts forces don't interfere with each other?

Dongfang Jin thought for a moment and asked, "What if you go in unconscious?"

This is still not foolproof, but you can use your stun grenades on them.

Okay, I'll ask them. If they agree, I'll take them in. Caiwei just happens to need someone around her.

Yes, just as that child said, even if she saved them, they had nowhere to go.

Some girls, in the end, have no one to protect them, and their final fate is still to be sold.

Well, saving a life is better than building a seven-story pagoda; that's better than being in this filthy place.

After thinking it through, Dongfang Jin knocked out the old woman guarding the house, pushed open the wooden gate, dragged the old woman inside like a dead dog, and threw her on the ground.

Watching those children huddled together, shivering on the straw in the corner, it was as if they were trying their best to escape the whole world.

When they saw her come in, they all stared at her in astonishment, their eyes filled with fear and unease.

Dongfang Jin saw them but didn't say anything, because in a corner not far from them, there were two older girls, who looked to be in their teens, lying on the ground.

As Dongfang Jin approached, he saw that they were covered in whip marks, lying on the cold ground, their bodies curled up together, covered with a thin layer of straw.

It was probably built by these kids.

Seeing this, Dongfang Jin understood; it seemed this old woman wasn't looking after the children.

Didn't you notice them?

[Jin-jie, I only glanced at it before my attention was drawn to the outside.]

Dongfang Jin...

He walked over, squatted down, took out a few steamed buns, looked at the girls, and asked gently, "Would you like to come with me?"

Just as a girl was about to reach out, she was stopped by an older child who looked at Dongfang Jin warily.

"Who are you?" he asked, his voice hoarse and cracking, as if he had injured his throat.

Dongfang Jin looked at them and lowered her voice: "Time is of the essence. I'll ask you one more time: are you willing to come with me?"

If you don't want to, I'll leave the steamed buns for you. I'll leave immediately, as if I never came.

"Heroine, take them away," a weak voice came from the side.

Dongfang Jin looked in the direction of the voice and saw one of the people lying on the ground: "Who are you?"

Du Wanru slowly sat up, as if she had used up all her strength, her sunken eyes filled with turbid tears.

Pointing to the woman beside him, shivering from the cold, his teeth chattering, he said, "I... she and I... are from Liangzhou. We... we have been sold to several places."

Because...we...refused to take customers, they tortured us, but they didn't kill us easily.

...We are all law-abiding citizens...

Dongfang Jin...

They've been sold to several different places already. So what if they're law-abiding citizens?

Which prostitute is born a prostitute?

They were all forced into that situation; they embarked on this path of no return simply to survive.

Besides, in ancient times, if a woman left without saying goodbye for a few days, public opinion could crush her to the point of suicide.

And let me tell you, this whole ordeal took more than a year.

Who are you trying to impress? Those people aren't going to let you die.

Why bother?

"You don't want to leave?"

Du Wanru smiled sadly, like a lifeless doll: "Leave? I want to, but where can we find a place to stay?"

Now I can't go home, and even if I did, my family wouldn't accept me. I'm unwilling to die, and I don't want to live a wretched life in this filthy place.

Those beasts who sold me are still alive; how can I accept this?

Dongfang Jin couldn't understand her feelings, but she admired her persistence. If she was trained properly, she could be a formidable person.

“I can save you, but you will be slaves from now on.”

Are you willing?

"If you want revenge later, I won't stop you, but I won't interfere either."

Lin Panpan also slowly and laboriously got up, her bloodshot eyes fixed on Dongfang Jin.

That trembling body resembled a drifting, fallen leaf.

Her upper and lower teeth kept clattering together, and her chapped lips moved slightly: "So what if we're slaves? As long as we sisters have a place to stay, being a slave is a blessing."

It's better than being here as a bedmate for thousands. As for revenge, we can only wait until we become strong.

"Revenge! We'll only feel truly satisfied if we take revenge ourselves; otherwise, we won't be able to quell our hatred!"

Yang Hui said in a hoarse voice, "Sister Du, Sister Lin, if you go with her, we are willing to go with you too."

Lin Panpan struggled to her feet and knelt down, kowtowing to Dongfang Jin: "Heroine, if you can save me from this sea of ​​fire, I swear to follow you to the death. If I betray you, may I be struck by lightning."

Du Wanru also knelt down, raising her hand and extending three fingers: "I, Du Wanru, am the same. If I betray you, may I be struck by lightning and die a horrible death."

Then another girl came over and knelt down: "I, Yang Hui, am the same. If I betray you, may I be struck by lightning and die a horrible death."

"And there's me, Lan Fangjing..."

"And then there's me, Liu Yingchun..."

"And there's me, Li Mulan..."

The youngest girl, with tears in her eyes, looked at this person and then that person, choking back sobs, and said, "What about me? What am I going to do?"

Her little face looked as if the whole world had abandoned her; her eyes, at such a young age, were filled with endless helplessness and sorrow.