Chapter 59 Buying People
"Boss, if you want to be trustworthy, what could be more trustworthy than the servants you buy?" Er Gouzi looked proud of coming up with a good idea.

Wang An also suddenly realized and couldn't help but give Ergou a thumbs up: "Hey, Ergou you are a real dog, you can think of such a good idea!"

Ergou suddenly became very proud. It was a rare opportunity for him to show his face in front of Wang An.

Wang An couldn't help but sigh that the ancients were really honest with him. It was true that everyone was born to be useful, and even a pile of feces could fertilize the fields.

In fact, this idea is very simple, but Wang An has always been limited by the thinking of modern people in later generations and never thought about "human trafficking".

However, in the eyes of Ming people like Ergou, this is the most normal thing.

And if you want someone you can trust and who won't run away, what could be safer than having a slave who belongs to you completely?

If you dare to have any ulterior motives, the government will kill you and won’t do anything.

They did it as soon as they thought of it. They immediately put on their coats, left the cargo yard and walked towards the "human market" in Guangqumen.

Baimajing was not far from Guangqumen. After walking for half an hour, they arrived at a narrow street.

Even in freezing weather, the street was still crowded with people.

There were not many people standing, most of them were kneeling on the ground with straw tags stuck on their heads.

There are men and women, young and old.

At the street entrance, many men gathered, warming themselves by the fire with their sleeves rolled up.

When this group of people saw Wang An coming, they gathered around and started talking to him.

"Young Master, are you here to buy a maid? I have quite a few of them, all of them are pretty girls of thirteen or fourteen, and they are still virgins!"

"What's the point of being thirteen or fourteen? Young master, listen to me. We are all women in our early twenties. We are first-rate experts in both housework and warming the bed!"

"How do you know that the young master is here to buy a maid? Maybe he is here to buy a strong servant! We guarantee that all our men are strong and powerful. They can plow the fields better than cows!"

"You can brag all you want, people are more useful than cows!"

"Zhang Erleng, shut up! We are talking to the young master, what does it have to do with you?"

Wang An knew that this group of people were all "human traffickers". The so-called human traffickers were just like the traffickers in the drug trafficking industry, and they were all intermediaries.

The only difference is that these people are selling people instead of other things, so they are called human traffickers.

Only domestic slaves and maids purchased by human traffickers would be recognized by the government and receive a contract of sale.

It doesn't mean that if two people say "I'll sell it to you" in private, they will really sell it. At least the government will not recognize this relationship. If you beat someone to death, the government will still only blame you, and if the person runs away, the government will not arrest you.

Because purchasing people through human traffickers is legal, and taxes must be paid to the government.

Of course, human trafficking was actually illegal in the Ming Dynasty, but it was a different matter if it involved the criminal’s family members or if both parties were willing.

Ergou had told him all these things on the way, so Wang An did not drive him away. Instead, he asked directly: "I want to buy someone who can read and write and do math. Do you have any?"

As soon as these words were spoken, most of the traffickers left immediately.

Because they were reduced to selling themselves into slavery, most of them came from the lowest level of peasants, and naturally it was impossible for them to receive an education and be able to read and write.

It's not that there weren't educated people who fell into misfortune, but these people had some respect as scholars and were unwilling to sell themselves. Also, even if they were literate, they could still find a job as an accountant or a clerk, and would never fall to the point of selling themselves into slavery.

Seeing that most of the people were driven away with just one sentence, the only one standing in front of Wang An was a young man with missing front teeth.

Wang An cast his eyes on the young man and asked hopefully, "Do you have one?" The young man nodded, then shook his head and asked hesitantly, "Yes, I have one, but I don't know what you're going to do with it, young master."

Ergou sneered and said, "What you said is funny. We paid for the person, why do you care what he is used for?"

The young man opened his mouth and laughed, "Hey, that's none of my business. But she's a woman. If the young master buys her back to work as an accountant or clerk, I'm afraid she won't be suitable. But if you buy her back to be a maid or a concubine, she's very suitable."

"The person is beautiful and the property is beautiful. I guarantee you will drool after seeing it! But the price is not low..."

Wang An frowned. Gender discrimination has always existed in ancient times. Women in ancient times are almost the main force in the financial resources of various companies.

At this time, it is more important to keep a low profile. Moreover, a position like an accountant involves dealing with all kinds of men, so it is indeed not appropriate to hire a woman.

However, as the commodity economy in Jiangnan became more and more developed in the late Ming Dynasty, most of the couples in Jiangnan were "husband and wife teams", and in fact women had become more and more involved in management and production.

It’s just that this trend has apparently not yet reached the capital.

"It's okay, just show us around first." Wang An said.

A woman is a woman, Wang An doesn’t care.

Moreover, women are easier to control, and the probability of them escaping in this chaotic situation is not high.

With this thought in mind, Wang An followed the young man Yazi and walked around into a small house not far from the street.

A young man on the street introduced himself as Queyazi, and said that most of those kneeling on the street were farmers who could not make a living near the capital and voluntarily sold themselves. Both men and women had average physical and appearance, and could usually only be bought back to be used as servants.

"High-end goods" are generally not marked on the streets. For example, those with beautiful people and good properties are generally found in small houses, and of course the prices are relatively high.

I knocked on the door, and a voice came from inside the small house: "Who is it?"

"I, Queyazi!" Queyazi responded, and immediately there were sounds of cursing and the bolt being pulled in the room.

After a while, the door opened, revealing a big man with a full beard.

As soon as the big man saw Queya, he yelled, "What are you doing here again? Get lost!"

Queya licked his face and said flatteringly: "Master, please understand, I am here with a guest!"

Master Ba glanced at Wang An and said without giving him face: "You just brought some things for viewing but not for sale, wasting my time!"

Seeing that Que Yazi was a little embarrassed, Wang An interrupted and said, "If it's suitable, I will buy it. No one has nothing to do, right?"

The Eighth Master looked at Wang An and chuckled, "What you said does make sense. I'll let you in this time because of your face, but if you try to play tricks on me... humph!"

"Let's see first." Wang An said nonchalantly.

Immediately, he stepped into the room.

The small house has no yard, and there is only a small room as soon as you enter the door.

There was a fire in the middle of the room, and seven or eight women were sitting around it in silence.

Wang An took a quick look and saw that they were all young women. Although their clothes were torn and their faces were pale, it was not difficult to tell that they all had a good foundation.

If you take good care of yourself for a period of time, your appearance won't be too bad.

(End of this chapter)