Jiang Shuyun and Brother Mu spent another day in the prefectural city. Jiang Shuyun and Mu Ziwen discussed scholarship, while Mu Zichen was pulled aside by Uncle Mu and talked about the affairs of the yamen all day.

Jiang Shuyun had one more thing to do: he asked Aunt Mu to help him buy a family of servants from a slave trader.

"What are the requirements for the buyer?"

"Yi'an said the best option is a family, a couple with children. They should be around forty years old, in good health, and preferably good at cooking. If they really can't cook, but excel in other areas, that's fine too, and we can buy another person who can cook."

This is our first time using servants, and we have no experience, so we need a contractual one. Aunt, you have a discerning eye; please help me find a reliable family of servants so we can use them with peace of mind.

While the others were talking, Aunt Mu went to a brokerage firm she knew well.

"Oh, Mrs. Mu, what brings you here? Are you short of staff at home? What kind of person do you need? I'll pick out the best for you."

When the matchmaker saw Aunt Mu, she greeted her warmly.

"Old woman Huang, we've known each other for a long time. I want to choose someone from the same family, someone loyal and honest. They need to go to the countryside to serve me, someone who farms. Do you have any suitable candidates? Don't try to fool me, they need to be willing to go to the countryside to farm and serve me, someone with a lifelong contract."

"Madam Mu is joking. How could I, Old Woman Huang, fool you? What kind of relationship do we have?"

Huang Yapo spoke sincerely, and Aunt Mu was waiting for her to bring the people.

"Madam Mu, what do you think of this family? They were sold off from an official family in the prefectural city. The master of the household committed a crime, and all the servants were sold off. Most of the other servants have already been sold off, but this family insists on staying together, so they haven't found a buyer yet."

Aunt Mu glanced at the family: two adult men, one around fifty and the other around thirty. The woman looked kind, her clothes were clean and tidy, and her hair was neatly combed. The three children were also well-behaved, not looking around.

"What are you all good at? If it's about serving in the countryside and farming, have you thought it through? Do you really want to go?"

"Madam, my son used to manage one of the master's estates, my daughter-in-law manages the shop, my eldest grandson is the young master's page, and the two younger ones don't have any jobs yet."

"We'll be grateful as long as our family stays together and isn't separated and sold. We're willing to be taken care of in the countryside."

The older man spoke up, and his son and daughter-in-law nodded in agreement.

Aunt Mu asked a few more questions, and the family answered honestly.

"Old Huang, she seems like a good person, but there's one thing we need to clarify: can they process official contracts?"

"Yes, they did not commit a crime; it was the master who made the mistake, and they were implicated."

Aunt Mu asked her servants to invite a familiar doctor to examine the family members and confirm that they were all healthy and had no illnesses.

After paying the money and processing the official contracts for the group, Aunt Mu took them to an inn near her home, where they were told to wash up properly before returning with Shuyun the next day.

Aunt Mu was not afraid that they would run away, for runaway servants would not have a good end.

"Shuyun, this is their indenture. It's a family of six. They've already seen a doctor and are all healthy. I'll let them rest at the inn for the night and freshen up. Tomorrow, you can take them back directly."

Jiang Shuyun thanked Aunt Mu, took the indentures from the group, and put them away. It was the first time he had ever seen one, and he found it quite strange. He never imagined that one day he would be buying people; it was truly an eye-opening experience.

The next day, Jiang Shuyun and her group said goodbye to Uncle Mu's family and, along with the six members of the Li family, boarded a boat back to the county town.

"Young Master, Son-in-law, you're back. Was everything alright?"

"Yeah, everything went smoothly. Let's go back."

Brother Mu and his group got into the carriage, and then hired another carriage to take the six members of the Li family.

Jiang Shuyun put down the gifts she bought for her parents-in-law, said goodbye, and prepared to go home.

"Alright, go back now and focus on your studies. Now that you have a helper, you don't need to worry about anything."

"Okay, big brother, I'll head back now."

Jiang Shuyun bid farewell to his wife's family and returned home with his entourage. He had been gone for several days and was starting to miss Yi'an and the children.

"Uncle Wang, you've worked hard."

"You're too kind, sir. I'll head back now."

Uncle Wang drove off, and the hired horse-drawn carriage also left.

"Come on, this is our home, let's go inside."

Jiang Shuyun pushed open the courtyard gate, and Jiang Qi was playing in the yard with Shao Yun and Chu Yue.

"Second brother, you're back?"

"Yes, they're back. Jiang Qi, these are the people I brought back to work with. Take them and settle them in. Where's your sister-in-law? Isn't she home?"

"Second sister-in-law went to the melon field and will be back soon."

Jiang Qi knew that these were servants bought by his second brother.

Jiang Shuyun's house has a row of gatehouses on both sides of the main gate, both of which can be lived in.

Jiang Qi led the Li family of six to the gatehouse.

"Sister Li, there are four rooms here, all of which can be occupied. Please make your own arrangements and see which rooms are most suitable for you."

My second sister-in-law will be back soon; she's the lady of the house. We'll make other arrangements then.

The Li family of six arrived with nothing but a change of clothes. The previous owners of the house had their property raided suddenly, and the Li family hadn't had time to take anything before being taken away.

This change of clothes was provided by the brokers, using Li's golden cloves as a substitute.

"Thank you, we'll clean up ourselves."

After living in fear for so many days, now that the whole family is together, nothing else matters.

Jiang Qi told them where to fetch water and where the cleaning supplies were, then went to check on the children. These servants only needed to listen to their second sister-in-law.

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