Chapter 327 The Secret
Lin Changning was completely bewildered. Seeing the strange look in his father-in-law's eyes, he hurriedly waved his hand and said, "I don't know what you mean by that, sir. I am not married and have no intention of taking a concubine."
The old man withdrew his strange gaze, then straightened his expression and looked at Lin Changning again, asking with some doubt, "Not going to take a concubine? Then what are you doing at the orphanage?"
Lin Changning cupped his hands and said, "My surname is Lin. These past few days, my family has been preparing to open an embroidery workshop. We are short of people and are thinking of finding some master craftsmen and selecting some girls over twelve years old from the orphanage to train and pay my family a monthly wage to work for us."
The old man's brows relaxed upon hearing this, and he put down the vegetable basket he was carrying: "I misunderstood. Young master, it's a good thing that you're willing to select some women from the orphanage to work. However, I advise you not to get involved in this mess. That place is very chaotic."
As he spoke, the old man waved his hand, shook his head, and sighed.
Lin Changning was somewhat confused: "What do you mean by that, sir? It's just about picking some people to do the work, how does that make us involved in this mess?"
The father-in-law sighed and pointed ahead: "Turning right ahead, the third house is the orphanage. You'll see when you go there."
No sooner had he said that than his father-in-law seemed to realize it was inappropriate and advised again, "I see you're not that old, so let me tell you the truth: those girls who are 12 or older from the orphanage can hardly find any work to do."
In the past two years, some farmers would go to the neighborhood to select clever and hardworking women to marry into their families. In the past two years, many landlords and gentry have also been selecting young and attractive girls from there to take home as concubines.
Some even took two or three at a time—alas, what a tragedy! As more and more people found out, who in power could protect them now? Some had even bribed officials…
It's such a pity that these young girls, in the prime of their lives, are to be married off as concubines to wealthy men in their forties, fifties, and sixties. These children are already orphans, and they are just little girls.
Some girls were tortured to death in that inner quarters and no one cared. I advise you not to get involved in that mess. There was a woman who was one of the first to leave the orphanage. She and her husband opened a breakfast shop and, when they were making money, they were willing to take in some girls from the orphanage to teach them skills. But they were treated terribly by those high-ranking officials and nobles.
Lin Changning clenched his fist and clasped his hands in a gesture of respect to his father-in-law: "Thank you for informing me."
After saying that, he turned around, got into the carriage, and rode the horse in the direction the old man had pointed.
The old man looked at Lin Changning and shook his head: "It's good to be young, but he doesn't know the immensity of the world. It's a pity for this young man, sigh."
However, there aren't many upright young people like this anymore. He was a good kid, it's a pity.
As he spoke, he picked up his load again and swayed as he walked toward the market.
Lin Changning drove the carriage and finally found the orphanage by following the directions given by his father-in-law.
Above a darkened wooden door hangs an even darker plaque with the words "Ciyoufang" (meaning "Orphanage for Children").
Even though it was already daytime, the wooden door was tightly shut.
Lin Changning stopped the carriage and went straight up to knock on the door: "Is anyone home?"
After a long silence from inside, Lin Changning knocked on the door again.
This time, the knocking seemed to be too loud, and a man's voice came from inside, cursing, "What are you knocking for in broad daylight? Stop knocking, I'm coming, I'm coming."
A sallow-faced, gaunt man, muttering foul language, suddenly opened the door.
Upon seeing Lin Changning's cold face, he paused for a moment, then looked Lin Changning up and down. He noticed that Lin Changning's clothes were made of good material, and he was quite handsome, with an overall demeanor that was unlike that of an ordinary person.
He took a step back, his expression becoming somewhat respectful, and muttered, "It's not even the fifteenth yet, why are you here today?"
After muttering this to himself, he cupped his hands and addressed Lin Changning: "Young master, are you here to take a concubine? Only the girls in our neighborhood get married on the 15th of this month, so why don't you come another day?"
He was sizing up Lin Changning, and Lin Changning was also sizing him up. Hearing what the man said, a hint of displeasure flashed across her face, and she strode inside. The courtyard had about two sections, with about four rooms in the small courtyard and probably quite a few rooms in the second section as well.
Lin Changning surveyed the layout of the courtyard and was about to push open the door when the man suddenly grabbed his clothes: "Hey, young master, we really aren't accepting guests today. Landlord Liu and his men have booked the place. If you want to find someone, you'll have to wait a few days."
Lin Changning turned her head, her phoenix eyes flashing with coldness, and glanced at the man's hand that was gripping hers. She said coldly, "Let go!!!"
The man was so frightened by Lin Changning's imposing aura that he quickly took a few steps back and dared not stop her any longer. With a cry of pain, he ran into the small courtyard.
Lin Changning kicked open the door to the side room next to him. As soon as the door opened, a foul smell seeped out. A group of little girls, about seven or eight years old, stared in fright and huddled on the communal bed.
There was only a dilapidated square table and two or three shiny stools in one of the side rooms.
The little girls inside screamed when they saw Lin Changning kick the door open, and they all huddled together in a corner.
Lin Changning paused his violent actions, glanced at the terrified looks on the little girls' faces, turned around and went out the door, then kicked open the four rooms next door one by one.
The accommodations seemed to be divided according to age and gender, with nearly 20 children sleeping in a large shared bed in a small room.
After Lin Changning kicked open the last house, he saw a group of eight- or nine-year-old boys holding old stools, staring menacingly at the doorway.
Upon seeing Lin Changning, who was dressed in fine clothes, at the door, the older boy in the lead slammed the stool he was holding down hard.
Lin Changning kicked the stool aside with a flying kick, then looked the group of boys up and down. The boys seemed to realize that Lin Changning didn't intend to harm them, and they breathed a sigh of relief, slowly backing away.
Just as Lin Changning was wondering how to appease the group of children, the man from before led three or four rather sturdy servants out of the second courtyard.
Pointing at Lin Changning, he said, "Please ask this person to leave first; we are not receiving anyone today."
Lin Changning withdrew his gaze, turned to look at the three or four burly servants, and sneered, "What does this mean?"
The tall, thin man looked at Lin Changning with a rather arrogant expression: "No matter which family's young master you are, I said we don't receive guests today, so please leave. Our Ciyoutang does not welcome you."
Lin Changning was too lazy to waste words with people, and his eyes flashed with murderous intent as he watched a group of servants surround him.
Two servants tried to grab Lin Changning's shoulders and drag him out, but as soon as they touched his shoulders, they suddenly found that their vision had been reversed.
Lin Changning delivered a flying kick, sending the first servant who came over flying several meters away.
The other person had barely touched Lin Changning's shoulder when Lin Changning punched him hard into the ground.
"How dare you touch me!"
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