Chapter 76 Feeling Heavy-Hearted She couldn't change anything yet.
"Of course, Your Excellency!" The flower fairy merchant was overjoyed to see the large flint that Shu Xin had brought out. However, after looking at the flower fairy slaves on his stall, he hesitated, "But the value of my slaves is nowhere near that of your flint..."
Shu Xin waved her hand: "That's alright. You can keep this flint for now. Once you have enough slaves, you can send them to the Land of Sin. If you can't gather enough right away, that's fine too. Just send over whatever you have. If you have extra slaves, that would be even better. I'll keep buying slaves."
The vast majority of civilians who suffered from the disaster would become slaves. Although the flower fairy merchant rationally knew that these flower fairies who became slaves were insignificant and lowly, he could hardly ignore their former status as commoners. After all, all the slaves were dug out of the ruins by the merchant himself. Just like the slaves on the stall now, their houses, which were burned to charcoal, still retained some of their former shapes. He even dug out an intricately woven wreath in the basement that was not completely burned down. Judging from its shape and size, it should have been for a child.
The flower fairy merchants are also free people. This merchant who came to participate in the Magic Cat Market also has a daughter. When he saw the beautiful flower wreath, he almost immediately thought of his lovely daughters.
The flower fairy merchant was overjoyed to have found a good home for these poor slaves. He nodded repeatedly, "By the Flower Goddess! This is wonderful! Thank you so much! Don't worry, I will gather the necessary supplies and send them to you as soon as possible! I will also tell my friends more about this land of sin!"
The flower fairy merchant had also heard of the Land of Sin, a cursed land where only nobles who had committed malfeasance were sent. However, the official in front of him looked healthy and rosy-cheeked, not like someone who had committed a crime and was being punished.
However, this was the first time he had ever seen such a large piece of flint. It seemed that the magic tree in the Sinful Lands was indeed not in good condition. But no matter what, it was still better than sending the slaves to mine. He had never heard of any magic ore being produced in the Sinful Lands, so sending these slaves there should save their lives.
While Shu Xin was talking to the flower fairy merchant, the panicked voice that had screamed seemed to realize its situation and quieted down, no longer making any noise. After handing the flint to the merchant, Shu Xin used the Life Leaf he had laid on the magic cat's fur to gather up a large pile of slaves and take them away.
Finding the carriage parked next to the magic cat's legs, Shu Xin placed a bag of slaves on the carriage, her mood somewhat heavy.
The flower fairy merchant's stall was in a very remote corner—it seems there's no such thing as a remote corner when you're setting up a stall directly on the magic cat's body. The reason Shu Xin felt it was remote was because there were no other flower fairies setting up stalls nearby. He was all alone, flying above his stall, unlike other places where the flower fairies displaying their goods were not far apart and looked lively.
When Shu Xin passed by other flower fairy vendors, she always received respectful looks because of her official uniform. But when she flew toward the flower fairy merchant, she noticed that all the eyes that followed her toward the flower fairy merchant were filled with disgust.
The flower fairy merchant seemed quite used to his situation and didn't seem to mind it. He treated Shu Xin very warmly and attentively, and after selling the slaves to Shu Xin, he left quickly and quietly.
The more Shu Xin thought about it, the more uneasy she felt. She returned to the carriage and realized that she couldn't remember what the merchant looked like. She only remembered that he was an adult male flower fairy. As for his hair color and eye color, Shu Xin had no recollection at all. What she remembered most clearly was the light blue cloak he was wearing, with a large circle of eye-catching gold leaf and coin patterns that looked very noble.
The merchant's exclusive cloak was naturally bestowed by the Tree of Life. Shu Xin did not sense any signs that the flower fairy merchant was using innate magic, so the effect of the blurred face was inherent to the cloak.
Why would the Tree of Life customize such a feature for a merchant's cloak?
Thinking of the disgusted looks the common people gave the merchants, Shu Xin couldn't help but sigh.
Peppert, a servant of the Flower Castle and the flower fairy who leads the team to trade acorns, comes from a family of merchants. However, he is clearly not ashamed of this. The other servants also treat Peppert in a very ordinary way. Judging from the flower fairies' unyielding attitude towards high-ranking patrol officers, Peppert's family of merchants is probably different from the merchants in the Magic Cat Market.
After meeting up with Nonoli, Shuxin asked about her doubts, and Nonoli's answer confirmed her guess—
Merchants are indeed divided into two categories: ordinary merchants and slave traders. Ordinary merchants sell common goods, while slave traders sell only slaves. Ordinary merchants do not have uniforms; only slave traders receive a blue cloak bestowed by the Tree of Life.
Shu Xin understood.
The patrolmen would storm into the homes of the flower fairies and take their families away, thus incurring the hatred of almost all the flower fairies. The slave traders, on the other hand, were hated by the flower fairy commoners because they only appeared after disasters and were almost always associated with natural calamities. After all, the appearance of these guys in blue cloaks meant death. Even if their neighbors and friends were lucky enough to survive the disaster, they would be turned from commoners into slaves and taken away by these guys in blue cloaks, sold to some unknown place, their fate unknown.
Even though the flower fairies knew perfectly well that the natural disasters were not caused by the slave traders, it was still hard for them not to feel resentment.
Did the flower fairies and commoners do anything wrong? It seems not. The flower fairies are indeed simple and kind by nature, but they are not pre-programmed machines. They also have emotions and naturally have their own joys and sorrows.
It is probably for this reason that the Tree of Life bestowed such a cloak upon the slave traders, to conceal their appearance and protect their safety.
Did the slave traders do anything wrong? It seems not. If the slave traders hadn't appeared in time to rescue the flower fairies who had been enslaved, even more flower fairies would have died in the disaster.
Having lost their land and houses, their bodies shrank, and their magical talents became unusable, these flower fairy slaves found it difficult to survive on their own. Relying on neighbors for help was also unrealistic. After slave traders took them away, they sold them to nobles and lords. Although these flower fairies lost their freedom, they were still able to get a bite to eat and wouldn't starve to death.
This situation, where it seems no one did anything wrong, yet the outcome is indeed terrible, is truly infuriating. However, Shu Xin is well aware that this situation ultimately stems from the failure of government function—the slave traders in the Flower Fairy are nominally merchants, but in reality, they are forced to assume the responsibility of disaster relief.
Shaking her head, Shu Xin stopped thinking about it. There was nothing she could change at the moment, so she should focus on developing the Land of Sin before worrying about anything else.
Shu Xin and Nuonuo went to the Magic Cat Inn together. The tamer had already arrived and was waiting for them at the inn.
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Author's Note: Thank you to all the little angels who voted for me or watered my plants with nutrient solution between 23:51:29 on August 8, 2024 and 20:30:37 on August 9, 2024!
Thank you to the little angels who watered the nutrient solution: Meow Meow 19 bottles; Hahahahaha 1 bottle;
Thank you so much for your support! I will continue to work hard!
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