Chapter 102 Chapter 102 Update.
At the Black Mine Mountain in the north of the city, simple huts were crowded together like a chicken coop, with the reeds on top covered by snow. Some tattered towels were hung in front of the huts, and pottery basins, dirty clothes, baskets, and pickaxes were piled on the ground.
Further in, there were dirty shoes all over the floor. On the cold big kang, more than 20 people were crammed together and sleeping upright. The quilts they were covering had already turned so black that the original color could no longer be distinguished.
The same goes for people. Their faces are covered with black flakes, and it has been who knows how long since they last washed, making the whites of their eyes stand out.
This was Tian Guinu's second year in this mine. That year, a canal boat capsized in the Mian River. She was lucky enough to survive by holding on to a float, but she had lost all her money. She could only beg for food along the way and look for work to earn money.
I didn't expect to end up in a shady shop. It was only later that I realized that this shop specifically preyed on those lone wanderers who were wandering around. They would blackmail you if you stole something and would hand you over to the authorities. In fact, they were selling people into slavery.
Tian Guinu was sold to this mine and became a mining slave who dug holes in the mountain to mine and carry the ore.
She was wrapped in a quilted gown with flying catkins. She blew on her cracked fingers, walked to the door of the shack and knocked on the hanging iron block, making a tinkling sound.
The people on the kang inside got up one after another, carrying baskets and pickaxes, and went down to the mine to work.
These people huddled up to reduce their exposure to the cold air, and there were no extra expressions on their faces.
Among them, some were convicted of crimes and sentenced to hard labor here; others were poor and sold themselves into slavery, and were bought here to become miners.
There is another type of people whose experience is similar to that of Tian Guinu. They were originally registered as commoners, but were abducted and sold as mine slaves by thieves. This type of people, when they first arrived at this closed mine, also cried out to the sky and cried out for injustice.
However, there were walls on all sides, with county soldiers standing guard in the watchtowers and patrolling around the mines. There were also iron officials supervising inside and outside the mines.
The cold-faced official never paid any attention to their grievances. He only gave them mining targets every day. If they were slow in their work, they would be whipped. If they didn't finish their work, they wouldn't even have any bread to eat. After torturing them for ten days or half a month, they gradually became quiet and obedient.
After Tian Guinu rang the bell, she was the last one to go down to the mine carrying the cage.
This black mine is connected to Cuizhang. The high mountain next door has no mineral veins and is just an ordinary mountain. On the Double Ninth Festival, four people were climbing the mountain for an outing and pointing at the black mine below and talking.
Ji Xu and her two sisters climbed to the middle of the mountain that day and looked towards the mine.
Ji Xu's heart was in her throat. She was able to find this place because she used the key to open Mrs. Lai's box, and the bamboo book inside was actually the account book.
Upon closer inspection, I realized that Mrs. Lai was secretly transporting iron ore to sell for money.
One of the accounts recorded: Black Mine in the north of the city, Gui slave, two taels.
When she saw the word "Gui", she was excited and put the bamboo book back as it was. The Japanese tried to find the mine written in the book, but the iron officials drove them away and they could not get close. They could only climb the next mountain and look at it from a high place.
"That's my mother!"
I saw the back of the figure carrying a bamboo cage on his shoulder and holding an iron pickaxe, walking towards the dark cave entrance. Across the distance of the valley, the figure looked as small as a bean, and there were tree branches obscuring it. I don't know how Ji Feng recognized it at first sight.
"Yes! It's mother!" Ji Zhu also said.
Ji Xu and Tian Shi hadn't seen each other for many years. He looked at her and recognized her. He said from memory, "She has lost a lot of weight."
The three sisters were both happy and worried. They were happy because they finally saw their mother, but they were worried because their mother was detained in the mine and became a mine slave, and they didn't know how to get out.
Their shoes got wet, but they didn't notice and just stood there watching.
"Gui Nu, breakfast is here!"
The county soldier who was carrying the lunch basket was calling out to Tian Guinu.
She had been working in the mine for over a year. With her skill in mining and honesty, she became a small manager among the miners. When it came time to distribute steamed buns here or deliver water there, the county soldiers would inform her first, and she would organize the distribution to the miners below.
She struck the iron block again, and the miners gathered around, this time with noticeably faster steps.
Breakfast consisted of a steamed bun and half a bowl of porridge. In this weather, the porridge was cold and hard and had no taste at all.
But if we don’t eat, it will be gone, and we will have to starve until the evening before we can have the next meal, so we eat voraciously.
Tian Guinu distributed all the buns one by one. Luckily, there was an extra bun in the basket. She quietly put it in her arms to fill her stomach at noon, or to give it to others as a favor.
This is exactly why she changed her behavior of making trouble when she first came here, and worked hard to mine and strive to be the manager.
He could enjoy some food and drink every now and then; most importantly, he could talk to the county soldiers on duty, and even to Mrs. Lai, who was said to be from the county magistrate's mansion outside.
The miners and prisoners here are under strict guard. They eat, drink, defecate and urinate in the mines and are forbidden to go out. Even the managers are no exception. It is rare for them to have a few words with the civilian officers and soldiers outside.
She walked near a sharp-cheeked soldier and asked quietly:
"Has Mrs. Lai agreed? I've already stored ten baskets of black garlic in the mine. I'm just waiting for her approval, and then I can ship them out tonight."
They called the iron ore black garlic. Mrs. Lai had been in charge of the comprador mining slaves for decades. It was through her that Tian was sent to the Black Mountain.
Although Mrs. Lai was a household slave, she also made a fortune from the mines. She bribed some of the county soldiers guarding the mines and the managers of the mine slaves in each mountain, and transported the ore out of the mountains at night, which she secretly sold on the black market. I'm afraid that many of the connections in the dozens of mines, large and small, were bribed by her.
Tian, the little manager, was also one of them at the beginning, but she was a mining slave, the lowest level in the interest line, and could only share some of the soup.
The two taels of silver and two sets of clothes she sent to the girls at home in the first half of the year were saved up in this way.
Later, he secretly hid the slaves in the mine cage, and handed them over to the county soldiers without telling anyone above or below. As the ore was transported outside, they helped him escape from the mine.
He also promised himself that after leaving Zhuo County, he would find a post office to help her send letters and clothes back home. Tian was eager to see her daughter, but she also knew that this place was far away and dangerous, so she did not ask Ye Nu to tell her daughter too much in the letter, for fear that they would worry.
The main purpose of mailing the letter was to hide money for her two little daughters. When she left, she thought she couldn't delay too long, and she didn't want to end up here by mistake. The money left at home was not enough to last until now. She was afraid that the two would starve to death. She only hoped that the villagers would help her, and Ji Feng could also beg for food to survive until she sent the money back. She regretted it for a while, and she had fallen into a thief's black shop.
The next day, when work began, the slave's escape was exposed. The miner, Tian, the county soldier who had illegally transported the ore, and even the ore seller, Mrs. Lai, all knew how the slave had escaped, but they dared not speak out and could only secretly gather together to question each other.
Tian lied to the gang and said that he didn't know when he taught him to hide in the mine cage. He spoke sincerely and pretended to be ignorant.
The escape of the miners could not be concealed from the higher-ups, so the county magistrate ordered the government soldiers to capture the escaped slaves. When the investigation was about to uncover the fact that Mrs. Lai was transporting the ore to sell for money, it was unknown how Mrs. Lai managed to conceal it. Later, the external transportation line of Tian's black mine was cut off, which was equivalent to Mrs. Lai no longer wanting the benefits of her mine.
Soon the slave was arrested and brought back. It was said that he had just left Zhuo County and was arrested in Ji County. He was flogged with a hundred lashes. He was able to save his life only because Tian pleaded with the iron official. He was then sent to the deepest and darkest mine to work.
She was also whipped dozens of times for failing to guard the children properly and was unable to get up from the kang for half a month. Fortunately, her position as the manager was still intact.
Recently, they've been sending turbans and handkerchiefs, all made with the money they'd saved up from the lavish life of the government, which they'd asked the county soldiers to buy for thread and fabric, and then used to bribe the iron officials to sew them when they were lazy. Money can still buy things, as long as they don't communicate with the outside world or escape. Some county soldiers are greedy and will do it for the money.
The reason was that she saw that Mrs. Lai's coat looked like the needlework she taught her eldest daughter. In addition, the rice ears, the swimming fish, and even the Yue cloth, a famous product of Kuaiji, were not all from Yangzhou. Although it was a coincidence, she did not dare to believe that her daughter was near Mrs. Lai.
Later, he tried to sew a headscarf and gave it to Mrs. Lai. He actually got a response. He was both happy and surprised. The idea of leaving the mine became stronger.
It was a good opportunity to send Mrs. Lai something and plead for mercy. If this mining line could be put into operation again, it would be considered as communication with the outside world, and she could also wait for an opportunity to escape.
Secondly, she could save some money. Working as a slave in this wicked mine, she had only two pitiful meals a day and no monthly salary. Every day she opened her eyes, she could only dig for the mines, and there was also the risk of being crushed to death by landslides. She had to think about herself and the future reunion with her daughter, so she had to make as much money as she could.
This county soldier surnamed Zhou also wanted to make some money, but he was also implicated by the Tian family and could not curry favor with them, so he said:
"She fell in the snow and hasn't been here for ages. Even if I wanted to get in touch with her, I couldn't find her."
Here, Ji Xu and the others could only see the movement of people's figures and could not hear what they were saying at all. Later, when they saw Tian finished eating the steamed buns and carrying the basket down to the mine, they went down the mountain and hurried back home before dinner.
Before he reached the servants' courtyard, he saw Que Ying coming out and saying:
"Xu, great news! The Second Master has ordered you to serve in his courtyard. Just now, the eldest maid from his courtyard came to tell you that when you return, you should pack up your things and go to the Second Master's courtyard. You don't even have to prepare dinner today."
"Who will cook the meals in our small kitchen?"
"It's still the same as before. Granny Sun will do it first." Que said.
Doufu's nose was drooping, and he was very reluctant to leave. "If you leave, we will never be able to eat good food again."
Old Lady Sun said, "Water flows to the lowest places, and people go to the highest places. How many girls are looking forward to being able to go to the Second Master's courtyard? This is a great thing. I'm in the small kitchen, so you won't starve."
"I'm not hungry, but it tastes bad." After the Doufu said this, Old Lady Sun hit him on the forehead.
"It must be because my sister cooked the mutton that day."
Ji Feng felt that what Grandma Sun said was very right. The maids who served in the inner courtyard in the mansion were so proud. Now that her sister could also work in the inner courtyard, she was happier than anyone else and her face was extremely bright.
"I just don't know if the girls there are easy to get along with."
"Oh, sister," Ji Feng turned her around and whispered, "With such a good job, can you ask for Second Master's mercy and let mother go?"
Ji Xu also wanted to, but this morning she clearly saw that the miners only got a piece of steamed bun, while the food Du Ting sent to the mine was far more than that, which meant that the number of people in the mine on the surface was different from the actual number.
When we think about the slaves that Mrs. Lai sent to the mine, including her mother, who were these hidden slaves mining for?
I'm afraid it's the county magistrate who can control these mines. The county magistrate has a good reputation, so who would dare to believe it? Even she can only make a bold guess without any solid evidence.
The fugitive slaves were being hunted down in a big way. I think they escaped from the mines. It shows how difficult it is for miners to get out. I am afraid it will be difficult to ask for this grace.
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