Gu Zhixing stood there, his eyes cold and stern, and said bluntly, "Stop beating around the bush. I'm here to ask for a servant that I find pleasing to the eye."
servant?
If we need servants now, wouldn't we only have the Xie family's sinful slaves?
But Gu Zhixing is not someone you can afford to offend!
Lu Huaijin subconsciously stroked his beard with his hand, a troubled expression on his face, as if he was carefully considering his words.
He frowned slightly, his voice tinged with hesitation: "Your Highness, as you know, the higher-ups are keeping a close eye on things lately, so things are really not going well for me..."
He extended two fingers and gently twirled them in the air, a glint of shrewdness in his eyes, as if hinting at something.
Gu Zhixing smiled knowingly.
He reached into his pocket and pulled out the remaining neatly folded silver notes. With a flick of his wrist, the notes fluttered slightly in the air before being handed over: "Is this enough?"
Lu Huaijin's gaze was instantly drawn to the silver notes. His eyes lit up, and his expression immediately relaxed. He said with a beaming smile, "That's enough, that's enough! Whatever Your Highness needs, I have it all here!"
He quickly reached out, carefully took the silver note, examined it closely, then tucked it into his pocket. He turned and walked towards the training ground where the servants were working, saying as he went, "This way, Your Highness. What kind of servants does Your Highness want? I'll pick the best for you!"
The training ground was located in the backyard of the government office, a spacious and open area surrounded by a wooden fence.
The sunlight shone directly down, making people feel a little dizzy.
A group of servants dressed in coarse cloth were busy at work. Some were bending over to move wood, some were sweeping the floor with brooms, and others were squatting by the basin washing clothes. They were all sweating profusely from exhaustion.
Lu Huaijin led Gu Zhixing and Shen Jintang in and shouted at the top of his lungs, "Stop! Stop!"
Hearing the commotion, the servants stopped what they were doing and looked over.
Lu Huaijin waved his hand, signaling them to line up. Then he walked to Gu Zhixing's side, a smile plastered on his face, and said in a low voice, "Young Master, everyone is here. Please choose. Whatever you choose, I will take care of it perfectly, there will be absolutely no problem."
Although the higher-ups kept a close watch, it was perfectly normal for a few servants to die or be injured occasionally.
Everyone present knew this perfectly well.
Gu Zhixing turned his head slightly and said to Shen Jintang, "You choose whichever you like."
Shen Jintang concealed the fleeting glint in his eyes, nodded, and replied softly, "Thank you, Your Highness."
She stepped forward, her gaze sweeping over the servants as she scrutinized them.
Lu Huaijin's gaze unconsciously fell on Shen Jintang.
In fact, he noticed this girl from the very beginning. She had an extraordinary temperament and proper manners, and was clearly not an ordinary person.
But he never expected that the Crown Prince would value her so much that he would spend a lot of money to specially select servants for her.
Previously, he had never heard of any girl who could win the favor of the Crown Prince!
This treatment is truly extraordinary.
Shen Jintang's gaze swept indifferently over the servants in front of the open space, and he said indifferently, "Come back with me. I can't guarantee anything else, but it will be much better than this wood and stone quarry."
In the lumberyard, the servants toiled all day, receiving only one meal a day, mostly consisting of unpalatable food that barely kept them from starving.
Everyone knows that as long as they can leave this place, it's better to go to any other place than to stay here.
Moreover, Shen Jintang's clothes were clearly not ordinary; she must be from a wealthy family. Following her would definitely be better than suffering here.
Therefore, when Shen Jintang came out, all the servants were eager to show themselves off, hoping to be chosen.
A burly man puffed out his chest and shouted, "Girl, choose me! I'm strong, I can carry things and do heavy work without any problem!"
A tall, thin man standing nearby quickly chimed in, "Don't choose him! I eat little and work a lot, you can't go wrong choosing me!"
A woman who looked nimble and dexterous squeezed to the front and said, "I'm very skillful with my hands; I can do needlework and mending all by myself!"
Another middle-aged man shouted, "I'm a cook, I can make all kinds of dishes."
Various voices rose and fell, but Shen Jintang listened quietly, her eyes remaining calm, seemingly unmoved by these words.
She casually removed a gold hairpin from her hair, tossed it lightly, and the hairpin traced an arc in the air before landing in the middle of the servants.
Her voice was cool and casual: "Whoever gets this hairpin within the time it takes for an incense stick to burn can come back with me."
"That's mine!"
"Don't try to take it! I saw it first!"
"I was the first one to encounter it!"
The crowd erupted instantly, creating a cacophony of noise.
Only one-fifth of the incense had burned when the surroundings were already in complete chaos.
The servants began shoving and jostling each other for the hairpin.
When the incense had burned down to one-third of its original length, some people were already exhausted and collapsed to the ground, but the people around them did not stop and the competition became even more intense.
When the incense had burned halfway, less than one-tenth of the people standing in the arena had been extinguished.
The remaining people stared warily at the hairpin, waiting for their chance to strike.
Some were hiding in the shadows, while others confronted each other openly, creating a tense atmosphere.
Only one-fifth of the incense remained, and time seemed to freeze at that moment.
A young man who was nine feet tall finally seized the opportunity, lunged at the hairpin, and grabbed it.
The people around him were eyeing him menacingly, and a bloody scratch appeared on the young man's face, but he gripped the hairpin tightly, protecting it with all his might.
People tried to snatch it from time to time, but they were all knocked down by the young man's punch.
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