The Marquis Is Innocent

Wei Shao left Zhuo County in the morning, leaving Xiao Qiao in the post house. The Madam Magistrate visited Xiao Qiao during the day and accompanied her. In the evening, Chun Niang and two maids finally arrived at Zhuo County and met Xiao Qiao. After spending another night in the post house, Xiao Qiao boarded a large and comfortable carriage with a capacity of ten people in the inner compartment to Jinyang, escorted by Mr. Jia and 500 soldiers.

A large part of the area from Youzhou to Jinyang was now under Wei Shao’s authority, so the journey was smooth and unobstructed. After passing through Dai County, they would enter Ping City and arrive at Bing Zhou. Xiao Qiao was not in a hurry, traveling during the day and staying at the post house during the night.

Xiao Qiao arrived at the ancient city of Jinyang on this day. The weather was very nice. The wind blew in the face, and it had already brought a spring scent. Although she did not travel fast, she walked on the road every day for almost a month and felt tired. She only wanted to arrive earlier.

Today was the time to enter the city. She and Chun Niang sat in the carriage and pushed open the window. Once she looked at the new green field outside the window, her mood leaped up. The journey went smoothly, crossing the river moat and entering the city gate.

The carriage passed through the market, brought her to a building in the north of the city with a strict gate, then stopped. The building was the Jinyang government office, where Wei Shao lived and governed when he came here. A steward had been informed of her arrival and brought his men to wait outside the gate early.

Xiao Qiao entered and learned that Wei Shao was not in town but had gone to Xihe County.

“Marquis left the city five or six days ago. I think he should be back within these two days.” The Lady had just arrived and could not meet the Marquis, so the steward was afraid she would be disappointed and explained on purpose. Xiao Qiao nodded with a smile.

During the day, Xiao Qiao busied arranging her belongings. After bathing and resting early, she slept and woke up the next day feeling refreshed from the fatigue of the journey.

Wei Shao was not here, and Xiao Qiao was not doing much. In the first few days, she ate and slept, slept and ate, and strolled around the mansion.

Two days later, Chun Niang said that when she went into the market that day, she saw a store on the street that was selling lamb skins that looked good. She wanted to buy a few sheets to make winter knee pads. Since the weather was getting warmer, she wanted to buy them today.

Xiao Qiao had nothing to do, so she changed into her ordinary clothes, wore her mask, and left the house with Chun Niang. The part of the city where the Lady was going was full of civilians. The steward was afraid something might go wrong, so he led the way and escorted her.

Xiao Qiao went out in the carriage and got down on foot after getting close to the market. After they found a stall selling lamb skins that Chun Niang had seen that day, she picked four or five sheets, paid for them, and stored them away. Then, they wandered around slowly, buying some miscellaneous things in passing. When they were about to leave, they suddenly saw people gathered along the road with a middle-aged man banging a gong while yelling loudly. It turned out to be a stall for selling slaves. There were men and women, all Qiang people. Every one of them had a messy face and hands tied. They wore tattered clothes, and a few women were not even covered, revealing gray and black stains on the chest and abdomen. They were surrounded by passers-by, staring and pointing with indecent eyes. These few Qiang women looked blank, as if they were wood carvings, without any reaction.

Jinyang was the capital of Taiyuan County. It was once the capital of the state of Zhao in ancient times and a famous capital in the north, along with Fangyang, Yuyang, and Xindou. Besides the Han people, the city was also the homeland of the Qiang and Hu people, who had lived here since their ancestors.

The Qiang people have been hardworking and robust. Even after a woman gives birth to a child, she does not avoid the weather. To die in battle was auspicious, and to end up sick was not. They were fearless and energetic people. However, over the past hundred years, they constantly conflicted with the Han Dynasty. Nowadays, these naturalized Qiang and Hu people have low status and have become slaves. Especially during the decades when Chen Xiang occupied Bingzhou, he forced them to fight in the war.

When the steward saw the Lady’s footsteps slowing down, he hastened to cover them up, not wanting Xiao Qiao to see them, and said, “These lowly Qiang and Hu offended the master of the family. They sent them for sale in the market. Don’t look at them, lest you stain your eyes.”

Xiao Qiao asked, “Has this place always been openly selling Qiang slaves in the marketplace like this?”

The steward said, “It has always been like this. It is a common practice.”

Xiao Qiao frowned and looked at the naked Qiang girls. She hesitated but finally turned around and left. Just a few steps away, she suddenly heard a commotion. A Qiang boy got up from the ground and rushed over to bite a man’s wrist who pretended to buy but pinched the young Qiang girl’s breasts. He bit down the man’s hand and did not let go.

The man howled loudly. When they finally separated, his wrist bled. The middle-aged man was furious, ordered the boy to be pinned to the ground, and drew his whip. He swore while whipping the boy viciously. The boy was very stubborn, his eyes shot out in anger, and shouting in his unclear Mandarin: “We have no owner! My sister and I were caught by this bad man when we were tending sheep in the back of the mountain ……”

The middle-aged man was enraged and stopped whipping. He kicked the boy in the head, gnashing his teeth and cursing, “Bastard slave! Nonsense!”

The boy’s head bleeds profusely. The man’s boot stepped on his head, but he was still writhing and struggling. The young Qiang girl, who looked blank, suddenly cried out and pounced on the ground, kneeling and begging for mercy from the middle-aged man.

More and more people gathered around, including a line of four or five people dressed as locals in ordinary clothes. Among them was a young man, 25/26 years old. Once he looked at this scene with his bright eyes, his eyes haze gradually thickened. Several of his followers near him has long been furious. One of them, Jiang Meng, had the most violent temper. His forehead veins were rippling. He gritted his teeth and said, “How dare the Han people bully my people like this!” He clenched his fist and was about to go forward, but the young man stopped him.