frightfiction Chapter 1176 The Torture of the Laborers Surrounded by Vicious Dogs
Chapter 1176 The Torture of the Laborers Surrounded by Vicious Dogs
With Du Feng leading the way, and the path he led was the same as Hou Gui's description—that is, whenever you see three identical trees forming a triangle with a large rock in the middle by the roadside, go to the right along the road.
If you see a large rock lying flat between three trees, you should go to the left.
For the rest of the journey, the group followed the same method—when they encountered a checkpoint, Du Feng would step forward to provide support, then Leng Rongyue and Xiao Jingyu would launch a surprise attack, and then they would drug the person and store them in their spatial storage.
The two checkpoints along the way were thus cleared.
We also encountered a patrol team of more than ten people on the way, and we dealt with them very smoothly using the same method!
And so, the four of them, in one horse-drawn carriage, arrived near the gold mine without any delay.
The carriage stopped, and Du Feng jumped off first, saying, "Honorable guests, the carriage can't go up the slope ahead!"
Du Feng pointed to a large open space to the side, "Normally, the carriages transporting gold are parked here."
The gold had to be carried out by the laborers inside, and then loaded onto carts here and transported out of the mountains.
There are no carriages parked here now because a batch of gold was just transported to Dongchang Prefecture the day before yesterday.
Several soldiers will guard the area when the gold is loaded onto the wagons.
The carts carrying the gold left, and the guards withdrew as well!
As Du Feng spoke, he pointed to the carriage behind him, "This carriage can only be parked here for now. We'll have to walk to the gold mine."
However… we're not far from the gold mine. Once we round that bend, we'll have a commanding view of the entire mine!
Leng Rongyue, Xiao Jingyu, and Xiao Jingye nodded in understanding—what Du Feng said was exactly the same as what Hou Gui had said before.
The group disembarked from the carriage, with Du Feng leading the way, followed closely by Xiao Jingyu and Crown Prince Xiao Jingye.
Du Feng always kept in mind Xiao Jingyu's words that he should not turn around, and always looked ahead. Therefore, Leng Rongyue, who was walking at the back, could put the carriage into her space without any worries.
Leng Rongyue thought that it was probably because she trusted the checkpoints and patrols along the way too much, or perhaps, as Du Feng said, because there were no carriages transporting gold parked in this open space, it was so quiet that there was not a single person in sight.
"My esteemed guests, please continue upwards from here until you reach the highest point. There is a lookout post there, usually with only three or four people on it."
Their main task was to keep a close watch on the coolies in the mine from their elevated position, preventing any coolies from trying to escape.
Once they discover that a laborer is trying to escape, they will strike a gong and blow a horn, and soldiers from both inside and outside the mine will quickly mobilize to surround and intercept the fleeing laborer.
There were times when coolies tried to escape, but they were caught very quickly!
To make an example of them, those laborers were taken in by Manager Feng... Oh, Manager Feng's name is Feng Jiu, and he is the manager of this gold mine!
I heard he was the elder brother of the favorite concubine of a high-ranking official in the capital!
Feng Jiu ordered that the few who had escaped be beaten to death in front of all the laborers!
Since then, no laborer has ever run away from the mine!
Because they knew they couldn't escape!
And if you get caught, you're dead!
Therefore, as long as there is even a sliver of hope that one wants to live and reunite with family, one dares not take any more risks!
Xiao Jingyu and the others nodded silently after hearing this.
Leng Rongyue gestured for Du Feng to lead the way, and the group began to walk up the slope.
After a gentle slope, there are layers of man-made bluestone steps leading upwards.
The group successfully climbed the stone steps and soon arrived at a relatively flat platform.
Several jagged rocks are scattered on the platform.
Leng Rongyue walked over and chose a large rock with a relatively smooth surface to sit down.
Looking around, all I saw were trees and withered weeds.
Looking through the gaps in the trees and not far ahead, you can see a very simple watchtower built of wood.
A gong hangs under the canopy of the watchtower, and it is struck when an unusual situation occurs.
Looking down from here, you can already see most of the gold mine.
Leng Rongyue took out two binoculars and handed them to Xiao Jingyu and Xiao Jingye respectively, then took one out for herself.
Du Feng watched as Leng Rongyue took out three unidentified objects from her sleeve.
Du Feng wondered how the princess could hold so many things in her large sleeves.
What... is this thing?
Although Du Feng was curious, he wisely refrained from asking questions or looking at the scene any longer, and quickly looked away.
Leng Rongyue and the other two didn't care what Du Feng was thinking or what he was curious about; they simply raised their binoculars and carefully observed the gold mine below...
Through the binoculars, one could clearly see the hunched-over laborers with blank expressions, struggling to push carts in and out of the mine.
You can also see further out at the water's edge, where laborers with their legs soaked in the icy water are panning for gold.
Not far from them were soldiers wielding knives, clubs, and whips, watching the laborers like vicious dogs.