Chapter 144: Horses Are More Expensive Than People
The weather was hot and dry. A constant stream of pedestrians and livestock passed by, kicking up dust on the gravel road.
"Female Slaves! A fine pair of sisters! Come have a look, my lord!"
"Twins, real twins!"
"Wives, fresh catches! An opportunity not to be missed!"
"..."
As soon as he entered the slave market, Tang Wen’s eyes, hidden beneath his hood, could hardly keep up.
The most eye-catching sights in the market were the female slaves.
From plump to slender, there was a woman for every taste.
Moreover, he saw the attendants hawking loudly beside them.
Looking at the women’s attire, figures, and conditions—even their expressions—it was as if they were the ones living the best lives in the slave market.
Whenever a handsome man walked in, the women would start eagerly showing off for him.
They made all sorts of movements; some showed their legs, some puffed out their chests, some did deep squats...
With these movements, the already scarce fabric on their bodies was at risk of bursting open at any moment.
CLIP-CLOP, CLIP-CLOP.
Tang Wen continued deeper inside.
The scene changed.
The male and female slaves further in were ordinary-looking, their expressions numb.
Their clothes were in disarray, and their exposed skin was covered in wounds and whip marks.
These were more like typical slaves.
"Three men and three women. I want docile ones, able to do farm work."
"You got it! One hundred taels of silver."
"One hundred taels? You might as well just rob me! Thirty taels at most."
"Oh, come on, good sir. With three pairs of slaves, you can earn back one hundred taels in just five years!"
"Heh, who are you kidding? Look at them. Do they look like they’ll even live for five years?"
"Alright, I’ll take a step back, ninety-nine taels... Hey, hey, hey, sir, don’t go! Eighty taels! Eighty! I’m really taking a huge loss on this. I haven’t even made my first sale today, let’s just say we’re making a friend!"
"..."
Tang Wen silently rode past. He wasn’t selling ordinary livestock, but Exotic Beasts.
They were worth much more than ordinary slaves.
After passing through another gate, the faint, acrid smell of waste filled the air.
He had arrived at the livestock area.
"Good sir, care to take a look at our shop?"
"Sir, right this way!"
"..."
Four or five men who looked like clerks, wearing neat and tidy black headscarves and short jackets despite the sweltering heat, approached Tang Wen.
The latter glanced at them and suddenly noticed that these vendors selling cattle and horses were dressed even better than the slave traders outside.
"All of you, come along. I’m in a hurry."
With the eager help of one of the clerks, Tang Wen dismounted his horse.
He didn’t need the help, but he was satisfied with the other man’s attitude.
It was like a dignitary stepping out of a carriage. He didn’t need help getting down, but when someone proactively opened the door and shielded his head, it was a show of deference.
"I am a Beastmaster, and I know this business inside and out. How about this,"
Leading his horse and speaking, Tang Wen arrived at a tea stall.
He ordered two pots of cool tea, then reached out and took out a few charcoal pencils and several sheets of Yellow Paper.
"These ten horses are all trained by me, and they’re all for sale. Whoever is sincere about buying, write down a price for me. Here!"
As Tang Wen spoke, he pressed the rough-surfaced Yellow Paper onto the table with a clean tea bowl.
The clerks looked at each other in bewilderment.
They had only heard of this method.
It was a method typically used by representatives of Commerce Associations for major deals when they wished to avoid the bad blood of direct bidding.
"Everyone, my shopkeeper is in need of a good stallion. How about you brothers let me have this one? I’ll be sure to repay you generously in the future!"
"Cut the damn crap!"
"Exactly! I’ve never gotten so much as a cup of tea from you, and you’re talking about repaying us generously?"
The other two also shook their heads and laughed.
Apparently, Zhang the Third, the one who had spoken first, didn’t have a great reputation for how he conducted himself.
The men all cupped their fists to Tang Wen in respect, then sat down, picked up the charcoal pencils and paper, and secretly sized him up.
The latter drank his tea, his expression calm, the scar on his face glistening with sweat.
He seemed to be perfectly accustomed to this kind of business deal.
The clerks exchanged glances. No one recognized Tang Wen; he was probably from out of town.
The clerks looked away: a lone Beastmaster.
He looked to be over thirty, and his strength was likely at the Martial Master Level.
Among the clerks, some were Martial Artists, and some were Martial Disciples.
They didn’t stare long at a Martial Master.
The ten horses stood in a neat row outside the tea shelter.
They attracted the gazes of passing merchants.
The clerks nodded to themselves. This man hadn’t been lying; the leopard-spotted horses before them were indeed tamed to be perfectly obedient.
After getting Tang Wen’s permission, they walked out of the tea shelter to observe the ten horses up close.
Tang Wen noticed that besides being interested in the foals,
they were primarily focused on the reproductive organs of the Middle-level Exotic Beast, the Horse King.
Foals raised from a young age would grow up to be very loyal to their masters.
As for a Middle-level Exotic Beast stallion, a single breeding session commanded a hefty price.
The most common practice was to crossbreed them with female donkeys to produce hardy, high-endurance hybrid mules.
A well-raised hybrid mule was equivalent to a Low-level Exotic Beast, and its temperament was more docile than that of an Exotic Beast.
In other words, a Middle-level Exotic Beast stallion was far more than a simple mount.
Especially a tamed Middle-level Exotic Beast—it was an endless source of wealth.
As Tang Wen gulped down his third bowl of tea, three men who looked like shopkeepers rushed over from their shops one after another.
The clerks went forward to report to their respective bosses.
"Tamed without being castrated? Good heavens! So you’re a Beast Taming Master!"
One experienced shopkeeper’s first action upon arriving was to bend down and inspect its testicles.
He found both were intact.
It was a stallion that could breed—a true golden goose.
He was instantly both shocked and delighted.
Tang Wen remained expressionless, giving him a slight nod.
’An ungelded horse is worth more.’ He had long suspected as much.
Now that the shopkeeper had said it, he was even more certain.
It wasn’t that the shopkeeper was stupid and had revealed his hand right away.
It was mainly because the shopkeeper could never have imagined that someone capable of taming a Middle-level Exotic Beast would be doing this kind of business for the first time!
Besides, his main competitors were all here.
Everyone was an expert.
There was no need for anyone to deceive anyone else.
Even if he had come in and tried to find a dozen faults with the horse, who here would have believed him?
The three shopkeepers began their bidding.
Just as Tang Wen had expected, the three were mainly eyeing the stallion and the foals.
After that came the Middle-level Exotic Beast mare.
After round after round of bidding and a great deal of noisy haggling, the deals were done.
In the end, the shopkeeper from the Four Seas Beast Arena took the Middle-level Exotic Beast stallion and mare. One of the other main bidders took the foals, while three smaller buyers split the remaining low-level horses.
An hour later, each of the buyers had carefully inspected the horses in front of Tang Wen.
Tang Wen received seventeen thousand, eight hundred taels of silver.
Carrying that much in silver coins would have been difficult, so the beast arenas gave him silver notes from the Four Seas Trading Company.
He had them accompany him to the Four Seas Bank to verify the authenticity of the silver notes.
With goods delivered and payment received, the transaction was complete.
Tang Wen prepared to leave.
One of the shopkeepers said:
"Heh heh, Master, please wait. Now that we’ve done business, we can be considered acquaintances. You’ve come from afar, why not stay for a simple meal before you go?"
Carrying so much silver, Tang Wen saw everyone as a potential threat.
He politely declined their kind offer and went straight to the Four Seas Inn.
He asked for a Room C.
To avoid being recognized, he had left both the Sand Wolf and the Blood Crow out in the wild.
Renting a room with a courtyard all by himself would have been a pure waste.
Besides, the Room C at the Four Seas Inn wasn’t bad either.
It was a good forty to fifty square meters, with an outer living area and an inner bedroom.
It cost twenty taels of silver a day and came with only one Maid.
As for the Maid’s looks, one could only say that she was very suited to being a Maid.
Tang Wen didn’t have her attend to him. He washed up and ate his meal.
He went to the main hall of the Four Seas Inn and found the shopkeeper on duty for the day.
"Sir, what can I do for you?"
An androgynous voice spoke up.
The face was that of a handsome man, but the men’s clothing couldn’t conceal her natural curves.
It was that Shopkeeper Li who was fond of beautiful people.
Tang Wen breathed a sigh of relief. ’Good, it’s not Shopkeeper Zhang.’
Facing an Extraordinary Powerhouse, he had very little confidence in his disguise.
He explained his purpose in a few words.
Shopkeeper Li said, "You want to experience the ultimate darkness. Did you bring enough money?"
Tang Wen carefully took out a stack of silver notes wrapped in Kraft Paper.
Shopkeeper Li, whose fingernails were short and neatly trimmed, took the stack and flicked through it. "When do you want the experience?"
"The sooner the better. Tonight is fine."
"Tonight?" Shopkeeper Li narrowed her eyes, pinching her fingers as if calculating. "Tonight it is, then. Come find me at ten o’clock."
Saying this, Shopkeeper Li untied a black Token from her waist and tossed it to Tang Wen.
As soon as it was in his hand, Tang Wen’s keen sense of touch made out the words "Four Seas" and "Extraordinary" carved on its surface.