Lin Wanwan put away the so-called "senior brother’s" letter, looked at Sun Chuyao kneeling on the ground, and said softly, "Get up, don’t kneel. Tell me, has the journey been smooth?" Sun Chuyao got up and replied, "With the master’s protection, the journey was thrilling but safe. Although we encountered a storm, we didn’t lose a single thing from the ship." Lin Wanwan nodded and asked again, "Did you encounter any water bandits or the like?" Sun Chuyao shook his head, "The Huizhou merchants’ fleet is large, typical water bandits don’t dare to provoke it." Lin Wanwan thought they were pretty lucky, having loaded so many valuable things on the ship without any armed protection, just Sun Chuyao and twenty fishing crossbows. She was worried the Huizhou merchants might double-cross them, but they didn’t. It seems that the Xiao Family and Xiao Chong, the County Magistrate of Mao County, still hold some influence. After all, Huizhou merchants rely on the port of Mao County for their maritime trade, and the County Magistrate is the immediate authority there. In the early Tang Dynasty and previous dynasties, the management of maritime trade had always been under the jurisdiction of local officials. The Central Court would only collect some customary tribute and wasn’t interested in the other profits of maritime trade. Even later, when the Great Tang began appointing maritime trade supervisors (often eunuchs) to manage foreign ships, until the collapse of the Great Tang, local officials still held the primary authority over maritime trade management. Knowing there were no military disasters during the journey, Lin Wanwan continued to ask, "Has Xiao Mingfu already interrogated you? How did you respond?" Sun Chuyao then recited the conversation between him and Xiao Chong three days ago, word for word. Lin Wanwan pondered for a moment, then stood up saying, "Alright, from now on, you should follow me." Lin Wanwan asked again, "Are those children doing okay throughout the journey?" Sun Chuyao replied, "A few were seasick at first and vomited severely, but after ten days, they got used to it. I let them wait in the rear cabin; does the master want to meet them?" Lin Wanwan said, "Hmm, call them all here." Sun Chuyao responded and left, while Lin Wanwan thought about how she managed to legalize this group of little beggars from vagabonds’ status, having been extorted by Xiao Chong for quite a sum. Luckily, she paid entirely in peppercorns, so she didn’t mind. But regarding Xiao Chong’s black heart and the provisions of Tang law, Lin Wanwan had a newfound understanding. This Xiao Chong, with his impeccably fair complexion, turned out to be incredibly corrupt, despite her always calling him cousin this and cousin that. It’s just a few kids; he could have turned a blind eye, instead of extorting her for so much money. She hardly believed Xiao Chong was truly being impartial; it was likely just because the County Government needed funds for building Ta Mountain Dam! She had heard that the entire gentry of Mao County had been extorted by him for who knows what reasons, and this time it was finally her turn. It’s not something she wants to think too much about; the more she thinks about it, the more it makes her teeth itch! Lin Wanwan took a few deep breaths and cleared the image of Xiao Chong’s smiling face from her mind. Soon, ten little beggars who had become her servants were led to her by Sun Chuyao. ᴛʜɪs ᴄʜᴀᴘᴛᴇʀ ɪs ᴜᴘᴅᴀᴛᴇ ʙʏ novel·fire.net After a month, Lin Wanwan’s attire had greatly changed, plus when she first met this group of little beggars, she wore a hat and veil. Naturally, none of the little beggars recognized her now. Lin Wanwan kept her emotions steady and said calmly, "Do you have names? Report them one by one." Ten little beggars, all cleaned up and dressed in new winter clothes, exchanged glances, and responded in a jumble, "I’m called Mule Egg." "I’m called Second Dog." "Alright, alright," Lin Wanwan interrupted their replies, "These aren’t considered proper surnames. Line up by age, if you know your ages." Among the ten children, only one nodded, while the remaining nine shook their heads in unison. They had all lost their parents at a very young age and lived on the docks begging or stealing under the big beggars, serving as tools for the big beggars to gain favors from the wealthy. Who would remember their own birth dates? Lin Wanwan sighed, "Then let’s arrange by height. You are now considered servants of the Lin Family. Listen well and behave, and there will be food for you." After a few casual admonitions, Lin Wanwan waved them away. Most of these five to eight-year-old little beggars were still quite clueless. Due to the Tang Dynasty’s strict distinction between noble and lowly, the descendants of lowly people were forever lowly, and to rise above that status, one needed a rare court pardon. Moreover, slaves and lowly people had legal status lower than livestock. Originally, Lin Wanwan intended to raise them until they grew up, giving them the choice to stay or leave the Lin Family at the age of sixteen, without the formalities of a sale contract. Of course, Lin Wanwan was ninety percent sure that this group would stay, as she intended to cultivate them as assistants. After all, they were just children, she believed she could educate them well. Unexpectedly, Xiao Chong had already registered them as serfs, so Lin Wanwan could only accept it. Well, with the burden of a sale contract, the possibility of nurturing ungrateful ones is unlikely, but it still felt a bit sinful to enslave such young children. Since things had come to this, it was time to start indoctrination education. Having finished the handover procedures, the fishermen from the Lin Family Manor sailed away from the South Pier on a new ship, riding the waves back to their own little pier. Lin Wanwan wandered around the ship, arriving at the cabin where the Little Elephant was kept. As soon as she opened the door, the Little Elephant rushed toward her excitedly, like a child reunited with its mother. Lin Wanwan was pleasantly surprised that the Little Elephant remembered her after a month, and she fed it a carrot from her bag. The Little Elephant wrapped its trunk around the carrot and munched it contentedly. The month-long cabin life hadn’t dampened its spirits, which surprised Lin Wanwan. Once it finished eating, Lin Wanwan, accompanied by Kun Lun and the Little Elephant, began inspecting the cargo under the oilcloth on the ship. Indeed, nothing was missing. Lin Wanwan went to the place where she stored the life jackets and fishing crossbows, mysteriously called Lin Mengbo over, and showed them to him. "Cousin, these are imports. This garment is called a life jacket, and when placed in water, it can keep you afloat, providing more buoyancy than wood. If you encounter a storm at sea, wear a life jacket for protection, so you won’t fear sinking if you accidentally fall overboard." Lin Mengbo picked up a simple version of the life jacket, quickly figuring out how to wear it, and laughed, "This is a great item." Lin Wanwan picked up a fishing crossbow along with steel pellets and fish spears with powerful lines, and placed them in Lin Mengbo’s hands, saying, "It’s for shooting fish, give it a try." Originally, this fishing crossbow set also came with a laser sight, but Lin Wanwan removed it; overly advanced items shouldn’t be brought here. The material of the crossbow was already far beyond the industrial level of the Great Tang.