Long Chin Fox was this man's nickname. The real names of everyone here had been thrown into the trash can by filth and chaos long ago.
This man of about forty looked down on the little beggar. He was obviously stunned by the fact that the beggar in front of him was wearing only such thin clothes just with a blanket in such a cold winter, but he still spoke quickly.
"I thought who it was. It turned out to be a little mouse that was still alive. Intriguing. You rarely interact with us. What do you want to do this time?"
The little beggar opened the blanket without hesitation and handed out the baby girl in his arms.
"I'm here to sell a baby girl. Twenty gold coins."
The baby girl still didn't know what was happening. Her emerald eyes were always staring at the little beggar, and she was mumbling meaningless sounds.
The Fox's sinister face suddenly solidified! He poked his head, grabbed the little beggar suddenly, dragged him into the door, and closed the door with a bang. Then, he stared at the little beggar and the baby girl in his hands with a very frightened look.
"!? Kid, where did you get this baby girl?!"
The little beggar looked at Fox coldly, hiding his right hand with the dagger behind his back, and still holding the wrapped clothes surrounding the baby in his left hand and passing it forward.
"Where people come from never matters when it comes to human trafficking. Twenty gold coins."
Fox opened the viewing window and peeked outside for a while. After confirming that no one was there, he gradually breathed a sigh of relief. The sinister man turned his head, looked at the little beggar, and suddenly gave a sneer.
"Little rat, do you know that many newborn children suddenly disappeared in the city last night? This incident made the soldiers in the guard feel exhausted and angry. Unfortunately, our 'respectable' mayor seems to be welcoming a princess from a certain country and staying with her for one night on her way back to her country. When something like this happens, there is a lot of attention outside."
The little beggar was silent. His outstretched hand slowly withdrew. The corner of his eyes also began to glance at the back door next to him. It looked like he was about to run away...
However, Fox seemed also to be aware of the little beggar's movements.
He stood in front of the door first and said with a sneer.
"Our mayor has issued huge rewards to find all kinds of relevant information. Humph, you also noticed it, right? How many gold coins can I get if you and your baby girl are sent to the mayor?"
"Boy, you seem to have been in trouble. Do you need any help?"
The voice of a deep darkness sounded in the beggar's mind. The little beggar felt the chain on his right hand move slightly, and he immediately felt like he was holding a dagger tightly in his hand.
With the weapon, the little beggar's expression became a little calmer. He hid his right hand under the blanket and watched what happened...
Fox did not notice anything from the little beggar's expression. Of course, it would be strange to see something from that expressionless face.
After the man sneered again, he said slowly:
"But don't worry. I'm not stupid enough to give you as a gift. Even if the mayor thinks with his butt, he can figure out the matter. You're just a little rat, so how could you kidnap nearly a hundred babies in the city overnight? But when the time comes, the mayor must be eager to solve the case, I'm afraid you will become one of those guys' scapegoats and will be hanged."
Fox stretched out his hand and sneered: "Little mouse, after listening to what I just said, you should know how dangerous it is for you to walk down the street with a baby in your hands, right? Come on, give this little girl to me, and then go out and live your sewer life in peace."
The little beggar stared at the outstretched hand of Fox. The hands were covered with oil, and the fingernails were full of black dirt. He just stared at this hand for a long time. After a long time, he pulled back the blanket and handed the baby girl over.
Fox laughed. A child was still a child after all. No matter how intelligent he was, he could escape the nature of being a child, afraid of death, and easily being deceived.
Fox took a step forward and reached out to pick up the baby girl. That big, dirty, greasy hand appeared right above the swaddle, reflecting into the baby girl's green eyes...
His hand grabbed the swaddling clothes. But at this moment, Fox's hand suddenly hurt. He suddenly withdrew his hand and saw that there was a wound on his wrist at some point!
Judging from the wound, it should be an extremely sharp dagger. It was obvious that the little beggar hid his right hand holding the dagger under the baby girl's body. When he came to grab the baby girl, there was a dagger on his wrist. Scratched it.
"Damn, you brat! How dare y...!"
Fox only spat out half of his curse words. Because the icy wind and snow hit his face at that moment.
The little beggar stood at the door. Outside the open back door was a world frozen in ice. He held the baby girl in his left hand, and his right hand was always hidden under the cloak. His cold eyes stared closely at the wounded Fox inside.
"Do you want to escape? I'm going to kill you!"
Seeing that the little beggar was just standing at the door, Fox hurriedly pulled out a piece of cloth from the cabinet next to him and wrapped it around his wrist, then tried to pounce on him...
"I will tell the guard."
After hearing those cold words, the sinister Fox stopped with resentment in his eyes.
The little beggar blocked the door from closing with one foot and stared at the fox with cold eyes. Then, he stretched out the baby girl's swaddling clothes again and said calmly:
"Twenty gold coins. Otherwise, I will take her to the mayor. Tell him that many other people and I have been hired by you to abduct the baby girl." And prepare for transport out of town."
"You...!"
The fox's eyes widened. He stared at the little beggar fiercely but did not dare to make any rash move.
The back door had been specially designed to prevent people from breaking in from behind, so there were many automatic locks on it. Once closed, it took at least thirty seconds to open it. Thirty seconds were enough for the little beggar to escape without a trace.
The situation was not good for Fox. The child's words were not false. Compared with a child who kidnapped a baby, once he, an adult, confessed, it would be much harder for him to clear himself.
What's more, crimes here were not uncommon, and the mayor of Senag was not someone who didn't miss any details in getting to the truth of the case. In addition, the mayor was very anxious to solve the case at the moment…
Considering such things, Fox smiled with "kindness". After covering the wound on his arm slightly, he smiled very politely.
"Oh God, everyone here wasn't easy. We all just make a living. Okay, I bought it! Twenty gold coins, wasn't it? I'll give it to little bro, isn't it enough if I give it to you?"
Fox quickly took out his wallet and opened it. But the total change inside was only worth seventeen gold coins. He showed a very embarrassed expression.
"Little brother, look…"
"Two hundred gold coins."
The little beggar handed the baby girl forward again.
"Two…two hundred? But didn't you just say…"
"Twenty before you told me about the missing baby. After you told me, two hundred."
"But…but look, I only had seventeen here…"
Without saying a word, the little beggar immediately took the baby girl back into his arms and was about to run away…
Now, Fox was anxious. It looked like he was almost crying. This person who had been struggling in this sinister world for so long was now in the mood to kneel down before a little beggar.
He kept begging for mercy from the little beggar, hoping to delay time. But the little beggar didn't seem to care at all. When Fox asked for mercy for more than the fifth sentence, he stopped answering and pretended to walk into the ice and snow outside.
The winter sun was weak but dazzling. The light shone on the face of the baby girl, reflected through the green eyes into the eyes of the little beggar…
The baby girl stretched out her hand and grasped the little beggar in front of her.
But…
"*cough…"
She stretched out of the wrapped clothes, and the cold immediately invaded the baby girl's already weak body. Her face began to turn red again, her eyes slowly closed, and she began to cough violently.
The baby girl's cough made the little beggar's cold eyes misty. He lowered his head, put the baby girl into his arms, and carefully hid her hands under the blanket.
But while doing these actions, his feet were always hooked on the door, and the corner of his eyes was staring at Fox over there, warning him not to get close.
"Oh? Is she unwell?"
Hearing the cough, Fox stopped pleading and sat up straight.
After dressing the child warmly, the beggar held her tight and looked at Fox.
"Sorry. If she's sick, I'm not buying."
"…"
The beggar remained silent, waiting for Fox to say more.
The fox sat on the poorly-made sofa, legs crossed, with a sly smile,
"Kid, go to report me if you want. Even so, I won't pay a penny for a dying girl. In this world, we can do any business, but not a loss one. It seems she has been ill for some time, right? I doubt whether she'll survive another stormy night. You want me to pay two hundred gold coins for a dying trash? Never."
The beggar thought for a moment and said coldly, "Her mother is beautiful. So she will also be charming and can earn you a lot of money."
"Beautiful? How much do you know about women?"
Fox lit a cigarette, took a deep drag, exhaled a smoke ring, and said,
"Even if her mother is beautiful, who can make sure she will be? Besides, she's just been born. To make money, she needs at least ten years. Support her for ten years and get nothing? Hump, no one buys a sick baby out of kindness, I won't pay a penny."