"Right, bring more enforcers this time, Sea Serpent Hirao, you personally lead the team, don't let the 'big cow' from the mountains kidnap them again."
"Yes!" The man known as the Sea Serpent acquiesced.
Sixty-six women panicked, not knowing what Yoshihara Village was, were they being resold?
One of the women bravely stepped forward, "I am well-versed in law, and I have worked as a community legal lecturer!"
"Law?" The viper laughed.
Seemingly finding it too hilarious, a large group of Japanese burst into laughter.
The woman knew this was a lawless place and hurriedly explained, "I understand that here, your rules are the rules; I mean, I have work experience."
"Since you've built such a large village, you must have clerical staff, right? I can help you draft legal provisions and handle various lawsuits."
The viper maintained his smile, "What's your name?"
The woman was overjoyed, thinking there was a chance, and quickly said, "My name is Jin Meimei."
"Meimei, is it? What ethnicity?"
"Korean."
The viper said indifferently, "Yamaguchi Village indeed has clerical staff, but we do not need women, especially not those who think too much."
Upon hearing this, Jin Meimei's face turned pale, and she pleaded, "Then let me farm, I can farm, I also saw salt fields, I've lived by the sea, I know how to make salt... just give me food, don't send me to that kind of place."
Just as everyone thought that any moment there would be a shout, and then they would knock this woman to the ground and drag her away, the viper surprisingly nodded.
"Alright, not wanting to be sold can also be arranged."
Jin Meimei was thrilled, not expecting that she had actually managed to negotiate some benefits; if she could go make salt, at least there was legitimate work, and she could survive.
The viper smiled and said, "I like your courage; normally people would be too scared to speak, but you took the initiative to seek opportunities."
Then he said to Sasaki, "Let's keep her. She's so proficient in law, able to exploit loopholes, right? Send her to the penance game, those dignitaries are rarely seen when it's women participating."
Jin Meimei's emotions were like a rollercoaster, both joyous and worried.
Hearing about participating in some game, she felt a bit sad, but after all, she wasn't sent to a worse place, she felt fortunate.
Only puzzled, what was this penance game, they were all criminals, could the game possibly redeem them?
But no matter what it was, the current treatment, to someone who had witnessed skinning and even heart extraction, felt already quite good.
They even started to feel the viper was amiable and approachable, a stark contrast to the ever-terrifying Tanabu and the explosively violent Sasaki, they thought someone of a higher rank would be more frightening, but unexpectedly, he was surprisingly easy to talk to.
Suddenly many changed their perspective; seeing this, other women also boldly recommended themselves, asserting that they could do it too.
"Bang!" The viper slapped the table.
Sasaki immediately shouted and rushed to knock down the noisy ones to the ground, not hitting their faces, but that was tough enough.
Subsequently, others came forth, taking the remaining sixty-five crying women away.
The viper said, "Opportunity is only given to the first brave one; the rest will follow the rules."
"I don't want anyone disrupting me anymore."
The newcomers all nodded in agreement, their eyes hopeful for any further opportunities.
Gao Xin glanced around, noting some people's gazes had changed, their bodies unconsciously stooping.
Realizing this viper was indeed a genuine serpent, inscrutable, compared to Tanabu, a blatantly cruel fellow who was relatively easy to understand.
But then the viper said something that made them feel as if they had fallen into an icy pit: "Since the quality of the women is not good, men will do as well, pick out those who are slender, fair-skinned, and good-looking."
"Yes!" Sasaki stepped forward and began selecting men.
The remaining prisoners were dumbfounded but had no way to resist.
Soon, Sasaki had selected eighty-five slender men, all of frail build, good physique, fair skin, and pretty features.
Even Luo Yan was picked, he was indeed very handsome.
"My, my, my... I have a broken arm!" Luo Yan exclaimed.
The viper also said, "Sasaki, why pick a man with a broken arm?"
Sasaki scratched his head, "To make him a woman would definitely be beautiful, so what if it's broken? Maybe the customers prefer it flawed."
Luo Yan was horrified. 'Made into a woman'? Was there such an operation?
He hurriedly exclaimed, "It won't do, a broken arm is not beautiful, I'm not Venus."
Sasaki coldly said, "What Venus?"
Luo Yan twisted his face, trying to lessen his own attractiveness.
However, after examining him for a moment, the viper said, "Indeed, with an arm broken, he's no good for other tasks."
Luo Yan's eyes widened as if the sky had fallen.
Gao Xin was shocked, clenching his fists tight, feeling fortunate for his ordinary looks yet saddened by Luo Yan's plight.
"No, no, no, I can do other things too! I graduated from a technical school, I've read a lot of books, I know many skills!" Luo Yan desperately struggled.
As it turned out, hearing he was a technical school graduate, the Japanese paused.
This indeed was a rare talent, contemplated the viper.
Yet Sasaki spoke first, "So educated? That's even better, perhaps he could become an Oiran!"
"What?" Luo Yan's face turned green, thinking to himself after all the books he read, they wanted him to become an Oiran?
"No, no, I'm not suited to be an Oiran, look at all these muscles!"
Luo Yan quickly tensed his muscles, although he was handsome, his physique was indeed very fit, not the delicate type.
After thinking it over, the viper waved his hand, "No rush, too many people have died recently, the penance group is short-staffed, he's a technical school graduate, send him to the penance game first."