Lucille Xing, you wretched girl, are you trying to get yourself killed?
The whip cracked sharply in the freezing air. A plump woman, cheeks flushed with fury, swung her whip at a ragged, barefoot girl—Lucille Xing—who shrank back, trembling with terror.
"I told you to mind the firewood, and this is how you do it? Useless! If you weren’t so pretty—worth a good price one day—I’d have beaten you to death already. Don’t even think about coming inside. Freeze out here! Next time you forget to stoke the fire, I’ll kill you for real."
In a courtyard surrounded by earthen walls, with a well at its center and ice covering the ground, the girl called Lucille Xing cowered in a corner by the door, shivering uncontrollably.
Ever since Lucille Xing could remember, she had been a slave. This was Grant City, the most prosperous metropolis in Grant territory. Every day, Lucille Xing fetched water, chopped wood, and tended the fire in the kitchen. This was a food house, and guests came daily to eat.
Snowflakes began to drift from the sky, and the cold wind bit at her face. Lucille Xing only felt colder, when suddenly the house door swung open.
"You old hag, what are you doing? If she freezes, we won’t get a good price for her!"
The food house’s male owner, fat and pot-bellied, grabbed Lucille Xing and hauled her inside, tossed her a fur coat, and set her down by the fire.
"Warm up a bit, then go fetch water."
Lucille Xing nodded. These days, Grant City was packed with people because the Grant Family's third daughter was about to be born. Tribes from all over were arriving, and in just over ten days, the birth would take place.
The food house bustled. The owners had spent the last few days trading furs, grain, knives, and even livestock.
Lucille Xing knew her own worth well. The male owner had already struck a deal: when she turned ten, she'd be sold for fifty jin of grain.
Thinking of this, Lucille Xing let out a silly laugh.
"I didn't know I was worth so much," Lucille Xing thought to herself.
Lucille Xing, come here!
The female owner barked sharply, and Lucille Xing hurried over. The woman shoved a small bag of grain into her hands.
"Take this and trade it for some wild greens."
Passing through the outer room, Lucille Xing saw people gathered around the stove, all discussing the upcoming grand celebration. She slipped on a pair of fur shoes and hurried outside.
The streets were lined with square houses, wide and open. People and livestock crowded every corner, haggling over prices. Louis Yu moved through the throng, his gaze sharp, taking in every detail of the bustling market.
Lucille Xing stood in the street, staring at a sprawling, imposing residence in the distance—that was where the Grant Family lived.