According to the law of the state of Chu, the sale of slaves and maids was as legal as the sale of livestock, but a contract must be made, and the contract could be voided if a disease was discovered within three days of the completion of the transaction.

But at the same time, there are also regulations in the Chu criminal system: all plunderers, plunderers and slaves are hanged.

What does this mean?

Because in Dachu, human trafficking is divided into two types: "legal" and "illegal". Buying and selling human beings is not a crime in itself, the key is where the bought and sold human beings come from.

Like the thousands of slaves and maids that Cao Yan bought from the government in Jiangning Mansion, they were legally traded.

Legal sources of slavery include the state's relegation to slavery or voluntary sale of a sinner's wife or maid. For this kind of population transaction, the Great Chu government can even take taxes in it.

The sources of illegal slaves and maids include abduction and human robbery, and the government has always strictly prohibited such slaves and slaves from illegal means. In fact, the demise of the slave and maid system is a very long process, and from the current academic research, the slaves and maids who are legally regarded as livestock, and the hired slaves and maids, at that time, called manpower and female envoys existed at the same time in the early period of the Great Chu.

It was not until the later period that this kind of cheap slave and maid, who were legally the same as livestock, gradually decreased.

Socially hired slaves and maids, known as manpower and maids, are generally for a period of 5 or 10 years, and are legally commoners rather than untouchables, so they are generally not sold or abused. Most of the people who were resold by the scholars and doctors were lowly slaves and maids similar to livestock.

To what extent did the human trafficking in Dachu flourish? We can record from the people of the time that "the middle and lower households in the capital do not give birth to men, and the daughters are loved and cared for like holding pearls", why do you value women over men, because you can "teach the art industry, and use the doctor to pick up entertainment".

This is like carving the Yang family gang, when arranging Cao Yan's family, they like to put women in front, and men are like a partner, casually disposing of them, which is the reason.

There are also many deeds of being sold by their parents in Dachu, like many children adopted by Cao Yan who were sold by their parents.

For example, the collection of judgment documents, the Ming Gongshu, and the judgment of the Qingming Dynasty record the tragic fate of a woman.

Wu Qianer abducted and sold a woman as his wife, and soon after he got tired of selling her to Weng Qiqi's son, and then the woman's biological father came to take back his daughter, and the biological father sold his daughter to Li San9 in turn.

For example, in 1071, the soldiers who defended Gyeongju, an important town in the northwest, staged a mutiny, and finally the families of the rebels also became slaves.

Dachu implements a conscription system, once a soldier becomes a soldier, he will provide a dormitory for the whole family to live in, which is not only a welfare but also a deterrent: once a soldier flees, the family will be punished as slaves. Therefore, the families of these prisoners and soldiers have become an important source of lowly slaves and maids.

However, it should also be noted that the laws of the Great Chu are also constantly being revised, and the early days of the Great Chu implemented the same Chu criminal system as the previous dynasties, and now the Great Chu has gradually implemented the new law Tiansheng Order, and gradually began to improve the status of slaves and maids.

For example, slaves and maidservants were allowed to marry their belovers, but gradually there were no records of the families of prisoners becoming slaves.

Of course, this may be a way back for those corrupt officials to leave for themselves, or don't expect them to be so kind.

said so much, but along the way, Cao Yan didn't see the scenes of selling himself to bury his father that he often saw on TV.

However, Cao Yan didn't know that this was actually very difficult to happen in ancient times, he was just deceived by TV movies.

First of all, if you are a local, you will lend a hand to help.

In this miserable situation, they will not stand idly by, so in many ancient books, you will often see the news that the same clan or villagers helped bury their parents, don't underestimate the moral standards of the ancients.

In fact, it is basically the same as today, no normal person will let a filial son or filial daughter be so miserable. Unless this "filial son or filial daughter" has another purpose like "Tang Bohu".

And what about the local gentry and other classes? What would he do if this happened to him on the ground? Take advantage of people's danger? Yes, but absolutely, very little. Because the gentry class is the local emperor, he wants to be faced. And in ancient times, the gentry were one, and the family members of the gentry class would squeeze their heads to become officials, and the selection of officials and so on would always examine the moral standards of them and their families.

In the end, it didn't cost much to bury an ordinary person at that time, so the buddies who traveled back to ancient times and found a pretty woman who sold their bodies to bury their parents could wash and sleep.

At that time, the most was to sell himself to his parents for treatment, which was the biggest pit, so the best person who wanted to do this was to stay in front of the infirmary, and it seemed that the woman who grabbed the medicine, of course, the premise was that you had the strength to fill the hole.

……

The sun was hot.

Cao Yan pursed his lips, after walking such a long way, he felt a burst of thirst.

Glanced at both sides of the street.

The teahouse that has been on the grade has already been full of guests, after all, when the seller is called to come over to negotiate, this location must also be chosen.

If you are casually in a grass shed on the side of the road and a private room on the second floor of the xx floor on the street, people will choose the latter, and the former will feel that it is a poor buyer who can't afford the price.

There is a grass hut built by a family of four on the side of the street, and there seem to be a few vacant seats in it.

Cao Yan walked towards the grass shed.

Cao Yan stretched out his hand and shook the little horse first, and after shaking the table, it was very strong, Cao Yan sat on the small horse and put his sword on the table.

Looking up at the signboard on the side, there are several snacks and several teas.

Cao Yan didn't feel hungry: "Shopkeeper, bring a pot of jasmine tea." ”

"Okay!" A young man in the shop answered, and hurriedly served a pot of jasmine tea.

He walked to Cao Yan's table, and when he saw the sword on Cao Yan's table, he felt that it might take up a bit of space on the table, after all, his own grass hut only has such a large place, and he didn't want to be occupied by one person for a lot of seats.

The young man reached for him, trying to move him to the table.

"It's so heavy!" He was careless and didn't pick it up at once.

Cao Yan looked at him and frowned.

Discover Cao Yan's expression.

"Guest, could you please put this sword on the table?" This is obviously not an ordinary thing, he doesn't dare to take it, in case he annoys these powerful people, he will be beaten for nothing.

People who have set up stalls here for many years can be regarded as well-informed.

Usually those dart masters or martial arts people who come with swords, they have seen a lot, and they have not taken less, but I have really never seen a sword that can be rebuilt like this, and Cao Yan's dress does not look like the dress of ordinary people.

Cao Yan picked up the sword and put it on the table.

Young man, he wiped the table first, then put down the teapot and teacup.

"Please take your time." The young man hurriedly left and beckoned the other guests to go, he was a little afraid to stay by Cao Yan's side.

Cao Yan picked up the teapot, poured half a cup of water, washed the teacup, and then poured the water into the tea tray.

Poured a cup of tea.

The tea is hot.

Cao Yan didn't blow it, he was already thirsty, and if he was blowing, he would probably be even thirstier.

Taking advantage of this free time, he began to look at the people around him.

Many people here should be dart masters and the like, and there may also be martial arts figures.

Anyway, Cao Yan saw that many people were armed with swords.

In fact, ordinary people were not allowed to wear weapons in the city.

It can only be scholars and officials with meritorious reputations, as well as their families, forbidden soldiers, or public officials in the city.

Of course, it is not as strict as it was at the beginning of the founding of the People's Republic of China, but in order to avoid unnecessary trouble, many ordinary people are used to wrapping them in cloth when they bring weapons into the city.

Outside the city, there are not so many things, and everyone is blatantly holding them in their hands to show their strength, so that they can be favored by their employers, hire themselves to escort goods, or deter Xiaoxiao.