On a clear twilight, it is a great experience to go out for a walk. The setting sun casts a golden glow on people's faces, and the roads are steaming with a full sheen.

At the end of the commercial street in Lingxiao City, the capital of the Qingyun Empire, a unique building that only certain people can enter, has a birdcage-like dome, a façade covered with gilded vines covered with giant marble blocks, and an arched stone door more than three meters high.

A royal blue sedan retracted its gliding wings, aligned with the flashing landing lights on both sides of the locomotive runway, slowed down smoothly and landed on the runway to start driving.

The right-turn fork is facing the arch stone gate, and there is a laser-triggered scanning inspection post 100 meters in front of the door.

Temporary registration is not accepted. If the license plate has been entered into the system, the vehicle can drive straight into the arch; And if the license plate is not registered, it only takes 2 seconds to drop the alloy roller fence gate from the top of the arch.

The royal blue sedan did not slow down for half a minute as it passed through the checkpoint - the driver did not seem to pay attention to the lights that turned green in an instant, but drove absolutely smoothly in the hope that the passengers in the car would be safe and comfortable.

Walking through the arched stone gate, the world seems to have changed.

Surrounded by a medieval natural forest, 80% of the surface is covered by sprawling vegetation. Exposed stone steps and balustrades divide the plaza into a number of exhibits of different sizes, each with a homemade signboard hanging from the merchants. Moe Meow Town, Forest Demon, Loyal Dog Liao, Blonde Alliance, etc...... Some of these signs are propped up on the ground, some are suspended in the air, and some are painstakingly integrated into the scene.

The royal blue sedan pulled up in a parking lot away from the shop area, and the driver's and co-pilot's doors opened at the same time – the driver and butler in the suit got out of the car and opened the doors for the two owners in the back seat.

Descending from the back seat to the left is a young woman in a sky-blue military uniform. Her long, silver-gray hair was tied in a loose waist-length ponytail at the back of her head, and she had a pair of white wings on her back, and metal wings were fastened around her wing bones and fluttered slightly. On the right is a girl in a cherry red dress, with short soft brown hair swayed by the breeze. She also has a pair of snow-white wings on her back, and the feathers at the ends of her wing bones are still fluffy, like the young feathers of a newly hatched bird.

The young woman held out her hand to the girl: "Let's go." ”

"Okay, sister." The girl walked around the car and walked to the other side to be parallel to her sister. She looked only thirteen or fourteen years old, but her gestures were light and elegant, agile and measured.

The two women walked side by side to the shop, the driver and butler cautiously following them.

The senior manager, who was making a routine tour of the shop area, realized who was sitting in the car the moment he saw the license plate. The manager also has a pair of wings on his back. However, as a wing man, it was rude to fly first when the customer did not fly, so he could only trot all the way to the exit of the parking lot to greet a few VIPs.

The manager has been working in the empire's premier "Loulan Realm" trading market for many years, and the professional level is naturally needless to say. All the powerful people in the imperial capital have their appearances, names, statuses and other information in his mind as clear as the black and white characters printed on the information book. So when he saw the faces of the two women clearly, he immediately bowed his head to the woman in military uniform and saluted: "I am Andy, the senior manager in charge of the overall arrangement of the trading floor tonight." Is there anything we can do for you? Miss Walker. ”

The woman in military uniform, known as "Miss Walker", is the eldest daughter of the Imperial High Priest - Aurelia. Walker, 20 years old, has been in the army for two years and is studying at the "Lingxiao Military Academy", which is known as the "Imperial Elephant Emblem". Such a status can be described as the most powerful of the powerful; And in the manager's view, it is the best customer among high-quality customers.

Aurelia was walking straight towards the main entrance of the market, and when she saw that the manager greeted her politely, she spread her hands to the girl beside her without hesitation, and explained: "This is my sister Eliza, who will be 14 years old next month. According to the rules of our Origin Wing, a personal Primordial Servant is to be appointed for her birthday. ”

"I see what you mean." Hearing this, the manager naturally knew this, and replied with a familiar manner, "At eight o'clock tonight, there is a treasure auction in our dome auction hall here, during which there will be two platinum-level 'original people' auctioned in a row between half past eight and nine o'clock, which are 13-year-old men and 15-year-old women, if you are interested, I will help you reserve a VIP seat now." ”

"Hmm...... We came here today after reading the introduction of this auction. Aurelia nodded at the manager. Her voice was not loud, but it was crisp, powerful, and full of power, "Please make sure to reserve a place where you can easily view the exhibits." ”

"Yes. You can rest assured. "The manager was genuinely scared.

Aurelia raised her hand and touched the pinna of her right ear, and a paper-thin screen unfolded before her eyes—the latest video headset that had just been launched a week ago, and only a very small percentage of VIP customers had access to the first product. Through the terminal projection device worn on the pinna, this small film can realize a variety of functions such as video calls, voice calls, playing music, checking time, maps, weather, etc., which is equivalent to a miniature computer hanging on the ear bone.

"It's half past seven, and we'll be at the dome auction hall at half past eight." Aurelia set a reminder on the microcomputer, "Please exchange contact information with the housekeeper, and then you can get busy." ”

The implication is that we don't like people to hang out with us, and we will take the initiative to contact you when there is something.

Andy has worked in Loulan Realm for many years and has seen all types of clients. Some customers want to be accompanied by a guide every step of the way, while others, like Aurelia, like Aurelia, like to screen the products themselves. Therefore, he was not surprised to hear such instructions, and replied obediently, "Yes." Then he exchanged contact information with the butler who greeted him and left.

Seeing the patrol manager leaving, the girl beside Aurelia breathed a sigh of relief, looked up and said, "This is the third time I've been to this kind of place...... Am I being too picky? ”

Aurelia shook her head: "I also picked it for a long time before deciding. The original servants will be with you for 6 years, so you can't settle for anything. ”

"6 years!? Six years later, I'm 19 years old...... Well...... Are you in your first year of college? It's completely unrealistic...... "Eliza sighed, "By the way, my sister is 20 years old this year, right?" What about the original servants before you? ”

"Sent away." Aurelia replied lightly, "When I was 19 years old, the original man was already 20 years old, old enough to redeem himself. During the 6 years of selling his body, the compensation he accumulated could basically cover the cost of redemption. Thinking of all these years of duty, hard work, and hard work, I didn't have any embarrassment for him, and just let him go. ”

"Well...... "Wouldn't Eliza ask with a finger poking her chin and tilting her head?" After all, I have been with you for 6 years. ”

Aurelia disagreed: "Things need to be replaced when they are old, right?" As we grow older, the gap in physical fitness between the Tsubashi and the Proto-Humans grows. When a winged person reaches adulthood at the age of 20, whether it is endurance or physical strength, it will grow to 2-3 times that of the original person of the same age. So one day you will find that your native servants not only can't fly, but they can't even walk slower than you, they can't carry weights, and they don't have a good education, and all the common topics are getting less and less...... At this time, separation is the best option for both you and him. ”

The two sisters chatted and walked to the "original trading area" of the market. As far as the eye can see, there is a dazzling array of stalls with different styles of signs, and there is only one kind of goods for sale - humans.

These humans, who are sold as commodities, are only one thing different from Aurelia and Eliza, their butlers, their chauffeurs, and even Andy's manager, who has just briefed him on the state of the market—they have no wings.

"Proto-Man" - this is the unified name used by the Winged People of the Empire for wingless humans. They make up more than 50% of the population of the Qingyun Empire, but they can only be relegated to the bottom of the social pyramid. The status of the original people is low, and they will even be bought and sold as commodities by the powerful people in the winged people.

Just as the shops in the shopping area that sell fashion will brand their own goods, and then derive various brand styles such as Mori women, simple products, and business departments, the stores in the trading area that sell "original people" will also package their own goods into a unified category.

For example, "Moe Meow Town" sells cute girls around eight years old, "Forest Demon" sells men and women aged 12-18 with smart faces, and "Loyal Dog Liao" sells original people with docile and proper personalities...... However, according to imperial law, the only people who could be sold as commodities were those under the age of 20 who did not have a guardian. Once beyond this age, these Primordial goods automatically acquired legal status and became citizens of the Empire. Of course, this transformation is conditional - if the original person was someone's belongings before becoming a citizen, then on the 20th birthday, the Imperial Ministry of Civil Affairs will intervene and assess his worth. Subsequently, this assessed amount will be converted into the amount of the original person's debt to the original owner, which will be repaid in instalments or in a lump sum over the next 30 years.

Aurelia took Eliza and walked through them one by one from the entrance to the market.

As if they could smell the smell of Jin Quan from the two sisters, the owners and clerks of every shop they passed by, and even some original people who were good at observing words and colors, were trying their best to recruit the two sisters to enter the store.

"Hmm—I always think the color of your eyes isn't right?" Eliza stared at the face of the signature primordial girl standing in the doorway of a shop called "Canary", staring at it for a moment without blinking.

The girl who was being stared at took a step back timidly and looked at the store manager for help. The latter was a 40-year-old male wingman, and when he heard this, he hurriedly rubbed his hands and came out to play a round and said, "Look at what you said...... How could it be! The ones we sell in our shop are extremely rare originals – like the one you see, a rare item that we have spent a lot of effort to acquire from a border town off the beaten track – and it's called 'Luoluo'. Her eyes are naturally this color, which is known locally as 'Crystal Purple Pupil' - even in the middle of the night when she can't see her fingers, she can clearly see the surrounding scenery, which is a treasure among treasures! ”

Aurelia turned on the screen of the headset and glanced at the original girl: "The latest permanent implantable contact lenses produced by Ashley, violet color. At this point, she paused and glanced at the butler who was following behind her, "Philip, contact the manager Andy just now to complain about this store." I don't like to hear people lie. ”

"Yes. Miss. The Wingman butler replied respectfully.

The store manager was startled when he heard this, and hurriedly bowed and defended: "This young lady looks at what you said...... Our store is a small business, and we don't dare to deceive customers. If you feel that the remarks just made you offended and made you unhappy, we will compensate you! ”

"Hmph...... Do you just want to use money to settle things? Aurelia snorted contemptuously from her nose and continued, "By the way, the primordial you are talking about with the 'Crystal Purple Pupil', you are referring to the goods produced in a clan village called 'Lalari' on the southeastern border. Their skin is fairer than the one you sell, and blood vessels are faintly visible under the tender skin. The 'Crystal Purple Pupil' is also due to its very pure blue pupil, superimposed on the clear red blood vessels before the pupil, and only under the reflection of natural light will produce a transparent purple. Speaking of this, she glanced at the price code sign standing next to the commodity girl, "Only the price is on par with the real thing......

At the end of this sentence, the store manager was already sweating. The customer in front of him looks like he is only in his twenties, why is he so familiar with this kind of background information that only industry insiders know? Who is she?

"Our father is a priest! Understanding the characteristics and beliefs of each of the peoples in the empire was a compulsory course for my sister and I as children. Eliza also turned around and held up a finger to explain, "By the way...... 'Lalali' believe in gods and 'fox fairies'. When their children are still in infancy, parents will tattoo and engrave fox tails on the back of their hands and necks, so that the gods can bless the children to grow up healthily. Speaking of which, she pointed to the female original named 'Luoluo', "If she doesn't have one or two fox tail tattoos on her body, it is really unconvincing to say that she is 'crystal purple pupils'." ”

If Aurelia's explanation just now has made the store manager regret his mistakes, then Eliza's mending knife can be said to make him lose all hopes. Not only the older customer, but even the little girl is so powerful, the store manager's mood at the moment is like being kicked into the ice cellar, and the whole person trembles: "Please, please be merciful to the two VIPs!" The small and small ones will do their best to compensate for the losses of the two! …… You can take away ten or eight of the goods in the store, please don't complain......"

"Ten or eight? Is your store's reputation worth ten or eight original people? Aurelia frowned when she heard this, "If you are complained by VIP customers, you will be expelled, and then not only this 'Loulan Realm', but all the 'original people trading markets' under the 'Hesong Group' will be permanently removed from your store." I think you should be taught this lesson. ”

After saying this, the store manager was already dead. Looking at the two customers who were not very old and very rich, he thought that they were just aristocratic ladies who frequented high-end stores, did not care about the world, and squandered at will. Unexpectedly, these two young ladies from the Divine Mansion are not as cute and innocent as they seem - they not only know the information about the products they want to buy, but they are also familiar with the business rules of this store.

At this point, the store manager has no choice but to silently swallow the bitter fruit of lying.

As for Aurelia and Eliza, they lost interest in the store after revealing the disguise of the imitation and turned to the depths of the trading area.