vstars Chapter 269 The Grim Scene in the Mine: A Deeper Understanding
Chapter 269 The Grim Scene in the Mine: A Deeper Understanding
thump!
thump!
The shouts and splashes echoed far and wide in the dark river at night.
That wasn't the end of it. After the sound of falling water stopped, a muttering sound came from inside the stone wall.
"Boss, what if we throw these people down and the higher-ups start asking about it?"
"Why ask? There's no way to prove it when the dead are dead. The sharks will come and devour them all in a minute. No one will know about this then."
"Yes, the boss is brilliant!"
"Li Si, go and move all the gold they dug up today into my house."
"Yes, boss..."
Then came a series of footsteps, which gradually faded away.
The Wen family members outside the stone wall listened to every word.
Everyone breathed a sigh of relief once they confirmed that the people on the other side of the stone wall had left.
Wen Chengbin patted his chest to calm himself down and said, "What kind of situation is this?"
Wenwen thought to herself, "What bad luck! We followed the pangolin's route here, but we never expected to run into something like this."
It's obvious that this is murder and robbery, and there's a swarm of sharks involved. These people are really ruthless; they not only steal goods but also take lives.
Before everyone could exchange more than a few words, the sound of splashing water came from the distance of the underground river.
Several screams of terror came from the other side of the stone wall.
"Dad, I heard a sound! It's a swarm of sharks! Quick, climb up!"
"Big brother, Dad is old and can't climb anymore. You and second brother climb up. Hurry, second brother, climb up quickly."
"Father, your older brother and I are supporting you, please crawl quickly, Father—"
Judging from the voice, it sounds like the old man who just begged the manager for mercy.
Wenwen scanned the inside of the stone wall with her divine sense and saw a father and his two sons inside. They were trying to climb up and get away from the water, but the inside of the stone wall was very smooth and they couldn't climb up at all.
The swarm of sharks came on strong.
Well, since we've already encountered this situation, saving a life is better than building a seven-story pagoda.
Wenwen cast a stun spell on the sharks that were rushing towards her, and then sent a telepathic message to Wen Chengjian and Wen Chengbin, "Big brother, second brother, you two take them away and deal with them."
Then she asked Wen Qilin, "Father, what should we do about the people inside?"
This is a bit of a dilemma.
Save them; they are guilty and it's inappropriate for them to be here.
If I don't help, I can't get over it in my heart. For those who cultivate themselves, the greatest fear is cause and effect. If we encounter it, it means there is a cause, and this effect still needs to be eliminated.
"Let's talk about it after we rescue them."
Let's save them then.
Wenwen, Wen Qilin, and Wen Qiyuan took advantage of the darkness and leaped over the stone wall with all their might.
He channeled his spiritual energy into his eyes, straining to see the deep pool below the stone wall, trying to find the three people from before.
What they saw at the bottom of the deep pool made their pupils shrink and they almost screamed.
The deep pool was filled with corpses, densely packed together, one after another. The scene was utterly gruesome and terrifying.
Wen Qilin forced himself to speak, "Wen'er, you go out. Your second uncle and I will handle it."
Anyone who saw this scene would tremble, let alone Wenwen from the modern world. However, she had an iron will and she could overcome it. "Father, I'm alright. I can see them. They're over there."
The group quickly approached, pulled the three barely alive people out of the stone wall, and headed towards the outer edge of the underground river.
It was pitch black, and without caring about the direction, we headed towards a nearby hilltop.
A moment later, he met up with Wen Chengjian and his brother, and together they dug a cave in a secluded spot on the hilltop.
Fortunately, the three of them were unconscious; otherwise, it would have been difficult to explain the origin of the cave.
After settling down in the cave, Wen Qilin checked the three men's physical condition and was relieved to learn that they were out of danger.
Silent all night.
The next morning, as the first rays of sunlight shone on the cave entrance, the three of them slowly awoke.
"You're awake! Come and have something to eat."
Upon seeing the Wen family members dressed as chivalrous heroes on one side of the cave, the three exclaimed, "Thank you so much for saving our lives, thank you..."
Wen Chengbin came over and helped the old man up. "Grandpa, have some food first, we'll talk later."
"Oh, oh, thank you so much, my benefactors."
Faced with the fragrant food, the group was initially a little shy, but with Wen Chengbin's encouragement and their own hunger pangs, they began to wolf down their food.
After dinner, under questioning from the Wen family, the whole story was finally revealed.
They were conscripted by the imperial court and brought here a few years ago.
It turns out that this was a gold mine. The miners were all tricked into coming here. At first, they were told that the imperial court was conscripting laborers, and the miners had no choice but to follow the officials. The first few months were okay, at least they had a full meal. Later, after being moved around several times, they were scattered and brought here, where they began to suffer inhumane abuse. They had to complete a certain amount of work every day, and if they didn't meet the quota, they wouldn't be given food. Some people couldn't bear it and got sick, so they were thrown into the deep pool by the rock wall to feed the sharks.
Hearing this, Wen Chengbin asked, "Grandpa, you don't seem to be sick, so why were you thrown into the deep pool?"
"Young man, you don't know this, but the foreman of this mine is ruthless. They not only cut back on everyone's food, but also secretly steal the ore that everyone digs out. If the foreman takes a fancy to the good quality ore in your hand, he will confiscate it. If you don't do what he wants, you will be beaten and scolded, or even killed."
Wenwen: "Don't they all belong to them anyway? Why is the person in charge acting like this?"
The older young man looked at everyone and then lowered his head, seemingly wanting to say something but holding back.
Wen Qilin comforted him, "Don't worry, feel free to speak."
The young man, having nothing to lose, said, "I overheard that the person in charge would secretly take the good quality gold ore out of the area, but we don't know where they take it."
Another young man, filled with righteous indignation, interrupted, "Those in charge even make bets with each other to see who can take the most out."
Wenwen: "So, this is why you were thrown into the deep pool?"
"That's part of the reason; in short, we offended the person in charge."
Afterwards, Wenwen and the others asked many more questions, and the father and his two sons tried their best to answer them. However, the information they knew was very limited, and they would have to investigate on their own to find out the truth.
The issue now is not whether to investigate or not, but how to punish the perpetrators and how to comfort the souls of the victims.
Wenwen kept replaying the scene she saw in the deep pool last night in her mind. Just thinking about it was terrifying. Some fears must be faced, but she needed to carefully consider how to face them.
After asking around, it was learned that these people were villagers from Shian Village. The older one was named Wang Dazhu, and the two people next to him were his two sons, Wang Dawa and Wang Erwa.
Shian Village.
It was the small village they passed through on their way to exile.
Wen Qilin: "Uncle Wang, what are your plans now?"
Grandpa Wang: "We've been away for several years now, and we don't know anything about our family situation, except..."
Everyone understood that if they went home without a clear explanation, they wouldn't be able to get past the authorities, let alone their families.
Wen Qiyuan suggested, "Why don't you settle down in the nearby villages for now, and go home when things become clearer?"
Grandpa Wang sighed, "That's all we can do."
Then, taking advantage of the broad daylight, the group escorted Grandpa Wang and his two sons over the mountains and took them to a village at the foot of the mountains to settle down temporarily.
As night deepened, the Wen family returned to the underground river.