The sound of skin meeting skin echoed through the market. For a moment, the loud noise coming from each direction seemed to cease.
The man Anning had slapped stood there in surprise, he didn't say a word as he reached up to touch his cheek. A red handprint had soon started forming across his face and the look of humiliation in his eyes didn't go unnoticed.
Around them, several buyers and merchants had stopped whatever they were doing to stare at them, whispering amongst themselves.
A nobleman being struck by a slave was not something people saw everyday.
The man's eyes darkened as he turned toward one of the traders standing nearby.
"You!" The man called out.
The trader hurried over at once and bowed slightly the moment he came to stand in front of the slapped man.
"Yes sir."
The nobleman pointed at Anning with a trembling finger as he said, "Is this how the slaves were trained to behave?"
The trader hadn't been present when Anning had slapped the nobleman. But he followed the direction of his finger and found Anning standing exactly where he had left her, he frowned.
Anning met the trader's gaze without a hint of fear, then she shrugged.
"He deserved it." She said calmly.
The trader slapped a hand over his forehead, already feeling a small ache at the back of his head.
"Please pardon her." He said quickly, bowing at the nobleman. "She is a foreign slave and rather new here. We haven't had the time to train her yet."
The nobleman didn't respond immediately. Instead, his gaze moved back to Anning.
His eyes left her face and slowly trailed down her body. The look in his eyes made Anning's stomach twist in disgust.
After a few seconds, he finally spoke.
"Since she has the audacity to raise her hand at me. Give her to me" His lips curled slightly. "I want her without any charges, and I'll let this matter go."
Anning let out a small scoff and took a step closer to where the nobleman stood.
"You can't want a human being. Or is this you indirectly saying you're too poor to buy a slave?" She asked, cocking her head to the side.
Several people standing nearby gasped. The trader closed his eyes briefly, he had never seen a slave with such a behavior before.
When he opened them again, his expression had gone from being troubled to being indifferent.
He nodded at the nobleman before replying, "Do whatever you please with her."
Anning squinted her eyes at the trader and just as he began turning away, she closed the distance between them and grabbed his arm.
"Hey! You can't do this to me." She said quickly.
The trader glanced down at her hand wrapped against his wrist.
"That man deserved it," she continued after a moment. "And you can't just give me to him without collecting a single dime. I'm not that cheap."
The frustration in her voice didn't exactly bother the trader. He slapped her hand away and frowned.
"You should really get your attitude in check. For a slave, you seem a little too... reckless." He muttered coldly.
The nobleman snorted under his breath before turning to the two servants standing behind him.
"Take her back to the carriage. I still need to get one more thing before heading back." He instructed.
The two servants immediately stepped toward Anning, but she took a step away from them. Her heart already racing.
Her hand trembled beside her body as she looked from the approaching servants to the trader who had already walked away without sparring her another glance. The nobleman's lecherous gaze still fixed on her.
One thing was clear at this point, if she was taken by them now...she would never escape.
Her palms began to sweat as she took another small step backward. One of the servants reached for her arm but before he could touch her.
Anning shoved him away, turned and ran in the opposite direction.
"Hey!" She heard someone shout behind her, but she didn't look back.
"You better catch that slave. Don't let her get away!" The nobleman yelled furiously.
Anning dashed through the crowd street as fast as her legs could carry her. People cursed as she shoved past them, some stumbled aside while she shoved others to the side before they could collide into her.
She took in deep breaths, her hair flying into her face as she ran. She couldn't stop, not now.
Behind her, the sound of boots pounding against the ground grew louder and a bit clearer.
"Stop that slave!"
Someone behind her yelled and the shout echoed through the market.
Anning decided to glance over her shoulder for just a brief second and she felt her heart skip a beat when she saw several guards and servants running after her.
"Shit. Shit. Shit!" She muttered under her breath.
She turned another corner and nearly slammed into a wooden cart filled with bright orange fruit. Her leg slammed into the edge of it, sending several oranges tumbling to the ground and making her stumble forward slightly.
"I'm sorry!" She yelled to the stunned cart owner as she pushed herself forward again.
With every breath she took in, she could feel her lungs burning. The upper part of her stomach clenched painfully, but she forced herself to keep running.
She glanced over her shoulder once more and could still see the men behind her, although this time she had placed quite a distance between them.
Anning snapped her head forward and slammed right into someone.
She felt her legs give out under her before she and whoever she bumped into crashed to the ground.
Anning managed to catch herself by placing both her hands on the floor, she took in deep breaths as her chest rose and fell quickly.
Her vision turned blurry for a second before it finally returned back to normal.
The voices of the guards yelling echoed behind her, but they had turned distant at this point.
After taking a moment to calm herself, Anning finally looked down.
The person she had knocked over was a woman. No, a young lady.
The woman was dressed in a deep red hanfu embroidered with delicate golden threads that shimmered faintly in the sunlight. Gold ornaments held her dark hair in place, each piece crafted with exquisite detail. Her lips were tinted red.
At least they have make up here, Anning thought.
But when she stared into the girl's eyes, she paused.
Cold black eyes that stared up at her without a hint of emotion. She didn't even seem surprised at what happened.
Something about the way the lady stared at her made Anning uncomfortable.
Under normal circumstances, she would have apologized. But today, she wasn't normal.
Anning pushed herself off the woman without saying anything and stood back on her feet. Then she began running again.
The woman she had knocked over, remained seated on the ground. The expression she had on her face didn't change.
The blank look in her eyes seemed to soften for a moment as she watched the fleeing figure disappear into the crowd.
The guard who had gone to retrieve something for her had just returned at that moment. When he saw her sitting on the ground, his face turned pale.
"My Lady!" He exclaimed, hurrying over to help her up.
The woman glanced at his hand and merely rolled her eyes.
"I can stand myself." She replied, rising elegantly to her feet and patting her robe to get rid of invisible dust.
The guard standing in front of her lowered his head nervously. "My Lady, are you hurt?"
She didn't answer him. Her gaze turned toward the direction the slave had run, her expression unreadable.
After a few seconds, she spoke.
"Gather the others."
The guard's eyes widened briefly as he blurted, "My Lady?"
"The slave that knocked me over. Go after her and bring her to me." She said calmly..
The guard had seen Anning just before she ran off, so he could easily identify her. He hesitated only for a second before being deeply.
"As you wish, my lady."