At the entrance of the mine, the rhythmic *clack-clack* of stone-cutting echoed from within. Having disguised themselves as guards to gain entry, they were stunned by the scene before them.
The mine was not dark; the fires stoked for refining ore blazed bright, making the air stiflingly hot. Men wearing the same steward’s uniforms as the intruders were pacing back and forth, driving the laborers on with leather whips. Almost everyone’s skin was crisscrossed with red welts, though the marks were most numerous on the very young and the very old. Each laborer, bare-chested and skeletal-thin, worked without a moment’s respite.
"That old man, that young boy—they’re from Niujia Village!"
Chapter 52