Recently, there had been a dark cloud hanging over Terrance's manor, pressing down on everyone's hearts.
Leah went to the kitchen to get Malcolm's breakfast. Subconsciously, she looked at the empty corner. Just three weeks ago, there was a familiar face there. However, after Nadya was reported, he was dragged out of the kitchen by the overseers.
When Leah saw him again, he was whipped beyond recognition. The overseers carried Nadya's bloody body and hurried past the house. Leah's heart was filled with fear, but she tried her best to look calm.
However, the truth was that she had nightmares almost every night. She dreamed that the overseers were coming for her.
In fact, during this period of time, everyone who had contact with Nadya was called out for interrogation. Many of them never returned. Leah, who served Malcolm breakfast every day, was lucky enough to escape. Until now, no one had come looking for her.
From the moment she was sold to Terrance Manor, Malcolm had always treated her with respect. Even the butler and the others treated her with respect.
However, Leah knew very well that it wasn't because she was important. Once she lost this "respect," she would be no different from the other slaves in the manor. At the end of the day, their lives depended on Malcolm's mood.
During this special period of time, her experience was especially clear.
But just as she was feeling anxious, she received news from Laeli.
After Nadya was arrested, the black gladiator's communication with the people in the manor was cut off, and it became a lot more difficult, especially now that there was a tense atmosphere everywhere. The black slaves in the manor were prohibited from contacting outsiders, and even the people who went to buy vegetables were replaced by two supervisors.
Laeli spent a lot of effort to find a new messenger. The messenger was not a black slave, but a young pastor from the Gentile Evangelistic Society (approved by the British Crown in 1701 and established by Thomas Bray to preach to the Indians, blacks, and whites in North America. Historically, the results were limited) who would come every day to preach to the black slaves in the manor.
Laeli used the gold coins that Zhang Heng had given him to bribe the little priest to pass the message to the tribe. However, to protect Rheia, he did not ask the little priest to pass the message to Rheia directly. Instead, he asked the priest to find another girl in the tribe and ask her to pass the message to Rheia and the others.
Laeli set the escape date to be two days later. That day was also the time when Leah usually tidied up Malcolm's study. This time, however, she wanted to use this opportunity to take out all the letters related to Normand and Redmond.
The reason for choosing this day was to reduce the risk of Leah eavesdropping. As long as she could hold on until nightfall, she could leave the manor.
The day before, Laeli had asked the little priest to bring daggers, muskets, and other weapons into Terrance's manor. However, this time, the little priest refused. Initially, the priest just wanted to make some extra money from the poor slaves, but he didn't expect Laeli to make such a big deal out of it. The moment he saw the weapons, he immediately gave up.
However, it was too late to back out now. He didn't know how long Nadya could last. Laeli didn't want to wait any longer. He didn't have the time to find a new contact. If he missed this opportunity, he would have to wait until the next week.
After apologizing to the young pastor, Laeli kidnapped the latter's brother to threaten him into cooperating with him. The young pastor didn't expect that he would lead a wolf into his house because of a moment of pity.
Only then did he realize that he wasn't facing a kind man or woman. Instead, he was a beast that exuded a dangerous aura. Moreover, the beast was naturally hostile to the white man who enslaved his people. In order to save his people from the abyss of hell, he would do anything, even if it was hell in front of him. He didn't care if he bit the hand that fed him.
It was too late for the young pastor to regret his decision. For the sake of his brother, he could only bite the bullet and join the fray.
He returned to Terrance Manor with a carriage full of bread under the guise of distributing food to the black slaves. The butler was baffled. It wasn't that the church hadn't provided aid to the poor before, but under normal circumstances, they wouldn't provide aid to the black slaves. That was because the black slaves were the private property of their masters. The church's action was tantamount to a silent protest that the black slaves' masters didn't feed them.
However, the young pastor said that everyone was a citizen of the Creator, and there was no distinction between rich and poor. The butler couldn't refute him. In any case, from Malcolm to his subordinates, they were still very polite to the clergy.
It was especially admirable that these people were willing to give up their lives in England or the colonies to come to this barren and backward barbaric world.
Moreover, the young pastor was also a frequent visitor of the manor. The butler didn't really check the carriage of bread and let it go.
At this time, the young pastor was so nervous that he almost bit his tongue.
He drove the carriage to the open space where he usually preached. The supervisor cooperated and drove the black slaves over. It was almost mealtime. In order to not delay the black slaves' work, the preaching was usually carried out at this time.
However, the young pastor was probably too nervous today. His speech was somewhat incoherent.
Fortunately, the supervisors were not interested in this kind of thing. They gathered on the other side to play cards and didn't notice the young pastor's abnormality. The black slaves, on the other hand, were the best listeners. Even if the young pastor didn't convey his meaning, they just listened quietly and didn't complain.
In fact, most of them looked numb. They didn't understand what the young pastor was saying and didn't care at all.
After about ten minutes, the young pastor finally finished what he wanted to say. He wiped the sweat off his forehead and began to distribute the bread to the black slaves.
After making sure that everyone had bread in their hands, he carried the four bread baskets at the bottom of the carriage and walked in the direction of the house. As soon as he reached the door, he was stopped by the guards.
The young pastor knew that this was the most critical moment. Success or failure depended on this. Without waiting for the guard to ask, he said, "I'm here to deliver the bread. There are many female slaves here, right?"
"Sorry, you can't enter without an invitation."
"I have the queen's permission to preach in this land. There's no place I can't go." The young pastor tried to sound as righteous as possible.
However, the two guards in front of him remained indifferent. Just when the young priest was worrying about how to continue, Butler Wallace's laughter came from the hall.
"You can't stop him. Father Tim is the bravest man I've ever met. I heard that he once walked for three days and three nights in North Carolina to preach. Let him in."
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