“Really? These weeds that even pigs won’t eat—they’re medicinal herbs? The kind that can cure sickness?”
Wang asked in disbelief.
“I’m just giving it a try. Whether they really are or not—that’s for the doctor to say.”
Yue Jiuyue put on an uncertain look. And sure enough, that only made Wang trust her a little more.
“If they really are medicinal herbs, that would be wonderful news!”
Wang was so delighted she slapped her thigh. If there really were medicinal herbs among these weeds—even just one kind—then surviving this famine would become much easier. Digging up herbs was light work that even the elderly and children could do. They could earn a few copper coins, buy a few catties of grain.
When the villagers saw the clan leader’s wife joining Lin Yue in this foolishness—digging up weeds—they were baffled. One after another, they headed up the mountain to find out what was going on.
“I came up here to chat with Yue. And when folks chat, their hands need something to do. It just came naturally.”
Wang didn’t tell the villagers what Yue Jiuyue had explained to her. After all, nothing was certain yet. If she spread the word now, and the weeds really did turn out to be medicinal herbs, fine. But what if they weren’t?
Families would have worked for days, only to end up with a pile of worthless weeds—not even fit for pigs. And of course, no one in the village even raised pigs. Who would bear the brunt of the villagers’ anger then?
Lin Yue?
She was only trying it out. She’d never promised anything.
Herself?
Could she say she’d only been trying to help? When the villagers were furious, would they listen to her explanations?
So, it was better to say nothing from the start. Wait until things were confirmed. Even if people were still unhappy then, it would still be far better than the consequences of failure.
The old ladies who’d come up to investigate thought it over and agreed—it made sense. When they sat around chatting, who didn’t have something in their hands? Suddenly being idle just felt wrong. Of course, they’d find something to do even if there was nothing to do.
And so, this group also stayed behind, chatting and pulling weeds—leaving the other villagers even more puzzled.
Why was everyone staying behind to pull weeds? Was there some secret they didn’t know about?
And then, another group of idle old women made their way up the mountain…
Yue Jiuyue watched as more and more people joined in to help pull weeds. She felt a little guilty—after all, the money from selling these would be hers alone.
She couldn’t openly sell to System 2023 anymore. The money she’d make would be far, far less. She was certain that what the clinic paid for medicinal herbs couldn’t compare to the prices System 2023 offered.
It stung!
How much money would she lose?
How many bags of flour would that be?
How many steamed buns would she have to go without?
Fortunately, this situation came to an end by noon.
“It’s almost noon, isn’t it? Time to head back.”
One old woman shaded her eyes with her hand, looked up at the sky, and guessed the time.
The other old women looked up at the sun’s position too, then one by one, they pounded their aching backs and sighed.
“Sigh! Getting old really makes you useless. In less than an hour, my back is killing me.”
“That’s right. Old and useless!”
The old women were full of emotion.
Back in the day, a single woman could do the work of a man—working the fields just as hard as any husband, while still handling the washing and cooking at home. Back then, it hadn’t felt like much.
Truly, they’d grown old and useless.