At first light, a thin morning mist hung over the burial ground. Everything around the hut felt damp, cold, and silent.
Liú Xiǎomǎn rose silently, circling the hut to inspect it carefully.
The handfuls of ash she had scattered last night at the door and by the window remained undisturbed. No footprints marred them.
Satisfied that the night had passed safely, she exhaled slightly, then darkened her already sallow face with more pot ash and tousled her hair to complete her disguise.
Once ready, she slung her half-empty backpack onto her shoulders, keeping the smooth wooden token and the two taels of silver safely close to her body, feeling their cold, hard weight, which gave her a newfound sense of confidence.
Her steps along the twelve-kilometer road to Qīngshí Town were light but purposeful.
The front of Huíchūntáng was as bustling as ever, the rich scent of herbs wafting through the air, mingling with the shouts of street vendors — the very pulse of everyday life.
Liú Xiǎomǎn weaved past the crowd in the front hall with practiced ease, heading straight for the back hall.
Master Qián looked up from his calculations and immediately smiled warmly when he saw the small figure, his beads frozen mid-count on the abacus.
“Well, if it isn’t our little guest! Have you found any good herbs again?”
“Greetings, Master Qián,” Liú Xiǎomǎn said, bowing politely but with calm confidence, sitting on the wooden chair he indicated, her back straight as a rod.
She spoke sincerely first: “Thank you for your generosity last time. You eased the urgent needs of my mother and brother.”
Qián waved his hand, smiling, indicating she needn’t mention it.
Then, with clear eyes, Liú Xiǎomǎn shifted her tone: “Master Qián has such discerning vision. I’ve come today to discuss a long-term business arrangement with you.”
“Oh?” Qián’s smile dimmed slightly, replaced by the sharp scrutiny of a seasoned merchant.
He sat upright, fingers tapping lightly on the table, “A long-term arrangement? Do tell me more.”
Liú Xiǎomǎn had already rehearsed her pitch in her mind. She spoke half-truths with a touch of drama: “If I may, Master, before my father passed, he received guidance from a wandering physician and left behind some incomplete medicinal recipes.”
“While going through his belongings, I recently discovered several formulas requiring herbs only found deep in the remote mountains. Their efficacy is extraordinary, especially for certain stubborn ailments.”
Her words were carefully measured, with a hint of nostalgic mystery — perfect for this era, where people venerated ancestral secrets and miraculous discoveries.
It was crucial that Qián believed she had access to a mysterious, ongoing source of rare herbs; this would explain her continual supply and allow her to hook this important merchant.
Qián leaned forward, intrigued.
Liú Xiǎomǎn pressed further: “I can supply these herbs regularly. In fact, a few I could attempt to cultivate following ancient methods.”
She paused, carefully retrieving from her backpack a small bundle wrapped tightly in coarse cloth, placing it on the table as though it contained a rare treasure.
Layer by layer, she unwrapped it, revealing a small collection of thicker, darker, more mature shǐxiěténg hemostatic vine — the upgraded version she had purchased from the system store using her remaining 0.05 points.
The aroma was stronger and richer than before, a mixture of earthy musk and herbal fragrance that immediately filled the room.
Qián’s nostrils twitched, and his eyes lit up.
He almost snatched the herbs, splitting a piece of the root to smell it. Surprise quickly turned into exhilaration — any experienced herbal merchant could recognize the exceptional quality.
“Excellent! These are truly aged, premium herbs!”
His voice trembled slightly with excitement. He looked at Liú Xiǎomǎn eagerly. “Little miss, do you have more of these?”
Perfect.
Liú Xiǎomǎn allowed herself a small smile inwardly, though her face remained calm. She sighed gently, projecting a touch of helplessness: “Master Qián, these herbs require very specific growth conditions and must be sourced deep in the uninhabited interior of the back mountains. There… dangerous insects and wild beasts abound. I, a weak young girl, cannot…”
She left the sentence unfinished, letting the implication hang in the air.
Qián, astute as ever, immediately grasped her meaning.
She had just presented her value and rarity while signaling the difficulty of her task — clearly seeking investment and support.
He calculated swiftly: this girl held secret recipes and could obtain high-grade herbs — essentially a mobile treasure trove.
With a contract, Huíchūntáng’s reputation and profits could rise further. A small investment was nothing in comparison.
“Not a problem!” Qián pounded the table decisively. “Little miss, rest assured! I’ll sign a supply contract with you and prepay two taels of silver as a deposit.”
“Additionally, I’ll prepare a set of specialized herb-gathering tools — sharp short sickles and sturdy ropes, all lightweight, ensuring efficiency in the mountains.”
Exactly what Liú Xiǎomǎn had hoped for.
The formal contract gave her a perfect cover to enter the mountains openly and regularly. The villagers would be unable to question it, and the Liú family mansion would not dare cause trouble at Huíchūntáng.
The advance of two taels, combined with her remaining funds, gave her enough startup capital to prepare for her new home.
She received the tools and silver with quiet composure, her eyes betraying only a flash of gratitude and satisfaction.
“Much obliged, Master Qián,” she said, standing and bowing deeply.
Qián laughed heartily, instructing someone to prepare a simple supply contract, which they signed with stamps and seals.
He handed her the two taels of silver in a cloth pouch and the brand-new tools. The sickles glimmered in the lamp light, and the ropes were exceptionally sturdy.
Just as she was about to thank him, Qián remembered something, retrieving a palm-sized cloth bag from behind the counter.
“Ah, yes. Deep in the back mountains, wild beasts are fierce. You must take care. This is my secret repellent powder — any predator smelling it will retreat. Keep it on you for safety.”
Liú Xiǎomǎn took the bag, feeling its weight. Red thread embroidered a simple Eight Trigrams pattern.
The moment her fingers touched it, the system chimed:
【Alert! Unknown mixture detected. Scanning… Complete. Main components: realgar, sulfur, wolfbane; Secondary components: trace of deathcamas, aconite.】
【Warning: Strongly repels wild animals; mild skin irritation possible; ingestion or inhalation in large amounts may cause neurological paralysis or organ failure.】
Her heart skipped a beat.
She pinched the heavy bag, looked at Qián, noting his genuine concern.
Suppressing her surprise, she thought: the main ingredients — realgar, sulfur, wolfbane — were believable for driving off beasts and snakes.
But trace aconite and dūnchángcǎo… this was more than mere repellent; it was a potent toxin.
Calmly, she tucked the bag safely, thanked Qián again, and prepared to leave.
Carrying the new tools, the two-tael silver pouch, and the potent repellent, Liú Xiǎomǎn felt the satisfaction of a successful plan and a trace of caution about the unknown.
Her gaze crossed the fields toward the distant, verdant, mist-shrouded mountains under the morning sun.
No longer a forbidden, fearsome place, the back mountains had become a vast treasure trove waiting for her development.
Tomorrow, she would take her mother and brother and begin their new life in earnest.