With great difficulty, he finally finished applying the medicine. Li Yang breathed a sigh of relief!
"Here’s the medicine!" After stepping outside, Li Yang wiped the sweat from his forehead and handed the herbs to Aunt Rong. "There’s some medicinal paste left—apply it once a day until it’s all gone. As for the herbs, steep a little each day and drink it like you would water."
"Alright!" Aunt Rong nodded and saw Li Yang out.
Back in the village, Li Yang realized he needed to start buying vegetables.
The vegetables from his own plot were nowhere near enough for the Golden Pavilion Hotel’s needs. He had to buy more from the other villagers to fill the order.
As soon as he got home, Li Yang headed to the village clinic.
Zhou Liyun was already there, and she hurried over when she saw him. "Xiaoyang."
"Sister-in-law Liyun, what’s up?" Li Yang asked.
"Oh, it’s nothing. It’s just... you saved me yesterday and I haven’t had a chance to thank you properly, so I brought you some eggs."
This was the way of the mountain folk, always eager to repay a kindness.
"You’re too kind!" Li Yang smiled, then an idea struck him. "Sister-in-law Liyun, I remember you used to sell your vegetables to Gao Jinming, right? Since he’s not buying anymore, why don’t you sell them to me?"
"Huh?" Zhou Liyun was taken aback. "You’re buying vegetables too?"
Li Yang nodded. "That’s right, I’m buying... I snatched up Gao Jinming’s client. Now they’re buying from me. So, what do you say? Want to sell to me?"
"Of course!" Zhou Liyun’s face lit up. "There are several families in our village, and everyone’s been anxious since Boss Gao stopped buying. Why don’t I go and tell them?"
"Sounds good!" Li Yang nodded. "Go ahead and tell them. Have everyone pick their vegetables tomorrow morning. Once they’re picked, I’ll weigh everything. I’m making a trip to the city tomorrow to deliver them."
"Alright!"
「...」
Back home, Li Yang went to check on his mushroom shed.
It was something he had put together out of boredom during his half-year in the village. He’d already asked around and found that no one else in the township was growing mushrooms, which is what gave him the idea.
It hadn’t seemed very promising before, but now... ’I can sell them to the Grand Golden Pavilion Hotel!’
Besides, it looked like they were about to sprout. In just a few more days, he would be able to harvest the first batch.
Li Yang nodded in satisfaction.
He picked up the sprayer inside, filled it with some water, and prepared to give the grow bags another misting.
But just then, he accidentally twisted the thumb ring on his finger.
A single drop of water fell from it and into the sprayer.
’This thing can drip water?’ Li Yang froze for a second, thinking his eyes were playing tricks on him.
The ring had mysteriously appeared on his hand after he fell into a well, and he hadn’t been able to get it off since.
’Whatever,’ he thought. ’I’ll just get back to spraying.’
After misting the grow bags, Li Yang left the shed.
Li Yang was up at the crack of dawn the next day, heading out early to pick vegetables.
Zhou Liyun and a few others were even earlier than he was. They had already finished picking their vegetables and delivered them to his front door.
After finishing his own picking, Li Yang weighed everyone’s produce, recorded the amounts, and got ready to have breakfast before heading to the city.
He was staying at his own place these days, so he wasn’t eating with Ye Xiu.
Right before making breakfast, he decided to check on the mushroom shed. He just wanted to see if there were any problems, but the moment he stepped inside, he froze.
To his astonishment, all the mushrooms had already grown to full size, and they looked perfect.
’What’s going on?!’
Li Yang stood there, dumbfounded, unable to believe his eyes.
After a moment, he snapped out of it. ’In any case, since they’ve already grown, I might as well harvest them.’
He stepped forward and picked a handful.
’I have to try this first batch for myself.’
He put them in a pot to make a simple soup, but the moment they hit the hot water, an extraordinary fragrance wafted out.
’Whoa, why does it smell so amazing?!’
Li Yang’s mouth began to water. He realized the incredible scent was coming from the oyster mushrooms in the pot.
’This is unbelievable!’
As soon as the soup came to a boil, he ladled some into a bowl and took a sip.
Li Yang froze. ’Oh my god! This is unbelievably delicious!’
He had never tasted oyster mushrooms like this before. The flavor was completely unexpected.
’The water from the jade thumb ring?’ As Li Yang wondered why they tasted so different, the thought suddenly hit him. ’Could that be it? There’s no other explanation... you can’t find oyster mushrooms like this anywhere. If that’s true, then haven’t I struck it rich?’
Li Yang burst out laughing.
’With mountain goods of this quality, what the hell do I have to be afraid of!’
Li Yang quickly finished his meal, packed everything up, borrowed a three-wheeler from a villager, and hauled the vegetables to the township, where he caught the bus into the city.
Li Yang was in high spirits the entire way.
Just as he got off the bus, he got a call from Manager Han.
"Manager Han, no need to rush me! I’m already in the city and can bring the vegetables over right away!"
On the other end of the line, Han Qiuyue hesitated before saying with a wry laugh, "Actually... there’s a bit of a problem. We might not need your vegetables."
"What?" Li Yang was stunned. "Manager Han, what’s going on? We had an agreement. How can you just go back on your word like this?"
"I know, I know..." Han Qiuyue laughed bitterly, her voice laced with resignation. "It’s not my decision, and it’s not Manager Fang’s either. Our boss gave the order himself. He said he wants to start working with Gao Jinming again. We don’t know why, we just found out ourselves."
Li Yang was left completely stunned.
"I’m coming over right now!" After a brief moment of thought, Li Yang made his decision.
"Alright. I’ll try to plead your case with the boss. He happens to be here today," Han Qiuyue said in a somber tone.