“This ginseng of yours is quite good, madam. However, we need our manager to examine it before determining the price. Please wait a moment,” the shop assistant said before immediately calling an apprentice to fetch the manager. Shortly after, a middle-aged man in his early forties emerged from the backyard—the manager of this pharmacy.
“Someone is selling ginseng?” the manager asked as soon as he appeared.
“Master, it’s this madam. She also sold a Sika deer, for which I paid twenty taels of silver,” the assistant promptly ushered the manager over, addressing him as “Master,” suggesting a master-apprentice relationship.
The manager glanced at the Sika deer and nodded slightly; the price was quite reasonable.
“Master, this is the ginseng,” the assistant handed the ginseng to the manager, who carefully took it out of the box and examined it closely for a long while before nodding in satisfaction.
“In my decades of dealing with medicinal herbs, this is the first time I’ve seen such a perfectly preserved ginseng. You’ve taken good care of it, madam,” he said, looking curiously at Xiao Ying. How could a poor mountain village woman possess such a ginseng?
This ginseng was only about fifty years old, yet it surpassed the quality of those over a century old.
“What’s the price?” Xiao Ying asked directly.
“Madam, this ginseng is around fifty years old. For an ordinary one, I could only offer fifty taels, but for yours, I can give sixty taels,” the manager replied honestly, stating the amount.
“Then sixty taels it is. With the Sika deer, that makes eighty taels in total. Give me seven ten-tael silver ingots and exchange the remaining ten taels for copper coins,” Xiao Ying said.
“No problem,” the manager signaled with his eyes, and the assistant immediately went to fetch the money.
“Madam, my surname is He. You may call me Manager He,” the manager unexpectedly introduced himself, continuing with a smile, “If you ever come across ginseng of this quality again, please consider our Renxin Pharmacy first. Our prices are absolutely the fairest. Even if you go to the county town, you won’t find a higher price.”
“Alright,” Xiao Ying was quite satisfied with the transaction.
This ginseng came from that small wooden cabin, which contained seven boxes holding seven medicinal herbs. Besides common ones like ginseng and lingzhi, there were two or three types that didn’t exist in this world.
This ginseng was the youngest among them, which was why she had brought it out to exchange for money.
“You’re a straightforward person, madam. May I know your surname?” Manager He asked cheerfully.
“Xiao, as in the rustling autumn wind,” Xiao Ying replied.
“So it’s Madam Xiao,” Manager He noted her name.
As they spoke, the assistant returned with the silver and thoughtfully provided a small pouch. However, the pouch was too small to hold the seven silver ingots, leaving no way to carry the ten taels’ worth of copper coins.
Ten taels, according to the value in this world, amounted to ten thousand copper coins, weighing several dozen pounds.
“It’s quite heavy. Please be careful,” the assistant kindly reminded.
But Xiao Ying casually tossed it into her backpack and covered it with a ragged cloth, showing no effort. The assistant then remembered she was the woman who could lift a Sika deer with one hand.
After leaving the pharmacy, both siblings were thrilled. They now had over eighty taels of silver—it was almost unimaginable! With so much money, what couldn’t they buy?
“Mother, shall we go to the gambling den next?”
Chen Xingyun had been thinking about repaying the debt. After returning those eleven taels of silver, they still had over seventy-one taels left.
Xiao Ying replied, “First, let’s find a medical clinic to have Xinghai’s foot examined.”
“Didn’t Mother say she had a way to treat me?” Chen Xinghai looked puzzled. Why would they need to spend money on another physician?
“To avoid suspicion.” Xiao Ying glanced at him, and both immediately understood.
If his foot suddenly healed, it would surely arouse doubts.
“Mother is indeed thoughtful.”
Chen Xinghai’s ears turned red with embarrassment, annoyed at his own foolishness.
On the way, Xiao Ying stored most of the copper coins in her space, leaving only about two thousand wen. Carrying so many would be too conspicuous.
Unexpectedly, after arriving at the clinic, the physician felt Chen Xinghe’s foot and shook his head, bluntly stating that too much time had passed and a full recovery was impossible.
The three weren’t upset, as this was merely a formality. In the end, Xiao Ying had the physician prescribe some medicine as a cover, spending over a hundred wen.
“Let’s go to Zhao Yuanwai’s residence.”
Leaving the clinic, Xiao Ying headed for the next destination.
The two were confused again. “Mother, why are we going to Zhao Yuanwai’s house?”
They thought of one possibility but hardly dared to believe it.
“To redeem your sister and settle the gambling house debt at the same time.” Xiao Ying explained a bit more this time: “The gambling house is run by the Zhao family. Xingyue was sold to the Zhao family earlier to pay off the gambling debt.”
Their faces lit up with sudden joy—Mother really was going to redeem Xingyue!
“Mother, thank you.”
Chen Xingyun’s eyes welled up. This mother was truly wonderful, actually repaying all the debts left by the previous mother one by one.
The thought of soon bringing Xingyue home filled her with happiness.
Chen Xinghai clenched his fist, growing even more admiring of Xiao Ying. He would willingly give his life for a mother who treated them so well.
Zhao Yuanwai, named Zhao Youcai, was the wealthiest man in Hongye Town.
It was said he possessed immense wealth, with thousands of acres of fertile land. His household alone had over a hundred maids and servants, along with many young and beautiful concubines.
He owned numerous businesses in Hongye Town. Besides the Hongyun Gambling House, he also had inns, restaurants, fabric shops, and some connections in the county.
However, his reputation was rather poor. Aside from being stingy, he was also extremely greedy and lustful. Many maids in his residence had suffered at his hands, and every year, some maids committed suicide unable to endure the humiliation.
The previous Xiao Ying selling her own daughter into such a place was truly heartless.
Fortunately, Chen Xingyue was only nine years old, thin and frail, likely not appealing to that old lecher.
The Zhao family lived in the most bustling area of town. A pair of majestic stone lions flanked the entrance, the plaque bearing the characters “Zhao Residence” shone brightly, and two young servants guarded the door.
Seeing the poorly dressed trio approach, the two servants frowned, suspecting they were troublemakers.
“What are you looking at? Get lost, now!”
One of them glared at Xiao Ying and the others with disgust and stepped forward to shoo them away.
Xiao Ying said sternly, “I’m here to redeem my daughter. Her name is Chen Xingyue.”
The two servants were taken aback, looking at her in surprise. They scrutinized her several times from head to toe. Dressed so shabbily, did she really have the money to redeem someone?
Moreover, no one sold here had ever been redeemed—they simply couldn’t afford it.
“Are you serious?”
Their attitude softened a little. Having been sold here themselves, they could empathize.
If their own families were willing to redeem them, they would be overjoyed.
“I’d rather farm at home, enduring cold and hunger, than be a servant here.”
Xiao Ying casually took out ten taels of silver and weighed them in his hand. The two servants were astonished—was he actually wealthy?
They guessed he must have suddenly come into some unexpected fortune.
“Alright then, wait here for now. I’ll go in and report to the steward.”
The servant who had spoken earlier became noticeably more polite. After exchanging a few words with his companion, he hurried inside.
Before long, he returned and led the three of them into the residence, saying the steward wished to see them.
Xiao Ying remained calm and composed as he entered.
Chen Xinghai and his sister, however, were somewhat nervous. It was their first time setting foot in such an imposing mansion, and they didn’t know where to rest their eyes.