It took a full half hour to dig up several ginseng roots.
Following Cui Hongyu's instructions, he carefully placed them all into a cloth bag after digging them out, then tucked it into his chest before rushing home.
At this point, he could only firmly remember the spot where he had seen the pheasant fly up, waiting to look for it again after selling the ginseng.
When he reached the village entrance, the scene before him moved him deeply.
Cui Hongyu was watering the vegetables with water from an iron pot, while Chen Qiaoer was using a small twig to dig something on the ground nearby.
Seeing Chen Xiaobei arrive, his sister Chen Qiaoer stood up and walked over to his side, pointing to where she had been working.
"Brother, I don't know who was being bad and pooped in our field."
Her innocent words struck a chord with Chen Xiaobei. Yes, poop.
Animal and human waste was still an important component of fertilizer in vegetable fields even in the twenty-first century he came from. The primary reason was that this type of farm manure decomposed easily.
Thinking of this, he laughed heartily and patted Chen Qiaoer's head.
"Qiaoer, they weren't doing anything bad, we just thought too much. If you bury this poop in the ground, the vegetables that grow will be especially good."
Upon hearing this, Chen Qiaoer's eyes lit up, and she asked, fluttering her big eyes,
"Brother, then do you think the vegetables grown from burying this poop won't have a smell?"
This... Chen Xiaobei didn't know how to explain it to his sister for a moment.
"Don't worry, they won't."
At this moment, Cui Hongyu came over and bowed respectfully to Chen Xiaobei, "Husband, the rice porridge was already cooked at home before you arrived, waiting for you to eat."
Well, at this moment, Chen Xiaobei's best option was naturally to obey.
As soon as he returned home, before Cui Hongyu could prepare the meal, Chen Xiaobei had already taken out the ginseng roots from his chest.
"Hongyu, look, I picked these from the mountain. How do you think the quality is?"
Cui Hongyu nodded, then examined them carefully in her hands, a hint of joy gradually appearing in her eyes.
"Husband, this one is seven years old, and this one is ten years old."
As she spoke, she arranged the ginseng roots on the table one by one, and finally took out the largest one. After looking at it, Cui Hongyu's eyes shone with joy.
"Husband, this one is at least thirty years old. It can be sold for at least an ounce of silver at the pharmacy."
No way, Chen Xiaobei's eyes also revealed an expression of disbelief. He had thought of them being valuable, but not this valuable.
"Hongyu, really? Can this really be worth so much?"
Cui Hongyu nodded, "Husband, you'll understand when you take these to the pharmacy."
After drinking two bowls of rice porridge, Chen Xiaobei eagerly set off for the county town.
His target was clear: the largest pharmacy in the county town, known as Hua Hao Tang.
When the young shop assistant saw Chen Xiaobei enter, there was a clear hint of contempt in his eyes.
He stepped forward and cupped his fists towards Chen Xiaobei, "Esteemed young master, what business do you have here?"
Although he addressed him as "young master," the phrase "what business do you have here" clearly carried a hint of disdain.
However, since the other party hadn't overtly shown disrespect, Chen Xiaobei couldn't make a fuss. He could only nod at the shop assistant and take out a ginseng root from his chest.
"I dug up a few rare items, I wonder what price you can offer here?"
The shop assistant glanced at the ginseng in his hand. Surprise flashed in his eyes. "This, this, where did you get it?"
Chen Xiaobei smiled faintly.
"I am a man of the mountains and wilderness who occasionally obtained them. I wonder if you can give me a price."
The shop assistant looked at him, cupped his fists, and said, "Please wait a moment." He then turned and ran to the back hall.
Soon, an old man with white hair and beard emerged with the young shop assistant.
The old man approached Chen Xiaobei and bowed slightly, cupping his fists. "This humble one, Jia Wannian, is the proprietor of Hua Hao Tang."
"Esteemed young master, may I have another look at the ginseng?"
Alright, since you are the proprietor, I will show you again.
This time, Chen Xiaobei took out the oldest root. According to Cui Hongyu, this one was over thirty years old.
Indeed, when Jia Wannian saw this ginseng, his eyes gleamed with excitement.
He took it, examined it thoroughly, and then carefully handed it back to Chen Xiaobei.
"Esteemed young master, let's discuss this further over there."
As he said this, he gestured to the shop assistant beside him, who immediately turned and left.
Jia Wannian led Chen Xiaobei further inside, to a table with several chairs at the back.
Jia Wannian gestured for Chen Xiaobei to sit down, and the shop assistant soon brought over tea.
Seeing the tea being served, Chen Xiaobei understood that Jia Wannian intended to have a good chat with him.
Indeed, Jia Wannian politely invited him to drink tea, and then smiled, saying, "Esteemed young master, what price do you intend to sell these ginseng roots in your hand for?"
Chen Xiaobei smiled faintly and, based on Cui Hongyu's estimation, held up his palm.
"I have a total of seven ginseng roots here, for this total amount."
To be honest, he took out the ginseng roots one by one from his chest and laid them on the table.
Jia Wannian's eyes shone with astonishment. Perhaps he had expected Chen Xiaobei to have ginseng, but he hadn't expected him to have so much.
Jia Wannian picked up each ginseng root, examined them one by one, and nodded with satisfaction.
"Very good. These are all genuine wild ginseng. Five taels of silver is a reasonable price. Please wait here, I will go get the silver for you."
Before long, Jia Wannian returned, holding a cloth bag. He placed the bag gently on the table. "Esteemed young master, count it. It's exactly five thousand coins, no more, no less."
Chen Xiaobei looked at the bag, but did not open it, nor did he count to see if it was indeed five thousand coins.
He still believed in basic trust between people.
He cupped his fists towards Jia Wannian, took the bag, and was about to turn and leave. However, Jia Wannian called him back.
"Esteemed young master, please wait. I have a few words to say."
Chen Xiaobei stopped and turned his head. "Shopkeeper Jia, please tell me whatever you wish." Su Dan Novel Network
Jia Wannian chuckled, "I wouldn't dare accept your instructions. Esteemed young master, if I dig up any more medicinal herbs in the future, you can bring them directly here."
"If you dig up too many, esteemed young master, you can send a message, and I will personally lead people to collect them."
Chen Xiaobei took this remark as mere politeness.
After all, he couldn't imagine when he would be able to dig up so many medicinal herbs. Clearly, this was impossible.
Leaving Hua Hao Tang, Chen Xiaobei felt ecstatic.
Earning five thousand copper coins at once was equivalent to catching many pheasants.
He didn't linger in the county town and immediately turned to head home.
Upon returning home, Chen Xiaobei didn't say a word. He stepped forward, swept Cui Hongyu up into his arms, and lifted her into the air.