A century-old ginseng?
Li Qianfan’s eyes lit up immediately, just as the girl had said, millennium ginseng was indeed too precious and could be described as invaluable, but on the other hand, century-old ginseng and millennium ginseng were only different in age, yet both were still ginseng.
Why not buy a century-old ginseng to test the waters?
Perhaps the Spirit Gathering Liquid made from century-old ginseng might not achieve the best effect, but for him, who was at the ‘Qi Refining Realm Level Three’, it would still have some effect, right?
No matter, he would try testing the waters first.
Li Qianfan immediately nodded and said, “Okay, century-old ginseng will do. Can you bring it out for me to see?”
“Sir, I’m sorry, the century-old ginseng is too precious and is currently kept by the store manager. Please wait a moment, I will inform the manager.”
With that, the girl walked out from behind the cashier counter and headed straight upstairs.
About two minutes later, the girl came down accompanied by a man in his thirties, wearing a crisp suit and gold-framed glasses, with a slim figure. He looked shifty-eyed, especially with that insincerely smug smile, giving off a sense of being untrustworthy.
“Sir, this is our store manager. You can just call him Manager Zheng,” said the girl as she approached Li Qianfan.
“Hello, Manager Zheng, you can just call me Li Qianfan,” Li Qianfan responded.
Although the manager’s appearance left a bad impression on Li Qianfan, he understood the principle of not judging a book by its cover and took the initiative to shake hands with him.
“Mr. Li, I heard that you want to buy century-old ginseng?”
As they shook hands, Zheng Tianhua scrutinized Li Qianfan, and upon realizing that he was blind, his eyes darted around, contemplating something.
Li Qianfan asked, “Yes, I primarily want to inquire about the price of the century-old ginseng.”
“The century-old ginseng I have now is priced at about 150,000 in the market, but if you really want it, you can take it for 145,000,” Zheng Tianhua replied.
145,000!
For the Li Qianfan of the past, this price was indeed exorbitantly high, but now he had two million that Lin Yiren had just transferred to him. Excluding the nine hundred thousand used to help his brother, he still had one million one hundred thousand in hand, which was more than enough to buy two century-old ginsengs to try out.
“I can accept this price, but could I have a look at the quality of the ginseng?”
After mulling over for a moment, Li Qianfan then asked.
Zheng Tianhua’s eyes brightened at the request, and he immediately nodded, “Of course, you can come with me to my office. We can have tea and chat at the same time.”
At Zheng Tianhua’s invitation, Li Qianfan arrived at the manager’s office. Once he sat on the sofa, Zheng Tianhua very enthusiastically poured him some tea, impeccable in his service, which made Li Qianfan feel valued and rather pleased.
After several cups of tea, Li Qianfan took the initiative to say, “Manager Zheng, let me have a look at the quality of the ginseng.”
“Right, right, right. Look at my memory, I almost forgot about the important matter,” Zheng Tianhua exclaimed, hitting his head as he walked toward the desk, “I’m just a person who likes making friends. I got so engaged chatting with you that I almost forgot about this important matter. I’ll get it for you right now.”
Pulling open a drawer, Zheng Tianhua took out a very exquisite black wooden box, then quickly approached Li Qianfan.
Opening the box, a perfectly preserved ginseng was presented in front of Li Qianfan. He first leaned over to smell it, then gently touched the ginseng with his hand. As his fingers touched the ginseng, a look of surprise appeared on his face.
The ginseng contained a faint trace of spiritual energy. Although not rich, it was enough to prove that the ginseng was genuine.
Although the effect of the century-old ginseng wasn’t as good as the millennium ginseng, what if, every time he made Spirit Gathering Liquid, he added two more century-old ginsengs? Wouldn’t that also yield a very good effect? Read latest stories on empire
Thinking this, Li Qianfan immediately asked, “Manager Zheng, how many century-old ginsengs do you have here?”
“Just this one!”
Zheng Tianhua gave a helpless smile and said, “Mr. Li, century-old ginseng is also a rare item. This one was just obtained from out of town recently. Why, do you need a lot of century-old ginseng?”
Li Qianfan said, “Yes, one isn’t enough; I would like to buy another one.”
Upon hearing this, Zheng Tianhua’s gaze toward Li Qianfan changed immediately. He hadn’t expected that a seemingly ordinary blind man would request two hundred-year-old ginseng roots.
Such items were quite rare in the small Taoyuan County.
After hesitating for a moment, he asked, “Mr. Li, if I may be so bold, what do you need so much hundred-year-old ginseng for?”
Not wanting to reveal his identity as an alchemist, Li Qianfan hastily found an excuse, “I have an elder celebrating a birthday, and I plan to give him two hundred-year-old ginseng roots as a gift.”
A gift?
For a moment, Zheng Tianhua was even more astonished. Buying hundred-year-old ginseng as a gift certainly spelled the demeanor of a wealthy second-generation. However, having mingled in Taoyuan County for many years and knowing many rich heirs, he had never come across someone like Li Qianfan.
He decided to find an opportunity to inquire more about this fellow.
“Mr. Li, I currently have only one hundred-year-old ginseng root. If you really want it, I could ask around with my friends to see if I could help you get another one,” he offered.
Upon hearing this, Li Qianfan’s eyes lit up. He said, “Manager Zheng, that would be a great help. I’m also short some rare medicinal herbs; could you help me gather some?”
“What kinds of herbs do you need?” Zheng Tianhua asked.
“Do you have a pen and paper? I’ll write them down for you,” Li Qianfan offered.
“You’re blind, yet you can write?” Zheng Tianjie asked in surprise.
“Yes, I can,” Li Qianfan nodded.
Following that, Zheng Tianhua didn’t say much else and immediately brought a pen and paper to Li Qianfan. He was slightly astonished to see how quickly Li Qianfan wrote, wondering to himself if this guy really was blind.
It wasn’t until Li Qianfan handed over the paper filled with the names of herbs that he regained his composure. His expression became more serious, especially upon seeing the last dozen types of herbs listed, causing his eyebrows to furrow.
Looking up, he asked, “Mr. Li, the first few are common herbs, but the ones toward the end are particularly rare and also quite expensive. However, I can try to leverage my connections in Taoyuan County to see if I can help you gather them all.”
“That would be truly appreciated, Manager Zheng,”
Li Qianfan responded with a delighted face, “If you can help me gather these herbs, there will be a handsome reward.”
Zheng Tianhua replied, “Don’t mention it; this is what I should do.”
Immediately, Li Qianfan pulled out a bank card and said, “I’ll buy that hundred-year-old ginseng root now. Let’s swipe the card!”
After Li Qianfan left with the ginseng that cost 145,000, Zheng Tianhua lit a cigarette and sat on the sofa, puffing away until the cigarette was finished. Then he took out his phone and dialed, “Hello, Tianjie, do me a favor, look up a blind man named Li Qianfan in Taoyuan County. He’s about 22 or 23 years old and requested two hundred-year-old ginseng roots…”
…
At 11:30 in the morning, Li Qianfan returned to Qilin District carrying a large bag of herbs.
Looking at the room full of herbs, Li Qianfan became worried; his house was simply too small and not a suitable place for making Yang Strengthening Pills. Since finding out how prestigious an alchemist’s identity was, he dared not make elixirs outside.
If someone passing by saw, it could easily lead to troublesome issues.
It would be perfect if he could find a place similar to a small rural yard to make elixirs.
But in the town, such places were not easy to find.
Hmm, perhaps he could rent a small courtyard in Zhao Tianjie’s village specifically for alchemy.
The next moment, Li Qianfan dialed Zhao Tianjie’s number and conveyed his need; upon hearing this, Zhao Tianjie almost immediately agreed to help Li Qianfan find such a place.
After hanging up, Li Qianfan carefully took out the hundred-year-old ginseng, and seeing that such a small amount cost tens of thousands, he couldn’t help feeling a pinch of pain. It had to be said, cultivating was indeed an expensive endeavor.
It seems earning money should be a priority, or else even buying herbs would be a challenge.
Just as Li Qianfan was preparing to start making Yang Strengthening Pills to earn some money, the door was suddenly knocked on. At the same time, a familiar voice called from outside, “Is anyone home? It’s Huang Yuanyuan!”
Huang Yuanyuan?
Li Qianfan’s eyes brightened instantly, and he immediately went to open the door. As soon as the door opened, a unique scent of milk wafted in, refreshing his spirit and causing flashes of drinking milk in Huang Yuanyuan’s arms a few days prior to pass through his mind.
Now, was Huang Yuanyuan here to offer milk again??