"Father, you’re brilliant. I’ll check the current price of Xinjing grass and offer to buy it at double the usual rate. I won’t let a single blade of Xinjing grass fall into the master of Ruyi Pharmacy’s hands." "Go ahead and do that," Luanchen said calmly, his cunning eyes were sparkling. "Yes, Father," Su Nu replied. She quickly sent a servant to find out the current price of Xinjing grass. The servant returned shortly after receiving the order from her, reporting that because Xinjing grass grew on high mountains or deep valleys, most villagers did not bother collecting it for sale due to the long and dangerous journey deep in the forest. Hence, the price of Xinjing grass was as high as 200 brass coins per jin. "It’s that expensive?" Su Nu was shocked by the price of Xinjing grass. "Yes, it is. Right now, Ruyi Pharmacy is offering to buy large quantities of Xinjing grass at 250 brass coins per jin, with no limit on the amount," the servant reported thoroughly. "Is that so?" Follow current ɴᴏᴠᴇʟs on 𝔫𝔬𝔳𝔢𝔩⁂𝖿𝗂𝗋𝖾⁂𝔫𝔢𝔱 "Alright, go to Caijin Pharmaceutical Manufacturer and announce that they will be buying Xinjing grass at 300 brass coins per jin, with the same condition of no limit on the quantity.” The Zhong family servant hurried to Caijin Pharmaceutical Manufacturer and announced that they were buying Xinjing grass at 300 brass coins per jin, with no limit on the amount. This major news prompted the city’s herb gatherers to head into the deep forests to collect Xinjing grass for sale. A price of 300 cash was exceptionally high; collecting just one jin would earn them 300 brass coins. Although venturing into the deep forest was dangerous, those who could gather large quantities of Xinjing grass stood to make a significant profit. To put it in perspective, earning 300 brass coins would typically require four days of hard labor for a strong man. Three days later, at Ruyi Pharmacy. "What? They’re offering 300 brass coins?!" Master Tiao shouted in front of Ruyi Pharmacy. "No way. How will we get any Xinjing grass then? The villagers will sell all of them to Caijin Pharmaceutical Manufacturer. Go, Mi Fan, announce that we’ll buy at 400 brass coins!" Master Tiao shouted loud enough for two streets to hear, before storming back into the shop in a rage. A Zhong family servant who had been secretly observing quickly turned and rushed to inform her mistress. "Miss, Master Tiao has raised the purchase price to 400 brass coin.” Su Nu, who had been sipping tea, placed down her cup of fragrant tea and smiled with a gleam in her eye. "In that case, tell our people to raise our purchase price to 600 brass coin.” She wanted to see if Master Tiao could keep up with her offer. The bidding war between the two major pharmacies for Xinjing grass greatly benefited the villagers who collected and sold the Xinjing grass. The continuously rising prices significantly increased their incomes. In the following days, the price of Xinjing grass kept climbing due to the competition between the two major pharmacies. However, Master Tiao’s situation was much worse. Despite having been buying Xinjing grass for over a week, he had only managed to secure less than 30 jin. There was no way this would be enough to produce 300,000 pills. The cause of his dire situation was that whenever Ruyi Pharmacy raised Xinjing grass purchase price, Caijin Pharmaceutical Manufacturer would immediately increase theirs even higher. As things went , how could Xinjing grass make it to his hand? Yet, instead of worrying, Master Tiao leisurely sipped tea in the reception room. "Mi Fan, do you think I performed well this morning?" He was concerned that his performance might not have been convincing enough, as it could affect the grand plan. "Very well, Master. If it weren’t, Caijin Pharmaceutical Manufacturer wouldn’t have rushed to raise their price so quickly." "Oh, and what is their price now?" "It’s 2 taels per jin now, Master.” "They’re willing to dig into their own pockets this much? They must be desperate for trade rights." The price of 2 taels per jin for Xinjing grass was unprecedented. The price continued to increase without halt, a result of Master Tiao price manipulation. He took a final sip of tea before standing up. "Hurry, let’s go continue the show.” Master Tiao walked to the front of the shop, wearing a worried expression as he paced back and forth tirelessly. "No! I can’t lose this trade deal! Go, raise the price to 3 taels. Even if we suffer a loss, I must secure this trade deal!" he shouted loud and clear. Every word Master Tiao spoke was relayed to Su Nu and Luanchen without missing a single syllable. "Heh heh, so stubborn. Let’s see how much of a loss he can take," Luanchen said. In terms of capital, Ruyi Pharmacy was no match for him. If they wanted to compete, he would show them. How could a mere pharmacy compete with a wealthy merchant whose every venture prospered? They were on entirely different levels. "Raise our purchase price to 5 taels per jin. If they raise their price, increase ours by 2 taels each time. Don’t let them secure the trade rights," Luanchen said calmly. He calculated that this first deal might incur losses, but he would continue to do. They might face significant losses in the first trade, but the following trades would bring back all his money. Luanchen thought about it with much confidence. After that, the price of Xinjing grass continued to rise without any sign of stopping. Villagers flocked to the deep forests to collect Xinjing grass for sale. Selling just 3-4 jin of Xinjing grass could provide them with enough money to live comfortably for a year. Why wouldn’t they collect Xinjing grass to sell? "10 taels! Has Master Tiao gone mad? Buying common herbs at 10 taels?" "Haven’t you heard about the fight over the pill trade rights? The high price of Xinjing grass is because Ruyi Pharmacy and Caijin Pharmaceutical Manufacturer are competing for the trade rights. If you’re going to collect, do it quickly. The price will probably return to normal soon." "This won’t do, I have to tell my wife to go up the mountain to collect some too." "Yes, me too. I’ll take my son to gather some before the price drops." The villagers, including even nursing mothers and the elderly, carried a basket and went out to gather Xinjing grass since early in the morning. With that happening, the authorities sent soldiers into the forest to protect them from wild animals. However, contrary to their expectations, the price didn’t drop. Instead, it kept rising, with Caijin Pharmaceutical Manufacturer now buying Xinjing grass at the high price of 15 taels per jin. Zhong Furen, heavily pregnant and nearing her due date, was walking in the flower garden to relax. She noticed her eldest daughter, who had been looking stressed for days, heading toward her father’s residence. “How is the business going lately? Why does Nu’er look so worried?” She asked the servant. Zhong Furen usually didn’t concern herself with her husband’s business affairs. The business and management were handled by her husband and daughter. Su Nu was a smart child who began studying commerce with her father at the age of ten. Now, six years later, she was able to help her father manage the business efficiently. Zhong Furen didn’t want Su Nu to work outside the home much; a woman should stay in the boudoir, practicing embroidery and music as she should. However, her daughter was quite stubborn, and her father had pampered her to the point that she used to it. By this time, Su Nu was almost a co-leader of the Zhong family together with her father. All the servants knew that if Master Zhong was not around, they could turn to Lady Su Nu for decisions. “I heard that Master is competing for the pill trade rights, Furen.” “Pill trade rights?” Zhong Furen, being indoors, was unaware of the current events outside. “Yes, Furen. Master won the bid for the trade rights, but another pharmacy also won. So the authorities declared that for the first round, both pharmacies must send their goods to Chu Region, each responsible for half of the order. Whichever goods the Chu Region is more satisfied with will receive the exclusive trade rights.” “Oh, how is it going?” “Master has already bought up all the herbs before the other pharmacy could. It’s likely he will secure the trade rights.” “Then why does Nu’er look so anxious?” She saw her daughter walking into her husband’s residence with a troubled expression. “Don’t worry, Furen. Lady and Master will surely handle everything properly. Furen should take care of your pregnancy so the young master will be born healthy,” the servant said, trying to flatter her. Meanwhile, Su Nu was indeed as anxious as her mother had observed. “Father, if this continues, we will run out of money buying Xinjing grass. I have already ordered the purchase price to be raised to 20 taels per jin, but if the price keeps rising, we will suffer significant losses” At first, she was calm and thought that the money spent on Xinjing grass would be recouped once the Caijin Pharmaceutical Manufacturer secured the trade rights. But now it felt like throwing money into a lake, with no return. It should be noted that one jin of Xinjing grass could produce only three pills. Therefore, to supply three hundred thousand pills, she needed to buy one hundred thousand jin of Xinjing grass. “How much Xinjing grass have we obtained so far?” Luanchen asked. “We have only gotten fifty thousand jin, Father. We need another fifty thousand jin. If we have to buy another fifty thousand jin at 20 taels per jin or more, we will lose a significant portion of our savings. Should we continue to compete the price?” she began to worry. “We cannot retreat now,” Luanchen said. If they retreated, the fifty thousand jin of Xinjing grass they had bought would be wasted. But if they pushed forward, even though it would be tough, they at least had hope of a return, a massive return. “Father, but what if we lose the trade rights...” “We won’t lose! How could we lose after investing this much? There’s no way we’ll lose,” Luanchen interjected. “Go ahead and continue to outbid Ruyi Pharmacy. Don’t let them get a single blade of Xinjing grass.” Luanchen made a decisive decision. This investment was the largest of his life; if successful, the profits would be enormous. But if they failed, nearly a lifetime’s savings would vanish. However, a person like Luanchen would never let the money he had earned disappear. It was simply a large investment. Once they secured the trade rights, the money would be returned to him. “Yes, Father.” Although she agreed, Su Nu still looked worried. But surely her father wouldn’t make a mistake. Su Nu followed her father’s orders, instructing the servants to monitor Master Tiao closely. Whenever Master Tiao raised the price of Xinjing grass, she would immediately raise their price even higher. The intense competition of Xinjing grass’ price greatly benefited the townspeople. Some who were strong enough to venture deep into the forest and gather large amounts of Xinjing grass could afford to buy carts and build new houses. Diligent townsfolk who went out to gather Xinjing grass regularly earned substantial sums. This was big news in Fengfu. Even young children followed their parents into the forest. Currently, Master Tiao, a key player in this scheme, was soaking his feet in hot water, relaxing as he awaited a report from his servant. “We announced 22 taels, but this time Caijin Pharmaceutical Manufacturer seemed to hesitate. It took them two hours before they raised their offer to 25 taels, Master.” “Hmm,” Master Tiao replied with a voice in his throat. Usually, Caijin Pharmaceutical Manufacturer raised their bid within half a ke, but this time they took two hours. It seemed they were starting to worry about their funds too. Don’t push the dog into a corner; leave it a way out. Master Tiao closed his eyes, soaking in the warm water comfortably, and instructed his servant, “Don’t raise the price yet. Let’s wait and see. Raise it again in two days.” He had less than 100 jin of Xinjing grass in hand, as whenever he raised the price, the other party would quickly outbid him, leading most townsfolk to sell to Caijin Pharmaceutical Manufacturer instead. While the competition in the city was fierce, Zhenzhu was relaxing, practicing her spirit energy cultivation. She was quite bored after staying indoors for so long. Each day she alternated between designing clothes, inscribing characters, drawing formations, practicing Ten Thousand Silks Concealing the Sun techniques, and experimenting with planting different crops. She wondered when she could go outside again and how Brother Lang’s plan was progressing. After finishing guiding the spirit energy through her body for several rounds, she left her residence. Behind the reception hall, He Ming was diligently practicing martial arts, while He Yu was sketching on a wooden bench with Baihu and Xiao She poses obediently. “Baihu, lift your head a bit.” “Yes, just like that, very majestic,” the young artist instructed earnestly, making Zhenzhu laugh. “Miss, you’ve come out. I’ll go get some cold water for you right away.” Peipei walked out from the kitchen just in time. Upon seeing Zhenzhu, she hurried back inside to fetch a drink for her. “Thank you. By the way, Peipei, where are all the workers? Why are there only a few left?” Zhenzhu glanced around the vegetable garden. Only a handful of workers were helping He Lei with plant propagation. Normally, Zhenzhu scheduled their work in shifts, alternating between working and resting. Thus, the servants working in the garden were rotated regularly. Recently, the weather had become hotter, but her garden remained cool compared to the outside. As a result, most of the servants preferred working in their garden, helping He Lei, since the weather was nicer here. Moreover, Master He was generous, sometimes he gave them bonuses. “They’ve all gone to gather Xinjing grass, Miss.” “Oh, the Xinjing grass that Master Tiao and Caijin Pharmaceutical Manufacturer are competing to buy? What’s the current price?” This was Brother Lang’s plan, which she was also aware of it. She heard that the price of Xinjing grass had risen significantly. Having spent several days cultivating her spirit energy, she was curious about the current market situation. “The price is now 25 taels per jin, Miss.” “That much!” Zhenzhu exclaimed in surprise. No wonder the workers had disappeared; they must have gone up the mountain to collect Xinjing grass to sell. But no matter, it was their time off, and if they wanted to go and gather Xinjing grass, it was their right. Better yet, they would have more money. Zhenzhu understood that the high price of Xinjing grass was due to the current competition and not its actual value. Once the initial delivery of pills was completed, the price of Xinjing grass would likely return to normal. Thus, this period was truly a chance to earn money for the townspeople. “Peipei, aren’t you going to gather Xinjing grass like everyone else?” “How could I, Miss? Who would take care of you and Youngest Master?” “No need to take care of me. I can take care of myself. Don’t you want to earn some money?” Of course, she did, but she had to take care of the meals for everyone in the He family. How could she abandon her duties? “I do want to, Miss, but I’d rather take care of you.” Peipei was the servant who didn’t have days off like the others, but she was content to serve a mistress who used to help her. “Oh. I’ll find someone to help you with the housework then. You’ve been doing everything by yourself, it must be exhausting.” Peipei handled almost all tasks, from kitchen work, cleaning, laundry, and brewing wine, to managing the servants, selling vegetables, and even helping He Lei with plant cultivation whenever she had time. “It’s alright, Miss. I can manage. Sometimes Feng Yi and Feng Xian help me too.” Peipei didn’t want her mistress to bring many people in the house. People are complex, there is no way to know who is good or bad. A bad person could endanger her mistress and the rest of her masters. “Once the matter with Master Zhong is settled, I’ll take you to the slave market so you can choose an assistant yourself. This way you can choose the one you like. How does that sound?” “Good, it’s settled then.” Before Peipei could respond, Zhenzhu concluded the matter herself. “Peipei, where is Xin Xi?” “In the garden, Miss.” “Oh.” Zhenzhu acknowledged before walking into the garden, where she saw Xin Xi busily helping He Lei plant a new batch of vegetables. Besides Xin Xi, she also noticed an uninvited guest—the Young Master himself. Xincheng was currently rolling up his sleeves, carefully planting tiny seedlings into the soil. “Young Master Xincheng, why are you here planting vegetables?” Does the Young Master of the Water Dragon Sect have so much free time? Why doesn’t he go back home? “I’m helping to plant vegetables, hoping that Lady Zhu might treat me to a meal with the vegetables,” Xincheng replied playfully. “Well, then you’ll have to work to earn your vegetables,” Zhenzhu said, crossing her arms. “I’m working already. Or would you like me to do something else?” “I wouldn’t dare to ask the Young Master to work.” “Lady Zhu is too polite,” Xincheng said as he skillfully planted a seedling into the ground. Zhenzhu couldn’t help but be impressed. Does the Young Master need to plant his own vegetables? How is he so skilled at it? “Zhu’er, did you come to see Xin Xi?” He Lei asked. “Big Sister Zhu, what do you need?” Xin Xi paused his planting work and looked up. “I need you to hire workers to build a fabric shop. Aunt Qu and Yu Ning have woven a considerable amount of fabric, and it’s time to open a textile store.” Now that the Tiejin silk had been woven in sufficient quantities and the garments she designed and tailored were ready for sale, the only thing left was to construct the fabric shop to sell them. She planned to build a large building on the empty land she had purchased, just two li away from the He family’s vegetable and fruit store. She had already sent some of her designed dresses to Lisi in the capital and had asked her friends to wear her dresses at events to showcase her work. As the daughter of a general, whatever she did would draw attention. With this kind of product presentation, how could it not be beneficial? Moreover, Lisi frequently attended palace banquets and met with royalty. How could her designs not get attention from a princess or royal concubine? 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