Zhou Yu asked hesitantly, "Madam, you said that pharmacies also buy dried kudzu root? What if we make it and sell it?"

This is the owner's mountain, and everything on the mountain belongs to the owner. They can eat it, but if they want to use it for anything else, they must get the owner's permission.

She didn't want to use it for anything else, but when she heard the lady mention it, she felt that it would be a loss if it were too valuable and ended up in their stomachs.

“Aunt Ding said she would buy them, but sometimes she would limit the quantity. The price wasn’t high either, only a dozen or so coins per pound after drying. But digging up kudzu is hard work, and washing and drying it are all tedious things. She said it’s better to keep it for herself than to carry it all the way to the prefectural city.” Shui Qing said after thinking for a moment.

Aunt Ding's exact words were that she didn't even want to dig!

After all, a pound of rice or wheat flour only costs about ten coins. If you dig up kudzu roots, dry them, and carry them to the pharmacy in the prefectural city, the shopkeeper might not even accept them. Even if they do, a pound of rice or wheat flour would only cost a dozen coins, barely the same price as rice or wheat flour. What's the point of all that trouble?

You'll be full no matter what you eat!

When Li Dani, Zhou Yu, and the other three heard that a pound of meat cost more than ten coins, their mouths gradually widened.

It costs more than ten coins, and it would be even better if it were twelve coins, enough to buy two catties of dark flour.

Most importantly, the kudzu roots on the mountain don't need any care. You can dig them up and sell them for more than ten coins a kilogram. Where else can you find such a good deal?

The five men were immediately tempted. Their eyes sparkled as they looked at Shui Qing and excitedly urged, "Madam, let's sell kudzu root!"

"It costs more than ten coins per pound, even twelve coins would be a profit! Anyway, they don't have much work to do during the off-season, so it's a good time to dig up kudzu roots, wash them, cut them, and dry them."

"One pound can be exchanged for two pounds of dark flour. We can sell what we can, and keep what we can't to eat. It's such a good deal!"

...

Shui Liqing understood.

She and Aunt Ding felt it wasn't worth it, as it was calculated based on the price of rice and flour.

Da Ni and her five friends thought it was a great deal because they were exchanging black coins for copper coins. They figured it was okay to work hard and be tired, since time wasn't valuable anyway, and earning a dozen coins was already very good.

"OK."

Shuiqing wondered if the old village chief was also thinking of selling it to try his luck? In the afternoon, when she was at work, she talked to the herbal medicine shop about the two ways to store kudzu root. That night, the whole village was filled with people washing kudzu root.

In late October, the first batch of processed black soybeans, ginger, and wine-processed Polygonum multiflorum, prepared through nine steaming and nine sun-drying processes, was completed. Along with the yam and dried tangerine peel produced over the past month, all were packed up and ready to be transported to pharmacies in the prefectural city.

Also included are kudzu root chunks.

Ding Heli and Fan Jin went together to the pharmacy to discuss the price with the shopkeeper.

Hu Wenhua chose a date at the end of the month and notified the men from each household who were going out to prepare in advance.

This time, many families in the village are also preparing to sell kudzu roots, and with the rabbits ready for market and the lime to be bought on the way back, the number of vehicles needed is much greater than before.

With a large quantity of goods and valuable medicinal herbs, more than ten more men joined the group on this trip.

Having made several safe trips before, everyone remained vigilant and prepared diligently.

It's best if you don't need it, but if you do, it might save your life!