With a deafening clap of thunder, dark clouds filled the sky. The clear sky of the morning turned gloomy in the blink of an eye, and a torrential downpour began.

With no one going out in such weather, Shangguan Wu taught people about medicinal herbs in the ancestral hall.

"This is Qianghuo, which grows in the undergrowth of high mountain shrubs or in grasslands. It is needed to treat colds caused by wind and cold, headaches and fever, tonsillitis, rheumatoid arthritis, and lockjaw caused by stroke."

Shangguan Wu held up a stalk of Notopterygium root and introduced it to everyone: "Its surface is light purple with vertical stripes and is hairless. Its roots and stems have a fragrance; smell them."

She handed it to the village chief on her left.

The village chief sniffed it, looked at it carefully, and said hesitantly, "This looks like a dog's breath flower? I've seen this in the back mountain."

Shangguan Wu nodded and said, "Yes, Qianghuo is also known as Bamboo Qiang and Big-Headed Qiang."

She then picked up another herb and introduced it: "This is bamboo ginseng, also known as white ginseng, radish ginseng, or seven-leaf ginseng. It grows in shady and damp places in high mountain thickets or beside rocky ravines..."

The elderly listened attentively, while the school children wrote down her words, such as the names and effects of each herb.

The heavy rain lasted for more than three hours before gradually subsiding.

Shangguan Wu told the villagers about the common herbs found in the mountains. When his throat got dry from talking, the teacher and two senior students took over the conversation.

As the rain lessened and it got dark, the elderly people took the children home.

Shangguan Wu stood at the door, looking at the drizzling rain outside, then looked up at the sky, her delicate eyebrows slightly furrowed.

Bian Changyuan walked out, looked at the sky, and sighed, "This rain is likely to last a long time."

Shangguan Wu said, "Teacher, with such heavy rain, that mountain road is difficult to travel. Let's stay in Tamzhai for a few more days."

Bian Changyuan nodded and told her, "Go back and make yourself a cup of honeysuckle tea and get some rest."

Shangguan Wu walked along the stone path in the village, holding an umbrella. Listening to the sound of raindrops, his restless mood gradually calmed down.

No matter how many people Xiao Jingming sends, we'll meet them head-on!

Everyone thought the rain would only last three or four days, or at most six or seven days, but to everyone's surprise, it rained on and off for half a month.

Although the heavy rain trapped people, the elderly in the village recovered after half a month of treatment; those with mild symptoms recovered, and those with severe symptoms also showed improvement.

The children learned about common herbs and that they could make money from them, so they gathered together to discuss going to the mountains to collect herbs when the weather cleared up.

They had explored every mountain surrounding the village, because there were plenty of wild vegetables in the mountains during the spring, and they would go into the mountains every day to have more food. But there were wild animals in the deep mountains, so they were not allowed to go there.

Shangguan Wu gave them an idea: to cultivate Chinese medicinal herbs.

Based on the terrain of Tamzhai, she recommended three Chinese medicinal herbs worth cultivating and developing: Salvia miltiorrhiza, Saposhnikovia divaricata, and Atractylodes macrocephala.

They were also taught how to process these three Chinese medicinal herbs.

Bian Changyuan was fully aware of Shangguan Wu's every move in the village, because his students had told him.

"Professor, isn't what the junior student is doing a bit inappropriate?"

Bian Changyuan casually asked, "What's wrong with it?"

“The market for Chinese medicinal herbs is already saturated. People are taking Western medicine and seeing Western doctors. Traditional Chinese medicine has declined. If these villagers can’t sell their medicinal herbs, wouldn’t that be adding insult to injury?”

Listening to the students' words, Bian Changyuan sighed helplessly: "The efficacy of some traditional Chinese medicine treatments is no worse than that of Western medicine, and may even be better. It's just that they are not promoted enough, which has led to their decline or even discontinuation."

He doesn't know if he will live to see the effective promotion and application of traditional Chinese medicine's unique techniques.

"Should we stop the junior?"

They knew the junior meant well, but if she made things worse, they would be blamed.

Bian Changyuan looked at him, shook his head and said, "Do you think she made this decision without careful consideration? She must have thought of a solution. If you don't believe me, go ask her."

"Then I'll go find the junior now."

Not long after, the boy appeared in the ancestral hall and was stunned when he saw Shangguan Wu playing games with a group of children.

A child noticed him and stopped.

The boy called out, "Junior girl."

Shangguan Wu looked up and saw one of the teacher's students. She stood up and asked, "Is there something you need, senior?"

"I'd like to talk to you alone, is that alright?"

"Let's talk outside the ancestral hall."

Shangguan Wu glanced at the little kids, then took the lead in walking out of the ancestral hall, grabbed an umbrella from the doorway, and went to the stone slab square in front of the ancestral hall.

Du Wei and Anan followed closely behind her, holding umbrellas.

The boy was taken aback at first, then opened his umbrella and followed.

In the stone slab courtyard, Shangguan Wu asked, "Senior, what do you want to tell me?"

The boy glanced at the two bodyguards, knowing they wouldn't leave, and his gaze fell on Shangguan Wu's delicate and fair face. No matter how many times he looked at her, her face was still stunning.

He shifted his gaze to her umbrella and asked, "I heard you had the villagers here grow medicinal herbs, is that right?"

Shangguan Wu nodded: "Yes."

The boy said tactfully, "Junior, I know you mean well, but you may not understand the Chinese herbal medicine market and the public's attitude towards traditional Chinese medicine. We have good herbs, but we can't sell them. It's not that our traditional Chinese medicine is bad, but that the market is not friendly to us. Do you understand?"

A hint of surprise flashed across Shangguan Wushui's eyes, and she smiled slightly: "Thank you for reminding me, senior. I've already looked into it."

"Since you understand this, are you still going to let them plant it?"

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