Chapter 201 Du Que'er

Ma Jiaju was the first to recover. He immediately stuffed the spirit coins clumsily back into the storage bag, then held the bag in both hands and handed it to Luo Xuanyi. His first words were a solemn warning to Luo Xuanyi: "Sister, you can't show off your wealth like this when you go out."

A few big men beside him came to their senses and nodded silently. No one knew whether the other party had any evil thoughts in his mind.

Luo Xuanyi thought to herself, I did this because I was sure of what I was doing. It would be best if one of you could give me an excuse out of greed. Then I would have the upper hand in terms of morality, and it would be easier for me to control you.

However, this trick cannot be done too obviously. Luo Xuanyi obediently took back the storage bag and casually put it into her sleeve.

"In that case, what do you think of my proposal?"

This time, Ma Jiaju's tone became more serious: "You need to talk to my sister about this matter. She is our leader. Come with me."

Ma Jiaju strode ahead, Luo Xuanyi following closely behind as they exited the main hall. The lingering aura of death caught the large men remaining in the hall, who immediately began whispering to each other after they left. Luo Xuanyi smiled nonchalantly and followed Ma Jiaju out of the main hall.

The door was unlocked, so Ma Jiaju opened it and invited Luo Xuanyi in. The interior of the house, like the courtyard, was decorated without great expense, yet every detail was thoughtfully crafted, especially the floating bowl of lantern-shaped cloud fruit on the table, which illuminated the room in lieu of candles.

Ma Jiaju said to Luo Xuanyi, "Please sit down for a while. I'll go to the inner courtyard to find my sister." He walked around the large screen and went inside without saying "please sit down or serve tea." However, Luo Xuanyi had already become accustomed to their efficient reception style and found a seat on her own.

To be honest, there wasn't much to see in this room. Luo Xuanyi stared blankly at the pot of Lantern Cloud Fruit, trying to think of a recipe for an elixir that could use Lantern Cloud Fruit. As she was thinking, she suddenly felt someone step over the threshold. Luo Xuanyi turned her head and met the eyes of the girl in white.

She was dressed entirely in white, save for her jet-black hair. Her delicate face had two eyes that curved downward, as if she might burst into tears at any moment. But she was also carrying a bucket full of brownish-red medicinal residue, which seemed to be quite a challenge for her arm strength. Luo Xuanyi judged that she hadn't been doing this work for long, and her shoulders would ache afterward.

Luo Xuanyi's scrutiny seemed to make the girl a little nervous. She lowered her eyes shyly, but instead of picking up the bucket and walking away as Luo Xuanyi had expected, she straightened up and greeted him normally, "Miss, would you like some tea?"

The voice was also soft. Luo Xuanyi instinctively wanted to stay away from people who were too soft and fragile. This reminded her of Thirteenth Sister. She shook her head and declined: "No."

The young woman didn't appear to be a servant, so seeing Luo Xuanyi sitting there waiting alone, she felt a sense of obligation to strike up a conversation. She took the initiative and said, "My name is Du Que'er. Are you waiting for Sister Ma? She just started acupuncture on Uncle He half an hour ago. She can't leave mid-treatment, so I'm afraid she won't be out for another half an incense stick."

Realizing she could get some information, Luo Xuanyi immediately put aside her sentimental side and put on a smile: "Really? Thank you for telling me. Just call me Xuanyi."

Du Que'er bent down and laboriously moved the wooden barrel to the wall so that it wouldn't block the door. Then she breathed a sigh of relief and continued chatting with Luo Xuanyi. She smiled, with two faint shadows of green under her eyes: "Then you can call me Que'er. Sister Ma calls me that too."

Observing Du Que'er's actions, it was obvious that she seemed to have encountered some kind of change, but Luo Xuanyi was unable to judge for the time being. However, her interest was not in Du Que'er herself. What she wanted was to find out some thinking patterns and weaknesses of the so-called Ma Er Niang from Du Que'er, which might be useful in the subsequent conversation.

Therefore, Luo Xuanyi started from the most useful part for her. Perhaps influenced by her emotions, or because of the way Ma Jiaju and the others spoke, her words became straightforward: "Que'er, are you a relative of Ma Erniang?"

"No," Du Que'er was stunned for a moment before she reacted. She subconsciously raised her hand and stroked the hair hanging on her shoulder. "It's because, well, I'm friends with Sister Ma, so I'm staying at Sister Ma's house."

It was probably because she had encountered something, a secret that she couldn't tell anyone, and Ma Er Niang was willing to take Du Que'er in.

Luo Xuanyi didn't intend to press the issue further. It would only embarrass Du Que'er, and she wouldn't be able to obtain any more information. She glanced through the door at the children busy pounding medicine in the yard. "I'm here to buy spiritual herbs and bone materials. Those children are pounding spiritual herbs, right? Were they hired by Ma Erniang?"

Hearing Luo Xuanyi stop asking questions, Du Que'er breathed a sigh of relief and looked over, her eyes soft and gentle. "Yes, Sister Ma hired these children to pound the herbs. This way, she can filter out some of the residue in advance and sell it for double the price, making it more profitable for every household to collect the herbs. She also pays the children an extra spiritual coin every month."

Luo Xuanyi knew it was best to listen to what Du Que'er said, but she couldn't help but retort, "But this crude premature extraction will only destroy the medicinal properties of the spiritual herbs. Although the degree of damage is very slight, the pills made in this way can't be considered perfect at all. It's a waste! The alchemist who is willing to pay a high price to buy it for alchemy should use it to refine... use it to learn again!"

Luo Xuanyi regretted her words the moment she finished speaking. Looking at Du Que'er's surprised face, she mentally spat at herself, her brain racing to find words to make amends, when she heard a surprised female voice from behind the screen.

"Miss, are you an alchemist?"

There is another chapter~ Although Sister Yi has not made pills for a long time, the perfectionism of Hua Shen Daoist’s alchemy has been completely inherited by Luo Xuanyi. They are indeed master and apprentice in this regard.