Chapter 32: The Methods of the Medical Practitioners
Gu Youan took the Du family to the Hu family on the mountain. It was already noon when they arrived at the Hu family.
Hu Changpu stood at the intersection to greet them and said to Gu Youan with a smile, "I knew you couldn't wait and would definitely come today."
Gu Youan's face flushed with heat. He wiped the sweat off his face with his sleeves and stared at Hu Changpu. "You didn't give the thing I wanted to someone else, did you?"
"Since you've asked, I'll definitely keep mine for you. But I don't know if other herbalists have sold it to other herbal medicine collectors."
Hu Changpu spread his hands, looking like a scoundrel who I couldn't control.
Gu Youan snorted lightly and said, "Just wait. If the Han family fails, you will have to beg me for help in the future."
Gu Youan raised his chin towards Hu Changpu and said, "Let me introduce you to a few people."
Gu Youan invited her uncle Du Qing and Uncle Du Er to come over and introduced them to Hu Changpu. Hu Changpu politely asked them to sit down and asked someone to bring tea.
"Please forgive me, we mountain folk don't have much good tea. We just use local ingredients, picking some herbs and boiling them with water to drink as tea."
Du Qing took a sip of tea and looked down at the herbs in the tea bowl. There were summer cypress, mulberry leaves, and wild chrysanthemums, all of which are herbs for clearing away heat and removing fire.
Gu Youan didn't see the elders of Hu Changpu's family: "Your grandfather and your father are not here?"
"These days are a great time to collect herbs. They've gone up into the mountains, so I've been assigned to selling the herbs. Just tell me what herbs you need."
Gu Youan knew the ins and outs of the matter, so he didn't listen to his nonsense. He took a short break, drank a cup of tea, and then stood up. "Take us to your warehouse to have a look. If the price is right, we'll take it all."
Hu Changpu smiled and said, "Then please come in."
The Hu family has several warehouses for storing medicinal materials. Some are two or three stories high to isolate them from moisture, snakes, insects, rats and ants, while others are basements built underground. In short, each has its own storage method depending on the preservation conditions of the medicinal materials.
Du Qing and Uncle Du were already knowledgeable people, but this was the first time they had seen a family like the Hu family that not only understood medicinal materials but was also willing to spend a lot of money to build a warehouse.
The layman sees the excitement, the expert sees the details. Just looking at the Hu family's warehouse, you will know that the Hu family's medicinal materials are definitely not of poor quality.
At the beginning of spring, except for the medicinal herbs specifically requested by Prince Qi's Mansion, most of the remaining medicinal herbs in the Hu family's inventory were sold to the Han family.
A batch was sold in the spring, but now the Hu family’s warehouse is still half full.
Hu Changcai: "As you know, there are many solitary herbalists scattered in the mountains. They don't want to go down the mountain to sell the herbs. Every year at the turn of spring and summer and before the snow falls in winter, they will send the herbs they have collected to our house and ask us to sell them."
The Han family bought the medicinal herbs that the Hu family picked and collected in the second half of the year in the spring. What is now in the warehouse are all the new herbs delivered after the spring.
Uncle Du identified them one by one, put the herbs in his mouth and chewed them. Then Uncle Du exchanged glances with his clansmen. They were all top-quality herbs, so it all depended on how they bid.
The room next to the big warehouse was a small warehouse where the Hu family stored precious medicinal materials. After paying for the ginseng, Gu Youan finally breathed a sigh of relief when he got it.
Several children were chasing and playing downstairs in the warehouse, while upstairs, Gu Youan and Hu Changpu were talking by the window.
"The Han family's division hasn't been finalized yet. When Shopkeeper Han returns in two months, he definitely won't go south again in the second half of the year. Where are you going to sell the herbs you've harvested over the past six months?"
Gu Youan is no longer a newbie in the industry who knows nothing. Just by looking at the Hu family's warehouse, she knows that they cannot store medicinal herbs for two seasons a year. If the medicinal herbs cannot be sold to the Han family in the second half of the year, the Hu family will definitely find other ways to ship them.
Hu Changpu didn't agree with Gu Youan's words. He said, "If the warehouse is not enough, we can just build another one. Is there still a lack of space or wood in the mountains?"
"Who are you trying to appease?"
Gu Youan's lips curled up slightly, and he tapped the window frame with his palm. "If you dismantle the wood in these warehouses of your Hu family and sell it, the money you get from selling them will be enough for your family to buy several large houses in Luoyang City. What do you think?"
Not to mention how difficult it is to build this warehouse with such precision, let's just talk about the wood used to build it. The outside is moisture-proof and anti-corrosion pine wood, and the inside is insect-proof camphor wood.
Not to mention pine wood, camphor wood was a precious wood in the Zhou Dynasty. If a young lady in Songjiang City got married, it would be very honorable if her family gave her a camphor wood box as a dowry, which shows its value.
The Hu family wanted to build a new warehouse, and the camphor wood they needed was not enough to make a few boxes. Even if the Hu family had plenty of money, it would be difficult to get enough wood to build a warehouse in a short period of time.
Hu Changpu was not annoyed by Gu Youan's revelation. He smiled and said, "Why, you want to buy all the medicinal herbs for my family in the second half of the year too?"
Hu Changpu had always known that Gu Youan wanted to get involved in the medicine store and make it bigger and stronger. He smiled and said, "Don't be so greedy. With the little money you have, you can barely buy half of my ginseng. Forget about anything else."
Lack of money has always been Gu Youan’s weakness.
Gu Youan glanced at the ginseng she had just bought. If she could exchange the ginseng for money and make her business boom, she could consume at least most of the medicinal herbs for the Hu family in the second half of the year.
After another one or two years, the money earned will be continuously invested, and the interest will be compounded, and the business will gradually grow bigger.
Don't be in a hurry, and there is no need to be in a hurry.
Over there, Uncle Du and his companions had selected their herbs and were negotiating the price of each one with Hu Chang Pu. Gu Youan stood by and watched without saying much.
Uncle Du and his men are all veterans, so they don't need Gu Youan to say anything. As long as she, who knows the ins and outs of the Songjiang City medicinal materials store, stands here, the Hu family will not ask for an exorbitant price.
The Du family came prepared, and all the medicinal herbs in the Hu family's warehouse were bought up. Uncle Du still felt it was not enough, but it didn't matter. Gu Youan knew several other big merchants selling medicinal herbs, and he would take the Du family there in a couple of days.
After buying so many medicinal herbs, they need to be sent down the mountain. The Hu family helped to send these herbs to the Ping'an Escort Agency in Songjiang City. However, it was getting late now and they couldn't make it today. They had to send them down the mountain early tomorrow morning.
After finishing the business, Du Qing said to Gu Youan with some regret: "You have only been in the pharmacy for a year or two, and you have already understood many of the tricks. If you had learned earlier, even if you could not become a famous doctor, you would at least be a well-known figure in this industry."
Gu Youan didn't know whether to laugh or cry: "Uncle, please stop saying that. You're the only one who thinks I'm good in every way."
"You are naturally good in every way. Is there anyone who says you are not good?"
Du Qing glared at Du Er, who said helplessly, "I never said that."
Du Qing and Du Er were of the same age, from the same clan, and had grown up together. Du Qing was particularly rude to Du Er: "You can't say that. If you hear someone say something bad about An An, you have to help curse back. An An at least calls you uncle, so you should also shoulder the responsibility of an elder."
Du Er was so angry that he almost laughed: "An An has been in the neighboring village and she doesn't follow me every day. How can I help her?"
Gu Youan blinked and said, "Is there really a chance that Second Uncle Du can help me?"
"What? I don't understand?"
Gu Youan coughed lightly, lowered his head slightly and said, "I'm going to go on business with you."
"Are you going to Yizhou Prefecture?"
"I'm not going to Yizhou Prefecture. I'm only going to Luoyang, and at most I'll go south to Jiangnan. I'll sell some medicinal herbs and come back."
I can use the money I earn to buy the medicinal herbs that the Hu family collected in the second half of the year, and make another trip in the fall. If I’m quick, I should be able to return to Songjiang City before winter.
Du Qing and Du Er refused, and Du Qing advised: "An An, traveling for business is hard, and it's not easy for a little girl like you to go with you."
"I was weak during exile, but I managed to get here on my own two feet. I'm not afraid of hardship."
Du Qing: “…” He couldn’t find any words to refute.
Uncle Du raised a practical question: "Will your parents agree?"
"They should... agree." Gu Youan said quickly, "And you two are here to speak for me. My parents will definitely feel at ease if I go out with you."
Uncle Du sneered. He didn't believe it. Gu Wen and his wife valued their three children very much, and they cared even more about An An, their daughter who had suffered a tragic fate.
Du Qing wanted to persuade her again, but Du Er stopped him: "Don't try to persuade her, you can't convince her. After you go down the mountain, tell her parents that she won't be able to leave."
Gu Youan thought, that’s not necessarily the case. After all, she has the space in her hands, and there are acquaintances protecting her on the road, so her parents will most likely not stop her.
Otherwise, her parents would not have agreed to let her use the family money as she pleased.
Gu Youan thought of Guo Su and the Ping'an Escort Agency. With them escorting the convoy, his parents would definitely be more willing.
After resting at the Hu family for one night, the next day the Hu family delivered medicinal materials and the Du family to Songjiang City. They entered from the East Gate, passed through East Street and South Street, and went to the Ping'an Escort Agency in the west of the city.
When passing by East Street and passing by the door of Zhang's drug store, Gu Youan saw the eldest daughter-in-law of the Luo family crying in the drug store, and the other two brothers of the Luo family also looked frightened. There were many people gathered in the drug store talking and exclaiming.
Gu Youan hurried in and asked, "What happened?"
"Luo Dalang fell from a high place and hit a wooden stake, causing a rupture in his stomach." A villager from the neighboring mountain village who came to send someone off recognized Gu Youan.
At this time, Zhang Yinshan ran out in a hurry. The bloodstains on his chest were very glaring. Luo Dalang's wife was so scared that she almost fainted.
Gu Youan hurriedly asked, "Where are you going in such a hurry?"
"My father sent me to the Li family's medicine shop up ahead to borrow some goat gut. I don't have enough at home."
Zhang Yinshan ran away at the top of his lungs, followed by Du Qing and Uncle Du.
When Du Qing heard that someone inside had a broken stomach, he said anxiously, "I'll go in and help."
Du Qing's medical skills were passed down from his ancestors. If one must cite a particular specialty of the Du family, it would be their expertise in treating typhoid fever. However, patients came to him for treatment with a wide variety of ailments, and Du Qing could treat other conditions as well.
Occasionally, when he encountered a patient with trauma, Du Qing would reluctantly use the techniques of a ulcer doctor.
Du Qing ran to help. As soon as he entered, he saw several people pressing the injured person on the bed. The patient was wailing and screaming, and Zhang Shinan was sewing up the patient's stomach.
"Don't scream, just bear with it for a while, the Ma Fei San will take effect soon."
Luo Dalang was so painful that his face turned pale and sweat poured down like rain. "Doctor Zhang, am I still going to live?"
"Your stomach isn't completely broken. Wait until I sew it up and you get through the fever in the next few days. Good days are still ahead for you."
Du Qing was stunned by Zhang Shinan's unique suturing technique. How could the wound be sewed like this?
Zhang Yinshan borrowed some goat gut and quickly soaked it in warm water. He then brought in the processed goat gut to sew up the last cut. Luo Dalang had stopped crying.
"Doctor Zhang, I feel numbness in my stomach. Does it hurt?"
Zhang Shinan stood up steadily and said with a smile, "I'll make some plasters and apply them later. You should drink the medicine I made for you. Just lie in bed and take good care of yourself."
"Can it be cured by taking medicine?"
Luo Dalang was a little skeptical. When he was a child, he saw someone fall and hit his stomach on a hoe, causing his stomach to burst and bleed. However, his injury was not as serious as his. He died of fever within a few days. The doctor said that it was an invasion of external evil and there was no way to save him.
"If I say yes, it's fine. I used to be an imperial physician. Can't I cure such a minor illness?"
Zhang Shinan consoled him, "Luo Dalang, your family has worked so hard over the years and finally built a house this year. You're going to live a good life again. Can you bear to die now?"
Luo Dalang shook his head hurriedly. He didn't want to die.
"Then take good care of it. Trust me, there will be no problem."
Du Qing, the bystander, was stunned by Zhang Shinan's confident tone. He didn't expect that there was an imperial physician in Songjiang City.
Du Qing didn't want to follow Du Er in business anymore. He wanted to stay in Songjiang City, even if it was just to help Doctor Zhang for a few days.
Gu Youan immediately smiled and said, "That's fine. Uncle will stay in Songjiang City for a few months. When we return from Jiangnan, you can follow Uncle Du back to Yizhou Prefecture."
If Uncle Du and his companions only traveled between Yizhou Prefecture and Songjiang City, they could only make one round trip a year.
If you go to Jiangnan first and then return to Songjiang City, and then rush back to Yizhou Prefecture before winter, you can earn money twice a year.
The Du family members can figure it out on their own without Gu Youan’s persuasion.
It's a rare opportunity that the Han family has given up when something happened, so it would be a waste not to make money from it.
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
