Xu Lanyin put the pheasant, hare and mutton into the bamboo basket, took out the remaining piece of cake and said with a smile, "Uncle, you have been in the mountains for so long, you must be hungry. I made this snack myself, don't mind it."
The hunter happily accepted the cake. He was indeed hungry. He took a bite, and the delicious taste made his eyes widen. He exclaimed, "My God, this is even more delicious than meat." He couldn't bear to eat it anymore, so he ripped off two large leaves, wrapped the cake in them, and put them in his arms. He smiled and said, "Don't worry about the girl laughing. My little girl is so cute. I'm saving this rare cake for her to eat at home."
Xu Lanyin had a better impression of the hunter. The two walked together for a while and then parted ways when they reached a fork in the road.
Xu Lanyin also learned that his last name was Hong, that he lived in Nanping County, and that he had a little girl named Fang Jie'er, who was just three years old. She thought to herself that there were very few hunters living in the county.
After returning home, Xu Lanzhou was preparing to go to the fields with farm tools.
She pulled the two brothers into Qin's room. Qin was sitting on the kang mending clothes. The two big dolls were already made.
Xu Lanyin took out fifteen taels of silver and told them what had happened. Xu Lanzhou and Xu Lanting were both delighted. Why had good things been pouring into her family, or more precisely, into Xu Lanyin's life, lately?
Xu Lanyin didn't mention the small wooden plaque. The owner of Baicaotang, being connected to the old miraculous doctor, must be quite wealthy. They kept the plaque a secret for now, as leaking it would cause trouble. They also didn't dare mention the box of ointment, as it might be the "Jade Skin Regenerating Ointment," which would be even more problematic. They only claimed it could whiten skin and repair minor scars.
She only said that she met an old herbalist who took a fancy to a herb she had, which she didn't recognize, and traded it for a silver coin and some ointment. She didn't know if the old doctor the boy was looking for was the same herbalist.
Qin had also heard of the name of the old miracle doctor Zhang, and her expression became serious. She was not sure whether her daughter had met the legendary old miracle doctor. She told the children not to tell anyone about it, and repeatedly told Xu Lanyin to use the box of ointment sparingly. If that man was really the old miracle doctor, he would give her good things.
Qin took the ten taels of silver and said, "This silver plus what you gave me a few days ago is enough to buy six acres of land and some more. You can keep the other five taels for your dowry. When our family's life gets better in the future, I will save more for you..." With her reputation ruined, no young man would be willing to marry her without a small dowry.
She didn't say the rest of the sentence, but Xu Lanyin guessed it. With money in hand, she felt at ease. Xu Lanyin took the five taels of silver very readily, and as for whether to marry or not, she would talk about it later.
Xu Lanzhou was still worried that Xu Lanyin would ruin the family, and he didn't quite agree with Qin giving her so much money, but since it was already given, he couldn't say much. He advised, "Sister, hold on to your purse tightly and don't let anyone cheat you again."
Xu Lanyin went to the kitchen to wash her hands, then hurried back to her own room and took out the small wooden box from the kang cabinet.
She opened the lid and used her left index finger to rub a little onto a scratch on the back of her right hand. This was the scratch she had gotten that morning when she was pulling up golden fox vines. The scratch wasn't serious, just a thin, long red line, and only a few small drops of blood had been drawn.
As soon as the ointment was applied, the back of my hand felt cool immediately, and the skin after applying the ointment became much more smooth and white.
Xu Lanyin's eyes curved with laughter. Even if this ointment is not as good as the Jade Skin Regenerating Cream, it is still an excellent whitening skin care product.
Because she had put ointment on her hands, she didn't want to cook. She used the excuse of her hands hurting and ordered Xu Lanzhou to do it. She didn't have the idea that men should stay away from the kitchen.
Xu Lanzhou was working himself to the bone, energized by his sister's earnings. He cleaned the pheasant and stewed it, then prepared the intestines and stir-fried some chicken offal. He couldn't bear to eat the hare and mutton, so he smeared salt on the mutton and hung it under the eaves. He'd take the hare to town to sell tomorrow.
The chicken was ready, and Xu Lanyin scooped a large bowl of it and took it to the main room. She came back and instructed Xu Lanzhou to stir-fry some pickled chicken giblets and some stir-fried beans.
The whole family had a satisfying meal. Xu Lanyin and Xu Lanzhou didn't eat much of the chicken, leaving some for Qin and Xu Lanting to nourish their bodies.
Before going to bed, Xu Lanyin noticed that the scratch had lost its redness. The next morning, the first thing she did was hold her hand under the small window. In the dim morning light, the scratch on the back of her hand had vanished. Furthermore, the skin around it, where the ointment had been applied, was slightly smoother and whiter than the rest of her skin.
Xu Lanyin chuckled. This magical ointment must be the Jade Skin Regenerating Ointment. It could even repair burns and scalds, let alone a tiny scratch like this. It would only take a few hours to heal.
Xu Lanyin took out the small wooden box again. The amount in this box was five or six times what she had given Su Qing. She wondered what kind of miraculous herb the original owner had gathered, the blackroot grass, could actually be exchanged for so much Jade-like Regenerating Skin Cream. The book said this cream was priceless, so she wondered how much a small wooden plaque of the same value would fetch. The old doctor also said that if his favors couldn't buy it, he could exchange them for requests for favors from the boss, so he decided not to exchange the plaque for money for the time being. Then she thought, if the boss was particularly influential, wouldn't it be like overkill to ask him to do something for a peasant like her?
Whether to exchange money or do something else, we’ll see.
Thinking of the foolish original owner, Xu Lanyin felt heartbroken for her. She had such a great opportunity, but she was completely unaware of it, living such a humble life, and even lost her life for a few dates.
She put the small wooden box into the kang cabinet and locked it. The small wooden sign and the small wooden box were placed in an ordinary purse. Even if a thief came, he would not notice them and would instead steal the purse containing silver coins and silver ingots.
She leaned against the kang, wondering what miraculous medicinal effects the two blackroot grasses had that could make the old doctor give the original owner so much jade-like regenerating cream and that small wooden sign and still feel that she was being cheated. She carefully recalled every word the old doctor said.
Gradually, the old doctor's vague words became clear, "...This is really blackroot grass...It only mutates once every sixty years, only one mutated among the thousands of jasmine grasses...Finally..."
What "finally" meant? Xu Lanyin couldn't recall it no matter how hard she tried. But she was certain that Blackroot was a mutation of Jasper, a plant that only mutates once every sixty years, and only one mutation per ten thousand jasper plants. Furthermore, only the environment of Oat Mountain was suitable for Jasper to mutate, and that was what attracted the ancient healer from thousands of miles away... No wonder it was so precious.
It appears once every sixty years, which means that after this year, blackroot grass will not appear again until sixty years later.
Xu Lanyin sat up straight. She had to go back there and see if there were any more. The old doctor said the original owner had found two trees at once, which was a great opportunity. As a time traveler, wouldn't she be even more fortunate? Judging by the name of blackroot grass, this medicine primarily uses its roots. Even if the seedlings withered, the roots in the soil should still be there.
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