8 Chapter 8
◎Guess what seed it is◎
Cheng Mu told Mu Yun that she was going to ask Captain Lin about the clerk in the county government who was in charge of registering their household, and revealed that they wanted to apply for household registration and hoped that Captain Lin would introduce them.
After drinking for an hour, Mu Yun came back.
His face was flushed and he reeked of alcohol. Cheng Mu poured him a glass of water and said, "I asked you to serve your master some wine, but why did you drink it?"
Mu Yun said, "Brother Chen Jiang persuaded me very hard."
"What did your master say about the question you were asked?"
Mu Yun said, "The person in charge of household registration documents is called Zhang Ping. Master Lin was worried that I might not be able to pay attention, so he told me to keep some money on hand. Even if he comes in person, I have to do him a favor."
"Did you tell me how much silver you're going to prepare?"
"Five cents."
When dealing with clerks in the yamen, it is inevitable to give favors. With Captain Lin as the go-between, the favor fee is just a token of appreciation. Now Cheng Mu has a clear idea in her mind.
The more money you have, the more options you have when buying a house, so you still have to think of a way.
Selling grain? Grain takes up space and requires manual labor to transport, so it's not a good time to sell it.
Anything that can be planted in space can grow, not necessarily food. What crops are small, easy to carry, and valuable?
Seeing Cheng Mu's worried face, Mu Yun knew she must be worried about money, so he took the lead and said, "I'll find a way to pay back the expenses of becoming your disciple."
Cheng Mu looked at him and laughed, "No need, you just need to do what I tell you to do."
She told Mu Yun to go buy seeds tomorrow, buying whatever would not take up space after harvest and would sell for a high price. She told him to look around and pick out two or three that he found suitable. Cheng Mu gave Mu Yun one or two taels of silver.
The next day, Mu Yun went out at dawn and came back at Sipai time.
Cheng Xi was very interested to know what he brought back.
Mu Yun opened a bag of small cloth balls and poured the seeds into Cheng Mu's palm. There were only a few dark brown, flat, round seeds in her palm.
Mu Yun was a little proud, "Guess what kind of seed it is."
Cheng Mu took a closer look but couldn't see anything with the naked eye. She picked up a grain and was about to peel it and crush it. Mu Yun was very distressed and quickly stopped her, saying, "Don't waste it. I'll tell you what it is. It's ginseng."
Ginseng? Ginseng seeds?
Cheng Mu couldn't help but laugh. "Where did you buy it? Someone's selling ginseng seeds? Has artificial cultivation started already?"
When she was studying, she studied more about food, and ginseng was beyond her knowledge.
Mu Yun said, "A young merchant brought them here. He met a herbalist on the way. These were seeds the herbalist had collected while gathering ginseng in the mountains. He thought they were rare and was planning to buy some to grow himself, but now he doesn't want to grow them anymore, so he tried to sell them to a herbalist, but they wouldn't buy them."
Seeds don't always produce fruit just because they're there. Furthermore, they're often passed off as inferior goods, or misidentified. Cheng Mu asked, "Aren't you afraid he's a liar?"
Mu Yun had never seen ginseng seeds before, but he had a hunch that the man was not lying. "He lives in Dongsheng Inn."
The ginseng planting period is very long, and the results cannot be seen in just a few days. Cheng Mu asked casually. With the space in hand, she can speed up the planting of any seed. She did not want to discourage Mu Yun's enthusiasm and praised him, "Well done."
When asked if he had eaten, Mu Yun said that he had been running around all morning and hadn't even had a sip of water. Cheng Mu said that she asked Jiang to leave some food for him on the stove.
Mu Yun went to eat, and Cheng Mu moved the seeds into the space.
It's unknown when the herbal farmers collected the seeds, or what the enzyme activity of the embryos is. Cheng first helps the seeds complete their physiological after-ripening process, setting the right temperature, moisture, and air conditions at the germination interface.
The waiting process is a good opportunity to set the climate, soil and other parameters for planting.
The growth environment of wild ginseng is in the temperate zone, mountains, and cool and humid climate. Ginseng likes shade and has strong cold resistance. The soil conditions are set to be well-drained, loose, brown forest soil with a deep humus layer, and the pH value is set between 5.5-6.2.
The waiting process was a bit long. It only took a quarter of an hour for the grain seeds to sprout, but the ginseng seeds made her wait for two hours. Moreover, the conditions of the seeds were different. The first one to sprout was half an hour apart from the last one. Four seeds were confirmed to be unable to sprout.
The sprouted seeds were planted, and the natural environment simulation was already set. The next step was to wait. A day later, the ginseng seedlings bloomed, like small umbrellas, bright red in color. After the flowers bloomed, paddle fruits formed at the top of the branches. The small, oblong red fruits were clustered in clusters, which was very beautiful.
Cheng Mu spread out the paper, picked up a pen and traced it, drawing the flowering ginseng.
Jiang happened to come over and was so fascinated by the painting that she didn't recognize what flower she was drawing. It wasn't until she finished drawing the roots under the soil that she suddenly realized, "Is this ginseng?"
Many people have never seen the stems, leaves and fruits of ginseng. Drawing them together makes them intuitive, easy to recognize and beautiful.
Jiang was so happy that she wanted to do something fancy.
In the past few days, Mu Yun has also been paying attention to the ginseng seeds. When he bought them, the young man reminded him that now is a good time to plant them. Madam Cheng, how does she plan to plant them and where does she plan to plant them? Does she need his help? Madam Cheng looks leisurely every day. What is she going to do with the seeds she bought at such a high price?
Cheng Mu painted a picture of flowering ginseng, and Mu Yun also saw it. He became a little anxious.
Seeing Jiang taking the painting away with a smile on her face, Mu Yun finally couldn't help asking, "Auntie, are you still going to plant the ginseng seeds?"
Cheng Mu was in a good mood. She collected all the berry seeds produced after the ginseng blossomed. "We'll plant them once we buy a hill."
Buying a mountain? Mu Yun was puzzled. Isn't it buying a house now?
Cheng Mu originally planned to let Mu Yun sell ginseng, but that would mean she would have to explain to him where the ginseng came from. It wasn't that she was afraid that he couldn't keep the secret, but after considering it, she decided to keep it a secret for the time being.
This time she did it herself.
On the tenth day, she started digging.
The trees she dug up were a little different than she'd imagined. The main stems were only the thickness of a thumb, not the thick, fleshy ones. The fibrous roots were long and thin, numerous, like a malnourished child. Each one was a different shape, some even having two or three main stems. They were arranged so haphazardly.
Bad bamboo shoots will not produce good seedlings. If you want to get good quality ginseng, you should classify and take notes when collecting seeds next time, and plant them in pieces when planting again, and then observe the results.
The average weight of each fresh ginseng root is only three or four taels. The pile she harvested weighed a total of two pounds and two taels. I don’t know what the price is at the pharmacy.
She asked Jiang about several places on the pretext of going out to see a doctor and get some medicine. The largest pharmacy in the city was Renxintang, there was Yanniantang in the west of the city, and there was also a Huiminso with a good reputation.
Fang Chengmei did not go to all of these places. She went directly to Renxintang, which is a typical shop with a front and a workshop in the back. It mainly deals in medicinal materials and has an old Chinese doctor working in the clinic. Their purchase price is very fair, and it is not just compared with Puyang City. At least it is based on the market price of the entire Yanyun Jiuzhou.
The shopkeeper's surname was Wang. He took Cheng Mu's ginseng and looked at it carefully for a long time. He asked in detail where it was dug and when it was dug.
The main ginseng producing areas on the market are the Shangdang region and the Mongolian region. Both Codonopsis and Liao ginseng have a good reputation and quality. Shopkeeper Wang also evaluated them in his mind. He said, "The grain is fine and dense, the body is beautiful, and the appearance is complete. Judging from the reed bowl, the ginseng is not very old. It is sixth grade ginseng. It weighs 5 liang 2 qian."
Shopkeeper Wang took out his abacus, and after a few clacking sounds, he made a price quote: "Four ounces and eight cents."
Cheng Mu asked, "How much silver is one jin of sixth-grade ginseng?"
"For a jin of sixth grade, the market price is naturally one liang of ginseng for one liang of silver, but it depends on the details."
Oh, this is the detailed analysis. The five liang and two qian of ginseng was analyzed into four liang and eight qian. The right to interpret the detailed analysis is his.
Cheng Mu didn't care about that. She took out all the ginseng and said, "I have two catties and two ounces in total. Shopkeeper, please take them all."
When Shopkeeper Wang saw her take out a bag, his expression changed, and it was unclear whether he was surprised or happy. "Did you dig these in the mountains?"
Cheng Mu made up an excuse, "These are all collected by my son when he was traveling, and I made a profit from the difference."
Shopkeeper Wang carefully looked at each one of them, and after using the abacus, he quoted a price of thirty taels.
It was about the same as Cheng Mi's estimate, so she thought it was okay.
After receiving the thirty taels of silver, she went to Yannian Hall in the west of the city to learn more details.
Yanniantang is a shop opened by an old Chinese doctor. It cannot be compared with the chain store Renxintang. It is just an individual business.
"Doctor, I want to buy third-grade ginseng. Do you have any?"
The old doctor said, "If my lady wants the third-class ginseng, she should go to Kyoto and the Yanyun Palace. The imperial items are only in the royal family."
"What about fourth class?"
"Also in heaven."
"Fifth grade?"
"Go to the various officials' houses and look for it. You might find it in Renxin Hall."
"So what grade is the best ginseng you have?"
"I have a sixth-grade ginseng here, would you like it, my lady?"
After looking at the old doctor's sixth-grade ginseng, I found it was far inferior to the one Cheng Min had just prepared, especially since it was not so fresh.
Now Cheng Mu had a general idea of ginseng's basic characteristics. She bought some pills for treating injuries from the old doctor and planned to go back.
She had not walked far when someone blocked her way.
This man was thin, with a long face and a dark red tint. He was extremely excited. Cheng Mu saw him for the first time and didn't understand why he was so excited. She subconsciously took a step back.
"Madam, I, Qu Liang, have been waiting for you for a long time. Please come this way."
Cheng Mu didn't know who he was or why he was waiting for her. She kept saying, "I don't know you," while quickly trying to guess who had sent him. The Cheng family? That eldest sister? Or someone Cheng Jiuniang had offended before?
Qu Liang simply said, "Excuse me for a moment."
Most people followed out of curiosity. After walking a few steps, Cheng Mu felt something was wrong. She looked around and saw that the street was lined with shops and there were seven or eight pedestrians.
Qu Liang smiled on his face, but he was a little crazy in his heart. He saw her take two steps and stop to look around, fearing that this good opportunity would slip away. He had been waiting for all these days, and now such a great opportunity was right in front of him, he had to grab it no matter what.
"My dear, come home with me!" He came over and grabbed Cheng Xi, yelling angrily, "Go home!"
Crazy! Cheng Xi struggled desperately and shouted for help immediately.
Passersby heard and saw what happened, but no one came forward to help.
"My lady, stop making a fuss. Let's go home and talk about it!"
Qu Liang's tone was soft but firm, as if he was coaxing his own angry wife.
Cheng Mu's face turned dark. Isn't this the same trick used to traffic women in later generations? Passersby thought it was a conflict between husband and wife, no wonder they were indifferent.
Although Qu Liang was thin, there was still a huge difference in strength between men and women. Cheng Mu tried her best to break free but couldn't, and was dragged into an alley by him.
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