Chapter 106 Chapter 106
"What friend? Is this person reliable?"
Ye Qing's breathing became rapid.
The news that Gu Weidong brought to her was so exciting and shocking that she couldn't help but tense up.
Gu Weidong nodded: "It can be considered a life-long friendship. His family has strong connections in Jicheng, so it is not a big problem to transfer this kind of personnel. And if I remember correctly, before I came back, his father had already successfully entered Zhongbeihai."
Ye Qing immediately understood what was going on.
She quickly asked Gu Weidong:
"How can we do this? You can spend any amount of money. I may not have much in my bank account, but you know how many gold bars I have. If that's not enough, I can get a few old mountain ginseng roots. I'm sure I can get a lot of money by selling them."
Seeing Ye Qing's attitude, Gu Weidong knew that she agreed, and waved his hand to remind Ye Qing:
"For people of that status, money may not be a big deal. You have to give them something they have never seen before or cannot buy with money. Give me a sheepskin bag of your monkey wine. Do you have any old mountain ginseng? If you do, give me one. I will take it away today."
Ye Qing reacted immediately, patted his head and nodded in agreement.
She didn't have any old mountain ginseng on hand. She was busy building health stations and scientific breeding during this period. Although her supernatural powers were upgraded and she suddenly realized a new way to improve her spiritual energy, she had no time to care about other things because there were too many trivial matters.
Although she didn't have any old mountain ginseng, she collected a batch of red ginseng fruits, and she carefully collected the seeds in the fruits. As long as there were seeds, it would not be a problem to produce one or two old mountain ginseng in a short period of time.
Knowing that Gu Weidong had returned in a hurry this time and would not be able to stay in the village for a long time, Ye Qing did not dare to delay any longer and quickly signaled to Gu Weidong:
"You go back first. I'll go into the mountains right away and will definitely be back before you leave!"
Gu Weidong knew about Ye Qing's special abilities, so when Ye Qing said she wanted to go into the mountains, he immediately understood what she was going to do.
"Can I help you?"
Gu Weidong asked.
Ye Qing waved his hands hurriedly: "No, no, you should go back to see Uncle Gu and Aunt Gu. The old people must have missed you during your absence. In addition, the matter mentioned in the letter I sent you a few days ago has been discussed with Uncle Gu and Aunt Gu in advance. They said they would discuss it with you. It happens that you are back this time. You and your family can discuss this matter together. If you agree with the plan I proposed, I will find someone to handle the relevant procedures after the New Year. If you disagree, then we can also negotiate and see how to reach an agreement."
Having said that, Ye Qing stopped talking to Gu Weidong and hurried back to his yard. He picked up a shovel and rushed straight into the mountain behind. He disappeared in a short while.
Looking at the hurried figure, Gu Weidong could only shake his head helplessly, and limped into his own yard next door.
It was already a real winter by then, and with the continuous snowfall in the past few days, the snow in Changbai Mountain was so thick that it was almost up to people's waists. No one dared to go into the mountain, whether it was day or night. If Ye Qing hadn't had the help of the vine, she would have been unable to move forward.
She made a skateboard out of vines, slid on it on the snow in the mountains, and soon entered the deep mountains and forests.
After finding a relatively secluded cave and making sure that no one was around, Ye Qing planted some shrubs for cover, then he took out a ginseng seed from his bag and threw it on the soft black soil.
The surroundings were filled with rich spiritual energy. Ye Qing quickly absorbed wood energy while infusing the absorbed "nutrients" into the ginseng seeds.
Soon, the ginseng seeds sprouted quickly, took root and grew leaves, and continued to bloom flowers and produce red fruits. Then the stems and leaves began to fall off, and then grew again. This cycle was repeated countless times, until more than half an hour later, Ye Qing's face turned pale, and dense cold sweat oozed out of her forehead and back. After she was sure that she had almost reached the limit of her supernatural power output, she stopped her actions.
At this time, the root of the old ginseng in Ye Qing's hand was as thick as his wrist, with densely packed dark brown glands. Even though it had not been dug out yet, just by looking at the appearance of the rhizome connection on the outside, one could already predict the size of the ginseng underneath.
Sure enough, Ye Qing dug along the root of the ginseng, nearly two meters deep, and it took him a lot of effort to dig out the entire old mountain ginseng along with all its whiskers.
The quality of this ginseng is even better than the one that Ye Qing sold to the Liu family before, and its size is also more exaggerated. Ye Qing estimates that if this thing is taken out, it will definitely be comparable to the wild ginseng that is four or five hundred years old outside. The key is that this ginseng is fed with wood-type supernatural power, and its medicinal properties are at least several times that of ordinary old mountain ginseng.
If it wasn't for rescuing her master, Ye Qing would really be reluctant to give away such good medicinal herbs.
After all, this truly drained away all the spiritual energy in her body. After this catalysis, her abilities would take at least half a month to fully recover.
But if Han Yabo could be successfully transferred from Mohe to Qingshan Farm, she would think it would be worth it even if Ye Qing could get ten more ginsengs, let alone one.
After carefully wrapping the ginseng with dry grass and tying it up, Ye Qing put it into a rattan basket and immediately went down the mountain on his skis.
When she reached the foot of the mountain, she quickly went into her own cellar and pulled out four goatskin bags filled with monkey wine. After thinking for a while, she took out a few cans of her own brewed fruit wine and mushroom meat sauce, put them into two wicker baskets, and went straight to Gu's house next door.
Gu Weidong returned in a hurry, but because it was winter, the other members of the Gu family stayed at home, only Yang Dazhi was transferred by the production team to work on the river in the commune.
This is also the custom in previous years. Every winter, each family needs to send a worker to the commune to follow the main force to the river to carry out repair, excavation and land reclamation work in preparation for the next spring sowing.
Since Gu Weidong was in the army all year round, the only able-bodied people in the Gu family who could go out to work were Gu Zhenxing and Yang Dazhi. So, when it was winter time to work on the river, this father-in-law and son-in-law would take turns, you go for half a month and I go for half a month, taking breaks to rest in between, so it wasn't too hard.
Gu Weidong has now been selected to go to the Jicheng Military Headquarters for further training, and has been promoted to battalion commander. Even though the Gu family members don't have much experience, they all know very well that as long as Gu Weidong completes his two years of further training smoothly, he will definitely be a completely different person after returning to the army, and his future will definitely be bright.
So now that Gu Weidong has suddenly returned, the Gu family is all nervous, fearing that something might have happened to Gu Weidong in Jicheng again.
Gu Weidong would definitely not mention Han Yabo's matter to his family, so he had to talk about the letter that Ye Qing just mentioned, saying that he had received Ye Qing's letter, and it happened that a transport vehicle from the military was coming to Jiaotan County for business, so he took the opportunity to take a ride back to take a look.
In fact, Gu Weidong had no idea what Ye Qing mentioned in the letter, but Ye Qing had already informed the Gu family. As soon as Gu Weidong mentioned this matter, several people in the Gu family immediately told him all the plans mentioned by Ye Qing.
Only then did Gu Weidong realize that Ye Qing was actually eyeing his herb ointment.
Baicao Gao, as the name suggests, is made from a hundred kinds of herbs.
Changbai Mountain is rich in various plants and medicinal herbs. In the spring, all kinds of strange medicinal herbs can be found in the mountains. Gu's herbal paste is an ancient medicine recipe that has been continuously refined and improved on the basis of Changbai Mountain species and finally passed down.
But the specific origin of this thing is no longer traceable. Gu Weidong only knows that his family should have taught it to his grandmother three generations ago, and then his grandmother taught it to his mother, and it has been passed down through word of mouth.
Every year in the spring, the family would boil one or two jars of it, and one jar could be used for the whole year. However, everyone in the village only knew that they had this medicine, but they all thought it was a folk remedy that was not worthy of being presented to the public. Few people took it seriously, not even their own family members.
But now Ye Qing said that this medicine could be developed and mass-produced, and might even become a household medicine. Not to mention the other members of the Gu family, even Gu Weidong himself found it unbelievable.
He came back after more than ten years, and he had worked in the security department of a county steel plant. Of course he knew what safflower oil was, because by the end of the 1980s, this medicine was basically a must-have for every household and it could be said to be popular all over the country.
But precisely because he knew about and even used this thing, he was even more surprised. He had never thought that Ye Qing could use his own ointment to compete with that domestic product.
Gu Weidong felt shocked and complicated, but at the same time he inevitably felt surprise and ambition.
If he could really develop his ointment as Ye Qing described, and mass-produce it and sell it to thousands of households, beyond the three northeastern provinces and even abroad, then the scale of this factory would definitely not be underestimated. His comrades-in-arms who had nowhere to stay after retirement would now have an extra way out. How could this not make Gu Weidong excited?
Therefore, Ye Qing did not need to worry that Gu Weidong would disagree with his proposal. Gu Weidong himself certainly did not understand pharmacology and did not know whether his own prescription had any development value. But as long as Ye Qing said it was feasible, Gu Weidong would definitely agree with it.
Of course, other members of the Gu family would not have any objection. After all, if this matter could be carried out smoothly, it would be absolutely a golden opportunity for the Gu family. As long as they invested in the company with the prescription, they could lie at home and make money just by relying on this pharmaceutical factory, even if they did nothing else in the future. Only a fool would turn down such a good opportunity.
Therefore, when Ye Qing brought the herbs and monkey wine into the Gu family, the Gu family had already reached a unilateral agreement. The whole family decided to hand over the prescription of the Baicao ointment to Ye Qing, and Gu Weidong even wrote down the prescription and even the process of making the ointment in detail.
Looking at the thin piece of paper in his hand, and then looking at the pair of clear and innocent eyes in front of him staring at him, Ye Qing was really helpless and couldn't help sighing in his heart.
It was so easy for them to hand over the prescription. If it was someone selfish and greedy, they would have just taken the prescription and run away. I'm afraid the Gu family would have no place to cry.
This family is really a bunch of naive people. Even Gu Weidong, who has lived two lives, may be extremely capable in combat, but he actually doesn't have much brains in other aspects.
"Don't give me the recipe for now. This will be your bargaining chip when we build the factory in the future. Don't tell anyone except your own family. No matter who comes to ask you for the ointment or how to make it, you must not reveal it. Otherwise, the pharmaceutical factory will fail. The stakes are very high. You must keep this in mind and never forget it at any time. Do you understand?"
"Also, you can't just give me full authority and let me do nothing. You may not feel the financial benefits involved right now, but after a few years when the factory is built, you will understand."
"In order to avoid unnecessary disputes and troubles in the future, I must emphasize that your family must clearly demarcate the ownership of the prescription before the pharmaceutical factory is built. Each of you, the brothers in the Gu family, and even the uncles and aunts, must clearly divide the shares. Only when the shares are clearly divided and the brothers settle accounts clearly, can there be family harmony and happiness in the future."
The Gu family looked at each other, all with confused expressions on their faces.
The truth is that the concept of private companies and joint-stock system does not exist in the country at present. The Gu family is a native rural family. The two old people are illiterate or semi-literate. Even the few remaining children who have received education do not have much knowledge. They only feel that Ye Qing's exhortation is incomprehensible, but they have no other ideas at all.
The only one who understands a little bit here is probably Gu Weidong.
Because he came back from the 1990s, after the reform and opening up, individual businesses sprang up like mushrooms after rain, and private enterprises were flourishing everywhere. Even the state-owned steel plant where Gu Weidong worked was facing transformation and reform, resulting in a large number of workers being laid off.
Therefore, the division of ownership of the prescription that Ye Qing mentioned now may seem trivial, but it is crucial. If the ownership of the prescription is not clear, when the benefits are unevenly distributed in the future, it is very likely that brothers and sisters will fight over it, and it is not impossible that the pharmaceutical factory will fall apart in the end due to a lawsuit.
It may sound a bit inhumane for Ye Qing to put this thing directly on the table, but in fact it is for the long-term benefit. The Gu family now lives together in a harmonious family atmosphere, but who can guarantee that they will not turn against each other in the future?
Gu Weidong understood the interests involved, so he nodded seriously to Ye Qing and said that he would slowly think about it and carefully discuss the matter with his family in the next six months.
After all, it was only 1973 and there was still a long time before the reform and opening up. Gu Weidong knew in his heart that there was no rush on this matter, so he looked calm and did not feel how urgent this matter was at all.
Ye Qing was just giving a heads up in advance so that the Gu family would be mentally prepared for this matter. It is better to be prepared now than to be unprepared in the future. After all, she herself was not sure when the pharmaceutical factory would be approved.
Seeing that the time for Gu Weidong to return was getting closer, she didn't bother to talk any more and quickly stuffed the two wicker baskets she had brought into Gu Weidong's hands.
Gu Weidong looked at his watch and knew it was almost time. He didn't stay at home for too long. He exchanged a few words with his parents, brothers and sisters and was about to set off again.
Seeing this, Gu Weibei hurried over to help Gu Weidong pick up one of the rattan baskets. Gu Weinan also wanted to pick up the other one, but was stopped by Gu Weidong.
Gu Weixi's belly was now as big as a balloon. There was such thick snow outside and the ground was very slippery. Gu Weidong didn't dare let her go out. He quickly stopped her and her parents from going out to see her off, and went out himself carrying a basket.
Ye Qing hurriedly followed him and whispered in Gu Weidong's ear:
"I brought four bags of wine, and I've already packed the ginseng with hay, but you have to be careful on the way, don't break it by accident."
"Also, you should be aware that this ginseng is at least several grades older than the one we sold to the Liu family last time. That one is only about three hundred years old, and this one is estimated to be four or five hundred years old. It is definitely a rare gem that you can only find out about."
Gu Weidong kept nodding his head and took note of what Ye Qing said carefully.
Ye Qing pointed to one of the baskets:
"Here are a few jars of my own wine and mushroom meat sauce. The meat sauce is made from the game I hunted with the villagers in the mountains at the beginning of July. They are all the best meat and the most tender parts. You can take them to Jicheng and share them with your comrades and classmates. I will send them back to you after you finish eating."
While talking on and on, they walked to the entrance of the village. Gu Weidong turned his head and stared at Ye Qing who was standing in front of him. He didn't say anything for a long time, which made Ye Qing confused. He couldn't help but ask in confusion:
"What's wrong? Any other questions?"
Unexpectedly, Gu Weidong stretched out his hand, and covered Ye Qing's head with his large palm, and said with a smile:
"Nothing, I just suddenly realized that you seem to have grown a little taller. You are not as short as when we first met. Are you 1.6 meters tall now?"
It's really like bringing up something irrelevant. The word "short" is simply a thorn in Ye Qing's side!
Her expression suddenly changed, and she couldn't help but glared at Gu Weidong fiercely, her whole face became angry like a pufferfish:
“You’re such a good chatterbox!”
What do you mean 1.6 meters tall? She should be at least 1.61 meters tall now, okay? If she eats more, she might be 1.62 meters tall after the Chinese New Year!
Finally, the serious little girl was pissed off. Coincidentally, the transport truck arrived at this moment. Gu Weidong looked at the furious Ye Qing, picked up the two wicker baskets with satisfaction, and climbed into the passenger seat with a smile.
Seeing the transport vehicle going away, Ye Qing turned around and saw the two children of the Gu family staring at each other, with some strange looks in their eyes when they looked at her.
After all, Ye Qing is Gu Weinan's master, so image management is still very important. She quickly suppressed her angry and shy expression, cleared her throat and indicated that she could go back to the village.
Gu Weinan looked at Ye Qing and then at the transport truck which was now only a small black dot. He grinned, came up to Ye Qing and nudged his shoulder in a gossipy way, winking at him in an ambiguous way:
"Master, tell me the truth. When did you and my brother start dating? Why are you keeping it a secret like you're spying on someone? You didn't even tell me a word. Is that necessary?"
Ye Qing stumbled and almost fell:
"What are you talking about? When did I start dating your brother?"
Gu Weinan didn't think she was talking nonsense. She pointed at Gu Weibei and shrugged:
"I'm not talking nonsense. If you don't believe me, ask my younger brother and see if he thinks the same way."
"You two were so close to each other on the way just now, and you kept gossiping without letting us hear. And my brother, who is such a serious person, was smiling the whole time. His eyes almost wanted to grow directly on you!"
Gu Weibei nodded repeatedly, clearly agreeing with what his second sister said:
"Ye Zhiqing, stop pretending. Forget about this Kaoshan Village. Go and look at those young couples in the city. Who is dating someone as disgusting as you? I was almost killed by the dog food on the way here!"
Ye Qing was nearly choked by her saliva. She wanted to explain, but this matter concerned her master Han Yabo, and she didn't know what excuse to make for a moment. She stuttered for a long time, and when she spoke again, she seemed very guilty, as if she was trying to cover up her crime.
"I'm talking to your brother about the prescription, not about the partner! Can you two stop overthinking? Between men and women, besides talking about the partner, can't you think of something else, like pure comradeship?"
The two of them immediately shook their heads in unison:
"Of course there is pure comradeship, but no one who sees the two of you in that state would think it was pure! Especially the way my brother looks at you, it's obvious that you are not innocent, okay?"
When reminded by these two, Ye Qing couldn't help but think of the way Gu Weidong smiled at her at that time. Her heart couldn't help but burn, and she subconsciously refused to think about it that way. Knowing that she couldn't explain it clearly to these two naughty kids, she was too lazy to waste her breath and just stomped her feet and ran towards the village.
After leaving the brother and sister far behind, Ye Qing heaved a long sigh of relief, touched his hot cheeks, and put aside all the strange emotions that were surging in his mind.
Ye Qing thought it was just a few jokes made by the Gu siblings, and he didn't take it to heart. But he didn't know that as soon as Gu Weidong left, rumors began to spread in the village the next day.
Every family was in winter, and it was normal for farmers to visit each other, eat melon seeds and chat in their spare time. So in less than a day, the scandal was everywhere. People in the whole village were talking about it. It was said that Xiaoye, an educated youth from the health station, was talking about a partner with Gu Weidong, the eldest son of the Gu family!
Moreover, the people in the village made a very logical analysis and had their own unique views on why Gu Weidong hurried back to the village and left again in less than two hours.
Many people believed that Gu Weidong had not returned to visit his family for several years when he was in the army. Perhaps it was because his previous marriage with the daughter of the Wu family was disrupted. So this time, Gu Weidong learned his lesson and finally got together with Ye Zhiqing. He was very nervous about this new girl. He even asked for leave from his leader and rushed back from the army to appease his young wife, for fear that she would be dissatisfied with him and run away with someone else one day.
In addition, some people are also discussing whether Gu Weidong and Ye Qing can succeed. If the two get married, will Ye Qing have to join the army in the future? Who will take over the village health station? Will the new station chief be selected from Ye Qing's four apprentices? Do other children in the village have a chance?
In short, the rumors became more and more outrageous. In the end, several people went to Gu's house to find Aunt Gu to inquire about the news. Some even gave Aunt Gu advice, asking her to suggest to Ye Qing that she should continue to work at the health station in the village after marrying Gu Weidong, and never go with Gu Weidong to join the army.
As for the reason, it is because Ye Qing has superb medical skills and the people in Kaoshantun trust Ye Qing more.
If a person whose background is unknown is replaced as the stationmaster, and if he is like the doctor who got in through the back door at the commune health station and comes here to put on a show, will the people in their village have to return to the time before liberation overnight, and have to continue to endure their illnesses in the future?
Those villagers who made the suggestion must have had their own selfish motives, but they also knew that it was not convincing to ask them to stay in Kaoshan Village. If they really got married, how could the couple live apart for a long time? So everyone in the village wanted to break up the couple, and some people secretly had evil intentions, wanting to deceive Gu Zhenxing and his wife and try to break up the young couple.
As long as this marriage is ruined, then there will be no need to worry about Ye Qing following Gu Weidong to join the army, right?
Gu Zhenxing and his wife were both stunned.
Usually there aren't so many people visiting their house, but since this morning, several people have come to their house one after another, and what they say is so confusing.
How could it be that his eldest son was dating Ye Zhiqing and they were about to get married, and that Ye Zhiqing would soon join the army? Who spread this rumor? It was sheer nonsense. How come they didn't know about this?
Mr. and Mrs. Gu Zhenxing were quite shocked. However, it was normal for them to be shocked because the other person next door was even more shocked than them.
Ye Qing was busy at the health station all day, and it was not until he returned home in the evening that Song Chunhua told him about this.
The rumor was spread so seriously that even the details of when Ye Qing and Gu Weidong confirmed their relationship were described in great detail. If Ye Qing herself had not been involved, she would have believed it after hearing so many "lifelike" scenes and stories.
Ye Qing was simply at a loss whether to laugh or cry. She thought that someone had accidentally heard the teasing that Gu Weinan and Gu Weibei had said to her at the entrance of the village yesterday, and the news had spread among the villagers. She called Gu Weinan and his sister over and gave them a scolding.
But who would have known that the day after the scandal between her and Gu Weidong spread everywhere, the culprit showed up.
Wu Yueying looked very proud, and raised her chin to take credit for the achievement towards Ye Qing:
"So, I've done so much for you two, and everyone in the village has accepted that you and Gu Weidong are together. You two can talk about dating openly in the future, and you don't have to be secretive anymore. Shouldn't you thank me? I don't ask for much. I've already been to the hospital and it's confirmed that you're pregnant. When I'm about to give birth, you can accompany me to deliver the baby."
Ye Qing: ...
After all this time, it turns out that this psychopath was the one who caused this!
Ye Qing was almost laughing out of anger at what Wu Yueying had done.
Not to mention that she and Gu Weidong are not in a romantic relationship at all right now, even if they are really dating, there is no need for Wu Yueying to do these little things.
Besides, Ye Qing has never been afraid of what people say when she does things. And if she really wants to find someone, it's not a scandal and there's nothing shameful about it. Why should she be sneaky about it?
Even if Gu Weidong and Wu Yueying were engaged before, they broke off the engagement 800 years ago, and Wu Yueying is already married. Gu Weidong is single now, and his character is flawless. It is not illegal for him to date someone at his age. Anyone with a normal outlook on life would not hold on to such a small thing in his past, right? So is it necessary for Wu Yueying to go to such lengths to make up rumors behind his back and act as a self-righteous helper?
Ye Qing rolled his eyes at this moment, and without saying a word, he directly kicked Wu Yueying out of the door.
Ye Qing was a person who came from the end of the world, so naturally her heart was stronger than that of ordinary people. She didn't take these groundless rumors to heart at all, and didn't think it was a big deal.
Rumors stop at the wise. Whether she and Gu Weidong have talked about the target or not, the villagers will naturally understand after a while.
But people like Gu Zhenxing and his wife and old party secretary Wu Yongbing believed it to be true.
Gu Zhenxing and his wife, especially Aunt Gu, realized that their son was dating Ye Qing after they came to their senses. They were so happy that they wanted to go to their ancestral tomb to pay their respects immediately.
This girl from the Ye family is a real golden phoenix. If she could end up in such a poor family like theirs, it would be a real blessing!
Even if Ye Qing flatly denied it, Gu Zhenxing and his wife just thought that Ye Qing was too young to admit it. Anyway, as long as the young people had a good relationship, they would definitely raise their hands to agree with it and would never interfere with any decision they made.
In short, because of this rumor, Gu Zhenxing and his wife looked at Ye Qing as if she were their own daughter, and their attitude towards Ye Qing was extremely enthusiastic.
As for Wu Yongbing, he was afraid that Ye Qing didn't talk about his partner publicly because he had some concerns, so he simply went to Ye Qing's house to discuss the matter. He urged Ye Qing not to have any grudges and said that the marriage between their family and the Gu family was a thing of the past. It was originally their Wu Yueying who had let Gu Weidong down, and now the two families had broken off the engagement. A good comrade like Gu Weidong would definitely be the best choice for a good husband. If Ye Qing really liked this young man, he could just be with him. No one in the Wu family, including him, would be unhappy.
Moreover, Wu Yongbing was not as short-sighted as the people in the village. He would definitely be happy to see the two men get together.
If Gu Weidong really marries Ye Qing, then this little girl will become a member of Kaoshantun, and she will not be able to run away even if she wants to. Then Kaoshantun will have truly found a strong supporter and will not have to worry about its future development.
As for Ye Qing's age, it is not a problem for the current rural areas. Many girls get married at the age of 16 or 17. Anyway, in this era, most rural people just hold a wedding banquet and have a lively party to officially get married. No one cares whether they have obtained a marriage certificate or not.
The old branch secretary was cheerful. He just wanted to know if Ye Qing needed a suitable matchmaker. He was happy to witness this happy marriage.
Ye Qing: ...I am speechless. No one believes me when I tell the truth. Where can I seek justice?
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