1oo39 New Urban Farmers Chapter 86: Another Encounter, Gift of Medicine
Ping Shi Bu. Li Zhongmi is halfway there! Just woke up from the north, and the snakebite medicine and general antivenom he was carrying were quite strong.
Internal injections, topical application, and the fact that he walked while lying down all the way helped clear most of the toxins from his body. Halfway through the journey, Li Ning's complexion had improved considerably, and the elastic band on his arm had loosened slightly to prevent local muscle necrosis from prolonged use.
This involves a lot of risks.
Li Ningguang's condition did not worsen in the second half of the competition.
So he woke up.
But Li Ningguang was too weak and guilty to move. He decided to sleep all the way to Qingshuiping. He couldn't keep up the act any longer, otherwise he would have missed dinner.
It was a stroke of luck that we didn't have to eat canned bread and milk for our first dinner. Having missed the chance to hunt in that ravine, the change in terrain meant that enjoying wild game again wouldn't be so easy.
The terrain beyond is mostly dense forest with steep slopes. Those without experience in traversing mountains and rivers will expend significantly more physical energy than before. Hunting in this area is no longer a pastime but a luxury.
As soon as Li Ningguang woke up, he insisted on getting down.
Wang Zhen hurriedly said, "Boss, please lie down a little longer. Wen Qiang and I can lift you."
"Why don't you get up after we've gone up to the platform?" Du Wenqiang said.
Li Ningguang felt ashamed and naturally didn't want to lie down, saying, "I know you're all concerned about me, but I feel fine except for being weak. I'll be better tomorrow after a night's rest."
Zhang Guodong witnessed all of this but simply ignored it. All the tricks were just between master and servant!
Liu Dewang led the way up the slope, and a flat area of several hundred square meters appeared before them. It was situated on a hill, and from there one could look down on the surrounding forest area of several square kilometers.
"Someone's here!" Liu Dewang was startled before he could even cheer.
A pile of firewood was already burning on the ground, and two people were sitting around the fire.
The fire stood out starkly in the darkness.
"Who goes there!" Wang Zhen and Du Wenqiang shouted towards the direction, supporting Li Ningguang. This is a desolate mountain forest. Where did these people come from? Could they have been following us? What's their purpose?
He even half-drawed the bow and arrow in his hand.
Zhang Guodong's eyes lit up as he looked at the two people and the two baskets beside the fire, saying, "No need to be surprised, they're friends."
"Friends?" Du Wenqiang scoffed. "Could they be someone with ulterior motives?"
"Shut up!" Zhang Guodong snapped, instantly enraged. "Even a dog barks according to its owner; who do you think you are, yelling at me like that?"
Zhang Zaidong was truly furious.
"What's wrong with you? Get out of here!" Li Ningguang shouted at Du Wenqiang, seeing Zhang Guodong's anger and the tense atmosphere.
This was the first time Du Wenqiang had ever been verbally abused to his face. And to be called a dog? Li Ningguang was obviously the dog's owner!
"Your bow and arrow are pointed at Zhang Guodong."
"Don't blame me for not warning you, or I'll break your limbs!" Zhang Guodong said coldly, his eyes gleaming. He then glanced at Li Ningguang, thinking to himself, "Looks like I can't use my hands? Sometimes, a fist is more effective than a foot. Too bad!"
Then Zhang Guodong turned his back to the grandfather and grandson and walked towards them, completely unafraid of the arrows behind him. In fact, Zhang Guodong was betting on something. He was confident in his keen senses within a fifteen-meter range. Was it the arrow that shot faster, or his senses that were superior? He believed it was himself!
And Lao Qing and the others are already all around!
Another point is that Li Ningguang will not allow Du Wenqiang to act recklessly.
Du Wenqiang trembled with rage, but Wang Zhen beside him lowered his bow and arrow, saying, "It's better to avoid trouble; the boss will be angry."
Du Wenqiang was startled and immediately glanced at Li Ningguang, whose face looked unpleasant.
Li Ning's mind was racing, and Zhang Guodong was no pushover either. He looked honest but was anything but. Li Ning's opinion of Zhang Guodong rose even higher. Before, he could tolerate minor squabbles between his bodyguards. But now, he needed to be more cautious.
Ultimately, he still looked down on Zhang Guodong's status. This contempt was ingrained in his very being!
At the same time, there are some concerns about the cooperation between them. What if Zhang Guodong changes his mind?
So he said in a low voice, "Wenqiang, this is your fault. We're not making money behind closed doors, we're not creating enemies. Don't let this happen again, remember that! Zhang Guodong isn't someone to be trifled with." The last sentence was an exclamation.
At this moment, Zhang Guodong had already arrived in front of the grandfather and grandson. He sensed three strong fluctuations of spiritual energy, one of which was in the basket next to the two. He couldn't help but wonder if the old man had dug up some good medicinal herbs. He smiled and said, "Old man, we meet again."
Sure enough, it was an old man and his grandson. The firewood had been burning for quite some time. As Zhang Guodong approached, he could smell a strong odor of alcohol, but it wasn't just alcohol. There was also the smell of medicine!
Wine infused with medicinal herbs!
Professor Bai Zhongsheng of Yangling Academy of Agricultural Sciences once gifted him half a catty of medicinal tea, so he is somewhat sensitive to things made from Chinese medicinal herbs.
The smell of barbecued meat indicated that the grandfather and grandson had already eaten and had arrived here long before them.
"Young man, it's you again. Please sit down. There's only stone here." The old man smiled as soon as he saw Zhang Guodong. But his grandson, holding a machete, was very wary of Zhang Guodong and even breathed fire at him.
Zhang Guodong immediately understood what was going on.
Their chance encounter was completely unexpected, and Du Wenqiang's arrival led to him falsely accusing them, which sparked the conflict. But it was all for the best; the conflict was theirs, not theirs.
Zhang Guodong, who had initially intended to have the old man examine Li Ningguang's snakebite, no longer wanted to bring it up. With antivenom in these mountains, even the most potent snake venom would at most leave him half-dead; what did it have to do with him?
"Thank you!" Zhang Guodong said, sitting down.
"Are they your companions?" the old man asked, pointing at Li Ningguang and his three companions in a very indifferent tone.
Zhang Guodong nodded and said, "You could say that. We're going into the mountains this time to find a rare tree. So it's a kind of cooperation."
It's quite remarkable that the elderly Zhang Guodong chose to tell the truth.
"Looking for trees?" The old man was slightly surprised, looking Zhang Guodong up and down before speaking. "I smelled medicinal herbs on you, young man, and thought you came into the mountains to dig for herbs. Heh, you were wrong."
Zhang Guodong was surprised.
"His nose is so sensitive? He can smell the herbs?" He tried to sniff hard, but perhaps only by smelling the emanating scent could he detect it. But the herbs had already entered Peach Blossom Spring. By now, the scent of herbs he'd picked up on his clothes should have mostly dissipated.
"To be honest, the old man was indeed looking for trees this time. However, I personally enjoy collecting flowers and herbs and have a preference for precious medicinal materials. So I dug up some medicinal herbs along the way, planning to transplant and plant them when I get back," Zhang Guodong said with a smile.
At that moment, Li Ningguang stopped about twenty meters away and began setting up tents and gathering firewood.
There are few trees on Qingshuiping; it's mostly covered with flowers and grasses. Now, in spring, the flowers and grasses are sprouting new green shoots, saving us the trouble of cleaning them. Otherwise, with snakes and insects, I wouldn't be able to sleep soundly.
"Oh? I see. It's a good thing that young people like Chinese medicinal herbs." The old man said calmly, without asking what Zhang Guodong and his group were looking for or what medicinal herbs he had dug up.
Zhang Guodong said, "I think the old man is very skilled at collecting herbs. He must have a deep understanding of traditional Chinese medicine."
The young man standing next to him scoffed, "Of course my grandpa's amazing! Lots of people in the village go to him for medical treatment."
"Little Tiger, you can't be rude to guests!" The old man scolded the boy named Little Tiger, who immediately shut up, looking a little sullen.
Zhang Guodong, being a minor, found it amusing.
But I was certain of one thing: this old man might really have some skills. Just look at his snow-white beard, yet his ruddy complexion and the fact that he'd traveled such a long distance to gather herbs—his health regimen was truly remarkable!
"The village in the mountains only has a dozen or twenty households. There's nowhere to go to see a doctor. My skills aren't much; I've just figured out a few things from trial and error for minor ailments," the old man said with a helpless smile.
He is the only doctor in the village!
"Is the old man being modest? Actually, many true masters of traditional Chinese medicine don't show off. There are many so-called TCM practitioners outside the mountains who are just charlatans with little real skill. They've tarnished the reputation of traditional Chinese medicine," Zhang Guodong said, sighing.
He glanced at the old man and saw him raise an eyebrow slightly before quickly returning to his usual calm.
Zhang Guodong was cunning enough to try and find out if the old man really had any special skills. He had the ability to sense precious medicinal herbs, but he knew nothing about traditional Chinese medicine.
Moreover, in his imagination, the herb gatherers living in the mountains must have some good medicinal herbs, right? That was what he longed for and wanted the most.
The old man smiled calmly and said, "I'm not some kind of expert, young man. You've come to the wrong person, so there's no need to test me."
Xiao Hu glared angrily at Zhang Guodong after he saw through Zhang Guodong's intentions.
That person is really wicked for actually trying to take advantage of Grandpa!
"Ahem, sir, actually I wanted to ask you to take a look at my companion's snakebite. He was poisoned by a venomous snake. We suspect it was from a Northern Viper net, which used antivenom and snake medicine, but we don't know if it's dangerous." Zhang Guodong, blushing with embarrassment, brought up Li Ningguang's matter.
Although he didn't want to get involved in their affairs, Zhang Guodong was determined to find out something from them.
The first encounter was a coincidence, the second one must be fate, right? This fate is something to hold onto tightly.
Besides their advanced health preservation methods, these two, grandfather and grandson, dared to roam the mountains teeming with wild animals. Their martial arts skills must be quite formidable, right?
This is the key basis for Zhang Guodong's speculation that the old man had some skills.
"Oh? Let's see then. But I can't guarantee whether the other party is willing." The old man, being astute, reluctantly agreed.
"Grandpa, don't mind them. They just said we had ulterior motives! They're not good people!" Xiao Hu said.
“There are good and bad people. Some people are indeed suspicious and take kindness for granted. But doctors have the heart of a parent,” Zhang Guodong said.
Damn. They're even bringing up the idea of doctors having a parental heart? If you die outside the mountains, what does it matter to me? Medicine, huh? As long as it doesn't kill you, you're fine! They only sell the expensive stuff, not the right stuff—the more expensive, the better!
Therefore, it felt very awkward for Zhang Guodong to say that.
But Zhang Guodong always believed that people from the mountains were ultimately simple and honest.
“The young man is right, it’s good to go and take a look,” the old man said.
So Zhang Guodong brought the grandfather and grandson here.
Li Ningguang looked at Zhang Guodong with surprise, and Zhang Guodong said, "Brother Li, these two are from the mountains."
"Oh? Thank you, thank you! Please have a seat!" Upon hearing that it was someone who had helped him, Li Ningguang immediately expressed his gratitude with a sincere smile.
Zhang Guodong lamented that ultimately, businessmen are not much different from chameleons. Perhaps Li Ningguang didn't trust anyone to treat his illness? Especially in the mountains where there's no legal oversight.
The old man nodded slightly and said directly, "Extend your left hand."
"You should be alright now, right?" Li Ningguang asked, surprised, but still extended his left hand. "I feel completely better."
The old man took Li Ningguang's pulse for a while, then examined his bitten right middle finger. The finger was swollen, but the swelling had subsided considerably compared to its previous extreme. The white powder on it was snakebite medicine.
The old man applied a small amount of snakebite medicine, smelled it, and then said, "This snakebite medicine is quite good, but the residual poison hasn't been cleared out yet, so it's not completely healed. How about this: I'll crush some snakebite medicine I made myself and apply it. I estimate it will be completely cleared up in about a day."
Post: The monthly ticket ranking has dropped one place! Everyone, please give Tiandao a boost! The update is a little late today. Watching the gala was so frustrating. Even though it's a little late, I won't miss two updates a day. This is the second update coming soon.
I'm frantically throwing monthly passes at this book! How come the later chapters are so amazing? I'm so anxious!
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