Zhangdu Forest, true to its name, is a damp place even in the dead of winter, with its venomous snakes and insects showing no signs of hibernation and crawling everywhere.
Veiled in fog throughout the year, it’s impossible to see the path clearly. People need to carry torches and pay careful attention to where they step.
The guards shielded the Nanchu King and the others, driving off venomous snakes and insects without killing them. Zhou Gu had learned to identify many valuable medicinal plants while assisting Su Rong in preparing medicine. Coupled with the book of ancient recipes that Su Rong had handwritten for him, which he often studied, and a book of medicinal plant illustrations he had made in his spare time, he was well versed in recognizing and studying medicinal herbs. Now that they were in Zhangdu Forest, he discovered several valuable medicinal herbs that were hard to find in the ancient recipes. How could he pass up this opportunity?
He immediately started picking and digging them. All others, including Nanchu King, were assigned to other tasks. Some were given samples to help collect more, while others were responsible for weaving baskets from vines to store the collected herbs.
Nanchu King, being old, wasn’t able to keep bending down, and his eyesight seemed to struggle under the dim light. So, his duty was to carry the baskets.
Nanchu King: "..."
Does this guy realize that they are running for their lives right now? Surely, he hasn’t forgotten?
Zhang Yun, however, raised no objections. Since entering Nanchu with Zhou Gu, they had been fighting and fleeing constantly, either on the offensive or defensive side. Suffering countless injuries. On two occasions, they had even been poisoned but survival was ensured by the precious medicines on them. Hence he too believed that these valuable medicinal plants were extremely useful.
Zhou Gu’s inventory of medication was running low, and the remaining two bottles of useless poison antidotes were also about to run out. If they couldn’t produce more medicine, and they encountered a fight or poison injury again, they would be left utterly helpless as they could not seek treatment from a doctor. If they entered a Medical Hall, they would immediately be cornered by the enemy.
So, when it came to these valuable medicinal plants, he harvested them with enthusiasm.
But despite the considerable number of people, it didn’t take them much time. Perhaps it was because no one dared to enter Zhangdu Forest. Any doctors who dared only lingered on the outskirts and never ventured deep into the forest. Hence, the precious herbs that were hard to come by outside were relatively abundant here. Especially farther into the forest, the growth of these precious herbs was even more lush and rampant.
Zhou Gu realized this damp and cold Zhangdu Forest is indeed a treasure land.
"I have countless precious herbs in my warehouse," Nanchu King stated, carrying a basket.
If they had known about it earlier, they would have taken a sack full of them with them the night they left the palace. They could avoid the poisonous exposure and the need to collect herbs in Zhangdu Forest.
Despite the existence of poison antidotes, he still felt uncomfortable all over, as if he was being suffocated by the poisonous gas. He could hardly keep his eyes open.
"Those in your palace should be reserved for Xiaoqi, she will need them sooner or later." Zhou Gu thought who wouldn’t want more of such good stuff? Su Rong was doing him a great favor! Now that he understood this, he only realized how kind Su Rong was to prepare ahead for him. Knowing that he would need medicines the most when he was out, she gave him countless good medicines, a book of medicinal formulas, taught him how to identify medicinal herbs and how to prepare medicines. As long as the mad dog tin the Nangong family didn’t strike with his blade, he wouldn’t have to worry about minor illnesses and accidental poisoning killing him.
In this regard, Su Rong really was a treasure.
"Alright!" Nanchu King reminded him, "The poison antidote only works for three days, right? Can you calculate the time accurately and so we don’t all die here?"
"Oh, we won’t. Here are several types of herbs that can resist the poison," Zhou Gu assured, patting his chest, "Don’t worry, even if we stay here for half a month, we won’t die."
Nanchu King: "..."
That was certainly a piece of good news.
Looking skeptically at Zhou Gu, he asked, "Did the Duke Residence teach you to identify herbs and make medicine too?"
"No, Xiaoqi was the one who taught me." Zhou Gu boasted, "She made a lot of life-saving medicines for me during the two nights before I left Capital City. She also taught me how to make medicine and even gave me a book of medicinal formulas. At that time, I didn’t know that she had ended the marriage with Ye Guixue along with returning the Tiger Talisman. I just felt that she was incredibly kind to me."
Nanchu King: "..."
Although he had become accustomed to hearing Zhou Gu boast about how good Su Rong was to him, it still made him a bit jealous to hear these words.
Although Zhou Gu had gathered plants that could counteract the poison, he only allowed his group to stay in Zhangdu Forest for half a day.
He understood clearly that the most pressing issue at the time was to avoid clashing with waves of assassins from the Nangong family. Three and a half days were just the right amount of time. Any less, and it wouldn’t be enough to avoid encountering them. Any more, and Nangong Zheng would grow impatient for them, realize what they were doing, and attack again.
He had no desire to have his small group face off against Nangong Zheng.
So, three and a half days later, Zhou Gu led his group out of Zhangdu Forest, each carrying a basket full of herbs. Half a day later, they slipped into a town, rented a farmhouse, and without taking a break, Zhou Gu and Zhang Yun spent the night in a room making medicine with a stove bought by the guards.
As Zhang Yun looked over the ancient recipes, he marveled, "I never thought I would have the chance to play doctor."
The precious medicines that were hard to procure in the open market were made by Zhou Gu and him using cheap stoves they had bought.
After a night of work, despite having dark circles under their tired eyes, their faces were filled with energy. Each of them carried a few bottles of medicine, and then, with Nanchu King and the guards, they stealthily continued their journey.
Nanchu King looked at them, "Did you two mess around with those medicinal plants last night?"
Nanchu King was too tired. After eating last night, he went straight to sleep and only woke up to the smell of medicine filling the room.
"Yes, we made ten bottles of medicine." Zhou Gu said, "Those herbs, we used one fourth of them."
It’s quite impressive to see such a large amount of herbal medicine gathered with so many people. He had intentionally gathered a full set of the most critical herbs in several formulas, hoping to use them to prepare medicines after leaving the forest and allowing his father-in-law to rest.
As expected, when they were done, he felt a great sense of accomplishment.
He said to Nanchu King, "Our skills were a bit rusty yesterday, and we weren’t proficient, which is why we produced fewer medicines. Once we find a cave tonight and set up the stove, we can get the guards to help. We won’t have to worry about the noise and we will be able to turn all the remaining herbs into medicine. Otherwise, if these herbs are not stored properly and are left for too long, they will lose their medicinal properties."
Nanchu King nodded, "Good."
The way he had lived his life, it was his first time seeing smart and resourceful people like Zhou Gu and Zhang Yun, who had ways to make a living. He felt that despite all the twists and turns, it seemed like his old body, which used to suffer from a sore back for half a month with the slightest activity, had not only not deteriorated, but had become more robust.
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