Chapter 248 Urgent Need for Medicinal Herbs
"As for the rest, someone will tell you later. Just accept it. I have to deliver it tonight."
After he finished speaking, he handed a note and a map to Ye Wanning.
"This is a list of medicinal herbs, and this is a map of medicinal herbs in Jiangnan. It marks the herb gardens and gathering points that the Medicine Gang hasn't occupied yet. I hope it can help you."
Ye Wanning took the note and map, her mind filled with doubt: Who would help her at this critical moment?
Looking at the medicinal herbs on the carriage, she saw that fritillaria cirrhosa, gastrodia elata, and antelope horn were all things she urgently needed, and they were all top-quality products.
It seemed the other party had gone to great lengths to obtain it. She wanted to ask a few more questions, but the middle-aged man had already turned to leave.
"Dr. Ye, I'm leaving now. Until we meet again."
Watching the man leave, Ye Wanning clutched the note and map in her hand, and a name suddenly popped into her mind—Pei Zhi.
Who else has such ability to obtain these urgently needed medicinal herbs, even when the Jiangnan medicine gang has a monopoly?
He can even draw pictures of medicinal herbs from Jiangnan? But why did he send the medicine anonymously?
Is it that you don't want her to know, or that you're afraid others will discover their relationship?
Pei Zhi… Pei Zhi… Ye Wanning felt both guilty and bitter.
He helped her so much in silence, but refused to reveal a single word, and kept it a secret from everyone else.
She has never wanted to owe anyone favors, and she doesn't want people to think that she got to where she is today because of Pei Zhicai.
Over the next few days, every two or three days, someone anonymously delivered medicinal herbs to the heritage center.
Each time, they delivered the varieties she urgently needed, which solved her immediate problem.
With the help of these medicinal herbs, Ye Wanning barely managed to get through the crisis, and the Heritage Center also retained many patients who trusted her.
But she knew that anonymously delivering medicine was not a long-term solution.
She must find a stable and reliable source of medicinal herbs to completely break the blockade imposed by the Jiangnan medicine gang!
She carefully examined the map of medicinal herb distribution in Jiangnan. The medicinal gardens on it were all located in remote areas of Jiangnan, not controlled by the medicinal herb gang.
We could send people to Jiangnan to purchase supplies, but the journey is long. What if they are discovered by the medicine gang and they are targeted?
Just as she was hesitating about whether to send someone to Jiangnan, a young woman took the initiative to come to her door.
The woman was about eighteen or nineteen years old, wearing a light blue dress. She had delicate features and exuded a capable and efficient air.
"Dr. Ye, I am Shen Qingwan, the young lady from Shenji Pharmacy."
“My father heard that you were facing a shortage of medicinal herbs, so he sent me to the capital to deliver them and also wanted to discuss cooperation with you.”
Ye Wanning's eyes lit up. She had heard of Chenji Pharmacy before—it was one of the few pharmacies in Jiangnan that was not controlled by the Medicine Gang.
Known for its integrity, the quality of its medicinal materials has always been excellent.
"Miss Chen, please come in." Ye Wanning warmly welcomed her into the lobby. "What kind of cooperation would you like to discuss?"
"I want to join forces with my father to open an affordable pharmacy in Beijing," Shen Qingwan said frankly.
"The Jiangnan medicine gang monopolizes medicinal materials and raises prices arbitrarily, causing great suffering to the people. My father has long wanted to break this situation, but he was outnumbered and powerless."
"Dr. Ye, your medical skills are superb, your reputation is widespread, and you also have the protection of the imperial court. If we join forces, we will surely achieve great things."
Shen Qingwan continued, "We, Shenji, have several secret medicinal herb gardens in Jiangnan, and we also cooperate with many herb gatherers, which ensures a stable supply of medicines."
"Opening an affordable pharmacy in Beijing would solve the problem of medicine supply for the heritage center and also benefit the people."
"Thirdly, it can also severely crack down on the monopoly of the Jiangnan medicine gang."
Ye Wanning thought the idea was excellent and quickly agreed, "Miss Chen, I agree to cooperate!"
"However, the Jiangnan Medicine Gang is very powerful, so you must be very careful."
"Don't worry," Shen Qingwan smiled. "My father has already made preparations. Moreover, I brought something important with me."
She took a small jar out of her bundle and handed it to Ye Wanning: "This is evidence of the Jiangnan medicine gang's adulteration for profit."
"In order to make huge profits, they mix sand, old stock, and even poisonous herbs into the medicinal materials."
“My father went to great lengths to collect this evidence.”
Ye Wanning opened the small jar, inside were sandy angelica, moldy dried tangerine peel, and some strangely colored herbs.
She leaned closer and smelled it; the strange herb did indeed have a faint toxicity, and long-term use would harm the body.
"With this evidence, we can report the Medicine Cult to the imperial court and make them pay the price!"
Shen Qingwan nodded: "Exactly."
Ye Wanning was not so optimistic—the Jiangnan Medicine Gang was backed by the Jiangnan Prince, and its power was considerable.
The imperial court might not act against them easily; they need to gather more evidence to show the emperor the crimes of the medicine gang and the ambitions of the vassal kings.
She thought of the anonymous medicine delivery person again; perhaps he could help.
After hesitating for a long time, she decided to write a letter to ask.
In her letter, she thanked the other party for their righteous help and asked if they could provide more evidence of collusion between the medicine gang and the prince.
She didn't directly ask if the other party was Pei Zhi, but only mentioned a map of the distribution of medicinal herbs in Jiangnan in the letter.
She received a reply a few days after sending the letter. The envelope contained only four words: "Everyone has their own duties; no further explanation needed."
In addition, there is a smooth, round, light green bead that emits a delicate fragrance.
Ye Wanning recognized it at a glance; it was a calming bead unique to Jiangnan, capable of calming the mind and relieving fatigue from staying up all night.
Pei Zhi was naturally aware that she stayed up all night revising the National Medical Classic and often suffered from insomnia.
Looking at the bead, her heart began to beat faster involuntarily.
She was certain that the person who anonymously helped her was Pei Zhi.
He didn't want her to know, but he always thought about her, even remembering small things like her staying up late and having insomnia.
She placed the calming beads by her pillow, and sure enough, she slept exceptionally well that night.
She had a strange dream: Pei Zhi stood beside her, his eyes filled with tender tears.
He gently draped his coat over her shoulders and whispered, "Don't tire yourself out."
When Ye Wanning woke up, her face was flushed, but her heart was warm—she knew that she had fallen in love with Pei Zhi.
With Pei Zhi's secret assistance, Ye Wanning and Shen Qingwan collected more evidence.
There is physical evidence of adulteration and control of medicinal materials by the Jiangnan medicine gang, as well as testimonies from victimized small medicine dealers and farmers.
Those who had been bullied by the Medicine Gang were willing to stand up and testify against the collusion between the Medicine Gang and the Prince of Jiangnan.
After everything was ready, Ye Wanning and Shen Qingwan went to the palace together and presented all the evidence to the emperor.
The emperor was furious when he saw the adulterated medicinal herbs, the victims' confessions, and the secret letters between the medicine syndicate and the vassal kings.
"That despicable prince of Jiangnan! He dares to collude with the medicine gang, control medicinal herbs, and poison the people. He is truly lawless!"
Seeing that things were not going well, Sun Chengzong quickly stepped forward to explain: "Your Majesty, there may be a misunderstanding!"
"The Prince of Jiangnan has always been loyal to the court, how could he do such a thing? It is clearly Ye Wanning and Shen Qingwan who have made false accusations!"
"False accusation?" Ye Wanning sneered. "Lord Sun, I have a letter from the leader of the Jiangnan Medicine Gang."
“The letter clearly states that you made him cut off the supply of medicinal materials to the Heritage Center and prevent me from revising the National Medical Classic.”
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com