Ruling the Historical Romance Novel as the Female Supporting Character-Chapter 96: Entering What Seems Like a Black Market
The next day, Su Yijia woke up early because she was still thinking about the soy sauce bottle. To her surprise, when she left her room, she found that in the early morning, around six o’clock, Zhu Zirui had already delivered the soy sauce bottle.
Seeing the new and clean glass bottle on the table, Su Yijia stretched lazily before heading out. She was still being discreetly followed, but it was even more covert than before.
She initially thought that Ke Zeming’s side had given up, but now she realized that when she fought the man yesterday, it made them think she might have some combat skills. In fact, there’s an old saying in China that went: "Medicine and martial arts do not conflict." People with medical skills tended to have some basic physical training, and those who practiced martial arts might have some knowledge of medicine as well. So, Su Yijia wasn’t too concerned about her amateur-level martial arts.
Besides, she had a master who would always take the blame for her, and no one would ever find him.
Su Yijia took a bus and headed to the traditional Chinese medicine shop again. When Yu Zihang, who was sun-drying herbs outside the shop, saw her, a hint of fear flashed across his face, and he turned to run.
Su Yijia quickly stopped him and asked, "What’s wrong again? Did I cause more trouble for you?"
"Nothing... nothing," Yu Zihang hastily shook his head.
But even though he said that, his reaction was quite revealing. They were still open for business, so it probably wasn’t the outsiders who came to question them. It was likely that Ke Zeming’s men had come to take them in for questioning.
They had been visited by people from both sides, and it was natural to be frightened.
"You shouldn’t have any more problems in the future. You don’t need to worry too much," Su Yijia said in a gentle voice after understanding the situation.
However, this kind of fear was not something that could be easily dispelled with just a few words. Yu Zihang didn’t dare to respond and silently walked into the medicine shop.
Su Yijia had no choice but to follow him.
The good thing was that Yu Qiancheng and the old Chinese doctor both had strong psychological endurance. When they saw Su Yijia, they were momentarily stunned but not overly afraid.
"The medicine you need, I’ve already checked with several traditional Chinese medicine shops in different cities. They do have what you need. If you want, I can have them send someone over. But you’ll have to cover the travel expenses, food, and accommodation," Yu Qiancheng said in an awkward tone, delivering the good news.
Su Yijia nodded enthusiastically. "Sure, I’ll give you the money right now, and you can just write a receipt for me."
Even though this traditional Chinese medicine shop was run by the Yu family, it was currently state-owned. Su Yijia wasn’t worried that they would deceive her.
"The three-hundred-year-old ginseng costs fifteen hundred, plus a hundred-year-old polygonum multiflorum for three hundred, which totals one thousand eight hundred. How much should I give them for the expenses?" Su Yijia couldn’t help but touch her nearly empty shoulder bag. Her heart ached, as if someone had just gouged a bloody wound.
After purchasing two small houses, she had only three thousand one hundred and twenty-five yuan left. Spending this money today would leave her completely broke.
"The round-trip train tickets cost thirteen yuan, twenty-six for two people. Accommodation for one night is one yuan fifty cents, so it’s three yuan for two people, plus meals for two days at five yuan a day. That totals twenty. So, altogether, it’s fifty-nine yuan. To make it an even sixty, would that be acceptable to you?" Yu Qiancheng asked.
Su Yijia took a deep breath, her fingers trembling slightly as she pulled an envelope from her bag and began counting out the money in large stacks. After giving the money to Yu Qiancheng, she watched as he wrote a receipt.
Then Su Yijia wrote down about forty different medicinal herbs on a list and pushed it over. "Take a look at these. If I want them all to be ten-year-old, how much will it cost?"
"The ten-year-old herbs are easy to find, and none of these herbs are particularly rare. It won’t cost more than a hundred yuan in total," Yu Qiancheng replied with a smile.
Perhaps for most people, a hundred yuan was a significant amount, but the fact that this girl was willing to spend one thousand eight hundred on two kinds of herbs showed that she had some financial resources.
"Great, then please prepare a portion of each of these herbs for me," Su Yijia said, delighted. 𝒻𝘳ℯℯ𝑤ℯ𝒷𝘯ℴ𝓋ℯ𝘭.𝑐ℴ𝑚
The thirteen medicinal herbs used for making the Functional Restoration Elixir cost less than a hundred yuan, including a ten-year-old polygonum multiflorum. In addition to the ingredients for the Whitening Lotion, the total was one hundred and thirty-five yuan.
Su Yijia was carrying the bag of herbs when she left the traditional Chinese medicine shop. She looked back at the wooden sign hanging above the shop. What she had entered was no ordinary Chinese medicine shop; it was more like a black market!
Who could have imagined that just six days ago, she had 8,260 yuan, and now she only had around a thousand left. Even so, she had to keep spending.
Su Yijia went to the supply and marketing cooperative to buy two cooking pots, along with steamers that could be placed in the pots, and stoves as well. Then she slowly returned to the Qin family.
"Sister-in-law, what happened? Did someone bully you outside?" Gao Huabin, seeing her return looking dejected, immediately approached with concern.
Su Yijia shook her head, her spirits slightly lifted after taking a deep breath. "Nothing, I just bought some herbs, and I spent quite a bit of money."
"Is it for the boss?" Gao Huabin asked instinctively. He couldn’t decide whether he was happy or worried. On one hand, he thought maybe his sister-in-law had a way to treat their boss. On the other hand, he was concerned that her skills might not be up to the task, or her master was just an ordinary practitioner. What if she treated their boss with the wrong medicine and something went wrong?
Su Yijia noticed Gao Huabin’s internal conflict and didn’t take offense. She smiled and replied, "Sort of, but I won’t use it on Kaize for now. I’ll let others try it first. The other batch is for skincare. If it works, I’ll sell it on the black market."
"I’ll help you get the fire started," Gao Huabin offered enthusiastically, ready to take the items from Su Yijia. But she declined, saying, "Not now. Making the medicine is a bit tricky. I’ll need to prepare it after dinner."
Gao Huabin didn’t fully understand the details, so he accepted her decision without question.
Despite her urgency, Su Yijia finished her meal calmly. Afterward, she went back to her room, divided the herbs according to the two prescriptions, and placed them in separate wax paper packets. Then she brought them out.
Although her investigation into the reasons behind her mother’s hatred wasn’t complete yet, she had already confirmed about half of it. She also knew the prescriptions now, and 666 had no power over her, so she was free to proceed with her own plans. If she didn’t complete this task, she wouldn’t be able to accept a new one, even with the prescriptions.
However, she didn’t immediately place the herbs into the stove. Instead, she turned around, her gaze cold and sharp, and directed it at Qin’s mother, who was hiding in the corner, spying on her.
Caught in the act, Qin’s mother felt embarrassed and cleared her throat, but she soon straightened her chest, trying to sound confident. "I saw you preparing to boil medicine, and I wanted to make sure you weren’t planning to give it to Kaize. You’re not a doctor, so don’t give him any random medicine. If anything goes wrong, don’t blame us, we’ll hold you responsible."
Su Yijia raised an eyebrow without agreeing or disagreeing. "This medicine is for my use. If there are any issues, it’ll be my problem, so you can rest assured."
Upon hearing this, Qin’s mother felt a hint of disappointment.
