Chapter 64.1

Early in the morning, Qin Yan silently got up, put a pot of porridge on the stove, and went to work feeding the chickens and ducks and weeding the nursery.

Qin Ao, who had a leisurely morning, watched Qin Yan working quietly and asked Jiang Ruan, who was brushing her teeth and washing her face, “He’s sulking. What did you do to him?”

Jiang Ruan spat out the toothpaste, rinsed her mouth, washed her face, and replied, “A few days ago, I saw a man in the store without his shirt on. I took a few glances.”

Qin Ao was speechless. “Why look? If you want to see, just ask Qin Yan to take his shirt off for you.”

Jiang Ruan filled a basin with water again and said, “He was already shirtless. Why shouldn’t I look? He should be the one feeling embarrassed.”

Qin Ao was taken aback. Jiang Ruan indeed had no sense of shame, but Qin Yan seemed overly petty.

He reached out for the basin and said, “Thanks.”

Jiang Ruan pulled the basin away. Did Qin Ao really think she would fetch water for him?

She carried the basin to Qin Yan and cautiously said, “Qin Yan, wash your hands and come eat breakfast.”

Qin Yan took the basin from her, saying, “I can do it myself.”

Jiang Ruan asked, “Are you still upset? It wasn’t like I looked on purpose.”

Qin Yan replied, “I was only annoyed for a moment. This morning, I was thinking about how Mu Xuehui arranged for He Ziqi to meet Chang Linyan. He must be wealthy and helpful to her.”

Jiang Ruan nodded enthusiastically. “Exactly! The other day, Chang Linyan sent her employees and apprentices away to personally perform massage and cupping therapy on He Ziqi. She only provides personal service for high-status people. He Ziqi is no ordinary person, and Mu Xuehui even tried to stop me from seeing their esteemed guest.”

Qin Ao had already brought breakfast to the table. “Let’s eat and talk,” he said.

Jiang Ruan loved sweet potato porridge. These sweet potatoes had been stored since last year, becoming sweeter as their moisture evaporated.

Taking a bite of the tender sweet potato, she said, “So, what do we do? You don’t want me to approach him again.”

Qin Yan didn’t want Jiang Ruan getting involved with He Ziqi, but since Mu Xuehui was already making connections, he couldn’t go in her place.

People he had conflicts with in his previous life, like Qin Ao and Xun Li, had become friends in this life.

Mu Xuehui couldn’t prevent Jiang Ruan from meeting He Ziqi, so maybe letting her get close was a good thing.

Qin Yan said, “I’m not that petty. You can interact with He Ziqi as usual and see what brings him to Jing City.”

“Alright.” Jiang Ruan peeled a salted duck egg and placed it in Qin Yan’s bowl.

Qin Ao was unimpressed. “He has hands.”

Jiang Ruan peeled another egg and handed it to Qin Ao, then said, “You and Xun Li will handle the chicken collection this time. I’m going to deliver two hundred ducks to Chang Fuxiang.”

Jiang Ruan went to the city to deliver the ducks, with Qin Yan accompanying her.

When they arrived, Chang Fuxiang came out to personally receive them, saying, “The roasted duck fed with Shencao flower feed is getting quite the reputation. If you didn’t deliver today, I would’ve sent someone to collect the ducks.”

“Have you gone through the stock that fast?” Jiang Ruan asked.

Chang Fuxiang beamed. “I’m the only one in town selling this special roasted duck, and it’s flying off the shelves. I really can’t keep up with the demand.”

He had followed Qin Yan’s advice about scarcity marketing, selling only fifty ducks a day. Once they sold out, that was it, and business kept improving with more and more pre-orders.

Today’s delivery was enough for four days, and Jiang Ruan said, “I’ll be staying in the city for two days. You’ll have to go to the countryside to pick up the next batch yourself.”

Chang Fuxiang glanced at the open window of a private room on the second floor and, lowering his voice, said, “My older sister is hosting a lunch here today. She ordered two roast ducks. Her two apprentices and my niece are all there, accompanying a man. It feels like some sort of matchmaking event.”

Jiang Ruan looked up and saw He Ziqi peering down.

She quickly tugged on Qin Yan’s arm, saying, “Qin Yan, that’s He Ziqi. He’s even less modest than I am. He’s definitely not as good-looking as you. You can relax and head back to school.”

Qin Yan looked up, recognizing the young face from his memories. Later, in a family feud, He Ziqi had been so furious that he collapsed and fell gravely ill. Whether that would change in this life because of Jiang Ruan remained to be seen.

…

He Ziqi seemed to hear Jiang Ruan’s voice and looked down to see the young woman who spoke so bluntly.

Turning back to the women in the room, he asked, “Do any of you know the man beside Jiang Ruan? He doesn’t seem familiar, but he’s giving me a hostile look. Who is he?”

Mu Xuehui walked over to take a look, catching only a glimpse of their backs as they left. She bit her lip, then smiled, saying, “He’s her boyfriend. His family is quite well off, his father’s a scientist, and he’s a student at the University of Law. Jiang Ruan worked her way up from being his little nanny.”

“Oh, a little nanny,” He Ziqi replied dismissively. He had a low opinion of nannies who used their position to climb up, as his stepmother had done.

Mu Xuehui smiled gracefully, continuing to chat with He Ziqi about topics that interested him, feeling triumphant inside. She had guessed right; as long as she portrayed Jiang Ruan as a helper trying to climb up the social ladder, He Ziqi would lose interest in her.

…

Jiang Ruan hadn’t been back for a few days, and all the medicine in the shop had sold out. Xun Li had followed up and found that out of the forty packets left, only thirty were used by the original customer, the rest had been resold at double the price.

Jiang Ruan thought it over and guessed that Chang Linyan might have bought them.

Zhong Guangyuan called, saying he wanted to purchase ten more packets of the medicine. Jiang Ruan was preparing more at the shop and told him to send someone in the afternoon to pick them up.

As she worked, the aroma of the medicine wafted outside, catching the attention of He Ziqi, who was returning to the area. Recognizing the familiar scent that matched the medication Chang Linyan had used to treat him, he ignored Mu Xuehui’s attempts to stop him and entered Rheumatism Clinic.

Seeing the empty shelves, he was puzzled and asked, “What do you sell here?”

Jiang Ruan handed him a freshly prepared herbal bath packet and said, “I sell medicine. This is my exclusive formula, you won’t find it anywhere else. Smell it—it’s quite distinctive, isn’t it?”

The scent was indeed pleasant, but He Ziqi shook his head with a smile, “The secret medicine from the Rejuvenation Hall across the street smells exactly the same, and it’s very effective. How can you say it’s exclusive?”

Jiang Ruan’s expression turned serious, “They stole my formula.”

“Oh? Do you have proof?” He Ziqi was skeptical.

Worried that Jiang Ruan might speak recklessly, Mu Xuehui interjected, “Jiang Ruan, we might have our differences, but you shouldn’t make baseless accusations.”

Jiang Ruan, straightforward as ever, responded, “He Ziqi is ill, and you didn’t have the right medicine for him, so you had someone buy ten packets from me. Fine, from now on, I’ll only make medicine for regular customers, and they’ll have to get treated in my shop. Once your supply runs out, let’s see what you use to treat him.”

Mu Xuehui confidently said, “Jiang Ruan, my master has already figured out how to harness the medicinal properties of the Shencao Grass Flower. Just wait and see.”

Jiang Ruan smiled but didn’t engage further, only telling He Ziqi, “That medicine was used to treat you. If I’m not mistaken, it will last for about four more days. After that, Chang Linyan will either come up with an excuse to switch medication or claim that treatment needs to pause. Just wait and watch.”

He Ziqi was shaken by Jiang Ruan’s confidence.

Regardless of the business competition, his health was his own concern.

He turned to Mu Xuehui and asked, “Are you sure your master won’t run out of medicine?”

Mu Xuehui replied with confidence, “Absolutely not. My master told us she’s successfully grown the Shencao Grass Flower and is preparing for large-scale cultivation.”

He Ziqi, not easily fooled, insisted, “I need to see the Shencao Grass Flower bloom before I invest.”

“Of course. My master said it should bloom in a little over a month.”

Thinking about her own ability, Jiang Ruan found it strange. She hadn’t heard that Chang Linyan had successfully cultivated the plant. There must be something else going on.

Determined to counter Mu Xuehui, she told He Ziqi, “If you want to see the Shencao Grass Flower, there are five acres of it blooming in Dawang Village, some even bearing fruit. You’re welcome to come and take a look anytime.”

…

In the afternoon, Zhong Guangyuan’s driver came to pick up the medicine, praising Jiang Ruan’s remedy for its remarkable effects on rheumatism.

“No matter how busy he is, Secretary Zhong takes half an hour every day to soak his feet and apply the medicine. His rheumatism has improved a lot.”

Secretary Zhong’s endorsement? He Ziqi glanced back at Jiang Ruan, who was busy organizing raw materials. She finished making ten packets but didn’t plan to make more.

Seeing Mu Xuehui biting her lip, Jiang Ruan said with a smile, “Rejuvenation Hall across the street is still waiting to buy my medicine, but I won’t be making any more for now. You can pass that on to Secretary Zhong.”

The driver gave a sharp look to Chang Linyan’s apprentice, clearly annoyed. “If you can’t make the medicine yourself, stop finding other ways to interfere. Don’t make it difficult for those who genuinely need it.”

Mu Xuehui was indignant and defensive, “She’s lying. We’ve developed the formula ourselves.”

…

After He Ziqi left, Mu Xuehui went to complain to Chang Linyan, “Master, Jiang Ruan is slandering us in front of Mr. He.”

Chang Linyan frowned, “How could you let Mr. He meet her?”

Mu Xuehui was at a loss, she couldn’t control He Ziqi. She said, “Fortunately, Jiang Ruan is a fool. Her tone is still as abrasive as ever, and she has no idea how to curry favor with Mr. He.”

Hearing that Jiang Ruan had stopped making the medicine, Chang Linyan felt a bit uneasy and said nothing.

Trying to reassure her, Mu Xuehui said, “Master, we’ve already recruited some chemistry students to synthesize a similar effect. Why are you still trying to cultivate the Shancao Grass Flower, which lacks fragrance and efficacy?”

Chang Linyan explained, “I want to undercut Jiang Ruan’s cultivation and agricultural business. Help me figure out where we can plant it for maximum profit.”