Chapter 14 First Meeting

Ji Tangtang didn’t care whether they believed her or not. She grabbed the two rabbits and stuffed them back into her basket. Even if she exchanged them for everything she had just asked for, she would still be at a loss. These weren’t ordinary rabbits—she had caught them inside the Western Mountain secret realm, where they grew up eating spiritual herbs. For ordinary people, eating them wouldn’t just nourish the body and repair deficiencies; with some luck, it could even extend their lifespan.

She had earned a hefty sum today and wasn’t short of money anymore. There was no way she would let others take advantage of her for free.

Seeing that she truly didn’t intend to sell the rabbits—and remembering the two wild ginseng roots she had brought out—Qin Xiangdong clenched his teeth and said, “Fine, I’ll make the trade. Bring the rabbits with you and come with me.” After that, he turned to Scarface and the others: “This deal is still just mine.”

Scarface and the others didn’t try to argue.

Carrying her basket, Ji Tangtang followed Qin Xiangdong out of the abandoned factory, winding through several streets until they reached a residential building. Qin Xiangdong told her, “Wait here for a moment.” He went upstairs, knocked on a door, and soon a man came out. Qin Xiangdong went inside with him. About ten minutes later, he emerged and led Ji Tangtang to a small courtyard.

Just like before, he asked her to wait outside while he knocked and went in.

Standing outside, Ji Tangtang casually observed the courtyard. It was clearly much nicer than the surrounding houses. Obviously, whoever lived here was either wealthy or held high status. Seems like this “Brother Dong” had quite the connections. Was this character even in the book? She was still thinking it over when Qin Xiangdong came back out and beckoned her to enter.

As soon as she stepped inside, Ji Tangtang saw a man in his forties standing in the courtyard. His facial features were sharp, with a tall, straight nose. Wearing gold-rimmed glasses, he exuded a scholarly elegance.

From inside the house, a young man in his twenties rushed out with an overcoat and draped it over the older man’s shoulders. “Second Uncle, why did you come out yourself?”

The older man waved it off. “It’s fine. Business matters.”

Only then did the younger man notice Ji Tangtang. “You’re the one with the wild ginseng?”

Qin Xiangdong quickly bent at the waist and answered for her, “Yes. Fresh wild ginseng, at least a hundred years old—two roots.” Then he turned and urged Ji Tangtang, “Hurry, show them.”

Ji Tangtang understood that this was the real buyer. Without hesitation, she set down her basket, rummaged through the weeds, and pulled out two ginseng roots to hand over.

The younger man frowned at her messy basket and rough movements. “That’s ginseng! You just toss it around like that? If the roots get damaged, its value will drop.”

Ji Tangtang replied, “Don’t worry, they won’t be damaged.” She knew the ginseng was valuable, so she hadn’t actually thrown them into the weed-filled basket. The basket was only a cover—the ginseng was stored safely in her spatial realm.

The young man carefully took the roots, examined them, and relaxed when he saw they were intact. The more he inspected them, the more excited he became. “They really are over a hundred years old. The quality is excellent. The old master can be saved!”

The older man nodded, pulled out a thick envelope from his bag, and handed it to Ji Tangtang. “Here’s the two thousand yuan we agreed upon. Please take it. As for the wheat and rice seeds, would it be alright if we give them to you this afternoon? Could you come back here then?”

Ji Tangtang believed people living in such a courtyard wouldn’t renege over a few pounds of seeds. She nodded readily. “No problem.”

She opened the envelope, ran her fingers across the thick stack of large-denomination notes, then casually slipped it into her cloth pouch.

The others were all momentarily stunned.

The older man kindly reminded her, “Big sister, aren’t you going to count it?”

“I already did,” Ji Tangtang replied.

None of them believed her. They had just seen her slide her fingers over the bills; how could she have counted them?

But they didn’t know that she wasn’t an ordinary person. Even though she had lost her cultivation, many of her skills remained. Calculating the number of bills as her fingers brushed over them was nothing more than a little trick—something she hardly even thought about.

Now that she had to live in this world as an ordinary human, money was indispensable. She smiled at the older man. “These ginseng roots were dug from the deepest mountains, where the spiritual energy is richest. I guarantee their medicinal power is unmatched. If you ever need more, you can come find me again. As long as the price is right, I can even procure ones older than these. And if you need other medicinal herbs, you can ask me too.”

“Thank you very much,” the older man said gratefully. He took a fountain pen from his pocket, scribbled down a number, and handed it to her. “My name is Lu Qiming. This is my telephone number. You’ve helped us tremendously today. If you ever find yourself in trouble, come to me.”

Ji Tangtang looked at the number he passed her and felt her impression of him grow even better. It was clear he came from a good background and likely held a high position. Yet, despite her plain and lowly appearance, he never showed even a hint of condescension—only treated her with respect and courtesy. That was rare indeed.

Even after paying, his words were still filled with gratitude. Truly a man of character.

But despite his fine character, his facial lines revealed the truth—disordered markings at the root of his nose, and a pale, withered philtrum. It was a clear sign of deep-seated illness, his vitality already fading. Without timely treatment, he likely didn’t have long to live.

She reached into her bundle, pulled out a packet of peach blossom tea from her Qiankun pouch, and handed it to him.
“This is flower tea I dried myself. You should brew it often and drink more. Since you bought ginseng from me, you should also take some yourself.”

After giving him the tea, she casually accepted the phone number he offered and slipped it into her cloth bag.

Watching her put away such an important piece of paper so carelessly, Qin Xiangdong suddenly felt he had misjudged her. This woman was anything but simple. When she received the two thousand yuan earlier, she had shown the same calm, indifferent demeanor. Even if she didn’t realize the significance of this phone number, she couldn’t possibly be unaware of what that two thousand yuan meant.

Perhaps… it wasn’t that she couldn’t count money, but that she possessed some kind of special ability? The more he thought about it, the more convinced Qin Xiangdong became that he was right. After all, how could an ordinary person possibly produce two hundred-year-old wild ginseng roots just like that?

His thoughts spun quickly, and Ji Tangtang’s position in his heart rose sharply. His attitude toward her grew warmer and more enthusiastic.

Of course, his eagerness toward her wasn’t only because he suspected she had abilities far beyond what he had imagined. There was another reason as well—this “guiding trip” today had already brought him tremendous benefits.

Though he hadn’t earned any profit from the transaction itself, the gains he reaped couldn’t be measured in money. He didn’t know the exact position of that man named Lu Qiming, but he knew all too well what position Lu Yuanqi held. This was the Minister of the Municipal Party Committee’s Organization Department—the youngest minister of the department.

He had personally seen how deferential Director Xiao was when he made the call earlier. If Director Xiao hadn’t called in advance, and if not for this ginseng leading the way, Qin Xiangdong wouldn’t have even had the chance to step inside that courtyard, let alone converse with such figures.

Now, thanks to the ginseng, he had managed to leave an impression with these influential people. If he kept coming back and forth, wouldn’t their relationship gradually grow closer?

And as for Director Xiao—after this incident, his trust in him would surely deepen. In the future, whenever opportunities arose, wouldn’t he be the first person to come to mind?