Chapter 190

Even as they left the village with hopeful anticipation, witnessing the devastation along the way and the unsettling gazes directed at them had quickly dispelled any lingering optimism.

In just a few days, while the floodwaters in Shanshui Village had yet to fully recede, they encountered so many homeless and hungry refugees on the outskirts!

Now, in retrospect, their village had been remarkably fortunate. Tucked away in a remote corner, protected by their dam, the village and its people had remained unscathed. Houses were intact, food, belongings, and livestock were all preserved, and people had shelter to weather the storm.

“Thinking back, this flood was so severe, yet not a single person in our village was harmed. When we left the village, I thought it was just an ordinary matter. It wasn’t until we came out here that I realized what a stroke of luck it was,” muttered Xu Laosan, lowering his voice in a moment of post-traumatic realization.

They were sharing carts for this procurement trip, with groups of three to five men taking turns pulling the carts.

Beside Xu Laosan, another villager scanned their surroundings warily. “We didn’t know how serious it was outside until we came out! Before leaving, my old lady told me to buy more buckwheat to stock up. I thought she was being overly cautious, but now, seeing so many people without food, I understand why. We need to buy more—quickly!”

No one worried about having too much food anymore. Previously, they had tried to save and ration their supplies, but now they realized that conserving was no longer an option. How could they work without being properly fed, especially with these refugees and migrants possibly resorting to theft?

Wang Shiyi spoke with a heavy heart, “When Sister Shuiqing mentioned the need for round-the-clock vigilance, I couldn’t help but laugh. I thought she was just a timid woman, but now I realize I was naive.”

“Who wasn’t?”

“We need to tell the old village chief that we should follow Sister Shuiqing’s advice and set up a defense team!”

“We need to stay alert both day and night!”

“Absolutely.”

“Stay close together, everyone. Let’s go together and come back together. We can’t afford any chaos!” Ding Heli shouted to the men behind him from his position on the ox-cart’s frame.

Seeing the crowd staring at them, the men immediately understood the warning in his words.

“Got it!”

“Together! We won’t lose track.”

Upon arriving at the city gate, the men were surprised to find that the entry fee had increased to three coins per person.

No wonder there were so many refugees along the city walls and the roadsides—they couldn’t afford to enter the city.

The government officials seemed quite proactive in these matters.

Despite reluctantly paying the entrance fee, once inside the city, they found it was much better compared to outside. Many families were repairing their homes, especially their roofs, which had been damaged by the recent heavy rains.

As the leader of the team, Ding Heli surveyed the city’s condition and said to the men behind him, “The city seems relatively stable. We have a lot of people and carts, so it’s inconvenient to block the roads and shop. Let’s split into small groups by vehicle, try to finish shopping within an hour and a half, and gather back here. Let’s not be late! Everyone got that?”

“We got it!”

The journey here had been difficult and had taken longer than usual, so returning with the weight of goods would only take longer.

To make it back to the village before nightfall, they couldn’t afford to take long in their procurement. Having an hour and a half was good.

One ox-cart, four carts, and two wheelbarrows dispersed on the spot. Everyone walked quickly, striving to finish purchasing in the shortest possible time.

Fan Jin drove the ox-cart and arrived at Renji Tang, the largest pharmacy in the city.

Unlike the villagers who were only buying things, they were also selling.

Fan Jin had previously sold Polygonum multiflorum here. Afraid of being recognized, he didn’t enter and let Ding Heli negotiate the price alone—after all, he was a professional herbalist, and Renji Tang couldn’t trick him.

As soon as the pharmacy assistant recognized Ding Heli, he hurried into the back room to inform the proprietor.

Before long, Master Qin greeted them with a smile, “Ding Xiong, it’s been a while. What fine goods do you have this time?”

Ding Heli pointed at the things placed on the floor of the hall and said with a smile, “A few days ago, we couldn’t come out due to heavy rain. As soon as the rain stopped, we went up the mountain and found these. The flood hasn’t fully receded, but we thought of bringing these to you.”

“Nobody could ever haggle down your price, Brother Ding!” Shopkeeper Qin waved his hand, squatting down to inspect what Ding Heli had brought by their feet.

There were three bundles resembling dry tree roots tightly bound with straw, simply washed once on top, easy to preserve without any mud weighing them down.

“These are fresh yams! Rare, extremely rare!”

Yams may not have very obvious medicinal effects, but their versatility in making snacks makes them highly favored for daily dietary use among the masters and ladies of large households.

Moreover, fresh yams are hard to come by—scarce in the wild and known to few.

Renji Tang specifically supplies large households. Whenever they get good fresh medicinal ingredients, they’re first sent to the mansion for priority selection.

Shopkeeper Qin hesitated before quoting, “In the past, selling this quality for 150-160 wen per jin was no problem. Today, I can only offer 110 wen per jin. I hope Brother Ding understands.”

“After all, these medicinal materials aren’t like grains, especially for culinary medicinal uses. With one jin, you could buy more than ten jin of rice or flour.”

Fresh ones can’t be stored, and after the flood, who knows if those masters and ladies will cut back on expenses.

If they do cut back and don’t buy these medicinal foods, they can only process them into dried yams themselves. Though they won’t lose money, they’re taking a risk.

Ding Heli was prepared before they came.

The two families agreed to sell if the price was above ninety wen; if it was too low, they could make yam slices instead.

Shopkeeper Qin was being truthful. The 110 wen he offered already exceeded his bottom line, so Ding nodded in agreement without further discussion.

Seeing Ding Heli agree, Qin reached out and opened the nearby sack, revealing snow-white, clean yam slices of excellent quality.

He praised unabashedly, “These yam slices look really pleasing! Brother Ding’s skill in processing medicinal materials is unmatched; our medicine shop can’t compare!”

Ding Heli humbly responded, “You’re too kind.”

Qin, looking at the excellent appearance of the yam slices, gritted his teeth and asked, “How about 420 wen per jin for the yam slices?”

If Guangning Mansion couldn’t sell them, he’d send such high-quality dried yams to the main shop.

Ding Heli understood this was the price given according to past standards, not after the flood, and gratefully agreed, “Agreed.”

The assistant at the medicine shop waiting nearby quickly weighed and quoted:

Fresh yams at 110 wen per jin, brought over thirty jin, three liang and three qian;
Most of the sack of dried yams, not heavy weighed, less than forty jin, sixteen liang and one qian.

The Ding family processed the medicinal materials with a thirty-seventy split. Processing yams was straightforward, and Ding’s family didn’t want to take thirty percent. However, Shuiqing and Fan Jin said where there’s difficulty, there’s simplicity. Since they agreed, whether simple or difficult, they’d stick to thirty percent.