Chapter 33 — Fixed Price • Ten Taels of Silver
“Help me prepare a piece of charcoal about this long—ideally about the thickness of a little finger.”
After giving it some thought, Ling Jingxuan raised his head and spoke while gesturing. At times like this, the gap between ancient and modern times became obvious—modern ballpoint pens and fountain pens completely outclassed writing brushes.
“Alright then. Young Master, do you have any other instructions?”
Though the shopkeeper appeared warm and attentive, with Ling Jingxuan’s keen eye he still caught a trace of suspicion in the man’s gaze. Curling his lips in a mocking smirk, Ling Jingxuan lazily swept him a glance and walked past him toward the burly man holding the child.
“Take the child to a room first. Remember to help him bathe, then have the assistant wipe his body with alcohol to bring down the fever. Once the medicine is ready and taken, he’ll be able to go home in at most three days.”
“Yes, yes, yes… many thanks, divine doctor.”
The man hurriedly agreed. Under the assistant’s guidance, the husband and wife took their child to the back courtyard. Once the charcoal Ling Jingxuan had requested was brought over, he sat at the table and began writing at lightning speed. Before long, three prescriptions were completed.
“This is the prescription for treating Big Head Wind. Boil three bowls of water down to one bowl; take it three times a day. You’ll see results in three days, and after seven days he’ll be fully cured. The other two prescriptions are for medicinal ingredients I need—prepare ten days’ worth for each.”
Handing the prescriptions to the shopkeeper, Ling Jingxuan gave his instructions casually.
“Isn’t this prescription just Chengqi Decoction?”
The shopkeeper glanced over it briefly and couldn’t help asking, the suspicion in his eyes deepening. Ling Jingxuan rolled his eyes helplessly.
“Open your eyes and look carefully. Besides the Chengqi Decoction formula, I’ve added skullcap, scrophularia, licorice, and other herbs to purge pathogenic heat from the lung meridian.”
Big Head Wind was caused by wind pathogens invading the body; treating it was actually quite simple—just add a couple of ingredients to Chengqi Decoction. Unfortunately, most people mistook it for an ordinary cold, and by the time the condition worsened, it was often too late to save the patient.
Seeing that Ling Jingxuan seemed impatient, the shopkeeper didn’t dare ask further questions. With a “dead horse treated as a living one” mindset, he instructed an assistant to take the prescription to prepare and boil the medicine. He himself personally gathered the herbs Ling Jingxuan needed.
“Young Master, these are the medicinal ingredients you requested.”
About a quarter of an hour later, the shopkeeper placed several large bundles of wrapped herbs in front of him. Ling Jingxuan didn’t check them. Setting down his teacup, he asked casually, “How much?”
One of the two prescriptions was actually for preventing Big Head Wind. To be safe, he planned to have everyone at home drink some, which exceeded his budget. He estimated that the two taels of silver he’d worked hard to earn today would be completely gone.
“No—no need to pay. Thank you, Young Master, for helping us out today. Whether or not the child can be cured, I still owe you my thanks. Please consider these herbs my token of gratitude.”
The shopkeeper waved his hands repeatedly, though he was still doubtful of Ling Jingxuan’s medical skills even now.
“Then many thanks. After the child’s fever subsides, remember to disinfect the courtyard outside where he stays with limewater. Everything he’s worn or used must be completely burned. If anyone else becomes infected, use that prescription to treat them.”
As he spoke, Ling Jingxuan picked up the herbs and prepared to leave. Seeing this, the shopkeeper hurried forward to block him. Meeting Ling Jingxuan’s puzzled gaze, the shopkeeper rubbed his hands awkwardly.
“Young Master, forgive my rudeness… was that child truly suffering from a plague?”
“If you don’t believe it, you’re welcome to drive their family of three out.”
Stopping in his tracks, the mockery in Ling Jingxuan’s phoenix eyes was no longer concealed. The shopkeeper was, after all, an old physician in his forties or fifties. Being spoken to so bluntly left his old face somewhat hard to bear—but given the current situation, what choice did he have but to believe him?
Thinking this through, the shopkeeper had no choice but to suppress his embarrassment. He clasped his hands in a respectful bow and forced a smile.
“Please don’t misunderstand, Young Master. It’s not that I don’t believe you. Since you were able to identify the child’s symptoms, your prescription surely can’t be wrong. It’s just that… well, I’ll be frank. You must have seen it yourself—there are far too many onlookers outside. This matter will soon reach the county magistrate’s ears. To prevent the epidemic from spreading, the authorities will certainly send troops to seal off this place, perhaps even quarantine the entire Datong Town. So… so this old man would like to shamelessly ask you for a preventive prescription. I hope you’ll forgive me.”
The shopkeeper’s reasoning was sound, but Ling Jingxuan could see through him clearly—he was simply afraid of being infected himself. While that was only human nature, asking Ling Jingxuan to pay for his safety was asking a bit too much. If Ling Jingxuan were truly that kind-hearted, he wouldn’t have roamed the world in his previous life as a top-tier assassin.
“A prescription isn’t impossible. That depends on how much sincerity the shopkeeper is willing to show.”
Sweeping away his earlier aloofness, Ling Jingxuan curved his lips into a smile, casually crossed his legs, and sat down nearby. His long, slightly upturned phoenix eyes looked at the shopkeeper with meaningful intent.
The shopkeeper’s eyelid twitched and the corner of his mouth couldn’t help but twitch as well.
“Please name your price, Young Master.”
“Straightforward! I like people who are straightforward. Alright then—considering the folks from all the surrounding villages, a single price: ten taels of silver!”
Ling Jingxuan snapped his fingers smartly, smiling broadly. Heh… this wasn’t extortion, you know. In the past, even if people piled stacks of cash in front of him, he might not have bothered saving them. Besides, life was always more important than money. By spending ten taels, the shopkeeper could buy peace of mind for his own life and also sell the medicine to others at a reasonable price. Small profits, large volume—he wouldn’t lose out, and he’d even earn a good reputation.
“Fine. Ten taels of silver.”
The shopkeeper was shrewd as well. Everything Ling Jingxuan had considered, he could also see. Though ten taels was expensive, it was still within an acceptable range. Gritting his teeth, he agreed—though he felt somewhat displeased deep down.
“You get the prescription when I get the money.”
As he spoke, Ling Jingxuan casually pulled out one of the prescriptions tucked among the bundles of herbs right in front of him. The shopkeeper reacted instantly—his eyes flew wide open and he nearly spat out a mouthful of blood. So one of the prescriptions he’d just gathered earlier was actually the epidemic-prevention formula. If only he’d known sooner…
But ‘if only’ can’t be bought for any price. With a heavy heart, the shopkeeper had no choice but to pull a ten-tael silver note from his robes and hand it over, while at the same time accepting the prescription—now like a burning hot potato—in return.
“Hehe… thanks!”
After glancing at the bold “Datong Tongdui” seal on the note, Ling Jingxuan couldn’t resist giving the thin slip of paper a smug little shake as he passed by. The shopkeeper’s heart ached so badly he wanted to pounce on him and bite him to death. By the time he remembered to ask Ling Jingxuan’s name, the man was already long gone from the shop.
“Ah…”
Lowering his head to look at the prescription in his hand, the shopkeeper let out a deep sigh. After living for decades, who would have thought he’d be tricked by a young man who looked barely twenty? Truly, the older he got, the worse he became.
There wasn’t time for him to wallow in frustration, though. Not long after Ling Jingxuan left, a flood of customers poured into Ping’an Hall. Most of them had been bystanders who’d watched the earlier commotion up close, and all had come to buy medicine to prevent the plague. In less than an hour, the ten taels he’d just spent were earned back. That evening, just as Ling Jingxuan had predicted, county yamen runners arrived. The prescription had to be handed over as well. Though it no longer brought profit, it earned him a reputation for benevolence and skilled hands.
Thus, an epidemic that never even had the chance to break out was resolved in such a dramatic fashion. Many years later, whenever County Magistrate Hu—who had been promoted far beyond rank thanks to achievements like stopping this plague—recalled the incident, he couldn’t help giving Ling Jingxuan’s medical skills a wholehearted thumbs-up. But by then, Ling Jingxuan was no longer today’s poor young man; he had become the wealthiest merchant in all of Da Qing, and the most feared Royal Poison Consort!
Of course, all that came later. What followed next was unknown to Ling Jingxuan at the time—and even if he had known, he probably would’ve brushed it off with a smile. He had never cared about a good reputation anyway.
When the group of one adult and two children returned to the fish market, Ling Jingpeng had already sold off the remaining two buckets of fish. All the goods they’d bought from various shops had also been delivered and neatly stacked on the ox cart of Zhao Dalong’s family, who had returned earlier. Seeing Tiewa, the two little buns happily ran over. The three children huddled together, chattering away as they excitedly exchanged stories about what they’d seen that day.
“Why did you buy so much medicine? Is it all for Second Brother?”
From afar, Ling Jingpeng went to greet them, taking the large bundle of medicinal herbs from Ling Jingxuan’s hands.
“No. Part of it’s for us to take ourselves. I’ll explain the details later.”
Tossing him a smile, Ling Jingxuan walked side by side with him toward Zhao Dalong and Han Fei, who were standing by the ox cart.
“Brother Zhao, Brother Han, sorry to trouble you again.”
“Listen to you—what trouble? Did you get everything you wanted to buy?”
Han Fei was as straightforward and warm as ever. As he spoke, he bent down to lift the children onto the cart. Ling Jingxuan smiled and nodded. One after another, they climbed onto the cart. When they passed a butcher’s stall, Ling Jingxuan suddenly jumped down and strode over.
“Boss, how much is the meat?”
“Lean meat’s ten wen per jin, fatty meat’s fifteen. Want some, kid?”
Seeing a customer approach, the butcher immediately greeted him enthusiastically. Before Ling Jingxuan could reply, Da Baozi came rushing over in a panic.
“Dad, why are you spending money again? We’ve already spent almost everything we earned today, and you—”
“Stop. Xiao Wen, come here.”
If he let the kid go on, they’d never make it home. Ling Jingxuan cut him off and waved him closer. Da Baozi eyed him suspiciously. After quite a while, he finally shuffled forward awkwardly into Ling Jingxuan’s arms. Leaning close to his ear, Ling Jingxuan quietly summarized what had just happened at the pharmacy—of course, emphasizing one key point: he’d earned another ten taels of silver, and it was time to treat themselves.
“Really?!”
The child’s little sword-shaped brows knitted tightly together; Da Baozi clearly didn’t trust him. And who could blame him? In his short five years of life, he’d never seen money earned so easily. Even the earlier two taels had made him cry his eyes out—let alone ten taels. To him, it was practically an astronomical figure.
“Really. So let’s splurge just a little, alright? Don’t you want to taste meat?”
With such a rare chance to enjoy the flavor of meat, how could Ling Jingxuan possibly pass it up?
Following his gaze, Ling Wen looked at the slabs of meat on the counter and swallowed hard. After a long moment, he finally said awkwardly—yet with obvious heartache, “Then… let’s buy a little?”
What child doesn’t crave food? No matter how thrifty or precocious Ling Wen was, he was still just a little kid after all.
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Translator: LazyHermitGal
Author: LazyHermitGal
A Lazy Hermit Gal. A little support goes a long way! If you’d like to help me keep creating, you can do so at https://ko-fi.com/lazyhermitgal
