Chapter 51 - 52: Introduced by an Acquaintance, Red Blood Grass

Chapter 51: Chapter 52: Introduced by an Acquaintance, Red Blood Grass

Su Chen thought to himself, "No, if I just walk over and ask, she might not give it to me even if she has it. I’d better wait and see how things play out."

He stood his ground, remaining entirely still.

"You bastard! How dare you try to pass off this garbage as genuine in front of me, Chen Pi? You really have a death wish! Beat him! Beat the living daylights out of him!"

Suddenly, a torrent of curses rang out from nearby. The short man, Chen Pi, was screaming at a middle-aged medicinal farmer. After a few more vitriolic insults, he ordered the two thugs behind him to start kicking and punching the man.

"Ahhh! Mr. Chen, I was wrong! I know I was wrong! I’ll never do it again! Please stop hitting me!" The middle-aged man, battered and terrified, begged desperately for mercy.

Chen Pi, however, turned a deaf ear. He unhurriedly sorted through the medicinal herbs the man had brought. Once finished, he kicked the bamboo basket away and looked down at the half-dead victim.

"I’ll let you off this time. If there’s a next time, tell your family to come collect your corpse!" Chen Pi said coldly before walking toward the next medicinal farmer.

"Mr. Chen, my herbs are all genuine. There are no fakes mixed in, please take a look," an old woman said, her voice trembling.

Chen Pi casually flipped through the pile and nodded in satisfaction. "Not bad, they’re all genuine. But the quality is a bit lacking. I’ll give you fifty Wen for one tael."

"But... Mr. Chen, it was always sixty Wen before." The old woman grew anxious.

"What? You think that’s too cheap?" Chen Ping stopped what he was doing and glanced at her. "Forty Wen, then."

"Mr... Mr. Chen..."

"Thirty Wen!"

"No, no, no, Mr. Chen! Forty Wen, forty Wen!" As the price dropped lower and lower, the old woman turned pale with fright and hastily agreed.

But Chen Pi just gave a sinister smile. "Too late. Thirty Wen."

He then called his subordinates over to weigh the herbs, paying the old woman at the rate of thirty Wen per tael.

Receiving the money, the old woman showed no trace of joy. Her face was etched with sorrow, and her eyes, which had held a glimmer of brightness moments ago, suddenly turned dull and cloudy.

Just like that, under Chen Pi’s tyrannical collection methods, it was soon the little girl’s turn.

Her experience was similar to the old woman’s. The price of her herbs was suppressed by ten Wen, but the little girl did not argue; she accepted it in silence.

Seeing this, Chen Pi looked somewhat displeased at the lack of resistance, but he said nothing. He had his men weigh her herbs and paid her promptly.

Before leaving, Chen Pi noticed Su Chen standing a short distance away. He scrutinized him for a moment, then walked off.

Shortly after Chen Pi’s departure, the crowd dispersed. The little girl picked up her small bamboo basket and left as well.

After a brief hesitation, Su Chen followed the little girl, keeping a safe distance.

Upon leaving the market, the little girl did not go straight home. Instead, she went to the bazaar to buy some grain, and then made a trip to an apothecary.

It seemed she noticed Su Chen trailing behind her. After selling off the rest of her items, the little girl couldn’t help but quicken her pace, trying to shake him off.

Seeing this, Su Chen did not continue to pursue her, allowing the little girl to lose him.

"Phew!"

The little girl glanced back and, finding no sign of Su Chen, secretly breathed a sigh of relief before speeding up her pace to leave.

"Xiaoya, are you back?"

"Ah."

The little girl, Xiaoya, nodded in response.

After walking a stretch of mountain road, Xiaoya spotted the familiar sight of her house—a dilapidated mud-brick dwelling.

"Is that Xiaoya?"

Hearing the commotion outside, an elderly voice suddenly called out from within the house.

Xiaoya knocked three times, pushed the door open, and walked in with a smile, setting her bamboo basket down.

"Ah, ah," Xiaoya gestured to her grandma.

"I’m fine. You’ve worked hard," her grandma said, shaking her head. She lay in bed, her eyes brimming with heartache as she read the girl’s meaning.

"Ah, ah!" Hearing this, Xiaoya smiled and shook her head, then made another gesture.

"Alright, alright. Go do what you need to do."

Xiaoya nodded. She took out the items she had bought, showing them to her grandma one by one. The old woman watched her with a face full of smiles.

A short while later, Xiaoya took out the pork she had purchased and lit the fire to cook. Wisps of cooking smoke curled into the air, carrying the scent of a warm hearth as they drifted through the tranquil mountain village and faded into the distance.

KNOCK, KNOCK, KNOCK.

At that moment, the sound of knocking startled the grandmother and granddaughter inside. Xiaoya looked toward the door in confusion.

KNOCK, KNOCK, KNOCK.

The knocking rang out again. Xiaoya stood up, peered through the crack in the door, and then opened it.

When she saw Su Chen standing on the threshold, she blanked for a moment, her expression quickly turning tense. Clearly, she recognized him as the man who had been following her earlier.

"Xiaoya, who is it?" her grandma’s voice called out.

Xiaoya didn’t answer. She tried to shut the door, but Su Chen stopped her.

Su Chen offered a friendly smile and said, "An acquaintance introduced me. I’d like to buy some medicinal herbs from you."

Hearing this, Xiaoya hesitated for a moment before finally shaking her head and closing the door.

Having the door slammed in his face, Su Chen stood outside and sighed. It seemed he would just have to go check the Medicine Gang instead.

"What kind of herbs do you want to buy?"

A weak voice suddenly sounded, so faint it felt as if the speaker were pressing right up against the back of the door.

Su Chen halted his steps and lowered his voice. "Red Blood Grass. I’m willing to pay a high price for it."

It fell quiet on the other side. Just as Su Chen thought the person was going to refuse, the voice came again: "How much?"

"500 Wen per stalk!" Su Chen gave his price without hesitation. 500 Wen was equivalent to half a tael.

There was no further response from the other side, and the scene instantly plunged into silence.

A moment later, Su Chen heard movement behind the door. With a CREAK, the wooden door opened.

Xiaoya looked at Su Chen rather timidly and made a few gestures. Seeing this, Su Chen let out an "Ah."

"You want me to pay first?" Su Chen asked after watching her for a long time.

Xiaoya nodded, fixing Su Chen with a cautious gaze. Understanding her intent, Su Chen didn’t hesitate and pulled some loose silver from his robes.

Seeing the loose silver, Xiaoya’s eyes lit up, but she shook her head and gestured some more.

Su Chen understood. "You’re saying you don’t want loose silver, only copper coins?"

"Ah, ah!" Xiaoya nodded.

"Alright. I don’t have any copper coins on me right now. How about I come find you tonight?" Su Chen asked after a moment of thought.

Xiaoya looked thoughtful upon hearing this, then nodded.

Watching Su Chen leave, Xiaoya closed the door and then tiptoed after him.

With Su Chen’s acute hearing, he naturally noticed her. However, he didn’t call her out on it and simply left Ao Mountain Village. Xiaoya didn’t follow him for too long. Seeing that Su Chen had left Ao Mountain Village, she turned back.

Su Chen returned to Medicine Town, found a shop assistant to exchange his silver for five strings of copper coins, and headed straight back to Ao Mountain Village.

Fortunately, a faint candlelight still flickered in Xiaoya’s home; she likely hadn’t gone to bed yet.

KNOCK, KNOCK, KNOCK.

The soft knocking instantly alerted Xiaoya and her grandma. Xiaoya opened the door, took one look at Su Chen, and breathed a sigh of relief.

Su Chen handed the five strings of copper coins over to Xiaoya. She took the money, and with a SLAM, shut the door, leaving Su Chen standing outside.