8 Plants work better fresh

Li Chang anxiously rushed home carrying the single bag of groceries he had just purchased. He spent the return trip going over in his head everything he would need in order to complete his plan.

He would need to make his own garden. One with all the best medicinal ingredients this world could offer. Then he would need a good cauldron made from the finest materials and a quiet place where he could seclude himself and refine pills and elixirs. Lastly he would need a place to do business where he could create the finest pill shop in this entire world.

The truth was that Li Chang needed to come back to reality. His plan sounded wonderful, but it was also impossible to accomplish considering his basically non existent budget.

He took the forming of this plan very seriously because there could be no mistakes. More than anyone else Li Chang new how things could go terribly wrong if one made even a single mistake.

Using his ability and skill honed over 20 years in his last world, he could just acquire some basic medicinal and mundane ingredients that would fill his need temporarily. This would only last until he could make some money and then get better and better ingredients.

Creating a garden actually wouldn't pose a problem for him. Every person who desired to become an alchemist would first learn to care for and assess plants. As long as Li Chang had a place to grow plants, his plants would become the best since he knew better than anyone what each plant needed.

The problem would come when he would begin attempting to concoct the pills and elixirs.

Whether this world had the materials to create a decent cauldron he didn't know. However, without the money needed to purchase those materials it didn't really matter if they existed or not.

As an aspiring alchemist, and even as an alchemist slave, he had a decent knowledge of formations, their use and their creation. This meant that he could just get a decent large copper pot and engrave his own formations and arrays onto it. Hoping to make something that might be barely passible.

The problem was that to his knowledge this world had no spirit fire. He could use his qi and energy to manipulate normal fire but the drain this would be on him, in this environment, would not be little. But there was the rub.

He now was worried that he may only be able to make small amounts of elixers and pills. Li Chang didnt know how effective his products would be compared to the products of this world or how much they would sell for. He did understand that if he didnt have any products to sell it wouldnt matter.

He reached his front door with all of these thoughts running through his head. Knowing that he needed to take this a step at a time and resolve the issues only when they presented themselves, he took a deep breath to calm his nervs.

Li Chang let out his breath and reached out his hand to open his front door and stopped. He noticed that he could hear a conversation taking place on the other side of the door. What surprised him the most was that this conversation was about money, work and himself.

"No mom, i dont understand why you are making such a big deal about this." Li Chang heard his sister arguing with his mother.

"You cant just drop out of university and thats that!"

"Its my choice. My job is offering me full time and more money. With our situation I'd be a fool not to drop out and take the offer."

"But what about your education and your future. this will affect your entire life."

"The tuition is too much."

"I will make it work. You just keep going to school."

"And what about Alexander? What about his tuition? His school ends in two months. He has been working so hard to make sure he gets into a good university. What will happen when we add another tuition to the mix?"

*Sigh* "I will make it work." Li Chang could tell that his mother was becomming less confident.

"How?"

"I dont know... but i wont let any of you kids miss out or suffer."

"Mom let me do this. I can help so let me help. You cant do this all yourself."

"..."

"Alex is going to be graduating in a short while and we also need to pay more for Trevor as well. With mine and Alex's tuition as well as all of Trevors up comming expenses we wont make it."

"..."

"You have sacrificed so much for us since dad died, please let me do this. I love you, and i love Alex and Trevor too. I agree that they cant be allowed to miss out or suffer but mom you shouldnt either. If you keep trying to do too much you will hurt yourself. Besides, its already done and i cant take it back."

"What!"

"I knew you would try to stop me so i did it before i even told you."

"You have already dropped out of school?"

"Yep, and i start full time as soon as i go back."

*Sigh*

"Besides, Alex's scores are better than mine were anyway. So he can just take care of both us after he graduates from university and becomes successfull. Haha" His sister Julie said with a laugh.

He no longer heard any arguement from his mother but a strange feeling of warmth ran through his body and he could feel some moisture gathering in his eyes. When had someone cared enough for him to sacrifice so much on his behalf. He didnt know if it had ever happened before. He now knew that he must succede he must do all he could so that his family would never want for anything ever again.

This family, that wasnt even his was caring for him in ways that his real family never had. This mother, this sister. His mother, his sister. In his heart he truly aknowledged this as his family.

He made sure that his eyes were dry and headed into the house.

"Hi mom, hi Julie. Here are the groceries. I have to head back out for a bit but ill be right back." Li Chang said as he put the groceries down and hurried up to his room.

He went to the bookcase where Alexander hid his money and prayed that he would have enough. His plan needed to happen sooner than he had originally thought.

It was the end of March which meant that he had 5 days off for spring break. This also now meant, that he only had a few days to get as much done as he could before school started again.

He grabbed all of the money from its hiding place and (hoping that it would be enough) headed back to the store and the small clinic.

"Old man you better not be stingy with your plant seeds or else i will use my pills to take down your clinic one day." He said with more confidence than he felt. In fact he was truly afraid that the old man at the clinic would in fact be stingy.

Li Chang knew that he meant this threat but also knew that if he recieved help he was sure to return it many times over.

What the old mans reaction would be Li Chang would know shortly.

He had no choice. He was poor and this environment was not good for cultivating plants or people. He also knew that the old man was right. Plants would definitly work better fresh.