Ch. 6 Part 1

The town was bustling as ever when Lin Yu'an got there. The town may not be as prosperous as the county town itself but it was just right for the villagers and peasant family around, they could come and trade their harvested vegetables and grains earning a few hundred weni for their daily life. There was only one medicine shop in the town and it was owned by a 40 or 50 years old doctor. In the whole town that was the only pharmacy and doctor to visit when they are sick, but if the doctor couldn't treat them they had to go to the bigger medicine shops in the county using boat. The town didn't have a dock for ships since the town wasn't that big itself but there was a docking for boats which carry people and goods in and out from the town to the county town.

Lin Yu'an walked into the medical shop and to the clerk into the shop, the clerk who looked bored out of his mind because there were no customers quickly straightened himself when he saw Lin Yu'an. He smiled brightly at Lin Yu'an before going on to say " this guest officer is here to buy something or see the doctor? " he asked in a professional tone. " no, I'm here to sell some herbs " Lin Yu'an said politely. Hearing that the clerk's smile dropped in seconds giving Lin Yu'an a bored look " oh " the clerk snorted.

Lin Yu'an " ... "

Business always hasn't been good in the town which made workers of shops earn only a few weni a day, so hearing Lin Yu'an say that he wanted to sell instead of buying the worker changed his tone. " we don't buy damaged herbs here " he said coldly to Lin Yu'an trying to shoo him away. Lin Yu'an ignored his tone not intending to waste time with the clerk " why don't you call the doctor first? I'll leave if he doesn't accept my herbs " Lin Yu'an said. The clerk looked at Lin Yu'an sizing him up from head to toe, he was reluctant to go for the doctor because looking at Lin Yu'an's face. The clerk thought he didn't have the look of a talented herb picker, but seeing that Lin Yu'an was not dressed shabby but lavishly, looking like a young master from a small wealthy family. The clerk sighed in defeat and walked out from behind the counter. " wait here.... I'll go tell the doctor " Lin Yu'an nodded and watch him walk away.

The clerk walk back to behind the counter after a couple of minutes " the doctor is busy at the back, take your herbs to him " he said. Lin Yu'an nod and went the way shown by the clerk. He saw a middle aged man stirring in a pot some black water with some things looking like chunks of a tree bark and some herbs. The middle aged man stopped and turned to Lin Yu'an who was looking at him attentively, rather looking at the process of concocting medicine in this era. " you're the one here to sell herbs? " the doctor asked impatiently looking like he was in hurry and didn't want to waste time at all. " * cough * cough * ... yes, i have some herbs here I'd like you to see "

Lin Yu'an coughed seeing the he got sidetracked, he said. " take them out and put them there " the doctor said again impatiently pointing with his chin towards a woven fanner before turning his attention back to the medicine cooking on the fire.

Lin Yu'an walked to the fanner and set down the basket on his shoulder, he quickly and gently started taking out the herbs and neatly arranging them on the fanner. Seeing this the doctor stopped and watched him in surprised and astonished, in all his years of doctoring he had bought a lot of herbs from all around but had never come across someone so gentle with herbs and not damaging them. Even some doctors couldn't handle herbs well, looking at the young man in front of him with well trimmed and organized herbs in their categories he couldn't help but admire. " were you the one who organized them? " he asked Lin Yu'an seeing that he was done. Lin Yu'an nod. " ..... are you an apprentice learning under someone? " he asked again, he wanted to ask whether Lin Yu'an was a doctor but seeing that Lin Yu'an was so young not older than 20, the doctor put aside that thought.

" no, i know one or two things " Lin Yu'an shook his head and answered. " then do you want to learn under me? " hearing his own voice say that they were both surprised. He didn't even noticed when that thought crossed his mind until they came out of his mouth. " thank you doctor, but I'll have to decline that " the doctor was again shocked. Having a doctor take one as an apprentice a lot of people would fight for that chance, but the young man in front of him rejected him flatly.

doctor " ... "

the doctor was baffled not knowing whether the young man was stupid or just confident, but never the less he had to respect the youth's choice and sighed regretfully. With that talent he might even make it big in life if he polished it and learned, but... well it was the choice of the youth so he couldn't intrude. The herbs Lin Yu'an brought him wasn't much but seeing that they were in good condition, he decided to offer him a high price and not cheat the youth. He would like to continue doing business with such a talented herb picker " I'll offer you 200 taels for all... what do you say? " Lin Yu'an agreed, 200 taels was a food offer indeed. The doctor paid him and put away the herbs " well if you have more, don't forget to bring them here. I'll never cheat you " the doctor said, " then doctor would you like to take off a ginseng from my hand? " Lin Yu'an asked.

The doctor's eyes lite up hearing that, he let go of the wooden spoon and hurried to Lin Yu'an. " what did you say? a ginseng? how old is it? " the doctor asked in a rush giving Lin Yu'an a headache from all the questions, noticing that he was making Lin Yu'an uncomfortable the doctor took a step back and apologized " ah, forgive my old self. I was too excited now. You see a friend of mine fell ill recently and is in need of ginseng to concoct medicine, *sigh* but lately it's really hard to come by ginseng " the doctor said in depressingly.

" a thousand years old ginseng. That's what I have in hand " previously he was just going to sell the hundred years old ginseng rather but hearing that the doctor was urgently in need of ginseng for a patient he changed his mind, he felt as a doctor himself if he wasn't able to relief the pain of his patients he would be very unhappy. Lin Yu'an was truly an underground boss in both heart and mind but he was a doctor too in the same way, he may charge highly and sometimes refuse to treat patients. But those he handpicks by himself he put in all his heart to treat them, that was the kind of doctor he was and is. " really? a thousand years old ginseng? little brother will you sell it to me, I'll definitely buy it at the right price! " The doctor stated pleasingly to Lin Yu'an.

" I'll sell, just but it at the market price. " Lin Yu'an said, it wasn't like he wouldn't be happy if the doctor offer him more money, it was just that the doctor part of him took over his sense of money making. They both agreed and the doctor offered him 15, 0000 taels " how do you want to be paid? " he asked Lin Yu'an. " all in bank notes " Lin Yu'an answered since it was easier to carry bank notes around than broken taels. The money would be used to exchange points but he couldn't do that now, so the best solution was to have the doctor pay in bank notes which would be easier to walk around with.

After they were done with their business, the doctor decided to befriend him and they were having small small talks, the clerk from the front desk suddenly ran in startling the both of them. He bent down panting with red face " what are you doing, why are you running around in the shop in a hurry " the doctor asked with a black face. " doctor Xia.... th.... there's trouble outside.... y ...you have to see this for yourself " he said in short breaths. The doctor turned cold and started to make his way back into the shop with the clerk following behind, Lin Yu'an also followed intending to leave since he was done with his business and whatever troubles they might have had absolutely nothing to do with him. When they went back into the shop there were met with a lot of crowds at the entrance and on the ground in front of the entrance laid an unconscious man covered in blood.

The side of man's stomach was cut opened about 3 or 4 inches opened with some of his intestines showing out looking like his breath was going to stop at any minute. The onlookers were whispering with certainty of the man's death, the doctor approached the two man squatting and in panicked beside the man. The crowds surrounding the entrance of the store only came to watch the excitement because the wounded man was a western man and those who brought him were a western like the man and the other was of the dynasty seemingly working as their translator because he was the one translating the foreigners words to the doctor.

" I'm really sorry....there's really nothing I can do. Even if you take him to the capital no one would be able to save him let alone a small doctor like myself. There's no way he'd even survive the journey to the capital, this man is already a dead man. " Lin Yu'an listened as the doctor apologized, in this backwards era where medicines weren't that develop let alone saving the man who had half of his intestines out with that wide cut, they couldn't even save a fever patient!

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