Chapter 139: Chapter 139: Worth Every Penny

“Ginseng? How many years?”

The attendant’s eyes lit up instantly, and he bypassed the counter, saying: “Take it out and let me see!”

“See?”

Yin Cheng caught his breath by this time and spoke much more fluently: “If I show it to you, can you make the decision?”

“You old man, I can’t make the decision, but can’t I take a look?”

The attendant was annoyed: “Moreover, you say it’s ginseng, so it’s ginseng, huh? Shouldn’t I verify whether it’s ginseng, polygonum multiflorum, or just a big radish! If the thing you take out is not even ginseng, won’t it be a hassle for our sir?”

This made Yin Cheng even angrier, and he directly cursed: “I’ve been practicing medicine for decades and have seen countless medicinal herbs, and it’s not your place, you little brat, to doubt me!”

“Are you a doctor too?”

The attendant was momentarily surprised and then became very cautious: “If you’re a doctor, why are you selling medicinal herbs?”

This question made the faces of the three of Yin Cheng blacken.

Even Qi Ercai couldn’t squeeze out a smile and spoke with a cold tone: “Why can’t a doctor sell medicinal herbs? Is your establishment buying or not? If yes, let someone in charge come out quickly. If not, we can leave now!”

The attendant asked without thinking, never expecting it to upset all three of them.

Now, he dared not leave rashly.

Who knew if someone knowledgeable in medicine came suddenly, whether for selling herbs or some other purpose, he was hesitant for a while.

Just then, the back door curtain was lifted, and in came a fifty-year-old woman.

The woman was about to speak and was surprised to see three extra people: “Someone coming to see a doctor this early?”

The attendant hurriedly said: “Mistress, these three said they’re here to sell ginseng, but they won’t show it to me when I ask.”

This statement made him sound particularly aggrieved, as if he was being bullied.

The woman frowned, unsure if she was unhappy with the attendant or Qi Ercai and the other two.

After handing the kettle to the attendant, she said: “Sweep first!”

After speaking, she returned to the backyard, not mentioning the ginseng at all.

Yin Cheng’s face turned darker: “Let’s go, I don’t believe we can’t sell it for silver with ginseng in hand!”

Qi Ercai was also quite angry, but if they left now, they’d have to find another clinic.

Though there were other clinics in town, this one was the most reputable, as they heard when asking around.

It’s just that they didn’t expect the so-called good reputation to be like this.

“Mr. Yin, why don’t we wait a bit longer?”

Qi Ercai feared that switching to a less reputable one would make them angrier and might even lower the price, so he wanted to stay.

Yin Cheng glared at Qi Ercai angrily.

Fearing that Yin Cheng might get too angry, Qi Ercai quickly whispered his concerns in his ear.

The issue was about income, directly impacting everyone’s upcoming living expenses.

Yin Cheng listened and could only swallow his anger, then sat back down.

The attendant noticed these details, pouting but surprisingly not saying anything unpleasant.

Originally, they thought they would have to wait an hour to see the clinic’s doctor. Unexpectedly, less than half a tea’s time had passed, and the back door curtain was lifted, revealing a bulky old man.

The old man, upon entering, asked: “Who’s selling ginseng?”

Qi Ercai, hearing this, knew the person who could set the price had arrived and hurriedly stood up: “Greetings, doctor. We are selling ginseng.”

The doctor hurriedly came over: “Where’s the ginseng? Let me see.”

Yin Cheng kept his hands to himself, not moving.

The ginseng was with him, and Qi Ercai and Qi Dalang didn’t know what to do since he didn’t move.

However, the doctor caught on and quickly approached Yin Cheng: “Elder, could you let me take a look at the ginseng?”

“Are you the doctor here?”

Yin Cheng answered with a question instead.

The doctor nodded: “Indeed, it’s me.”

“Is that kid your grandson or your disciple?”

Yin Cheng pointed towards the attendant.

The doctor quickly replied: “He’s my junior disciple.”

“Not great.”

Yin Cheng said just those three words and took out the ginseng from his chest.

To avoid damaging the ginseng’s roots, it was packed in a wooden box.

Yin Cheng had held it close to him the entire journey.

Upon opening the box and seeing the ginseng inside, the doctor’s eyes lit up: “Nice, nice! Complete appearance, preserved so well!”

He was about to reach out to take the box.

Yin Cheng turned aside, avoiding the doctor’s hand, and snorted: “No rush to take it; see how much the ginseng is worth first.”

The doctor seemed to just remember they were selling ginseng and quickly smiled apologetically: “Elder, I need to look closely and determine its age before quoting a price.”

Yin Cheng waved his hand: “This ginseng is less than a hundred years old, around seventy to eighty years. Quote first, how much silver can you offer?”

“This…”

The doctor was in a dilemma.

He had only noticed the complete appearance of the ginseng, not its age, and now the other party claimed it was seventy to eighty years, making it hard to quote.

At this moment, the attendant suddenly spoke: “Master, he says he’s also a doctor.”

“Ah!”

The doctor apparently didn’t expect to encounter a colleague and was about to say something when Yin Cheng commented: “Correct, I used to practice as a doctor, but I’m old now, just living peacefully at home. Not to say much, this ginseng is seventy years old; quote a price, let me hear, if acceptable, you can inspect it closer. If not, we’re leaving, not wasting time.”

All the words the doctor wanted to say were swallowed back, and after a long pause, he said: “I wonder where you practiced medicine before, what were the local herb prices, but here, seventy-year-old ginseng, I can only offer one hundred and twenty taels.”

One hundred and twenty taels?

Qi Ercai and Qi Dalang, hearing this, nearly had their hearts leap out of their chests.

Although they were mentally prepared for the ginseng to be valuable, hearing such a price still startled them.

Goodness, Manbao’s splash of urine is worth quite something indeed!

One hundred and twenty taels, in the old days, their entire family saving up to three or five taels in a year was considered good.

How many years would they need to save up one hundred and twenty taels?

Yin Cheng wasn’t too affected by this; instead, he felt dissatisfied.

“One hundred and twenty taels? Too little, add a bit more, and we won’t go to another place.”

Though Yin Cheng was a doctor, having run a clinic for so many years, he’d encountered many people and situations.

He might find haggling over vegetable prices difficult, but buying and selling medicinal herbs, he’s an expert.

Indeed, herb prices fluctuate, but the more precious the herb, the higher the price, even if ginseng in Tabei Prefecture is cheap. A bit of bargaining can push the price up by twenty to thirty percent.

Source: Webnovel.com, updated by NovelKeep