Xu Yi had to explain the importance of marketing tactics.
If only Xu Yi had set up a stall to sell digestive pills from the beginning, the pills wouldn’t have become known throughout the entire county.
He had originally been willing to sell to Jishi Hall because of its standing and reputation among the county’s medical halls. Splitting half the profits to affiliate with Jishi Hall was a win-win situation. As for pricing, first, the medicine price couldn’t be too high or making the digestive pills would lose its original purpose. Second, it was to guard against the day when the other party might cross the river and burn the bridge.
Clearly, his judgment had been correct.
Doctor Yan was a good physician, but the main family behind him had long since transformed from a family of physicians to a merchant family. With their focus skewed, naturally conflicts arose between them and Doctor Yan’s ideals.
A break was inevitable, but Xu Yi wouldn’t necessarily lose.
Today’s crowds surrounding the stall to buy digestive pills was the best proof.
People came and went. Hearing it was Chen’s Digestive Pills being sold, they would all stop to look and ask.
Some were servants from households who, after getting the news, ran to ask their masters about the situation. When they returned, they brought strings of coins to buy the digestive pills.
Before long, a richly dressed middle-aged man came over. He wasn’t there to buy digestive pills. As soon as he opened his mouth, he asked Ah Xu who the physician who made the digestive pills was.
Ah Xu had never encountered such a situation. Instinctively, he looked toward Xu Yi, who was watching the excitement from the side.
The middle-aged man followed Ah Xu’s gaze and met Xu Yi’s eyes.
Xu Yi: “…”
He walked over and asked, “May I ask, young sir, do you know which physician makes these digestive pills?”
Xu Yi asked him, “What do you need him for?”
The middle-aged man looked at him and said, “This physician who can make such digestive pills must have superb medical skills. My young master’s eldest son has a stubborn illness that has never improved. I’m here on behalf of my young master to invite this physician for a house call.”
Seeing Xu Yi’s expression, he added, “If you know where this physician is, I hope you’ll tell me.”
Xu Yi said, “There are many physicians in the county town. Why must you search for one whose whereabouts are unknown?”
The middle-aged man sighed, saying they had invited all the famous physicians in the county, but none could cure it. Even Doctor Chen, with the best reputation, said after examining the child that this illness couldn’t be cured. But his young master wouldn’t give up.
The eldest son was the young master’s first child. With a handsome appearance and exceptional intelligence, at only eight years old he already showed the bearing of an outstanding individual. But the physicians said that because this child had been sweating incessantly since birth, and at eight years old was still the same, he wouldn’t live to adulthood.
In the methods for determining a child’s longevity, there was indeed the saying “incessant sweating means they won’t reach adulthood.” And according to what this middle-aged man said, his young master’s son had been good-natured and exceptionally clever since childhood. In ancient times, such children were not conducive to growing up, most would die young.
After all, “incessant sweating” could be caused by many reasons, including physiological and pathological factors among others. For physicians to unanimously agree it couldn’t be cured, Xu Yi suddenly very much wanted to know what illness this actually was.
However, the specifics would only be known after a consultation.
Xu Yi said, “I am the physician who makes the digestive pills. My surname is Xu, given name Yi. You may address me by my name directly.”
The middle-aged man was surprised. This young man was actually the physician who made the digestive pills?
He was too young.
He hesitated about whether to bring Xu Yi to the residence.
Xu Yi wasn’t in a hurry. He told him, “First ask your young master if he wants me to come to the residence for a consultation.”
The middle-aged man thought this made sense. After asking for Xu Yi’s home address, he hurriedly left the crowd.
Xu Yi watched his departing figure, then looked at Ah Xu and the others. The digestive pills they’d brought today had sold out. It was time to return home.
He stood up and brushed at his somewhat wrinkled robe.
…
The ox cart leisurely returned to Stone Well Lane on South Street.
It was nearly lunchtime. Xu Yi asked Old Liu to stay and eat with them.
Xu Yi said to Ah Xu, “I want to eat chicken shred noodles.”
Chicken shred noodles meant tearing cooked chicken into strips, frying Sichuan peppercorns in lard until their fragrance emerged, then removing the peppercorns and keeping only the fragrant oil. Then this fragrant oil was mixed into the chicken shreds and seasoned.
The troublesome part was rolling out the noodles.
Hearing Xu Yi wanted to eat them, Ah Xu went to scoop flour from the jar. This flour was called white flour, but it was slightly yellow, different from modern refined flour. Just smelling it, the wheat fragrance was rich and made one want to taste a bit.
He cracked an egg into the flour, added a bowl of well water and half a spoonful of salt, then began kneading the dough.
At this time, Xu Yi took some hemp rope and gave it to Ah Jin, having her string together the coins they’d earned from selling digestive pills today.
One package of digestive pills cost twenty coins.
Ah Jin’s eyes brightened as she happily called out, “Young master, there’s so much money!”
They had brought a wooden box to hold the money. When they closed up the stall, the box was nearly full.
Ah Jin tried to lift it but it was too heavy, she couldn’t move it.
Xu Yi asked seemingly casually, “Do you really like earning money?”
Ah Jin was lying in front of the box, reaching out to touch the money inside. Hearing this, she raised her small face, her eyes curving like crescent moons as she smiled and said, “I’m happy that so many people want to buy the pills young master made. It shows how good young master’s digestive pills are.”
After speaking, she asked Xu Yi, “Young master, will we go again tomorrow?”
Xu Yi smiled at her. “Tomorrow the City God Temple market isn’t open.”
“Ah,” Ah Jin said, disappointment showing in her eyes. How wonderful it would be if every day could be like this.
However, the child’s thoughts quickly returned to the joy of counting money.
Xu Yi moved the box into the room and poured it out onto the table. With a clatter, a mountain of coins appeared on the table.
One hundred coins made one string. Ten strings made one guan.
After counting, they had two guan. This delighted Ah Jin so much that she jumped up and ran to the kitchen to tell Ah Xu this good news.
Ah Xu was also very happy to hear it. He pinched a strip of chicken and fed it to Ah Jin, asking, “Is it too salty?”
Ah Jin chewed and swallowed it, licking the corners of her mouth. “Not salty. It’s delicious. Brother, your cooking keeps getting better. No wonder young master only has you cook.”
Ah Xu said, “It’s because you’re too young. Young master doesn’t feel comfortable having you do it.”
“Really?” Ah Jin tilted her head. “When will I grow as tall as brother?”
Ah Xu paused, then said when she reached ten years old, she could be as tall as him.
Ten years old was, for a child, a very important line. Among rural folk there was a saying that once a child passed ten years old, they could live healthily to adulthood. Before then, many children would die young from various causes.
Therefore, among the common people appeared customs of having children wear hundred-family clothes, eat hundred-family meals, or giving them lowly names, all to help the child be easier to raise.
Ah Jin looked forward to growing up quickly. In the room, Xu Yi looked at the small mountain of coins and fell silent.
This money should be exchanged for paper bills.
Otherwise, his home had no place to store money anymore.
Looking at the cramped little home packed full, Xu Yi suddenly felt the house was somewhat small. He turned his gaze to the courtyard.
The courtyard area wasn’t large either, only twenty or thirty square meters. Occupied by an outhouse, a flower bed, tea table and stools for cooling off, and a place for drying medicinal herbs, there was no more space for him to expand.
Should they move?
Thinking of the many troubles of moving, Xu Yi suppressed this idea.
He got up and went to the kitchen. Watching Ah Xu make food was also a way to relax the body and mind.
When Xu Yi arrived, Ah Xu was cutting noodles.
He had kneaded the flour into a smooth dough. After letting it rest for the time it took to burn a stick of incense, he sprinkled a little flour on the cutting board, placed the dough on it, and used a rolling pin to roll it into a thin pancake.
Then he rolled it up, placed two fingers on the rolled side, and began cutting noodles.
The cut noodles were uniform in length, but Ah Xu’s knife skills were immature and he couldn’t cut all the noodles to the same thickness.
However, this wasn’t a big problem. As long as the noodles tasted good, that surpassed everything else.
Using flour with added egg and salt to make noodles was a skill Madam Chen had taught him. Madam Chen said noodles made this way were springy, smooth, and more fragrant. Many noodle shops had secret methods they never told others, but Madam Chen had still taught this method to Ah Xu.
Although he didn’t know the principle of why adding egg and salt made the noodles tastier, after eating them once, Xu Yi fell in love.
Delicious.
Truly delicious.
Seeing Xu Yi liked eating them, Ah Xu varied the toppings in different ways.
In the marketplace, a home-raised adult chicken only cost eighty coins, relatively cheap among meat prices.
Since Ah Xu learned more dishes, he often bought butchered chicken to bring back. He could roast, braise, or stir-fry it. There was still some meat left from yesterday’s chicken. Today’s chicken shreds were made from it.
Now that Xu Yi had come over, Ah Xu dropped the cut noodles into the bubbling boiling water, then used a small plate to pick up a piece of chicken and let him taste it. “Young master, is the flavor acceptable?”
“Acceptable!” said Xu Yi with satisfaction after tasting it.
Once the noodles were cooked, he spread the mixed chicken shreds over the noodles, and lunch was ready.
With Old Liu joining them today, they ate at the tea table in the courtyard.
Everyone held a clay bowl in their hands, all burying their heads to slurp noodles. Not one person spoke.
The noodles were truly too delicious. The lard fried with Sichuan peppercorns was both fragrant and numbing. With a stir of the chopsticks, each noodle was coated with the glossy sauce. These noodles were even chewier than ordinary noodles, with rich flavor and generous portions. They were especially fragrant to eat.
“This old man has lived so many years, and this is the first time I’ve eaten such delicious noodles.”
After eating, Old Liu wiped his mouth and said emotionally.
Xu Yi had eaten many delicacies, but was still amazed by this simple food. These noodles had such a full wheat fragrance, a texture he’d never experienced no matter how many times he’d eaten noodles before.
“Madam Chen said brother’s noodles are good enough to set up a stall in the marketplace!” Ah Jin said proudly.
Ah Xu’s face flushed slightly red. Somewhat embarrassed, he didn’t raise his head.
Both Xu Yi and Old Liu nodded in agreement. Such noodles would be extremely popular in the marketplace.
“If Ah Xu became a cook, he could surely achieve something,” Xu Yi said.
Hearing this, Ah Xu quickly shook his head. “I won’t be a cook. I want to learn medicine from young master.”
Xu Yi laughed mutely.
He was just saying it casually. If Ah Xu really became a cook, Xu Yi couldn’t bear to part with him.
After the meal, Old Liu didn’t stay long at the Xu residence. It was getting late, he still had to go to the city gate to pick up scattered passengers.
Xu Yi saw him to the door, then returned to the kitchen to work on medicinal herbs.
On the other side, at the Pang residence, only three lanes away from the Xu home.
The Pang family were new residents on South Street. When they moved in, they were very low-key and didn’t cause any commotion. Among their attendants were only one old servant and one young servant, with two donkey carts carrying trunks.
Pang Boyi was originally from Tongzhou. After retirement, he returned to the Tongzhou ancestral home for half a year, then dismissed many hired servants, keeping only a few indentured family servants and hereditary servants at the old home to serve. He himself brought the family servant Uncle Pang and another young servant to travel around.
His coming to Yanting County this time was purely accidental. Because a friend was serving as county sheriff here, it was also a stable and pleasant place to live. Having rushed about various places these past years with few places he stayed long, Pang Boyi decided to linger here for a year or two.
Shortly after settling in, Uncle Pang had brought him this interesting matter.
Pang Boyi sipped tea and looked toward his friend sitting across from him, asking with surprise, “You actually don’t know which physician makes these digestive pills either?”
“I don’t know.” Pan Wenji shook his head, saying that for this kind of matter, perhaps the Street Bureau knew better than him.
“They often deal with these physicians. If you want to know, I’ll send someone to ask for you.”
But Pang Boyi laughed. “If you ask, wouldn’t that take away half the fun?”
Pan Wenji: “…”
“After all these years, you haven’t changed. I suppose retirement is also a small matter to you. After so long, do you still not want to return?”
“Not at all, not at all. There are many who find satisfaction in life. What harm is there in lacking me?” Pang Boyi felt that in his life, he’d spent most of his time studying, then obtained fame and fortune, but had never been as carefree as these past few years.
“You think I’m finding joy in bitterness, but how do you know I’m not truly enjoying it?”
Pan Wenji looked at him with deep eyes. Seeing his friend wasn’t joking, he smiled self-mockingly.
“If you won’t return, I won’t urge you.” He hesitated a moment, then asked the practical question. “Travel expenses are high. These years you’ve had no income. Is your silver still sufficient?”
Although Pan Wenji was only a minor county sheriff, Song dynasty officials received high monthly stipends. High court ministers could earn over ten thousand guan annually. As a county sheriff at the eighth rank from the bottom, his monthly stipend was also ten guan. Adding the shops and other businesses his family ran, his days in the county town were quite comfortable with surplus.
He knew his friend had reached the point of having empty pockets these past two years. He took out a fifty-tael paper certificate and passed it over.
He said this was a housewarming gift and Pang Boyi must accept it.
Pang Boyi waved his hands dismissively. “This housewarming gift is too heavy. Your mother’s birthday is next month. I don’t have this much silver to prepare a birthday gift. You’re making things difficult for me.”
Pan Wenji: “…” Very well, very well.
He gritted his teeth and asked if he would accept it or not.
“I won’t.” Pang Boyi said.
Pan Wenji laughed angrily and used reverse psychology. “If you refuse me now, aren’t you afraid I’ll get angry in the future and ignore you, with no one to relieve your boredom?”
Hearing this, Pang Boyi frowned slightly in thought, his expression seemingly wavering.
At this moment, Uncle Pang returned.
Pang Boyi looked over. Seeing Uncle Pang’s light step, he smiled and said to Pan Wenji, “Perhaps even without you coming, I’ll have new interesting matters for amusement.”
Pan Wenji’s heart skipped a beat. Looking at Uncle Pang again, he indeed saw something different.
Soon, Uncle Pang came before the two men. He first bowed to Pan Wenji, then said to Pang Boyi, “Young master, I bought the Chen’s Digestive Pills.”
When he went out today, just passing through the marketplace he received news that someone at the market outside the City God Temple was setting up a stall selling Chen’s Digestive Pills. Originally holding a skeptical attitude, he went to investigate. Unexpectedly, two children were running the stall. Uncle Pang found it suspicious, so he also went forward and bought a package to bring back.
“These are those digestive pills?” Pang Boyi raised his eyebrows and took them to open.
Inside, the pills were round and full, each one the same size, with a pleasant medicinal fragrance.
“These are real.” Pan Wenji suddenly spoke.
Pang Boyi looked at him. “Oh?”
Pan Wenji said, “Every household in the county town keeps Chen’s Digestive Pills. Taking one pill for abdominal bloating and discomfort works very well. Unfortunately, Jishi Hall used to ration the sales, only providing eighty pills daily. You had to queue up early to buy them.”
Limiting quantities before was one thing, but this time they said there’s unlimited quantity, yet both the price and efficacy had completely changed.
Several wealthy households had already gone to the government office to file complaints, but because this didn’t reach the level requiring a trial, Pan Wenji had rejected them all.
“Uncle Pang, when you bought these at the City God Temple market, did you see who the physician was?” Pan Wenji asked him.
Uncle Pang shook his head and said, “It was two children.” Then he paused, remembering something. “There also seemed to be a young man watching from the side.”
“If it’s a young man, then it probably wasn’t him.” Pang Boyi shook his head regretfully. “By age, this young man might be that physician’s disciple. Uncle Pang, next time you encounter them, ask.”
Pan Wenji thought for a moment and said, “Didn’t you say that being newly arrived, you’re unaccustomed to the local environment and have had stomach discomfort these past days? Why not take one pill now to see how effective it is?”
“Wenji speaks reasonably.” This was also Pang Boyi’s thought.
Hearing this, Uncle Pang went to pour him a cup of warm water, and also told Pang Boyi that after taking medicine, he couldn’t drink tea or eat oily, greasy, or fried foods.
Pang Boyi’s hand taking the pill trembled as he asked, “Then can I still eat today’s fried fish?”
Uncle Pang replied with a cold face and hard heart, “Young master, you cannot eat fried foods.”
…
Apricot Grove Hall.
Sun Shitong stared grimly at the opened hemp paper before him, his hands propped on the table clenched into fists.
By now, he had long known from whose hands these digestive pills came.
These past days, Jishi Hall changing the pills they sold had caused an uproar, and he had been the most pleased person in it all.
With Jishi Hall and Xu Yi having a falling out, Xu Yi would never make a big splash again in the future. Who would have thought that before he could be happy for more than a few days, Li Ji told him someone at the marketplace was selling digestive pills.
Fearing the news was mistaken, he personally rode in a cart to see for himself. The result was seeing the two children from the Xu household setting up a stall there, with even Xu Yi present.
At that moment, Sun Shitong’s faint hope shattered. His face dark as ink, he returned to Apricot Grove Hall.
He sat in the consultation hall burning with rage. Outside in the main hall, Li Ji, who was arranging medicinal herbs, was distracted. Even someone like Xu Yi who abandoned scholarly studies for medicine could become proficient in such a short time, not only able to treat patients but also make medicinal pills.
Yet he’d been an apprentice for so long, daily serving Sun Shitong tea and water, living a life not even as good as a servant’s. He hadn’t been able to learn anything, and was not even as good as the ten-year-old child at Xu Yi’s side.
He should have known long ago that Sun Shitong didn’t truly want to take him as an apprentice. He might as well abandon darkness for light…
He would tell Xu Yi that Sun Shitong had been watching him from the shadows all along, so Xu Yi should be careful. Would Xu Yi then take him as an apprentice?
Li Ji’s mind was in chaos. The rhubarb he was pinching, he placed in another medicine cabinet.
At this moment, Sun Shitong came out from the consultation hall, wanting to call him to go inquire about the Xu family’s situation. The result was seeing him distracted, even putting medicinal herbs in the wrong place. Furious, he pointed at him and cursed.
Li Ji felt wronged, his eyes reddening, but he lowered his head without saying a word.
His appearance made Sun Shitong even angrier. He mockingly declared, “Since you’re so disobedient, you don’t need to come anymore. Pack your things and get out of here. You’re truly rotten wood that can’t be carved. Why should I exhaust myself teaching you medicine?”
Hearing this, Li Ji’s expression changed. His lips trembling, he cried out, “Teacher, I was wrong! I was wrong! Just now I was distracted and put the herbs in the wrong place.”
“Hmph, these are all excuses. I think your heart hasn’t been with me for a long time. You might as well leave early so I don’t have to look at you and be annoyed.” With his temper flaring, and looking at Li Ji’s pathetic appearance, Sun Shitong had long lost his former patience for lecturing.
He tried to pull back the sleeve Li Ji had grabbed. Li Ji held on and wouldn’t let go, so he raised his foot and kicked him hard to the ground. Looking at Li Ji, who after falling crawled and knelt, his eyes full of disgust, he returned to the consultation hall and called for another apprentice to come in.
That apprentice looked uneasily at Li Ji kneeling on the ground, thought for a moment, but still went into the consultation hall.
When he came out, he found Li Ji was still kneeling there, unmoving.
He immediately felt uneasy. Hesitantly, he came to Li Ji’s side and called softly, “Li Ji, Li Ji, what’s wrong with you?”
Li Ji didn’t answer him.
The apprentice swallowed and looked back to see Sun Shitong hadn’t come out. Only then did he say quietly, “Why don’t you get up first? Kneeling here, teacher can’t even see you…”
Before he finished speaking, he saw Li Ji’s eyes, red as if about to drip blood. He was suddenly startled and stepped back.
“…Li Ji?”
Li Ji still didn’t acknowledge him. Instead, he staggered to his feet. His hands hanging at his sides trembled. His frighteningly red eyes stared fixedly toward the consultation hall.
Suddenly, he moved, quickly running to the back courtyard. When he came out, he held a knife for cutting medicinal herbs in his hand.
Before the others could react, they saw Li Ji raising the knife and rushing into the consultation hall. Immediately following was a heart-wrenching, agonized scream…
“Murder!”
In the chaos, Li Ji ran out of the medical hall covered in blood.
–
Who could have imagined that the honest, simple apprentice would one day rise up in fury and kill the teacher who taught him medicine?
Soon someone went to report to the authorities.
Apricot Grove Hall was sealed off. The watching common people saw Doctor Sun being carried out by bailiffs on a stretcher.
Drip, drip,
Blood trailed all over the ground. Before long, runners from the Street Bureau responsible for cleaning the streets scrubbed the bloodstains from the floor clean.
At this time, Xu Yi was at another medical hall buying medicinal herbs for making digestive pills.
When he came out, he discovered the number of people on the street had suddenly decreased. He only saw a team of bailiffs with official blades at their waists searching everywhere for someone.
An uncle cleaning up his stall nearby kindly reminded him, “Young man, hurry home. There’s been a murder on South Street, and the killer has escaped.”
Xu Yi frowned. He wanted to ask about the situation when he saw the bailiffs coming toward them.
“Have you seen a youth about fifteen or sixteen years old, wearing gray short clothes, with blood on his body?”
The stall owner uncle quickly shook his head. “Officer, this humble one has been setting up a stall here all along. I haven’t seen this person.”
The bailiff glanced at him, then shifted his gaze to Xu Yi and asked, “What about you? Have you seen him?”
Xu Yi said slowly, “I haven’t seen him.”
These bailiffs, looking at Xu Yi’s appearance, also knew they couldn’t get any information. Without saying more useless words, they just told them to leave quickly. If they saw any suspicious person, they should immediately report to the yamen.
On the road home, the houses on both sides were tightly closed. The children who usually came out to play at this hour had all been kept inside by their parents.
Until the fugitive was caught, these children probably wouldn’t be able to come out to play.
As Xu Yi was almost home, he suddenly saw a flash of gray from a small alley near a house not far away.
His eyebrows knitted together. The small alley was right next to the Xu family’s house.
li ji you absolute moron