Chapter 232: Selling Isatis Root
Translator: Dragon Boat Translation Editor: Dragon Boat Translation
Jia Guang was a prideful person and had never bothered to exploit the farmers. When Jiang Xia asked him to give them a fair price, so he would give them a higher price according to the market price for the sake of his pride.
Standing on the steps, Jia Guang looked down upon the family of four. He noticed a listless child, Jiang Gu, perhaps six or seven years old, holding a woman’s hand. The girl hadn’t even grown up yet and was already helping her family sell vegetables. Jia Guang felt pity for them.
But what Jia Guang didn’t know was that Jiang Gu was only listless because she had woken up too early and was simply tired.
After a quick mental calculation, Jia Guang said, “The vegetables were priced at five yuan a basket. Seeing you all coming early in the morning, I’ll raise it by another fifty cents. The meat sauce is two yuan a bottle. 1 want four bottles, which makes it eight yuan. In total, thirteen yuan and fifty cents. Count it.”
Jiang Xia happily received the money and stuffed it into her pocket together with the money that Jia Guang had given her. She did not even count the money. This satisfied Jia Guang’s arrogant temper as a young master.
As they turned to leave, Jia Guang quickly added, “In the future, if you have other vegetables or meat sauce, bring them here. We’ll buy them.”
Jiang Xia smiled and said, “Okay, goodbye.”
Jiang Gu held Zhou Lan’s hand, and Jiang Xia held Jiang Chuan’s. The four of them formed two rows and headed straight for the pharmacy.
In this era, most pharmacies were family businesses with a deep heritage. Not only did they have a deep family background, but they also had the stubbornness of an old scholar.
The traditional medicine store they visited was no exception.
Behind the counter sat an old man who looked to be in his sixties. He had a white goatee and white hair. He wore a pair of presbyopia glasses on his nose and was looking at the medicine list on the counter. He had the unique aura of an old scholar.
When someone came in, he didn’t raise his head. Instead, he looked up at them from the edge of his glasses and then lowered his eyes again.” If you’re seriously ill, go to the hospital. If you’re not, go to the village doctor. I’m sorry that we don’t serve you.”
How interesting – a shopkeeper refusing customers. Though, Jiang Xia and her family weren’t typical customers.
If Jiang Chuan had spoken up in such a scenario, the old scholar would probably shoo them away with cold words. But children might receive a gentler approach.
So, the group waited at the entrance while only Jiang Xia approached the counter. She looked up at the old scholar and asked, “Grandpa, do you buy medicinal herbs here?”
“Medicinal herbs?” The scholar looked up suspiciously from his prescription, pushing his glasses up to get a better look at Jiang Xia.
After such a long drought, there were fewer and fewer vegetables growing in the fields. Who had the leisure to cultivate medicinal plants?
He asked, “What kind of herb?”
Jiang Xia took out a Isatis root from her basket and put it on the counter, “Isatis root!”
The old scholar picked up the Isatis root and put on his presbyopic glasses again. He took a closer look in the daylight. It was indeed Isatis root. From its appearance to its color, it was of the highest quality. However, it wasn’t a particularly valuable herb, and there was only one, so it wouldn’t fetch much.
People usually bore through minor fevers and colds without spending on medicines, so there wasn’t much demand for Isatis root. With low demand, the price naturally dropped.
The old scholar placed the herb back on the counter, seemingly more engrossed in his prescription than any worldly affair. As an afterthought, he asked, “How many food tickets do you want to exchange for it?”
The old scholar was obviously a stubborn man who wouldn’t change his mind. In an era where cash transactions wasn’t allowed, he naturally chose to use food tickets to exchange for goods.
Jiang Xia thought for a moment, fluttered her eyes, and in a cute tone said, “Grandpa, I don’t know the price of Isatis root. How about you name a price?”
After a brief mental calculation, the old scholar picked up the herb again. One Isatis root was too little. Even if it was of better quality than most, it wasn’t worth the hassle. He tossed the Isatis root into Jiang Xia’s arms, waved his hand dismissively, and said, “I’m not buying. You can go now..”