C17 Gathering Ginseng

Startled by Zhao Lei's words, Wang Hu halted abruptly and turned around with a rigid motion to ask, "Zhao Lei, is there something else?"

"You wouldn't just hang around my front door without a reason, especially not to demand five thousand yuan right off the bat," Zhao Lei said, fixing his gaze on Wang Hu. "I need to know what this is all about!"

Relieved that Zhao Lei wasn't about to settle scores with him, Wang Hu quickly blurted out, "It was Wang Tao who told us you had money. He saw you in the county town this afternoon, giving Chen Lan several thousand yuan. He suggested we come to you for money!"

Without a trace of emotion, Zhao Lei nodded and dismissed them, "I understand. You may go now."

Feeling like they'd just been pardoned, Wang Hu and his crew scrambled away. A short distance away, one of Wang Hu's henchmen hesitantly murmured, "Brother Hu, aren't we being disloyal by ratting out Wang Tao?"

"Loyalty? Nonsense!" Wang Hu retorted, delivering a hefty kick to his underling's leg. "If we don't give up Wang Tao, do you think Zhao Lei would spare us? Win a fight against him, then we can talk about loyalty!"

Remembering Zhao Lei's formidable presence, the thug shuddered involuntarily, admitting with a sense of dread, "You're right, Brother Hu. There's no reason for us to show loyalty to Wang Tao."

Watching the thugs vanish into the night, Zhao Lei furrowed his brows and murmured, "Wang Tao... It seems the lesson wasn't harsh enough."

But dealing with Wang Tao would have to wait. For now, Zhao Lei's priority was to plant the newly acquired ginseng seeds. As soon as he got home, he got to work.

Entering the Gourd Space, Zhao Lei planted the ginseng seeds beside a jade tablet. Having no experience with ginseng, he resorted to the familiar method of planting vegetables.

For Zhao Lei, a veteran of farm work, this task was a breeze. In no time, he had all eighteen ginseng seeds in the ground and watered them with spring water.

He also purposely saved two ginseng seeds to plant in the outside world, planning to nourish them with Immortal Dew to see the outcome.

Zhao Lei was currently in dire need of capital to expand his business, so he was willing to use extra Immortal Dew to accelerate the growth of his ginseng, hoping to fetch a high price upon sale.

After sowing the ginseng seeds, Zhao Lei eagerly checked on the progress of the Iron-Skinned Stone Herb near another jade tablet. To his astonishment, the herbs he had planted just the day before had noticeably increased in size, each growing about half an inch. Additionally, numerous tiny buds had sprouted around them. At this rate, the herbs would soon reach a harvestable size.

Zhao Lei was thrilled to see that each Iron-Skinned Stone Herb had thick, short stems and small, plump leaves, with a reddish-brown skin that resembled rust at first glance, which is how the herb got its name. He remembered the village elders saying that these characteristics marked the finest wild Iron-Skinned Stone Herbs, which were not only exceedingly rare but also commanded the highest prices.

Nowadays, even seasoned herb gatherers struggled to find such specimens, often going a month without spotting one or two. Yet, right before Zhao Lei, there were over a dozen stalks of premium Iron-Skinned Stone Herbs thriving in abundance. If he took these to a traditional medicine shop, selling them for thousands wouldn't be a problem.

As long as Zhao Lei didn't harvest them all at once, a continuous supply of Iron-Skinned Stone Herbs would grow. In the future, he could rely solely on this herb for a significant income.

Filled with joy at the thought, Zhao Lei grew even more fond of the Purple Gold Gourd and resolved to guard this secret closely.

The following morning, Zhao Lei rose early and retrieved a flowerpot that had been sitting in a corner of the yard. He filled it with specially excavated mountain soil and planted the remaining two ginseng seeds.

The next day, when the Purple Gold Gourd produced Immortal Dew once more, Zhao Lei carefully blended it with a basin of water and watered the freshly sown ginseng seeds.

Shortly after Zhao Lei watered the seeds with Immortal Dew, an astonishing transformation unfolded before his eyes. Two tiny green sprouts broke through the soil and gradually unfurled, quickly sprouting a pair of leaves.

Without a doubt, Zhao Lei recognized them as germinating ginseng seeds. Right before him, the ginseng seedlings grew at a rate perceptible to the naked eye, soon developing true leaves. It was akin to watching a time-lapse sequence in a science documentary.

The ginseng seedlings didn't stop there; they kept sprouting new leaves. What began as three leaves swiftly became five, and eventually, they sported seven segments.

A quick online search confirmed Zhao Lei's thoughts: ginseng typically requires at least a decade to develop seven-segmented leaves. This meant that in the span of just a few minutes, these two ginseng seeds had achieved a level of growth comparable to a decade's worth in the wild.

Yet the ginseng continued to flourish. Not only did they grow taller and sprout more leaves, but buds also appeared at the top of the stalks, blossoming into flowers and eventually yielding green fruit.

Once they reached this stage, the ginseng's growth noticeably decelerated. The green fruits didn't ripen quickly, suggesting the effects of the Immortal Dew were reaching their limit.

Zhao Lei was thoroughly pleased with the outcome. A single drop of Immortal Dew had cultivated two ginseng plants, each with the maturity of over ten years—a remarkable feat. Moreover, ginseng nourished with Immortal Dew was bound to be of superior quality compared to ordinary ginseng, guaranteeing a handsome price when sold.

Admiring the robust ginseng, Zhao Lei planned to apply another drop of Immortal Dew in three days before finding a buyer for them. This sale would nearly cover the costs of establishing his orchard.

"Once the fruit trees are in, it'll be time to raise chickens in the orchard—that's money in the bank..." As he gazed at the thriving ginseng, Zhao Lei felt himself inching closer to his dream of wealth.

At that moment, a forceful knock sounded at the door. Recognizing the urgency, Zhao Lei knew it had to be Zhou Jun. He quickly stashed the potted ginseng in the kitchen and dashed to greet his visitor.

As soon as Zhou Jun walked in, he made a beeline for Zhao Lei's bedroom, scanning the room while calling out loudly, "What took you so long to open the door? Don't tell me you've got a woman hidden away in here?"

Zhao Lei, hand to his forehead, replied, "Is that all you ever think about? Can't you aspire to something more?"

After searching the house and finding no sign of a woman, Zhou Jun clapped Zhao Lei on the shoulder and said, "Beautiful women are my pursuit. You're not getting any younger, you know. When will you ever catch on? I have to say, I'm quite disappointed in you!"

"Cut it out!" Zhao Lei brushed Zhou Jun's hand off and demanded, "What's up? Why are you here?"

Zhou Jun's face lit up with a different expression as he said, "No need to drive today. How about we go fishing?"

Zhao Lei paused to consider, then smiled and nodded in agreement, "You know, it's been ages since we last went fishing together. Let's hit the road!"