The Daily Life of a Down-on-Hard-Life Medicine Girl Supporting Her Family

Chapter 36 Brother Minghua
"Young Master Zhao, you..."

How did he find his way here? Then I realized, his family must have told him.

“Miss Xiao, we’re already so familiar with each other, so please don’t call me Young Master Zhao anymore. My name is Zhao Minghua, you can just call me by my name.”

Before the spring warmth could be warmed, she invited him in and went straight inside.

He has always been a natural at making friends.

“This courtyard has been uninhabited for so long, it’s dilapidated everywhere, how can anyone live here? Miss Xiao, why don’t you move to my empty courtyard? It’s spacious there, perfect for you to process medicinal herbs. Your family can also fit in.”

"Thank you, Young Master Zhao, but this courtyard was only rented in the spring, and the lease is for a year. It would be a waste if we didn't stay here."

It's rented, which is good; it's good that it wasn't given away for free.

After all, one is obligated to accept gifts and favors, so it seems that her relationship with Master Zhang wasn't that close.

"I wonder what brings Young Master Zhao here..."

"Oh, it's like this, the batch of medicinal herbs you processed last time passed my grandfather's inspection and were completely satisfactory..."

Chunnuan wanted to laugh. If the medicinal herbs she prepared were substandard, then there was probably no one else in the entire Great Xia Dynasty who could make them up to standard.

Over the years, she has devoted herself to medicine, processing medicinal herbs in her spare time. Most importantly, her great-grandfather and grandfather had a considerable collection of precious medicinal herbs, enough for her to try her hand at, and even if she made a mistake, her grandfather would not blame her.

The medicinal herbs she prepared were often delivered to the Pinkang Pharmacy by her maid, Lian'er, where they could fetch a good price.

The manager of Pinkang Medicinal Herbs Store also told Lian'er to tell her, "No matter what kind of medicinal herbs your family processes, you can bring them to sell. The price will definitely not be bad for you."

It must be said that Pinkang Pharmacy is indeed upright and honest, and it did not try to lower prices or bully Lian'er because of her anonymity, which left a very good impression on her.

So, Zhao Minghua said all this for one purpose: to get her to sign an exclusive contract, which was meant to lock her into Baicaotang!
That's just the nature of businessmen!
People who seem carefree and irresponsible can easily lead you into a trap if you're not careful.

"I'm sorry, Young Master Zhao, I cannot sign this contract."

She wasn't a novice at processing medicinal herbs. Chunnuan was hoping that one day she could establish a relationship with the people at Pinkang Medicinal Herbs Store and continue selling medicinal herbs to them, and in large quantities at that.

Baicaotang is too small; it really can't keep such a great bodhisattva here!
"So you really have a partnership with Master Zhang?"

Zhao Minghua was so frightened that he kept slapping his thigh, then cried out in pain, jumping up and down in the yard.

Xiao Chunnuan had no way to respond to that.

She did indeed have a business relationship with Master Zhang. It turned out that she received 20% of the profits from the herbal tea sold at the teahouse. Whoever gave her money was her benefactor.

"Why? Master Zhang's family owns businesses, but not pharmacies. What were you thinking? Why would you cooperate with him, Miss Xiao? Don't you know he'll definitely swindle you..."

Chun Nuan understood; this person had misunderstood and thought that she had a cooperative relationship with Master Zhang regarding medicinal herbs.

Is this because they saw the commercial value she could create, and therefore wanted to lock herself in?
How could the warmth of spring please him?

“I think you may have misunderstood,” Chunnuan explained. “Master Zhang doesn’t know that I can process medicinal herbs, and our cooperation doesn’t involve medicinal herbs.”

Providing a recipe for herbal tea definitely doesn't count.

"Really? Then why did you sign a contract with my Baicaotang?" Zhao Minghua quickly replied, "Are you afraid we'll cheat you or shortchange you? Don't worry, Baicaotang is a business that treats everyone fairly, young and old. I, Zhao Minghua, would never cheat or swindle anyone in business. You can ask around to find out. This pharmacy was passed down from my great-grandfather; it's been around for at least eighty or a hundred years..."

Zhao Minghua was practically swearing an oath, trying to convince Chunnuan that they weren't treacherous. "Young Master Zhao, it's not that I don't trust you, but Chunnuan feels that plans can't keep up with changes, and even if people don't change, time can change everything," Chunnuan said. "I never make long-term plans or schemes, lest I become bound by them."

Every period has its hurdles to overcome, and every period has its debts to repay. Today's partners may turn against you one day.

Indeed, especially after learning that Zhao Minghua was going to marry Xiao Chunlan, the granddaughter of the patriarch of the Xiao clan, Chunnuan was prepared to lose the income from Baicaotang at any time.

Everyone knows how powerful whispers can be. The Xiao family and their branch of the family are sworn enemies, so how could they be happy to see them earning money to support their family?
"you……"

Chunnuan smiled as she saw his face turn red with anxiety. Young man, he's still too green. He's too easily swayed by his words and actions, and his emotions are always written on his face. How could she dare to tie her future livelihood to him?
"I wonder what business Young Master Zhao has with me?"

"It's all right."

Zhao Minghua was so angry that he turned to leave, but then he remembered something at the door: "By the way, whatever medicinal herbs you process, our Baicaotang will accept them. We are not picky about the medicinal herbs you process."

"Thank you, Young Master Zhao."

Chun Nuan knew that an expert's skill was immediately apparent. If her prepared medicines were rejected, it must be due to poor quality of the raw materials, not a lack of skill on Chun Nuan's part.

"You're calling me Young Master Zhao again. I've already told you, you can call me Zhao Minghua."

"Then shall I call you Third Young Master?"

“You can also call me Brother Minghua.” After saying that, Zhao Minghua got goosebumps all over. Well, it didn’t seem right for a girl to call him brother. “I should be a few years older than you.”

"The Third Young Master is naturally older than Chunnuan."

Brother Minghua?

Are we really that close?
I won't be so foolish when spring arrives.

When Zhao Minghua heard Chunnuan call him Third Young Master, he felt even more displeased and strode out of the courtyard gate in a huff.

"Brother Minghua."

The sweet, delicate voice reached her ears, and Zhao Minghua almost stumbled and fell to the ground.

"Brother Minghua, be careful, don't fall."

A fragrant aroma wafted over, and a figure floated in front of Zhao Minghua.

"Was it you who shouted that just now?"

Zhao Minghua looked back and saw that the gate of the Taoist temple was already closed.

Yes, what else does he want to look forward to?

"Yes, Brother Minghua, how are you? Did you hurt yourself?"

"You..." He glanced at her, making sure she wasn't one of his relatives' cousins ​​or anything like that: "I don't know you. Are we that close?"

"Brother Minghua, how can you not recognize me? We..." The girl's words were cut short as she blushed, her face turning bright red.

"What about us?" Xiao Minghua suddenly sneezed a few times and quickly took a few steps back. "Stay away from me, I really don't know you. Who are you?"

(End of this chapter)