Unparalleled medical and martial arts skills, saving the CEO's fiancée at the start.

After the start of summer, an unexpected visitor arrived at Baizhi Valley.

That day, Ye Chen was in the security department checking the purchase order for a new batch of surveillance equipment with He Jianping when his phone rang.

It was Seventh Uncle calling, his voice booming like a mountain shout: "Little Chenzi! Someone's come to the valley, you'd better come right away! He says he's from some...something Traditional Chinese Medicine University, and wants to talk to you about a collaboration! I can't understand him, you better come quickly!"

Ye Chen hung up the phone, told He Jianping "I'm going to the valley," grabbed his coat, and left.

When we arrived at Baizhi Valley, we could see our seventh uncle standing at the entrance of the medicine hut, carrying a hoe in one hand and gesturing with the other as he spoke to someone.

The man had his back to Ye Chen. He was thin, wearing a gray-blue short-sleeved shirt, with some gray hair, and wearing round-framed glasses.

Beside him was an old canvas bag, its opening half-open, revealing several curled-edge books and an old laptop.

He spoke softly, but made many gestures, as if explaining something, which made Seventh Uncle frown.

Ye Chen walked over, and the person turned around.

He was around sixty years old, with a ruddy complexion, a kind smile, and bright eyes behind his glasses, exuding the unique spirit of a scholar.

Upon seeing Ye Chen, he extended his hand and said, "You must be Ye Chen? My name is Fang Guodong, from the Provincial University of Traditional Chinese Medicine. I taught Chinese medicine my whole life and have now retired. I heard about your Baizhi Valley and wanted to come and see for myself."

Ye Chen shook hands with him and felt that his palm was warm and dry, and his knuckles were a bit rough, like someone who had been dealing with medicinal herbs for many years.

Fang Guodong added, "I came without prior notice, which is quite presumptuous of me. I was mainly afraid you wouldn't let me come."

Ye Chen smiled and said, "Professor Fang, you're too kind. The door to Baizhi Valley faces outwards; anyone who wants to come is welcome."

Fang Guodong followed Ye Chen into the valley, looking around as they went.

As he passed the medicinal herb field, he squatted down, pinched a handful of soil, rubbed it in his hand, and then brought it to his nose to smell.

As he passed the greenhouse, he peeked inside and saw Ayiguli dividing the plants into pots. He asked, "Are those moonflowers?"

Ye Chen was taken aback at first, then said, "You know him?"

Fang Guodong pushed up his glasses and said, "I saw the illustrations in a pharmacopoeia from the Republican era. This thing is found in the south but is rare in the north. It's not easy for you to cultivate it successfully."

When Aygul heard someone mention moonflowers, she stood up and glanced at Fang Guodong.

Fang Guodong nodded to her and said, "The seedlings are growing well; the leaves have no yellow spots, and the roots are white. What kind of soil did you use?"

Aygul said, "It's half leaf mold and half river sand."

Fang Guodong nodded: "No wonder, it has good air permeability, but you have to water it more often."

Aygul didn't say anything more, but she paused for a moment while holding the spray bottle, clearly thinking that the old man knew what he was doing.

After sitting down at the medicine shop, Fang Guodong took out a few things from his canvas bag.

A self-printed textbook with curled corners on the cover; several hand-drawn illustrations of medicinal herbs, drawn with great detail; and a stack of student assignments, covered with dense red corrections.

"I've taught Chinese herbal medicine for over 30 years and have taught hundreds of students. But the more I teach, the more I feel something is wrong. These days, students learn a lot of theory, but when they get to the fields, they can't even tell the difference between the seedlings of Astragalus membranaceus and Glycyrrhiza uralensis. After I retired, I wanted to find a real medicinal herb field so they could see it for themselves. An old friend told me about Baizhi Valley in Jiangcheng, where the people who grow herbs don't care about speed or quantity, they just care about authenticity. So I came here."

Ye Chen picked up the mimeographed textbook and flipped through it. It was very well written, covering everything from the properties and meridians of medicinal materials to processing methods and key points for actual cultivation.

He turned to the middle page and saw that Fang Guodong had added a paragraph in red pen in the blank space: "To see medicinal herbs in person is like seeing an old friend. Knowing their form and smelling their aroma is the only way to use their essence."

Ye Chen closed the textbook and said, "Professor Fang, how would you like to collaborate?"

Fang Guodong said, "I want to bring students here, not many, just ten in a group, to stay for half a month. They can work in the fields with your people, harvest herbs, and process them. I won't charge the school any money, and you don't need to give me anything. I just want the students to see how real herbs are grown."

Ye Chen thought for a moment and said, "Okay, I'll discuss it with my master. It should be fine."

Fang Guodong rubbed his hands together excitedly and said, "That's great! I'll bring the first batch next month."

It was already dark when Fang Guodong left.

Ye Chen escorted him to the valley entrance. He glanced back at the medicinal herb fields in the twilight and suddenly asked, "Ye Chen, is your father named Ye Changfeng?"

Ye Chen replied, "Yes, you know him?"

Fang Guodong smiled and said, "More than 20 years ago, I saw him at the Nancheng Medicinal Herbs Market. At that time, he was helping Anhetang collect herbs. He talked to people about the quality of Astragalus membranaceus, and he explained it more clearly than our professors. I was a young teaching assistant at the time and stood by and listened for a whole morning. I never saw him again after that, but when I teach Chinese herbal medicine, I always use the standards he talked about as examples."

Ye Chen stood at the entrance of the valley and watched Fang Guodong get on the old bicycle and pedal towards the town.

He suddenly realized that the world can be quite small at times.

More than twenty years ago, his father talked about astragalus root at the Nancheng medicinal herb market. More than twenty years later, the young teaching assistant who had listened to him talk about astragalus root followed the scent of the herb to Baizhi Valley.

Like a thin thread, it connected his father, Fang Guodong, Su Qinghan, Anhetang, and Bai Zhigu.

On his way back to the valley, Ye Chen passed by the greenhouse.

Aygul is still inside, squatting on the ground watering the moonflower seedlings.

Ye Chen stood at the door and said, "Professor Fang will bring his students next month. You can teach them how to cultivate moonflowers then."

Aygul said without looking up, "I can teach them, but they have to do it themselves. I won't water them for them."

Ye Chen smiled: "Alright, we'll do it your way."

That night, Ye Chen sat in the yard and called Su Qinghan, telling her about Fang Guodong.

After listening, Su Qinghan remained silent for a while before saying, "It's good that people from the University of Chinese Medicine are coming. The knowledge of Medicine King Valley can't be spread far by ourselves alone. It's a good thing that someone is helping to spread it."

Ye Chen said, "Then I'll make the arrangements."

Su Qinghan added, "Keep a close eye on Fang Guodong. There aren't many people who can remember what your father said twenty years ago."

Ye Chen agreed.

After hanging up the phone, he sat in the yard and looked at the stars for a while.

On summer nights in Jiangcheng, the wind carries a humid heat, but the wind blowing from the direction of the medicinal herb fields always carries a faint, bitter fragrance.

He suddenly thought that when Fang Guodong came next month, he could have Shen Jingqiu come from Nancheng as well.

Anhetang's experience in pharmacies, Baizhigu's experience in planting, and Fang Guodong's teaching experience—if they were put together, they might be able to create something interesting.

He kept this idea in mind and planned to discuss it with Jiang Ruoxi the next day.

Then he got up and went back to his room to prepare for tomorrow.

The days are long, and the medicinal herb fields are still growing.

Not urgent.