sbdcsierra Chapter 399: Rare Generosity
Chapter 399: Rare Generosity
Madam Honghua rushed to the southern border of Xiyue Kingdom without stopping, but did not enter Mucheng immediately. Instead, she deliberately went around Nanying for two or three days. After she was sure that she had gotten rid of the follower behind her, she quietly went to Sanxiu Pharmacy in Mucheng.
“So it’s these two medicines!”
Sanxiu was surprised and delighted when he saw the antidote formula copied down by his apprentice Si Yao. After carefully comparing it with the dozen or so flower medicines he had written down before, he suddenly realized that the two flower medicines he had never been able to find were one on an isolated island in the East China Sea and the other in the desert of the Western Regions. Both were extremely rare and difficult to find. No wonder even he couldn't smell them.
"Sister Si Yao said that the last four kinds of flowers are very hard to find, and it will take at least one or two years at the earliest." Although Sanxiu was happy, Madam Honghua still had a worried face and said in a cold voice.
"Xiuming, the first sixteen flower remedies are easy to find, so I'll leave them to you." Now that the recipe was complete, San Xiuchang breathed a sigh of relief. He ignored Madam Honghua's discouragement, but handed the prescription to his apprentice and gave instructions.
"Yes, Master." Xiu Ming responded and walked out of the study with the prescription.
"Sir, are you sure you can prepare the antidote before my sister's poison takes effect?" Seeing Sanxiu's calm and composed demeanor, Madam Honghua's eyes suddenly lit up and she looked at him expectantly.
"Not sure." Sanxiu also looked up at the woman in front of him expressionlessly, then shook his head and said seriously.
Honghua immediately rolled her eyes, too angry to say anything. The two poisonous scorpions hidden in her sleeves were ready to make a move.
"We are currently lacking these two herbs. However, we may not be able to find them until next spring on the isolated island in the East China Sea, while those in the western desert bloom in autumn. It takes at least half a month to travel from here to the Western Regions, and these flowers are extremely difficult to find. I suggest that you set off after the Great Heat." Sanxiu still did not care about Madam Honghua's anger, but placed an open medical book in front of her and continued.
"Mo Sang." Looking at the beautiful yet strange flower painted on the medical book, Honghua recited the name of the flower thoughtfully.
"By the way, you also have to write down the local name of this flower in the Western Regions so that it will be easier to find out." Sanxiu pointed to a string of strange and incomprehensible words on the medical book and reminded.
"Are there only these two flower medicines left? Have you found the other iceberg snow lotus and the flowers on the cliffs? But don't they have to be picked when they are in full bloom?" Honghua moved his eyes away from the medical book, looked at Sanxiu again and asked worriedly.
"What? Do you think that my huge Sanxiu Pharmacy can't hide any rare flowers and plants?" Sanxiu raised his eyes and glanced at Madam Honghua again, curling his lips in displeasure.
"Mr. Sanxiu, are you saying that you already have two other flower medicines in your medicine shop?" Honghua was overjoyed, but still had a half-believing and half-doubting expression on his face and asked with a half-smile.
"Follow me!" Sanxiu was inspired by her and immediately stood up and waved her hand, and the two of them walked out of the study together.
In front of a cliff on the top of the mountain behind the medicine store, Sanxiu pointed to a few inconspicuous dead grasses with only red branches on the stone wall and said, "That is the lonely fairy grass. It will bloom with red and pink flowers like fairies around the beginning of the summer."
"Is this a rare flower? Isn't it said to be extremely difficult to find?" Looking at the unremarkable dead grass on the cliff, Honghua couldn't help but frowning and muttering suspiciously.
"Hmph, do you think this flower is easy to find? I spent more than half a month picking it from a cliff dozens of feet high more than ten years ago, and only with the help of local hunters!" Seeing that the woman still didn't believe it, Sanxiu shook his sleeves angrily, snorted coldly, then turned around and walked back angrily.
"Don't blame me, sir. I am ignorant and naturally think that since it is a rare flower, it must be dazzling and eye-catching." Seeing that the old man was also irritated by her, Honghua felt very proud, but pretended to be helpless and walked forward and said with a smile.
"Hmph, shallow and ignorant!" Sanxiu snorted arrogantly as always and ignored him.
Honghua was not annoyed, but just smiled jokingly and followed closely behind him.
After descending the top of the mountain, Sanxiu led Honghua to a remote courtyard at the foot of the mountain, which was surrounded by stone walls on three sides and planted with flowers and plants.
There was a smooth stone wall in the courtyard. Honghua guessed at a glance that it must be a stone door. But before entering the courtyard, Sanxiu continued to remind him: "The flowers and plants inside are very precious. Take out all the poison in your body and don't bring any in."
"Where should we put it if we don't bring it in? We can't just throw it outside, right? If it is picked up by some little medicine boy in your village, it will have nothing to do with me!" Honghua was stunned at first, then looked around and saw only empty dense forests, so he laughed jokingly.
"What a hassle!" Sanxiu glanced at her with disdain, muttered, found a sack in the yard and threw it over, and continued: "Put everything in here and hang it on the tree!"
In order to see the iceberg snow lotus with his own eyes, Honghua had to do as he was told.
Then the two of them entered the courtyard and walked through the bushes of flowers and plants before stopping in front of the stone gate. Sanxiu glanced at Honghua with some taboo, but still bent down and fumbled for a moment at the root of the herb nearest to him before taking out a key. He then stood up and inserted the key into the depression covered by vines beside the stone gate.
With a loud bang, the stone door slowly opened, and a piercing chill suddenly blew in their faces, making the two of them shiver in this early summer.
"I didn't expect Sanxiu's medicine shop to be so hidden!" Mrs. Honghua smiled at Sanxiu in surprise. She had stayed in this medicine shop for so long before and had not discovered this cave.
"Thank you for the compliment." Sanxiu raised the corner of his mouth proudly, but soon turned his face serious again. After saying this lightly, he continued to walk into the cave.
The cave is not big but it is freezing cold inside like the coldest month of winter. It is usually used to preserve some fresh and precious medicinal materials, so there are ice and stones frozen in it all year round. Apart from taking and storing medicines, Sanxiu rarely comes here.
Since it was daytime and there was plenty of sunlight outside, one could see clearly inside without a lamp. Sanxiu rubbed his hands and quickly brought Honghua to a piece of ice stone.
There was a crystal clear glass box placed on the huge ice stone. Before Honghua walked forward, she was surprised to see a pure, jade-like, noble and cold lotus blooming in the glass box.
"Is this the iceberg snow lotus? It's so beautiful!" Honghua hugged her arms tightly and looked at the iceberg snow lotus in the glass box with joy. From childhood to adulthood, she had never seen such a pure and beautiful flower.
"Let's leave quickly after you've seen it. My old bones can't stand the cold." Sanxiu was shivering with cold. How could he have the time to chat with Honghua here? Now that she had seen the iceberg snow lotus, he became impatient and walked out of the cave on his own.
"How is it? Did I not lie to you?" After the two of them walked out of the courtyard, Sanxiu asked Honghua with a bit of pride.
"I have entrusted my own sister to Sanxiu Pharmacy, so naturally I will not doubt you, sir." Honghua immediately smiled, bowed to Sanxiu, and smiled in a gentle and humble manner.
Sanxiu's mouth twitched when he saw this, and he was so scared that he quickly walked back to the pharmacy. This woman could change so suddenly that it was really scary.
"But the two missing flower medicines cannot be found before the poison takes effect on Yanyu. Sir, do you have any other way to temporarily delay the onset of the flower bite poison in my sister's body?"
No matter how fast Sanxiu walked, he was certainly not faster than Madam Honghua. Just as he returned to the corridor in the backyard, Honghua, who had retrieved her things, rushed to his side and asked again seriously.
"Since Madam Honghua can find half of the antidote, she can certainly find the other half, right?" Sanxiu muttered disapprovingly.
Honghua was speechless for a moment, and then couldn't help but sneer.
"What are you laughing at?" Sanxiu felt a chill on his back when he saw the ghostly sneer on Honghua's face.
"By the way, Mr. Sanxiu, have you heard of the miracle doctor Zisang?" Honghua did not respond to the other party, but asked instead.
"Of course I've heard of him. Senior Zisang is a skilled doctor and a hermit. Unfortunately, he has always been a loner and has been traveling all year round, making it hard to find his whereabouts. The last time I heard about him was a few months ago when a plague broke out in the southern border of Jingsong State. Thanks to this senior for turning the tide and quelling the plague." When Sanxiu heard about the old master, Mr. Zisang, his eyes immediately lit up and his tone became much steadier.
"Sir, you may not know that your disciple Si Yao has a close relationship with Mr. Zisang! She has now rushed to Lianzhou of Jingsong Kingdom to seek Mr. Zisang for other ways to save Yanyu." Honghua continued with a smile.
Sanxiu was overjoyed when he heard this. Not only was this girl more intelligent than his master, but she was also luckier than him. At such a young age and having just started practicing medicine, she had the good fortune to meet a hermit like Mr. Zisang. It was truly rare!
Honghua looked at Mr. Sanxiu in front of him with a happy face but felt puzzled. She thought that the old man would be furious when he heard that his apprentice turned to others to ask for medical advice, but she didn't expect him to be so magnanimous and even happy.