The Splendor of the Five Dynasties

Chapter 101 Wealth without a source will dry up

The covered boat drifted with the current.

Xiao Yi felt the body in his arms growing weaker and weaker. Looking down, he saw that Li Zhaoning's eyes were closed, as if she had fainted.

"sick?"

He asked a question, but received no response. He murmured under his breath, "Really fainted?"

He waved, signaling the Imperial Guards to row over and tow the covered boat back to shore.

Where is a clinic?

"Go right, past Jinliangqiao Street, there is a Golden Hook Clinic... This humble servant will guide you, General."

"I won't keep you any longer, let's search for Li Ye."

Xiao Yi was not interested in the follow-up search. He had received help from Li Ye, and while he didn't want to repay him, he also didn't want to take all the credit and rewards.

He carried Li Zhaoning in his arms and strode forward. When he saw the medicine banner with the words "Xinglin" written on it, he went inside. There was a counter in the main room and seats in the side room. An old doctor was sitting behind the consultation table, while three or five people were queuing in front of him.

Xiao Yi asked, "She has fainted. Could she be in the emergency room?"

He was dressed in ordinary clothes today, but he wore a badge at his waist. The old doctor looked up and glanced at him, showing that he dared not be negligent, but he did not stop what he was doing and called out, "Yuan Niang, come and see me!"

"Come on!"

A middle-aged woman lifted the curtain, glanced at the person, and beckoned for Xiao Yi to place the person on the seat behind the curtain.

"Help her sit up halfway, and feed her some warm water from the pot first, so as not to stagnate her qi and blood."

Xiao Yi wasn't very good at taking care of people and didn't know where to start.

He had initially thought Li Zhaoning's eyes were her most beautiful feature, but upon closer inspection, he discovered that she possessed a different kind of beauty when her eyes were closed—a breathtaking beauty.

After fiddling with the water bottle for a while, I finally managed to get a few drops into my feed.

"Clumsy, get out of the way."

After finishing her work, Yuan Niang came over, reached out, lifted Li Zhaoning's eyelids, and took a look at her wrist.

"The pulse is weak and thready, with a deep and sluggish left Guan pulse and a weak and floating right Cun pulse, indicating stagnant Qi in the liver and deficiency of both Qi and blood. Have you been staying up late and eating little lately, or have you suffered any fright, grievances, or mental strain?"

"Mostly correct."

"Qi deficiency and weakness, two diseases attacking at the same time, rest and recuperation are the best treatment. First, prescribe the Liver-Soothing and Qi-Nourishing Decoction to relieve stagnation, then prescribe the Eight-Treasure Decoction to nourish the spleen... Go and get the medicine."

After saying that, a prescription was handed to Xiao Yi. The handwriting was messy, and only a few words could be read.

The clerk behind the counter took the medicine and asked, "Sir, would you like ordinary or high-quality medicinal herbs?"

"Good medicine."

"How many doses? Three to five doses for emergency relief, twelve doses for treating the symptoms, thirty doses for strengthening the body, and sixty doses for a complete cure."

"Sixty letters".

The servant moved swiftly, taking herbs from the cabinet containing Bupleurum, Cyperus, Angelica sinensis, Paeonia lactiflora, and Codonopsis pilosula, weighing them on a small scale, and packing them into a small package.

"Nourishing Qi Decoction costs 39 qian per dose, Eight Treasures Decoction costs 57 qian, totaling 5,760 qian."

This was the second time Xiao Yi had bought medicine, and he was still secretly amazed as he took out all the silver coins from his pocket.

The servant weighed the medicine on the scale and respectfully said, "Two taels and seven mace. The price of silver has risen recently, so it's worth four thousand four hundred and eighty-five mace. Sir, please pay another one thousand two hundred..."

Xiao Yi took out the remaining copper coins, which numbered only a few dozen, and said, "Take thirty packs first."

"Then please go to the silver shop to exchange the money first."

The old doctor behind the consultation table suddenly spoke up, saying, "Give the soldier sixty doses of Poria cocos."

"Grandpa, don't forget that this war caused the purchase price to more than triple, so we ended up losing money."

"Stop making such a racket! Go get the medicine!"

Yuan Niang lifted the curtain and came out, shouting, "Fude Temple is coming to collect debts this afternoon. Grandpa, have you considered whether you can make enough money to cover the monks' interest on your business?"

"Is it about making money? It's about this calligraphy in the hall, 'Hanging a gourd to save the world.' When my old bones breathe their last, you'll have your days of making money..."

The clinic was in complete chaos.

Xiao Yi realized that the temples that were now lending money at interest rates must be what Li Fang meant by "a constant flow of wealth."

Li Zhaoning was also woken up. She sat there weakly and exchanged a glance with Xiao Yi, their unspoken words unspoken.

Finally, Xiao Yi exchanged the money and bought thirty doses of medicine at market price. He then prepared one dose at the clinic for Li Zhaoning to drink.

His horse was still at Li Tao's residence. Knowing that it would be inconvenient for Li Zhaoning to walk back, he went to the inn and hitched up a carriage, which cost him eighty-eight coins including the driver.

Despite its high price, the carriage was not comfortable at all. It swayed and rocked, and Li Zhaoning bumped into his chest several times, but luckily he was muscular.

"Why is the doctor's family arguing?"

"Oh, because I'm broke, we're arguing about whether to give me a discount."

Xiao Yi didn't hide his poverty; he simply said that money was something to be used when there was it and earned when there wasn't, and that he had a normal attitude towards it.

Li Zhaoning was initially embarrassed, but sensing his nonchalance, she felt relieved and said in a low voice, "I'm sorry to have troubled you..."

"It's alright, there's still Su Fengji's reward money. Once you receive it, I'll bring you the rest of the medicine."

"No need for that... Well then, see you then?"

"it is good."

When they arrived at Li Tao's residence, it was already dusk.

Li Tao and his wife came out to greet them, exchanging a few pleasantries.

"The Xuanwu Gate is about to be locked. I must hurry back to my quarters. Farewell."

Xiao Yi left in a hurry, only to feel Li Zhaoning's gaze as he turned his head.

As the sun set, I rode back home. The white horse must have eaten and drunk its fill and was in high spirits.

Seeing the horse like this, Xiao Yi thought to himself that Li Tao's household must have fed it a lot of fine beans, which must have been quite expensive.

Just before dusk, he managed to get back to Xuanwu Gate.

"General, you're truly remarkable!" Little Monkey caught up, rushing to unhitch the horse, and exclaimed, "You timed it perfectly!" "That stench... is it more sesame flatbread and roasted mutton? Is there more?"

"Yes, there is. I left a portion for the general. I'll go get it. Iron Tooth said if the general doesn't come back, he'll eat it, that big club..."

Old Pan and Hua Nong came out to greet them from under the eaves.

"Please give instructions for tomorrow's arrangements, General."

"Continue training as usual, with Iron Fang supervising. The two of you will come with me to the West Market."

Old Pan smiled broadly and said, "I toured Kaifeng today and I really learned something new. It's no wonder it's Bianjing City; the prices are really high."

"What did you buy?"

"I didn't spend a single copper coin; all the reward money was sent home through the army."

“Old Pan has composure,” Hua Nong said. “Those bachelors have spent all their reward money and are clamoring for another share of the public funds. I think we should let them out less often in the future.”

"Public funds should not be touched; they should be reserved for emergencies."

"Yes."

How much reward money do you have left?

“I sent them all back to Yedu without keeping a single penny.” Hua Nong said, “General, my family is staying at the military governor’s mansion in Yedu. I’m not at ease with them. I want to bring them back.”

"Don't rush, wait until everything is settled... By the way, where is Sanlang?"

Xiao Yi asked the question, only to realize that he hadn't seen Guo Xin for the past two days. No wonder it was so quiet; something just didn't feel right.

"He was summoned by the commander-in-chief yesterday and has not returned."

"How is Brother Chongjin doing?"

"After his shift, he goes for a drink. He leaves his men to watch over him; we dare not mess with him."

"..."

The next day, arrangements were made for all matters within the army.

Xiao Yi drew an eye chart and tested Hua Nong's vision.

He had never worked in this industry before, relying entirely on his experience and intuition, and finally muttered, "Probably five or six hundred to a thousand degrees."

I drew a picture of glasses with a pen and paper, and marked the thickness based on what I saw others wearing in my past life.

"We definitely need to make further adjustments. Let's go to the West Market and set an example first."

"General, what is this?"

"We'll find out when the time comes. Let's go to Kaifeng Prefecture to collect the reward money."

"Another reward?!"

The three went out, and Xiao Yi saw that Lao Pan was carrying a bag, as if he was going to war. He didn't know what was inside, but it was probably for shopping.

Upon arriving in Kaifeng Prefecture, they encountered Yan Jinqing again, who was walking out with a worried expression. As soon as he saw Xiao Yi, he excitedly stepped forward and bowed deeply.

"Thank you, Yilang... no, General Xiao, thank you for saving me, General Xiao."

"Lord Yan, you needn't be so polite. I didn't do anything; you saved yourself."

"No, no, no, I will never forget your life-saving grace, General. I have prepared a small feast and would like to invite you to my residence for a chat to express my gratitude."

"I still have to be on duty these days, so I'll come whenever I have a spare moment."

Xiao Yi carefully observed that Yan Jinqing was still wearing a plain silk robe and a white fur fox cloak. The jade pendant at his waist was still there, and the servants in the distance were leading the horse and saddled it. It turned out that he had not been seriously injured even after handing over a thousand strings of cash.

Wang Jun must be regretting it terribly.

Upon entering the government office, Xiao Yi displayed his token and went straight to the Revenue Department to indicate that he had come to collect his reward.

The military advisor's expression changed, and he said, "General, please wait a moment. I will go and inform Prime Minister Wang."

This short wait lasted for almost half an hour.

With nothing to do, Xiao Yi picked up the brush and ink from the Ministry of Revenue and started writing and drawing. Based on the glasses, he also drew a telescope.

“General,” Old Pan said, “I think they want to leave you hanging until the end of the day. You finally get a day off, and you still have to go to the West Market to buy things. You don’t have time to waste with them.”

"Let's go and pay our respects to Prime Minister Wang."

He went straight to the back room. Wang Jun was indeed busy. He glanced at Xiao Yi, raised his hand to stop him, and didn't let him in.

"The reward for capturing Su Fengji will be distributed together after Li Ye is captured."

"What you say, Lord Wang, is inappropriate. It makes it sound as if Li Ye would also be captured by this humble general."

"You're ignorant." Wang Jun's face hardened, and he scolded, "The reward money is meant to motivate the soldiers and civilians. You're a close advisor to the commander-in-chief, yet you come here to cause trouble. Get out!"

Xiao Yi said, "Many Imperial Guards participated in the search yesterday. I received the reward, and it's time to share the spoils with them."

"Trying to win over the soldiers? What are you trying to do?!"

These words might frighten Wang Yin, but they wouldn't frighten Xiao Yi at all.

"Rewards must be given in accordance with the law; this is the general's rule in the army."

"Kaifeng Prefecture has no money. Go to the Marshal's Mansion and get it yourself." Wang Jun waved his hand and ordered, "Get out of here!"

Xiao Yi couldn't just forcibly seize Kaifeng Prefecture, so in the end he had to come out on his own.

If Guo Xin were here, he would have cursed him a few times, saying things like "That old bastard is shameless," but Lao Pan and Hua Nong would just scratch their heads.

"General, how about... we wait until payday?"

"Let's go to the Marshal's Mansion."

"General, please think twice. For the sake of this reward, the commander-in-chief will think you're foolish..."

"Don't worry, we won't look for the commander-in-chief, we'll look for Guo Xin."

"Oh."

(End of this chapter)