Hermit in the Mountains

The next day, Gu Changsheng refined the 'purple energy' born from the primordial sun, changed into a light blue training uniform, tied his long hair up and covered it with a hat, and wore sandals on his feet.

Inside the warehouse, he wrapped the ginseng plants in moss and coarse cloth and secured them in a bamboo basket. After instructing Dahuang to guard the house, he strode down the mountain into the sunlight.

On a large, exposed rock by the roadside on the way down the mountain, Da Huang barked goodbye in the direction Gu Changsheng had left.

"Woof woof woof........."

In the ancient city of Chang'an, on a quaint and quiet street, Gu Changsheng stood in front of a pharmacy called "Fushoutang".

He checked the shop name on the signboard, then stepped into the pharmacy with his bamboo basket on his back.

Fushoutang is not a chain pharmacy, but a pharmacy founded by the Zhang family a hundred years ago, with no branches outside of Chang'an City.

Fushoutang enjoys an excellent reputation in the traditional Chinese medicine industry in Chang'an City.

Gu Changsheng came to this store specifically because he valued 'Fushoutang' for its uniqueness, reputation, and long-standing brand.

As a veteran online novel reader for ten years, he has more or less learned some of the ins and outs of the antique and traditional Chinese medicine trade.

If he goes to a chain Chinese medicine store, it will be difficult to negotiate the price, and he may even be pressured to lower the price and be set up. The key point is that the probability of his information spreading will increase.

The moment Gu Changsheng stepped into the medicine hall, a rich aroma of herbs wafted towards him.

The shop's interior is decorated in a rustic style, entirely with wood materials, and the furnishings are antique, with the rosewood cabinets polished to a shine.

Behind it is a wall of cabinets with thousands of small mahogany drawers, each with a medicine name written in tiny calligraphy.

A middle-aged man wearing a long robe and glasses was picking out medicine from the medicine cabinet.

The shop was quiet and there were no customers. Gu Changsheng walked lightly and silently. The middle-aged man only turned around after he spoke.

"Hello, boss."

Upon hearing the voice, the middle-aged man turned around and saw Gu Changsheng, who was dressed strangely. He frowned, lowered his head slightly, and looked the man up and down through his glasses.

Gu Changsheng wore a thin, loose light blue training uniform, with his hands crossed in the sleeves and placed in front of his navel. He wore a thick woolen hat and sandals.

This is why the middle-aged man found Gu Changsheng strange. You might say Gu Changsheng isn't afraid of the cold, but he's wearing a woolen hat; you might say Gu Changsheng is cold, but he's wearing thin clothes and sandals.

"Hello, young man, what kind of medicine would you like to buy?" The middle-aged man asked as he walked to the counter and casually put down the paper containing Chinese medicine.

Gu Changsheng remained calm and composed. He took his hands out of his sleeves, unhurriedly removed the bamboo basket from his back, took out the coarse cloth wrapped around the ginseng plant with his right hand and placed it on the counter, while his left hand casually placed the basket on the ground beside his feet.

He put down the coarse cloth and gestured with his right hand, "These are wild ginsengs I found by chance in the mountains yesterday. Boss, please take a look and give me an estimate."

Upon hearing the words "wild ginseng," the middle-aged man's eyes lit up. He leaned closer, reached out and gently untied the rope, slowly unfolded the coarse cloth, and turned over the moss.

When the ginseng came into view, the middle-aged man's eyes lit up. He forgot about Gu Changsheng's presence, his hands trembled, and he put on the gloves on the counter to begin tasting the ginseng.

The middle-aged man slowly spread the ginseng root out, muttering to himself as he did so, "This is the best-preserved ginseng root I've ever seen."

"Young man, you really put in the effort when you dug; you didn't break a single root or rhizome."

"This rhizome, this bowl-shaped scar, this iron-wire pattern, these pearl-like bumps on the roots."

It wasn't that he hadn't seen century-old ginseng before; it was just that the ginseng Gu Changsheng brought wasn't over a hundred years old, but its condition was excessively good, with the entire plant perfectly preserved.

After examining each item one by one, he raised his hands, stretched his neck, and sniffed the aroma. It had a strong, earthy smell from the mountains, and he gave his assessment.

"It's about 60 to 63 years old, from the heart of the Qinling Mountains, at an altitude of about 1,400 meters, on a shady slope." The middle-aged man put down the ginseng, his voice not loud but firm, "It's of the highest quality, a rare find that you can only dream of."

He looked up at Gu Changsheng, somewhat incredulous, "Young brother, are you really going to make a move?"

Gu Changsheng replied with two words indifferently, "Make your move."

After the middle-aged man finished asking his question, he kept observing Gu Changsheng's expression. Seeing that the other party was calm and decisive in his actions, he felt that Gu Changsheng was not simple.

"What's your name, young man?"

"Gu Changsheng".

The middle-aged man also introduced himself, "Hello, Brother Gu."

"My name is Zhang Dafu."

"Brother Gu, come with me, sit down and have some tea and chat." Zhang Dafu picked up the ginseng root and invited Gu Changsheng to the tea table next to him.

He placed the ginseng root on the tea table and poured Gu Changsheng a cup of tea. "Young Master Gu, please wait a moment while I go and call the old man to take a look."

Gu Changsheng nodded and leisurely sipped his tea while waiting. After a while, Zhang Dafu and an elderly man with a full head of white hair came out from the back room.

The old man was wearing a gray long gown. He was thin, upright, and had a full forehead. He looked more energetic than when he was at work, and didn't look like an old man with white hair.

When Gu Changsheng saw the old man for the first time, his eyelids twitched slightly, and he was somewhat surprised.

In his perception, the old man's body was full of energy and spirit, indicating that he was not a cultivator but someone who had practiced martial arts for many years.

The old man's name is Zhang Yuanfu, the second-generation manager of "Fushoutang". He took over the reins from his father thirty years ago.

He has practiced the Zhang Family Health Preservation Techniques for sixty years, and his perception of Qi is unparalleled by ordinary people.

The moment his gaze fell on Gu Changsheng, a surging aura rushed towards him, causing his heart to tremble and his steps to falter.

This momentum came quickly and went quickly, disappearing in an instant.

Looking at Gu Changsheng, who was only a little older than his granddaughter, with skin as white as jade and no air of martial arts training, he realized that Gu Changsheng was probably not a martial arts practitioner. He must have been daydreaming just now, and his doubts dissipated.

Gu Changsheng had never actually practiced martial arts; he was too busy studying the techniques and deducing the methods to have the time.

However, Zhang Yuanfu never imagined that Gu Changsheng was a cultivator.

Zhang Dafu introduced his father to Gu Changsheng, "Brother Gu, this is my father."

Gu Changsheng did not act superior to others. He slowly stood up and greeted them, "Hello, Elder Zhang, this is Gu Changsheng."

"Young man, please don't stand on ceremony, have a seat." Zhang Yuanfu smiled and gestured for them to sit down. His gaze fell on the ginseng plant on the table. "This must be the wild ginseng you brought, young man."

He stepped forward and bent down, his eyes quickly scanning the ginseng plant from top to bottom. "What a good thing! It's perfectly preserved, just like Dafu said. I didn't believe it before."

"I've never seen such a perfect condition before, even among those in their sixties or two years old."

Zhang Yuanfu sat down on a nearby wooden chair and asked again, "Young brother, are you really going to make a move?"

Gu Changsheng remained calm and nodded, "Elder Zhang, please give an estimate. If the price is right, this ginseng will remain at Fushou Hall."