Hermit in the Mountains

Zhang Yuanfu could tell that Gu Changsheng didn't care about collecting ginseng at all. Before giving an estimate, he looked at Gu and asked, "Young man, I need to taste the medicinal effects."

After asking the question, he added, "Only one centimeter of root hair is needed."

Gu Changsheng didn't speak, but gestured to the other party that it was okay.

With Gu Changsheng's permission, Zhang Yuanfu turned to his son and said, "Dafu, go and get me a cup of water, a jade knife, and a jade tongs."

Zhang Dafu nodded in response and turned to leave.

When he reappeared, he was holding a glass of water in his left hand and a crystal-clear jade knife in his right.

He placed the water on the table and handed over the jade knife and jade tongs. "Dad."

Zhang Yuanfu reached out his right hand to take the jade knife handed to him by his son, and with his left hand holding the jade tongs, he put the tip of the jade knife into the clear water.

He held the jade knife with its tip damp and gently scraped the ginseng rootlets, cleaning off the dirt. Then, he cut off one of the rootlets at the end.

Gently place the jade knife into the water glass, and use jade tweezers to remove the cut root and swirl it back and forth in the clear water.

After washing away the dirt, he put the ginseng rootlets in his mouth and held them for a moment, then gently crushed them with his teeth, closed his eyes, and held the crushed rootlets in his mouth for a moment.

He opened his eyes again and expressed his feelings: "The effects of the medicine are about the same as they were in the 1970s or 1980s. The loss of the effects is negligible, and it is about 99% preserved."

"Young man, this ginseng of yours is 60 years old, of the highest quality, and its medicinal effects are also top-notch." He paused for a few moments in thought before giving an estimate, "288 million."

He estimated the price at around three million, meaning Fu Shou Tang could still make a profit. If they find a suitable buyer, it's not impossible to sell it for 400 million.

He already had a plan in mind: if he could acquire this ginseng, he wouldn't sell it; he would keep it for his own collection, since such a perfect specimen was a rare find.

Nowadays, pure wild ginseng that is over fifty years old is becoming increasingly rare, and it is hardly ever seen on the market.

Wild ginseng can save lives in critical moments, and it can be kept as a family heirloom.

Gu Changsheng heard that the other party's estimate was similar to, or even slightly higher than, the price he had found, and the offer of 288 million was very sincere.

His eyes suddenly lit up. "Three hundred and sixty-five is the complete number of days in a solar year."

"A year brings both flourishing and decay, a cycle that is destined for me, and perhaps for you as well."

"What does Mr. Zhang think?"

Zhang Dafu listened with a puzzled look as he heard about the 365, the complete cycle of the universe, and whether or not they were destined to be together.

Zhang Yuanfu often read various Taoist scriptures and knew the meaning of the "perfect cycle of the universe" and "one year, one cycle of flourishing and withering" in Gu Changsheng's wonderful words, but he did not understand why he was destined to be with Gu Changsheng, or why he was destined to be with Gu Changsheng.

His eyes met Gu Changsheng's for a fleeting moment, then he said, "Young man, three hundred and sixty-five it is, my Fushoutang will take it."

Once the price was agreed upon, the rest was simple: both parties signed a sales contract, and the payment was made to complete the transaction.

After signing the contract, Gu Changsheng glanced at the text message on his phone. Three million six hundred and fifty thousand yuan had been deposited into his account. He stood up and shook hands with the other party.

"It's been a pleasure working with you, Mr. Zhang!"

"Haha, young man, it's a pleasure to cooperate with you!" Zhang Yuanfu smiled and slowly stood up to shake hands with Gu Changsheng.

"Old Zhang, I have something to take care of, so I'll be leaving now." Gu Changsheng took the opportunity to say goodbye, as he still had many things to buy.

"Let's exchange contact information. If you find any other precious herbs in the future, you can contact this old man." Seeing that Gu Changsheng had something to do, Zhang Yuanfu exchanged his contact information and did not try to keep him any longer.

"Okay." Gu Changsheng exchanged contact information with the other party and dialed their number on the spot to confirm that there were no problems.

He picked up his bamboo basket, nodded slightly to Zhang Yuanfu and his son, and said, "Old Zhang, Brother Zhang, farewell!"

"Young man, take care."

"Brother Gu, come visit often when you have time." Zhang Yuanfu and his son waved goodbye to Gu Changsheng.

After Gu Changsheng's figure disappeared, Zhang Dafu looked at his father and asked in confusion, "Dad, 288 was already the most sincere estimate, why did you finally agree to 365?"

Zhang Yuanfu smiled without saying a word, shook his head, turned around and walked to the ginseng plant to rewrap it, then headed towards the back room.

"Dad..." Zhang Dafu watched his father's back disappear, wondering what kind of riddle the two were playing. He scratched his head, unable to figure it out. He was at his wit's end. He decided to go back and get the medicine.

Zhang Yuanfu returned to the back room, opened the coarse cloth, and began to fetch cleaning tools and a sandalwood box.

It wasn't that he didn't want to answer his son's question; he just didn't know how to explain it. Did he think that Gu Changsheng saw him as someone who had made a profit by buying ginseng for 365 million, or was Gu Changsheng someone who was not simple?

If he can't explain it, he won't. Anyway, in his eyes, this ginseng is worth the price, so it's not a loss.

On the other side, Gu Changsheng stopped after walking a dozen meters from Fushou Hall, looked back at the location of Fushou Hall, and smiled slightly. "Whether we are destined to meet again remains to be seen."

He withdrew his gaze and headed towards the place he had agreed to meet with Yang Dashan.

Gu Changsheng walked through several streets and found Yang Dashan. The two of them headed towards the antique street together.

Along the way, Gu Changsheng spent his time buying things, spending over 100,000 yuan on jade and dozens of recipes, ancient alchemists' travelogues, Taoist scriptures, and Buddhist sutras from reputable antique shops.

Purchased seeds of more than ten kinds of medicinal herbs from the Chinese herbal medicine market;

Purchase ten seedlings each of the following species from the flower market: Golden Thunder Bamboo, Golden Jade Bamboo, Sweet Bamboo, Agarwood, Peach Blossom, and Plum Blossom.

Finally, I found a pill-making furnace and bought the tools needed for hand-rolling pills and jade carving tools.

At 5 p.m., Gu Changsheng finally completed the purchase of all the items listed on the note, spending nearly 500,000 yuan. He paid off the loan during his lunch break, leaving him with 3 million yuan in his bank account.

Yang Dashan's Five Elements Bread Truck was packed full. Apart from the driver's seat and the passenger seat, all the back seats were folded down to store the items that Gu Changsheng had purchased.

Upon arriving at the entrance to Xiahe Village, five or six middle-aged men carrying bamboo baskets were already waiting.

These were people whom Gu Changsheng had asked Yang Dashan to contact in advance to help move things.

A group of middle-aged men saw Yang Dashan's bread truck and got up from the mound of dirt. "Dashan and Boss Gu have arrived."

When the bread truck stopped in front of them, they saw Gu Changsheng and Yang Dashan get out and greeted them, "Boss Gu, Brother Dashan..."

Gu Changsheng looked up at the sky and said, "Thank you all for your hard work. It's getting late, so please finish moving as soon as possible and go home for dinner."

"It's not hard work, it's not hard work..." Everyone waved their hands in response.

In their eyes, Gu Changsheng was a generous boss; he had given them double the salary for helping build the house.

Before they came today, they knew they would need to move some flowers and plants up the mountain. It would only take one trip and they would receive 200 yuan, which was much easier than moving the materials needed to build the house.

Yang Dashan opened the trunk and both doors, and everyone began loading their things into the large bamboo baskets they had brought.

The seedlings are small, just a tiny pot. One person can carry more than a dozen pots on their back, plus a few other things in their hands.

The eight people carried all the items at once, and the group headed up the mountain in a grand procession.