Chapter 9: Taking Over the Pharmacy

  Gu's mention of it also reminded her of the strange feeling she had before, "Indeed something is off, but what's wrong?"

  The two of them couldn't think of anything for a while, when Gu suddenly sneered and said: "She must be gloating now, how can I let her off easily? Since Beiming will send an envoy, there is still time in between, during this period I also want to make her understand that those things are not easy to take!"

  Returning to Jingting Garden with the rain, the first thing is to find Chun Tao, although this time without her sinister plan, but such a slave should be eliminated as soon as possible.

  "Are you letting me borrow or steal? Are you ruining my reputation, doing as you please, thinking that I, this master, have no way to control you? Peony, give her fifty slaps on the mouth, then make her kneel in the woodshed, and don't send any food for two days!"

  Chun Tao was so frightened that she wanted to retreat, "Miss, it's you who said that no matter what method is used, the clothes must be brought over. I'm just following your instructions, what's wrong with that?"

  Hua Zhe shouted: "You still don't admit your guilt, do you know that Eighth Miss has already confessed? Now everyone is being punished to copy 'Nu Jie' a hundred times, and you're still denying it?"

  Upon hearing this, Chun Tao's body went limp and she knelt down, crying bitterly. "Miss, spare my life! I was only misled by the eighth miss's words, that's why I did this..."

  The flower rain wouldn't listen to her words, the peony had long been resentful of her to the bone, and as soon as she approached, she started beating her fiercely until Spring Peach's cheeks and mouth corners were swollen high, only then did she stop.

  "Drag her to the woodshed, no one is allowed to give her medicine! Shanhu, this servant girl will be under your care for the next two days, you must not let her find any loopholes!" Hua Zhe glared at Shanhu.

  Seeing Chun Tao being beaten like that, it was clear that Seventh Miss was killing a chicken to scare the monkeys. In her heart, Shanhu finally had a thread of fear and actually obeyed.

  When Qin'er and Shanhu had dragged away Chun Tao, Hua Zhe Yu said to Peony: "You go prepare a set of men's clothes for me. Anything that belongs to a young servant will do. Tonight we'll go pay our respects to Fang Jie."

  When Peony saw the jewelry, she knew that Seventh Miss had already recovered her belongings and admired her in her heart. She also knew that Seventh Miss was no longer timid and weak-willed, but had become confident and charming, and didn't need to worry about her making mistakes anymore.

  By dusk, the peony had indeed found a set of light green servant clothes and pants. Yu Lin hastily changed into them, then dabbed some makeup on her face, drawing thick eyebrows, drooping eye corners, and raised mouth corners, transforming herself into a listless and unkempt-looking young servant.

  This appearance, even if peonies are not carefully looked at, it is difficult to recognize that they are wearing rain, and for a moment, secretly praise the cleverness of the flower's thoughts.

  They left Qiner to guard the door and slipped out of the back door. The peony, with its flowers and rain, passed through the streets that were still bustling in the night, and rushed towards a narrow and deep alley. After a long time, they finally knocked open an old courtyard gate, and the one who opened the door was a tall and thin young man with a pale face. It wasn't until Peony introduced him that they knew he was Feng Shaohua, Fang's daughter-in-law.

  "I really don't dare, and yet Miss Qi has come over herself." Feng Shaohua hastily paid his respects upon realizing that the slender youth dressed as a servant was actually Hua Zhe.

  Hua Zhe Yu supported him up with a sad voice: "Fang Gu died to save me, how can I not come to mourn... is Su Lian sister okay?"

  Feng Shaohua's eyes could hardly conceal his distress, "Her asthma has relapsed again, and there is no cure in sight. As a doctor, I am also at my wit's end."

  She nodded in the rain, and then walked into the house with Peony. Inside the main room, a black coffin was placed, an old table had incense candles and offerings on it, under the table there was a pile of unburned paper money ashes, when the wind blew, the ashes flew around, sparks splashed everywhere, like restless spirits swirling around. The humble house was full of flickering shadows, revealing desolation and chilliness everywhere.

  She and Peony first offered incense and kowtowed to Fragrance Aunt, then entered the inner room, where they saw a 16- or 17-year-old woman with dark skin and deep-set eyes lying in a coarse linen bed, at this time she was holding a one-year-old child who was panting, seeing the two of them, she wanted to get out of bed to greet them, but Hua Yu held her down and said softly: "Don't get up, I just came to see how you're doing."

  "I... I'm fine, Seventh Miss doesn't need to worry..."

  Hua Zhe Yu pulled her hand, then pressed a certain acupoint on her waist and said sincerely: "Fang Gong died for me, which means my life was given by her. What she worried about most when she was alive was Su Lian Jie, how could I ignore your difficulties?"

  Jin Sulian shook her head, "It's not Miss's fault, it's just that Madame is ruthless and sent the eldest young master to do such a despicable thing to Miss. Anyone would have done the same in his place. Although we are poor, we still understand reason. Moreover, Seventh Miss has had a hard time in the Huahua family herself, so there's no need for us to worry too much about her..."

  Hua Zhe Yu didn't respond to her words, but instead smiled slightly and asked, "Sister Su Lian, do you feel more comfortable speaking now?"

  Jin Sulian was stunned for a moment before realizing that she had just spoken fluently and didn't seem to be panting like before. Her face filled with surprise, she asked: "Why is this?"

  Feng Shaohua, who was standing at the door, also walked in curiously. Hua Yu turned her head and asked him, "How long has she had asthma?"

  Feng Shaohua hesitated, "It seems like she had it since birth, I gave her medicine to treat it two years ago and she showed some improvement, but this year it relapsed and now it's getting worse and worse."

  Hua Zhe Yu Song nodded and put his hand on Jin Su Lian's waist, feeling her pulse. After a while, he said: "She has been taking medicine for over a decade, but it has only harmed her body instead. I will now prescribe a new formula for you, using cat placenta and old squash juice as the medicinal guide. This medicinal guide has two effects: one is to remove the accumulated toxins in her body, and the other is to cure her asthma. If she takes it continuously for half a month, she will see results."

  She said it lightly and confidently, but Feng Shaohua hardly dared to believe it, stuttering: "This is a chronic illness that has lasted for over a decade, many famous doctors have been invited to treat it but none of them were able to cure it, Seventh Young Miss...".

  Peony suddenly interrupted: "Brother Feng just follow Miss's instructions and do it, Miss won't harm you."

  Feng Shaohua's face was unsatisfied, "I didn't mean it like that..."

  He hastily went to fetch paper and pen, and with a flourish of his brush, he wrote down a prescription and handed it to Feng Shaohua. "Although the medicine has some toxicity, considering Su Lian's physical condition, if we don't use poison to fight poison, and instead use the usual detoxification method, it will be difficult to remove the accumulated toxins from her body. Furthermore, by adding the special prescription for asthma, cat fetus and old calabaza juice, I believe Su Lian's asthma can be cured."

  Feng Shaohua, as a doctor himself, knew the properties and dosage of the medicine that Hua Zheyu had prescribed at a glance. He had never seen anyone use poison to expel accumulated toxins in the body before; usually, they would administer the medicine slowly and gradually, bit by bit. But Hua Zheyu's method was to attack the poison with an even more potent toxin, which was both fierce and overbearing, making Feng Shaohua dare not even think about it. However, after listening to Hua Zheyu's explanation, he felt that it made perfect sense.

  While he was thinking, Hua Yu said again: "I heard that the pharmacy where Brother Feng is located is going to close down. What will Brother Feng do for a living in the future?"

  As soon as this matter was mentioned, Feng Shaohua's expression changed, and he sighed: "I only know how to inherit my father's business and some ancestral medical skills. If Huian Hall closes down, I'll just have to stay at home and help the neighbors with their illnesses."

  Hua Zhe Yu thought for a moment, "I don't know why Huai An Tang wants to close its doors?"

  Feng Shaohua's face was filled with indignation, "It's not just that recently a large pharmacy called Yongxing Hall opened in the capital, not only are their medicinal materials complete, but also cheap. They even have highly skilled doctors on duty, and within half a year, they took away more than half of the business from all the pharmacies in the capital. They opened five or six branches one after another, and recently they even opened one on Huayang Street where our Huian Hall is located. Within just one month, they made the business of other pharmacies on that street plummet. Our boss really can't hold on anymore, so he had to close the pharmacy and sell the property."

  "Is that so?" Hua Yuexin thought for a moment, "If your master is preparing to sell the shop, how much silver does he want?"

  Feng Shaohua was taken aback, "Miss Seven is asking this means..."

  Hua Zhe Yu smiled and said, "The purpose of my visit today is not only to see you all, but also because I heard that your pharmacy is going to close down. I came over to ask about it, just wanting to do some business. To be honest, I've been poor for so many years."

  Looking at the poor and struggling state of this family, as well as the wealthy and arrogant appearance of the Gu family, whether it's to help them or take down the Gu family, it's probably not something that can be accomplished with just a little bit of cleverness. First and foremost, one must have money; having money can make even ghosts work for you, without this, nothing can be done.

  Peony and Feng Shaohua were shocked by her bold idea, Peony seemed to have gotten used to the various surprises that Hua Yu brought her in these few days, didn't say anything, Feng Shaohua's thoughts were conservative, exclaimed: "Women exposing themselves to do business, how can they get married in the future? This is absolutely not allowed."

  Hua Zhe Yu looked at him and asked, "Brother Feng, do you see me as a woman now?"

  Feng Shaohua was stunned and shook his head.

  Hua Zhe Yu smiled, "That's it. When the time comes, I will continue to open a pharmacy and won't appear in person. Let Brother Feng take charge of the clinic and help me manage it. This way, Brother Feng doesn't have to worry about making a living either, killing two birds with one stone."

  Feng Shaohua still shook his head, "As long as Yongxing Hall is around, Miss will definitely lose money opening a pharmacy. Even if Miss wants to do business, she should change her line of work."

  He is indeed an honest and down-to-earth person.

  Her eyes sparkled like the stars in the sky, "Don't mind the monopoly of Yongxing Hall, since I dare to venture into this line, I have confidence and sufficient preparation."

  "Does the young lady have some clever plan?"

  Hua Zhe smiled mysteriously, "The heavenly machine cannot be revealed. I have medical skills and courage, so I'm not worried that my pharmacy will be squeezed out. After Fang's funeral is over, please ask Brother Feng to contact your master to discuss the price of selling the shop. Once there's news, send someone to Guo Gong Fu to report back to me, how about it?"