Chapter 253: Deep Master-Disciple Affection

Having received a new mission, Huang Wu was particularly eager to distinguish himself.

Following Deputy Envoy Wen's plan, he went to the Seven Treasures Hall the next day.

Several shopkeepers at the Seven Treasures Hall were still hoping to fish for information from Huang Wu, so they welcomed him into the shop with a measure of genuine enthusiasm.

At the same time, they specifically left someone to keep an eye on the outside; once Rong Huan's figure was spotted, they would immediately activate high-alert mode to avoid these two living ancestors fighting in their shop.

Huang Wu guessed a bit of their intentions and gave a secret huff.

The Seven Treasures Hall's worries were superfluous today, and they would be superfluous in the future too!

It was I, Huang, who was arrogant!

I never dreamed in my wildest dreams that Rong Huan was *that* person!

However, this secret must not be told even if it kills me for now; let this bunch of people stay anxious!

The head shopkeeper of the Seven Treasures Hall personally served tea and water, providing enthusiastic service.

Today, Huang Wu appeared to have something on his mind; he was absent-minded even while drinking tea, and he had no interest in picking up the topics the head shopkeeper brought up.

Seeing this, the other shopkeepers exchanged glances, and worry arose.

After Huang Wu left, they hurriedly asked the head shopkeeper: "Big Brother, how was it?"

The head shopkeeper's expression was slightly solemn: "He didn't reveal anything, but that is precisely the important news. I fear there will soon be a greater upheaval in Shenyi Gu!"

The others agreed strongly.

"Huang Wu is a person who has never been able to keep things hidden; if he can keep it hidden, it must be a major event!"

"Right! That loose mouth of his leaks everything if he's flattered a little. If he can be made to shut up, it must be a vital matter he was strictly warned about!"

"He definitely knows important news!"

In Shenyi Gu, the internal instability of the Medicine Gang and the lack of unity among the people were things everyone knew.

Outside the valley, the Six Great Clans were also eyeing them like tigers stalking their prey.

"The upheaval in Shenyi Gu will likely come faster than we anticipated."

"We must make preparations as soon as possible, just in case!"

No one knew whether the coming upheaval in Shenyi Gu would be good or bad; if it were bad, how bad would it get? No one could know.

Especially for those of them who were outsiders fleeing here, their foundations were unstable; once they joined the Medicine Gang, they were easily dragged into the gang's internal strife, and even more easily sacrificed during an upheaval.

If the Medicine Gang were gone and the Six Great Clans took control of Shenyi Gu, their situation would certainly be even worse.

The Six Great Clans treated famous doctors with courtesy, but they would not be polite to those of them who did not understand medicine.

To survive and live better, they always had to make several preparations.

"The orders on hand must be finished quickly so we can get the payment and goods in our hands!"

In order to scout for more information, the people of the Seven Treasures Hall soon contacted other connections within the Medicine Gang, spending more money and resources to inquire for more news.

Once the Seven Treasures Hall moved, some people within the Medicine Gang also became restless; a chain reaction occurred, and the atmosphere became even more subtle.

Any slight disturbance within the Medicine Gang would lead to someone sending news to Doctor Luo.

Huang Wu stayed in the town for another day before timing his return to the sect.

By the time he reached his residence, it was already evening, and the sky was turning dark.

Huang Wu carried the smell of alcohol on him, and the others in the sect were used to it.

Alcohol was a luxury item now, but not for Huang Wu; there were plenty of people willing to treat him to a drink.

When Huang Wu returned, he happened to run into a senior sect brother.

"Back so late, where did you go?" that senior brother asked.

"Handling big business!" Huang Wu was particularly righteous and confident.

That senior brother did not doubt him at all. Huang Wu was like this in the past as well.

The two did not continue chatting, and Huang Wu did not walk toward his own living quarters, but instead headed toward Doctor Luo's courtyard.

Another senior brother passed by, watching Huang Wu's receding figure, and frowned.

Before long, the sounds of master and disciple laughing and talking came from Doctor Luo's courtyard, then quickly stopped, as if afraid of being known by those outside.

No need to think too much; inside must be a scene of deep master-disciple affection!

The two senior brothers stood coldly outside blowing in the cold wind, their expressions dark and unclear.

"It seems another big spender treated him to a drink this time; I wonder if it was to facilitate business or to fish for information."

"He stays in town for a few days, and he must be off doing something thieving or molesting decent men and women again. Unlearned and incompetent, fond of drink and greedy for the cup, a fool!"

"He isn't a fool; he just lacks literary talent, not schemes. That brat has plenty of crooked ideas! But if Master keeps indulging him like this, I don't know what kind of disaster he'll cause."

"He can do this kind of thing himself, but he's ruining our reputation!"

"There are treacherous sycophants in the sect!"

The two secretly rejoiced that they had sought another way out; if the situation turned bad, they would certainly make a quick cut from this fellow-disciple relationship.

Inside the courtyard, in the room.

Huang Wu laid out the snacks brought from the town below the mountain for Doctor Luo, briefly spoke of what he had seen and heard in town, and then said: "Master, a wealthy merchant invited me to drink today; he wants to buy some medicine."

Huang Wu spoke to Doctor Luo with his usual closeness and ease.

"That wealthy merchant is willing to spend money; he said he hired people and is about to go south to meet up with relatives and friends, so he wants to get some medicine for repelling Poisonous Insects that can be used in the south."

Huang Wu took out the order list: "The quantity of each is not large, but he is asking for many varieties."

Huang Wu pointed out the reward at the back of the order list to Doctor Luo: "This is the reward I negotiated! I don't care about the money, but I'm not sure about the tiger skin included in it."

He said: "That wealthy merchant originally wanted to use the tiger skin to trade for favors with the Six Great Clans, but since he's in a hurry now, he's using it to trade for medicine."

Huang Wu looked at Doctor Luo: "Master, take a look, can this business be done?"

Doctor Luo looked at the order list in his hand. He was getting old, and his eyesight was not as good as before; it was fine during the day, but it was a struggle to read words at night.

It was from a time when Huang Wu was negotiating business in Xinzhou and secretly obtained a magnifying glass to give to Doctor Luo.

Since then, Doctor Luo has also been able to read books and letters at night.

Doctor Luo was smug: My Apprentice is truly capable; how could anyone else get such good things from Xinzhou!

At this moment, Doctor Luo held a magnifying glass, clearly looking at the goods listed on the manifest, as well as the tiger skin and the amount of Money Voucher.

Beside him, Huang Wu said with a look of disdain: "In the end, they are just merchants, not like those wealthy and powerful clans with deep foundations. They just give a lot of money, but they can't bring out much of anything else."

He complained: "What is the use of Money Voucher? It's just Money Voucher printed by the Six Great Clans themselves, not gold; how much is it worth?

If one side happens to fall, the Money Voucher they printed will be nothing but waste paper!"

Huang Wu had an "I know better than anyone" look on his face.

"In this world, in this day and age, nothing is as solid as grain! If not that, then at least salt, Sugar, Iron, horses, cloth, or silk. What is the use of Money Voucher?!"

"I just took a fancy to this tiger skin. It's quite a large tiger skin, exactly the kind of thing that can be used on the mountain in winter. Those wealthy families and nobles want to use it themselves, so they are usually reluctant to take it out for trade."

Shenyi Gu is located in the border area between the north and south, and the mountains here are much colder in winter than the forests in the south.

"Master, just think about it, with that whole tiger skin spread out, how majestic it would be!"

Huang Wu spoke with excitement, and it was clear he was looking forward to it.

Doctor Luo listened with a smile, agreeing with his mouth: "Indeed, the tiger skin is quite good."

He believed he had seen through Huang Wu's thoughts.

It was no wonder little Wu couldn't hold back. For an ordinary person who doesn't worry about food and drink, a tiger skin is indeed very attractive.

But looking at the quantity of goods and the delivery deadline, Doctor Luo's brows gradually locked tight: "It needs to be that urgent?"

Huang Wu showed a dull expression: "Half a month's time, is it not easy to do?"

He stretched his neck to look, appearing not to understand, and asked for instructions: "Should I go back and reject this order?"

Doctor Luo said: "Accept it."

Huang Wu instead showed a look of hesitation: "Really accept it?"

Doctor Luo's face had already softened, appearing benevolent: "This batch of medicine will indeed be tiring to make, but since you, little Wu, have your eye on that tiger skin, it doesn't matter if your master is a bit tired."

Without waiting for Huang Wu to express his gratitude, Doctor Luo instructed: "Tomorrow you go and tell him, add another ten percent to the Money Voucher, and I want it from the Six Great Clans; then I will accept this order. This order is a private transaction, do not go around talking about it!"

Huang Wu obediently responded: "Alright!"

He then asked with concern: "The other party needs it urgently, and it will be tiring for you, Master, to make the medicine. Unfortunately, I am clumsy and do not understand pharmacology; why not ask the senior apprentices to come and help?"

Doctor Luo immediately said: "No need! This little matter won't take much of your master's effort!"

Manual labor would certainly be left to others; he had apprentices and medicine workers under him, so he didn't need to exert himself. But as for the technical side, he would not allow anyone else to interfere!

Anything involving unique secret recipes would not be allowed to be touched by others!

"It can be done by rushing the work over these few days."

Doctor Luo said with a relaxed face.

Huang Wu: "Fine, then I will go find him tomorrow to discuss the payment again; it should be no problem. As for medicine to drive away wild Poisonous Insect, in the entire Shenyi Gu, no one makes it better than you, Master!"

After finishing the discussion, the night was deep, and Huang Wu went back to his own room to sleep.

After Huang Wu left, Doctor Luo picked up the manifest again.

He didn't look at the tiger skin written on the list, but instead looked at the amount of Money Voucher written on it.

He thought to himself: "Little Wu is still from too low a background and is short-sighted; he can only see the benefits right in front of him."

Even if the Six Great Clans fall, it won't happen in the short term. If one side has a problem and it can't be used, there are still the other five sides that can be used. Even if there is a loss, it won't be big.

Money Voucher is of course a good thing.

It's convenient to carry when running away!

On the contrary, that tiger skin, while looking very majestic and status-signifying, is big and heavy, inconvenient to carry. Before running away, it's best to give it away as a gift or resell it.

Doctor Luo made his calculations, showing a smile of having everything under control.

He accepted this order, and even if it was a bit tiring, if outsiders knew, they would only think he was favoring his fifth apprentice, and wouldn't think of anything else.

Over the next few days, after the payment was settled, Doctor Luo began the work.

As usual, simple manual labor was left to others to do, while the technical side was firmly controlled by Luo himself.

During this time, other apprentices expressed a desire to help, and Doctor Luo jumped up and scolded them as if he had been kicked in the backside.

By comparison, Huang Wu was much more well-behaved in Doctor Luo's eyes.

Huang Wu did not interfere with the medicine recipe at all, only finding time when Doctor Luo was free to come over and show concern, kneading his shoulders and pounding his back, serving water and food, and taking good care of his master.

In Doctor Luo's eyes, little Wu was thinking about that tiger skin and wanted to get it in his hands early to show off.

That's fine; as long as he doesn't covet the medicine recipe, he is a filial apprentice.