Needless to say, Niu knew that the Chinese Knotweed was genuine, but maintained that it was home-grown to cheat the poor young man.
Chen Xiaobei felt disgusted, but he was no saint either – he therefore decided not to interfere.
Furthermore, the rule was that traders could use their own circumstantial judgement to examine the authenticity of Chinese medicinal ingredient on a case-by-case basis. In short, you’re skillful if you get a real deal, and simply out of luck if you were swindled.
As the saying goes, ‘interfering others from earning money is no different from killing their parents’– Chen Xiaobei would cause a huge storm if he meddled. And that was one giagantic taboo.
“Sir, five hundred Yuan is too little! How about one thousand Yuan? I’ll agree to it immediately!” The young man was ready to compromise.
“Boy, don’t be too greedy! Think of it this way, you went to climb a mountain and was lucky enough to pick up five hundred Yuan on the floor. You should feel content. Anyway, five hundred is my price – no more, no less. And I’m being honest and kind here, you wouldn’t even get five hundred if I’m a mean trader like the others around here!”
Disgraceful!
Chen Xiaobei frowned. Through his Bagua Qi Observation, he could see the front chest of that Chinese Knotweed shining with golden light. White, green, red, silver, gold, and golden purple represented the respective rarities of all items, and after a rough estimation, this Chinese Knotweed should be worth five million!
“That old fuck is offering the young man five hundred Yuan. I have seen many swindlers, but never seen one so shameless!”
“Okay… I’m fine with five hundred… Deal!” The young man sighed and resigned himself to the paltry reward.
“Alright. Fantastic! Contentment is the source of happiness. You’re lucky enough to pick up five hundred Yuan on the floor. Am I right?!” Niu faked a smile and took out five hundred Yuan to pay the young man, who returned his smile and quickly left.
‘That’s what happens when an idiot meets a conman! Perfect match!’ Chen Xiaobei thought.
He was also rather frustrated – Niu would definitely slap a ridiculously high price tag on the Chinese Knotweed since he knows its true value! Furthermore, he spent all his money to buy a new piece of land recently.
Yap Liangchen was rich too, but it was not right to ask money from him since he would need to explain it to his family. It would definitely complicate things.
“Ah Liang! Go and fetch me the best purple sandalwood box!” Niu called.
The salesperson vanished somewhere, and appeared again later with the container that was carved with the picture of a dragon and a phoenix.
“Boss! Why are we storing a five hundred Yuan Chinese Knotweed in this box?” The salesperson asked as he handed it over to Niu. “We usually used it to keep hundred years old ginseng…”
“You know nothing. Hundred-year old ginseng is just garbage in front of this Chinese Knotweed…” Niu gazed at the newly acquired Chinese Knotweed like a gorgeous lady.
“Really?” The salesperson gulped and gaped at the herb too.
“You have no idea what I’m talking about. Go fetch me a knife.”
The salesperson quickly did as he was told. “What are you trying to do?”
“Look at its humanoid shape. Every part of it is perfect except for the lump on the chest. It ruins its appearance!” Niu raised the knife and cut off the lump without any hesitation.
“Now, it’s flawless!” Niu declared. “You know as well as I do – all those filthy rich billionaires who can afford to buy this herb are perfectionists. We can quickly sell it as long as it looks perfect!”
“Boss, you are so smart!” The salesperson gave his boss a thumbs-up, and Niu beamed as he threw the lump into a waste basket.
Chen Xiaobei’s eyes were fixed on Niu before he cut off the lump, but right now he was focusing on the waste basket, which was shining with golden light.
On the other hand, the golden light from the Chinese Knotweed was completely gone.
Knowing what had happened, Chen Xiaobei kept his face impassive while suppressing the excitement within.
‘Well, well, well! Who knew that the old f*ck is just another ignorant idiot? I can’t believe he just chop off and throw away the core of the Chinese Knotweed – that was its Spirit Pearl!’
“Master Yap! You guys can come over here now!” Niu shouted.
‘Calm down… Calm down… I must calm down…’ Chen Xiaobei took a deep breath and walked towards the counter with Yap Liangchen.
“Master Yap, what kind of medicine are you looking for today?” Niu smiled calmly. It seemed like he was not afraid of Yap Liangchen, unlike the salesperson.
It was reasonable, however. Niu was a reputable doctor who has the backing of the Wu Family behind his back as well. And he had just bought a top-quality Chinese Knotweed at a ridiculously low price – it was an outrageous trade that he was very proud of.
“I’m not buying anything today,” Yap Liangchen replied, and pointed to Chen Xiaobei. “My friend here wanted to buy something.”
Chen Xiaobei took out a paper. “Just give me everything in this list,” he said. “I would prefer the ingredients to be older.”
“Little brother, I think you’re an amateur, right? Chinese medicine is all about Yin and Yang, and all five attributes must exist in a delicate balance. Aged medical ingredients is too strong for your body!”
Chen Xiaobei was speechless. He just wanted to give him two words: Ha ha!
Even Elder Luo was impressed by his medical knowledge. How dare a mixologist try to give him a lesson!
“I have my own plans. Just give them to me.”
“Young man, you are too stubborn! Do you really think I give a shit about you if it wasn’t for Master Yap?!”
“Boss Niu, please get what my friend needs. He’s actually knowledgeable in medicine; he knows what he is doing!”
“Him? Is this some kind of joke? He’s in his twenties – I think he is just a student from some medical school! He knows nothing about treatment!”
“Boss Niu, watch your mouth!” Yap Liangchen frowned as anger was flooded his eyes. He would never allow others to humiliate him.
Niu, however, was calm. He looked at Chen Xiaobei arrogantly and said, “I know you want some for practice, so you don’t need those aged medical ingredients. Here, I have a basket of waste! You can have it for free!” Niu pointed at the basket beside him.
“You- What kind of attitude is that? How dare you give him garbage? Do you really think you can trample all over the Yap Family?”
“Liangchen, calm down… I really like this free gift!” Chen Xiaobei smiled and took the basket.
“Boss Niu, thank you so much!” He exclaimed.
