The Rogue Villager Chen Erbao

Cyan Mountain Town was very famous in Sihai County, but its reputation wasn't exactly a good one.

As the largest town under Sihai County's jurisdiction, Cyan Mountain Town clearly possessed vast resources, but its economy was actually the worst in the entire county.

It wasn't that the town's officials lacked ambition. The main issue was that Cyan Mountain Town had no pillar industries. The only thing it had going for it was a farmers' market.

Chen Erbao's destination was that very farmers' market in Cyan Mountain Town, as Medicine King Hall was located there.

Bailong Village was remote, and the roads weren't even paved. Practically no cars were willing to make the trip, and the town didn't even have the money to establish a bus route. The only way to get to town was on foot.

A full three-hour trek on mountain paths, plus a load of over one hundred kilograms of wild Gastrodia—it was only because Chen Erbao's body had been enhanced by the Joyful Technique. Otherwise, anyone else would have struggled just to leave the village, let alone walk all the way to town.

Around noon, Chen Erbao arrived in town, carrying the burlap sack on his shoulder.

The town's development was slow, but it was certainly much more advanced than the village.

There weren't any towering skyscrapers, but his view was filled with plenty of two- and three-story, even four-story, buildings. He particularly noticed the hair salons tucked away in the nooks and crannies. They often had a chair placed out front, where a voluptuous proprietress would be sitting, clad in either a short skirt and fishnets or a tight hip-hugging skirt with black stockings.

Chen Erbao felt like two eyes weren't enough to take it all in.

Although he had attended university in the city and had seen a bit of the world, that was several years ago.

After leaving university, Chen Erbao had been stuck in the village. He genuinely had no idea how much the outside world had changed.

'Brother Da Bao said these salon proprietresses all came out of the red-light district. Not only are they masters of all sorts of "talents," but they're supposedly especially skilled at the "heaven of ice and fire" technique. I wonder if that's true.'

He had just finished his thought when the proprietress closest to him took an interest. She was wearing a short skirt with fishnet stockings, and her white blouse could barely contain her heavy chest. She had been cracking melon seeds by the door, but now she beckoned to Chen Erbao.

"Hey there, handsome. If you don't know whether it's true or not, why not come in and find out?"

"Don't worry, my prices are very reasonable."

"We offer a 'full-service haircut' using our mouths, hands, and feet to give you a brand-new experience."

"Only fifty."

The proprietress in the low-cut top looked to be around thirty. She had long legs, a full rear, and a fair, tender bosom. As she spoke, she deliberately bent over, her heavy chest straining against the little white blouse as if it were about to burst.

Her slender hand, with its red-painted nails, slid down from Chen Erbao's belt. They were still on the street, and her bold actions made Chen Erbao break into a cold sweat.

"Want to give it a try?"

Chen Erbao didn't dare nod. He quickly made an excuse about having something to do and hurried away.

The proprietress was still waving at him from behind. "Little brother, remember to come find your big sister when you have free time, okay?"

*Hiss.*

Chen Erbao couldn't help but suck in a sharp breath.

'So this is what the town is like. Are people really this forward here?'

After calming himself down, Chen Erbao arrived at Medicine King Hall.

Medicine King Hall was arguably the largest shop in the farmers' market. Just from the outside, it looked to be twenty or thirty meters long. The interior was even more spacious, and the decor was quite grand.

Chen Erbao was practically drooling.

'Brother Sheng said that this is just a small shop under a branch office. The one in charge is only a Shopkeeper, but the branch in the city has high-and-mighty positions like "manager."'

'I wonder what kind of background this Medicine King Hall has.'

'No wonder they offer such fair prices.'

When he set out in the morning, Chen Erbao had happened to run into Xu Sheng heading up the mountain to gather herbs. He had specifically asked him about it, and Xu Sheng had said that Medicine King Hall did indeed offer the highest prices for herbs. He also said they were always fair, never using their size to bully suppliers.

But since it was a big establishment, they wouldn't even look at small-fry quantities of herbs.

Chen Erbao hefted the sack of Gastrodia and muttered, 'Over a hundred kilograms of wild Gastrodia... that should count as a large amount, right?'

'Then again, maybe not.'

'This place is so grand, with branches in the city... it's a whole chain. What kind of amazing things haven't they seen?'

'They probably do business with huge medicinal herb processing plants.'

'They'll probably look down on my little haul.'

'But I have to try. If I can't even get this first step done, what hope is there?'

Deciding to be as humble as possible, Chen Erbao walked into Medicine King Hall.

Inside, people were bustling about. Chen Erbao saw a bald man who was clearly a Steward, shouting out orders.

"You lot, go move that crate of honeysuckle into the storeroom. And bring out the aged wild ginseng to air it out."

"Check all the herbs stored in the back. Make sure nothing has gotten damp."

"Also, push the people who are out collecting wild Gastrodia. The higher-ups need it urgently. We can raise the price."

Chen Erbao's eyes lit up when he heard that last command.

He hurried over and asked cautiously,

"Friend, you guys buy wild Gastrodia here, right?"

The bald man, who looked to be in his thirties, glanced at Chen Erbao. "You're selling?"

Wild Gastrodia had always been a valuable commodity that was hard to come by. Even freshly dug, it could fetch a price of two thousand per jin.

Recently, demand from the higher-ups was huge, and the price had risen to three thousand per jin, but they still couldn't acquire any.

If Chen Erbao could provide some, it would be a godsend.

The bald man rubbed his hands together, his face alight with excitement. "How much do you have?"

Chen Erbao looked embarrassed. "I really don't have that much."

He quickly added, "But if your price is fair, I can provide the same amount of wild Gastrodia every day for a while."

He could dig about a hundred kilograms a day. The patch of wild Gastrodia in the old forest alone was enough to keep him busy for half a month.

Once that was depleted, there were other places. Even if he dug continuously for a whole month, it wouldn't make a dent in the wild Gastrodia population on Bailong Mountain.

The bald man's eyes immediately lit up when he heard Chen Erbao's words.

'Not much?'

'A few taels, maybe?'

'That's fine.'

Wild Gastrodia was scarce to begin with. They'd been trying to buy it for months without a single lead. A few taels was certainly a small amount, but it was better than nothing.

The bald man said excitedly, "Friend, let me see it."

"Don't worry. If the goods are high quality, the price will be more than fair."

Chen Erbao nodded. "Alright."

He set down the burlap sack he was carrying.

"It's all in here."

"Take a look."

The bald man was utterly confused.

'Where is it?'

'Just take it out already.'

'If it's just a few taels, shouldn't it be in a small box?'

As if sensing the bald man's confusion, Chen Erbao simply untied the rope sealing the sack and kicked it over.

The wild Gastrodia inside immediately came tumbling out.

The bald man's first instinct was to tell Chen Erbao not to litter, but then his eyes grew wider and wider.

'This is what he fucking calls "not much"?!'

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