Chapter 24, Then I’ll Just Grow Herbs Myself!

Translator: StarReader

 

Su Chen arrived at the Errand Hall to report.

 

The Errand Hall courtyard was located at the edge of the Medicine King Estate, nestled against a mountainside, with the servant girls and old maids’ servant quarters tightly adjoining it. Inside the courtyard, the buildings were low-lying and dilapidated, shabby and meager. Weeds grew everywhere, and the place looked abandoned and in disrepair. Along the walls, one could see rusty tools like hoes, axes, and saws scattered around.

 

Seeing the forlorn, poverty-stricken appearance of the Errand Hall, Su Chen stood there for a moment, dumbfounded, his spirits sinking.

 

As one of the four major factions in the Wu Region, the Medicine King Group monopolized the medicine and herb business across its thirteen counties. They owned vast tracts of land, and their coffers were overflowing with money—every single pharmacist under them was a wealthy tycoon in Gusu County City.

 

But looking at this state of affairs, it was clear that their wealth wasn’t trickling down to the Errand Hall. Just from the shabby condition of this branch’s courtyard, one could tell how lowly these disciples of the Medicine King Group were regarded—they were practically treated like servants and slaves.

 

Upon entering the courtyard, Su Chen quickly encountered dozens of individuals who had been eliminated just like him. Each of them wore a crestfallen expression, their silence reflecting an immense sense of sorrow and disappointment for their stunted future.

 

These were all vibrant youths aged thirteen or fourteen, filled with passion for martial arts. Over the past six months at Medicine King Group, they had only learned entry-level martial techniques and herbalism, far from achieving greatness. Their dreams of becoming martial heroes, pharmacists, or shop managers were shattered before they could even take root.

 

Now, they had been relegated to the lowest rung of the Medicine King Group—disciples still, but in name only. They barely held a status superior to an ordinary citizen from Gusu County City.

 

Despite their elimination, there was one advantage to being an Errand Hall disciple: starting today, they could earn wages for their work.

 

“I’ll take on tasks at Errand Hall and earn some copper coins. Then I can buy martial arts manuals and herbal texts from the library. Even without a master, I can continue self-studying. Ah Chou has gone to Heaven Falcon Group to train in martial skills; I cannot fall behind and embarrass myself. Once I’ve saved enough money, I’ll enroll in a proper martial arts course. Then, I’ll join Ah Chou in venturing into the martial world!”

 

Su Chen spurred himself on.

 

Within the Errand Hall, a long line had formed as many sought to sign up for tasks. Among them were older senior brothers who had grown accustomed to the bitter life in the Errand Hall. They explained the rules of the hall to the new juniors, their voices seasoned with familiarity and resignation.

 

The disciples of the Errand Hall had no set tasks; they simply came here daily to pick up menial chores.

 

The upper management and pharmacists from the various halls of the Medicine King Group didn’t want to waste their time on tedious tasks. So, they paid a small fee to have Errand Hall disciples carry out such errands for them.

 

Although the Errand Hall disciples were the lowest rung within the Medicine King Group, they weren’t entirely without hope. There was still a sliver of a chance for them to advance in status.

 

The most direct way to climb was by improving one’s martial arts cultivation. For instance, becoming a third-rate practitioner could earn one a promotion to a junior executive role, while a second-rate practitioner might secure an intermediate or senior executive position. Even a first-rate expert might have a shot at becoming a deputy hall chief or higher.

 

If one couldn’t advance in cultivation, they were left with only one option: slowly accumulate seniority within the hall. It could take decades of waiting before being promoted to a low- or mid-ranking executive position.

 

This gave the newest Errand Hall disciples a flicker of hope.

 

At this moment, an oily middle-aged executive named Executive Zhou was recording and assigning menial tasks to all the new junior errand disciples. His presence drew looks of disdain from the older figures in the hall, who gathered in small groups to whisper about him.

 

Su Chen inquired briefly and found out that Executive Zhou always looked down on other Errand Hall disciples with a condescending glance, treating them disdainfully. He was particularly harsh toward the lower-tier Errand Hall disciples, often finding faults with them and seizing every opportunity to deduct their wages. Essentially, he acted like a watchdog.

 

The senior brothers at the hall privately nicknamed him Zhou Mieyan, or Mr. Cold Eyes.

 

It wasn’t long before it was Su Chen’s turn to collect his errand-hall disciple token and receive his first assignment.

 

“Got a letter of introduction from your master?” Zhou Mieyan asked.

 

“Uh… letter of introduction?” Su Chen blinked in confusion, unsure what it was for.

 

“Without an introduction letter, then… Here’s your errand disciple token.” Zhou Mieyan sized Su Chen up with a cold glance, growing increasingly indifferent, and tossed him an errand disciple token.

 

Errand Hall had an unwritten rule that if a master pharmacist was satisfied with one of their disciples, even if they were discarded, they would write them an introduction letter, instructing the hall’s executives to take care of them. Without this introduction letter, it meant the master had completely abandoned this disciple.

 

Zhou Mieyan flipped through a thick ledger and looked over the tasks. “Delivery: Take a letter to Leader Wang at the pharmacy in Wucheng County; deliver it within three days. Reward: fifty copper coins.

 

“Night patrol: nightly rounds to guard the warehouse and prevent fires and thefts. Report every evening for your ten copper coins reward.

 

“Tasks: The Mess Hall needs five disciples to help with chores—washing and chopping vegetables. Daily wage: seven copper coins.

 

“Herb garden duty: take care of ten acres of herb garden; daily tasks include weeding, fertilizing, watering, and pest control for three months. Total pay: nine hundred copper coins. If herbs are damaged, wages will be deducted!”

 

The list of tasks on the roster was long, but they were categorized. Some tasks were simple and easy, yet offered high pay—these were snatched up by many disciples.

 

Other tasks were dirty and exhausting, with low pay, making it almost impossible to find any disciple willing to take them.

 

For instance, guarding the ten-acre herb garden on the estate required carrying manure in buckets, watering plants, weeding, and loosening soil—tasks that were both filthy and grueling. The total pay for three months was just nine hundred copper coins, averaging a mere ten copper coins a day.

 

Additionally, guarding the herb garden meant living near it day and night for three months, unable to leave, lest the herbs be lost or stolen. Few senior brothers from the Errand Hall were willing to take on such a task.

 

Only the newest, inexperienced disciples, who were ignorant of the demands, would accept such assignments.

 

Zhou Mieyan pointed to one of the tasks and narrowed his eyes at Su Chen, sneering, “There you go—your task is guarding the herb garden. Three months for nine hundred copper coins. How does that sound?”

 

Su Chen accepted the task with a nod, showing no hesitation. He didn’t mind taking on any task, no matter how menial or dirty, as long as it paid well. Guarding the herb garden for three months would guarantee him nine hundred coins, which was an unimaginable leap from his previous life as a fisherman in Zhou Village, where he could only earn a handful each month.

 

The Medicine King Estate dominated an entire mountain dedicated to medicinal herbs. The front part served as the residence for the senior members of the Medicine King Group and over a thousand disciples, bustling with activity. In contrast, the rear section was quiet and secluded, covered in dense forests.

 

The herb garden was hidden deep within these woods at the back of the Medicine King Estate, tucked away in a remote location that was hard to find. Only a winding path led to it, rarely traveled by anyone, giving it an air of tranquility. There were over ten such herb gardens scattered across the rear mountain, serving as one of the Medicine King Group’s sources for herbs, with the rest collected by pharmacists from the depths of wild mountains.

 

Zhou Mieyan led the new recruits around before personally taking Su Chen to a specific herb garden. It wasn’t out of favoritism or fear that he might get lost; rather, there was a procedure to follow.

 

Along the way, Zhou Mieyan carried an air of arrogant confidence. He warned Su Chen to be extra careful while guarding the herb garden, stressing that any damage to the herbs—even just one—would result in docking his pay. Su Chen listened attentively and nodded respectfully, promising to take great care of the herbs.

 

After walking for a considerable time through the back mountain, they finally reached their destination. The herb garden was bordered by a straw shack, beneath which sat a disciple around eighteen or nineteen years old. His expression was vacant, his eyes lacked focus, and his unkempt hair added to an overall aura of desolation.

 

Su Chen had heard from Zhou Mieyan earlier that this senior brother had been guarding the herb garden for three months and was supposed to be replaced soon.

 

Su Chen had just arrived at the straw shack when he detected a faint, sour, and rotten odor emanating from within, which caused his brow to furrow and his hand to flick.

 

Inside the straw shack, pots, pans, and several sacks of rice, millet, and salt were scattered about. In the farthest corner was a wooden bed covered with a ruined mat, making the room look plain and disorganized, clearly neglected for quite some time.

 

The young acolyte noticed Zhou Mieyan approaching and stared for a moment before finally coming to his senses.

 

Behind him followed a new junior apprentice, likely here to take over his duties.

 

The young disciple’s face brightened with surprise.

 

He had been stuck in this godforsaken, deserted garden for three whole months, living among the forest animals and birds, with no one to speak to. It had driven him insane, and he had longed to end this tedious task as soon as possible.

 

“Executive Zhou, you’re finally here!”

 

The young disciple hurriedly stood up and welcomed Zhou Mieyan inside.

 

“Uh-hum,” Zhou Mieyan haughtily nodded, standing tall with his hands behind his back as he walked into the herb field. He pulled out a herbal account book from his chest and began meticulously counting each herb.

 

This was an extremely important handover procedure; only after verifying the herbs could the task be considered complete. Zhou Mieyan inspected everything with a critical eye, complaining one moment that the plants were wilting due to inadequate watering or fertilization and the next that several ginseng roots had been damaged by a hoe, demanding compensation from the worker’s wages.

 

The young senior brother repeatedly justified himself, insisting he had tended to the herb field with utmost care. But Zhou Mieyan relentlessly focused on those minor issues, stubbornly docking fifty copper coins from the worker’s wages.

 

The young senior brother was furious but didn’t want to argue further with Zhou Mieyan. Sighing in defeat, he completed the handover and left in a hurry.

 

Su Chen watched the exchange and felt sorry for the young disciple.

 

After completing the handover, Zhou Mieyan instructed Su Chen to take good care of the herb garden and left, planning to return with others in three months. Su Chen was left alone to tend to the ten acres of herb garden. Fortunately, each month, someone from the kitchen would deliver a large bag of rice, flour, and oil, ensuring he wouldn’t go hungry.