Double the Healing Fee, Double the Joy

A large pile of goods was placed in front of him. Gret's family's square table was filled to the brim, with almost no empty space.

Two reams of writing paper—or perhaps official documents. Without anything to compare them to, Gret couldn't tell which was which, only that this paper was of much better quality than the hemp paper he had brought today.

Two reams of paper for magic scrolls. Soft, white, and smooth. Although their appearance didn't quite match the A4 paper from his previous life, compared to the book pages he had seen during the day, they were already quite good.

Ten feather pens, with finely sharpened tips and long, straight center lines on the shafts. A small sharpening knife was included, and Gret tested its steel; it seemed very sharp.

Two bottles of ink. Large five-ounce bottles, about three times the size of the Hero Ink from his previous life. They looked like they could last for half a year.

Gret tallied his gains. If the cheaper paper was official document paper, one ream cost one gold coin, that would be 20 gold coins. Two reams of magic paper, 20 reams per ream, 25 sheets per ream, four silver coins per sheet... tsk... 400 gold coins.

Finely crafted goose quill pens were 4 silver coins each, and large bottles of ink were 8 silver coins each. Together, that was another 5 gold coins and 6 silver coins. Calculating the total cost of this treatment, it came to 425 gold coins...

He wondered about the profit margin of that stationery store. Even at cost, the old man had just given away over two hundred gold coins.

...But then again, what was the going rate for a life, or a "Heal Fatal Wounds" Divine Art, in this world?

Gret scratched his head, then scratched it again. He wasn't entirely sure of the answer, but in the web novels he had read before, "Heal Fatal Wounds" seemed to be a level four, five, or six Divine Art? Anyway, it definitely started at over a thousand gold coins, unaffordable for commoners, or even ordinary middle-class people...

Thinking about it carefully, it was the same in his previous life. It was human nature; if money could save a life, most people would go all out. Faced with a life-threatening illness, it wasn't uncommon for a family to spend hundreds of thousands in the ICU—

Getting choked by gold coins could be lucky and you could swallow it; if you were unlucky, esophageal obstruction could lead to death on the spot. His immediate rescue, even if it didn't save the entire life, had saved at least half of it.

So, for a shop owner to give him some of his store's goods as a reward, it was... acceptable?

Gret spent a long time psychologically preparing himself, finally feeling at peace. He looked at the tall stacks of white paper on the table, a smile slowly blooming, and then suddenly, he clenched his fists and raised them high:

"Yay!"

He was rich!

No, he had paper and pens!

No more worries about copying books!

Let alone copying books, he wouldn't have to worry about copying scrolls in the future!

"Gret, Gret!"

Someone was knocking on the door outside. The sound was somewhat familiar. Gret got up and opened the door, finding two familiar faces standing outside: one was the superior of his direct superior, Knight Flynn of their squadron, and the other was Knight Xiluo, whose life he had saved yesterday afternoon on the military camp's training ground.

Gret invited them in. Knight Flynn glanced at the table and couldn't help but exclaim:

"Little Gret, you've struck it rich! So much paper and pens?"

Gret had to recount his recent encounter. Before he could finish, he saw Knight Flynn and Knight Xiluo exchange glances, their expressions somewhat strange. After a moment, Knight Flynn forced a smile and handed him a small money pouch:

"Here's your salary for this month, count it. -- The captain said your salary will be paid at the same rate as a squad leader for now, and he'll apply for a raise for you later when your rank increases. You don't need to be on duty; just come to the military camp when you have time."

Gret nodded vigorously.

Not needing to be on duty was something Knight Nolan had promised him yesterday. A salary increase was an unexpected bonus~~~

Gret glanced at the table, thinking he needed to finish writing the battlefield first aid manual quickly. If that thing became common in the military camp, it could save many lives—

He took the money pouch. Knight Flynn stepped back, and Knight Xiluo stepped forward. The latter's face was visibly awkward. He scratched his head, hesitated for a good few seconds, and then took out a silk money pouch:

"Well, thank you for yesterday. I should have given this to you yesterday, but it was too late, and you left early again today..."

"No need!" Gret instinctively jumped back. He turned his head to look behind him, then left and right.

Giving him some items, especially things he needed, was one thing. Directly giving him money was too shocking! Especially since he had finished the treatment yesterday and was now running over to stuff money into his hands today!

This felt like he was accepting a patient's red envelope...

Would the medical department give him trouble?!

Gret's heart pounded. It took him a while to realize that this was already another world; there were no hospitals, and no medical department. Thinking of this, he felt a pang of sadness. Seeing Gret's unhappy expression, Knight Flynn took the money pouch and stuffed it into his hand:

"Don't think it's too little. Xiluo's family has many burdens; they married off two daughters this year, and they couldn't skip their donation to the Temple. These 10 gold coins are all he could manage. The rest, he can only give you bit by bit later..."

10 gold coins?!

So much?!

It seemed like the savings his original father had left behind were about that much... Was his original father also a captain?

Gret's mouth slowly opened, then he quickly closed it. In his memory, his original father had vaguely come from elsewhere and had no roots in Hartland City. Houses, armor, weapons, everything cost money. Even this box of books was incredibly expensive, enough to drain a person's savings for years...

In short, ten gold coins was a lot!

It was a great deal!

He waved his hands repeatedly, pushing back forcefully: "Isn't it my duty to treat people's illnesses! Besides, yesterday the Temple summoned me for questioning, and didn't you go with me, Uncle Xiluo? -- Having you appear once is worth more than any amount of money!"

The two knights exchanged smiles. Knight Flynn finally stepped forward, stuffed the money pouch into Gret's hand, and clasped his fist tightly. While squeezing, he said:

"Take it if I tell you to. If you refuse to accept this money, we won't dare to ask you for treatment in the future."

"Is there a patient?"

Gret's spirits lifted. Knight Flynn pondered for a moment:

"You mentioned yesterday that Knight Roman's wrist shouldn't have been treated that way... With your method, can it be cured?"

Gret's face immediately fell. Knight Flynn shook his head vigorously: "Not him, not him. It's... do you remember Knight Balen? The best archer in the city. Three years ago, his wrist was slashed..."

Knight Flynn gestured to his wrist pulse: "At that time, the battle was fierce, so he could only bandage his wrist and fight with his sword. The next day, when he tried to treat it, he couldn't muster the strength to draw his bow. Is it... like that, can it be cured?"

It sounds like a tendon injury... but not necessarily, perhaps it's nerve or blood vessel damage. Gret mused:

"I need to examine him. If it's what I suspect, I might need a bunch of equipment."

"No problem! I'll have him come see you tomorrow!"

Thanks to BingZhongXueRui, XingXinXiaoTianShiQiaoYiFan, and Cutonshary for the 100 Qidian coins.

My readership dropped a lot last week. I guess my writing isn't good enough... I'm urgently revising my drafts with tears today...

Even so, please give me your collections, recommendations, and reviews... I need all kinds of support