My Three Rules of What Not to Do

It was late autumn, and the world lay bleak beneath a desolate sky.

A chill drifted in from the north, quietly seeping through the streets and lanes. The old parasol trees along the roadside shed their scattered leaves, dyeing the long street a dull yellow.

Qingping County, Yongning Street, Benevolent World Hall.

Lin Qing sat alone behind the counter, holding a yellowed copy of the Commentary on the Materia Medica. Yet his gaze kept drifting past the chilly hall to the commotion across the street.

The newly opened Security Hall was alive with gongs and drums. A lion dance leaped and spun, and the whole place was a blaze of red.

Several stewards in silk robes beamed as they handed out free plague-repelling sachets to passersby. The crowd pressed in around them, and the scene was bustling indeed.

By comparison, Benevolent World Hall was so deserted you could hear a pin drop.

He drew back his gaze and looked at the account book lying open on the counter. There was barely any ink on its pages.

The most recent entry was from three days ago: one qian of hemostatic powder, bought on credit by Mother Wang at the end of the street.

"Alas, how did things come to this..."

Life was hard. Lin Qing sighed.

Just a few days ago, he had been nothing more than an overworked corporate drone scrambling to meet his targets. In the blink of an eye, he had become the young master of this medicine shop on the brink of bankruptcy.

There were martial artists here who could soar over rooftops and, with a single move, turn rivers upside down and seas inside out. They could kill a man as easily as squeezing a chick.

But turning rivers and seas upside down had nothing to do with him. Being the chick crushed in someone's hand, on the other hand, fit his current situation all too well.

Every trade in the county was controlled by gangs and martial halls.

For an ordinary person with no backing, making a name for himself here was harder than climbing to the heavens.

His predecessor's mother had died young, and his father and elder sister had raised him with great hardship. Though the family had never been wealthy, they had lived in peace.

But a few days ago, the fighting on the Northern Border grew dire, and the imperial court began forcibly conscripting able-bodied men. When the summons came, his father had taken his place, since he was ill. Ruthless clerks had dragged his father away and packed him into a troop bound for the frontier.

Now, in this great big house, only he and his elder sister, Lin Wan, remained to depend on each other.

Even now, it all still felt like a lifetime ago.

"Ah Qing, what are you spacing out for?"

"The wind's strong. Be careful not to catch a chill."

A gentle, slightly husky voice came from behind him.

Lin Qing turned and saw his elder sister, Lin Wan, walking over.

She wore a coarse cloth dress that had been washed until it faded white, and weariness lingered between her brows.

Though her skin was a little rough, her figure had lovely curves.

"I'm fine, Sis. Just looking at the sky."

Lin Qing suppressed the turmoil in his heart and forced a smile.

Lin Wan's gaze swept over the empty shop, and her eyes grew more troubled. "Now that they've opened across the street, I'm afraid business will be even worse for us."

Lin Qing knew it was far worse than that.

Benevolent World Hall was on the brink of life and death.

The family's savings had long since been exhausted, spent on preparing his father's supplies and buying the essentials he needed to stay alive.

This ancestral medicine shop was the last thing the siblings had to rely on.

Now, Security Hall had nearly drained the whole street of business with its low prices and dizzying variety of pills, powders, ointments, and elixirs.

Lin Qing set down the book in his hands and closed his eyes to focus.

A simple, ancient scroll, visible only to him, slowly unfolded in the depths of his mind:

[Pharmacology (Beginner)]

[Experience: 387/500]

This was the Heavenly Dao Record that had come with him when he crossed into this world.

It could not directly grant him miraculous healing hands, but it could turn all his efforts into tangible progress called experience.

As long as he persevered, he could keep improving without ever hitting a bottleneck.

As he was deep in thought, the shop door swung open.

A clerk in dark robes strode in, his expression cold and hard.

"Little brother of the Lin family."

Clerk Liu slapped a paper bearing a red seal onto the counter and said icily, "Next month's market levy is going up by thirty percent."

Before Lin Qing could respond, Clerk Liu continued, "Also, the street is being renovated. That old sign of yours is an eyesore. You have seven days to replace it, and you must use a craftsman designated by the authorities. The cost is yours to cover."

Lin Qing picked up the notice. When he saw that the listed cost was three taels, his heart sank.

"Official Liu, could you give me a few more days to pay the three taels?"

"Or perhaps we could use another craftsman's sign..."

Lin Qing tried to bargain.

"Give you more time?"

"These are the county office's rules. What makes you think you can haggle?"

Clerk Liu glared, his tone menacing.

"If you haven't replaced it by the seventh day, you'll be charged with defying government orders. We'll shut down your shop and fine you!" With that, he gave a cold snort and swept out.

Shut down the shop?

If that really happened, there would be no way for the siblings to survive.

This was clearly Security Hall colluding with the clerks.

They wanted to drive Benevolent World Hall into the ground!

"Ah Qing..."

Lin Wan came over, her face pale.

"Don't worry, Sis. I'll find a way."

Lin Qing forced himself to stay calm and gently reassured her.

At the same time, his mind raced.

Three taels of silver, seven days. Where could he get it?

Lin Wan looked at his furrowed brow, then suddenly bit her lip as if she had made up her mind.

She turned and hurried back into the inner room. Before long, she returned with a heavy little cloth bundle and pressed it into Lin Qing's hands.

It felt a little heavy. Lin Qing opened it and saw several hundred copper coins and a jade bracelet inside.

"Sis, this..."

"I saved this from the needlework I've done over the years. There's also a little dowry Father set aside for me before he left."

"If you need it, take it. Benevolent World Hall can't close."

Lin Qing held the bundle, still warm from her hands. Seeing his sister's forced composure, he felt a rush of warmth well up in his heart.

But he still shook his head. "Sis, let's talk about it if things really come to that."

As he spoke, Lin Qing tried to push the bundle back.

Lin Wan refused to take it and said, "Ah Qing, I remember Father had some history with Master Hong of the Iron Thread Fist Martial Hall. The hall uses a lot of Blood Strengthening Powder and bruise ointment, and they used to buy most of it from us."

"If you can make up a decent batch of medicinal powders, you could give it a try and see if you can get back in touch with them."

"If it works, our shop will be saved."

At her words, Lin Qing's heart stirred.

He had prepared Blood Strengthening Powder a few times before.

But the shop was short of many of the herbs needed for it, so he would have to find a way to gather those, too.

"I understand, Sis." Lin Qing nodded firmly.

After handing over her private savings, Lin Wan went to the knitting shop to take on some work.

Before leaving, she reminded Lin Qing several times to be courteous with any customers.

Not long after his sister left, someone came into the shop again.

A mountain dweller with dark skin and a coarse short jacket tucked a cloth bundle under his arm and peered furtively inside.

"Young master, do you buy medicinal herbs?"

The mountain dweller lowered his voice and opened one corner of the bundle, revealing several roots that looked like ginseng, still clotted with fresh soil.

"Freshly dug wild ginseng. I need money in a hurry, so I'll let it go cheap..."

Desperate for funds, Lin Qing's heart stirred.

If it really was wild ginseng, he could sell it and ease the crisis at once.

He took the bundle and examined it carefully. The roots had a shape that could easily fool the eye, and the soil was fresh and damp.

As he studied it, the experience on the Heavenly Dao Record ticked upward.

[Identified medicinal herb, Experience +12!]

[Pharmacology (Beginner)]

[Experience: 399/500]

Lin Qing instinctively furrowed his brow. If it really were wild ginseng he had seen before, there was no way it would grant so much experience.

After all, identifying the same kind of herb repeatedly added virtually no experience.

What was more, though the reed head and markings looked just like the real thing, it had a musty, earthy smell unlike ginseng. Something about it felt wrong.

"How much?" Lin Qing asked tentatively.

"Two taels of silver."

The mountain dweller named a shockingly low price.

Lin Qing's heart began to race.

Was it a trap, or had luck really fallen into his lap?

He took a deep breath. In the end, reason won out, and he decided to proceed with caution.

After all, he had always lived by three rules about what not to do.

First, never do anything where the risks outweigh the rewards. Without a ninety-percent chance of success, never make a move.

Second, if you can run, never stand and fight. As long as the green hills remain, you'll never run out of firewood.

Third, never do anything that exposes your true strength. The more trump cards you have, the longer you live.

Besides, Benevolent World Hall carried the blood, sweat, and tears of his father and ancestors. In this stormy time, he absolutely could not let it be ruined in his hands.

"This ginseng... doesn't seem to be old enough. Its medicinal properties are lacking. Try somewhere else."

Lin Qing pushed the bundle back, keeping his voice as calm as he could.

The mountain dweller froze. He apparently hadn't expected to be turned down. He gave Lin Qing a resentful look, tucked away the bundle, and hurried off.

Watching the mountain dweller's back disappear, Lin Qing breathed a sigh of relief, only to feel a wave of weakness wash over him.

He had rejected a possible trap, but he had also let go of a chance that might have solved his predicament.

"I remember now." Lin Qing patted his forehead as fragments of memory surfaced.

"Father once said that when the shop was on the brink of life and death, I should study the Commentary on the Materia Medica carefully. Could there be some secret hidden inside?"

Recalling his father's instructions, Lin Qing's thoughts raced.

He immediately picked up the thick Commentary on the Materia Medica and carefully leafed through it page by page.

After hundreds of pages, he finally found a yellowed piece of hide tucked inside.

He unfolded it. His expression changed in an instant.

There, on the page...

was written...

An herb-gathering route map left by the Lin family's ancestors!