Turning Losses into Profits

Soon, a joint public welfare notice bearing the seals of five pharmacies was hastily prepared overnight and posted in the most conspicuous spots at each location.

The notice declared that the five pharmacies had formed a welfare alliance to share a portion of their high-quality medicinal resources.

All joint-branded medicines were guaranteed for quality by all five establishments, ensuring fair pricing and honest dealings with every customer.

Once this notice was posted, it immediately caused quite a stir in the Outer City.

When commoners bought medicine, their greatest fear was purchasing counterfeit or inferior goods.

Now, with the joint guarantee of five pharmacies, their sense of security increased significantly.

Furthermore, the sharing of resources meant that one could purchase the specialty medicinal powders of any of the five shops at any single location, eliminating the need to run all over town.

Over the next few days, business at the five pharmacies, including Benevolent World Hall and Spring Return Hall, boomed at a visible rate.

The counters were packed with commoners seeking consultations and prescriptions, and the shop assistants were so busy they barely had a moment to catch their breath.

Inside Benevolent World Hall, Lin Wan was nimbly writing prescriptions and gathering herbs for customers while wiping beads of sweat from her forehead.

A bright smile, unseen for a long time, graced her face.

She chided Lin Qing, who was helping with the accounts nearby, "Qing, look at this, we're almost overwhelmed."

"Why don't you skip the martial arts hall tomorrow and stay here to lend a hand?"

"If we earn a bit more silver, we can be more comfortable sooner."

Lin Qing smiled, his fingers never stopping as they danced across the abacus, "Sister, I must still go to the martial arts hall."

"Only by becoming strong myself can I protect this family business."

Time flew, and in the blink of an eye, another month passed.

Benefiting from the word-of-mouth effect of the joint welfare notice and the authentic medicinal herbs within the shop, business at Benevolent World Hall had completely emerged from its previous slump and was now thriving.

After a month, Lin Qing carefully totted up the accounts, deducting the cost of goods, various expenses, and the discounted price of herbs supplied to the martial arts hall.

The shop had actually made a net profit of seventy-six taels of silver.

For Benevolent World Hall, which had been on the verge of bankruptcy not long ago, this was undoubtedly like timely rain after a long drought, marking a successful turnaround from loss to profit.

The worry on his sister Lin Wan's face had mostly dissipated; although she was still busy every day, there was now hope in her eyes.

She even began to consider whether she should buy a few feet of new fabric to make winter clothes for her brother.

One day, Lin Qing was sorting newly arrived herbs behind the counter.

His movements were skillful and precise; as his fingers brushed over various roots and leaves, he could judge their grade and quality by instinct, almost without needing to think.

Which herbs needed to be shade-dried or sun-baked, and which required a delicate balance when combined—such knowledge had become as natural as breathing.

Just as he finished categorizing the last of the herbs according to their functions, the Heavenly Dao Record shimmered, and the text changed quietly.

[Pharmacology (Pure Perfection)]

[Experience: 1/4000]

A more harmonious and profound realization surged into his heart.

At this moment, in his eyes, the herbs were no longer mere dead objects; their inherent medicinal properties and the relationships of mutual promotion and restraint between them seemed to form an invisible, clearly visible network.

He could even vaguely deduce that if he slightly altered the preparation methods for certain herbs, he might be able to stimulate even better medicinal efficacy.

"Pure Perfection. It seems my understanding of medicinal herbs has taken another step forward."

Lin Qing was delighted; this would be of immeasurable benefit to his compounding of medicines and even to any future development of his own medicinal powders.

The day arrived to deliver medicine to the martial arts hall.

Lin Qing packed the carefully prepared herbs and sent them to the martial arts hall's dining hall.

Master Hong Yuan personally inspected them.

He opened the medicinal package, casually picked up a piece of astragalus, used his fingertips to gently twist open the cross-section, and sniffed it lightly under his nose.

He then picked up a few grains of red peony root, observing their color and plumpness.

A look of satisfaction gradually appeared on his usually stern face.

The quality of the herbs concerned the progress of martial arts cultivation, so he had to be strict in his oversight.

Although he, Hong Yuan, was not a medicine seller, he had his own set of experience in distinguishing the quality of medicinal materials.

"The quality is very good, even better than the herbs from the Inner City."

"It seems your skills are no longer inferior to Ah Qing's."

Hong Yuan nodded, his gaze toward Lin Qing filled with appreciation.

Lin Qing quickly bowed, saying modestly, "Master is too kind. The herbs provided to the martial arts hall concern the cultivation progress of my senior brothers; how could this disciple dare to be the least bit negligent?"

"Naturally, I must select the best and prepare them with care."

Hong Yuan laughed heartily upon hearing this, clearly very pleased.

He took out a ten-tael silver ingot and handed it to Lin Qing:

"This is the deposit for next month's medicinal herbs and a portion of the payment. Take it. Next month's quota will follow this same standard!"

"Yes, Master!"

Lin Qing took the heavy silver ingot, feeling a sense of relief in his heart.

With the stable supply channel and protection of the Hong Family Martial Hall, the foundation of Benevolent World Hall could finally be considered truly secure.

Returning to Yongning Street in the evening.

Lin Qing saw men from the White Horse Gang seemingly moving several crates into Blacksmith He's shop.

Old Man He was waving his hands frantically at Chen Bao.

"Master Bao, I truly dare not take this job."

"What are you afraid of? The price for this batch of work is enough for your family to eat and drink for half a year."

"Besides, if you offend Third Master Shi, your whole family will have a hard time."

Chen Bao sneered, his tone carrying a hint of a threat.

Lin Qing stood at the corner of the street, hearing these faint sounds, but he did not reveal himself, instead turning toward another street.

After wandering for nearly half an hour, he vaguely heard news of a gang clash.

"That Master Chuang from the Black Mud Gang is truly formidable; he started by seizing the White Horse Gang's territory."

"Indeed, I heard they have already clashed once, and it was a draw."

"It's best to go out less these days."

Lin Qing sighed; no matter which gang wins, it is always the common people at the bottom who suffer.

Some things are better left unheard.

Judging by Chen Bao's words earlier, it seemed the White Horse Gang was asking Blacksmith He to forge some contraband.

Lin Qing guessed that this was likely a tactic for the White Horse Gang to deal with the Black Tiger Gang.

Returning home, Lin Qing let out a breath of relief.

Since he had completed the order for Hong Yuan for the previous month, he could now carefully ponder the formulation of the Blood Nourishing Powder.

This formula had a low cost, but its medicinal effects were mild and lasting, perfectly suited for his current stage of tempering his muscles and bones and condensing his blood and qi.

Perhaps it was even more suitable than the general prescription provided by the martial hall.

To avoid attracting attention, he made a special trip to the Yam Market in the west of the city.

He purchased a large quantity of the medicinal herbs needed for the Blood Nourishing Powder from several different stalls.

Now that his knowledge of pharmacology had reached the realm of perfection, his selection of herbs was incredibly precise.

Although he only bought ordinary herbs, their combination would surely yield extraordinary results.

After finishing his purchases, Lin Qing returned to Yongning Street with a basket full of herbs.

Passing by the notice board at the entrance of the county government office, he found a crowd gathered there, pointing at a newly posted wanted poster.

Lin Qing stopped to look. It was a bounty notice featuring a portrait of a man with an ordinary face but an evil, charming gaze, with his crimes listed beside it.

"Zhou Heng, nicknamed Thousand-Faced Human Trafficker, a martial artist of the Muscle Opening Realm, has committed dozens of heinous crimes of child trafficking in Qingping County and surrounding prefectures; his methods are cruel, and the impact is extremely severe."

"The government offers a reward of fifty taels of silver for the capture of this villain."

"Fifty taels!"

A collective gasp rose from the crowd.

For ordinary people, this was undoubtedly a massive fortune.

Lin Qing's gaze fell on the description below the bounty notice.

"This villain is skilled in disguise and his whereabouts are mysterious, but he has an irregular purple birthmark on the inside of his left arm."

"Thousand-Faced Human Trafficker, Zhou Heng, purple birthmark on the left arm..."

Lin Qing recited silently, committing this key information to memory.

While the fifty-tael reward was tempting, this man had committed so many crimes and remained at large, so he must be extremely difficult to deal with.

His own strength was currently low, so he would note this matter for now and keep it in mind.

Back at the medicine hall, Lin Qing began grinding the herbs and preparing the medicinal powder.

Based on the Blood Nourishing Powder, he added a few more herbs to neutralize medicinal toxins, according to his own experience and judgment.

A few days later, the Blood Nourishing Powder was successfully prepared.

Lin Qing swallowed a dose on the spot, immediately feeling a surge of heat flowing through his body.

The medicinal efficacy of a single dose could last for at least three days.

It would not take many days; once he finished tempering his blood and qi, he would be able to break through and become a Skin-Refining martial artist.

Under the moonlight, Lin Qing's figure moved through the courtyard.

Every move and stance had begun to take on a certain rhythm.

He glanced at his progress.

[Iron Wire Fist (Proficient)]

[Experience Points: 2689/5000]

"Soon."