First Position

Chapter 17: Unexpected

"Brother," Yan Liuyuan asked Ren Xiaosu, "Did you really give someone free treatment this afternoon? Is this really you?"

"Don’t ask," Ren Xiaosu replied with a heart full of regret, "If you ask, I’ll kill myself."

To be honest, he had been so eager to promote his black medicine. It was his most reliable means of earning gratitude from others, and the core of his financial plan for the near future. So Ren Xiaosu could only comfort himself by thinking that all beginnings are difficult, and those who achieve great things must not concern themselves with trivialities—one must be magnanimous! Ren Xiaosu wasn’t merely stingy; he knew exactly when to do what. It was just that he felt a pang of reluctance...

Sister Xiaoyu laughed as she comforted him: "Don’t worry, you’ll definitely succeed."

With that, Sister Xiaoyu returned to her little hut to sleep. In the past, she couldn’t rest at all at night, but now that she was living here, she could sleep peacefully every night.

The next morning, the bell from the refuge barricade suddenly rang, as though reminding everyone it was time to go to the factory to work.

Ren Xiaosu went and fetched the water for the day. He thought to himself that after applying the black medicine, the wound would form a scab in 12 hours, so he wasn’t in a hurry to check the reactions of the townspeople. Once everyone saw that the medicine actually worked, they would naturally come knocking.

However, what Ren Xiaosu didn’t expect was that when he returned with the water bucket, Wang Fugui was already waiting at the door to his hut, smiling.

"Old Wang, what are you doing here so early? I haven’t gone out to catch sparrows recently," Ren Xiaosu said as he placed the bucket down slowly. He peeked inside to see Yan Liuyuan, the clever fellow, holding a bone knife and watching Wang Fugui warily. When he saw Ren Xiaosu return, he put the knife down.

Wang Fugui’s eyes sparkled when he saw Ren Xiaosu: "Ah, Xiaosu! You’re back! I came to find you first thing this morning!"

"Why?" Ren Xiaosu sensed something was off. What could possibly make Old Wang this happy? He scrutinized Wang Fugui carefully. "You didn’t get drunk on fake alcohol, did you?"

Wang Fugui’s face immediately dropped: "Drink? Who would drink when alcohol is banned? Haven’t you heard? People can’t even get enough food, who’s brave enough to drink?"

"I smelled it on you last time..." Ren Xiaosu began, but Wang Fugui’s face changed instantly, and he quickly interrupted him.

"Don’t say that nonsense!"

"Alright, alright, I won’t say anything. What do you want from me?" Ren Xiaosu asked.

"Didn’t you treat that Iron Head from the east side of the town yesterday?" Wang Fugui raised his eyebrows mischievously.

"Oh, his name’s Iron Head? He doesn’t even have a head of iron, why would they call him that?" Ren Xiaosu wondered aloud.

"Stop interrupting me," Wang Fugui said. "Just answer: Did you or did you not treat him?"

"Yes!" Ren Xiaosu’s heart stirred with joy. Wang Fugui, a man who never came to see him without a reason, had come today likely because of the effectiveness of his black medicine. This must mean he had seen the profit in it. If it weren’t for that, how could he be so diligent? This proved that the market for his black medicine was about to open!

Wang Fugui’s face lit up when he heard Ren Xiaosu admit it: "So, do you have more of that medicine? You can just leave it here with me, and I’ll help you sell it!"

"You’ll help me sell it? No way," Ren Xiaosu shook his head. "There can’t be middlemen skimming the profits. Besides, the town is so small, don’t you think I could sell it myself? I’m not trying to flood the market with hundreds of refuge barricades. Even if I had such a big business, you couldn’t handle it."

Wang Fugui paused, taken aback. The town was indeed small; why would Ren Xiaosu let him sell it? But then Wang Fugui said, "Well, you could sell me some, right?"

"Huh?" Ren Xiaosu sized up Wang Fugui. "You’re not injured. What would you need this for?"

Wang Fugui chuckled mysteriously: "You don’t know, do you? After Iron Head went home yesterday, he kept feeling something was off. He wanted to know what exactly you put on his wound. So he first smelled it, but couldn’t figure it out. Then he licked it to taste it and see what kind of herb it was. Guess what happened next?"

Ren Xiaosu was completely baffled. Licked it to taste it? Was that really something a normal person would do?

The effects of the black medicine spoke for themselves. That night, Iron Head could already tell the medicine had worked when he checked his wound. It was truly effective, and his curiosity drove him to figure out the ingredients.

Wang Fugui continued, "Turns out, he kept his wife up all night until this morning! This medicine is incredible!"

Ren Xiaosu was stunned! Yan Liuyuan in the hut was also shocked! Ren Xiaosu had wondered whether the black medicine could be used internally, but hadn’t dared to try it himself. Now, he realized it actually had this kind of effect when taken internally?! What in the world was this medicine? It even kept someone up until morning?

Ren Xiaosu was both amused and speechless: "So, why do you want to buy this medicine?"

He asked because he knew that Wang Fugui’s wife had passed away a few years ago. So this medicine should have no use for him.

Wang Fugui’s face fell: "Who says I can’t have a second spring? It’s just that my body isn’t what it used to be…"

"Oh? Found someone new, have you?" Ren Xiaosu laughed heartily.

"Not yet," Old Wang said, "But I figured, who would want to marry a man who’s useless? So I thought I’d keep some of your medicine just in case."

Ren Xiaosu chuckled: "So, Old Wang, still going strong! What kind of wife are you looking for?"

Wang Fugui humbly replied: "Someone who’d be willing to marry me."

Ren Xiaosu pondered: "...Your standards are pretty high."

Wang Fugui raised an eyebrow: "Huh?"

Ren Xiaosu teased: "I mean, you’re one of the richest people in the town. Why wouldn’t anyone want to marry you?"

Sighing, Ren Xiaosu continued: "The richest person in our town, and yet he runs a general store. That’s a bit embarrassing, isn’t it?"

Wang Fugui got frustrated: "Enough talking. Are you selling it or not?"

"Fine!" Ren Xiaosu thought for a moment and then said, "Special price for a friend, 600!"

"What? You want me to rob you?" Wang Fugui exclaimed, flustered.

Ren Xiaosu thought about it for a second. He only had enough left for one more treatment, but considering what Wang Fugui said about tasting it, that was enough for a few more uses. However, it wasn’t a necessity, so he didn’t want to price it too ridiculously.

"Are you buying or not?" Ren Xiaosu asked with a sideways glance.

"I’ll buy!" Wang Fugui immediately handed over 600 yuan without bargaining.

Ren Xiaosu never expected his black medicine to sell like this. He had originally wanted to be a doctor, helping people, but now it seemed he was inadvertently becoming a supplier for adult products...

Suddenly, Wang Fugui turned back and said to Ren Xiaosu: "Thanks, by the way."

"Thank you from Wang Fugui, +1!"

Ren Xiaosu: "..."