Reborn as a Happy Wife in a Rural Family
Chapter 141: Gathering All the Herbs

Chapter 141: Chapter 141: Gathering All the Herbs

The five of them no longer had to rush; they would definitely be able to transport everything back before dark.

Gu Qingli took a break and drank some water. She said, "First Sister-in-law, they’re helping us transport everything. Could you and Second Sister-in-law prepare a meal at home? We should have those who helped us eat before they leave."

Ms. Yang replied, "Alright. It’s indeed not right to let them help without offering anything in return."

The four women took a short break before starting to prepare the meal.

Gu Qingli strapped a basket to her back and went up the mountain again, taking the opportunity to move all the medicinal herbs from the greenhouse into her Space.

Leaving the herbs in the Space overnight would allow them to be nourished by its spiritual energy.

Regardless of whether Doctor Shen processed them immediately or not, these herbs wouldn’t spoil easily.

After collecting all the herbs, she also made several trips, and soon all the medicinal materials dug up that day were transported back.

Seeing so many medicinal materials, Shen Quan couldn’t stop grinning.

"Madam Gu, Doctor Shen said that the payment for your medicinal herbs will be settled all at once. What do you think?"

"That’s fine. I trust Doctor Shen. Just come back at the same time tomorrow to collect more."

This implied they would help carry the herbs again.

Shen Quan didn’t mind; it was just lending a hand. For strong men like them, it was a small matter.

He chuckled and said, "Alright, alright. Then we’ll head back first. Doctor Shen is waiting."

Gu Qingli said, "You should all eat before you go. It’s about to get dark, you’ve all been a great help, and dinner is ready at home."

"Oh?" Shen Quan looked at the four cart drivers. These were hired men, and it was reasonable for them to have a meal after helping.

If they helped transport the medicinal herbs again tomorrow, no one could say they were sent away hungry after working hard.

He nodded.

So Gu Qingli quickly asked Xiao Han to bring hot water, while Ms. Yang and the others set out the food.

The five men washed their hands and, without any ceremony, sat down at the table.

When they saw the dishes on the table, they were astounded.

Such a lavish spread! Even during the New Year, their farming families couldn’t afford such fine food.

The rice wasn’t coarse brown rice but fine white rice.

There were three vegetable dishes, two meat dishes, and an egg soup.

This family certainly knows how to treat people. Shen Quan thought, glancing at Gu Qingli and the others at a separate table.

After the meal, the five men thanked their hosts profusely and then hurriedly departed with their carts.

"Safe travels, sirs!" Gu Qingli and her sisters-in-law saw them off from the courtyard.

The men all nodded back at them, mounted their ox-carts, and left.

In town, Doctor Shen sat in the Medical Clinic, anxiously awaiting their return.

After craning his neck to look out countless times, he finally saw several lanterns moving toward the clinic.

"This girl indeed hasn’t disappointed me." Doctor Shen sighed in relief and instructed the Medicine Apprentices in the clinic to prepare for processing the herbs.

It was a long journey, and without proper initial processing, the medicinal herbs would rot by the time they reached the border.

When the four ox-carts arrived, Doctor Shen had Shen Quan weigh the medicinal materials first. Those that were weighed were then moved to the backyard for immediate processing, even if it meant working overtime.

After weighing, the total came to a full 3,600 jin, comparable to their entire harvest from the past several days.

Moreover, the medicinal herbs this girl cultivated were no ordinary varieties; they couldn’t be bought for a mere eight wen per jin. No wonder she was reluctant to sell them to me when she first came.

After Doctor Shen quickly recorded the weight of each type of medicinal herb, he also joined in the processing work.

For the next few days, Doctor Shen continued to come to the Xiao Family’s home at this time to collect medicinal herbs, even taking away those gathered by the other villagers.

「Five days later」

Only about ten mu of immature medicinal herbs remained on the back mountain, so they stopped harvesting.

That night, Gu Qingli received a message by carrier pigeon from Xiao Yunjing.

She immediately replied, expressing her longing for him and updating him on the situation at home.

「The next day」

Although they had planned to take a day off, Gu Chang’an’s four daughters-in-law came over, asking to go up the mountain with them to gather medicinal herbs.

Ms. Niu, who lived next door to Chen Erlang, also came along.

She also shared some news about Gu Qingmei’s recent situation.

It turned out that after Gu Qingmei borrowed the money, she rushed Chen Erlang to the Medical Clinic in town without taking a moment’s rest.

Ms. Liu had wanted Gu Qingmei to hand over the silver, but Gu Chang’an, who had been present and observing the entire time, sternly reprimanded her.

He threatened that if they continued to torment his daughter-in-law, he would expel their entire family from Qinghe Village.

In the following days, perhaps Gu Chang’an’s words had taken effect, as there were no further disturbances.

The family wasn’t divided either.

After Chen Erlang recovered from his illness at the town’s Medical Clinic, he had changed significantly and began treating Gu Qingmei much better.

Gu Qingli merely smiled upon hearing this.

If Gu Qingmei can be treated well by Chen Erlang after this ordeal, it could be considered a blessing in disguise for her.

Ms. Yang and Ms. Wang didn’t go up the mountain; they went to town to purchase winter supplies instead.

Mrs. Li and Mrs. Zhang also needed new clothes, so they went along with them.

Gu Qingli went up the mountain with the others.

The group ascended the mountain, heading deeper into its forests. They only stopped when they spotted medicinal herbs.

"Xiaoli, how many medicinal herbs are left in your fields?" Ms. Qiao asked.

"About ten mu or so, Aunt Qiao. What about your family’s?"

"We’ve dug them all up. Your Second Granduncle said it’s not worth the effort to tend to such a small remaining amount."

"Huh?" Gu Qingli was surprised.

"What’s wrong, Xiaoli? Is there a problem?" Ms. Qiao asked nervously, noticing Gu Qingli’s surprised expression.

"It’s not a major problem," Gu Qingli shook her head. She recalled telling Gu Chang’an that harvesting medicinal herbs before they matured would greatly diminish their efficacy; they should only be collected once ripe.

"It’s a relief there’s no problem. I was so scared there for a moment, thinking something was wrong," Ms. Qiao said, patting her chest.

She had some basic knowledge that medicinal herbs shouldn’t be used carelessly, but she didn’t know much beyond that.

Gu Qingli smiled. I’ll talk to Gu Chang’an about it another day. This time, Doctor Shen needed them urgently, and the unripe ones were only a small portion, mostly common medicinal herbs. But it can’t be like this in the future. To laymen, these details might not seem important, but they don’t realize that every prescription has a specific dosage, and the amount of medicine cannot be altered casually. If the medicinal effect is insufficient, it could be life-threatening in severe cases. Especially on the battlefield, most wounded soldiers are already fighting for their lives against King Yama. If the dosage is inadequate, a life could be lost. The most common critical situations involve those with persistent high fevers, unstoppable bleeding, or severe inflammation... In short, no matter the circumstances, problems with medicinal materials are always a grave matter.

After digging in the mountains for another two or three days, there were truly no more medicinal herbs to be found. Everyone stopped going up the mountain and began preparing their winter supplies instead.

This year, the people in the village weren’t worried about how they would get through the winter.

Everyone joyfully went to town to purchase supplies, and the atmosphere was even more festive than during the New Year celebrations.

During this time, Gu Qingli spent her days going up the mountain to chop firewood in preparation for winter. Last year, with Xiao Yunjing and the other men around, the women hadn’t needed to go up the mountain themselves and didn’t have to worry about firewood.

This year was different; she had to do it herself.

She wouldn’t ask Ms. Yang or Ms. Wang for help with chopping firewood. While they were capable of digging medicinal herbs, it was better to ask Mrs. Li and Mrs. Zhang for such strenuous work.

She had initially thought about asking the people from the base for help but decided against it after some consideration. They all had their own tasks, and besides preparing medicine, she didn’t have much else to do.