"It’s so Chinese dicinal powder," Su Qing said with a smile.
"Well, I’ll be. I always say, traditional Chinese dicine is still the best. Look at that! It can even heal such a big scar." The older woman nodded and said, "Su, you’ve found the right dicine for your problem. Keep up the treatnt. Once that scar is gone, I’ll introduce you to a fine, spirited young man. I guarantee he’s a formal worker in the county town."
This older woman had a sharp eye. She could tell at a glance that without the scar, Su Qing was definitely a first-rate beauty.
Su Qing didn’t pay it much mind. She just smiled, feigning shyness, and said nothing.
Hearing the older woman and Su Qing, the others also started to laugh and tease, saying they would introduce Su Qing to potential partners once her scar healed.
Su Qing offered a few polite replies and was about to head upstairs to the Pan Family’s apartnt.
But just then, a rather sharp voice piped up, "Well now, what kind of magical powder is this? Bring it out and let us have a look. As it happens, my little grandson has a scar on his leg from before. Let us try it out and see how well it works."
Following the sound, Su Qing couldn’t help but raise an eyebrow. ’No wonder that voice sounded so familiar,’ she thought. ’It’s that old woman who tried to steal her stewed chicken last ti.’
Su Qing vaguely recalled that people in the building called her Old Mrs. Liu.
Seeing Su Qing look over, Old Mrs. Liu spoke again, "I say, little girl, it’s just a little bit of powder. You wouldn’t be stingy with it, would you?"
The people around them couldn’t help but frown upon hearing Old Mrs. Liu’s words.
Just a little bit of powder?
Anyone with a bit of common sense understood that treating an old scar like that required more than just so ordinary powder. It was almost certain to contain precious dicinal herbs. They didn’t know how precious, but they knew it definitely wasn’t cheap.
But in this day and age, regardless of whether soone’s things were cheap or not, they still belonged to them. Who just opens their mouth and asks for things like that?
However, they didn’t say anything. This Old Mrs. Liu had been living in the staff dormitory for a few months and was famous for being a freeloader. She’d "borrow" a spoonful of salt from one family and a bowl of vinegar from another, never to return them. Many people had grown to despise her, but the old woman was also prone to making scenes. Although they had reported her to the Hu Family several tis, it had little effect. So, everyone tried to avoid her, pretending not to see her even if she tried to join their conversations.
But Old Mrs. Liu was completely lacking in self-awareness. It was as if she couldn’t see that nobody liked her, and she loved to butt into everything.
"You’ve got a lot of nerve." After hearing Old Mrs. Liu’s words, Su Qing let out a cold laugh. "You want the dicinal powder I have? That’s not impossible."
’If this powder is really that effective,’ Old Mrs. Liu thought, instantly delighted, ’I’ll have to get a lot of it. I can keep it for my own family or sell it later. Either way, it’s pure profit.’
Imdiately, Old Mrs. Liu said with a grin, "Great! Then give a bottle or two to start. I’ll try it on my little grandson first. If it works well, I’ll co back to you for more."
Everyone who heard this gasped. The nerve of her...
Where did she get such a thick skin? A bottle or two? And she wants to get more later? Does this old woman even know what sha is?
Su Qing sneered and looked at Old Mrs. Liu. "I haven’t finished speaking," she said coolly.
"Fine, you talk." The thought of getting the powder from Su Qing made Old Mrs. Liu ecstatic.
Su Qing raised an eyebrow and said, "My dicinal powder isn’t cheap. I won’t make a profit off you—it’s six yuan a gram. How many grams would you like?"
Back then, Mr. Gong had given Su Qing a jar of the powder, about 250 grams. In return, Su Qing had given him five fifty-to-sixty-year-old stalks of Huang Jing. After calculating the value, it ca out to roughly six yuan per gram of powder.
In truth, based on the rarity of the ingredients, the powder was worth much more than six yuan a gram. After all, it contained a significant amount of hundred-year-old Chicken Blood Vine and Purple Danshen. However, Su Qing was a fair person and only calculated the price based on the value of the five stalks of Huang Jing.
"What!" Upon hearing Su Qing, Old Mrs. Liu practically jumped. "What did you say?"
"Six yuan a gram. You said you wanted the powder, so of course, I have to ask how many grams you want." Su Qing blinked, a look of pure innocence on her face.
"You damned girl, this is highway robbery! What kind of precious powder costs six yuan a gram? Be careful, or I’ll report you for speculation and profiteering!" Old Mrs. Liu shrieked, stamping her feet in anger.
Su Qing sneered. "What’s the matter? You need powder to treat your grandson’s scar, so I kindly offer to spare so for you, and you expect to give it away for free? I paid six yuan a gram when I bought this powder. What part of that is speculation and profiteering? Why don’t you tell ?"
Before Old Mrs. Liu could say anything, Su Qing snorted coldly and said, "And don’t be so shaless. I don’t even know you. The fact that I’m willing to spare any powder at all, for the sake of your grandson’s scar, is already a sign of my kindness. Go and ask anyone on the street—who would be willing to part with such an amazing dicinal powder?"
The onlookers nodded in agreent. ’That’s right,’ they thought. ’It’s such good powder. If you don’t use it all, you can save it at ho. It could be a lifesaver at a critical mont. Who would be willing to just give it away?’
Su Qing continued, "I paid money for this. Why should I give it to you for free? Who are you to ? It’s six yuan a gram! What’s a monthly salary these days? Go ahead and ask around. Who’s so free with their money that they’d give away several months’ salary just like that?"
The crowd nodded eagerly. It was true, even for a relative, you couldn’t just give away several months’ salary in one go.
But this exchange gave everyone a new impression of Su Qing. ’Goodness, this girl Su is quite rich,’ they thought. ’Buying dicinal powder at six yuan a gram without even batting an eye.’
But on second thought, it made sense. It could heal the scar on her face, after all. What young woman would want to live her life with such a huge blemish? Thinking of it that way, the crowd beca more understanding.
The crowd might have understood, but Old Mrs. Liu did not. She stamped her foot and yelled, "How could one gram of powder cost six yuan? Who are you trying to fool? I think you’re just deliberately overcharging! The barefoot doctor in our village said that herbs from the mountains aren’t worth anything. A small bottle of powder made from herbs costs three mao at most, and that’s being generous! But you have the nerve to ask for six yuan a gram? You must be crazy for money!"
Old Mrs. Liu felt she was in the right. She knew that the small bottle of powder from her village’s barefoot doctor contained at least twenty grams.
Su Qing’s face turned cold. "I think you’re the one who can’t get enough of taking advantage of others. You’re the one who ca asking for powder, wasn’t it? Did I offer it to you? Have you no sha? You want my things for free, and when I refuse, you turn around and accuse . At your age, aren’t you embarrassed!"
User Comments
0 comments from readers