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"Isn't this a Chinese medicine shop? I'd like to ask about something related to Chinese medicine," Ge Dongxu replied.
"Asking about Chinese medicine, eh? Well, you've certainly come to the right person, as I have some knowledge on the subject." Since there were no customers in the shop and Ge Dongxu was very polite, the middle-aged man smiled as Ge Dongxu posed his question about herbs.
"Thank you, Uncle. I'd like to know, how much would millennia-old wild Polygonum multiflorum cost nowadays?" Ge Dongxu responded with a bow and then asked.
"Millennia-old wild Polygonum multiflorum? Ha-ha, come on, young man, have you been mesmerized by martial arts novels? Thinking that consuming millennia-old wild Polygonum multiflorum will help you open the governor and conception vessels and become a master in the martial world or something?" Upon hearing this, the middle-aged man was momentarily stunned, then burst into laughter.
"No, I'm just curious," Ge Dongxu said, somewhat embarrassed by the reaction.
"Ha-ha, don't be shy, young man. I also had a phase when I was obsessed with martial arts novels, dreaming about falling into an abyss and then consuming a millennia-old Lingzhi or ginseng, suddenly gaining the cultivation power of sixty years. But all those things, they're just in novels, and taking them seriously is not right. Polygonum multiflorum is just an herb and, although it does have a nourishing effect, it's definitely not as miraculous as it's described in martial arts novels. The 'Compendium of Materia Medica' records that this herb is warming, tastes bitter, nourishes the kidneys, and warms the liver..." Seeing Ge Dongxu's embarrassed expression, the middle-aged man was convinced that he was confused by martial arts novels and started giving a lecture.
"Uncle, I really am just curious about how much millennia-old wild Polygonum multiflorum would sell for?" Ge Dongxu interrupted, a bit helplessly.
Becoming slightly unhappy as Ge Dongxu interrupted his lecture, the middle-aged man said, "You young fellow, it seems you're beyond help. Even if millennia-old wild Polygonum multiflorum had those miraculous effects, it would still cost at least a million. Can you afford that?"
Ge Dongxu was stunned upon hearing this. He knew millennia-old wild Polygonum multiflorum would be valuable, but he hadn't expected it to be that expensive.
Considering that in Changxi County, the latest apartment housing costs about one thousand yuan per square meter, and a whole five-story building like the one Cheng Yazhou owns would cost at most about three hundred thousand yuan.
One million yuan was undoubtedly an astronomical figure for Ge Dongxu at the moment.
However, Ge Dongxu was no ordinary person, and he quickly recovered. Ignoring the middle-aged man's earlier comment about him being beyond help, he eagerly asked, "Really, one million?"
"I really do find you amusing, yes, over one million. Two years ago, Yongqing Hall in Linzhou City of the provincial capital acquired an eight-hundred-year-old wild Polygonum multiflorum, and a wealthy individual paid a million yuan for it," the middle-aged man said, shaking his head as he looked at Ge Dongxu, his eyes filled with a hint of longing.
"Yongchun Hall in the provincial capital," Ge Dongxu muttered to himself, then happily bowed to the middle-aged man again and said, "Thank you, Uncle, for your information. Goodbye."
After finishing speaking, Ge Dongxu turned around and walked away with joyful and excited steps, for he had already seen a million yuan beckoning to him.
"This kid has deviated!" The middle-aged man watched as Ge Dongxu left with a face full of happiness and excitement, and couldn't help shaking his head.
He could never have dreamed that this plainly dressed young man would possess a wild Polygonum multiflorum that was a thousand years old!
After leaving the herbal medicine store, it took Ge Dongxu a long while to calm down.
After all, it was a huge amount of one million yuan, and even though he had cultivation power, it was very hard to control his emotions at once; he needed to adjust gradually.
Once he had calmed his emotions, Ge Dongxu then returned to Cheng Lehao's home.
Passing by Cheng Yazhou's room, it was closed, and he didn't know whether Yazhou was oversleeping or engaging in novels, playing games.
However, Ge Dongxu was not in the mood to care about that at the time, he returned to his room and sat at his desk, thinking about the wild Polygonum multiflorum that was a thousand years old.
"That uncle mentioned Yongqing Hall, even specifying the time, the age, and the price very precisely, which shows that the information is reliable. The price of the wild Polygonum multiflorum that is a thousand years old should be worth at least over one million. I have to enroll at school tomorrow. It's definitely not suitable to go back to Baiyun Mountain now, and such a large sum of money definitely can't be carried with me; I must get a bank card, and to get a bank card, I certainly need an identity card. I've heard that now in the town, you can get an ID card as soon as you turn sixteen, not like before when you had to be eighteen. I will turn sixteen in another month, just in time to investigate some things thoroughly, and then go to the bank to get the card after getting my identity card. The thing is, I'm only just about to turn sixteen, which still isn't the legal age of adulthood. I wonder if the bank will agree to issue the card; if not, that would be somewhat troublesome."
Sitting at the desk, Ge Dongxu's mind was racing.
About the matter of the wild Polygonum multiflorum that was a thousand years old, Ge Dongxu did not want to alarm his parents just yet. The first reason was that the matter wasn't even certain yet; bringing it up might disappoint them. The second reason was that the amount was indeed too enormous; if he did tell his parents, it would definitely disrupt their peaceful life and might even frighten them, leaving them anxious and restless with so much money. The third reason was that, in the eyes of his parents, Ge Dongxu was still a minor; once his parents learned he had such a large sum of money, they would definitely want to control it and not let him manage it freely, which would restrict him in investing in cultivation.
"Whether the bank agrees to issue me a card or not, the first thing is to get the identity card, and I have one month for that. During this month, I should mainly focus on my studies and cultivation. Other matters should be dealt with slowly; I can't rush them, I need to maintain a regular mindset." After pondering the matter for a while, Ge Dongxu quickly gathered his thoughts and silently warned himself to keep a regular mindset.
For a sixteen-year-old to have such a mindset without supervision is related not only to Ren Yao's long-term guidance but also significantly to Ge Dongxu's own temperament. From this aspect, he is a person very suited for cultivation.
A cultivator not only needs a steadfast and persistent heart but also a tranquil and unattached heart.
These might seem contradictory; if one is steadfast and persistent, how can they be tranquil and unattached? But actually, it is not so. This is like the yin and yang sides of things—both opposing and complementing each other, the key is in balance. The heart of cultivation is similarly such.
Ge Dongxu had a steadfast and persistent heart for cultivation, never giving up since childhood, even without Ren Yao's guidance and monitoring, he still persisted day after day without failure. But on other matters, even faced with a huge amount of a million yuan, aside from initial shock and anxiety, he quickly managed to let it go and treated it with a regular mindset, which is being tranquil and unattached.