However, even if he sold all year long, he did not make that much money. Of course, the apothecary did not only sell Siberian ginseng, but even if Cheongyeon sold all of his inventory at a low price, he could barely make it.
“Because it’s you, Cheongyeon, I reduced it to 1,000 hwan. I would have charged 1,500 hwan from the exchanger in District C.”
“I’ll make plenty of good decoctions and healthy teas for you, so can you please cut it off a little bit?”
The problem was that once the inventory was taken care of, there would be no more items to sell after moving.
“I know that Cheongyeon is good at making decoctions. But money is more important than health, right? Hm? I need to move to a higher land too.”
This was the reason why the owner of the real estate agency was saving money.
In any case, as long as Cheongyeon was alive, Cheonghwa Town would never be submerged. Even so, he couldn’t reveal the truth and boast about it. In order for him to live, he needed Cheonghwa Town to be safe… If he were submerged in water, wouldn’t he also die?
Cheongyeon consoled himself for his miserable situation and attempted to bargain with the owner of real estate agency again.
“I really only have 700 hwan, can we do something? If it doesn’t work out, I have no choice but to not move.”
The owner of the real estate agency, who was lost in thought, sighed loudly.
“Cheongyeon-ah, I’ll cut it a bit since this uncle has seen you grown up since you were a baby, alright?”
“Thank you.”
“Don’t tell the exchanger in District C that I did it for 700 hwan. I’d be the only one getting criticized for no reason.”
In District E, Mr. Oh had a monopoly on the real estate agency, so it was unclear whether the price was reasonable or not.
“Of course. Please take care of me.”
Although he said so, Cheongyeon planned to meet the exchanger later and discuss the brokerage fee. Mr. Oh was also famous as a vicious middleman who took advantage of the weak. There was a strong possibility that he was being ripped off by someone who had no backing. But even so, he wouldn’t be able to ask for his money back.
It was because of Mr. Oh’s son, who was fooling around behind him. So far, none of the people who were caught by Mr. Oh were safe. Mr. Oh’s son, who had tattoos all over his body, had been glaring at Cheongyeon since a while ago.
“Oh right! Cheongyeon, the herbal decoction from last time was good.”
Cheongyeon, who was about to go out, clenched his fists so that they could not be seen. It seemed like he intended to take advantage of the discounted brokerage fee.
“It’s a decoction that boosts immunity. Since you catch colds often, I’ll make a good one for you.”
“Hey! What about me?!”
We’re sorry for MTLers or people who like using reading mode, but our translations keep getting stolen by aggregators so we’re going to bring back the copy protection. If you need to MTL please retype the gibberish parts.
The son yelled. Cheongyeon barely managed to keep his expression that was about to become crumpled.
“P klii jirb wjxf j vfmbmalbc atja lr ubbv obg sbeg ybvs obg sbe.”
“Aera bcf?! Cgf sbe xlvvlcu? Pa rtbeiv yf ja ifjra afc!”
Ktf rbc’r nblmf kjr jr ibev jr tlr gbeut jqqfjgjcmf. Pa rffwfv ilxf tf tfjgv atf boofg jr bcf.
“Tbe jgf vblcu nfgs kfii klatbea ws wfvlmlcf. Valii, P’ii wjxf sbe 10 qjmxfar.”
The son, who had gotten up in a bad mood, sat back down, grumbling that Cheongyeon should have said that from the beginning.
He actually had a total of 20 packets, enough for 20 doses. Because he misunderstood, he was able to reduce the amount more than he thought. Cheongyeon felt like he had succeeded in getting revenge, albeit timidly. He was planning on gathering cheap medicinal ingredients and making an even more decoctions.
After checking the house with the exchange partner tomorrow, they decided to sign a contract and he left real estate agency. Cheongyeon got on his bike and headed straight to the apothecary. The road was difficult because of the hills, but on the way back, there were more downhill roads, so it was a little easier.
Cheongyeon decided to start packing for the move. The contract hadn’t been finalized yet, but he was planning on moving anyway, even if it didn’t work out.
He packed the most important gas burner, utensils, various medicinal herbs, and dried flower petals. The most expensive item among them was dried lotus tea. The lotus flower was known as a noble plant that grows in the mud, and the lotus flower grown in Cheonghwa Town was especially effective for medicinal purposes.
It was a nourishing tonic.
Lotus flowers, the most expensive product in his apothecary, had limited places where they could bloom. Moreover, drying lotus flowers indiscriminately did not produce great results. It was only possible because it was Cheongyeon. Medicinal herbs and flower teas that passed through Cheongyeon’s hands exhibited dozens or hundreds of times their original effectiveness.
Cheongyeon had never thought of making tea that was good for stamina. That was, until someone came directly and asked for it. Fortunately, the client was satisfied with the effectiveness of the virility tea and did not make a fuss about it since. He may have been planning to hide the efficacy of the medicine, claiming that his potency was naturally great.
The client of virility tea was none other than Jang Hocheong, an advisor to Peira.
“They said it was dark under the lamp, and that Jang family dude and bastard have been messing around with the captain of the smuggling ship?”
“Hmm? Jang family dude? You mean Peira’s advisor?”
He would now have been shark food, or, like the captain of a smuggling ship, parts of his body would have been cut off and dumped in a garbage bag.
‘I’ll take what’s left to District C and sell.’
Cheongyeon carefully wrapped the dried lotus flower in a soft cloth. He thought he wouldn’t have much luggage to take care of because he lived alone, but the luggage he had accumulated over the course of his life was considerable. At this point, he decided to boldly throw away what he had to throw away, and fortunately, he was able to significantly reduce the amount of moving luggage.
Even if it was a bit hard on his body, he was planning to finish everything today. His mind was filled with thoughts of having to leave District E, which was infested with Peira.
Just when a sack of mulberry branches was being dragged to one side, the bell hanging on the door rang.
Moving was moving, and business was business. Cheongyeon raised his hunched waist and greeted his guest.
“Welcome.”
Cheongyeon’s heart sank the moment he saw the other person. With the tall man with his back to the door, the small store felt even smaller.
“Fleeing in the middle of the night?”
Muwon tilted his head. Today again, he was wearing a suit with a colorful pattern.
‘…What is that?’
The moment the wind came through the open door and swept inside, Cheongyeon felt an unexpected scent. A scent that combined coolness and sweetness.
Boksu flower…! Moreover, surprisingly, it was a scent that only came from fresh, live flowers.
Cheongyeon was startled and tried to calm down his racing heart. He couldn’t tell whether it was because of Muwon’s unexpected appearance or because he smelled the scent of a Boksu flower.
“Fleeing in the… no.”
Suddenly, Muwon narrowed the distance by one step. It was only one step, but Cheongyeon felt intimidated as if he was right in front of his nose. The cool, sweet scent became a little stronger.
‘Did he pick the flower? Where on earth…?’
Boksu flowers usually did not have any scent. However, the moment the flower was picked, it released a tremendous scent, leaving a mark on the offender. The scent that clung to it lasted for a long time, over ten days.
“If not fleeing then… moving?”
Muwon, who was slowly looking around the messy interior while packing his luggage, asked belatedly.
“Yes.”
Cheongyeon brought his hands neatly together in front of him.
“Where?”
“I’m not sure yet.”
“Isn’t it the same as fleeing in the middle of the night?”
“I’m trying to go to District A.”
He blurted it out as soon as he could before arousing any unnecessary suspicion.
‘More importantly, where on earth did he get the fresh flowers?’
Muwon quickly lifted the bag of mulberry branches that Cheongyeon had been dragging with difficulty.
“District A?”
“Yes.”
Cheongyeon looked at him with nervous eyes, afraid that he might spill all the contents. He simply tossed it to where other sacks were gathered. Of course, because he threw it carelessly, the mulberry branches ended up peeking out unsightly.
“What, no business here?”
“…Yes.”
“Not selling?”
As Muwon approached again, Cheongyeon unknowingly took a step back from him. Suddenly, the counter desk touched his thigh.
He slowly gazed at Cheongyeon with his eerie golden eyes. Cheongyeon was extremely displeased, for he recognized the hidden meaning of the words. Occasionally, sodomites would flirt with Cheongyeon in bars or on the streets, often followed by mocking remarks about how he should sell his body instead of being an apothecary.
Muwon was openly grinning crudely, as if he had no intention of hiding his vulgar intentions in the first place. However, unlike the others, the man in front of him was not an easy person for Cheongyeon to show his displeasure. If he did that, his life would be lost.
However, even though he knew the reality, on the other hand, he had a somewhat twisted comfort that if he died, Cheonghwa Town would sink and that man would die too.
“Aren’t you here because you need medicine or tea? That’s all I sell.”
Cheongyeon replied coldly.
‘Where on earth did he pick the Boksu flower? And do Boksu flowers even grow in Cheonghwa Town?’
On the contrary, his head was very noisy.
“The stem.”
“…Yes?”
With a snap, Muwon stretched out his arms and trapped Cheongyeon between his desk and himself. Cheongyeon had to look up at Muwon amidst the breathtaking scent of flowers. Perhaps because of the suit design with large flowers on it, the scent of the flowers felt like his body fragrance.
Before him was a being so perfect that he did not feel like he was a human. At first glance, he could smell the scent of the sea, which gave him the illusion that the god of the sea had come to land. The man only seemed to be a being who deserved to be revered by humans.
A low-pitched voice penetrated Cheongyeon’s ears as he looked at Muwon in fascination.
“What happened to the stem?”
Thanks for the chapter
Ml hasn’t done anything wrong persay but i just dont like him lol
None of ur business 😒