My Apprenticeship to Uncle Jiu: I Was a Warlord in the Republic of China

After listening to Uncle Jiu's words, Jiang Li and Uncle Jiu went into the nearest shop that purchased furs and medicinal materials.

The shopkeeper saw two distinguished guests coming in and immediately asked with a flattering smile, "What do you two need? We have all kinds of furs and herbs. I guarantee you will find something that satisfies you."

Jiang Li heard this and said, "Shopkeeper, can you accept transactions of gold, silver, etc.?"

The shopkeeper smiled and said, "Of course. Besides, bartering is also possible."

Jiang Li nodded and said, "In that case, shopkeeper, please take some precious medicinal herbs and spellcasting materials for us to see!"

The shopkeeper glanced at Jiang Li and Uncle Jiu who hadn't spoken, then smiled and took out three wooden boxes from under the counter, opened them one by one and said, "Please look, both of you. This is a twenty-year-old Panax notoginseng, this is a thirty-year-old Polygonatum sibiricum, and this is a thirty-year-old Rehmannia glutinosa."

After saying that, he looked at the two and asked, "What do you think of these herbs?"

Jiang Li winked at Uncle Jiu, then said to the shopkeeper, "Shopkeeper, don't you have any precious medicinal materials here? Are you just going to send us away with these ordinary goods?"

The shopkeeper put away his smile and said, "I wonder what the two guests want. Tell me and I may be able to help you think of a solution."

Jiang Li smiled and said, "I want to buy a hundred-year-old precious medicine to give to my senior master. I wonder if the shopkeeper can do me a small favor?"

The shopkeeper's eyes twitched and he said, "You are really generous, but our shop really doesn't have such precious medicine. But if you insist, I do have an 80-year-old Polygonum multiflorum. I wonder if it will please you."

Jiang Li's eyes lit up when he heard this and he said, "Although it's not as good as a hundred-year-old precious medicine, it's really not too bad. Shopkeeper, please take it out and have a look!"

The shopkeeper looked at Jiang Li and saw that he didn't look like someone who was here to cause trouble, so he called a waiter to accompany Jiang Li and Uncle Jiu, while he went to the backyard and brought out a box and placed it in front of the two of them.

After opening it, Uncle Jiu observed it for a while and said, "It is indeed eighty years, no more, no less."

Jiang Li smiled and said, "Then please name a price, if it's suitable, I will buy it."

What I mean is that you shouldn’t quote a random price. If it’s not suitable, I won’t buy it.

The shopkeeper was also a smart guy. He received the key information and offered a price, "If you really want a hundred dollars, just take it."

Jiang Li turned around and left after hearing that. Although Uncle Jiu was a little slow, he reacted and followed him out.

The shopkeeper knew they were doing it on purpose, but he still tried to persuade them to stay, "Don't be in a hurry to leave, if you think the price is not suitable, we can still negotiate."

Jiang Li turned around and said, "I said before that I would buy it if you offered a suitable price. If it's not suitable, of course I will leave."

The shopkeeper smiled flatteringly and said, "This business is all about bargaining. I make the offer and you bargain. Isn't it done after this?"

Jiang Li did not respond to his words but said, "I still say the same thing. If you name a price that is suitable, I will buy it. If it is not suitable, I will turn around and leave."

The shopkeeper was in a dilemma. It was not the business to bargain for oneself. However, after looking at Jiang Li, he said, "In that case, I will be your friend. Just give me 90 dollars."

Jiang Li's face darkened when he heard that and he was about to turn around. At this time, the shopkeeper was really a little panicked and immediately lowered the price again, saying, "Eighty dollars is fine."

Seeing that Jiang Li still didn't stop, he said with a bitter face, "Why don't you name a price? How can you bargain without saying a word?"

Jiang Li turned around with a sullen face and looked at the shopkeeper and said, "Since the shopkeeper said so, I will name a price so that you won't say I don't know the rules."

"Fifty dollars for one price."

(I searched and found that Polygonum multiflorum is not a precious medicinal material. Nowadays, a 20-kilogram Polygonum multiflorum plant that is more than 50 years old only costs 5,000 to 6,000 yuan.)

The shopkeeper shook his head like a wave drum and said, "No, no, I can't collect more than fifty dollars."

Afterwards, he saw that things were going in the direction he was familiar with, so he cheered up and said quickly, "The price is seventy-five dollars, not a dollar less."

Jiang Li looked at his expression and knew that the price was indeed low, so he immediately made another offer, "Then I will take a step back and make it 60 yuan. I won't add a dollar more."

The shopkeeper did not refuse immediately after hearing this. Instead, he thought for a second before saying, "Sixty dollars is too little. I'll take a step back and give you seventy dollars. I'll consider it a loss for you as my friend."

Jiang Li saw him pause for a second and shook his head and said, "I am a man of my words. If I don't want to add it, then I won't add it. But I do like this Polygonum multiflorum."

"How about this, I'll buy all the Panax notoginseng, Polygonatum sibiricum and Rehmannia root on the table, a total of one hundred dollars, if you agree I'll pay, if not, don't say anything and I'll leave right away."

The shopkeeper thought about it for a while, stamped his feet, and then sighed fiercely, "Okay, I'll pay you one hundred dollars as the customer said. I'll suffer a little loss to make you my friend."

Seeing that he agreed, Jiang Li happily took out three small yellow croakers and ten dollars and handed them to the shopkeeper. After the shopkeeper took them in his hand and confirmed their authenticity, he packed up some medicinal herbs and handed them to Jiang Li.

After the transaction was completed, Jiang Li asked again, "Shopkeeper, do you have a hundred-year-old Polygonum multiflorum vine? I need it to make a certain kind of elixir."

The shopkeeper heard this and said, "I don't have it at home, but I heard a piece of news."

He stopped talking here and just rubbed his fingers.

Seeing this, Jiang Li immediately took out two silver dollars and handed them to him. Seeing the money, he immediately smiled and said, "There is a Datong store on the right side of the door. I heard that they bought a hundred-year-old Polygonum multiflorum last year. Maybe they will have what you want."

After getting the exact news, Jiang Li and Uncle Jiu left.

Jiang Li found it a bit inconvenient to carry these things, so he simply put them all back into the inn carriage.

Afterwards, he took Qiu Sheng and Ade, who were a little more reliable, with him to the Datong Commercial Store.

After asking, he learned that they did have a hundred-year-old Polygonum multiflorum vine, in addition to that there were many other medicinal herbs. After some bargaining, Jiang Li spent eighty dollars to buy them all.

Jiang Li was about to leave at this point, but he casually asked, "Do you have any precious spellcasting materials here?"

The shopkeeper smiled and replied, "Yes, we still have some, but I'm afraid the price is not cheap."

Jiang Li and Uncle Jiu were both curious and couldn't help asking, "What kind of material is so mysterious? Tell us about it."

The shopkeeper whispered to the two of them, "Last year, I bought a hundred-year-old lightning-struck jujube tree from Zaozhuang, a hundred miles away. This is an excellent material for making magic tools. If I hadn't seen how generous you two were, I wouldn't have told you about it."

Jiang Li and Uncle Jiu looked at each other in shock when they heard this. This hundred-year-old lightning-struck jujube wood is extremely rare, so they must buy it if they come across it.

Uncle Jiu immediately said, "I wonder where this jujube tree is. Can you let us take a look?"