I am the Holy Poisoner, the Empress advised me to calm down

Just then, Lin Chen discovered a simple stall in a corner. The stall owner was a man in his sixties with gray hair and simple clothes. In front of him were several unremarkable medicinal herbs.

Lin Chen's eyes lit up as he approached. There were a few seemingly unremarkable herbs on the stall, but Lin Chen recognized their preciousness at first glance.

"Grandpa, how much are these medicinal herbs?" Lin Chen squatted down and observed carefully.

The old man looked up and saw Lin Chen's focused expression. A hint of relief flashed in his eyes: "Young man, you know your stuff. These are all picked from the mountains. They are not those artificially grown ones."

Lin Chen picked up a piece of Polygonum multiflorum and carefully observed its root shape and surface texture. It was indeed wild and quite old.

"This Polygonum multiflorum plant is at least twenty years old, right?" Lin Chen asked.

The old man nodded and said, "You have a very sharp eye. I found this in the mountains five years ago. It's more than twenty years old."

Liu Ying was confused as she listened, but she could see that Lin Chen was very interested.

Lin Chen looked at several other medicinal herbs. They were all rare wild species. Although their appearance was ordinary, their medicinal effects were absolutely first-class.

"Grandpa, do you have any other good things here?" Lin Chen asked.

The old man hesitated, looked at Lin Chen, and then looked at Liu Ying: "Young man, I think you are a real expert. To be honest, I have some better things at home, but there are so many people here, it's not convenient to take them out."

Lin Chen's heart moved. This old man was obviously a man with a story. To be able to collect medicinal herbs of this quality in the deep mountains, he must be no ordinary person.

"Then can we go to your house and take a look?" Lin Chen asked tentatively.

The old man nodded: "Okay, but let me make it clear first, my things are not cheap."

"Price is not a problem, as long as the product is good." Liu Ying said on the side.

The old man packed up his stall and took Lin Chen and Liu Ying home. Along the way, Lin Chen learned that the old man's surname was Zhao. He was an old Chinese medicine practitioner when he was young, but later for various reasons he changed his career to become a herbal medicine businessman, specializing in collecting wild herbs in the mountains.

Mr. Zhao's home is located in an alley in the old city. Although the house is old, it is very clean. As soon as I walked to the door, I heard a fierce quarrel coming from the house.

"I said I have no money! It's no use forcing me!" A middle-aged man's voice was filled with despair.

"No money? You said you had money yesterday! Zhao Jianhua, don't pretend to be poor in front of us. Take out the money quickly, otherwise you can't leave this door today!" Another rough voice threatened.

Mr. Zhao's expression changed, and he quickly walked towards the door. Lin Chen and Liu Ying followed behind him. As soon as they entered the door, they saw several burly men surrounding a man in his forties.

The man should be Mr. Zhao’s son. He was forced into a corner with a terrified expression on his face.

"Jianhua!" Mr. Zhao rushed in and stood in front of his son. "What do you want to do?"

"Old man, your son owes us two hundred thousand and he must pay it back today!" the leading man said viciously.

"Two hundred thousand?" Mr. Zhao was shocked. "Jianhua, what's going on?"

Zhao Jianhua lowered his head, his voice trembling: "Dad, I lost money in the casino..."

"You prodigal son!" Old Master Zhao was shaking with anger, but he was helpless in the face of these creditors.

Lin Chen stood at the door, observing the situation. These people were obviously loan sharks, and their methods were likely not polite.

"Old man, stop talking nonsense and take the money!" The big man reached out to push Mr. Zhao.

At this moment, Lin Chen stepped forward and blocked the big man's hand: "Wait."

"Who are you? Minding other people's business!" The big man turned around and glared at Lin Chen.

Lin Chen looked at him calmly: "Debt disputes can be resolved, but it's wrong to resort to violence."

"Kid, you have nothing to do here. Get out of here if you know what's good for you!" another gangster threatened.

Liu Ying was a little nervous. She didn't expect to encounter such a situation.

"You go back first. Give me three days and I will prepare the money." Lin Chen said calmly.

"Who do you think you are? Why should we listen to you?" the leading man said disdainfully.

Lin Chen didn't answer. Instead, he took out his phone and dialed a number: "Hello, Brother Wang? This is Lin Chen. I'm in trouble..."

Before he could finish, the big man impatiently tried to grab his phone. Lin Chen easily dodged and restrained the big man with a grappling hand.

"Ah!" The big man cried out in pain, and the other people immediately surrounded him.

But Lin Chen's skills were obviously not something they could handle, and he knocked down several people in no time.

"Can you talk properly now?" Lin Chen let go of his hand. The big man rubbed his twisted arm, his eyes full of fear.

"You...just wait, I'll go call my big brother!" The big man said viciously and walked away in disgrace with his men.

Mr. Zhao and his son were both stunned. They didn't expect that this gentle-looking young man could be so skilled.

"Young man, you've helped us, but you've also gotten into trouble." Old Master Zhao said worriedly, "These people are not easy to deal with. They will come back."

Lin Chen waved his hand: "It's okay. When the enemy comes, we will fight him. When the water comes, we will block it with earth. Let's talk about your son first. How much money does he owe?"

Zhao Jianhua lowered his head in shame: "The principal is actually only 50,000, but the interest has now become 200,000."

"Loan sharking?" Liu Ying frowned.

"Yes." Zhao Jianhua nodded. "I originally just wanted to gamble a little, but ended up getting deeper and deeper into trouble..."

There were more voices coming from outside the door, and it sounded like there were at least a dozen people. Mr. Zhao and his son turned pale.

"It's over. We're really in big trouble now." Zhao Jianhua slumped in his chair.

Lin Chen walked to the window and looked. There were indeed quite a few people outside. Leading them was a bald man who looked ferocious.

"Dad, why don't you give that thing at home..." Zhao Jianhua hesitated to speak.

"Shut up!" Old Master Zhao interrupted him harshly, "That's an heirloom, you can't touch it!"

Lin Chen noticed their conversation and it seemed that there was indeed something valuable in this house.

At this time, people outside started banging on the door.

"Open the door! Open the door for me!"

Lin Chen took a deep breath and walked towards the door. Liu Ying nervously grabbed him and said, "What are you going to do? There are so many of them..."

"Don't worry, I know my limits." Lin Chen comforted her and then opened the door.

There were more than a dozen thugs standing outside the door. The bald man in the lead was about to continue smashing the door. When he saw the door open, he glared at Lin Chen fiercely.

"You are the one who beat my brother?" asked the bald man.

"It's me." Lin Chen admitted frankly.