"Look at you guys, so desperate you'd think you've never seen a woman before." Teasing them aside, Zhao Yuan still did as his three brothers asked and messaged Lin Xue back.
This time, Lin Xue didn't keep them waiting long. She quickly replied, agreeing to the social mixer tonight. Liu Zhu, Wang Rongfeng, and Wu Yan cheered while hurriedly discussing where to have dinner. They finally settled on a seafood buffet near the university that was well-regarded for its quality, taste, and atmosphere.
After seeing Zhao Yuan send the address to Lin Xue and get an "OK" in response, Liu Zhu, Wang Rongfeng, and Wu Yan finally relaxed. Along with their excitement and elation, they also felt a little nervous.
Wu Yan was staring at himself in the mirror when he suddenly stood up and announced, "I'm going to get my hair done. I need to show up tonight looking my absolute best. I want the girls from Lin Xue's dorm to fall for me at first sight! Any of you guys want to come with?"
"I'll go, count me in!" Liu Zhu was the first to raise his hand.
"I'll go too. Can't go wrong following an old hand like you," Wang Rongfeng chimed in.
Wu Yan chuckled. "Alright, let's all go together. I know a stylist whose skills are amazing. I guarantee they'll give you guys a whole new look." He then turned to Zhao Yuan and asked, "Third Brother, are you coming with us?"
"I'll pass." Zhao Yuan shook his head, politely declining.
Wu Yan thought he was worried about the cost and quickly said, "Come on, it's my treat. Consider it a thank you to you, Third Brother, for setting this up for us."
Zhao Yuan held up his hands. "I really can't go. Teacher Yu is dissecting a cadaver today, and I have to go help her out."
"Assisting the Ice Mountain? You poor soul." Wu Yan sighed sympathetically and shook his head. Then he led Liu Zhu and Wang Rongfeng out of the dorm. The three of them walked with a new swagger, their laughter echoing all the way down the hall.
After gathering his things, Zhao Yuan also left the dorm and headed for the dissection building.
When he entered the dissection lab, the instructor, Yu Ke, hadn't arrived yet. But he didn't stay idle. He began preparing all the instruments needed for the dissection ahead of time.
About ten minutes later, Yu Ke arrived at the lab. When she saw all the instruments laid out and ready, a flicker of satisfaction crossed her cold, pretty face. She nodded and said, "Good work."
Zhao Yuan smiled. 'This young, beautiful Teacher Yu is famous at West Hua Medical University for being cold.' She was stern with everyone and rarely smiled. Getting a compliment from her was no easy feat. 'If anyone else were in the lab right now, they'd be dying of envy.'
Yu Ke said nothing more. After that single word of praise, she fell silent and began the dissection. Zhao Yuan didn't speak either, quietly acting as her assistant. He actually enjoyed this kind of work, as it was a great opportunity to learn.
γThe morning passed just like that in the dissection lab.γ
At noon, Zhao Yuan went to the school cafeteria and bought enough food for ten people, getting it to-go and taking it to his rented room to eat. He no longer dared to eat in the cafeteria itself. His appetite was so enormous that eating a meal for ten would cause a huge commotion, and he had no desire to be gawked at like some kind of freak.
After finishing his ten-person lunch, Zhao Yuan patted his stomach in satisfaction. He rested for a moment, then got up to check on the Soul-Stabilizing Incense he had left out to dry. Many more had dried, about sixty sticks in total. He took out the slender boxes he had prepared earlier, divided the dried Soul-Stabilizing Incense into groups of ten, and placed them into six boxes, tying them with ribbons. He also packed up the four leftover sticks, planning to give them to Boss Fang as a gift.
Leaving his rented room, Zhao Yuan headed straight for the traditional medicine market. As he approached the entrance of Hundred Herbs Hall, Boss Fang spotted him from a distance.
"Dr. Zhao! It's only been a day, but you seem to have gotten even more handsome!" Boss Fang hurried out to greet him, looking Zhao Yuan up and down and clicking his tongue in amazement. Then, he added with a smile, "Just yesterday, Ling'Er was telling me how much she misses her big brother."
Zhao Yuan shook hands with Boss Fang and asked with concern, "How is Ling'Er's recovery coming along? Why isn't she here today?"
Boss Fang replied, "Thanks to you, Ling'Er is recovering very well. Today, her grandparents took her to the amusement park. She hasn't been out to play since she got sick, so she's been cooped up for far too long. If she knew you were coming, she would have insisted on waiting here for you. That child really likes you."
Zhao Yuan was also fond of the sweet and adorable Fang Ling. He smiled and said, "How about this: tell her that if she's a good girl, I'll come play with her next weekend."
"Oh, she'll be overjoyed to hear that." As he spoke, Boss Fang ushered Zhao Yuan into Hundred Herbs Hall. After brewing some tea, he finally got down to business. "Dr. Zhao, what brings you here today? If there's anything I can help with, please don't hesitate to ask!"
"Boss Fang, please just call me by my name, Zhao Yuan. I'm not an official doctor yet," Zhao Yuan said, waving his hand.
Boss Fang nodded in agreement. "Alright then, I'll call you Little Brother Zhao. And you don't have to call me Boss Fang. Fang Yi or Brother Fang is fine."
"Okay, Brother Fang." After a few more pleasantries, Zhao Yuan took out the six boxes of Soul-Stabilizing Incense and placed them on the tea table. "I came today hoping to ask for your help, Brother Fang, in selling these boxes of Soul-Stabilizing Incense."
"Is this incense?" Fang Yi looked at the plain boxes, a little surprised. "Which company makes this? Why isn't there even a brand name on the box?"
Zhao Yuan explained, "I made it myself. To be precise, it's a medicinal incense. It has properties that can calm the mind, relieve fatigue, and improve memory and work efficiency, among other things."
"I didn't realize you had this kind of skill, Little Brother Zhao," Fang Yi said casually. He opened one of the boxes and glanced inside. Seeing only ten sticks, he was taken aback. "Isn't the quantity in this box a little... small?"
"It's about quality over quantity. The number of sticks might be small, but the effects are exceptionally good." Zhao Yuan blushed slightly as he said this. 'Truthfully, he had considered putting more sticks in each box, but he had only managed to make about a hundred sticks in total, and half of them weren't even dry yet. If he put in any more per box, he'd barely have a couple of boxes to sell.'
Fang Yi didn't take Zhao Yuan's words seriously.
'In his opinion, while incense could certainly help calm the mind, any claims about miraculous or exceptionally powerful effects were just hype.' Still, Zhao Yuan had done the Fang Family a great favor, so now that he was asking for help, Fang Yi wasn't going to refuse.
"Alright, you can leave these six boxes with me. I'll help you sell them. Oh, right, how much for one box?" Fang Yi asked. He was already thinking to himself, 'I should probably just buy all six boxes myself. That way I can avoid them sitting around unsold for ages and disappointing Zhao Yuan.'
Zhao Yuan held up one finger and stated the price: "One thousand yuan per box!"