Chapter 3: Identifying Medicinal Herbs, Preparing to Enter the Mountains, and Skill Effects

After Song Bao left, Xia He closed the door and sat back on the edge of the bed, a look of worry clouding his expression. He had been lured into gambling, losing money, and taking out loans—it was a setup from the start. Yet, he hadn't expected them to take his house as collateral. Though the house wasn't worth much, it was at least a roof over their heads. If he lost that, would he have to take his wife out to sleep on the streets?

"Three days..." Xia He took a deep breath and touched the medical pharmacopeia beside him. All his hopes now rested on this. He had to max out his proficiency as quickly as possible. He was eager to see what abilities the interface would awaken once he did.

The afternoon slipped away in the blink of an eye. The light in the room grew dim, and Xia He’s stomach began to growl. The thin rice porridge he’d had in the morning was useless, and after studying all afternoon, he could barely hold on.

[Progress: 95/100]

Fortunately, the progress was encouraging. Xia He estimated that with another hour or so, he could fully memorize the pharmacopeia. "It hasn't been easy." Luckily, he had been a liberal arts student in his past life, and memorizing books was his specialty.

His wife had been out all day and still hadn't returned. Xia He walked to the door to glance down the street before returning inside. He went to the kitchen, checked the nearly empty rice jar, and took down the only piece of dried meat hanging from the rafters. He planned to head into the mountains tomorrow, so he needed to eat his fill and conserve his strength; otherwise, the mountain paths would be too treacherous, and he feared he might faint from hunger along the way.

He steamed all the remaining yellow rice and sliced the dried meat into thin pieces, layering them over the top. When Li Huilan returned home, she could smell the aroma of rice and meat from far away.

"Brother He... why does it smell so good? Did you cook yourself?" She paused, her eyes widening. "You... you cooked all the remaining grain in the house?"

Li Huilan looked at him, unable to understand his behavior. Based on their previous rations, the yellow rice could have lasted another four or five days, and the dried meat was meant to be saved for last. Yet, Xia He had used it all in one meal. Though it was a feast that made her mouth water, she was so anxious she felt like crying.

"Huilan, don't worry. I won't let you suffer like this again. I’ve almost memorized the medical manual. I’m going into the mountains to collect herbs tomorrow, and then we’ll have money. You can rest easy."

Seeing the firm look in his eyes, Li Huilan didn't know what to say. "Come on, let's eat." Xia He invited her to sit and began to shovel the food into his mouth, ravenous. After a while, he noticed his wife just sitting there, holding her bowl and silently shedding tears. She looked famished, yet she wouldn't take a bite. His heart ached.

He knew why she was like this—she was terrified of their poverty. Furthermore, the impression left by his predecessor was deeply ingrained and couldn't be changed in a day or two.

Li Huilan suddenly looked up, tears still streaking her face, and asked tentatively, "Brother He, I heard the auntie in Master Wang’s courtyard say that you lost our house to pay off gambling debts. Is it true?"

When he had been tricked into signing that IOU, many people had witnessed it, so the news had naturally spread. Not knowing how to respond, he could only nod. Li Huilan couldn't help but sob in grievance, "Brother He, what are we going to do? If the house is gone, where will we live? And our illnesses... we still need money for medicine..."

As a woman, she hadn't expected a life of luxury, but the thought of being homeless filled her with overwhelming dread. Even with her working at Master Wang's, she couldn't scrape together that much money. There were many others ruined by gambling just like him. The woman in the courtyard had even told her that a man in town had his hand chopped off for failing to pay his debts, and his wife had been sold to a brothel—a fate worse than death. It seemed that even if they didn't die of illness, they would be cast out to starve or freeze.

"Wife, you have to believe me. I am the head of this household. I will solve these problems. Give me one day." Xia He loathed the gossip-mongers, though he knew he couldn't blame others for talking given his past behavior. He realized that to change their deep-seated perception of him, words weren't enough; he needed to show them with his actions.

Li Huilan was sobbing, completely lost. Seeing this, Xia He sighed, pulled her into his arms, and comforted her. "I stayed home all day and have almost completely memorized the pharmacopeia. I’ll head into the mountains tomorrow; surely I can find some herbs. Once we sell them, we’ll be able to live a good life."

Hearing this, Li Huilan’s dark eyes finally looked at him, seemingly surprised. "Brother He, you really memorized it all?"

Xia He nodded, and to prove it, he recited the detailed information of several medicinal herbs. Seeing his firm tone, Li Huilan finally calmed down. She also suddenly realized that this was the first time he had ever hugged her; in the past, he had been so disgusted by the birthmark on her face. A sense of indescribable satisfaction washed over her, along with a wave of shyness.

"Then... alright, I believe you, Brother He." Feeling the warmth of the man beside her, she pursed her lips, looking at him pitifully. But in the next second, he covered her red lips, and she widened her eyes, letting out a muffled sound.

...

A long while later, Li Huilan broke free from his embrace, panting as if trying to escape. Her face was flushed, and her legs trembled together as she struggled to maintain her composure. "Brother He, it's not dark yet, I'm scared..."

Seeing her reaction, Xia He was surprised—it seemed his predecessor hadn't even shared a bed with his wife. But then, there was something interesting about doing it while it was still light...

"It's fine, let's eat first." Xia He released her and smiled; he wasn't in a rush. The atmosphere was already much better than before. After dinner, he picked up the pharmacopeia again. Regardless, he had to master this skill tonight.

"Brother He, if you're going into the mountains tomorrow, don't go too deep. I heard that Hunter Wang from town heard wolves howling; there might be a pack in the area."

Xia He nodded. "Alright, you get some sleep first." But inwardly, he was calculating that he would need to bring a weapon for self-defense.

...

Half an hour later, after he turned to the final page of the pharmacopeia, the sky outside had turned completely dark.

"Success."

[Skill: Herb Identification (Novice)]
[Progress: 0/200]
[Effect: Keen senses, mastery of pharmacology]

In an instant, Xia He felt a mysterious power surge into his body. Not only did his ears become more sensitive to external sounds, but his vision seemed to sharpen, allowing him to see the details of distant objects with clarity. A vast amount of herbal knowledge flooded his mind. If he had been relying on rote memorization before, he now had a deeper understanding of how to combine medicinal properties.

He had spent some time in a town clinic before. An apprentice usually had to work for two or three years, starting with menial tasks like drying and sorting herbs. Only if they were promoted by their master and had memorized all the properties could they be trusted to fill prescriptions. If they went six months without a mistake, they might then be allowed to learn about medicinal combinations and the conflicts and synergies between different herbs.

In other words, reaching this level of understanding would normally take at least two and a half years! But with the interface, Xia He had achieved it simply by memorizing the book, saving years of effort. Furthermore, his physical condition had improved, along with his hearing and sense of smell—an unexpected bonus.

Perfect! With these two enhancements, he felt unprecedented confidence about heading into the mountains tomorrow. And this was only the "Novice" level. If he reached "Proficient" or "Mastery," what other effects would he awaken?