Leo examined the wild ginseng carefully. It was indeed an old and valuable root, possibly hundreds of years old, maybe even over a thousand. Ginseng of this age could truly be considered a miraculous herb.
Suppressing his excitement, Leo calmly said, “Sir, how much do you want for this ginseng? You don’t have to give me a discount. I’ll pay a fair price.”
“Two… two thousand?” The old man hesitantly suggested.
“I’ll give you five thousand,” Leo offered a substantial amount.
“Five thousand!?” The old man was astonished.
Leo nodded with certainty.
“In this day and age, there are so many fools. Let me tell you, a ginseng this size cannot be genuine wild ginseng!” The store clerk from earlier scoffed, his tone condescending.
He had been penalized at the store for mistakenly buying fake wild ginseng before, losing a month’s worth of salary. So, now he was cautious about buying these things.
“Alright, five thousand, it’s five thousand!” The old man grabbed Leo’s arm, afraid that Leo might change his mind at any moment.
But then a voice came from behind, “I’ll pay eight thousand.”
Suddenly, a man in a white lab coat hurried over. He was the resident TCM doctor at this pharmacy. Seeing the ginseng in the old man’s hands, he immediately offered a higher price.
With decades of medical experience, handling thousands of medicinal herbs, he could tell at a glance that the ginseng the old man was holding was definitely an old wild ginseng. So, he quickly started to bid.
The store clerk, seeing the TCM doctor joining the bidding, suddenly changed his expression, realizing that he might have missed a profit opportunity by not buying the ginseng earlier.
“Ten thousand!” Leo immediately raised the price.
“Twelve thousand!” The TCM doctor, seizing the opportunity, also raised his bid.
“Thirty thousand!” Leo announced his bid.
This time, the doctor didn’t follow. He chuckled and shook his head, “Young man, it’s profitable to buy that ginseng for ten-odd thousand, but thirty thousand is too much.”
“Dr. Harrison, this guy is obviously not from around here; he doesn’t know the situation in Colepon,” the store clerk sneered, giving Leo a look as if he thought Leo was a fool.
“What do you mean?” Leo asked, confused.
“Young man, in Colepon City, large wild ginseng roots like this one aren’t uncommon. They’re a genetically modified variety, produced on a large scale in recent years. They use pure ginseng to crossbreed, and they’re called hybrid ginseng. That’s why when we buy ginseng, we’re extra cautious,” the doctor explained patiently. “This ginseng might look like wild ginseng in terms of its appearance, but it’s impossible for wild ginseng to grow to this size. It’s likely a hybrid variety, although it does have slightly higher medicinal value compared to other hybrid ginseng.”
“Nonsense! This is pure wild ginseng, and I personally dug it up!” The old man protested when he heard the explanation.
“Young man, nowadays, there are many scammers. Be careful not to get fooled,” Dr. Harrison warned Leo.
“I trust this old man,” Leo smiled and turned to the old man. “Do you want cash, or should I transfer the money?”
“Cash is fine, cash,” the old man replied. “I’ll give you a discount, twenty-eight thousand is enough.”
Leo accompanied him to a nearby bank and withdrew the money. The old man, upon seeing the substantial amount, couldn’t believe his eyes. He quickly wrapped the money in the tattered cloth and fled like a rocket.
“Young man, you’ve been deceived!”
“A ginseng this large is clearly a hybrid.”
“Even in a pharmacy, it’s only worth a little money; it’s practically worthless in a private individual’s hands!”
After Leo and the old TCM doctor’s intense bidding, onlookers gathered, including some who were knowledgeable about ginseng. They couldn’t resist sharing their opinions.
“Sir, with your age, have you ever seen a thousand-year ginseng king?” Leo smiled and said, “Could you please find a basin of clear water? I’d like to show you something.”
“Young man, I’m afraid you’ll be crying later,” the old doctor laughed and ordered the store clerk to fetch a basin of water.
Leo washed the wild ginseng in the clear water, carefully removing the dirt. Then he turned to the old doctor and said, “Sir, please take a look now.”
The old TCM doctor cautiously accepted the ginseng, but his eyes widened as soon as he saw it. Amazed, he said, “It’s really a pure wild ginseng, this…”
Hearing the old doctor’s words, the store clerk’s face turned pale. “Dr. Harrison, is it true?”
“Dr. Harrison, you’ve probably been deceived. How could this ginseng be a pure wild ginseng?” someone from the crowd said, skeptical of Leo’s claim.
“Don’t be fooled; the ginseng’s long roots are probably glued together fake roots. I’ve seen this situation many times,” another bystander chimed in.
Doctor Harrison, undeterred, said, “Based on my many years of experience, it’s definitely real!”
“This wild ginseng is tight and firm, with an exceptional luster, fine and smooth skin, deep and delicate wrinkles, long and flexible roots, not brittle, and it’s exceptionally large. It’s the best of the best, with an age ranging from several hundred years to maybe a thousand years.”
As he continued, Dr. Harrison’s voice trembled slightly. He had practiced medicine for most of his life but had never seen such a supreme wild ginseng.
Leo nodded and smiled, “Sir, you do have profound knowledge. I’m impressed.”
Dr. Harrison’s words led to a commotion in the crowd.
“Wow, this kind of wild ginseng is worth a fortune!”
“I remember not too long ago in Colepon, a pure 400-year wild ginseng was auctioned for ten million!”
“This young man has the luck of the century. If this supreme wild ginseng is over a thousand years old, I doubt it’ll sell for less than fifty million!”
The onlookers admired Leo greatly at this point, but they also began to regret. If they had known earlier, they would have bid against Leo.
Dr. Harrison hesitated for a moment but couldn’t help saying, “Young man, why don’t you sell this wild ginseng to our pharmacy? I could…”
Before Dr. Harrison could finish his sentence, Leo directly refused, “I’m sorry, sir, but I’d like to keep this wild ginseng for myself.”
With that, Leo took the ginseng from Dr. Harrison’s hands and swiftly disappeared from the scene.
Back at the hotel, Leo carefully wrapped the ginseng and placed it in his suitcase.
This wild ginseng had extremely high medicinal value, and Leo intended to use it for alchemy.
Accidentally acquiring such a treasure made his trip to Colepon worthwhile.
On another note, before coming to Colepon City, Leo had visited the Wilde Jewelry Group’s underground vault and brought back plenty of jadeite. The primary purpose of these jadeite pieces was for cultivation.
That’s why Leo had booked two rooms in this hotel.