Liao Dehai was startled, and his mind raced.

“Could it be… cultivated ginseng? But it doesn’t look like it.”

He recalled the ginseng’s appearance over and over, concluding, “Old Ge and I have enough expertise to tell the difference between garden ginseng and wild ginseng.”

As the name implies, cultivated ginseng is ginseng grown in a vegetable garden. It has long been known that just as fruits and vegetables can be cultivated, wild grasses and flowers can survive when transplanted, and even a piece of wood brought home can sprout mushrooms—there’s no reason why ginseng seeds couldn’t be used to grow ginseng.

Consequently, many years ago, people in the county began cultivating garden ginseng as a livelihood. This is because the ginseng of Bailong Mountain thrives only in this specific soil and climate. By treating it like vegetables or grain—pest control and fertilization—it reportedly grows rapidly. In about three years, it can reach the size of wild ginseng that has grown for twenty or thirty years, and after five years, it is considered an “old” specimen among garden ginseng.

However, they look short, plump, and smooth—a far cry from wild ginseng—and their medicinal efficacy is far inferior to that of wild mountain ginseng.

In herbal shops, ginseng is divided into three grades: the lowest is Codonopsis, followed by cultivated ginseng. Very few can afford to use genuine wild ginseng in prescriptions; it is either hoarded by wealthy families or used by ordinary people who sell everything they own to buy a single root for life-saving treatment.

Thus, cultivated ginseng also has its market.

When Huo Ling pointed out that there was something wrong with the ginseng, Liao Dehai’s first thought was that someone was passing off cultivated ginseng as wild ginseng.

But as he said, the two are quite different; unless they were complete novices, the people present wouldn’t be so easily deceived.

Huo Ling shook his head slightly. “If it were cultivated ginseng, the deception would be far too obvious. I suspect… It’s most likely a seedling ginseng.”

Liao Dehai’s expression grew even more serious, while Yan Qi looked on with a puzzled expression.

Huo Ling had never mentioned these matters to him before; even he was hearing about them for the first time.

But since Huo Ling was discussing serious business with Liao Dehai, he didn’t feel it was appropriate to interrupt and ask questions.

However, Huo Ling soon turned to look at him and explained, “Both cultivated ginseng and seedling ginseng are cultivated varieties; the former is grown in fields, while the latter grows in the mountains, just like wild ginseng.”

Now Yan Qi was even more confused.

“If it grows in the mountains, isn’t it just wild ginseng?”

Huo Ling shook his head again.

“They’re still different. Wild ginseng grows wherever fate allows, whereas cultivated ginseng involves finding a spot with auspicious feng shui in the mountains to sow the seeds. People also make regular rounds to check on it and set traps nearby to ward off wild animals. Cultivated ginseng grows more slowly than field-grown ginseng, but much faster than wild ginseng. It takes about ten years to grow as thick as a ‘lampstand.’”

Yan Qi’s mouth fell open in surprise. “Doesn’t that mean ginseng grown this way takes ten years to harvest? Then this…”

He wanted to say that this business sounded incredibly difficult to manage.

After all, how many decades does a person have in a lifetime? Just waiting for the ginseng to grow in the mountains—who knows what unforeseen mishaps might occur during that time.

First of all, there’s no guarantee that all the ginseng seeds sown will survive. If wild ginseng were that easy to root and sprout, the ginseng in Bailong Mountain would have long since formed a dense forest.

Anyone hearing about this for the first time would naturally feel this confusion. Liao Dehai said, “That’s why no one makes a living out of this. With a harvest only once every ten years, one careless moment could mean waiting from father to son. In truth, these ginseng seedlings are all cultivated by a few imperial merchants from beyond the Great Wall who procure medicinal herbs. Passed down through generations, they lease private mountains, hire ginseng farmers, and grow these seedlings on Bailong Mountain to supply the imperial court.”

The annual demand for wild ginseng to be tributed to the imperial court and plundered by officials at every level amounts to hundreds of pounds. Even if one were to dispatch a thousand or eight hundred mountain workers to dig three feet deep across the entire Bailong Mountain, it still wouldn’t be enough.

Therefore, the practice of cultivating ginseng for tribute had long been an open secret. In comparison, the difference in medicinal efficacy between cultivated and wild ginseng was not that significant.

Naturally, there was still a price difference. For example, twenty-year-old cultivated ginseng looked nearly identical to four-leaf wild ginseng, but its market price rarely exceeded fifty taels. As long as it wasn’t for life-saving treatment of critical illnesses, it was sufficient for general tonics and medicinal use.

“I suspect those men must have used some back channels to smuggle aged sapling ginseng out of the imperial merchants’ private mountains and come here to take advantage of the chaos.”

Huo Ling reminded Liao Dehai, “I’ve heard that tribute ginseng leaks into the civilian market every year. While this trade carries risks, it’s not entirely unfeasible. But passing off sapling ginseng as wild ginseng is clearly just a scheme to swindle people out of their money.”

Liao Dehai trusted Huo Ling’s judgment, and besides, Huo Ling had no reason to deceive him in this matter.

It was true that the other party did have a “lamp-stand-shaped ginseng” in their possession, but that was something he wouldn’t have any trouble selling.

He exclaimed angrily, “I’m going to have a word with Old Ge right now—that old fool has completely lost his mind!”

Liao Dehai hurried off to find Ge Yi. Huo Ling didn’t follow immediately. Yan Qi stood beside him and whispered, “If we’d arrived just a moment later, wouldn’t Boss Liao have been swindled?”

Huo Ling nodded.

“Probably.”

He scanned the crowd of onlookers and noticed a few instigators mixed in, their voices particularly loud.

Bids kept flying through the chaotic throng, yet if one tried to make out who was shouting, it was hard to tell.

“These people came prepared; they even went out of their way to bring in a local mountain trader to make an appearance, lulling people into a false sense of security right from the start.”

In truth, the trade in mountain goods at the fair has always been rife with cases of passing off inferior goods as superior ones. People get swindled every year, but these swindlers are mostly itinerant, and the authorities can’t catch them all.

The most common scam involves selling mountain produce that has been fumigated with sulfur. After sulfur fumigation, dried goods can be preserved for years without spoiling, and their color and appearance remain intact.

Consequently, people often pass off sulfur-treated old stock as that year’s fresh harvest to command higher prices—this is particularly common with items like schisandra berries, gastrodia tuber, and wood ear mushrooms.

At first glance, these items seem perfectly fine, but once you take them home, soak them, and taste them, you’ll know immediately that the flavor isn’t right.

However, when it comes to value, compared to counterfeit wild ginseng, these are nothing.

If someone were to swindle over a hundred taels, it would be considered a major case if reported to the authorities.

Liao Dehai quickly informed Ge Yi, who hesitated for a moment before stepping back from the crowd.

Some onlookers, having witnessed the two men bidding fiercely just moments ago, only to walk away and give up so quickly, couldn’t help but grow suspicious.

Over there, a few ginseng sellers exchanged glances and asked why they weren’t bidding anymore. Since they didn’t know where these men were from, and adhering to the principle of avoiding trouble while traveling, Liao Dehai bowed his hands and joked, “Truth be told, our pockets are empty. If we bought this, we’d have to beg our way home.”

A wave of laughter swept through the crowd, but Huo Ling noticed the gong-beater’s expression shift slightly.

It was clear that Liao Dehai and Ge Yi had been among the suckers they’d targeted. With the price now at 160 taels, the two most likely “ducks” about to be caught in the trap were about to fly away.

Having set this trap to lure their victims in, they naturally wanted to wrap things up quickly—the sooner they struck, the better.

The longer they dragged things out here, the easier it would be for their scheme to be exposed.

“Gentlemen, are you really not going to take another look? If you miss this chance, who knows when the next four-leaf ginseng will appear—it could be ages from now.”

“Exactly, exactly! Gentlemen, why not come a little closer for a look?”

Just as Liao Dehai and Ge Yi were about to leave, two men suddenly approached, feigning warmth as they reached out to grab them.

If Ge Yi had previously harbored a hint of reluctance—worried that Huo Ling had misjudged the situation, causing them to miss a golden opportunity to strike it rich—he now clearly sensed that these men meant no good.

Though their faces were plastered with smiles, their gestures carried a subtle air of coercion.

Standing with their backs to the crowd, their insincere grins were directed solely at them.

He hurriedly waved his hands and said, “If you’re not buying, why bother looking? You’re just wasting everyone’s time.”

Liao Dehai also laughed it off, saying, “With the four-leaf ginseng in hand, what’s there to worry about? You’re bound to strike it rich. Just wait a little longer—who knows, maybe a big spender will show up.”

Their words were smooth and flawless, clearly intended to stall.

Perhaps fearing that their lingering would become too obvious, the men reluctantly let go.

Bidding calls rose again from the crowd, and soon new merchants who had just arrived joined in, stepping forward to inspect the ginseng.

They immediately turned their attention away from Liao Dehai and Ge Yi, allowing the two men to finally slip away.

“That was close—we almost fell for it!”

Ge Yi was still shaken by the close call. After a moment, he straightened up, leaning on his knees, looked around, and asked Liao Dehai, “Where did that young man Huo go? We really need to thank him.”

Liao Dehai thought for a moment and said, “He’s probably back at his own stall; he usually sets up near the City God Temple.”

The two decided to go look for him immediately.

Even if they missed out on that fake four-leaf ginseng, at least there was still the real “Lantern Stand” there.

If they’d arrived too late, and even the “Lantern Stand” had ended up in someone else’s pocket, that would have been a real cause for regret.

At the stall, Huo Feng and Lin Changshui had just heard Huo Ling’s full account of the situation. Still reeling from the shock, they were itching to go take a look themselves.

“I’ve never seen a genuine seedling ginseng before. How similar is it to wild ginseng?”

Huo Ling replied cautiously, “At least eighty percent similar.”

Hou Li chimed in, “That’s right. I couldn’t tell the difference at all.”

Huo Feng sucked in a sharp breath.

“Never mind fooling laymen—even pulling the wool over the eyes of a half-baked expert is bad enough.”

Someone like him, for instance, might not be able to tell the difference either.

Hou Li tagged along on the way there and back; it was clear he was just a thrill-seeker with nothing better to do.

But having come from a merchant family and mingled with all sorts of people for years, he quickly caught on to something. He said to Huo Ling, “Ginseng farmers rarely venture far from their private mountain territories. That group managed to get their hands on tribute ginseng—who knows what tricks they used? They don’t look like the sort to be trifled with. Did that mountain guide from Ma-something Village recognize you just now?”

Huo Ling thought for a moment and replied, “I suspect that man wasn’t there of his own free will, just to serve as a decoy. He kept his head down the whole time, didn’t say a word, and wouldn’t even look people in the eye. He probably didn’t see me.”

Yan Qi caught on to Hou Li’s implication and tugged nervously at Huo Ling’s sleeve.

“Should we pack up early and lay low for a while?”

Huo Ling reassured him, “They don’t shy away from their own misdeeds—why should we?”

Huo Feng added, “That’s exactly right. If they really want to cause trouble, let them go find out what my Huo family did in the past and how we established our foothold at Bailong Mountain.”

Lin Changshui chimed in, clenching his fists. “We won’t… start trouble, but we’re not afraid of it either.”

With that said, Huo Feng and Lin Changshui decided not to go watch the spectacle to avoid inviting unnecessary trouble.

As for reporting it to the authorities themselves, they had no grounds to do so. Since they hadn’t been the ones deceived, the magistrate’s office wouldn’t bother with it.

They could only hope that more people would keep their wits about them and not hand over their money so easily.

Hou Li felt that today’s trip had not been in vain. He picked out a few pounds of mountain produce from Huo Ling’s stall and hired a servant to deliver it to his residence. Just as he was saying he would host a luncheon for Huo Ling and the others, Liao Dehai and Ge Yi finally arrived.

Seeing that the “Lantern Stand” was still there, the two men breathed a sigh of relief. They first solemnly thanked Huo Ling, then waved their hands grandly and declared, “Brother Huo, we’ll take every last bit of those mountain goods from your stall!”

━━ 🐈‍⬛ ━━

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