TTLJDFL Chapter 61

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Qin Muwen's face was so red that it seemed like it could drip water, and even his fingertips were soft.

But Li Jin held his hand, giving him no chance to retreat.

Qin Muwen simply buried his face in Li Jin's neck, closed his eyes, and refused to look at anything.

Rubbing against the lingering warmth of Li Jin’s freshly bathed skin, his fingers moved slowly.

This kind of thing could be learned without a teacher. At first, Qin Muwen was a bit clumsy, but after being guided by Li Jin for a moment, he gradually got the hang of it himself.

Qin Muwen felt ashamed of how quickly he was learning.

Li Jin, however, remained silent. In the quiet room, the only sounds were the occasional crackle of the oil lamp and their breathing.

After a long while, Qin Muwen sneaked a glance at Li Jin’s expression and found that the man actually looked completely composed—not blushing at all…

After changing his pants, Li Jin quickly rinsed off again. By the time he returned, Qin Muwen had already turned his back to him, exposing a slender, fair neck.

Li Jin knew he was feeling shy, so he simply lay down and pulled him into his arms.

"Sweet dreams."

===

The next day, Li Jin only brought fifteen hawthorn pills to Xinglintang.

Before he could explain, Doctor Wu asked, "Have you been too exhausted from refining medicine lately? You must take care of your health."

Li Jin didn’t mention that he had run out of hawthorn. After all, he was still relying on these digestive pills to make money, and he wasn’t ready to share the formula just yet.

He responded vaguely, "Today, let's see how many patients buy them voluntarily. There are thirty-nine pills left in total. If they sell out by noon, I'll come by then to discuss a formal collaboration with the shopkeeper."

Hearing this, Doctor Wu's expression became serious, and he nodded. "Alright."

Not long after Li Jin left, a customer who had bought only four pills yesterday came rushing in.

"Do you have any more digestive pills? My child is finally willing to eat!"

The man hurriedly took eight more.

Doctor Wu and Zhou Gui exchanged glances, both seeing excitement in each other's eyes.

If the pills sold well, Xinglintang's reputation would grow, and they would both receive higher wages.

By noon, when Li Jin returned, the shopkeeper was already waiting in the inner hall.

After hearing Doctor Wu’s report on the effectiveness and sales of the "digestive pills," the shopkeeper was so shocked that he couldn’t even wait to invite Li Jin for a meal—he immediately wanted to discuss the pills.

The shopkeeper had even prepared paper and ink, eager to sign an agreement with Li Jin as soon as possible.

Since this involved money, having a formal contract was the cautious approach.

The shopkeeper said, "The current pricing is good. I heard from Doctor Wu that the pills require two main ingredients—Jiao San Xian and Shen Qu. How about this? My shop will provide the herbs, and you can take as much as you need.

"Of course, I know these two herbs are quite cheap, and you are the only one capable of refining the medicine. So, let's split the profits 80-20—I take 20%, and you take 80%. How does that sound?"

Li Jin didn’t dare accept such generosity outright.

He replied, "An 80-20 split would be too favorable for me. Although hawthorn is the main cost, Xinglintang is taking on the market risk. Let’s make it a 70-30 split—that would be fairer."

The shopkeeper looked at Li Jin and thought, This young man is truly not swayed by personal gain. He’s destined for great things.

Unfortunately, his small shop wouldn’t be able to contain such talent for long.

In the end, they drafted a contract and both signed and sealed it, keeping a copy each.

The agreement stated that Li Jin would supply Xinglintang with a minimum of thirty digestive pills per day for the next year. If he produced more, he would naturally earn more.

That afternoon, Li Jin contacted the orchard owner, who promised to deliver the hawthorn that evening.

When the two hundred catties of hawthorn arrived, they were piled up in a corner of the study. Li Jin took out his prepared herbs and began grinding them with a mortar and pestle.

Meanwhile, Qin Muwen was in the kitchen processing sugar blocks and making syrup.

Li Jin thought to himself: The pills could be dried and stored, but fresh hawthorn couldn’t be kept for long. Since they had no cellar at home, all the finished pills would have to be sent to Xinglintang, where proper storage was available.

The two hundred catties of hawthorn had cost him one tael of silver and could yield around six thousand digestive pills. Li Jin could make at most 180 pills per day.

With the shopkeeper now supplying the medicinal herbs, producing 30 pills required 15 copper coins in costs.

For 180 pills, that meant 90 copper coins in expenses.

But if all were sold, they would bring in 360 copper coins. With Li Jin receiving 70% of the profits, he would earn 252 copper coins.

After deducting the costs, his net profit would be 162 copper coins per day.

If he processed all the hawthorn in a month, he would make a total net profit of five taels of silver!

While this wasn't enough to buy a house in town yet, at least his household finances were no longer running at a deficit.

Additionally, grinding the herbs and hawthorn was a form of physical training for him.

Doctor Wu had assumed that producing 30 pills per day was Li Jin’s limit. When he saw Li Jin return the next day with nearly 200 pills, he was completely stunned.

Is it really possible to mass-produce medicine like this?

For the entire month of September, Li Jin was busy with the digestive pills. Apart from a few batches that were ruined, he eventually processed all 200 catties of hawthorn.

The shopkeeper immediately paid him—over eight taels of silver in total. Of course, this was the gross income; he had spent about three taels on sugar and hawthorn.

Still, this was the first time Qin Muwen’s personal savings had ever exceeded ten taels of silver.

Every night before bed, he would pat the mattress near the foot of the bed and then solemnly place his small money pouch on top.

Seeing this, Li Jin chuckled and said, "You're this happy just because you have ten taels of silver?"

Qin Muwen nodded. "Now we have the travel funds for your exam in the county next February."

Li Jin pinched his cheek and asked, "Didn’t you think about buying yourself some warm winter clothes?"

Qin Muwen blinked. "I don’t really need them, do I? I'll be staying indoors all winter, and we have the kang (heated bed) now."

Li Jin thought to himself, Even with a heated bed, he won’t be inside all the time.

He should go to the cloth shop to inquire about the price of cotton-padded clothes soon. It would be best to have a circle of white fur trim. When the young boy wears it, only his small face will be exposed, and he will surely look adorable.

A few days later, Li Dahe asked Li Jin to come to his house to collect a chicken cage and a pile of toys for Little Bun.

Qin Muwen looked at the toys, dimples appearing deeply on his cheeks.

Li Jin said, “He can't play with them now, but he will be able to when he grows up.”

Qin Muwen took the initiative to hug Li Jin’s waist, burying his face against him. “Mm.”

To meet such a man in this lifetime—how fortunate.

Qin Muwen had not been idle these past few days either. He tied the persimmons he had knocked down with hemp rope and hung them upside down on the kitchen beam.

Li Jin, whenever he had a moment of leisure, would secretly pick one and eat it.

Qin Muwen, however, refrained, saying, “Persimmons are the sweetest and best when the snow falls.”

Li Jin didn’t understand the principle behind this, but farm experience generally wasn’t wrong.

So, he followed the young boy’s lead and waited until it snowed.

The persimmons had thin skins, were small in size but bright red in color. A gentle pull would easily peel off the skin. Eating them one by one, with the distant snowy mountains as a backdrop, brought a sense of tranquility.

By now, Li Jin’s painting skills were refined enough to be proudly displayed. The young boy had a small mouth but insisted on eating the persimmons like Li Jin—one bite at a time—causing his cheeks to puff up adorably.

Li Jin captured the moment in a painting, rolled it up, and stored it in the scroll tube in his study.

As the weather grew colder, the five chickens at home huddled together to keep warm.

Li Jin used old clothes that no one could wear anymore to make a curtain for the chicken cage, trapping the warmth inside and ensuring they could pass the winter safely.

Li Zhuzi often called on Li Jin to go up the mountain together to collect firewood when the weather permitted.

One reason was to have company and look out for each other; the other was that both their families had installed ground heating, which consumed a lot of firewood. The wood they had gathered at the end of autumn was far from sufficient.

Li Zhuzi often said, “Children are here to collect debts. If it weren’t for my youngest being too little, I wouldn’t have even bothered lighting the ground heating.”

Li Jin simply smiled and said nothing. Despite constantly voicing a preference for sons, Li Zhuzi treated his second daughter fairly well.

He was even planning to make her a new cotton-padded coat for the winter—at least he wasn’t excessively biased.

On the night of the fifth snowfall, Hongyan Village finally welcomed the Lunar New Year.

Earlier, Li Jin had written spring couplets and "Fu" characters for the entire village. In past years, the village chief had always done this, but since Li Jin’s reputation in town had grown, the villagers were eager to share in the luck of the “Wenchang Star’s favored one.”

One by one, they lined up, waiting for him.

That day, the village chief smoked his pipe and smiled, saying, “This old man can finally take a break.”

Although the village chief said this, Li Jin still asked him to write a “Fu” character for their home.

As the saying goes, "Good fortune arrives." It was best to have someone respected and esteemed in the village write such a character.

Meanwhile, Li Jin wrote two pairs of festive spring couplets for his own home, making the New Year atmosphere even stronger.

On this day of family celebration, Li Jin and Qin Muwen prepared radish and pork rib soup, braised pork, stir-fried shredded potatoes, cabbage stewed with vermicelli, and small fish-shaped cabbage and pork dumplings handmade by Qin Muwen—a grand feast.

They placed the food on the storage cabinet where Li Jin used to practice calligraphy. With the ground heating warming the house, Li Jin opened a jar of osmanthus wine that the village chief had gifted him. Pouring a cup for the young boy, he asked, “Do you know how to drink?”

Qin Muwen slowly shook his head. During their wedding, they were supposed to drink a nuptial cup, but neither of them had paid much attention to the ritual.

Li Jin said, “Then just try a little.”

Qin Muwen imitated Li Jin, downing the cup in one go. The fiery sensation burned his throat, and he endured it for a long time before finally recovering.

His fair face quickly turned a rosy peach color from the alcohol, and his eyes glistened with moisture.

Seeing his state, Li Jin forbade him from drinking any more and instead drank cup after cup himself, finishing the whole jar.

In his past life, Li Jin had a decent alcohol tolerance. The original host of this body also drank often, and osmanthus wine had a low alcohol content, so even after finishing the entire jar, Li Jin was merely tipsy—not drunk.

Feeling slightly intoxicated, Li Jin reflected that he had already been in this world for six months. He had long since developed a sense of belonging. He cared for and cherished his wife and child.

For them, he would give his all to pursue scholarly success.

Just a few days after the New Year, the county posted an announcement stating that candidates intending to participate in the county examination this year could bring their name tags to the county office to collect their registration forms.

The registration form required details such as name, place of origin, age, and family relations.

Additionally, a guarantor’s letter was needed, signed by four people from the same village and one scholar. The original requirement was for a government-sponsored scholar (a “stipend student”), but the new emperor had abolished this restriction, allowing any scholar to be a guarantor—meaning Mr. Song was eligible.

On the fifth day of the Lunar New Year, Chen Xiran and Li Jin set off for the county town.

Of course, with Young Master Chen’s connections, Li Jin got to ride in a covered ox cart.

Inside the cart, two chests were placed side by side. Li Jin’s was custom-made by Li Dahe, similar to those sold in the market, with many compartments.

Li Jin packed his spare clothes and books. This trip would last three days, marking his first real journey away from home

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