CHAPTER 270: CHAPTER 267: ENCOUNTERING TIDAL GATHERERS

Lin Wanwan heard Xiao Yixun say this and replied with a smile, "Great, when a friend comes from afar, there is joy indeed. Let’s go back together first."

Then she looked at Hua Nong and said, "Hua Nong, you’re awake. How are you feeling?"

Hua Nong’s face was still somewhat pale as she replied, "My lady, I’m okay."

Then everyone searched nearby for a bit, but could not find Shuqi, which made Lin Wanwan feel a bit heavy-hearted.

Xiao Chong checked the traces in the bamboo forest and came out, saying to Lin Wanwan, "Let’s go, I’ll send you back first."

"No need, cousin. You still need to send people to look for Shuqi and investigate the truth; surely you’re quite busy. Let’s split up and each handle our own matters."

Xiao Chong pondered for a moment and said, "Alright, then be careful on the road."

Regarding the investigation, Lin Wanwan couldn’t offer much help for now; it would certainly require the government’s strength to investigate.

All weapons in the Great Tang were required to have the craftsman’s name and year inscribed. The arrows on the ground yesterday were collected by the ambushers, but the one in the medicine box was in their hands, now serving as solid evidence.

After separating from Xiao Chong, Lin Wanwan led Xiao Yixun over mountains toward Lin Family Manor, with Hua Nong being carried by a burly bearded man.

During the journey, Lin Wanwan chatted with Xiao Yixun and learned that in order to come to Mao County to find her, she had traveled for over three months—a feat worth admiring. No wonder she was dusty all over, and her jewelry was gone, probably sold along the way for money.

Lin Wanwan really admired Xiao Yixun’s action, leaving home and taking off on a whim in Great Tang wasn’t easy after all.

Without passes, large cities couldn’t be entered, big ships couldn’t be boarded; one had to tread through remote mountains and paths, and it was no wonder she got lost.

Perhaps just slightly better than modern times without phones or codes; at least in Great Tang, you could find some loopholes in rural towns.

In modern times, without codes, one couldn’t move an inch. Many criminals would turn themselves in because they couldn’t even buy food or use the restroom.

After crossing the last hillside, Lin Family Manor was within sight. Though Lin Wanwan experienced a life-and-death scare last night, none of her clan knew, only thinking she’d stayed overnight at East Lake Village.

Travel and communication in Great Tang were inconvenient, so news naturally didn’t spread quickly. In modern times, it would only take a phone call; in Great Tang, delivering a message was much harder.

Lin Mengxing’s family was still anxiously waiting for news, rare in Great Tang’s rural areas for the maternal family to stay with the husband’s family during childbirth.

Firstly, to avoid conflicts, and secondly, to prevent misunderstandings, since once a daughter marries, she belongs to the husband’s family, and her maternal family is merely outsiders.

Therefore, even with such dangerous situations yesterday, Lin Mengxing’s family was all anxious and upset, yet didn’t follow along.

At this moment, seeing Lin Wanwan appear on the village road, Lin Yinshi, who had been waiting anxiously at the village entrance for news, rushed forward once she saw Lin Wanwan and asked urgently, "Wanwan, you’re back. Is my son alright?"

Lin Wanwan assured her with a smile, "Auntie, don’t worry, Juhua gave birth to a son last night. Both mother and son are safe."

"Amitabha! Amitabha! That’s good! That’s good! Thank you! Thank you! I’ll go and offer incense and fulfill my vow to Guanyin!" Lin Yinshi clasped her hands and kept chanting.

Lin Wanwan didn’t say much more to Lin Yinshi. Having been exposed to the elements and exhausted from yesterday, she had to go back to clean up properly, and Hua Nong along with the dusty Xiao Yixun and others needed rest.

After walking a few steps, she encountered a group of clan women and children who had returned from the morning tide. They saw Lin Wanwan and asked curiously, "Teacher Lin, what’s wrong with Hua Nong? Why is she being carried? Did she hurt her foot?"

Hua Nong responded herself, "I hit my head. My lady has treated it, no big deal."

Lin Wanwan didn’t want to talk about the events of last night, so she simply nodded along with Hua Nong’s words.

If she told the truth, they wouldn’t be able to leave anytime soon. She just wanted to clean up well and rest for a while.

People curiously glanced at the burly bearded man with white eyes, whereas the entirely white Xiao Yixun, with a gauze veil, did not attract outsiders’ attention.

As for the plain-looking mute girl, she naturally didn’t stand out; Lin Family Manor folks now consider themselves quite knowledgeable, having seen many noblewomen. The girl with the gauze veil was clearly a maid, nothing special to inquire about.

Lin Qinshi, carrying a basket, caught up to Lin Wanwan joyfully, "Wanwan, today’s the fifteenth, tide’s retreating greatly. We went to the sea to dig for sea goods. I gathered some sea clams, spicy conchs, and two sea oysters, all your favorites. Once cleaned, they’ll be brought to you."

Lin Wanwan glanced at the basket she was carrying, and indeed, it contained a lot of sea goods, making her happy, "That’s great."

Then she addressed the others, "Today’s harvest, as before, if you’re keeping it for yourself, feel free to keep it. The rest, sell it to me."

"Teacher Lin, why talk about selling? Take as much as you want to eat, they’re all worthless sea items."

"Teacher Lin, once we clean them up, we’ll send them to you!"

Everyone said their usual nice words, their faces always beaming.

In the past, during big tides, few people were interested. Selling didn’t fetch much and took time; there was much more to be gained by weaving cloth than bothering with fishing nets.

It was Lin Wanwan’s interest in such shellfish that made everyone take it seriously.

At first, they delivered the sea goods freely to Lin Wanwan after catching them, treating it as a token of affection. Later, Lin Wanwan started paying for them, saying these items were sold to the town nobility, who liked them, which made everyone take notice.

Every first and fifteenth, during the low tide, families’ women and children would carry baskets to the sea beach revealed by receding water and dig for sea goods.

Most of them were sold to Jie Yuting from the modern era; Tang nobility had little interest in these.

But one item Lin Wanwan hyped up recently was sea oysters.

Lin Wanwan hosted several banquets, using sea oysters as treats, and did a scientific introduction to the noblewomen she knew, saying sea oysters could boost male vitality!

Sea oysters, also known as oysters and mollusks, are mentioned in the Pharmacopoeia as able to "settle and calm the spirit, suppress the yin and support the yang, soften and disperse knots, and astringently secure, used for palpitations and insomnia, dizziness and tinnitus, scrofula and phlegm cough, abdominal symptoms and tightness, spontaneous and night sweats, spermatorrhea and collapse, gastric acid reflux."

The Food Secretary states: "Cool the heat, harmonize the middle, refining the skin, and beautifying the complexion."

Overall, nutritious and plentiful benefits.

Lin Wanwan seized upon its most characteristic feature—boosting male vitality—and advertised it extensively.

From ancient times to the present, this topic remains ever-popular.

With Lin Wanwan’s "Divine Doctor" reputation and medical experience learned from Immortal Sun, people naturally believed her words.

Therefore, sea oysters were first hyped among Mao County’s upper class and then quickly caught on with the other classes.

But now it is May, not the best time to eat sea oysters.

This season, sea oysters are maturing, preparing for spawning, so the taste is not as good, and Lin Wanwan has stopped purchasing. Therefore, fewer were pried this time.

October to March in the solar calendar is the best time to eat sea oysters.