pjbooks Chapter 55: The 9.9 Yuan Life-Sustaining Water and the Anxiety of Capital
Chapter 55: The 9.9 Yuan Life-Sustaining Water and the Anxiety of Capital
The roller shutter door of Renxin Pharmacy was pushed up with a "whoosh." Guan Shan yawned, still holding the iconic stainless steel basin in his hand, which was filled with glutinous rice chicken today.
He stood like a guardian deity at the doorway and casually slapped a red paper notice with black characters onto the glass door.
[Renxin Qi-Boosting Tea, limited to 500 servings daily, two packs per person. Price: NT$9.9. Note: The taste is extremely poor; if you dislike it, please turn right and buy milk tea.]
The calligraphy was written by Wang Minyu in a wild, cursive style, exuding an arrogant "take it or leave it" attitude.
Li Siyuan and Zhao Na, sporting dark circles under their eyes resembling those of pandas, were frantically packing things up behind the counter.
The kraft paper bags were piled up like a mountain, and the air was filled with a strange smell—a mixture of the coolness of mutated mint, the beany smell of astragalus, and the unique earthy smell of angelica.
It smells bad, even a bit pungent, but after smelling it for a while, your originally drowsy head will inexplicably clear up.
"Senior, is this really going to work?" Zhao Na muttered under her breath as she pressed the sealing machine down, "Nine yuan and ninety cents, we can barely afford the packaging bags. Although Kangmei's 'Zhuangyuan Pill' next door got some criticism, they're a big company. Their PR department issued three statements last night, saying it was due to 'individual differences,' and they even hired online trolls to whitewash it."
Li Siyuan's hands didn't stop as he stuffed a packet of powder into a bag: "Master said we don't sell packaging, we sell our lives. Look outside."
Zhao Na looked up.
A long line had already formed outside the door.
The first person in line wasn't an elderly man or woman, but a food delivery guy wearing a yellow vest.
He hadn't even taken off his helmet, his face was covered in dust, and the bloodshot eyes were as dense as a spider web.
"Doctor, two packets, please." The deliveryman's voice was hoarse as he took out his phone to scan a QR code. "I worked all night last night, and now my heart is pounding, I feel like I'm going to die suddenly. I heard from the guys in the group that you guys have 'life-saving water,' so I made a special detour to come here."
Li Siyuan handed over two warm paper packets: "Dissolve them in warm water, not boiling water, as it will damage the active ingredients. After drinking them, find a place to nap for ten minutes."
The deliveryman took the bag, tore open a packet on the spot, and drank it down with the warm water from the thermos.
The next second, his facial features contorted into a grimace.
"Holy crap..." the guy gagged, his face instantly turning red. "This taste... like chewing moldy tree bark mixed with Tiger Balm."
People at the back of the line craned their necks, and some began to have second thoughts.
However, only half a minute later.
The young man, who had been hunched over, suddenly straightened up, shook his head violently, and let out a long breath. That breath formed a white mist in the cold air, lingering for a long time.
"Amazing!" The young man touched his chest, the cloudiness in his eyes clearing away, replaced by a strange excitement. "My heart isn't racing anymore, and my head isn't buzzing. This isn't tea; it's charging a battery!"
He gave Li Siyuan a thumbs up, got on his electric scooter, twisted the throttle, and the scooter shot off like an arrow.
"Give me two packs!"
"Me too! I'm a taxi driver!"
"Me too, I'm a senior in high school, I was so tired of doing practice problems last night!"
The crowd erupted in cheers.
On the recliner behind the counter, Wang Minyu had his eyes closed, twirling two walnuts in his hands—these were "antiques" that Qian Dafa had given him yesterday, supposedly worth tens of thousands of yuan, which he now used as stress-relieving toys.
The mood value on the system panel is fluctuating wildly.
[Received 50 gratitude points (from deliveryman Li)]
[Gained Shock Value +20 (from Passerby A)]
[Gained 10 suspicion points (from a spy at the neighboring Kangmei Pharmacy)]
"The chives are growing well," Wang Minyu muttered, turning over in bed.
He hasn't been seeing a doctor properly these past few days; he's been spending all his time doing "agricultural production" in the backyard.
The mutated medicinal herbs produced by the system grow at an astonishing rate, but they also consume a lot of resources.
He had to convert all the emotional points he harvested each day into "spiritual liquid" to nourish the eager astragalus and angelica.
This "farming" lifestyle brought him a long-lost sense of peace.
Meanwhile, on the top floor of Kangmei Building in Changxiang City's CBD.
Zhao Dezhu smashed his newly bought limited edition phone onto the marble floor, shattering the screen into a spiderweb pattern.
"Nine yuan and ninety cents? Is he crazy?" Zhao Dezhu pointed at the city outside the floor-to-ceiling window, veins bulging on his neck. "This is dumping! This is unfair competition! Our 'Top Scholar Pill' sells for 688 yuan a bottle, but the cost is 200 yuan. He's selling it for 9.9? Is it filled with flour?"
Sun Botong sat on the leather sofa, holding a purple clay teapot in his hand, his face so gloomy it could drip water.
The rotten sweetness emanating from him was masked by a stronger cologne, but upon closer inspection, a hint of nauseating undertones remained.
"It's not flour." Sun Botong took a sip of tea, his voice hoarse. "I had someone buy a packet and have it tested. Astragalus, angelica, and mint are all common medicinal herbs. But the activity of the ingredients... is ridiculously high. Especially the mint, the menthol content is twenty times that of ordinary mint. This kid has a special source."
"What should we do?" Zhao Dezhu paced back and forth anxiously. "Now everyone online is saying our medicine is poison and his tea is a miracle drug. If this continues, the stock price will plummet! The old man is already furious and is asking me when I can deal with this guy surnamed Wang."
Sun Botong put down his teacup, a cold glint flashing in his cloudy old eyes.
"Young man, you don't know the rules," Sun Botong sneered. "You get what you pay for; that's a common perception among consumers. Since he's selling it cheaply, we'll help him advertise why it's so cheap."
"You mean...?"
"Although Lao Zhao has been transferred from the Health Bureau, I have connections at the Quality Supervision Bureau." Sun Botong pulled a small bottle from his pocket containing some white powder. "Also, find a few professional 'debunking bloggers.' Don't young people these days believe in this stuff? Let them expose it in public; that's more effective than anything else."
Zhao Dezhu looked at the bottle, a cruel smile curling at the corner of his lips: "Old foxes are always shrewder. By the way, Old Sun, what about that 'supplier'..."
"Don't worry, he's cut off all his supplies." Sun Botong stood up, straightened the collar of his Zhongshan suit, and said, "Besides the wild vegetables he grows himself, he can't even buy a single licorice root. I want to see how long he can keep this 9.9 yuan business going."
Renxin Pharmacy.
As noon approached, the number of people in line not only didn't decrease, but actually increased.
Su Qing was holding a mop, expressionlessly cleaning up the footprints on the ground.
She wielded the mop as if she were dissecting a corpse, scrubbing every inch of the floor tiles until they shone brightly, startling the customers in line who had to walk on tiptoe.
"Boss, we're out of stock." Li Siyuan's voice was hoarse as he held up the empty crates. "The batch in the backyard was just harvested, and the next batch won't be available for another four hours."
"Then let's put it on the market and take a break." Wang Minyu sat up from the recliner, stretched, and said, "Don't you understand scarcity marketing? No one will cherish things that are too easy to get."
Just then, a black minivan pulled up to the side of the road.
The car door opened, and three people wearing white coats and carrying silver briefcases got out.
The leader was a middle-aged man wearing gold-rimmed glasses, with his hair slicked back and shiny. He had a sign hanging around his neck that read: "Wang Qiang, Special Expert of the Provincial Consumer Association".
Behind them were two people carrying cameras, and a social media influencer holding a phone and live-streaming – the blogger "Iron Head" who specializes in "violent reviews".
"Family! Today we've come to Renxin Pharmacy, which's been all over the news lately!" Tie Tou roared into the camera, spittle flying everywhere. "Nine-nine yuan tonic tea? Is it a conscientious business or a shady operation? Today we'll test it out on the spot! No sponsored content, just the truth!"
Wang Qiang pushed up his glasses, walked to the counter with a serious expression, and slammed his suitcase heavily on the table.
"We received a report that we suspect your products contain prohibited additives." Wang Qiang looked coldly at Wang Minyu. "Please cooperate with the inspection."
The air in the pharmacy seemed to freeze instantly.
The delivery guy who was drinking tea stopped what he was doing, and everyone's eyes were focused on the young man in a faded white lab coat behind the counter.
Wang Minyu glanced at the silver briefcase, then looked at the still-clamoring internet celebrity.
He picked up the teacup, took a sip of water, and then slowly spat out a mint leaf.
"You can have an examination," Wang Minyu said, pointing to the price list on the wall. "Registration fee is one hundred, then you'll have to wait in line."