Plotting with You: The Forensic Scientist in Ancient Times!-Chapter 477 - 476: The One That Got Away

"That’s not impossible; we do plan to rest here for a while and are not in a rush to leave." Lu Qing told the Shopkeeper where they were staying, "If your boss arrives, please send me a message. I genuinely wish to make his acquaintance."

"No problem, of course, no problem." The Shopkeeper quickly agreed readily; after all, running a witchcraft medicine shop was still a business, and regardless of how elusive the boss was, treating money like dirt, he and the apprentices still needed to eat. Such a God of Wealth seemed to have some prestige and was so forthcoming. The Shopkeeper thought that if he could help his boss forge this connection, it would indeed be a fine opportunity.

Since the conversation was about done, Lu Qing stood and prepared to leave, while the rune reached down to pick up the wooden boxes from the ground.

"Dear guest, wait!" Seeing this, the Shopkeeper quickly stopped Lu Qing, "You don’t intend to just walk out with these things, do you?"

"Why not?" Lu Qing looked at the Shopkeeper with suspicion, then at the rune, "Are you worried these items are too valuable to just walk down the street openly, fearing small-time thieves may take an interest?"

"No need to worry; my attendant is quite skilled at fighting, and dealing with ordinary thieves shouldn’t be a problem. The Shopkeeper doesn’t need to worry about anything untoward."

"It’s not that I’m worried about thieves... the items you bought today would be worthless to thieves even if they managed to steal them." The Shopkeeper waved, "The main concern is that such valuable items might attract the attention of those with malicious intent, causing you unnecessary trouble."

"Master, what the Shopkeeper said makes sense, but how are we supposed to carry these items?" The rune put the wooden boxes back on the ground and spread his hands, asking Lu Qing, "We can’t just take the treasures inside, wrap them in paper, and stuff them in our arms, can we?"

"That... seems indeed inappropriate..." The Shopkeeper rubbed his hands; he never sold so many precious herbs at once, and was at a bit of a loss.

After thinking for a while, he had an idea, calling an apprentice to bring a piece of cloth over to wrap the wooden boxes into a bundle.

While the apprentice was busy laying out the cloth and placing the boxes inside, Zhu Yu’s nose gently twitched as she detected a familiar scent that she had smelled not long ago at the Immortal Castle previously overtaken in Lan Country.

The cloth had a fragrance identical to the scent used by the thieves in the Immortal Castle to resist the seductive fragrance, though faint. If the apprentice hadn’t shaken the cloth vigorously to spread it out, Zhu Yu might not have caught it from such a distance.

Zhu Yu always trusted her sense of smell and rarely got it wrong once she smelled something.

So she immediately stepped forward to halt the apprentice’s actions.

The Shopkeeper looked at Zhu Yu with some surprise, and the apprentice, too, was confused as to why the Divine Doctor’s little apprentice behaved this way, momentarily at a loss. 𝙛𝓻𝒆𝒆𝒘𝙚𝓫𝙣𝙤𝒗𝙚𝓵.𝙘𝙤𝙢

"Master, there’s a fragrance on this cloth!" Zhu Yu grabbed the cloth and handed it to Lu Qing, "You said once that herbs shouldn’t be packed with fragrant materials, or they might mix with the herb’s own scent and potentially affect the efficacy!"

Standing a bit further away at first, Lu Qing hadn’t noticed the scent, but now, as Zhu Yu handed the cloth to him, the familiar scent wafted into his nostrils and triggered a slight movement of his brow, even as his expression remained mostly calm.

The Shopkeeper initially didn’t understand what suddenly possessed the Divine Doctor’s little apprentice, but upon hearing Zhu Yu’s words, he sighed in relief, chuckling as he waved at both her and Lu Qing: "Ah, so that’s your concern!

No problem, no problem; your master is right, but the faint scent on this cloth shouldn’t matter.

The boss brought the herbs with this cloth before, and they arrived in perfect condition without impact.

Furthermore, there’s a layer of a wooden box inside, so there’s nothing to worry about!"

Lu Qing seemed somewhat hesitant and smelled the scent on the cloth again: "Are you sure there’s no issue? What’s the incense used on this cloth?"

This question stumped the Shopkeeper, who hesitated before giving an embarrassed smile: "Ah, I’m not quite sure, but the boss came with it, and the scent was even stronger back then.

It’s been kept aside for some time now, and the fragrance has dissipated significantly.

There was no problem when the boss brought the herbs, so you can rest assured! Should there be any issue, my large shop won’t be getting out of it, and you’re welcome to seek compensation if need be."

"Previously did your boss use this cloth to wrap the same items I bought?" Lu Qing asked.

This time, the Shopkeeper responded with caution, took out the order sheet, looked at it carefully, and relaxed: "Rest assured, dear guest, some of these items are within here, and there are even more delicate and fragile herbs at risk unless handled with utmost care, and they were delivered without issue.

So you can set your mind at ease!"

Upon hearing this, Lu Qing didn’t insist further and nodded, indicating for the rune to assist.

The rune took the cloth over and helped the apprentice bundle up the wooden boxes tightly inside, concealing them completely from view.

The Shopkeeper, along with several apprentices, politely escorted Lu Qing and the others to the shop’s entrance, repeatedly promised to send someone to inform Lu Qing should the boss arrive, and with this assurance, they parted ways, heading back to the inn.

Following all this hassle, the sun had begun to set, and the streets were sparsely populated, with street vendors looking rather dispirited.

The three of them walked through the streets, especially the rune carrying such a large bundle, although unseen, still attracted considerable attention, prompting curiosity from passersby.

"Are they still behind us?" After they had walked halfway down the street, Zhu Yu couldn’t help but move closer to Lu Qing, and asked quietly.

"Yes." Lu Qing nodded slightly. "They’re not very close, but they haven’t stopped."

"So now we can say we’ve sprung Yan Daoxin’s bait alive?"

"For the most part, yes." Lu Qing’s eyes were deep, "However, compared to those matters, this piece of cloth is indeed the ’great treasure’ we’ve accidentally found today.

The ’fish’ that previously escaped the net may now be caught by us."/>