Transmigrated Genius: Fragile Heiress Reigns Supreme-Chapter 505 - 509: Joyous Event (Part 3)

Before Bihuai could speak, Bihuai furrowed her brows and said, "She can not only smell and name herbs but can even tell the order in which they’re used medicinally on several occasions!"

This truly was a skill; even if someone practiced deliberately, they might not achieve such expertise.

Suddenly, Xiqiu thought, perhaps cutting out a section in the pharmacy to make herbal cuisine, supplying different herbal dishes daily for different groups, might become widely popular.

Herbal cuisine is different from medicine; not everyone needs to take medicine. People without illnesses won’t go to a pharmacy to get a prescription, but herbal cuisine is different. In winter, it can cool; in summer, it can nourish; in autumn, it can moisten the lungs; and in spring, it can rejuvenate. It’s needed each season. If promoted to the public, the market potential must be significant.

She immediately began calculating this in her mind. The cost of herbal cuisine is naturally lower than that of Chinese medicine, and the profit would be relatively higher. The shop is already established; it could cater to dine-in, take-out, or even delivery. The more she thought about it, the more feasible it seemed.

In the evening, she and Min were each leaning on one side of the kang table. Min was practicing calligraphy, tracing the characters, while she took a pen and noted down the pharmacy’s operation patterns and business methods. She even detailed the potential issues they might face in operations.

For instance, currently, there are roughly two kinds of visitors. One group consists of patients who come specifically for Ruan Jingliu’s consultation; after the consultation, they leave a fee and coincidentally buy medicine from the pharmacy. The other group simply brings prescriptions from household doctors to fetch medicine for decoction. As they have just opened and have no reputation yet, the first type naturally outnumbers the second type.

However, due to the location of the clinic, most visitors are commoners, so the consultation fees are low, and the prescriptions do not likely include expensive herbs. Thus, the pharmacy’s revenue and profit aren’t high.

But what if other services were introduced, like setting up a separate herbal cuisine counter? Selling a bowl of herbal cuisine at a lower price for higher volume could allow common folks, who can’t afford ginseng or expensive herbs, to enjoy a bowl of ginseng porridge by spending several copper coins. This satisfies their need for nourishment and is economical. Additionally, collaborations with various taverns could provide a specialized supply channel, opening a new marketing avenue.

Combining operations mutually promotes the market without departing from the fundamental purposes of medicine and healthcare provided by the clinic.

Lower profit margins with high sales volume; multiple sales channels; rapid market expansion boosting the brand’s reputation through extensive herbal cuisine offerings; furthermore, specific herbal ingredients could be packaged and sold together. Those with better conditions could directly buy the ingredients for home preparation.

Xiqiu thought about it and started to smile. Although this would make the pharmacy and clinic less pure, she believed that’s the nature of business—maintaining professional integrity while earning a profit.

It was just unknown if Ruan Jingliu would agree.

Fourth Master Xiao strode in, and Xiqiu put down her pen and went over to greet him. "Fourth Master, have you had dinner?" While helping him take off his outer robe, she handed him the tea Chunliu had brewed.

Min called out, "Father!" Fourth Master Xiao nodded, sat down where Xiqiu had just been sitting, and said, "Just got back from the Five Army Camps. Huang Da took up his post today at the West Mountain Camp, and we had a drink at the Hongyan Building."

No wonder there was a scent of alcohol on him.

"What are you doing?" Fourth Master Xiao turned to look at the kang table filled with tiny neat characters on Xuan paper. The writing was delicate and beautiful to look at. He picked it up and read it seriously. Xiqiu smiled and said, "I heard from Sister Jingliu that although a lot of people visit the pharmacy, the profit is very low. So I was thinking of ways to improve it while I had some free time."

"Hmm." Fourth Master Xiao nodded, flipping another page, and only after finishing the last page did he raise his head, full of admiration, "Very good idea. Did you come up with all this?" 𝒇𝙧𝙚𝓮𝔀𝓮𝒃𝙣𝓸𝒗𝒆𝒍.𝙘𝒐𝒎

Xiqiu then brought hot water to soak his feet, crouched down to remove his boots, but Fourth Master Xiao set aside the paper and did it himself, putting his feet into the water, and said to Xiqiu, "You sit and rest."

Xiqiu sat down beside Min, replying, "It’s not certain if it will work, and there’s Sister Jingliu. After all, once it starts like this, the clinic will become less pure. Sister Jingliu might not agree."

"She won’t!" Fourth Master Xiao smiled broadly, "She’s not a stickler for old ways; feel free to talk to her!"

Xiqiu thought Fourth Master Xiao made sense and nodded, "Then I’ll talk to her tomorrow."

Fourth Master Xiao flipped through the papers again, realizing this method could apply to many places. He looked up at Xiqiu and said, "There are numerous shops and fields in the house; if you don’t mind, have someone make a copy of these and send it to the outer courtyard for Housekeeper Hu to see tomorrow."

"Sure." Xiqiu nodded. Fourth Master Xiao, with a quick glance, was able to infer and apply the concept elsewhere, not only grasping the meaning but instantly adapting it to other areas. Compared to her compiling these ideas based on knowledge and memories from a previous life, he was much smarter.

Min was sitting on the side, occasionally sneaking glances at Fourth Master Xiao, then cautiously observing Xiqiu. Seeing Xiqiu smile, he lowered his head and smiled too. Xiqiu patted his head and asked, "Finished writing? What’s so funny?"

Min stiffened, "Fin... finished." He quickly glanced at Fourth Master Xiao after speaking.

With clarity on the pharmacy’s business plan, Xiqiu felt good, playfully gave a quick kiss on Min’s cheek, and cheerfully said, "Hurry up to wash and go to bed then."

Min nodded in agreement, and Xiqiu called for Dongling and Min’s nanny to pack Min’s things. Erquan would leave the house every afternoon. Xiqiu was concerned if he returned too late, Jin Dairui would worry. With the clinic opening these days, Erquan would go directly from the house to the pharmacy, and even Yiquan, apprenticed under Steward Liu, would visit to help whenever he could.

Fourth Master Xiao glanced at Min, and after seeing him leave, said, "He’s already four years old!" implying that she shouldn’t kiss his cheek.

Xiqiu burst into laughter, looking at Fourth Master Xiao’s strange expression, and said with a laugh, "Fourth Master should say, he’s only four years old!" Fourth Master Xiao’s mouth twitched, but he said nothing.

On the second day, Xiqiu had Chunyan make a copy and send it to Housekeeper Hu, then brought in Ruan Jingliu and Tianyi, and presented her ideas. Tianyi was very excited, saying many things, and to Xiqiu’s surprise, Ruan Jingliu didn’t object either. She said, "From the moment we partnered, it was already more than a simple clinic. Furthermore, since we invested money in opening a shop, it’s only natural to want to recoup the costs. Why would I oppose it?" She paused, then said to Xiqiu and Tianyi, "However, I’ll only handle the medical matters; the rest is up to you two to manage."

"No problem!" Tianyi thumped his chest confidently and said, "Based on what the Lady says, I know what to do now. I’ll discuss it with Sixth Master Luo when I get back!"