Chapter 21: The First Side Hustle

"Brother Yu, I'm here!"

Not long after finishing lunch, Yu Hui was resting on a rocking chair behind the warehouse door. Seeing Hua Changxi arriving at this hour, he was startled. "Sister Changxi, why are you here so early?"

Hua Changxi smiled. "I was afraid of delaying your work, Brother Yu, so I came over as soon as I finished my chores."

Yu Hui widened his eyes. "You finished your chores?" Cleaning 500 medicinal herbs was no easy task.

Hua Changxi nodded. "Mhm, all done."

Yu Hui was somewhat amazed by her efficiency. Glancing at the sky, he asked, "Have you eaten lunch yet?"

Hua Changxi gave a shy smile but said nothing.

Seeing her like this, Yu Hui let out a long sigh. Ultimately, considering she was still young, he stood up and went to the adjacent room. Soon, he emerged holding a paper packet. "Take this and eat."

Hua Changxi took the packet. "What is this?" Opening it, a roasted chicken leg was revealed.

Yu Hui said, "This was meant to be my dinner. It's only because it's you, Sister; I wouldn't give it to anyone else."

Hua Changxi swallowed hard, re-wrapped the chicken leg, and handed it back to Yu Hui. "I can't eat your dinner, Brother Yu. Don't worry about me; I can handle being hungry."

Yu Hui's expression stiffened as he pushed the packet back toward her. "If I give it to you, eat it. Do you think your Brother Yu is someone who lacks a chicken leg to eat?"

Seeing his resolve, Hua Changxi stopped being polite and smiled as she opened the packet to eat.

The food in the Servants' Hall was plentiful and filling, but meat was rare—only once every ten days. To be honest, she was actually craving meat.

As she ate, Hua Changxi watched the others busy themselves in the warehouse. "Brother Yu, everyone else is working hard. Won't they have something to say if you're just resting here?"

Yu Hui gave a smug grin. "Sister, your Brother Yu is different from those people."

Curious, Hua Changxi asked, "How are you different?"

A look of pride appeared on Yu Hui's face. "Manager Yu, the warehouse supervisor, is your Brother Yu's father."

This was something Hua Changxi truly hadn't expected, and a look of surprise crossed her face.

Yu Hui's gaze was exceptionally serious at this moment. He did not miss any change in her expression. Seeing that she felt only surprise and no contempt, he continued

"Your Brother Yu is an orphan. Before entering the Servants' Hall, I was just a beggar in the capital. Anyone could come and bully me."

"Since I was a child, I knew that children without parents to look after them are the lowest of the low. So, I found a father for myself."

"With a father, I have a backer. With a backer, I finally have a foothold here in the warehouse."

Yu Hui looked at Hua Changxi with a smile. "The reason you can pick and choose herbs freely in the warehouse is because your Brother Yu chose his father well. Without this connection, you would have to process whatever herbs were assigned to you; you wouldn't have the luxury of picking and choosing."

Hua Changxi hadn't expected Yu Hui to have such a background. After a moment of thought, she said, "Brother Yu, you are very impressive."

Yu Hui laughed. "Don't you think adopting a eunuch as a father is a rather shameless thing to do?"

Hua Changxi knew that most of the time, only eunuchs would adopt older eunuchs as fathers. She sensed that Yu Hui likely harbored some internal conflict about it, so she immediately said, "Why say that? A eunuch is still a person, and as a person, one has the right to have a father."

This perspective was something Yu Hui had never considered before.

Even though no one dared to provoke him in his territory within the warehouse, he knew that everyone looked down on him in their hearts and avoided him whenever possible.

Even he, in his own heart, felt a sense of self-loathing.

In the past, he had comforted himself with the various benefits he gained from being backed by Manager Yu. Today, Sister Changxi's words gave him a sense of sudden enlightenment.

*Yes, so what if he's a eunuch? A eunuch is just a man with a defect. As a man, he has the right to be a father. Being Manager Yu's son is nothing to be ashamed of.*

The look in Yu Hui's eyes softened even further toward Hua Changxi. Just for those words she had spoken, the care he had shown her during this period felt worthwhile.

"Sister Changxi, no wonder you caught my eye. Today, Brother will pass on some life experience to you."

"When you're working in the Servants' Hall, 'face' is the least important thing. When it's time to let it go, do not hesitate for a second."

"Suffering for the sake of pride is a bloody lesson learned by countless servants. I'm telling you, the winner is the one who loses face but gains actual benefits."

Hua Changxi fell silent for a moment. "Can I have both the face and the benefits?"

Living was important. Living with dignity was also important.

Yu Hui widened his eyes. "Sister, you're a bit greedy, aren't you?"

Hua Changxi chuckled and said no more.

Seeing that Hua Changxi had nearly finished eating, Yu Hui stood up and led her into the warehouse.

There were hundreds of carts of medicinal herbs that needed to be reclassified and rearranged. At this moment, over a dozen servants were working hard in the warehouse, drenched in sweat.

When they saw Yu Hui leading a young lady in, several male servants immediately burst into laughter. Their laughter instantly drew the attention of the others.

"Go on, go on! This is my sister. What are you laughing at? Get back to work!"

"Brother Yu has a sister now? When can we find ourselves a sister too!"

Hua Changxi could clearly feel the ambiguous gazes of the people in the warehouse scanning her. For the sake of the *Commentary on the Classic of a Hundred Herbs*, she could only suppress her discomfort, repeatedly telling herself that she just had to endure it.

Yu Hui didn't care much about the male servants' teasing. On the contrary, he felt it gave him great face that a young lady had come all this way to help him with such sincerity.

Thus, Yu Hui only issued a few light scolds and did not strictly stop them, though he was secretly observing Hua Changxi's reaction.

It had only been two years since he had become Manager Yu's "son." In these two years, his life in the warehouse had indeed become much easier, but no young lady had ever proactively approached him like this.

Therefore, when Hua Changxi appeared before him, intentionally trying to please him by calling him "Big Brother" with every breath, even though he knew her motives were not pure, he found it quite gratifying.

He quite liked Sister Changxi's temperament; it was just that she was too young.

Yu Hui looked at Hua Changxi again. She was beautiful and they got along well. *Maybe... should I wait a few years for her?*

Lost in his wandering thoughts, Yu Hui led Hua Changxi to a pile of medicinal herbs.

After the laughter from the servants, Yu Hui felt the need to demonstrate his masculine strength to Hua Changxi. He said, "Sister, perhaps you shouldn't work. Your Brother Yu has plenty of strength."

Looking at the bundles of herbs, Hua Changxi smiled. "Didn't I come here to help you, Brother Yu? If I don't work, wouldn't it be a wasted trip?"

Without waiting for his response, she began moving the herbs according to their classifications.

A bundle of herbs weighed at least a hundred jin. Hua Changxi picked them up one by one with ease, carrying them to their designated locations with swift steps.

Watching this scene, the laughter in the warehouse gradually died down.

Having grown up as a beggar, Yu Hui was very sensitive to changes in people's emotions. Watching Hua Changxi working diligently, he keenly sensed that the earlier laughter had angered her.

*Why is she angry? Does Sister Changxi look down on me?*

Thinking of this possibility, Yu Hui felt a surge of irritation. He fell silent for a moment but ultimately said nothing and joined in the work.

Once the eyes lingering on her had moved away, Hua Changxi began to secretly taste the herbs she could reach while she moved them.

[Commentary on the Classic of a Hundred Herbs (Perfected): Tasting Herbs 1221/10000]

[Commentary on the Classic of a Hundred Herbs (Perfected): Tasting Herbs 1222/10000]

Watching the numbers continuously change, Hua Changxi's mood gradually shifted from sunny to cloudy.

While everyone was moving herbs, more servants arrived to bring new stock into the warehouse.

Yu Hui and the male servants had to go receive them. Because the workload had increased, no one was happy, and they were all grumbling under their breaths.

"Sister Changxi, take a rest for a bit. Continue when we get back."

As soon as they left, Hua Changxi began darting through the warehouse at high speed, tasting every herb she hadn't touched yet.

"Eh?"

Hua Changxi discovered a pile of withered herbs at the far end of the warehouse. As she approached, her pupils dilated in shock.

Among that pile of withered herbs, there was actually Spirit Essence Grass!

Spirit Essence Grass was a spiritual plant, and not an ordinary one at that.

It was attribute-less, meaning all cultivators could use it. It was the primary ingredient for refining Spirit Essence Pills. Depending on its age, it could have different grades, reaching as high as a fourth-grade spiritual plant.

However, if Spirit Essence Grass was not preserved properly, its spiritual energy would dissipate rapidly once removed from the soil, eventually turning into withered grass.

Hua Changxi picked up a stalk of Spirit Essence Grass. Although it was withered, seeing how the warehouse staff had piled it up like junk made her feel a pang of heartache.

Just then, Hua Changxi saw Yu Hui and his group returning. She quickly hurried back to her original position and continued moving herbs.

With Hua Changxi's help, Yu Hui, who would have normally worked through the night, finished his task shortly after dark.

Seeing Hua Changxi drenched in sweat, Yu Hui felt somewhat guilty, but the thought that she might look down on him made him feel uneasy again.

"Sister Changxi, thank you for your help. Tell me, how do you want me to thank you?"

Yu Hui showed no emotion on his face, remaining jovial as usual.

Hua Changxi smiled. "I'm just happy I could help you, Brother Yu."

Yu Hui didn't acknowledge her words and asked again with a smile, "You really want nothing? This opportunity won't come again."

Hua Changxi hesitated before speaking. "Brother Yu, I saw a pile of withered herbs in the corner of the warehouse. Are those herbs being discarded?"

A flash of disappointment crossed Yu Hui's eyes. "Those herbs were discarded because they were stored improperly. Someone comes periodically to haul them away."

Hua Changxi asked, "Brother Yu, I've never seen those herbs before. Could I take some back to study?"

Yu Hui suddenly laughed. "Sister Changxi, you came to help me... you didn't come for the herbs in the warehouse, did you?"

Hua Changxi's expression changed, and she said angrily, "Brother Yu, how could you think that of me? If I were really here for the herbs, why wouldn't I take the good ones? What use is it to take withered ones back?"

Yu Hui thought about it and decided she was right, but he still formed a judgment of her, believing she had approached him with ulterior motives.

"Go ahead and pick some. Consider it your payment for helping me today."

"By the way, don't blame me for not warning you: servants are not allowed to take any medicinal herbs out of the Medical Department, even withered ones."

After saying this, Yu Hui strode away.

Watching him walk into the distance, Hua Changxi frowned. She didn't know what she had done to offend him; everything had been fine before.

Not wanting to dwell on it, she hurried to the corner of the warehouse and picked out all the Spirit Essence Grass. There were over twenty stalks in total. Although they were all withered, there should still be some residual spiritual energy within them.

Hua Changxi left the warehouse with the Spirit Essence Grass. She did not see Yu Hui as she departed.

"Brother Yu is really something. Sister Changxi is leaving, and he didn't even see her off." The people in the warehouse watched her leave in solitude with amused smiles.

Holding the Spirit Essence Grass, Hua Changxi glanced at her data: [Commentary on the Classic of a Hundred Herbs (Perfected): Tasting Herbs 2524/10000].

Today's hard work had not been in vain; her harvest was immense.