149 Shocked by the Price

The herbal formula was exactly what Wang Yao wanted, but it was too expensive for Wang Yao. One formula would cost him 80 bonus points. He also required extra licorice roots on top of the formula, which would cost even more.

I wish I could have more bonus points! thought Wang Yao.

The medicine shop was fantastic. There were many good products in the store, such as licorice roots and formulas, which could help Wang Yao to treat difficult diseases. But, they were all so expensive.

I have to take my time to accumulate more points and shouldn't rush.

Without the herbal formula from the system, Wang Yao could only choose from the existing herbal formulas he had and made adjustments accordingly. Otherwise, he had to use his current knowledge to create a new formula.

Maybe I should create a new formula to try! decided Wang Yao. What herbs should I use? I need bupleurum, cohosh, kudzu vine root, notopterygium, radix sileris, licorice, ginseng...and Dangyang flower.

Wang Yao wrote down all the herbs he required and thought for a while before changing two herbs in the list to other herbs.

By the time Wang Yao had finished all the work, it was dark already.

Inside the village, the lights in the factory were still bright. Workers were still busy working in the factory. The villagers could hear the noises if they were nearby. 

"The workers are still working at night!" said one of the villagers.

"It has just opened; they must show people how busy they are. Otherwise they probably won't be able to find any employees," said another villager living nearby.

The villagers living nearby hadn't slept well due to the noises from the factory. Fortunately, the factory stopped operating at about 11 pm. The village was quiet again after 11 pm. All people could hear was a dog barking. 

The next morning, Wang Yao received a call from Pan Jun when he was busy working on Nanshan hill. Pan Jun told him that Ms. Guo's mother had taken the first dose of Wang Yao's decoction, and she felt much better. So Ms. Guo wanted to buy another dose and to speak with Wang Yao in person.

Wang Yao decided to meet Ms. Guo in the afternoon.

It was not difficult to get the decoction ready; Wang Yao could brew it in the morning. He had other errands to run in town in the afternoon, so it was a good time to meet Ms. Guo.

Wang Yao passed the factory in the village in the afternoon. He stopped intentionally to take a look from outside but didn't see any people. He only heard the noises from the machinery and smelt a strange odor.

He left for town shortly after to meet Pan Jun at the Reng He clinic.

"Sorry I had to ask you to come here again," said Pan Jun.

"That's fine," said Wang Yao.

"Please come in and take a seat. I've called Ms. Guo. She will arrive here soon," said Pan Jun.

While Wang Yao was still talking to Pan Jun at the entrance of the clinic, Ms. Guo had arrived. She drove here instead of walking this time. Her car was a white BMW, which indicated that money shouldn't be an issue for Ms. Guo.

"Hello, Dr. Wang," greeted Ms. Guo with a smile. Apparently, she was much nicer to Wang Yao this time.

"Hello," greeted Wang Yao.

"Shall we go inside and talk?" Pan Jun led Wang Yao and Ms. Guo into the clinic. There were not many patients in the clinic. However, some patients had already noticed Wang Yao. They started to be curious about this good-looking young man, who had visited the clinic more than once and was friendly with Dr. Pan.

"Thanks to the decoction you gave to my mother, she feels much better now. Her sleep quality has improved, and she is more alert and active during the day. Could you tell me how much the decoction costs?" asked Ms. Guo.

Wang Yao found it hard when talking about costs. The herbs in the decoction were not all common herbs, which he could easily find the price on the market. He also added Moonlight herb in the decoction. Moonlight herb was a licorice root which couldn't be purchased by money.

After buying herbs a number of times from the medicine shop in the system, Wang Yao had roughly worked out the link between bonus points and money. One bonus point equaled to ten thousand yuan. For example, Wang Yao spent ten bonus points to buy one Moonlight herb, so one Moonlight herb would cost one hundred thousand yuan.

Healthy people wouldn't even spend ten yuan to buy a licorice root. But for people who had life-threatening diseases and really needed licorice roots to save them, they would be willing to pay over one million without hesitation.

"Ten thousand," said Wang Yao after thinking for a short while.

Ten thousand was just the prime cost, maybe even less than the prime cost because Wang Yao also used wild herbs to brew the decoction, including glossy ganoderma and ginseng. Although he only used two leaves from Moonlight herb, the cost was still high.

"Ten thousand? So expensive!" Ms. Guo opened her eyes widely.

She had never heard a dose of decoction cost that much.

She was not the only person in shock, so was Pan Jun.

Ten thousand yuan for a dose of decoction! He really has the guts to charge that much! thought Pan Jun.

It was unknown how Pan Jun would respond if he knew someone had paid over one million for one dose of Wang Yao's decoction.

Wang Yao smiled as he saw Pan Jun and Ms. Guo's surprised looks.

"Dr. Pan, can I ask what is the most expensive medication in your clinic?" asked Wang Yao.

"I'm not sure. But I know Haiqu hospital used to import a type of injection to stop internal bleeding from overseas which had cost over seven thousand yuan a dose because it was genetic medicine. A medication called Gleevec costs 240 thousand yuan a pack," said Pan Jun.

"The reason why it is so expensive is that only this can cure Ms. Guo's mother due to its wonderful effect. As far as I am aware, my herbs are not the most expensive ones," said Wang Yao.

Why is it that some western medications can be so expensive and people are still willing to pay, while some Chinese herbs are just as effective as those western medications, but people are reluctant to pay. Some Chinese herbs are even better than western medication. The only difference is that they are not purified or processed, thought Wang Yao.

"I understand, Dr. Wang. But it is just too expensive for me," said Ms. Guo in a dilemma.

She surely wanted to have her mother cured, but she didn't think she could afford the cost. If her mother required ten doses of herbal decoction from Wang Yao, she would have to spend one hundred thousand yuan.

Wang Yao shook his head with a smile.

"I can make some changes in the formula, but the effect will not be as good as the one I gave you," said Wang Yao after keeping silent for a while.

"Okay, I'll accept the changes," said Ms. Guo.

The cost of decoction was beyond her imagination. She really didn't want to spend so much money on herbs. This is robbery! thought Ms. Guo.

"Please give me some time to make adjustments," said Wang Yao.

"Alright, thank you very much." Ms. Guo stood up and left the room.

"Dr. Wang, your herbs are too expensive!" said Pan Jun after Ms. Guo had left.

"Really? I don't think so," said Wang Yao with a smile.

Tens of grams of Da Hong Pao tea could cost tens of thousands of yuan, but it wouldn't treat any diseases. One Clivia plant could also cost tens of thousands of yuan, but it wouldn't comfort and calm one's nerve.

Health was priceless.

Some people were willing to pay thousands, even millions of yuan to live a few years longer.

Everything in this world had different functions and values.

Some people would pay thousands of yuan to buy a leather jacket without blinking an eye, but they would spend hours bargaining with a fruit vendor. Some people would spend a lot of money on useless foot therapy in a bash center but were reluctant to trust a doctor charging a reasonable fee.

Wang Yao started to realize that he had relied on licorice roots too much. He decided to avoid using licorice roots for common illnesses.

"By the way, I would like you to work here as a consultant," said Pan Jun.

"Consulting? But I'm afraid I don't have much time to spend here," said Wang Yao in surprise.

It was impossible for Wang Yao to work full time in the clinic at this stage.

"I don't need you to work full time here. You only need to come here one day a week," explained Pan Jun.

"Thank you, but I can't accept your offer at this time." Wang Yao shook his head. Although he could come across more patients here to increase his experience and help him complete the mission given by the system, he hadn't gotten a medical certificate yet. He could still treat people informally and privately, such as those patients introduced by Tian Yuantu who was a trusted friend. Patients, family members, and doctors came in and out of the clinic all the time. If someone found him practicing without a medical certificate and reported him, Wang Yao would get into serious trouble. Especially nowadays, the national medical authority was stricter against any misconducts in the medical system. The punishment for misconducts and illegal behaviors was getting harsher and harsher.

"The wage is negotiable," said Pan Jun.

"Wage is not the issue. I just don't have the time," said Wang Yao.

"Well..." Pan Jun didn't know what to say next.

"How about calling me if you need me? I'll come if I'm available. But I don't want to get into any trouble" suggested Wang Yao.

"I see. Most patients here only have minor issues. We won't accept anyone with life-threatening diseases," said Pan Jun.

"Good," said Wang Yao.

"You will get paid 300 yuan plus travel allowance for each visit. What do you think?" said Pan Jun. This is just the average wage for doctors.

Some specialists could charge several thousand, even tens of thousands of yuan for one visit, let alone the fee for surgeries. But for small clinics, 300 yuan per visit was already generous.

"Okay," said Wang Yao.

He didn't care about the money. He only cared about the opportunity to treat more patients.

"Good, I'll prepare a contract," said Pan Jun.

Wang Yao turned down Pan Jun's invitation for lunch because he had a few errands to run in the afternoon. In fact, his main purpose of visiting Lianshan was to see Li Maoshang.

"Hi, you don't seem to be busy recently," Li Maoshang welcomed Wang Yao and made him a cup of tea.

"In fact, I'm really busy," said Wang Yao with a smile. He was telling the truth. He had been very busy.

"Haha, I wish I could be busy, too, busy with a heavenly lifestyle on the hill," said Li Maoshuang.

"I actually want to ask a favor from you," said Wang Yao.

"Yes?" asked Li Maoshang.

"I need a few wild herbs as soon as possible," said Wang Yao.

"Do you have a list of the herbs?" asked Li Maoshuang.

"Here you are." Wang Yao placed the list on the table.