From Hoarding to Time-Travel: My Supplies Saved Him

On Nameless Island.

“I only went back to the mainland for a short trip, and you’ve encroached on my land again!” Ouyang Bing’s exasperated voice echoed across the entire island.

Guo Yurong, who shared the same head of white hair, had already retreated far away the moment Ouyang Bing raised his voice.

“You’ve already planted herbs on most of the island’s land. If you take over my vegetable patch too, are we supposed to live on thin air?”

“Don’t lose your temper,” Guo Yurong said with a smile, holding a medicinal trowel. “You sent Mudou and the others away on this trip back. We’ll be consuming much less from now on, so there’s no point in keeping so much land. Why not use it to grow some herbs?”

“If growing vegetables is useless, then what do you need all those herbs for? Are you planning to eat them for every meal?” Ouyang Bing stomped his feet in anger. He really must have lost his mind back then to follow this guy and stay here for so many years.

Now that they were getting older, even if they didn’t think for themselves, they had to consider Mudou and his families. On this island, their descendants would certainly have no future. This was the main reason he had returned to the mainland this time to send them off. He just hadn’t expected to come back from this trip only to find his vegetable patch had shrunk again. How could he not stomp his feet in frustration?

“Alright, alright. Even if these herbs were completely useless, they’ve still been traded for a lot of our supplies. How was the trip back? Have you taken care of everything?” Since the two of them had long decided never to leave the island again, he naturally wanted to ask clearly.

“I handled it. Are you still worried?” Ouyang Bing said grumpily. “Now we truly have no attachments or worries. However, I did run into something interesting on this trip back. Do you want to hear about it?”

“It doesn’t matter if I want to hear it or not; you’ll end up telling me yourself eventually anyway.” Having been brothers for decades, Guo Yurong never fell for his bait.

“You’re really no fun. I’ve kept you company for so many years; what’s wrong with letting me feel a little smug for once?”

Seeing that the other man wasn’t taking the bait, Ouyang Bing sighed and continued, “This time in Lu City, I ran into an old acquaintance. Or rather, I shouldn’t say I ‘ran into’ them. I heard the news and sought them out myself.”

Guo Yurong was a little curious now. Having lived in seclusion on this island for decades, their old acquaintances were few and far between.

“You say you aren’t curious, but I saw you raise your eyebrow,” Ouyang Bing muttered softly. “I’m the only one who can tolerate this rotten temper of yours.”

Guo Yurong asked helplessly, “We only have so many acquaintances. Other than those sailors from before, we don’t know many people in Lu City. Did you go mooch off a meal at Tianfu Restaurant again? Didn’t you say last time that the shopkeeper there had changed a long time ago?”

“Your guess is actually somewhat close this time. It wasn’t the previous shopkeeper, but the boss.”

Speaking of Tianfu Restaurant now, Ouyang Bing could face it calmly. Transferring the restaurant to Mrs. Gu back then had been a brilliant move. Just look at how much more famous the brand had become over the years! Although he was no longer the boss, he was the one who created it from scratch. Seeing it thrive for decades brought him some comfort.

“You still remember Gu Wenheng and his wife, right?”

Guo Yurong rolled his eyes at him. “If I remember correctly, he is the Imperial Tutor. He couldn’t possibly have come all the way to this remote little border town.”

Ouyang Bing smiled. “I was stunned when I heard the news too, but it really was the two of them. I heard that Mr. Gu has now retired, so he brought Mrs. Gu to revisit their old haunts. When I went over, they hadn’t been in the city long, and many of the commoners went out to welcome them. It seems that over the years, Mr. Gu has maintained a rather good reputation as an official.”

“That kind of reputation isn’t just ‘maintained,'” Guo Yurong said. “Mr. Gu truly has great talent and genuinely cares for the people. Otherwise, I wouldn’t have set aside a portion of the medicines I made for them every time over the years. Did you go meet them?”

“They’re old friends, after all, so of course I had to go see them.” Ouyang Bing’s face revealed a look of nostalgia. With fewer and fewer familiar faces around nowadays, every meeting was one less they would ever have.

“Have you ever regretted being on this island for so many years?” Thinking of Mr. Gu’s flock of children and grandchildren, and how successful his sons were, Ouyang Bing finally asked the question he had been keeping in his heart.

“What is there to regret?” Guo Yurong chuckled. “I’ve only ever been interested in making medicine in my life, and I never wanted to travel the world healing the sick. Living in seclusion was the inevitable choice. It’s just that I didn’t expect you to keep me company on this island for so many years. Truly speaking, you’re probably the one who regrets it.”

Ouyang Bing looked at him for a long time before saying, “What kind of relationship do we have? We’re sworn brothers who have gone through life and death together. How could I abandon you and go enjoy myself alone? I was just sighing with emotion earlier. I heard that Mr. Gu’s eldest son is now the Minister of Revenue, and his youngest son’s businesses are spread all over the country. They are doing well and both have successors. But what about your lifetime of skills? Are they just going to be buried like this?”

“Fate just hasn’t arrived yet,” Guo Yurong replied. “Besides, an apothecary like me has to be able to endure loneliness and maintain a steady state of mind. I’ve already made a few handwritten copies of my notes. We’ll just have to see who is fated to obtain them in the future.”

Ouyang Bing paused. “…Mudou’s boys from before, although they were a bit wooden…”

Guo Yurong shook his head vehemently. “Because they’re so wooden, I absolutely cannot settle. Don’t bring this up again. Have you moved all the things you bought onto the shore?”

Their island was so far from the mainland that a round trip took several days. Every time he went to the mainland, he would prepare in advance, bringing some medicine over to barter for supplies. These past few days, his heart had been in his throat. Because Mudou and the others wouldn’t be coming back after this trip, he was afraid that Ouyang Bin would lose his sense of direction at sea by himself and get lost. Now that the man had returned, he breathed a sigh of relief, remembering that this would be their final restock.

“Are you still worried about how I do things? Everything is piled up on the shore. Don’t just fuss over your medicines; come help me move the stuff into the courtyard. There’s quite a lot this time. Mrs. Gu even had people specially prepare some items. I haven’t even opened them up to take a look yet.”

“Why did you accept her things?”

“It’s not like I took them for nothing. I left all the medicines I brought over this time for her. We’ve known each other for a long time, and she helped us so much in the early years. She even helped keep this island a secret for us. I was able to repay that favor this time.”

Guo Yurong shook his head. This old coot Ouyang Bin had definitely given away all the life-saving medicines he had entrusted to him. He would have to prepare another batch for him later. Who knew if he could even gather all the necessary herbs on the island? It truly was a headache.

“If I had known, I would have gone off the island with you this time! You prodigal fool, don’t tell me you didn’t keep a single thing for yourself? And you call yourself a former merchant. I didn’t expect you to lose every ounce of your shrewdness in your old age…”

Ouyang Bing just let him nag. Now that there were only the two of them on the island, if they kept everything bottled up, they would eventually make themselves sick. This was just fine…