Zhang Bin was just about to coax his mother into trying the Bright Eye Liquid when a sweet voice rang out, "My dear Dad, Mom, and big bro, I'm back."
Then, a girl burst into the room like a whirlwind. It was none other than Zhang Bin's sister, Zhang Lele.
She was in her last year of high school and would soon be taking her university entrance exams, so she only came home once a month. Today was Saturday, so she had returned.
She was about one meter sixty-eight tall with delicate features, a true beauty. The house instantly erupted into a chaotic, joyful mess, with the family overjoyed to see her.
"Lele, Mom made something delicious today. Quick, tell me what you'd like to eat," Mother Zhang said with a beaming smile.
"I want to eat..."
Lele was practically drooling, but she quickly shook her head. "I'm on a diet."
She was well aware that the family was dirt poor; even her university tuition was still not secured. After a pause, she added woefully, "I've become nearsighted. I came back this time to get money for glasses."
"Nearsighted?" Mother Zhang asked anxiously. "How much will glasses cost?"
"Around five hundred yuan or so," Zhang Lele said.
Five hundred yuan might not be much to other families, but for Zhang Bin's, it was a huge sum. After all, although Father Zhang was taking the Spiritual Water, he was still on medication that cost a good deal of money. If Zhang Bin hadn't killed a wild boar and sold it for a few thousand yuan recently, their situation would be even more dire.
So, Mother Zhang sighed, and Father Zhang's expression dimmed. They were already stressing over how to scrape together twenty thousand yuan to repay his younger sister and worrying about Lele's university tuition. Now, Lele was nearsighted and needed glasses. This was just making a bad situation worse.
"You child, I always told you to take good care of your eyes..." Mother Zhang started to get angry. "Where are we supposed to get the money now?"
Lele instantly burst into tears.
"Lele, you don't need glasses at all. I can cure you right now," Zhang Bin said, finally seeing his opportunity.
"What? Bro, are you seriously bragging that you can cure nearsightedness?" Lele looked at Zhang Bin as if he were a fool.
"Don't underestimate your brother, Lele. He's no simple guy. His master is an old hermit from the mountains, and he's learned a great deal of martial arts..." Although Mother Zhang didn't believe the Bright Eye Liquid could cure Lele's nearsightedness either, she immediately and effusively recounted Zhang Bin's recent heroic deeds.
"How is that possible? I don't believe it, not one bit. Are you joking, Mom?" Zhang Lele knew her brother inside and out and immediately rolled her eyes in disbelief.
However, when Zhang Bin silently picked up the two-hundred-kilogram stone roller and began tossing it around like a basketball, she was utterly dumbfounded and had no choice but to believe.
So, Zhang Bin didn't have to waste another word to make Zhang Lele the first person to test the Bright Eye Liquid.
Zhang Bin had his sister lie on the bed, dropped two drops of Bright Eye Liquid into each of her eyes, and said, "You'll see the results in half an hour."
"This feels so good, it really feels so good..." Zhang Lele shouted in pleasant surprise.
Immediately after, Zhang Bin also coaxed his mother into lying on the bed for a dose of the Bright Eye Liquid. Mother Zhang also exclaimed with a pleasantly surprised expression how good it felt.
Could this Bright Eye Liquid really be so miraculous? Father Zhang wondered as he watched from the side.
Soon, half an hour had passed. Zhang Lele carefully tested her vision.
Then she exclaimed excitedly, "Oh my God, my nearsightedness is actually gone! And my vision has improved so much. How is this possible?"
Mother Zhang was also holding a newspaper, her eyes wide as she read. "Unbelievable," she murmured. "I can see everything so clearly, just like when I was young."
"You two aren't pulling my leg, are you? Can it really be that amazing?" Father Zhang still looked skeptical.
"Hahaha... We're going to be rich!" Zhang Bin shouted excitedly.
"That tree is a cash cow! It will be our family's treasure from now on. We must guard it well," Mother Zhang said, overcome with excitement. Though she was a farmer who had worked the fields her entire life, seeing the Miraculous Abilities of the Bright Eye Liquid convinced her of the tree's immense value.
"This liquid comes from a tree?" Zhang Lele asked in surprise.
Zhang Bin explained the situation, then said seriously, "This is our family's secret. Don't tell anyone."
The three of them nodded repeatedly.
Zhang Lele, however, voiced her concern. "But walls have ears. Sooner or later, someone will discover the tree's secret. What will we do then?"
"Don't worry," Zhang Bin said confidently. "Besides me, no one in this world can cultivate a Mingqing Tree. Even if they somehow managed it, they couldn't make it bear fruit."
"That's good. I don't have to worry about the money for Dad's treatment anymore, and my tuition is covered," Zhang Lele shouted with excitement. She threw her arms around Zhang Bin's neck, her voice thick with emotion. "Bro, you're a real miracle worker! I'm so happy. I don't have to worry anymore."
Zhang Bin felt an inexplicable ache in his heart. His sister had always been a good student and very sensible. She had endured so much pressure because of their family's poverty and their father's illness.
He stroked her black hair and said softly, "Lele, from this day on, you don't have to worry about a thing. I promise I will cure Dad's illness, and I promise our family will be wealthy. From today on, we're millionaires."
"Millionaires? How is that possible?" The other three were stunned, hardly daring to believe their ears.
"Let me show you the treasure I found in Great Green Mountain yesterday."
Zhang Bin took the ginseng from the bag and held it high in the air. "I've already weighed it. 163 grams!"
"Heavens, is that ginseng? Such a big one?" The three of them were stupefied, their faces breaking into expressions of wild joy. They had seen ginseng before; after all, villagers occasionally found some in Great Green Mountain, and it was always extremely valuable.
"Bro, can this ginseng really sell for a million?" Zhang Lele was the first to snap out of her daze, asking excitedly.
"This should be a Century-old Old Mountain Ginseng. It's possible it's worth a million," said Father Zhang. Having dug for wild yams before, he was quite familiar with ginseng.
"Oh my God, it's really worth a million? Our family's luck has turned. We've struck it rich!" Mother Zhang and Zhang Lele were so moved that tears streamed down their faces.
"And with the Bright Eye Liquid, our good days are just beginning," Zhang Bin said, brandishing the mineral water bottle in his other hand.
"Exactly! The Bright Eye Liquid is the goose that lays golden eggs. It can create wealth endlessly. The ginseng is just a one-time deal; it can't compare to the Bright Eye Liquid," Father Zhang said excitedly, slapping his thigh. "Our family will never be short of money again! But how do we sell the Bright Eye Liquid?"
"Don't you worry about that. I have my ways," Zhang Bin said with complete confidence. "I'm heading to the city right now to sell the ginseng and promote the Bright Eye Liquid."
"Xiao Bin, you have to be careful. That's a Century-old Ginseng..." Mother Zhang said with concern.
"Mom, you know what I'm capable of, don't you?" Zhang Bin flexed his muscles.
At that, the three of them felt a great sense of relief and broke into happy laughter.