Arriving back at the mountain god temple in one breath, Chen Xiaobei's mind stirred. The dense things he felt by the roadside that night when he was carrying Da Chun seemed like houttuynia cordata. With good visibility today, why not go down and take a look.
No sooner said than done, he found the place where Liu Tie had fallen and carefully descended to the bottom of the cliff.
Following the route from that night, after walking not far, a large area of green vegetation indeed appeared ahead. It was truly houttuynia cordata.
Chen Xiaobei followed the method taught by Cui Hongyu, picking at most one-third to one-fourth from each plant, so as not to harm its roots or drain its vitality.
Soon, the bundle he brought was packed full.
Today's harvest was delightful. Chen Xiaobei hummed a tune as he returned.
Seeing the two lingzhi mushrooms, Cui Hongyu was even more overjoyed, exclaiming how rare they were.
After hearing Chen Xiaobei recount the discovery site, Cui Hongyu frowned.
"When I was little, my grandfather once told me there was a Gourd Valley in the mountains."
"The terrain there resembles a gourd. Legend has it that an immortal from heaven, after drinking too much and returning home, happened to pass by Qingniu Mountain and accidentally dropped his gourd, which then turned into Gourd Valley."
"My grandfather said that Gourd Valley is filled with various rare medicinal herbs."
Upon hearing this, Chen Xiaobei became excited. The rumors might have some truth to them, judging by the large patch of lingzhi.
"Hongyu, then things will be much easier. I'll go to Gourd Valley next time."
Cui Hongyu, however, shook her head. "No, my grandfather also told me that Gourd Valley is guarded by a mountain spirit. Outsiders who enter are met with gales, thunder, lightning, or rain, and there are also fierce beasts."
Chen Xiaobei laughed upon hearing this.
The mountains have no seasons, and wind, rain, thunder, and lightning are all normal natural phenomena.
"Alas, fine then, I won't go for now." Chen Xiaobei's feigned agreement was entirely to prevent Cui Hongyu from worrying about him.
"Husband, these two lingzhi mushrooms, plus these two ginseng roots, can sell for at least seven or eight taels of silver. Can we buy a horse with that?" Cui Hongyu finally voiced a request.
Chen Xiaobei's heart warmed. She was concerned about him.
It was rare for Cui Hongyu to proactively make a request, so he smiled and nodded, "Alright, as you say."
After lunch, Chen Xiaobei did not rest for a moment and immediately headed to the county town.
Jia Wannian of Hua Hao Tang was all smiles when he saw that Chen Xiaobei had brought two lingzhi mushrooms this time.
"Brother Xiaobei, you truly have good luck. As far as I know, only a few such lingzhi mushrooms appear in our Great Cang Kingdom in a year. The quality is simply too good."
"Shopkeeper Jia, let's skip the pleasantries. Tell me directly, what price can you offer for these lingzhi?"
Jia Wannian nodded. "Two ginseng roots and two lingzhi mushrooms, I'll give you ten taels of silver in total, how about that?"
This was higher than Cui Hongyu's estimate. Of course, Chen Xiaobei also understood that the higher price was not given freely.
As expected, Jia Wannian continued, "Brother Xiaobei, I have an impertinent request. Next time you come to buy lingzhi, could you bring along some of the soil around it? I'd like to continue cultivating it for a while."
Chen Xiaobei instantly understood. He knew that with the soil, the lingzhi would continue to grow, and the mycelium and seeds could be propagated, meaning theoretically, it could be infinitely propagated.
However, Jia Wannian's words did remind him.
If he were to transplant the lingzhi and cultivate them at home, it would save him the trouble of climbing the mountain every day. Wouldn't that be killing two birds with one stone?
In that case, he should thank Jia Wannian for broadening his horizons.
Thinking this, he immediately said with a smile, "No problem, no problem. Next time I find some, I will definitely bring it to you with the soil."
Leaving Hua Hao Tang, Chen Xiaobei's mood brightened.
Jia Wannian's request had indeed opened up a new path to wealth for him. Moving some of the lingzhi from Gourd Valley.
As long as he found some rotten wood, artificial cultivation of lingzhi would be a done deal.
Thinking back, the skills he had learned living in the countryside when he was a child were actually being used in this world. What a twist of fate.
Lost in thought, he inadvertently bumped headfirst into someone.
Upon closer inspection, the person he bumped into was a small beggar, only up to his chest.
The small beggar took a step back, repeatedly apologizing, and then turned and ran.
Looking at the empty street, Chen Xiaobei was stunned. What was this collision?
After a moment of simple surprise, his heart tightened, and he quickly patted his chest.
Alas, the money was gone.
Without a word, Chen Xiaobei took off in pursuit. Ten taels of silver was a significant sum, earned by risking his life on Qingniu Mountain. How could he let this little beggar take it so easily?
The small beggar clearly hadn't expected Chen Xiaobei to chase after him. He darted into a nearby alley and stopped, opening the money bag in his hand. Seeing the ten taels of silver, he couldn't help but feel excited.
But before his excitement had subsided, he heard the sound of hurried footsteps behind him. Turning his head, he saw Chen Xiaobei chasing after him, and the small beggar panicked. He took off running again.
Chen Xiaobei had been running to the county town every day recently, and his leg strength had long been honed.
He held his breath and chased through five or six streets.
Now, the small beggar was finished.
He saw that he could no longer run and was panting heavily, his speed noticeably slowing down.
Ahead was a dilapidated temple. The small beggar gritted his teeth and rushed in.
As soon as he entered, the small beggar shouted, "Brothers, come quickly, someone has come looking for us."
When Chen Xiaobei arrived at the entrance of the dilapidated temple, the scene before him made him freeze.
In the courtyard, there were five or six children, most of them younger than the small beggar he had just encountered.
Some of these children held branches in their hands, some held bricks, and they all glared at him.
The small beggar who had stolen the silver pointed at Chen Xiaobei and shouted, "Why are you chasing me?"
Chen Xiaobei laughed at his question. "You stole my silver, why shouldn't I chase you?"
"You, don't frame me. I just bumped into you. Why do you say I stole your silver?"
Chen Xiaobei laughed heartily. "Then tell me, if you didn't steal the silver, why did you run?"
"I, I was afraid you would hit me." The small beggar had essentially confessed without being hit.
Chen Xiaobei also knew that there was no reasoning with such people. He extended his hand. "Give me back the ten taels of silver, and this matter will be dropped. Otherwise, I will report to the authorities and have you all arrested."
"I didn't, I didn't." The small beggar shouted. "If you dare to take another step forward, don't blame us for being rude."
Just then, a violent coughing could be heard from the inner room. Listening to the cough, Chen Xiaobei felt heartache. It sounded so heartbreaking, as if he was coughing up his internal organs.
"Xiao Mu, why did you steal again?" It was a woman's voice, and she sounded quite young.