Chapter 40: Chapter 40: That Is Osmanthus
What the secret of Qingniu Mountain was, Chen Xiaobei didn't know, but he was facing a serious problem himself.
As he was heading down the mountain, Chen Yutian's wife, Jia Shi, returned.
As soon as he saw his wife, Chen Yutian showed great excitement, quickly pulling her into the house and pouring her a bowl of water.
"Wife, how was it? Did you see Ermao and the others?"
Jia Shi took the bowl, gulped down a few sips of water, and then sighed deeply.
"I saw them. Da Lao Hei locked him up on the mountain and won't let him come down."
"That's good, that's good." Chen Yutian nodded. "Did you tell him about the matter? Is he going to do it?"
Jia Shi nodded. "I told him. As long as the trouble in the village is dealt with, Ermao can come back."
"Da Lao Hei said he'll send someone in the next few days. Oh, he also said that, considering my late grandfather, he won't take the silver, but we have to get him something."
Chen Yutian looked at his wife in surprise. "Get him something? What?"
Jia Shi hesitated, stammering, "He said he wants us to take his men into Qingniu Mountain."
Upon hearing this, Chen Yutian frowned deeply. "Sigh, Qingniu Mountain. I went there a few times when I was young, but I only reached the Mountain God Temple. I've never gone any further."
Jia Shi also sighed. "Yes, I told him the same thing, but my cousin said clearly that at least from the Mountain God Temple, it's another ten miles up."
Chen Yutian fell silent, leaning back in his chair. He didn't speak for a long time, then finally sighed deeply and stood up. "Alright, I'm old, but if I have to go, I'll go to Qingniu Mountain."
Jia Shi wiped the corner of her eye with her sleeve. "I'm not forcing you, but Da Lao Hei made this one condition. Nothing else will work, even if I offer him money."
Chen Yutian waved his hand slightly. "Isn't it just going to Qingniu Mountain? It's not like it's a mountain of knives and fire. If they're coming, then I'll go. When will their people arrive?"
"They'll be here tomorrow. They said as soon as their people return from Qingniu Mountain, we'll move immediately."
"That's great, eliminating Chen Xiaobei is more important than anything else." Chen Yutian became excited.
At this moment, Chen Xiaobei had already carried a large bundle of fishy grass, two ginseng roots, and several lingzhi mushrooms down from the mountain. Walking over to his fishpond, he saw Lidong and the others working, and he greeted them enthusiastically.
Seeing him come back with two full bags of things from the mountain, Lidong couldn't help but curiously ask, "Xiaobei, what treasures did you find up there?"
Chen Xiaobei mumbled, "Oh, there were some herbs on the mountain that Hongyu wanted, so I helped her bring them back to dry."
Hearing this, everyone burst out laughing. "Xiaobei, where are you serving your wife? If she needs herbs, she should go to the mountain herself to pick them!"
"How could I possibly listen to my wife?"
Facing the laughter of everyone, Chen Xiaobei wasn't upset or annoyed. He just smiled lightly. "You all carry on, I'll go home and boil some water for you."
"No need to boil water, with this big river here, how could we ever run out of water?" Lidong and the others laughed again.
"Hongyu said drinking untreated water could cause stomachaches."
Actually, Hongyu had never said that, but Chen Xiaobei had to explain it that way.
Everyone laughed again. "I've never heard of a man getting a stomachache, isn't it only women who get those?"
Chen Xiaobei didn't reply. He quickly left.
Watching him walk away, Lidong shook his head helplessly.
In Hetou Village, listening to your wife was considered shameful.
That said, in this era, patriarchal views were deeply ingrained, and male dominance was severe. It was nearly impossible for a woman to be in charge.
When he returned home, Hongyu was sitting under the big locust tree, embroidering, while Qiao'er practiced writing characters with a stick in the yard. The peaceful and warm scene made Chen Xiaobei feel a warmth in his heart, making all his hard work feel worthwhile.
When Hongyu saw Chen Xiaobei come in, she quickly set down her work and went over to him.
"My dear husband, you've worked hard."
Chen Xiaobei handed her the lingzhi mushrooms he was carrying. "Be careful with this."
As soon as Hongyu took it, she noticed something was off. She carefully placed it on the ground and opened the bundle.
She froze for a moment. "Why did you bring back the soil too?"
"Oh, I wanted to see if I could grow these lingzhi at home."
Hongyu was stunned by his words.
"You want to grow lingzhi at home?"
Chen Xiaobei nodded. Although he didn't know exactly how to express it, this was roughly what he meant, as Hongyu had said.
"Yes, I want to try. If it works, I won't have to go up to the mountain every day to find them."
"By the way, I plan to go back and dig up two more ginseng plants to try as well."
As he said this, he pointed to the corner of the yard.
There were several flowerpots, chiseled out of stone. These could be considered family heirlooms.
Of course, in this era, using stone to carve flowerpots was common; some were even just natural stones with slight modifications.
"By the way, I also need to bring two more to Shopkeeper Jia in the city. He wants to grow them too."
Hongyu nodded slightly. "I've heard my grandfather mention that some apothecary shop owners grow their own rare medicinal herbs, just in case."
"No wonder Shopkeeper Jia was willing to give you ten taels of silver last time. It turns out he wanted this."
Chen Xiaobei shrugged. "Hongyu, it doesn't matter why he gave it to us. As long as we get more silver, it's ultimately a good thing."
Hongyu shook her head. "Husband, it's fine this time, but if anyone else wants these lingzhi or other herbs, you mustn't agree."
Seeing Chen Xiaobei looking at her blankly, Hongyu continued to explain, "Husband, there are only a few pharmacies in Qingniu County. If each one starts growing them, where will we sell them?"
"Moreover, these herbs absorb the essence of the sun and moon and the energy of the earth while growing in the mountains. Their medicinal properties are extraordinary. But if they're grown in flowerpots, the effectiveness will definitely be a bit weaker."
This was true. Chen Xiaobei agreed, as he understood that herbs grown in nature were more potent than those cultivated artificially.
It was like how the taste of fast-growing chicken was not as good as that of an old hen.
After that, Chen Xiaobei took out the two branches he had picked earlier.
"Hongyu, take a look at this. There's a whole lot of it on the mountain, but I'm not sure what it is."
Hongyu took it, smelled it, and excitedly exclaimed, "This is osmanthus!"
Is it medicinal?
Chen Xiaobei's first thought was of the poem, "Osmanthus flowers scattered everywhere, fewer people around." He vaguely remembered that in history, this plant was used as a spice, like chili peppers.
"Hongyu, can this be used for medicine?"
Hongyu nodded. "Of course, it can be used for medicine, but the price might be similar to that of fishy grass."
Great, regardless of the price, as long as it can be used for medicine, it's fine.
With such a large patch, why not just move a few plants down and settle it once and for all?
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