vstars Chapter 198 Entering the Mountains
Chapter 198 Entering the Mountains
When the villagers saw Song Jiaojiao get off the carriage, they saw that her clothes were enough to cover their expenses for a year. The collar and sleeves were embroidered with intricate patterns, so it was clear that the clothes were expensive.
Tang Qin, who was chopping wood in the yard, saw that it was Song Jiaojiao and quickly put down his axe and opened the yard gate.
"Madam, Brother Yan, what brings you here? Are you about to leave?" Tang Qin had been at home for the past few days. Because his return date was uncertain, he didn't know when he would come back, so he thought he would go home to do what he could to settle things at home before he could leave with peace of mind.
A curious older woman asked, "Young man Tang, is this a relative of yours?"
"Auntie, no, it's the security company that's hiring us. Everyone, we have guests, so we won't keep you any longer."
After Tang Qin finished speaking, he helped Yan Tian lead the carriage and horses into the yard. There was a cowshed in the yard, which Tang Qin bought when he was in the army. Later, after something happened in his family, he sold the cows, but the cowshed was still there. Today, it was used to store the carriage.
After the car was parked, Zhou Dayong and the others began to move the grain and cloth out. Fortunately, Tang Qin's fence was high enough that people outside could not easily see what was going on inside, otherwise the village would have been in turmoil again.
"This..." Tang Qin looked at the things Zhou Dayong and the others were moving and didn't know what to say for a moment.
"Young Tang, this was bought by Madam," Yan Tian explained with a smile.
"Don't worry about it, these are all perks. I came here today mainly to go up the mountain and see if there are any medicinal herbs I need. Yan Tian told me that you often go up the mountain, so I'd like to ask you to be my guide," Song Jiaojiao said with a smile.
Hearing the commotion, Tang's mother came into the courtyard. Seeing Zhou Dayong and the others carrying things, she quickly refused, "Madam, this is not allowed. Tang Qin is doing this for you. How can he take so many things?"
Looking at the two large bags of grain in the hall, the cloth on the table, and the white lard and pork belly, he stared wide-eyed in disbelief.
"Auntie, please accept this. Tang Qin is going out with me this time, and we don't know when he will return. This is just a small token of my appreciation; it's nothing valuable."
Song Jiaojiao spoke with a smile. The old woman in front of her was hunched over, and her clothes were covered with patches, indicating that she hadn't changed them for several years.
Behind the door stood a boy about the same age as Mu Xue, looking timidly at Song Jiaojiao and her group. He was not as tall as Mu Xue and did not look like a child who was almost ten years old.
There was a commotion at the gate, and the gate was opened. A middle-aged man with a full head of white hair smiled and told the villagers at the gate to leave.
Turning around, she saw Song Jiaojiao and the others, and quickly asked, "Xiao Qin, what's this?"
While he was weeding in the field, a villager ran over to tell him that a relative was visiting his house and had arrived in a horse-drawn carriage.
He returned home in a daze, not knowing where he got these relatives who allowed him to ride in a horse-drawn carriage.
“Father, this is the employer I was talking about, Mrs. Song.”
"Oh, it's Madam Song. Erniu said a relative who came to our house in a carriage has arrived. I was wondering who we had a relative who came in a carriage. It turns out it's you, Madam. I wonder if you're about to set off?"
Tang's father asked with a smile.
"Uncle, it's still a few days before we set off. I've heard that there are many medicinal herbs in the mountains here, so I'd like Tang Qin to be our guide and take us into the mountains."
Mr. Tang suddenly realized, "So that's how it is. Madam has found the right person. Xiao Qin has been running around in the mountains since he was a child, and he is very familiar with the mountain paths."
"In that case, why don't we set off sooner so we can come back sooner?" Song Jiaojiao said.
"Xiao Qin, hurry up and get ready, don't delay Madam's business." Tang's father said with a smile, telling Tang Qin to prepare things for going up the mountain.
"I've prepared some things for the trip up the mountain, Tang Qin, can you see if there's anything else we need?" Song Jiaojiao bought a lot of things in town and put them in her basket. In addition to the essential firewood knife and dry food, she also bought a lot of gauze to wrap the medicinal herbs later, so they wouldn't die before they even got down the mountain.
Tang Qin glanced at the contents of the basket; Song Jiaojiao had prepared everything very thoroughly.
“Madam, this is enough. The road up the mountain is difficult to walk, and bringing too much stuff will only be a burden.”
"Alright, let's set off now." Song Jiaojiao thought that it was only early morning, so it wasn't too late to go up the mountain.
"Okay, I'll go get the tools." Tang Qin took a bow from the house, slung it over his shoulder, said goodbye to his parents, and led Song Jiaojiao and the others up the mountain.
Some nosy villagers were still gathered in front of Tang Qin's house. After Tang Qin left with Song Jiaojiao and the others, they quickly surrounded Tang's father, who was still at home, and asked him all sorts of questions.
The mountains behind Erdaowan are quite steep, but many villagers go up the mountain during their off-season, and a small path has been built through them.
Tang Qin led the way, making several turns to guide Song Jiaojiao and the others up the mountain. As expected of Mozhou, a place rich in medicinal herbs, they saw a lot of licorice, hemp, and the like after only walking for a short while.
However, since they were all too young, Song Jiaojiao and the others didn't bother digging them up.
They walked and stopped frequently, and Zhou Dayong's basket was full of fresh herbs. Now that it was past noon, Song Jiaojiao and the others found a flat spot with a large rock where they could rest.
I took out the dry food I bought in town and ate it with water from my water bag. Luckily, the weather was neither too hot nor too cold, so I could eat even without a fire.
“Madam, if we go further up the mountain, there’s a place where I saw marijuana last year. I wonder if it’s still there?” Tang Qin said while eating his dry rations.
"Okay, let's go take a look later. Tang Qin, the scenery here is really beautiful." Song Jiaojiao looked at the open space in front of her, with green mountains stretching as far as the eye could see. A gentle breeze was blowing, which made her feel much better.
After resting for a while, Song Jiaojiao and the others continued their journey. It had rained a few days ago, and there were many mushrooms along the way. Tang Qin picked up quite a few, which could be used as a dish when they got home. Even if there were too many to eat, they could be dried and stored for later consumption.
Soon they arrived at the place Tang Qin had mentioned. Luckily, the items hadn't been dug up. The place was fairly well hidden, under a large rock, and couldn't be seen from above.
"It's still here! I found this place when I accidentally rolled down while chasing a rabbit. It looked small at the time, so I didn't dig it back up, but now I can dig it up."
Tang Qin said with delight, while using a machete to clear away the surrounding miscellaneous wood.
With Zhou Dayong and the others around, Song Jiaojiao had no room to make a move, so she wandered around and her eyes were drawn to a unique flower.
This flower has only one bloom and one leaf. The flower is white with pale purple petals. The flower is not pointing upwards, but slightly downwards, like a shy woman about to bloom. It is very beautiful.
"Madam, this is a solitary orchid. It's currently in blooming season. The fragrance of this flower isn't very strong; it's a very delicate scent," Tang Qin explained as she turned to see Song Jiaojiao squatting in front of a flower.