Chapter 112 Leizi Cave and Phytolacca
Zhang An opened the door and led everyone to the backyard.
At this time, Zhu Yuliang discovered that the backyard of Zhang An's house was no worse than the front yard.
And there is also this big fish pond, which is just a few steps away from the river. You can completely see the scenery of the river. It is a great place.
"Director Zhu, I did not put the giant salamander directly in the fish pond, but put it in a fishing net. The main reason is that the fish pond is a bit big and it is difficult to find it."
Zhang An told a few people while walking to the edge of the fish pond and pulling up the net bag.
A three-foot-long giant salamander in a fishing net appeared in front of everyone.
"Director, this giant salamander is so big. We haven't seen one this big before."
As soon as Zhang An raised the water, Bai Xue saw it.
"It is indeed the biggest one we have encountered. Wang Tao and Xiaoxue, you two go record the information."
The final measurement showed that the body length of the giant salamander in front of me was over one meter, 113 centimeters long, its head was nearly 20 centimeters wide, and it weighed over 30 to almost 40 kilograms.
This is longer than the three feet that Zhang An had visually estimated before.
“We have never encountered such a big giant salamander. Judging from its physical characteristics, this one should have lived for more than thirty-five years, just a lot longer.”
Zhu Yuliang said to everyone, while Bai Xue and Wang Tao on the side kept recording information.
“Actually, this one is not that big. We saw a bigger one in the ditch behind the village many years ago, and it was much bigger than this one.”
“There are bigger ones. "When was it discovered? How old is it exactly?"
Hearing Zhu Yuliang's questioning, the old village chief Zhang Jianwen took a puff of his leaf cigarette and began to recall the past.
“This is a long story. I was only a teenager at that time. It rained heavily all day. It stopped when it was almost dark, and we went out to help the fields. Draining water, I met that big guy at the entrance of Leizi Cave. It was lying on the road below Lezi Cave. The one was longer than the pole and it grew too big. I was scared when I saw it. I knew it and thought it could eat people, so I hurried back."
"When I went back to the village and called people to go with me, I found no trace of it. From then on, even if the water rose, it seemed to be gone. I haven't seen any trace of it again. The old people said that I encountered a leprosy and told us to avoid going to Leizi Cave. But after I came back from the army, I saw many of these four-legged creatures in the river ditch every year when it rained heavily. Snakes, but not big, usually weigh only one or two pounds.”
“Oh? Did you have a lot of giant salamanders here before?”
When Zhu Yuliang heard what the old village chief said, he asked curiously.
“There were a lot, especially on rainy days at that time, but less in the past two years.”
“It seems that your place is very good, with good mountains, water and scenery, and the water quality is average. There are no bad places.”
At this time, Zhang An remembered a place in the village.
"Uncle, it's the leper's cave where our children cry, right?"
"Yes, it's the leper's cave where sounds often come out from time to time."
The leper's cave The cave is a cave not far from Changqing Village. In the past, there would often be sounds inside from time to time, like bursts of babies crying.
So it used to be called Leizi Cave. Because it has a homophonic sound that means "child crying," it was also called "Haier Cave".
“After hearing what the old man said, I suspect that the thing in the hole is not a leopard, but other giant salamanders living in it. I guess even the one that the old man encountered before is longer than the pole. It must be in the cave too.”
The length of the poles in rural areas is basically more than 1.5 meters. If it can be clearly seen that it is longer than the pole, it is more than 1.5 meters.
Hearing what Zhang An said, Zhu Yuliang was intrigued and began to inquire about the details.
“How to explain it, Zhang An, please explain it carefully.”
Zhang An’s statement is not a guess. The Lezi Cave not far from the village was visited by a special adventurous team in later generations. Shoot.
When everyone was talking about this topic, Zhang An remembered this place.
In the past, he did not know that when the old village chief was a child, he encountered such a big giant salamander at the entrance of Lezi Cave, otherwise he would have been sure of it.
No one likes to get close to this leprosy cave because of the scary sound like a child crying.
Old people say there are leprous and dirty things in the cave.
Fortunately, this hole is not far from the village, but it is not close either, otherwise everyone would have thrown everything into it.
Whether it is an animal that died after birth, or a chicken or duck that died of illness.
Such things are very common in the mountains. Leizi Cave is not the name of a specific cave, but a general name.
There are places called Leizi Cave in many places.
Not to mention it is far away, there is a leprosy hole in Zhang An’s grandmother’s house, and the people in that village throw everything into it.
In later generations, it will become a cave filled with garbage. As soon as you get closer, you will smell a stench.
But people in the village often use it to scare their children and keep them away.
The caving team of later generations was well prepared and brought many people with them.
Before they went down to the cave, the old man in the village was kind enough to persuade them.
But when I finally came up, I made it clear to everyone that there was indeed something inside.
But it’s not the leopards everyone calls, but a large group of giant salamanders. They are everywhere in the cave, and their footprints can be seen everywhere.
And there are several very large ones in the deepest part. The largest one is just about the same size as the one the uncle just mentioned.
And there are not only giant salamanders inside, but also many cave fish and other creatures that cannot be seen under the light.
Otherwise, so many giant salamanders would have starved to death inside, how could they have bred such a large population?
As soon as the city heard the news, they sent a large number of personnel to investigate.
Finally, it is shown that the underground of this cave is connected to an underground river, so there is water in it all year round.
There are many giant salamanders living in this cave, and they feed on fish and shrimps swimming out of the underground river.
And everyone hears strange noises coming from the cave from time to time, which are coming from them.
“Many people have heard the strange sound coming from the cave. I heard it often before, but I have grown older these days, but I found that the sound was similar to the one we found last night. It's very similar, but it's a bit ethereal and scary, but if it's in a cave, it makes perfect sense, because there's echoes in the cave."
"Also, during the high water season every summer, leprosy occurs. When water comes out of the hole, there will be many small giant salamanders in the ditch. "
When Zhang An said this, Zhang Jianwen was immediately impressed.
“Yes, every time we find four-legged snakes appearing in the ditch, it is when water comes out of the Leizi Cave. Why didn’t we think that these four-legged snakes all came out of the Leizi Cave? "
Listening to what Zhang An and the old village chief Zhang Jianwen said, Zhu Yuliang felt that this statement was quite logical.
"Zhang An, I think this conjecture is very reasonable. If there are really giant salamanders living in it, it would be too important, especially the biggest one that Lao Zhang just mentioned. No, I have to report this matter immediately. "Go up."
Although in Zhu Yuliang's heart, he is not sure whether this is correct, but if it is really the case, then this will be the first future giant salamander sanctuary in the county. .
So he decided to report this matter quickly. No matter what, he should at least go down and see what it was like inside. Even if it's not what Zhang An guessed, it doesn't matter.
The more he thought about it, the more he felt that this matter was very feasible, so Zhu Yuliang proposed to return to the county on the spot.
"Director Zhu, what should you do with this big guy when you go back now?"
Zhang Jianwen heard that Zhu Yuliang was in a hurry to go back, and quickly asked what to do with a giant salamander.
Originally, the village asked people from the county to come here just for this guy. If they want to leave now, this thing has not been dealt with yet.
After hearing this, Zhu Yuliang calmed down and remembered that there was another big guy here.
"Why don't you take it back together? I really don't feel comfortable leaving it here with us."
"No, we can't take it back. Because of the water quality problem, there is no special place to put it in the county. Moreover, this thing is too delicate and cannot withstand the tossing on such a long journey."
Zhu Yuliang hasn't spoken yet. Bai Xue next to him objected.
The environment in the county is indeed not very good, because the county is based on coal mines, so how good can the environmental and water quality be?
Later generations have a saying that it takes thirty years to dig coal and one hundred years to clean up the environment.
Let others take the money, and when the coal reserves are emptied, people will also leave. In the end, the county will have to spend a large amount of money every year to clean up the environment.
“Let’s do this Zhang An, let’s put it here at your house first, then put it directly in your fish pond. You can help take care of it every day and feed it some food. I will do it later. I will apply for a subsidy from the department. Do you think this will work?"
Zhu Yuliang thought for a while and expressed his thoughts to Zhang An.
Zhang An also thought about it and felt that it didn't really matter. After these people left, he would put this guy in the space and usually didn't bother to care about it.
And establish a good relationship with Zhu Yuliang. The animals in the family may need his help in the future.
"No problem, just put it here first. I promise to keep an eye on it and nothing will happen."
After getting Zhang An's consent, Zhu Yuliang took Bai Xue and Wang Tao back to the county.
Before leaving, they paid Zhang An their lunch money, but how could Zhang An ask for it, as the family did not lack these dozens of dollars.
But in the end, Zhu Yuliang said that they would be paid for going out and asked Zhang An not to be polite.
To be honest, Zhang An was a little uncomfortable with this. County staff went to the countryside for business and even offered to pay for meals. This would be absolutely impossible in future generations.
It is absolutely impossible for me, the King of Heaven, to come.
"Zhang An, this four-legged snake won't cause any problems for you."
Old village chief Zhang Jianwen is still a little worried.
"Uncle, it's okay. Not many people know about this. Moreover, this guy is usually afraid of light and stays underwater. No one can find it. And if you don't tell me, I won't tell you. Who would have known it was still in our village?"
Zhang An comforted the somewhat worried old uncle, and the two walked out of Zhang An's yard.
When we walked to the drying area, we found Zhang Yan and the other children playing with some fruits on the ground.
Zhang An looked familiar, but didn't think of it.
After walking a few steps into the village, he noticed something was wrong. Zhang An remembered what the children were playing with just now.
He hurried back. When Zhang Jianwen saw Zhang An running back, he thought something had happened, so he followed him.
"Anzi, what's wrong?"
The old village chief asked while panting.
"The thing that Yanzi and the other children played with just now may be poisonous. I have to go and have a look."
After finding Zhang Yan, Zhang An saw their small group, One person grabbed a large bunch and was having fun playing on the ground.
“Brother An.”
After Zhang Yan saw Zhang An coming, she shouted sweetly.
Zhang An picked up the fruit on the ground and took a look. It was a fruit from pokeweed. However, just based on this bunch, Zhang An couldn't tell whether it was a local pokeweed or an exotic pokeweed. .
The native pokeweed, also called wild radish, is not poisonous and can still be seen today.
As for the exotic pokeweed, the entire plant is poisonous, from the roots to the fruits.
Zhang An saw someone eating this thing and eating it to death.
So when he saw Zhang Yan and the others playing this just now, he didn't dare to be careless.
But after more than ten years, the native pokeweed and prunella vulgaris will no longer be seen in the village.
"Yanzi, where did this thing come from? Can you take me to find it?"
"Xiao An, you also want to find Heiguoguo. It's at Grandma Si Gu's house. Come on, I’ll take you there.”
It’s rare for this little girl to see her elder brother doing things for her, so she can talk like an adult.
Zhang An followed them all the way to Xiazhai, and finally came to the back of the fourth aunt's grandmother's house.
This is an old homestead that has been laid for many years. It should have been left by the fourth aunt's grandmother's family to her son to build a house.
But it's not covered yet, and Grandma Si Gu has planted some vegetables on it.
Crossing the path, Zhang An walked inside. There were still birch trees planted by Si Gu’s grandfather for many years.
There is a lot of live hemp growing underneath. This thing is what Zhang An hates the most, because as long as you touch it, it will make you covered in scars.
Zhang An was disobedient when he was a child and went diving in the river. Wang Fang was very angry when he found him.
I chopped down a long live hemp tree on the roadside and whipped Zhang An directly on Zhang An’s legs without pants. The strength was not very strong, but Zhang An’s legs were all covered with wounds. A big, swollen bag.
Many adults in the village educate their children in this way, because this thing is not poisonous and will not hurt the body if beaten. However, the scars on the body will last longer and become larger than 100 million points.
It was itchy and painful, it was really uncomfortable.
Since then, Zhang An has not dived into the river again, but he still regrets falling in love with live hemp.
To be fair, anyone of Zhang An’s generation who knew live hemp was basically smoked with live hemp by an adult in his family when he was young.
Those younger than Zhang An were beaten more often.
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(End of this chapter)