Chapter 239 There is no idle grass in the Qinling Mountains
“Ginseng, where is the ginseng?”
Qin Rongxian’s voice startled everyone downstairs, and they ran upstairs one by one, their eyes Look around the four of them.
"In the dog's mouth. It looks very similar, I don't know if it is."
When Qin Rong pointed over, Wang Cunye had already grabbed the fur of the back of the little yellow dog's neck and held it with one hand. Go into its mouth and take out something that looks like ginseng.
The little yellow dog thought that the old man was playing with it. It swung its neck around, slapped its ears behind its back with a playful smile, and annoyed Wang Cunye so much that he slapped it. Then it stopped in a daze, and Wang Cunye put the food in its mouth. He dug something out, took it into his hand and squinted his eyes to look at it.
Immediately laughed out loud: "Let me just say, it is so easy to get ginseng nowadays. This is the sister of ginseng. No wonder I admit my mistake first."
After that, he lost it again Let the little yellow dog continue to chew and play.
“Huh? This is not ginseng?”
“Of course not, do you know what this is?”
Except for Chen Ling and other members of the family, everyone else could only shake their heads when asked this question.
Wang Cunye smiled: "Platycodon."
"Platycodon?"
Everyone was confused when they heard this name.
"That's right. There is ginseng in the deep mountains and old forests here, but it is extremely rare. There is an herb that looks very similar to ginseng. It is found all over the mountains and plains, and it is this platycodon."
Wang Cunye praised Platycodon and said: "The roots of Platycodon are medicinal and can relieve phlegm. They can also be pickled and eaten as side dishes. They are delicious. Steamed pastries are delicious. They can also be used to make wine. Platycodon blooms and is beautiful. The flowers are blue. It has five petals and is quite bright. It blooms for half a year, and half of the slope is covered with blue flowers. It will be sunny tomorrow, so you can go to the mountain to take a look."
Wang Cunye continued: "Platycodon and Platycodon. The ginsengs look alike, like two sisters born from the same mother. They are the closest to each other. Later, more people came to the mountains to collect herbs, and the ginseng queen was afraid of losing her children, so she planned to move."
Ah, this is the old medicine farmer telling a story. Everyone realized that they all cheered up and listened carefully. They all used longing eyes to signal the old man to continue talking. You should continue talking.
Wang Cunye smiled and coughed twice, with wrinkles on his face like chrysanthemums: "Before Empress Ginseng left, she asked Empress Platycodon not to leak the news. Empress Platycodon swore to God that she would never leak the secret. , otherwise she would have a bad heart and a rotten liver. The Ginseng Lady was relieved and ran to Liaodong."
"Later, Emperor Xuanzong of the Tang Dynasty fell ill and asked for medicine everywhere. He ate the medicinal materials donated from our mountains. It will be ready soon. Emperor Xuanzong of the Tang Dynasty was so happy that he wanted to give it a reward. As a result, Emperor Xuanzong of the Tang Dynasty did not know how to treat platycodon and mistook it for ginseng. Quickly say, I am Platycodon, not ginseng. The ginseng has already gone to Liaodong..."
At this point, the little kids were also attracted and asked in a low voice: "Then Grandpa, didn't Queen Platycodon tell others about this?"
Wang Cunye nodded and said: "Isn't that right? It's agreed. Don't tell others. As soon as you say this, the secret will be leaked. Everyone knows that ginseng goes to the Northeast, so they all go to the Northeast to dig ginseng. Empress Platycodon made a vow and it was fulfilled after she broke it. She will be really evil in the future. Rotten liver. "
"Hey, don't believe it. Let's compare. When you break open the platycodon in other places, they all have white hearts. Most of the platycodons here have black hearts. That's why. . ”
Hearing this, everyone’s eyes lit up and they all praised Wang Cunye for speaking well and vividly.
Shanmao laughed continuously and praised sincerely: "Uncle Wang is still good at telling stories. After listening to what you told, compared with what Azhong told, what Azhong said is nothing. Very interesting.”
Wang Qingzhong just scratched his head and laughed, saying how could he compare with his father? His father lived in a pile of herbs, had never seen anything, and could hold several baskets of stories in his belly.
“Hey, you’re talking nonsense, you’re talking nonsense.”
Wang Cunye waved his hand, “They say there is no idle grass in the Qinling Mountains. In the past, as long as you went into the mountains, medicinal herbs were everywhere, but now It’s getting worse. The plants in Qinling Mountains are spiritual, and they should be like Ginseng Queen. We have collected too many of them, so they may have all moved. But with Platycodon Queen’s incident at hand, no one dares to talk nonsense this time. , so we don’t know where the herbs have been moved.”
At the end of the story, he gradually fell silent, tapping his injured leg lightly, with an indescribable expression on his face.
Everyone was suddenly silent.
The old man's education level was not high, but what he said was somewhat thought-provoking.
"Grandpa Wang, Grandpa Wang, what kind of herb is this."
At this time, Xiao Lizi suddenly ran to Wang Cunye with a "root" full of wet mud.
“Well, this is wild yam.”
“Grandpa Wang, is there a story about wild yam?”
"Story? There is one. Wild yam was actually originally called yam, the yam of taro. As a result, there was an emperor in the Tang Dynasty named Li Yu. Yu and taro have the same pronunciation. So the name yam could not be called yam anymore and was renamed yam. In the Song Dynasty, there was an emperor named Zhao Shu, but we couldn’t call it yam anymore. Shu has the same sound as potato.” >
"Later, I was still worried that it was not safe. It looked like this thing had a lot of roots and had to be burned with fire before cooking, so we mountain people gave it another name and called it Fire Vine Root - Hey, this is a good name. No emperor is named Huotenggen.”
Wang Cunye told people about the stories in the herbal medicine again, and everyone listened attentively.
After hearing the end, Liang Yuemin suggested to Chen Ling: "Your family is as rich as an old man and a treasure. You have a walking dictionary of medicinal materials like Uncle Wang. Why don't you do some medicinal plant cultivation?"
"Well, I haven't thought about this. I even asked about it years ago. Unfortunately, there is no good sales and it is easy to be cheated."
Chen Ling shook his head. There were still a lot of herbs growing in his cave. , the effect is far better than ordinary herbal medicine, but it cannot be sold.
First, it is not a good thing that medicinal materials are too effective and can easily attract attention.
Secondly, most medicinal materials cannot actually be sold at high prices.
The same applies to medicinal materials that most people consider to be rare.
Many people think that they can find Ganoderma lucidum, Cordyceps, Panax notoginseng, Gastrodia elata, the four major medicinal materials as famous as ginseng, or Dendrobium officinale, Polygonum multiflorum, and Snow lotus in the mountains, and they can exchange them for any amount of money.
That’s not the case.
In most cases, it is just news that drives up prices for the sake of speculation.
Although the effect of medicinal materials is not bad at all, the price may not be satisfactory.
The medicinal materials are collected from the mountains by the mountain people, and the first-hand prices they sell are very, very low.
But when medicinal material dealers or others take it from the farmers, and go to the county, city, big city, or even the capital, the price will immediately change, and it will rise in several rounds.
Those who are covered with silkworms are not silkworm farmers. Medicinal materials are not like food. The price difference is just there, just a few cents or cents. The medicinal materials industry is very deep.
Moreover, in this era, there are quite a lot of scams and scams in business, and local transportation is not very good.
In order to grow medicinal materials, it is better to buy some ginseng seeds and use spiritual water to promote the growth. It is said to be wild ginseng dug from the mountains. No one can find where it was dug, right?
In this way, if you sell one or two of them every year, you won’t have to worry about not having enough money to spend. It’s much more worry-free than growing medicinal materials. It’s simple and crude but practical.
"I will help you find sales. If you are worried, I will advance the money to you first." Liang Yuemin said.
"No, no, I will try it on the mountain first this year. If it works, I will tell you. Brother Yuemin, if you have time, you can bring me some ginseng seeds. I will try to grow them first. "Chen Ling waved his hands, thinking that he might as well do it his own way.
"Huh? Ginseng seeds, you want to grow ginseng, okay, okay, okay, I will bring them back to you next time."
"Well, I just mentioned ginseng, get it for me It makes me feel itchy, but it’s a pity that it’s so hard to find ginseng in Qinling.” At this time, Wang Cunye listened to what they said and said, “Looking for ginseng? There are big rules for finding ginseng.” When walking into the mountains, you can’t say a word. If there is any movement, the ginseng will run away.”
"When you see a ginseng, shout 'bangchui' immediately. This is to cast a spell on the ginseng. As soon as you shout, it will freeze and cannot escape. Before it recovers, use a red rope to tie the stem of the ginseng. Tie the stalks and tie them with a knot, which is called 'tying a doll'. Then slowly dig out the roots to find ginseng."
"Don't use iron tools or bamboo wood when digging ginseng, for fear of damaging the ginseng whiskers. Use animal horns to dig the soil bit by bit, and the most important thing is to use deer antlers to dig out ginseng. Otherwise, the ginseng will run away and you won’t be able to dig it out.”
Everyone was stunned. , Shanmao asked: "Is it any different from the kind of ginseng found in Liaodong?"
Wang Cunye shook his head and said: "In general, there is no difference, but the ginseng in Qinling has more aura and knows that people want to dig them. , just avoid it early, knowing that you will come tomorrow, you may run away tonight, running fast, hiding deep, and very difficult to find.”
……
There was another lively conversation. After listening to a few words, Chen Ling stopped listening and went to the kitchen behind to pack lunch. There was a special dish today that needed his own hands, Drunken Shrimp.
Most of the white-skinned river shrimps caught in the morning are only as big as two fingers. Many of them come down from mountain streams. After staying in the canals for a while, they are quite big. Fat and tender.
If it is caught from a mountain stream, it is fine to cut off the head and peel it and eat it raw.
But after struggling in the rain for a long time, we couldn't handle it carelessly. After carefully soaking it in salt water, Chen Ling came over to rinse it several times and soak it in fruit wine.
"The shrimps are very clean."
Looking up, Wang Qingwen and Wang Qingzhong were both coming over. Obviously, the father-in-law's story was no longer new to them. It was nothing new. attraction.
"It's okay. It would be cleaner if it didn't rain. Unfortunately, they don't jump outside, so I never thought of cooking this dish."
Chen Ling said to them Then he got up and went to the warehouse and brought out two jars of fruit wine.
Then bring a large coarse porcelain basin, use a fishnet to fish out the shrimp, drain the water, and put it into the basin.
After all the shrimps are harvested, add green onions, fruit wine, soy sauce, and sugar into a large bowl of sauce, pour it into a basin and start marinating.
Cover the large porcelain basin with shrimps with a lid, and you can still clearly hear the sound of the shrimps bouncing and struggling inside.
It keeps ringing. Just listening to the sound, you can imagine how powerful the shrimp jumps.
After the shrimps are cooked, the crabs and fish cannot be left alone.
The fish was stir-fried with some eel paste and some fish segments. There were still a lot of people in the family today, so Chen Ling kept busy and cooked more. The portion was very large.
Crabs are mixed with small crucian carp eggs in a pot of soup. After simmering for nearly an hour, a strong aroma wafts out.
Opening the lid of the pot, the soup turned white and the crabs were very badly cooked. Chen Ling took a spoon and took a spoonful of soup. The delicious soup made him take a deep breath. This was real. The soup is delicious and doesn't have any bad fishy smell.
At this time, the drunken shrimp was ready, so he shouted out: "dinner is ready."
"Hey, it's coming, it's coming."
Hearing the shout There was a sound, and people came to bring the dishes one after another, and brought them back to the front to prepare for lunch.
It was just after noon, the sun had not come out after the rain, and there was a slight wind blowing, which made it very cool.
You won’t feel too hot when you eat hot food.
The eel paste has a base flavor of garlic and shredded ginger, but it tastes very good. It has a great salty and fresh aroma. When you sip your tongue in the mouth, the eel meat is tender and flows smoothly on the tongue. It just slid down without chewing at all.
Women and children especially like to eat it.
The roasted fish segments are extremely fragrant and are a great snack for gentlemen. Paired with wine, it is a pleasure to eat and drink at the same time.
But in terms of popularity, it still has to be the Drunken Shrimp.
Because the method is fresh enough and strange enough.
The fresh river shrimp, after being influenced by the fruit wine, baptized by the sauce, simmered and drunk, it is detoxified, removed fishy and fresh.
The shrimp is burgundy in color, with a transparent color and a somewhat translucent texture. Even before it is eaten, it is extremely beautiful just looking at it.
"Uncle, why did the shrimp turn red?"
Little Lizi asked in a sweet voice. What this little girl likes most when seeing strange things is asking why, as if she has a hundred thousand whys in her head.
"Well, it's because Xia Xia drank wine. Just like a drunk person blushes, a drunk Xia Xia will also become blushing."
Chen Ling used her Explain if you can understand.
"Wow, that's it, it's so magical."
The little girl's eyes lit up and her interest increased. She picked up the chopsticks, picked one up and stuffed it into her mouth.
"Slow down, don't swallow it whole, be careful to get stuck in the mouth."
Chen Ling reminded that the alcohol content of drunken shrimp is not high, so it's okay for children to eat less. Then he invited everyone to come and try it, and he went too. Eat it with a sandwich.
Pinch a drunken shrimp into your mouth. You don’t have to bite hard. Just squeeze it gently with your teeth, and the shrimp meat will come out smoothly from the shell. Suddenly, the tender, smooth and elastic meat will come out. The sour and sweet fruit wine and the lusciousness of river freshness fill the mouth. The taste is full and the aftertaste is long. It is really wonderful.
“Well, the shrimp in my mouth is jumping.”
Liu Yinhuan covered her mouth and shouted in surprise.
"It's okay to jump. As the saying goes, fish jump when eating fresh shrimps. Live shrimps can jump and are the most tender when eaten." Chen Ling said with a smile.
"Wow, I ate it too, it really jumped in my mouth."
As soon as Chen Ling finished speaking, she told Wenxia that she had also eaten it.
Both lesbians had eaten, and the male gays became jealous and unconvinced. They went to pick up the shrimps with chopsticks, trying to find a shrimp that could jump in their mouths.
The little fat man was more delicate and savage than the little chestnut. He couldn't eat shrimps that could jump. He was so angry that he sat on the ground and kicked his legs and started crying. Liu Yinhuan was so angry that he held him down and spanked him. The little fat man Immediately I cried even harder.
But everyone laughed.
It was only Chen Ling who picked out two more bouncing ones for him that kept him from crying, and told Chen Ling that he would bring Ruirui his toy cars next time he came as a thank you.
In short, after finishing this dish, a group of people were all smiles and found it delicious and fun.
......
This full moon feast of wine and food happened with heavy rain, so the group of people played for four or five days, and they all dispersed after the weather cleared.
Brothers Wang Qingwen and Wang Qingzhong played for a few more days than the others. First, it was rare to come over, and second, it was summer vacation. Their children did not have to go to school, and Wang Qingwen and his wife did not have to go to school. As for Wang Qingzhong and his wife, it was the wheat harvest season. I have been busy for a while, and I have not even made a few trips to sell wheat. It has been raining more recently, so I have no choice but to stop.
The two families came to Chen Ling's place this time and had a great time, because in comparison, there are not only more things to play here, but the farm is also much cooler than other places, and the accommodation is very comfortable. Comfortable.
After playing for a few days, the two brothers followed Chen Ling to the county town to sell eggs, and then went to the countryside to go to the market, look at the livestock, and buy sheep. When it came to buying sheep, Chen Ling went straight to Erwazi’s house to buy them. Wazi felt that Chen Linglao had caught him buying it, but refused to sell it to him. He was also a person with a strange temper.
Chen Ling had no choice but to take his first uncle and second uncle to the mule and horse market. Finally, he picked six female goats and one big ram, and brought them all back home on a tractor. .
Including the two elders and four younger ones in the family, there are a total of thirteen sheep.
Counting the two rams that grew up from the lambs, there are three rams. Three rams, and ten ewes can be distributed fairly.
Otherwise, the rams will be impatient and will easily fight over the ewes if raised too many. Now that there are too many ewes, they will only feel tired and will no longer have the intention to cause trouble and fights.
After buying the sheep, we stayed for another two days. The Wang Qingwen brothers left, but the father-in-law and mother-in-law did not leave. Ruirui was just one month old now and could not live without people. If they continued to stay, they would have someone to take care of them, otherwise Only the young couple Chen Ling and Wang Susu were left. Not only were they in a hurry, they certainly couldn't care about anything else. Things about the farm and crops would be delayed.
Everyone has left, and life in Chen Ling’s family has returned to peace. Wang Cunye still grazes sheep in the orchard all day long, and now lets the sheep eat the weeds growing in the crop fields. Chen Ling, after selling eggs twice, During this period, I have been preparing to plant sunflowers. I bought seeds and farm tools for on-demand planting. I packed them slowly. I worked when I wanted to and rested when I wanted to. From time to time, I would walk around with my son in my arms, or go back to the village with my son in my arms. Circle, very leisurely.
On the tenth day of July, I just went to the county market yesterday to sell eggs. Chen Ling had nothing to do in the morning. He was holding his son and watching fish by the lotus pond. Uninvited guests came to the farm again, and they were from those counties. The leader brought some more people over.
After walking into the farm, he greeted Chen Ling with a smile. After saying a few words, he revealed his purpose of coming and found that he was here to buy wine.
"What? Buy wine?"
When Chen Ling heard these words, he was stunned. He thought about it for a long time, but he didn't react.
(End of this chapter)