Chapter 55: The Three Treasures of the Northeast—Ginseng, Mink Fur, and Ula Grass  

After leaving the courtyard and turning right, a fifteen-minute walk followed by another twenty-minute trek north would lead to the foot of the mountain.  

It did not seem far at first glance, but once they actually started walking, they realized just how distant it truly was.  

At this moment, Su Ruanruan finally understood the saying—Looking at the mountain can exhaust a horse before it reaches the destination.  

Upon reaching the foot of the mountain, the group dispersed.  

Everyone had come to gather wild vegetables and firewood. If they all crowded together, there would only be competition and scrambling. It was better to spread out and mind their own tasks.  

Niu Guifang led three children and called for Su Ruanruan to join her.  

Niu Guifang’s hands were busy, and so was her mouth.  

“Ruanruan, you just arrived in the Northeast, so you probably don’t know about the Three Treasures of the Northeast.”  

Hearing this, Su Ruanruan instinctively wanted to say that she did.  

Before traveling through time, although she had never been to the Northeast, she had heard of its Three Treasures—ginseng, deer antler, and mink fur.  

Just as she was thinking about this, she heard Niu Guifang continue: “These Three Treasures are ginseng, mink fur, and Ula grass.”  

“Ula grass?” Su Ruanruan looked at Niu Guifang in surprise. “What is Ula grass?”  

As she asked, a slight sense of self-doubt arose within her. Had her memory already started to fail after just ten or so days in this new world?  

“Ula grass is a precious thing!” Niu Guifang spoke enthusiastically, unable to hold back her excitement. “Here in our region, not only does winter arrive early and last long, but it’s also bitterly cold! Cotton requires ration tickets, and even if you have them, it’s not easy to buy. So, for winter warmth, we rely on Ula grass.  

“When autumn comes, people go into the mountains to cut Ula grass, dry it, and store it. In winter, they stuff it into their shoes, and their feet won’t get frostbitten! Isn’t it amazing?”  

Su Ruanruan nodded repeatedly. “That really is useful! Sister-in-law, what does Ula grass look like?”  

“Ula grass has long, slender, and soft leaves that don’t break easily. It can also be woven into straw sandals and mats. My husband told me that it can even be used to make artificial cotton, fiberboard, and paper.”

As they talked, Niu Guifang pointed to a patch of lush green grass nearby. “Look, that’s Ula grass. This stuff grows like crazy every year—it’s everywhere in the mountains.”  

Just as Niu Guifang had described, Ula grass had long, slender leaves and grew in dense clusters throughout the mountain. The leaves were also particularly tall.  

Su Ruanruan leaned in for a closer look. “When autumn comes, I’ll join you in harvesting Ula grass.”  

“Of course, we have to harvest it! Our Military Unit collects this and even pays for it!”  

Su Ruanruan’s eyes widened slightly. “Really? That’s such a good deal!”  

“Of course! It’s used for making paper!”  

At that, the two exchanged a glance and burst into laughter.  

Niu Guifang worked quickly and efficiently. In just a short while, she had already gathered a considerable pile of branches, neatly stacking them together. Once there were enough, she planned to tie them up with hemp rope.  

Meanwhile, Hong Ya and her two siblings were also busy helping pick up branches.  

Hong Ya’s hands were small, so she could only carry one branch at a time.  

Each time she found a branch, she would trot over with her short little legs and carefully place it on the growing pile before scampering off again to find another.  

Watching her move about, Su Ruanruan felt her heart melt.  

The little girl was simply too adorable!  

As she watched, Niu Guifang suddenly said: “Ruanruan, do you like daughters? Then hurry up and have one. You and your husband both have good looks—your child would definitely be beautiful.”  

Su Ruanruan thought so too.  

However, having children was something that could only happen naturally, and she wasn’t in any rush.  

“That’s not something to rush. It’ll happen when the time is right,” Su Ruanruan said with a smile. “Sister-in-law, I’m going to take a look over there. Keep an eye on Hong Ya and the others. I won’t go far—just call me if you need me.”  

Since Su Ruanruan was already an adult and married, Niu Guifang didn’t stop her. She only reminded her to be careful.  

Su Ruanruan agreed, slung her basket over her back, and headed toward the other side.

Su Ruanruan had not come to the mountains for leisure—she was here to dig for wild vegetables and search for wild fruits. So after just a few steps, she crouched down and began digging up the wild vegetables she spotted, tossing them into her basket.  

However, since this was the outermost part of the mountain, where people frequently passed through, most of the wild vegetables had already been picked. As a result, Su Ruanruan’s harvest was not very abundant.  

Still, she was not discouraged.  

Wild vegetables were, after all, wild. If they grew in large patches everywhere, there would be no need for people to cultivate vegetables at all.  

Even though each time she bent down she could only gather one or two plants, over time, they accumulated into a decent amount.  

Feeling the weight in her basket, Su Ruanruan was quite satisfied.  

She placed most of the vegetables into her Taobao shop and sent a notification to a returning customer before slinging her basket over her back and heading back.  

When Niu Guifang saw that Su Ruanruan’s basket was not very full, she was not surprised. “People come into the mountains all the time, so most of the wild vegetables have already been picked. But the sky looks like it’s going to rain soon. After the rain, we’ll come back in a couple of days—by then, the mountains will be full of mushrooms.  

“But you can’t just pick any mushroom. Some are poisonous. When the time comes, I’ll teach you how to tell them apart.”  

The original owner of this body had also gathered mushrooms in the mountains before, and since Su Ruanruan retained all of her memories, she naturally knew a few things about identifying them.  

However, this place was quite different from where the original owner had lived. There might be species she did not recognize, so she nodded. “I know a few types of poisonous mushrooms, but probably not all of them. Sister-in-law, I’ll rely on you to teach me!”  

“Leave it to me!”  

Niu Guifang patted her chest in assurance, then glanced toward the other side and raised her voice to call out: “Qiaoqin, we’re done here and heading back. Are you coming?”

Before long, Zhang Qiaoqin’s voice echoed from a distance. “We’re not leaving yet. You go ahead!”  

Niu Guifang grabbed the two bundles of firewood from the ground. “They’re not leaving, but we are. Ruanruan, let’s go home!”  

Su Ruanruan immediately took one of the bundles from Niu Guifang’s hands. “Sister-in-law, I’ll carry one for you.”  

Niu Guifang’s basket was already filled with firewood, and with the two extra bundles in her hands, the load was quite heavy.  

She hesitated for a moment. “This firewood is really heavy, Ruanruan. Can you manage?”  

“Of course, I can!”  

Su Ruanruan effortlessly lifted the bundle. “To be honest, back in the production team, I used to earn eight or nine work points.”  

The harder and more physically demanding the labor, the higher the work points earned. That was why men generally accumulated more points than women.  

Niu Guifang looked at Su Ruanruan in surprise. “Really? I never would have guessed! With your slender arms and legs, and that soft, delicate look, I always thought you were a dainty little girl, just like Hong Ya.”  

Su Ruanruan reached up with her free hand and touched her own face, her bright eyes gleaming as she looked at Niu Guifang. “Sister-in-law, are you saying I look young?”  

“Do I even need to say it? You do look young! That little face of yours is as smooth as a peeled boiled egg. Seventh Fu is really lucky to have you!”  

“No, no,” Su Ruanruan quickly shook her head. “Wen Jing is good-looking too. I didn’t lose out either.”