Chapter 52 : Picking Hazel Mushrooms

The two of them took a nearby path up the mountain, with Lu Fengqin leading the way and Su Mo following behind.

This mountain was part of the Wanda Mountain range and was known locally as Bukai Mountain.

The Lujia Village Production Team was spread out horizontally at the foot of Bukai Mountain. Several paths led up the mountain from different points in the village, so they didn’t encounter anyone else along the way.

As they walked, Su Mo struck up a conversation with Lu Fengqin about everyday matters. “Fengqin, are you going to school?”

“Yes, I’m in the second grade now,” said Lu Fengqin proudly. Many girls in the village didn’t attend school, but she did.

At that time, children often started school late, usually at the age of eight or nine. Primary school was a five-year program, junior high school lasted two years, and high school was also two years.

“Why aren’t you in school today?” Su Mo asked, worried she might be skipping class just to help with the autumn harvest.

“We’re still on an autumn harvest holiday. School starts again in two days,” explained Lu Fengqin.

Education in rural areas was flexible at the time. Schools typically had a long break during the autumn harvest to allow students to help at home.

“Oh, how much does it cost for you to go to school?” Su Mo asked, curious.

“Tuition and miscellaneous fees are one yuan per semester, and the textbooks cost fifty cents, so it’s one yuan and fifty cents in total,” said Lu Fengqin.

Su Mo nodded. That was quite affordable compared to the future, where exorbitantly priced private schools and even kindergartens would become common. Many people jokingly referred to kindergartens as “kindergarten college students,” meaning their fees were higher than university tuition.

“Have your siblings gone to school?” Su Mo inquired.

“My second sister isn’t in school yet but will start next year. My eldest brother just started this year,” replied Lu Fengqin. She was referring to her younger sister Lu Aiqun and her eldest brother Lu Guodong, who was the eldest son of Lu Weiguo.

Both siblings were seven years old, but the boy had started school a year earlier than the girl. Although the Lu family wasn’t particularly biased towards boys, the societal norms still slightly favored them.

“Then where are they now? Why didn’t they come to harvest the crops with us?”

“They went to gather grass for the pigs,” said Lu Fengqin. If she hadn’t been tasked with helping Su Mo, she would have been collecting pig grass to earn work points.

Su Mo felt a little guilty, realizing she had delayed Fengqin’s work. “By the way, what exactly is pig grass? Is it a specific type of grass?”

She had come across references to pig grass in novels and was curious about what it actually entailed.

Fengqin suppressed a smile, thinking her third aunt really was a city person who didn’t even know what pig grass was.

“Pig grass isn’t a specific type; it includes all kinds of grasses that pigs can eat. We usually gather chickweed, purslane, houttuynia, endive, ryegrass, and even shepherd’s purse that old folks don’t eat,” explained Fengqin.

Embarrassed, Su Mo smiled. “I’ve never seen those before. I was just curious.”

“That’s okay. My mom says it’s normal for Aunt San to not know these things since you’re from the city,” replied Fengqin kindly.

The two continued chatting as they walked. After about half an hour, they reached the outskirts of Bukai Mountain. It was autumn, and the leaves were starting to turn. The mountain was alive with color yellows, reds, and greens blending into a breathtaking scene like a vibrant painting.

Both the original owner of Su Mo’s body and Su Mo herself were from the south, where such stunning autumn scenery was rare. Su Mo couldn’t help but exclaim, “It’s so beautiful!”

However, Fengqin, who was used to the view, didn’t see what was so special.

“Aunt San, do you want to pick hazel mushrooms?” Fengqin asked.

“Yes, but it doesn’t have to be hazel mushrooms. We’ll take whatever we can find,” replied Su Mo.

In the forest, surrounded by the rich wood energy, Su Mo felt an overwhelming sense of comfort.

“I know where to find hazel mushrooms. I picked some here a while ago, and there are still a lot of small ones left. I’ll take you there,” said Fengqin, leading the way.

Su Mo hurried to keep up, reaching out to touch the plants as they walked, absorbing the energy from their surroundings.

Ten or twenty minutes later, Lu Fengqin led Su Mo to a shady slope. “Aunt, this is the place. I came here some time ago and picked a large basket of hazel mushrooms.”

Su Mo nodded, and the two of them began searching the area. Soon, they found a patch of hazel mushrooms. Although the mushrooms were sparse, there were still quite a few. The two quickly squatted down and began picking them.

Before long, both of their backpacks had a layer of hazel mushrooms.

At that moment, voices could be heard not far away. Three young girls approached, chatting noisily. When they saw Lu Fengqin, they called out, “Lu Fengqin, what are you doing there? Are you picking hazel mushrooms?”

Hearing their voices, Lu Fengqin quickly stood up, spread her arms protectively, and said, “Lu Lanhua, we found this spot first. Go look somewhere else.”

Lu Lanhua sneered and said, “The mountain belongs to everyone. Just because you found it first doesn’t mean we can’t pick here.” She continued walking toward them.

As she got closer, she noticed that the person next to Lu Fengqin was not her sister but a very attractive adult.

“Lu Fengqin, who is this?” Lu Lanhua asked.

“She’s my third aunt,” said Lu Fengqin, puffing up her chest proudly. Her third uncle was the pride of their family.

Everyone in Lujia Village knew that Lu Changzheng was an officer, and the children were afraid of him. As a result, they were also somewhat intimidated by Su Mo, his wife. Seeing Su Mo silently watching them with a calm expression, the three girls hesitated.

“Fine, you can have this spot. We’ll look elsewhere,” Lu Lanhua said, retreating with her friends.

After they left, Su Mo quietly asked, “Do they often bully you?”

“No, not really. It’s mainly because her grandmother doesn’t get along with mine, so she picks on me,” said Lu Fengqin. Her family background, her grandfather as the village secretary, her father as the accountant, and her third uncle as an officer, meant few kids in the brigade dared to bully her.

Lu Lanhua was the eldest granddaughter of Li Cuihua.

“Aunt San, let’s pick quickly before someone else comes,” urged Lu Fengqin.

“Alright. Let’s split up. I’ll look over there, and you check that side,” Su Mo suggested.

After parting ways, Su Mo searched for hazel mushrooms while using her abilities to absorb the wood energy from the weeds and trees around her. Since weeds would die in the winter anyway, she drained all their nutrients. For the trees, she took only about one-fifth of their energy, leaving enough for them to survive the winter. For weaker trees, she even secretly transferred some energy to them to help them thrive.

When Su Mo found hazel mushrooms, she used her powers to stimulate the growth of the surrounding mycelium. Before long, new patches of hazel mushrooms appeared. Su Mo picked them and placed most into her storage space, leaving only a small portion in her backpack.

By the time she finished searching the slope, her backpack was half full. In total, she had enough to fill two more backpacks in her space.

At that moment, she heard Fengqin calling out, “Aunt San, are you done?”

“I’ve finished here. What about you?” Su Mo replied, walking toward her.

“I’m done too,” Fengqin said. As a child accustomed to roaming the mountains, she worked quickly and soon joined Su Mo.

“Aunt San, how much did you pick?” Fengqin asked.

Su Mo put down her backpack to show her. Seeing that most of it was full, Fengqin was delighted. She felt she had successfully completed the task her grandmother had given her.

“I have half a backpack too,” Fengqin said, handing it over for Su Mo to see.

“It’s getting late. Let’s head back,” said Su Mo. It was almost 11 o’clock, and the walk back would take about an hour.

When they got home, Su Mo asked Fengqin to wait in the yard. She went inside, pretended to fetch something, but secretly took out a handful of fruit candies from her storage space and handed them to Fengqin.

Thrilled by the candies, Fengqin left the house in high spirits. As she departed, she called out, “Aunt San, I’ll take you to pick pine nuts, chestnuts, and walnuts this afternoon!”