Chapter 21: Selling Ginseng

Following Leng You’s instructions, Wen Jiuyue kept all the charcoal she had made while cooking over the past few days.

Now, under Leng You’s guidance, she evenly spread the small pieces of charcoal at the bottom of a large jar. After laying a thick layer, she placed the ginseng, wrapped in tissue paper and labeled by age, on top. Then she covered the ginseng with another thick layer of charcoal.

Finally, she covered the jar opening with a piece of extremely “precious” plastic sheeting and tied it tightly with string to achieve the best possible seal.

However, she would have to take out the ginseng from time to time to air it out, sun it, or dry it on a kang (heated brick bed) to prevent it from getting damp and moldy.

In these special times and in such a remote place, Leng You could only use this method.

In modern times, the process would be much simpler and easier. The most common method is to put the dried ginseng into a sealed bag, remove the air, vacuum seal it, and store it in a cool place. There’s no need to worry about it getting moldy or spoiling.

By the time they finished with the ginseng, it was completely dark.

At Leng You’s suggestion, Xiang Wentian took a break to go back to Xiang Huaixin’s place and call Xiang Huaixin and Bai Changpu over.

There was such a large pile of game that the old man and the young boy couldn’t handle it alone. The rabbits, pheasants, and quail were fine, but the roe deer needed to be processed quickly before they froze.

With the wind and snow raging, Xiang Huaixin and the others walked around the outside of the village without worrying about being seen.

Seeing the four large carcasses on the ground, Bai Changpu was shocked and exclaimed in wonder. Xiang Huaixin looked at his son, his eyes filled with a complex mixture of emotions and pride.

“Little Tian, what will we do when you leave? Let alone whether we can even get down into that valley, even if we could, we wouldn’t have the skills to get these things!

Oh… right, your old man has the skill, but no weapon!

Hey… what weapon did you use? It looks like these roe deer were hit in the head by a heavy object and died instantly, but the wound isn’t that big!”

A question suddenly popped into Bai Changpu’s mind, filled with intense curiosity.

“Slingshot,” Xiang Wentian casually replied.

Then he bent down and began to gut a roe deer with Wen Jiuyue.

“Sling… slingshot?

Old Xiang, what kind of monstrous son have you raised?”

Bai Changpu was dumbfounded.

Learning that Xiang Huaixin and Bai Changpu had only eaten a baked sweet potato each for dinner, after finishing the first roe deer, Wen Jiuyue threw the meaty bones into a pot, added a handful of salt, and started to boil them.

The others continued to work. Leng You sat by the stove, warming herself comfortably.

After all the roe deer were cleaned and cut up, the bones in the pot were soft and cooked through, their aroma filling the entire house.

They hadn’t eaten much, and they had worked hard, so everyone was ravenous. Without further ado, everyone gathered around the earthenware basin filled with delicious bones and ate heartily.

When they left, Xiang Huaixin and the others only took the leftover bones.

Their place wasn’t as secluded as Wen Jiuyue’s, and they were worried about being discovered.

Most importantly, Wen Jiuyue’s cooking was delicious, while theirs was like pig slop.

…

Xiang Wentian arrived again at dawn. After sweeping the snow and eating, he habitually hoisted Leng You onto his back.

Leng You carried Xiang Wentian’s military backpack, containing a ginseng root less than a hundred years old.

Yes, they were going to the county town to sell the ginseng and buy some grain.

They had planned to delay it for a few days, but Leng You saw Wen Jiuyue staring blankly at the rice bin.

They hadn’t told Wen Jiuyue about this yet. The county town was located south of Da Hei Shan Village, over a hundred miles away.

The relatively flat road was only about thirty miles, the rest was a series of undulating mountain roads, full of potholes, making it difficult to travel even in good weather.

Leaving the yard, Xiang Wentian magically produced a pair of simple skis from a corner.

They were simple, homemade wooden skis, but they looked sturdy.

The ski poles were also made of two strong wooden sticks.

In other words, Xiang Wentian had used this equipment when he went to the county town to buy tools for digging ginseng.

“If we get back early today, I’ll start teaching you,” Xiang Wentian didn’t miss the anticipation flashing in Leng You’s eyes.

He bent down to put on the skis, then took out a pair of sunglasses from his army coat pocket and put them on, using them as snow goggles.

“Okay!” Leng You nodded vigorously.

“Afraid?” Xiang Wentian turned his head slightly.

His face, hidden behind the sunglasses, looked even cooler and more mysterious.

He had some hesitation about bringing Leng You out in this weather, but to ensure her independence, safety, and a better life after he left, he had to let her see more of the world and learn more skills.

“Not afraid!” Leng You felt a surge of excitement.

“Hold on tight to my back, it’ll be cold. Let’s go!” He adjusted his cotton hat, put on his gloves, and with those words, Xiang Wentian pushed off with his ski poles, and they instantly flew forward.

Leng You: “…”

She barely managed to suppress the urge to scream.

She wasn’t mentally or physically prepared in time. The inertia caused her to lean back, and if she hadn’t been tightly strapped to Xiang Wentian’s back, she might have flown off before him.

Xiang Wentian’s speed was so fast that Leng You couldn’t keep her eyes open. On flat ground, he was probably going over 100 kilometers per hour, let alone downhill.

The snowy wind cut at her face like knives. Despite being bundled up, she quickly felt the chill penetrate her clothes, even her eyelashes froze.

Following Xiang Wentian’s instructions, Leng You huddled close, burying her face against his back, instantly feeling warm.

However, when Xiang Wentian flew down the steep slopes, she had a momentary feeling of weightlessness, but it was exhilarating.

She even started to eagerly anticipate the feeling of flying freely in the air, even though it would be extremely cold.

They reached the county town in less than half an hour.

Xiang Wentian seemed extremely familiar with the place, carrying Leng You directly into an alley.

Leng You was actually quite familiar with this county town, Bei’an County. In her past life, she had attended high school here for a year.

So she knew this alley. When she was in school, many people set up stalls here, but that was in the late 1980s.

The Cultural Revolution had just ended, so not many people would dare to come out to do business.

Sure enough, there were no vendors, only a few people looking around vigilantly, as if searching for something.

Seeing that Xiang Wentian and Leng You were just two children, they didn’t pay much attention to them.

Xiang Wentian carried Leng You about forty or fifty meters down the alley to a closed black wooden door and stopped.