frightfiction Chapter 280 Picking up Ganoderma lucidum and encountering an old sow
Chapter 280 Picking up Ganoderma lucidum and encountering an old sow
In the valley beside Wangxing Village, there is a large birch forest. The local Liushibalengchang is located in the middle of the valley, right next to the birch forest.
The climate here is mild with four distinct seasons, and the large temperature difference between day and night in the mountain valleys makes it ideal for the growth of Ganoderma lucidum.
Old Zhao, a mountain dweller, pointed to the dense birch trees and said, "The air here is very pure, the soil is fertile, and the water source is good. There are quite a few Ganoderma lucidum here."
According to later generations, this forest has an extremely high concentration of negative oxygen ions in its air, and the environment makes the medicinal components of Ganoderma lucidum more abundant, resulting in a higher quality harvested than artificially cultivated Ganoderma lucidum in later generations.
Suddenly, Lu Wenqian excitedly pointed to a big tree and said, "Brother, we've found the Ganoderma lucidum!"
The group looked up and Li Ju'an smiled at Lu Zhiqiang, saying, "Your sister has a sharp eye."
These words made Lu Zhiqiang extremely happy, and he was already eager to climb the tree to reach it. This was a treasure that was hard to come by, and how did his younger sister manage to find it with such a keen eye?
Lu Zhiqiang laughed heartily, took off his gloves, spat twice into his palms, rubbed them together, and was about to climb the tree when he said, "Our little sister has such good eyesight. If she can take a stroll through this forest this time, she'll be rich."
Li Ju'an pointed to the tree and said, "This is called a Scots pine."
Lu Zhiqiang had just climbed two meters using both hands and feet when he suddenly paused, "What pine? Isn't it a birch?" He looked up again and realized that what was on the tree above him was not Ganoderma lucidum, but pine resin.
Pine torches, mentioned in a line from the Peking Opera "Taking Tiger Mountain by Strategy": "Lighting lamps in the mountains, lighting torches outside the mountains." These things are very oily and rich in pine resin. Villagers used pine torches to start fires for cooking. A small piece, about the size of a finger, could easily ignite the firewood in a pot or stove.
When Lu's second aunt saw it, she laughed and said, "Zhiqiang, hurry up and take it off, Mom wants to put it next to the stove."
In every household in the village, there was a pile of split, oily yellow pine torches next to the stove. Mountain people loved to find these things; once found, they could be used to start fires or polished into various exquisite handicrafts, which they would then take to the market to exchange for small items with merchants from the south.
It's both beautiful and practical.
Lu Zhiqiang cursed. But he was already halfway up, and it wasn't easy to get off while riding on the pine tree, so he could only grit his teeth and climb on. He picked a large piece of pine resin and carefully slid down the pine bark. He slipped and fell a long way, which gave him a fright. His heart was pounding and his back was soaked with sweat.
He placed the pine torches into Lu Wenqian's basket, then wiped the sweat from his brow and said breathlessly to Li Ju'an, "I had a better view from where I was standing. There are still quite a few pine torches this big."
Since they were all gathering from the mountains, no one would miss the chance to find as many good things as possible. Li Ju'an and the others tied the hemp rope around their waists, secured one end of the rope to a branch and made a knot, and then they climbed up the surrounding pine trees one by one. Pine resin was put into their baskets, which were heavy with the harvest from the birch forest valley.
Li Xiao eagerly offered to help Li Ju'an carry the basket, smiling broadly as she said, "Brother, this is too heavy. Where will we put the other things later?"
The mountain harvest was plentiful, and everyone felt at ease and satisfied, very happy. Suddenly, Big Tiger looked up and sniffed the air, leading his pack of dogs to trot forward, occasionally sniffing the ground, and then suddenly stood in front of a birch tree and plopped down.
Li Ju'an hurriedly ran to the birch tree, looked up, and immediately burst out laughing.
This birch forest area is located right next to a ditch, where the ground has a high moisture content and the air humidity is also high, which is very beneficial for mycelial development. If the humidity is below 80%, the fruiting bodies of the mycelium will be of poor quality and have a poor appearance; the tender growth points on the edge of the cap will turn dark gray or dark brown.
Reishi mushrooms are aerobic fungi, and the humidity and shaded areas of this region are ideal for them to open.
Li Ju'an searched around the ditch for birch trees, and suddenly looked up and saw a white Ganoderma lucidum with branches that had grown into antler shapes and had already opened its umbrella.
He hurriedly used both his hands and feet to step onto the main trunk of the birch tree. The main part of the trunk was rotten, and a cluster of fully opened white Ganoderma lucidum was spreading out on the main trunk of the birch tree.
The stem and cap are thick and robust, with a thick cap.
A cluster of white lingzhi mushrooms was carefully picked. Li Ju'an cautiously climbed down the tree, and when he was still about half a person's height, he jumped down, holding the white lingzhi mushrooms in his hand, and said, "I've picked them."
Song Desheng and the Lu brothers were still searching the entire mountain forest for mushrooms, their necks almost cramping and stiff. They hadn't found a single lingzhi mushroom. When they heard Li Ju'an's words, Old Zhao, the mountain hermit, was the first to jump up and shout, "Found it already?"
Old Zhao spends most of his time circling the mountain, and he comes to this birch forest at least four or five times a month. Out of ten thousand birch trees, finding one or two clumps of white lingzhi mushrooms is already a great achievement. Sometimes, if you're unlucky, it's normal not to find even one clump in a whole month.
He marked each birch tree from which Ganoderma lucidum grew. Generally, the trunks of trees that can grow mycelium are rich in nutrients when they rot, and with the mycelial spores floating in the air, it is easy for them to produce mycelial fruiting bodies again.
He ran quickly toward Li Ju'an and saw a thick cluster of white Ganoderma lucidum with sturdy stems. His eyes widened in surprise, and he kept looking at it, saying, "What luck! Did you pray to the mountain god before you went into the mountains?"
Li Ju'an also laughed and said, "Of course, how can someone who runs through the mountains not worship the mountain god? I even burned three sticks of incense."
Old Zhao asked again where he found the tree. Looking down, he saw Big Tiger leading Flower Ears and several hunting dogs searching nearby. He was surprised and said, "Dogs can even smell the lingzhi mushroom?"
The Lu brothers and Li Ju'an both laughed and said, "Da Hu and Hua Er have very sensitive noses. They can smell not only the fungal smell of spores, but also the smell of other wild animals from far away."
Old Zhao knew the smell of wild boars in the mountains, as well as their strong, unpleasant odor, but by the time he noticed it, it was too late, and he had almost been charged by the startled boars several times.
Suddenly, Lu Wenqian looked at the road ahead, craning her neck to walk forward, and said, "Brother, I see a little pig."
In spring, the ground is unlike snow, where footprints are clearly visible and their freshness can be determined by the presence of ice and snow residue. Footprints on muddy ground are clearly visible, but on this rocky path, they are not.
There was a slight movement near the rocky cliff. Just as Da Hu was about to charge with his hunting dogs, Li Ju'an quickly called out to Da Hu, "Don't move yet."
Lu Wenqian and her second aunt had already gone closer to take a look. Suddenly, they heard a deep cry of a wild boar, and a huge wild boar, swaying its strong and powerful body, charged and fiercely attacked the two of them.
It was a sow, weighing around 260 pounds. Her abdomen was swollen, and she swayed heavily, kicking and thrashing. Her powerful hind legs kicked against the rocks as she charged at Lu Wenqian.
Aunt Lu screamed in fright, her legs went weak, and her knees gave way. She forgot all about turning around and running away. She just kept grabbing Lu Wenqian and yelling.
Lu Wenqian was a young girl after all, and she was so frightened that she was stunned and had no reaction. She watched helplessly as the wild old sow rushed straight at her face and headbutted her.
In early spring, sows with piglets are at their fiercest; when they get angry, they can be quite wild, even more irritable than male sows.
The old sow was all muscle and tendons, like an armored vehicle, her powerful muscles and agile, unstoppable momentum bursting forth. If this throw landed squarely, Lu Wenqian's small frame wouldn't be able to withstand it; she would be tossed high into the air and then crash heavily onto the rocky cliff, hitting her head and bleeding profusely.
Lu Zhiqiang was so anxious that the veins on his forehead bulged and his eyes were bloodshot. He didn't even have time to raise his hand to set up the Type 54 pistol. He gripped the gun handle tightly with both hands and was about to pull the trigger on the old sow.
But the sow was too close to Lu Wenqian, and Lu's second aunt was right in front of the gun barrel. The Type 54 pistol wasn't very accurate, but it was powerful at close range. If the aim wasn't steady, the second aunt and sister would be hit before the sow was even harmed.
Lu Zhiqiang was torn by inner turmoil, cold sweat beading on his forehead. His finger pressed against the trigger, but he dared not pull it. Lu Jinyang's ugly revolver had a thicker, larger barrel and was even less accurate. Both brothers pointed their guns at the sow, neither daring to pull the trigger.
"Gurgle!" The old sow let out a low growl.