Chapter 7 - A Ginseng that Could Run

Gu Yan didn't know whether to cry or laugh.

However, she was really moved from the bottom of her heart. 

In her previous life, there really weren't many people that were truly nice to her regardless of her age, but Auntie Sun definitely was one. 

Gu Yan remembered that she heard Auntie Sun was very ill when she went back to the village for the last time. She got diabetes, and it was terminal. She was so tormented that she didn't look human anymore.

Gu Yan held the kindness that Auntie Sun showed toward her close to her heart.

She talked and talked to convince Auntie Sun that her leg was really fine and could pick mushrooms. 

And then, Gu Yan said seriously, "Auntie, you have to change your diet habit. You can't keep eating greasy meats or sweets; you have to mix up your diet. Also, you have to exercise more so you could lose some weight."

Auntie Sun's diabetes was not hereditary. Therefore, if she could change her lifestyle and eating habits, it could greatly lower her chances of getting diabetes later on in a sense.

"What is a diet habit?"

"It's basically what you eat every meal. Oh right, you shouldn't always use lard to cook dishes. Some vegetables can just be boiled with water and some salt, or you can add some soy sauce instead. Also, don't always add sugar to your rice."

Villages in the northeast usually cooked with lard at that time. Lard was basically animal oil that was rendered from fat and hardened into a solid white chunk. 

People would scoop out a little bit every time they cook and stir fried. 

But that was really bad for those with hypertension or hyperlipidemia. 

Then, Gu Yan explained to Auntie Sun what constituted a healthy diet, and that she needed to exercise more, including doing the yanko dance. 

Auntie Sun was amused and exclaimed, "Little Yan, how come you know everything? So amazing!"

Gu Yan played coy and couldn't say she was reborn. She smiled and said, "I read that in a book."

"You little girl, you were so smart in school before, and you always got first place in exams. Why, now that the college entrance exam has been resumed, if you could continue with your education and get into a university, then that would be great. Your mother wouldn't be so biased!"

Gu Yan smiled, but she was saying something in her heart.

I was an elite student at the National Defence University in my previous life. I will not miss out on university in this life either.

She would be an even better student!

Joining the army was the first step. If she had very good performance, she could apply for the National Defence University through her superiors. Maybe she would not be faced with so many obstacles like how it was in her previous life!

There were so many things to do in the future, but Gu Yan was extremely confident!

Gu Yan said goodbye to Auntie Sun and climbed up the mountain. Once she could not see another living soul, she started skipping and striding. 

Gu Yan looked for mushrooms and wondered where exactly Lu Ye appeared the first time?

Slowly, she started walking further and further without her noticing. 

Of course, Gu Yan did not pick too many mushrooms. Her leg was "hurt" afterall, so if she picked too many mushrooms, it would raise the suspicions of Zhang Lan and the rest. 

However, Gu Yan noticed a wild ginseng.

Ginseng was one of the three treasures in the northeast. Also, the ginseng in front of Gu Yan's eyes had seven leaves; this was a hundred-year-old ginseng!

Gu Yan remembered hearing a folklore from the elders in the village that ginsengs grown too old would obtain spirits. They would run away once they saw humans coming. 

Of course, nobody ever saw a real ginseng that could run.

Gu Yan, who studied medicine in her previous life, knew how valuable this ginseng was. 

And if Auntie Sun could make soups or porridge with this ginseng, it could alleviate her hypertension and fatty liver!

Finding this ginseng was a sweet fortunate discovery. Gu Yan remembered that she did not run into it during her previous life. 

Now that she ran into it, she was not going to let it go. 

Gu Yan caught a vine on her side and climbed up the small hill. 

Though it wasn't high, when she looked down, she was about two meters up. 

There was a grass-covered groove to her side, and she didn't know how deep it was. It made rustling sounds when the wind blew. 

Gu Yan stood on a rock that protruded out and steadied herself. She held onto the vine with one hand and reached out to the ginseng with the other. 

Then, just as her fingertips touched the ginseng, a golden light flashed in front of her eyes. Gu Yan looked again, and that hundred-year-old ginseng was nowhere to be seen!

Gu Yan's body shook a little and lost her balance, then she fell into the grass groove!

At that moment, a dumbfounding thought came to Gu Yan's head.

So the folklore that the elders tell isn't all lies!

 

There are ginsengs that can run...