Seeing the excitement on Cui Hongyu's face, Chen Xiaobei was quite confused.
"It's just that at the mountain god temple, there are so many of them."
Cui Hongyu grabbed Chen Xiaobei's arm. Perhaps due to her excitement, she gripped it a bit tightly, and Chen Xiaobei felt a slight pain. He quickly tried to break free. "No, no, let's talk this through properly."
"Dear, this is ginseng! Ginseng!" Cui Hongyu's voice changed with excitement.
Hearing "ginseng," Chen Xiaobei's mind raced.
"Is this very valuable?"
Cui Hongyu nodded. "Yes, yes, we can take it to the apothecary in the county."
Chen Xiaobei slapped his forehead. "Ah, no wonder it seemed familiar!"
In his previous life, one of the girls he knew had a family that cultivated ginseng. Yes, during busy times in the fields, they had called him to help with the work.
"This is great! Tomorrow, tomorrow morning, I'll go into the mountains and collect all the ginseng." Chen Xiaobei nodded firmly.
That night, the atmosphere at home became much lighter and happier.
Cui Hongyu clearly understood the value of these ginsengs, and her hope for a better future grew stronger.
Meanwhile, Chen Anbang, the village head, took advantage of the dark night and hurriedly left his home, heading toward the neighboring village.
The Cui family's village wasn't far, just about four or five miles away, and he would be there in no time.
Not far after entering the village, there was a house on the right-hand side.
Compared to other houses, this one appeared more rundown. There was a farm dog in the yard, and upon seeing Chen Anbang, it immediately started barking.
With the barking, the dim light in the main house flickered a few times, and then the door was opened. An old man with a hunched back slowly opened the door, peered out, and said, "Old Hei, stop barking."
As soon as he called out, the dog stopped barking.
The old man squinted for a while before cracking a smile. "Ah, it's Village Head Chen. Come on in."
Chen Anbang didn't wait to be invited in, he immediately spoke up. "I say, Cui Banxian, are you trying to trick me?"
Cui Banxian didn't rush to answer.
Instead, he first invited Chen Anbang to sit down and then poured a bowl of water, placing it in front of him.
"How could I be a trickster? Village Head Chen, you can't just wrong a good person like this!"
Chen Anbang's tone became a little agitated. "What did you say before? You said that when Cui Hongyu marries, within three days, there would be bloodshed."
"You also said that once she went through this calamity, all her misfortunes would be over."
"Ke ke ke," Cui Banxian squinted his eyes as he looked at Chen Anbang and let out a dry laugh.
"Ah, why can't you stay calm? I told you clearly before, once Cui Hongyu's man is dead, I can persuade Old Cui to give all his family assets as dowry to you."
Chen Anbang became somewhat agitated. "Yes, we were clear about it. I'll give you thirty percent then."
Cui Banxian sat back in his chair comfortably.
"There, that's settled. Why are you in such a hurry? I've already figured this out; Chen Xiaobei is a short-lived man."
"But..." Chen Anbang hesitated.
"Just wait a few more days patiently. This kid won't live much longer."
"Cui Banxian, I'll trust you this time. If he doesn't die, you'll..."
Cui Banxian chuckled. "I say, Village Head Chen, in a big village like Heitou, what's the big deal if one or two people die? And besides, it's just a helpless orphan with no parents."
Chen Anbang's heart shook. "What do you mean by that?"
Cui Banxian leaned forward and lowered his voice. "Cui Fugui has been practicing medicine for many years, and his accumulated wealth is worth at least a hundred or more silver."
Chen Anbang didn't respond and stood up, walking away.
As he walked off, Cui Banxian grinned wickedly and shouted loudly, "Village Head Chen, I'll give you a piece of advice: fortune is sought in danger!"
That night, Chen Xiaobei didn't sleep soundly.
He knew from what Cui Hongyu had told him that the thirty pieces behind were valuable, but such things were rare.
What occupied his mind were two things: one, to quickly reach the mountain god temple and collect the ginseng, and two, to observe the wild chickens' nesting place.
After all, a wild chicken delivered to the county and to Steward Cao would fetch 350 copper coins.
The most frustrating thing for him was not knowing the time, so he could only guess by the changing light outside.
As the outside world began to dimly light up, he quietly got up.
As soon as he moved, Cui Hongyu woke up.
She turned over and said to Chen Xiaobei, "Dear, let me go with you. I know about ginseng."
Chen Xiaobei stood up and walked to the bedside, gently patting Cui Hongyu's shoulder.
"It's better if I go alone. If Qi'er wakes up and there's no one around, she'll cry."
This reason softened Cui Hongyu's heart. After a moment of hesitation, she finally nodded slightly.
Watching Chen Xiaobei leave the house, Cui Hongyu felt a mixture of emotions. Perhaps "confused" would describe it best. Chen Xiaobei seemed so concerned about his sister, but why did the rumor always say he planned to sell her?
After leaving Heitou Village, Chen Xiaobei began to feel his calves growing heavy.
Although it was early and he was heading alone toward Qingniu Mountain, he still felt a bit uneasy. After all, in the memories of his current life, he had heard from the elders since childhood that there were fierce beasts in the mountains.
But now, he had no time to worry about that. He could only force himself to keep going, and the only weapon he had for protection was a branch he had picked up from the roadside.
With his head down, he walked quickly toward the Mountain God Temple, in a rush, even as he moved quickly and hastily.
He wanted to reach the Mountain God Temple before the clouds broke, and as he looked into the distance, he saw a faint red hue appearing on the horizon.
Yes, standing halfway up the mountain to watch the sunrise could be quite a scenic view.
As he watched, the red sun leaped over the horizon.
In an instant, beams of golden light burst forth, lighting up the entire valley.
Chen Xiaobei immediately began to act, cupping his hands in front of his mouth like a trumpet, and began shouting loudly into the valley.
"Roar!"
"Roar!"
He shouted four or five times in succession, the sound high-pitched and continuous, echoing endlessly in the valley.
With his cries came an answer, and soon there were noises from the valley below as groups of mountain birds were startled and took flight.
Of course, these birds were not the target of Chen Xiaobei's attention.
His eyes were nervously searching. His target, of course, was the wild chickens.
Good things don't come easily, but his effort paid off.
At the foot of the mountain in the distance, a few wild chickens hopped from tree to tree, then disappeared from sight.
He knew they were wild chickens because of the colorful feathers on their bodies, something not found on ordinary birds.
After noting the approximate location, Chen Xiaobei turned and headed toward the back of the Mountain God Temple.
The place where he had collected the red seeds yesterday, where a few ginseng plants were still waiting for him.
Following Cui Hongyu's advice, Chen Xiaobei expanded the digging area and dug down around them.
He feared that if he wasn't careful, he might accidentally dig up this priceless treasure.