After packing his things, Lao Tou brought three furs and handed them to Jiang Qi, his son and Lao Shen.
"Wear this. It's important to wear less when going up the mountain this season. The mountain wind in the old forest is like a razor blade."
Lao patted the fur in his hand and said with a smile: "No matter how expensive a down jacket is, it can't resist the wind as well as old leather!"
When it comes to going up the mountain, the boss always sticks to his word, so the three of them will naturally not object.
Each one was covered with fur, and three blind bears were freshly baked.
Soon, the people who went up the mountain were ready. Including Jiang Qi and the old leader, there were nine people in total.
"Brother Jiang, do you know why there are only nine people?"
Lao Baotou personally carried the small box with the belt on his back and turned to ask Jiang Qi on the side.
Jiang Qi smiled and said, "I was just about to ask you for advice."
"This is our old rule for mountaineers. Whenever we go up the mountain to collect ginseng, the number of people must be an odd number."
The old man wrapped his head in fur and said: "Because in our eyes, Bangchui is also a person. He goes up the mountain in odd numbers and goes down the mountain in even numbers to get lucky."
“But now, not many people follow the rules.”
The boss sighed and said: "Look, they are all old people in their thirties and forties, and there are no young people. It's not that I don't give young people opportunities, but there are really no young people who are willing to do this."
"If this continues, when I die, what you see will probably be the last of the mountain drivers."
"Brother, don't be too pessimistic, there is still me."
Jiang Hong patted the boss on the shoulder and said, "I promised you last night. No one will learn from me. I will find someone to learn from you!"
"I will definitely not let this craft die!"
"Thank you, Brother Jiang."
The old man looked back and nodded to Jiang Hong.
Jiang Qi understood clearly that he was playing the emotional card with his father.
The old boss was afraid that his skill of driving mountains had lost its roots, and the condition Jiang Hong gave was that as long as we cooperate, we will not only win-win, but we will also find talents to learn from.
This is what the boss values most, and it is also the reason why the boss relented.
The reason why the boss took the initiative to talk to Jiang Qi just now is that the boss knows that whether this cooperation can continue in the future depends not only on Jiang Hong, but also on Jiang Qi's successor.
"Are you all ready?"
Lao looked at everyone present and asked loudly.
"Ready! Boss!"
Everyone responded loudly.
"Sacrifice to the gods!"
The boss gave the order, and a few mountaineers who didn't have to go up the mountain carried out the offering table. On it were the statues of Fifth Grandma and Liu Xian.
"kneel!"
The old leader held three sticks of incense. After lighting them, he took the lead in kneeling in front of the altar table.
Jiang Qi, his father and his son, and other three people watched on the side without participating. Jiang Hong was an atheist, while Lao Shen was more of a Buddhist.
As for Jiang Qi, he was afraid that something would happen to him if he worshiped him.
"Fifth Grandma is on top! Liu Daxian is on top! Wish this disciple all the best for this trip!"
The old man bowed his head carefully three times and inserted the fine incense into the incense burner.
Then, Lao stood up with his head turned around and looked towards the majestic Changbai Mountains.
He took a deep breath and shouted in a voice with a strong Syracuse accent.
"Going for the mountains!!!"
"Leave!!"
Along with the rich voice of the boss, whether it was an illusion or something, Changbai Mountain became more eye-catching in everyone's eyes.
The group of people set off one after another and headed straight for Changbai Mountain.
Of course, we don’t go there on foot. As the saying goes, Wangshan is a dead horse. Although this is the nearest village to Changbai Mountain, it is still quite a distance away from Changbai Mountain.
Two solid-looking off-road vehicles drove over. The wheels were surprisingly wide, and they looked like they had been modified.
The old boss, Jiang Qi and three other people sat in a car and headed straight to the foot of Changbai Mountain.
In the car, the boss didn't speak, he just kept looking at a hand-drawn map.
Jiang Qi was sitting next to Lao Baotou. He glanced at it and found that the map seemed to be a certain location in Changbai Mountain, with three places marked by red dots.
This map is very simple. It has no scale and no reference objects. It is far from a serious map.
People who have never been to Changbai Mountain in person and are very familiar with Changbai Mountain will definitely not understand it.
The boss noticed Jiang Qi's gaze and said with a smile: "Can't you understand? I drew this myself. The three marks on it are three young sticks that have not yet reached their age."
As he spoke, Lao shook his head and patted the box on his body, and said: "The rules of the mountain men are that when you see a stick that is not old enough, you must wrap red ginseng on it and hang copper coins on it."
"First, it is said that the mallet has spirituality. Once tied with this red rope, it cannot escape."
"Secondly, it also tells other mountaineers that this mallet has been marked and no one else can touch it."
Lao took out a copper coin from the box and handed it to Jiang Qi, motioning for him to take a closer look.
Jiang Qi took it and took a look, and sure enough he found a small character "Hu" on the copper coin.
Just listen to the boss saying: "One of them was discovered by me when I went to the mountain eight years ago. At that time, it was only ten years short of turning fifty."
"This time I just dug it out and let Brother Jiang fulfill his wish,"
"Brother!"
The old man looked at Jiang Hong and said with a smile: "Isn't it a loss of status to give a fifty-year-old stick to my younger siblings?"
"Oh my old brother, aren't you asking me to sit on the wax?"
Jiang Hong waved his hands in shame and said with a smile: "Brother, I'm not polite to you. I'll take the stick, but I won't lose a penny of the money I deserve!"
"Otherwise, you won't give me face!"
"Brother, let's be open."
The boss nodded with a smile.
This was him flexing his muscles and telling Jiang Hong that he would not suffer any loss if he cooperated with him.
After forty years of driving in the mountains, no one knows how many such maps the old leader has.
The car soon arrived at the foot of Changbai Mountain.
After Lao Baotou got out of the car, he looked at Jiang Hong, his son and the other three, and said, "You three, you should also know the rules of mountain climbing. This is going up the mountain..."
Jiang Hong nodded and said: "Brother, don't worry, everyone on the mountain will listen to you."
This is also a rule. No one knows what dangers are hidden in the old forest. The ground is covered with heavy snow and nothing can be seen. They rely on the experience of the leader.
In this case, it is taboo to make multiple orders.
After going up the mountain, the only thing that matters is what you say to the head.
The old leader nodded without saying anything more, and sent three people to clear the way, with two people behind him, sandwiching him, Jiang Hong and four others.
After walking for about an hour under the command of the boss, the boss suddenly stopped.
"Stop it all!"
The boss shouted, and everyone looked at him.
Jiang Qi silently glanced at the position about ten meters east of the old boss's head.
There is a strong old pine there, and the snowdrifts at the base of the tree are full of fallen pine needles.
"This is it. The mallet from eight years ago is under this old pine."
Lao closed his eyes and recalled it for a moment, then said firmly.
After saying that, he stepped forward, squatted down, and peeled away the snow and pine needles.
However, what he saw next made the old boss change his face and even cursed!
"The jealous dog came here and dug up the mallet I marked!"
"You don't follow the rules! Aren't you afraid of losing your descendants?"
