The next day, at three o'clock in the morning, after everyone had eaten breakfast, Ye Zhanxi drove and followed Uncle Geng to Muling.
Entering through the side door, Professor Ye Rongguang, Professor Wen and others were immediately attracted by this majestic building. Ye Xianqian's camera kept clicking.
Everyone turned around in a big circle and finally came to the Royal Belt River in front of Long En Hall. Came to the one and a half five-fingered peach tree.
One of the trees, which was thicker than the mouth of a bowl, had bent into the dry river. As expected, more than half of the other tree was cut down. There is light red sticky pulp hanging on the stubble.
"This is."
"How did you discover it?" Professor Ye Rongguang took off his bag, squatted down, and began to study the tree.
"It was discovered by our health worker. He is a barefoot doctor. He has some knowledge of traditional Chinese medicine passed down from his ancestors. He is from Hunan Province and knows some traditional Chinese medicine materials."
"Oh, you hygienist is not simple." Professor Ye Rongguang praised casually.
"Well, he has some skills, but the health worker is also very surprised. How can this kind of plant, which is only found in the south, appear at 39 degrees north latitude?" Wang Ke is very excited now. If the health worker Yu Deben To remember the first meritorious service, Wang Ke must also remember the first meritorious service.
"Yeah, that's what I'm curious about." Professor Ye Rongguang responded. As he spoke, he picked up a magnifying glass and carefully observed the leaves, bark and the place where the light red sticky pulp hung.
After watching for a while, Professor Ye Rongguang stood up.
"This tree seems to be no less than sixty years old. It is very likely that it is still a rare species. It is a blood peach."
What the hell is a blood peach?
"Lao Ye, tell me, I am an expert in archeology, but when it comes to plants, I am a layman." Professor Wen stood aside, eager to know the answer.
"Northerners don't know that the five-fingered peach is too normal. This moraceae plant mainly grows in the deep mountains and valleys of Fujian, Guangdong, Qiong, Guizhou, Guizhou, and Yunnan provinces, as well as beside village ditches. Its plants The shape is a small shrub or small tree, not very tall, only three meters in height, the whole plant is covered with yellowish-brown appressed short bristles, has latex, and the leaves are alternate."
Professor Ye Rongguang said, and everyone nodded. As soon as the experts take action, they will know if there is any? But when Wang Ke heard this, he immediately became confused, huh? The five-fingered peach tree at the moment is not only three meters tall, but also seven or eight meters tall!
"Professor Ye, isn't this tree a five-fingered peach?"
Professor Ye Rongguang looked at him and did not answer, but continued: "Actually, the five-fingered peach is not a peach. It is named because its leaves look like five-fingered peach, and the leaves have fine hairs. When the fruit is ripe, it looks like a peach. It is also known as Five-clawed peach, milk wood, earth root, Acanthopanax bark, dragon leaf, nine dragon root, five-clawed peach, rough leaf fig, Nanqi, etc. Its ingredients are rich in organic acids, amino acids, triterpenes, alkaloids, coumarin wait."
"Professor Ye, what is this if it's not a five-finger peach?" Wang Ke became more and more panicked as he listened. Wasn't he lying about military information? What Professor Ye Rongguang means is that after a long time, this is not a five-fingered peach, so what is this?
It seemed that Ye Rongguang was on the right track today, but he didn't play according to the routine. He continued: "The rhizome of the five-fingered peach grows straight. The wild ones need at least three years of growth before the roots can be dug out. The ripe fruit can be eaten after peeling it, and it tastes a bit like figs. The trunk is generally not used. It has no taste. The root has a strong fragrance and can be used medicinally. It can also be used to make soup or make wine. It is full of fragrance."
Wang Ke's face immediately turned red when he said this, because since last night, he had used the fruits and stems to make water for everyone to drink. Why didn't Professor Ye Rongguang stop it, didn't tell him earlier, and made such a big joke happen to him?
"Uncle Ye, I really don't understand. It turns out that the five-fingered peach is not picked for fruit or stems, but for its roots?!"
"Children can be taught. Today I am here to tell you. I believe you will never forget this in your life." Professor Ye Rongguang said this, and even Professor Wen felt a little embarrassed, because no one raised any objection last night. , everyone thinks that the five-fingered peach mainly eats fruits and crisp and tender stems, but it turns out to be the roots.
It's over, it's over, we were all wrong. Hygienist Yu Deben also exposed most of his pockets, which was wrong.
Just as he was thinking about it, Wang Ke suddenly remembered another question. After talking for a long time, he was talking about the five-fingered peach. But now, according to Professor Ye Rongguang, this tree cannot be a five-fingered peach at all. It is very embarrassing!
Suddenly, Wang Ke's face became feverish and he looked depressed.
Professor Ye Rongguang saw this scene, smiled, and then calmly said to Wang Ke: "Little Wang Ke, do you feel that you have failed?"
"Dad, just tell me what it is, don't make fun of my brother Bing." Ye Pian was so angry that he immediately walked to Wang Ke with his camera and "protested" to Professor Ye Rongguang.
Wang Ke, on the other hand, nodded seriously and must bravely admit it when he knew he was wrong.
"Haha, there is supposedly only one kind of five-fingered peach in the world, because other varieties have become extinct in the Cretaceous. However, in the evolution of later generations, a new variety appeared suddenly, called the 'blood peach'."
"Ah!" This time it was not just Wang Ke who was surprised, including Professor Wen, Ye Pianpian, Gu Maolin, and Dr. Xiao Zhang, all with their mouths wide open.
"The earliest written records can be traced back to the "Book of Songs" more than 3,000 years ago. The "Book of Songs" says: The peach blossoms shine brightly. That's what it says."
When Professor Ye Rongguang said this, Ye Xianqian immediately observed the five-fingered peach in front of him.
"Look carefully, the leaves of this five-fingered peach are also five-fingered, and the branches are slender, spreading upward, and are purple-red. When the fruit and stem are broken, there is the same pulp, but the different five-fingered peach has white pulp. But the blood-haired peach is covered with light red pulp. In addition, when you bite open the blood-haired peach, the inside is also bloody."
"Uncle Ye, I want to ask, is it still called the Five-fingered Peach?"
"Good question, please pay attention. I just said that the real five-fingered peach is a plant of the Moraceae family, a small shrub or small tree, only three meters tall; but this blood peach is a plant of the Rosaceae family, and they are all different species. Same. It is a small deciduous tree, up to ten meters in height, with smooth bark and dark purple-red color. The fruits are hairless when young. They bloom in spring, bear fruit in late summer and early autumn. They grow wild in shrubs on slopes and streams above 800 meters above sea level."
Professor Ye Rongguang's explanation can be easily explained by the five-fingered peach tree in front of him, and it also confirms the theory that this tree is sixty years old.
"What about their medicinal value?" Wang Ke asked.
Ye Rongguang looked at Wang Ke with satisfaction. He liked this child's temper that broke the casserole pattern (asked) to the end.
"In addition to all the medicinal value of the five-finger peach, the Compendium of Materia Medica also describes its special effects on relieving coughs and clearing heat, and treating hypertension, arteriosclerosis, irregular menstruation, and constipation. Among them, the peach gum of the blood peach is a great tonic. It is a great tonic. Long-term consumption can remove hundreds of poisons, delay aging, and prolong life. Its effect is a hundred times that of ordinary peach gum.”
"Uncle Ye, so this blood peach is more precious than the real five-finger peach?"
"Yes, it can be said to be a rare breed."
Hearing this, Wang Ke slapped his hands and said to Gu Maolin: "Quick, go out and find the roots of the trees that were cut down that day. They are all treasures."
"Wait a minute." Ye Rongguang pulled Gu Maolin. "Xiao Wang Ke, don't worry. Although the roots of the blood peach are good, the fruit and peach gum are really used as medicine. The roots and stems of the blood peach are pungent and bitter, and are not suitable for making soups and stews."
ah? So, the hygienist Yu Deben and the landlord Uncle Geng picked so many fruits, but they were all right?
Professor Ye Rongguang nodded and looked at him with satisfaction.
Although this fright was like swinging on a swing, it was also very rewarding.
"Wait, wait, there is one last problem that remains unsolved." Ye Xianzhan saw that her brother Bing still helped her father, so she also had to make things difficult for her father.
"What's the problem?" Professor Ye Rongguang felt that he was rich in knowledge, spanning biology and botany. There was no professional problem that could stump him, so he looked at his daughter with a smile.
"Actually, my question is very simple. Since both five-fingered peaches and blood-haired peaches are produced in the south, who planted them in the north? And here in Muling."
Is this problem still called "simple"? It’s so cunning and weird!
Professor Ye Rongguang smiled, this question really stumped him. This blood peach looks like a fruit picked up by birds and sprouted and took root here. But think about it, is there another blood peach in this wilderness for hundreds of miles?
wrong! Professor Ye Rongguang's head flashed with lightning. He did not answer his daughter's question, but squatted down and observed while walking along the Yudai River.
"Dad, what are you looking for?"
"Come on, Wang Ke, point it out to me. Didn't you say there are three blood peach trees?"
"Let me tell you." Uncle Geng, the landlord who had been listening for a long time, couldn't bear it anymore. He came over, pointed to the seam in the stone slabs by the river, and marked the location of the tree where the roots had been cut down and dug out. come out.
Seeing Professor Ye Rongguang looking at them, Uncle Geng added: "Professor, it turns out there were a few trees on the west wall a few years ago, but I had already chopped them down and dug out their roots to use as firewood."
"Oh, what a pity, what a pity. Show me where it is."
Professor Ye Rongguang stood up and followed the landlord, Uncle Geng, to the foot of the west wall and looked at the positions of the trees.
After walking around in a big circle, Professor Ye Rongguang came back and said to Professor Wen: "Old Wen, judging from the distance between the trees, I judge that this was planted by someone and is definitely not a natural growth."
If someone plants it, they are the guardians of the tomb, and outsiders cannot come in. But there must be fruits for planting, and there must be mother trees for cuttings. They can't just fall from the sky, right?
If someone planted it, he must have known this tree, otherwise it would not have grown so big? It grew to sixty years before being cut down by future generations!
"It's a mystery, a mystery!"
Professor Ye Rongguang called Professor Wen as he spoke. "What do you think, Lao Wen?"
Professor Wen shrugged his shoulders and spread his hands. Isn't this evil? There is really no way to tell. Even in the South, there is no second blood peach tree. However, several trees were found in the Xishan Cemetery. If Uncle Geng hadn't cut down and dug them up in ignorance, there would have been more than a dozen. Or a forest of blood-haired peach trees.
This morning, Professor Ye Rongguang was very excited about the blood-haired peach. Not only did they take a large number of photos and record the plant classification information of family, genus and species in detail, they also analyzed the suitable soil for the blood peach, including measuring the pH of the soil, the air temperature and humidity in the cemetery. Uncle Geng learned about the climate changes, freezing periods, and sunshine hours throughout the year in Xishan and the cemetery, as well as the germination, flowering, fruiting, and leaf-falling times of the blood peach.
Finally, start taking samples. The fruits are already there, and the branches and roots need to be collected on site. After collection, put it in the sample box you brought with you like a treasure.
After all this busy work, it was noon before I knew it.
"Shall we go home for dinner?"
Uncle Geng cooperated with great patience. This treasure in the mausoleum brought him unlimited dreams of wealth. And all of this is thanks to Platoon Leader Xiao Wang.
He has made plans, what kind of toon will he grow outside next year, and what kind of sheep will he raise? He also wants to plant blood peach cuttings in the newly opened wasteland beside the west wall and the south of the cemetery. It will be a cornucopia!
