Li Shiqiang took a piece of pickled beans and put it in his mouth, feeling as sad as the old pickles.
Three adobe houses housed a family of eight.
It is extremely satisfying to eat a little bit of oily meat and minced meat.
Such a poor life gave him a sense of urgency.
I really want my two younger sisters to have a meal, I really want my eldest sister and my eldest brother-in-law to have an independent home, and I really want my parents to not have to worry about them.
"Didi...!!"
When breakfast was almost finished, a loud whistle suddenly sounded outside.
At this time, her mother Chen Xianglan also put down her bowls and chopsticks, looked at Li Shiqiang and said, "Er baby, you went to the toilet yesterday and didn't sleep all night. You won't go to work today and have a good rest at home."
As a mother, you still have to feel sorry for your children.
Li Shiqiang looked up and asked, "Where is the old man?"
"Don't worry about me, I've long been used to it!"
Li Nongchang had already finished his breakfast and was sitting on the doorstep smoking a cigarette without looking back.
"Then your feet..."
"What does this mean..."
Before Li Nongchang finished speaking, Chen Xianglan waved her hand violently.
"Okay! Your feet are so rotten that you can't even walk. You don't want to go there today. Just rest in front of the house!"
"Why don't you go? This injury doesn't matter!"
Li Nongchang turned around with the cigarette rod in hand, looking disapproving.
Just as the two were arguing, Li Shiqiang suddenly spoke up.
"Old man, why don't you take a good rest today and I'll go to the top of the mountain to grab some herbs for you."
"What kind of medicine are you grabbing? You won't need it!"
As soon as Li Nongchang finished speaking, Chen Xianglan said anxiously: "Why are you going to the top of the mountain? The top of the mountain is so dangerous! The family is going to kiss you soon, and you are still running around!"
Listening to his mother's series of questions, Li Shiqiang was well prepared and said: "If the old man's foot is not cured, he may not be able to walk.
Anyway, I have a rest today, so I will go to the mountain to grab some herbs and apply them on him. "
This was the excuse Li Shiqiang came up with when we just had dinner.
It just so happened that his old man's feet were so rotten that he could hardly walk.
The reason why Li Shiqiang went to the mountains to collect herbs was the only way he could think of to improve his family's conditions.
After being unable to let go in his previous life, he had no choice but to make a living by farming with his family.
But their farmland in Jinsha Village was too little. After several years of starvation, when the land system reform abolished collective ownership, someone finally thought of another way.
That is growing herbs.
Although Chinese medicine is cheap, there are still many medicinal materials that can be sold at high prices.
For example, Cordyceps sinensis could sell for a thousand yuan per pound in the early 1980s.
People at this time may not be able to earn a hundred yuan for the previous year's class, but this thousand yuan is already a huge sum of money.
In addition to Cordyceps sinensis, there are also rare medicinal materials such as ginseng and Ganoderma lucidum.
But these are treasures deep in the mountains, hard to come by.
What can really make people eat are those medicinal materials that can be cultivated artificially.
In the early 1980s, the medicinal materials economy gradually opened up, many medicinal materials trade fairs were gradually launched, and the prices of medicinal materials also rose one liter after another.
This also allowed them in Jinsha Village to find a way to survive.
"Okay, since you can't sit still, just go and have a look."
"But remember, you are not allowed to go into the deep mountains and old forests. They are full of traps and wild animals. You are only allowed to go to the edge of the mountain to have a look."
Listening to his mother's stern instructions, Li Shiqiang had to pretend to agree: "Okay, I understand."
In his previous life, he went into the mountains to collect herbs and had interactions with hunters from all over the place. He often went into the mountains to hunt with others.
He has beaten almost all the wild beasts in the mountains, except for the most precious panda.
It was not until hunting was banned that he began to grow medicinal herbs with peace of mind.
Li Nongchang on the other side thought that his son was going to the mountains to collect medicine for himself, so he also said: "Forget it if I can't collect medicine, I can just rest my feet for a day, it's been a long time ago."
After saying that, Li Nongchang seemed to remember something again and asked, "Do you recognize those herbs? Do you know what kind of herbs to pick up?"
"I know. I read a barefoot doctor's manual when I was studying, and I recognized some herbal medicines."
You've already lied anyway, so it doesn't matter if you tell one more.
Li Nongchang nodded, took out a dry cigarette, put it in his mouth, took a deep breath and said, "When you leave, take the gun at the top of my house with you."
At this time in the countryside, almost every household had a native gun.
The Li family's native gun was used by Li Nongchang when he was arranging platoons.
In the early years when I was released, I didn’t come back in a day or two like now. I often only came back in half a month or a month or two. Sometimes I went far away and it took half a year to return home.
The guns at that time were not only used to prevent people from stealing wood when resting by the river at night, but also to prevent others from being robbed when returning home.
The money you brought back after hard work was all your hard-earned money. If you were robbed on the way back, you would almost want to die.
Before Li Shiqiang could leave, Chen Xianglan immediately put down the dishes and went to the house to get a gun.
"I let you get it for your own protection, not for you to get into the forest!"
Listening to his mother's worried instructions, Li Shiqiang nodded again: "I know, don't worry."
"Didi...!!"
The call to go to work has sounded for the third time, and the eldest sister and brother-in-law have already gone to work.
The third sister Li Shiping and the fourth sister Li Shimei also carried their canvas schoolbags and prepared to go to school.
But before leaving, the fourth child, Li Shimei, still approached Li Shiqiang, raised his head and whispered: "Second brother, can you bring me some mulberry fruits when you come back from the top of the mountain?"
Li Shiqiang was just about to speak, but Chen Xianglan heard it with keen ears: "It's only March, where can I get mulberry fruits for you to eat! Go to school quickly, and remember to herd the cows when you get back from school!"
"oh!"
The little guy followed his sister to study dejectedly.
...
After finding two ropes to tie his trousers, Li Shiqiang carried a bamboo basket on his back, a hatchet in his waist, and walked into the mountain with a gun in his hand.
Before leaving, Chen Xianglan took a canvas satchel and handed it to him: "Be careful!"
"got it!"
After leaving home, Li Shiqiang went straight to the mountains.
At this time, every household was going to earn work points, and there were not many people on the road.
After entering the mountain, he didn't stop much at Qingxia Mountain, but headed towards Laowu Mountain.
Qingxia Mountain is just a very ordinary mountain, a few hundred meters high. Except for being close to the Minjiang River, there is nothing in the mountain.
Everything that can be eaten and dug was dug out during the famine in the early years.
If you want to collect valuable medicinal herbs, you can only find those deep mountains and old forests.
Laowu Mountain is the deep mountain and old forest closest to Qingxia Mountain.
Although it was the closest, Li Shiqiang still climbed two mountains and crossed a river to get there.
In Sichuan, the most abundant thing is mountains, unlike some places where the land is endless and there is almost no mountain in sight.
By this time, it was already noon.
The corn cake I drank in the morning has long been digested.
Opening the satchel Chen Xianglan gave her in the morning, she could see everything inside.
Two rice cakes, one raw rice cake, one bamboo tube, and one box of matches.
After finding some rotten leaves and fallen branches, Li Shiqiang lit a fire in a slightly open place, then found a slightly thinner and cleaner branch to skewer the rice cakes and raw rice cakes and bake them.
These two things are simply fragrant and delicious when grilled.
Simply the most delicious memory from my childhood.
After eating, opening the lid of the bamboo tube and drinking some water, Li Shiqiang was ready to go into the mountains.
According to hunting customs, one must pay homage to the mountain before entering the mountain.
But Li Shiqiang thought about it. He wanted to find some valuable herbs this time, so he waived this custom a little.
"Master Mountain God, I hope you will bless me and return home with a full load. If I collect valuable herbs, I will burn some paper for you. If I catch prey, I will sacrifice some good things to you."
After saying that, Li Shiqiang went into the mountain with a gun in one hand and a long stick in the other.
