Well, this turned out to be a versatile medicinal variety after all.

Having just grasped the future direction of their livelihood, her own mother’s conversation immediately veered toward rear ends. Cheng Ying truly felt that the point could have been conveyed far more subtly; such bluntness was entirely unnecessary.

The five millennia of Chinese civilization boasted an astounding diversity in modes of expression.

But perhaps it was for the best; it was a rather elegant task, (barely qualifying as) appreciating chrysanthemums. This was how Cheng Ying mentally reframed her mother's talk about buttocks.

Following Yang Zhi’s pointing hand, Cheng Ying walked over to a dried vine clinging to a piece of firewood.

Yang Zhi said, “Yingzi, don’t mind how ugly this looks now; it’s completely different when spring arrives and the flowers bloom.”

Cheng Ying snapped off a substantial length of the honeysuckle vine. She had no doubt about her mother’s words, having witnessed it in her previous life. While not overwhelmingly beautiful, the clustered flowers provided a long blooming season.

She just hadn’t known it was a medicinal herb back then.

Cheng Ying clutched the honeysuckle vine, intending to place it in her spatial storage later. What they needed were the flowers; this plant was suited for cultivation in her space.

She just wasn't sure if it would survive. “It’s this withered, can it still grow?”

Yang Zhi broke off several lengths just like her daughter, placing them in the basket. “It can. It will sprout lush leaves and bloom in the spring; it’s very resilient.”

As they spoke, the mother and two children had already finished digesting the sweet potatoes.

Chi Wu clapped his hands and stood up. “I’ll look over there; there’s so much dry kindling.”

Yang Zhi nodded, still unsure how to interact with this stepson, just as she was with her own daughter.

The mother and daughter continued searching for herbs, Cheng Ying’s gaze growing more lively as she constantly scanned their surroundings. Everyone said one should rely on the mountains for sustenance; why couldn't she procure some wild game to take back? Her appetite for meat was quite keen.

Yang Zhi occasionally turned back to look after her daughter. “Yingzi, watch your footing. What are you thinking about?”

Cheng Ying replied, “Mom, how can we not find anything to eat up here on this mountain? Even if we found a rat hole, if we could dig it out, there might be stores inside.”

Yang Zhi looked at her daughter, a slight smile touching her lips. “Dream on. Forget rat holes; back a few years ago, people dug up even ant nests. As soon as autumn passed, everyone in the village started eliminating the four pests, and rat holes far and wide were excavated. To think of finding food on the mountain now, forget about it. It’s winter; very few people know medicinal herbs like your mother does, so the mountain is empty. By spring, if the harvest is poor, people will even pull up scraps of bark.”

Cheng Ying was stunned. She honestly hadn't felt things were this hard; it sounded like something from legend. This wasn't the time of the Long March; they weren't trekking 25,000 li, were they?

Seeing her daughter’s expression, Yang Zhi knew she had frightened her—children feared starvation most. “However, things have gotten better these last few years, even if finding food is still difficult. When Chi Wu gets back, I’ll take you two to pick some pine nuts.”

Cheng Ying mentally noted that these were treasures and nodded repeatedly.

Yang Zhi continued, “Gathering those things is troublesome, and they aren’t very filling; no one cares much for them.”

Cheng Ying thought her own mother didn't recognize value. “Having something is better than nothing; let’s gather a bit more to take back.”

Yang Zhi looked at her daughter, thinking the girl had been spoiled silly by her paternal grandmother. “Dream on. The easy stuff has all been taken. What’s left is hard to get, and the villagers just don’t bother with it.”

Cheng Ying felt a familiar numbness. It turned out that relying on the mountain for sustenance wasn't so simple after all.

Cheng Ying followed Yang Zhi as they wandered the mountain. The higher they climbed, the denser the woods became.

The scenery had already shifted through several types between the valley floor and halfway up the slope.

Cheng Ying recalled that when they were in the valley, her mother had found many medicinal herbs. There were also sparse pear trees in the valley, information Yang Zhi had shared with Cheng Ying.

Some of those pear trees were so large that two or three people couldn't encircle them. Her mother had said that such massive trees didn’t yield many pears. However, because the area was high up and densely forested, no villagers ever came to manage them. If these trees were close to the village, they would have long been claimed by the villagers—the best material for making sturdy furniture when a young man and woman married.

She had heard that her mother possessed a pair of pearwood chests, given as dowry by her maternal grandfather. Cheng Ying had seen them in her mother's west room; the wood was smooth and fine, left unvarnished. The natural wood grain, coupled with the pearwood’s characteristic reddish hue, made them look high-end and sophisticated. Cheng Ying had even suspected they were some kind of antique furniture until she learned they were part of her mother’s dowry. This was why Cheng Ying looked at those old pear trees with extra attention.

Climbing higher, to the mid-slope area, there were only various kinds of scrub trees. This part was old forest; even the common scrub trees were ancient enough that Cheng Ying couldn't wrap her arms around them. The wood types were mixed, with many species interwoven. It wasn't just that Yang Zhi and her daughter couldn't identify them; Cheng Ying herself couldn't recognize many species either. Remembering two types was considered good. The honeysuckle vines were climbing these scrub trees.

Further up was where Yang Zhi led them to gather pine nuts. Towering ancient pines stood sentinel on the mountainside, inspiring reverence.

Cheng Ying and Chi Wu followed Yang Zhi’s gaze upward, as if looking at a dividing line. The pine forest was distinctly separated from the scrub trees, and the sight was utterly breathtaking. All those pines were too large for one person to embrace, and there were also cypress trees, all of the tall, slender, and elegant variety. Such thick timber was truly rare—at least, rare in Cheng Ying’s previous era. Nowadays, they were everywhere.

With a sense of genuine reluctance, Cheng Ying asked, “Mom, when you folks earned work points up here, was it by felling trees here?”

Yang Zhi looked at her daughter, wondering if the girl was confused. She had forgotten where she herself worked. “No. This area is too high up; even if we felled the trees, we couldn’t cultivate the land. We can’t grow crops here. The places the production team designated for logging were near the village, not exceeding the halfway mark. That way, transporting the lumber is more convenient, and the terrain is definitely flatter than this. And the trees they cut down are even thicker than these.”

Cheng Ying nodded. So, land reclamation wasn't something that could be done just anywhere. “With that much timber shipped out, your village must be wealthy.”

Of course, as Cheng Ying said this, she couldn't help but feel a pang of regret; those trees certainly wouldn't be allowed to stand in a few more years. This came from the depths of her heart, and she had momentarily forgotten the context.

Chi Wu rolled his eyes behind them, but Yang Zhi responded, “How could the team be wealthy? It all belongs to the state.”

Right. Cheng Ying still hadn't quite adapted to this reality. Some things couldn't be measured by money.

Yang Zhi led her daughter and Chi Wu milling around beneath the pines for a long time, gathering barely a small handful of pine nuts. The happiest person was Cheng Ying. Chi Wu looked at the tiny nuts and declared he didn't care for them, offering them all to Cheng Ying. They did, however, fill their baskets with the pinecones they collected; these were excellent for starting fires. Cheng Ying knew this without Chi Wu needing to say it.

Beneath the soft, dry pine needles, Yang Zhi found several excellent things. Naturally, besides Yang Zhi, the two children couldn't tell what they were for. Yang Zhi was pleased and credited the children. “It’s a good thing you two came; if I were alone, I usually wouldn't get this high up.”

Cheng Ying watched her mother’s joy, ate her pine nuts, and shared in her happiness, asking not a single question about what these things were used for. She was terrified her mother would say they were for washing bottoms. That idea was too devastating to the image of her mother as a near-divine practitioner of Chinese medicine.

When the three of them descended the mountain, Cheng Ying still carried Yang Zhi’s herb basket, as it was the lightest burden. Chi Wu carried the basket full of pinecones, which wasn't particularly heavy either. Yang Zhi, however, kept gathering the dry kindling Chi Wu had picked up along the way and stuffed it into the large carrying basket on her back. It didn't seem like much at first, but by the time they reached the valley, Cheng Ying saw sweat beading on her mother’s forehead. This type of labor was truly unsuited for a woman.

Cheng Ying said, “Let’s rest a bit. We’ve been out here for half the day.”

Yang Zhi set down the basket. “Good, we’ll rest here.” After setting it down, Yang Zhi rubbed her shoulder with one hand.

Cheng Ying looked at her mother and felt that life was truly hard. She was still wearing a padded jacket; otherwise, the straps would surely have left deep marks on Yang Zhi’s shoulders. Cheng Ying was about to suggest setting half the firewood down and coming back for it later, but before she could speak, Chi Wu piped up, “Perfect timing. I found another pile of firewood over there; I’ll go carry it over now.”

Cheng Ying shot Chi Wu a severe glare. Didn't this boy see that his own mother was struggling to carry the load? And he wanted to go gather more? Only his own mother truly cared for her.

Chi Wu genuinely didn't understand why Cheng Ying had glared at him several times.

Cheng Ying set down her small basket and followed the other two toward a more secluded spot. This was the valley area; children from many households in the village came here to collect firewood. Chi Wu was often slighted in the village, so the places he chose to gather kindling were more remote.

Yang Zhi looked at the large bundle of firewood Chi Wu carried and comforted him, “Don’t underestimate him just because he’s small; this child is sensible and knows how to work. He hasn't rested since we came out. How much could an adult gather?”

Yang Zhi couldn't lift the entire load in one go.

Cheng Ying said, “Chi Wu and I will each carry a bit of what’s left, and we can bundle it later.”

Yang Zhi nodded, holding her bundle of firewood, and watched as the two of them picked up the remaining wood from the ground. Just as the three of them were preparing to leave together, Yang Zhi swept her gaze over the spot and stopped with an "Eh?"

Cheng Ying, clutching a small bundle of firewood, couldn't see the path ahead. “Are we leaving?”

Chi Wu was in the same situation; he could only see his toes, as the firewood completely blocked his view.

Yang Zhi said, “Set it down first; I found something.”

Cheng Ying and Chi Wu were obedient; they couldn't really be disobedient anyway, carrying that much firewood was heavy.

Yang Zhi set down the wood she was holding and rummaged around where Chi Wu had piled the kindling. Cheng Ying could only see a piece of dry, withered branch and couldn't discern anything else. “Mom, what is it?”

Yang Zhi’s tone was like that of someone who had struck gold. “Wild ginseng.”

Hearing this, Cheng Ying nearly lunged forward. “What?”

Yang Zhi cautioned, “What are you doing? Be careful not to tumble down.”

Cheng Ying asked breathlessly, “Mom, the valuable wild ginseng?”

Yang Zhi replied dismissively, “Wild ginseng? That’s not valuable stuff.”

Cheng Ying nearly choked on her breath, thankful she hadn't taken a drink. “We have a lot of that around here?”