Riding the wind of rebirth

Everyone grabbed a tortilla, wrapped it around a fried egg, ate a few mouthfuls of milk to tide them over, then went back to the tent to change into their swimsuits and trunks. As soon as they came out, they ran and jumped into the water.

We had to run, because it was already late autumn, nearing early winter, and the temperature in the mountains was already quite low in the mornings, probably only around six or seven degrees Celsius.

However, once you get into the water, it's fine. The water temperature is around 22 or 23 degrees Celsius, but if you swim towards the largest hot spring and go out 20 or 30 meters, you can feel the temperature rise to a warm level.

If you go any further, to within ten meters of the hot spring outlet, the water becomes scalding hot.

There was a person sitting cross-legged on a rock underwater, with only his head above water, and his hands clasped together in a gesture of respect.

"Hey, Salt Mouse, what are you doing?" Liang Hong swam over and started splashing water on Yan Xiao's face.

"Sister Hong, stop fooling around!" Yan Xiao opened his eyes and said solemnly, "I am absorbing the essence of heaven and earth. I can feel it entering my body from the soles of my feet and palms, nourishing my internal organs..."

"Your body is all red from the heat." Zhou Zhi kicked him off the rock. "Hurry up and swim to a cool place to rest. Oh, and breakfast is ready. Go and eat something!"

"Hey! You're jealous of me, trying to sabotage my cultivation!"

"You've watched too many Shu Mountain swordsmen movies!" Zhou Zhi laughed and scolded, "The way you look really resembles Master Liaotuo."

"Who is Master Tuotuo?" Yan Xiao asked. "I hate your way of cursing the most. I can't even understand it."

"In the novel 'Shushan Swordsmen,' there is a villain named Hunyuan Ancestor who cultivates the Five Poisons Sword Technique. After losing two sword duels, he passed on the sword technique to Master Tuotuo before his death. Master Tuotuo built Ciyun Temple in Chengdu. However, because he had the sword technique but no Five Poisons Sword, he practiced the sword technique without guidance and eventually died from qi deviation."

"It just so happens that you're also from Chengdu. You're not far from going mad with your cultivation. What else could you be but Master Tuotuo?"

“He’s still wearing swimming trunks,” Liang Hong sneered. “So he can’t be called Master Tuotuo, but rather Master Tuotuo’s disciple.”

"Is it the monk Zhitong?"

In "The Legend of the Swordsmen of Shushan", Monk Zhitong is the successor of Master Tuotuo and the abbot of Ciyun Temple.

"No, he's a disciple of Master Tuotuo, his Dharma name is Tuobujinggan. Hahahaha..."

Swimming in the natural hot spring pool is incredibly comfortable. The best part is that the water temperature varies in different areas and at different depths, so everyone can choose their preferred water temperature.

Because the water was so clear, diving became a lot of fun. And when Zhou Zhi went underwater, he discovered that there were many more fish in the water than in the summer.

These fish are all thermophilic species, such as crucian carp, common carp, and grass carp. As winter approaches, the water temperature in various places becomes very cold, and the fish will naturally seek places with more suitable water temperature as habitats. They dare not get too close to the springs and hot springs, and they form a trend of swimming in groups on the edge of cold and hot water.

"Wow! So many fish down there!" Liang Hong popped her head up from underwater. "Pork knuckle! Pork knuckle! Did you see that?!"

"I see. Let Yang He get up and fish. These fish should be easy to catch," Zhou Zhi said with a smile. "Besides orange-peel chicken, we'll also have grilled fish for lunch!"

"Are you sure?" Liang Hong laughed. "You just embarrassed yourself yesterday."

“Yesterday’s reservoir doesn’t count,” Zhou Zhi said. “Today will definitely be fine.” One advantage of soaking in hot springs is that once your body is warmed up, you won’t feel cold for a while, and you might even need to get out of the water to cool off.

This is a good opportunity to pick the "sour oranges" that the girls mentioned yesterday.

Outside the cold water stream at the campsite, there was a lush meadow covered with a type of grass called crabgrass.

The Compendium of Materia Medica records that it "grows in abandoned rice paddies in the south. It has roots at each joint, and when it touches the soil, it resembles a knotted grass. It can be used to feed horses, and the horses eat it like sugar, hence the name 'horse tang'."

Crabgrass, whether fresh or dried, is a good forage, consumed by various herbivores. It is a type of weed that grows most easily in burnt-out fields under crop rotation, and it is also a weed that harms farmland and orchards, robbing crops of their nutrients.

However, the climate here is mild and the air is quite humid. Even when the grass is in the heading stage, the leaves and stems remain tender. The horses can be grazed on the grass and eat their fill on their own.

The crabgrass is currently producing spikelets, which provide the same nutrition as grains, thus saving on legume feed.

However, everyone likes a good place, and so do the wild animals in the mountains. Therefore, after learning that Zhou Zhi and his friends often came to play, Grandpa Chi Ri introduced thorny plants and planted them at the edge where the lawn and the woods met, forming a "thorn fence" to prevent the horses from running around and to keep wild animals out.

Only a fence gate woven from pine branches remained for entry and exit.

The thorn fence is made from three to five kinds of thorny plants, including prickly pear, Sichuan pepper, and trifoliate orange, which is also known as "the tree that sparrows cannot stand on" or "iron fence".

The thorns of the prickly pear are small, but the advantage is that it grows quickly. With Sichuan pepper and trifoliate orange trees as the main trunks, and the prickly pear trees as the main trunks, the prickly pear bushes have now grown very densely.

"If I had known there were Sichuan pepper leaves, I could have added some to the pancakes this morning; they smelled wonderful," Zhou Zhi said.

"Weren't we here to pick sour oranges?" Mai Xiaomiao said with a smile, "to see if we can make the kind that can be used to cook chicken?"

"Oh right." Following Mai Xiaomiao's finger, Zhou Zhi saw some orange-yellow fruits growing on branches with long thorns. The fruits were only the size of eggs and were completely dried. Even after the dried shells tightened, the shape of the pulp segments inside could still be seen. It was indeed a citrus crop.

"Does it work?"

“Actually, any dried citrus peel will do,” Zhou Zhi said. “It doesn’t matter what kind of orange it is.”

As he spoke, he picked two fruits and said, "Of course, these are even better; they are genuine dried trifoliate orange peel."

Because Old Chi Ri was quite ruthless, he made the thorny enclosure a combination of several large and small thorns. Zhou Zhi wouldn't even let Mai Xiaomiao reach out, and while carefully picking the fruit, he complained, "Good heavens, Grandpa Chi Ri has made it into a comprehensive protection system. If a few more soapberry trees come, even I won't dare to reach out, or I'll really get cuts."

They took the swimming cap off Mai Xiaomiao's head, filled it with bitter orange peel, and swam back, only to find that Feng Xueshan and Yang He had also gotten up.

"Little Shunzi's up too?" Mai Xiaomiao put on her bathrobe and went to hug the baby: "Baby's so good, he didn't make a sound last night!"

“Exactly,” Feng Xueshan laughed, “She slept for over ten hours, and just drank a whole bottle of milk. She slept so much she got hungry.” (End of Chapter)