Drive to the Tang Dynasty, where supplies are refreshed daily!

“Alright, then let’s get up earlier tomorrow.” Li Lizhi made the final decision, and Princess Yuzhang had no objections whatsoever.

He even pulled Zhang Erya along, saying, "Second Aunt, come along too. It's good for your health and helps you stay healthy."

So Zhang Erya nodded.

Xiao Ran scratched his head. "Are you sure?"

Li Lizhi and Princess Yuzhang, Zhang Erya, nodded in agreement.

Xiao Ran didn't expect that his casual conversation would give Sun Simiao something to do, but he figured Sun Simiao probably wouldn't mind too much.

So Xiao Ran decisively put the matter out of his mind, picked up the little princess and weighed her in his arms.

"Sizi, we're going up the mountain to gather medicinal herbs later. Would you like to come along?"

The little princess nodded eagerly, "Mhm~"

Not only the little princess, but also the little princess Yan Yao from Chengyang and the other little ones will naturally be going together.

Xiao Ran bent down and put the little princess down, then said to the group of children, "Then I'll give you a task. Go to the village and tell the other children about this, okay? Of course, it's okay if some children don't want to come."

A group of children readily agreed, then ran out hand in hand.

Running out of the yard, the little princess looked to the left and then to the right.

"Where are we going, ducks?"

Third Sister took the little princess's hand, "Come with me."

So a group of children followed behind Third Sister and headed towards the village.

Third Sister knew the way, and besides, there were no classes today, so there were quite a few children playing together. When they saw the little princess and her friends coming from afar, some lively children immediately ran over.

"Are you here to play with us?" A group of children stared at the little princess and her friends.

The little princess nodded, "Mmm-hmm~ Let's go up the mountain!"

The child talking to the little princess is named Zhang Chengli, and he is about six years old this year.

Upon hearing the little princess's words, he immediately became dejected.

"No, my mother won't let me go up the mountain."

The other children nodded in agreement.

"Yes, my mother said there are tigers in the mountains that eat children!"

The young princess gaped and stood there dumbfounded.

"Second Sister~"

The little princess looked to Princess Chengyang for help.

Before Princess Chengyang could speak, Princess Gaoyang said, "Don't worry, it's not just us going. Besides, we're going to the mountain to gather herbs, and the teachers will be coming along too."

These words shook many children.

After all, the family always told them not to go by themselves, but the adults in the family would sometimes go up the mountain to dig for wild vegetables and such.

Zhang Chengli thought for a while, but in the end he couldn't suppress his desire to play.

"Wait a moment, I'll go back and ask my mother."

After saying that, Zhang Chengli ran away.

When the other children saw this, they all said they wanted to go back and ask their parents, and then they scattered in a swarm.

There's nowhere to rest here. When the children get tired of playing, they either go straight home or just sit on any rock. But the little princesses are clean and don't want to get their clothes dirty, so they naturally won't sit.

After thinking for a moment, Princess Chengyang suggested, "Why don't we go back first? The young master is waiting for us."

The little princess was the first to support it.

"We're home!"

So the group of children ran back home, and even after entering the yard, they ran away as fast as they could.

Xiao Ran was talking to Li Lizhi and the others when he heard the commotion and turned around to see this scene. He quickly went to greet them.

"Stop running! You'll get a stomach full of cold air and get diarrhea."

The little princess and her children immediately stopped and began to walk slowly.

"Little Nangjun~" The little princess's voice was as sweet as honey, which made Xiao Ran smile.

"Hey, how's the task I assigned you going?"

The little princess nestled into Xiao Ran's arms.

"We've all eaten!"

San Niang added, "Their family wouldn't let them go up the mountain, but we told them that the teacher would also be going, so they went back to ask the adults."

Xiao Ran understood that the mountain was quite dangerous for children, and they could easily get lost.

"Then let's wait here."

However, after listening to what Third Sister said, Xiao Ran thought for a moment and sent someone to call Wang Ji.

Although Wang Ji was somewhat serious during class, which made the children a little scared, since it was a group activity, it was natural to ask him about it. However, Xiao Ran felt that the chances of Wang Ji going were relatively small.

As Xiao Ran expected, Wang Ji refused.

The other children hadn't arrived yet, so Xiao Ran played shuttlecock with the little princess and the others.

After a while, I could faintly hear a commotion coming from outside.

The gatekeeper walked over quickly.

"Ah Lang, the villagers have arrived."

Xiao Ran asked in confusion, "Then please come in."

The doorman shook his head. "They refuse to come in."

Xiao Ran helped the village a lot, but later Princess Li Lizhi and the others exposed their identities.

Although Princess Li Lizhi and the others were all very kind, their statuses were ultimately different.

As time went on, the villagers were no longer as fearful as before, but they also dared not be too unrestrained.

When they saw Xiao Ranjian's house, they became somewhat reserved, so no matter what the gatekeeper said, they were unwilling to come in.

Since they weren't coming in, Xiao Ran had no choice but to leave.

So Xiao Ran strode out.

Xiao Ran thought that most of the children should have come, but he didn't expect that not only the children, but also their parents had come.

Upon seeing Xiao Ran, someone greeted him warmly.

"Xiao Langjun."

Xiao Ran nodded and immediately spotted Zhang Mingde standing at the very front.

"Muramasa?"

Zhang Mingde glanced at the villagers and said, "It's like this, I heard from my eldest son that the young master is taking the children up the mountain to collect herbs?"

Xiao Ran nodded, "That's right, it was something I discussed with the old man. No matter how you learn, you always have to do it yourself to make a deeper impression."

Zhang Mingde wholeheartedly agreed, "Absolutely, absolutely! I just don't know if we can let the villagers go along too? To be honest, everyone has been learning quite a bit from their children at home."

A cheerful voice came from the crowd: "That's right, my eldest son teaches me every day after school."

Amidst everyone's expectant gazes, Xiao Ran readily agreed.

"Of course, it's not a big deal."

Whether there are many people or few makes no difference to them. Besides, children are generally lively, and it would definitely take some effort for Xiao Ran and Sun Simiao to lead them.

If these adults came along, it would actually save them trouble. Since they were here, Xiao Ran told them his next plan.

"The herbs we picked today are also our own, so please be careful when you pick them."

The villagers were even happier to hear this.

"That would be great!"

Although they are much wealthier now, and with the prospect of planting sweet potatoes, potatoes, and corn in the spring, their lives will be even better. But who would complain about having too much money?

The matter was settled. Xiao Ran looked at the sky and said, "We'll probably have lunch on the mountain today. Everyone go back and prepare some dry food. We'll set off in half an hour."

After saying this, the villagers thanked Xiao Ran and then dispersed.

However, some of the children stayed behind. The little princess and her friends enthusiastically played with them in the yard, while Xiao Ran watched with a smile.

The sun climbed higher and higher, its waning rays falling on the fallen leaves on the ground.

When you step on the fallen leaves, you hear a soft rustling sound.

Xiao Ran, having crushed the leaves, looked down at the little princess.

"Is Sizi tired?"

The little princess shook her head, "No!"

Xiao Ran straightened up and looked around.

They had just reached the outer edge of the mountain, and apart from the sounds of villagers talking and children laughing, there were no other unusual noises.

Sun Simiao walked beside Xiao Ran, glancing around from time to time.

Most of the trees and grass in the village had withered, but there was still some greenery in the forest.

"Teacher, is this a Qianhu (a type of citrus fruit)?"

Zhang Jinnian's voice suddenly rang out, attracting the attention of almost everyone.

Even the villagers who were chatting unconsciously fell silent.

Sun Simiao took the herb Zhang Jinnian handed him, examined it carefully, and nodded, "That's right, it's Angelica dahurica."

Upon receiving the affirmation, Zhang Jinnian was overjoyed.

Qin Shi came along with her son on this trip up the mountain, and now that she sees her son recognizes the medicinal herbs, she is filled with pride and joy.

Sun Simiao looked at Zhang Jinnian.

"Do you still remember the effects of Peucedanum praeruptorum?"

This sudden test made Zhang Jinnian subconsciously a little nervous, but fortunately, he had everything in his mind and could recite it after a little thought.

Sun Simiao nodded in satisfaction, "Not bad, it seems you've learned very well."

Zhang Jinnian suppressed the urge to smile and waved his hands repeatedly, "No, no, I have a lot to learn."

After saying that, Zhang Jinnian stopped running straight ahead as before and returned to Qin Shi's side.

Looking at her eldest son, Qin Shi's eyes were practically overflowing with pride.

Sun Simiao held up the Peucedanum praeruptorum in his hand and said, "Everyone can look around here to see if there is any more Peucedanum praeruptorum. Be careful when digging so you don't get hurt. You can also see if there are any other medicinal herbs that you recognize."

After Zhang Jinnian gave such a praise example, everyone else present, including the villagers, actively searched around for more.

The little princess also dragged Xiao Ran around everywhere. Judging from her meticulous appearance, she almost pulled out every single blade of grass to examine it.

Xiao Ran followed behind the little princess without saying a word, just watching her busy herself.

However, he would sometimes look around. Although there was only some green on the mountain now, he could still find some different colors, such as this tree with small red fruits.

It can't really be called a tree; it should be called a shrub.

"Grandpa, come and take a look, is this a dogwood?"

Sun Simiao walked over, glanced at it, and nodded, saying, "That's right, it's Cornus officinalis."

Li Lizhi also walked over at this moment, and looking at the dogwood in front of her, she said, "This looks like a jujube."

Xiao Ran nodded. "The fruit of the dogwood does indeed look somewhat like a jujube."

Sun Simiao took off his basket, filled it with some dogwood, and then called the children together to explain the dogwood to them again to reinforce their understanding, asking them questions from time to time.

This was the first time these children had participated in such a large-scale event, and they were all incredibly excited, even vying to answer the questions.

After explaining, Sun Simiao said, "If there is anything you don't understand, please feel free to ask me."

After all, it's normal for children not to recognize some herbs, and Sun Simiao isn't an eagle-eyed genius; he couldn't possibly miss every single one.

The children were originally only looking for medicinal herbs they recognized, but after hearing what Sun Simiao said, they also only looked for those they knew. Instead, they would go to Sun Simiao if they found a plant that no one else recognized, and Sun Simiao would just name it off the top of his head, as if he knew all the plants on the mountain.

This immediately won over all the children and villagers.

"Wow, I knew this old man was powerful, but I didn't expect him to be this powerful!" one villager exclaimed.

Another villager immediately said, "Who says otherwise? If my son could be that powerful, I'd be laughing in my sleep."

Upon hearing this, the people around him all smiled and nodded.

"Who says it isn't?"

Just then, someone suddenly said, "That's not impossible. The old man is the children's teacher now. With such a great teacher, how can the children not learn? I think they already recognize quite a few medicinal herbs."

That's true. Moreover, these children not only recognized the ingredients, but could even recite their effects. All the villagers looked at the children with great satisfaction.

These are the next generation of Kaolao Village, the hope of Kaolao Village.

Xiao Ran looked at the villagers from a short distance away and smiled.

Actually, it wasn't just these children; some villagers were also found.

"Little Bag~"

The little princess suddenly called out to Xiao Ran.

Xiao Ran looked down and saw the little princess holding a blade of grass and looking at him.

"Little Nang~ Nikon, is this one~?"

To be honest, even if Xiao Ran stared until his eyes were completely pierced, he wouldn't be able to tell it was just a withered, yellowed blade of grass. So he chose to shift the blame elsewhere.

"Shall we go ask them?"

The little princess nodded.

Xiao Ran led the little princess to Sun Simiao.

"Grandpa, look at the grass in Sizi's hand, is it medicinal herbs?"

The little princess tiptoed and handed the grass in her hand to Sun Simiao.

Sun Simiao took it and looked at it, but for a moment he was also a little unsure.

"Take me to the place where this herb was picked."

Xiao Ran looked at the little princess and asked, "Does Sizi still remember where this grass was pulled out?"

The little princess nodded, then led the way with her short legs, and they arrived in no time.

Sun Simiao squatted down, took out a hoe and dug up the soil. After a while, the roots under the soil were exposed.

After the roots below were completely unearthed, Sun Simiao smiled.

Xiao Ran originally thought that the little princess had picked ordinary grass, but now, looking at Sun Simiao's expression, it seems that's not the case.

So Xiao Ran asked, "Grandpa, is this really a medicinal herb?"

Sun Simiao nodded. "Of course."

Xiao Ran was waiting for Sun Simiao to say what medicinal herb it was, but Sun Simiao turned around and said to the crowd, "Does anyone know what this medicinal herb is?" (End of this chapter)