The little one's purse connects the two worlds, turning a desolate village into a paradise.

Da Niu responded and followed Zhao Hu. The two walked step by step along the path towards the top of the mountain. Before long, they arrived at the place where Zhao Hu had taken a detour to pick up the three of them.

The original shallow ditch has been washed away by rainwater and has sunk much deeper, with murky muddy water accumulating at the bottom.

The previous footprints and traces of walking had long been washed away by the mud and water.

The two walked uphill along the ditch. After checking the foot and middle of the mountain, they had to go to the top of the mountain again. If they didn't know the terrain and water flow direction of the top of the mountain, they would only be wasting their time if they started digging.

After carefully observing the situation at the top of the mountain, Zhao Hu led Da Niu away from the original route and entered the forest, intending to see if there were any wild animals to hunt along the way.

The woods were dense with vegetation, and the ground was slippery and muddy.

Zhao Hu led the way, holding a sharp machete in one hand.

As he walked, his foot suddenly gave way. Looking down, he saw that he had stepped on a clump of filth. Zhao Hu's face contorted in pain as he frantically scraped it against the grass beside him. His cherished rain boots had been ruined...

"Watch your step, there's animal droppings everywhere, don't step in them," Zhao Hu reminded Da Niu, who was following behind, as he shoveled his boots clean.

Da Niu immediately did a small jump on the spot.

Zhao Hu shook his head and chuckled as he watched his agile movements, but when he glanced at the shape of the lump out of the corner of his eye, his heart suddenly skipped a beat.

He turned back two steps and looked down carefully.

"Brother Tiger, I didn't step on it, don't look at it, this thing stinks." Da Niu pinched his nose and walked around the lump of stuff.

Zhao Hu frowned, his expression somewhat grave.

This huge lump doesn't resemble the droppings of pheasants or rabbits, nor does it look like the droppings of wild boars or worms. Wild boar droppings are distinct and coarse in shape, while this lump in front of me looks somewhat like the droppings of domestic pigs.

He got up suspiciously and looked around at his surroundings. Could someone raise pigs in this desolate place?

Perhaps it was softened by the rain and that's why it looks like this.

Zhao Hu suppressed his doubts and stopped thinking about it, quickly catching up with the big ox in front of him.

After the two finished their survey and descended the mountain, it was nearly late afternoon.

The lime kiln had been extinguished the day before and was now waiting to cool down. Zhao Hu and his companion checked it over before hurrying to Granny Liu's courtyard.

Grandma Liu's courtyard was already bustling with activity. The large group that had gone up the mountain to dig for mushrooms and wild vegetables had all returned, and everyone's face was beaming with undisguised joy. The bamboo baskets placed in the courtyard were all stuffed full.

The two little ones, Ya Ya and Xiao Dou Zi, busied themselves moving stools and massaging the backs of their grandparents, occasionally asking about the situation on the mountain. When they heard that the ground was covered with round mushrooms, their eyes showed even more annoyance.

When will she grow up a little? She really wants to pick mushrooms.

Now, grandparents and great-grandmothers don't allow their children to go up the mountain. Every time they ask, they say they can only go when they're a little older.

After a short rest, everyone began to sort out the spoils of the trip.

The lichen needs to be washed, and the mushrooms also need to be washed.

However, the way to wash mushrooms is different from the usual way. Mushrooms are delicate and easily turn black once they get wet. You can only use a clean cloth to carefully wipe away the dirt and grass attached to the mushrooms little by little.

Mushrooms washed this way are dry, clean, and have an excellent appearance. They also won't be too dirty, which would make the buyers feel cheated.

Ya Ya looked at the mushrooms filling the yard. "Grandma, what are these round mushrooms? I don't think I've ever seen them before. Are they tasty?"

While washing the lichen, Grandma Liu smiled and explained to Ya Ya, "This is a thunderclap mushroom. Whenever there is a thunderstorm, after a thunderclap, these mushrooms will sprout up from the ground all at once."

Ya Ya's eyes sparkled as she listened, and an image instantly flashed in her mind of thunder crashing to the ground, creating a dark crater in the forest, from which tiny mushrooms sprouted.

The village chief stood by, counting today's harvest:

We picked a full ten and a half pounds of precious morel mushrooms this time.

The tender and delicious Leiwozi weighed as much as twenty jin.

Occasionally, I'd spot some honey mushrooms growing under the tree roots and casually pluck a few bunches; because there were so many people, I ended up with a pile of seventeen or eighteen pounds. These mushrooms only cost two coins a pound in town, and they're best eaten stewed with chicken.

I only managed to get two pounds of the cleaned lichen because I was short on time.

There are about twenty pounds of bamboo shoots.

Ya Ya circled around the cleaned mushrooms and bamboo shoots, found a small basket, and put some of each kind into the basket, which was to be saved for her aunt.

As darkness fell, Ji Chuntao seized the time, picked some wild mushrooms and stir-fried half of them with honey mushrooms over high heat, and made soup with the other half. She also made a simple sauce by stir-frying minced meat with soybean paste, and cooked a bowl of hot noodles for herself.

The tender and smooth mushrooms were only seasoned with salt, yet they were still full of sweet and fresh flavor, and the little ones ate them with great relish.

Ya Ya held the small bowl and gulped down the whole bowl of mushroom soup.

These Leiwozi mushrooms are so delicious! I'll scoop out some more for my aunt later.

……

Cao Xiulian stood behind the stove, glancing outside every now and then. It was drizzling today, and she wondered if the roads in Ya Ya's village were easy to travel on, and whether Ya Ya would come over.

Ya Ya hasn't come over these past two days; she only sent her uncle to let him know.

She knew about this, but many customers didn't, and people would often come to buy snails only to end up empty-handed.

Cao Xiulian could only tell the guests over and over that the young boss, Ya Ya, had been busy with village matters and couldn't come these past two days. She suggested they add her on WeChat, and that she would let them know if she came back.

These are all customers who are used to eating the mountain products that Ya Ya brings.

Although they don't eat snails much here, and they get tired of them after a few times, they haven't eaten them many times yet, so they're far from getting tired of them. They've tried ordering other snails, but even the so-called southern mountain snails that they find at restaurants, which cost seventy or eighty yuan a plate, are not as delicious as those from Huaya's little shop.

Unbeknownst to many, the WeChat group created by Cao Xiulian has grown from the initial five people to over fifty people.

As she looked around, a light drizzle began to fall outside. Cao Xiulian silently turned around and went to the platform behind her.

It's raining, and business isn't good. I'd better go to the back and wipe the tables and tidy up.

"Auntie! I'm here!"

Cao Xiulian, who had just grabbed a rag from the bathroom, immediately noticed a large pile of things that had appeared in the store. The little guy standing next to her was looking up with his eyes crinkled with laughter.

She quickly put down the rag, hurried over, and looked Ya Ya up and down, making sure she didn't get wet in the rain.

After looking at it carefully, she felt relieved. She guessed that her uncle had brought her over when she went to the bathroom, and since it had just started raining, she hadn't gotten wet.

"Auntie, it's raining here too!" Ya Ya looked outside curiously.

This is the first time I've ever seen rain in this area!

"Yeah, it's a bit cold, don't go outside. By the way, did you bring an umbrella? Do you have a raincoat? This rain is going to last a while, and it'll be inconvenient if you don't have a raincoat when you get back."

Ya Ya blinked her big, innocent eyes and shook her head blankly: "Auntie, I don't have an umbrella or a raincoat."

Although Ya Ya had never seen or heard of these two things, they were actually very easy to understand.

"In our village, we only have straw raincoats, which are very big and heavy. I'm too small, so they just drag on the ground when I wear them!"

Cao Xiulian's eyebrows were almost furrowed together.

Last time there was no washing machine, this time there aren't even umbrellas or raincoats...

raincoat...

This was something she had seen when she visited her maternal grandfather's house as a child; who still has this kind of thing these days?