Reborn at 80: From Village Scoundrel to Billionaire

"Huh? It's that thick?"

"It's thicker than three of my fingers put together, right? Really?"

"Not just thick? It's long too? How long can it be?"

"What? That's so long... It must be as long as two middle fingers joined together!"

"So thick and long? How old must that ginseng be? At least 100 years old, right?"

"Really? Dayong, are you sure you're not mistaken?"

……

Suddenly, the old men began asking questions one after another.

"It's too dark, I... I can't see very clearly either. But one thing I'm sure of, the length... it's definitely accurate!"

When asked by everyone, Fan Dayong became a little unsure and stammered, changing his story.

Fan Daqiang also spoke up at the opportune moment, "I...I saw it too. It's really...really thick and long..."

"..."

Upon hearing this, everyone fell silent and turned to look at Liu Bei.

"Xiao Bei, look—"

"Uncle Tan, I know what you're trying to say," Liu Bei interrupted, raising his hand. "But it's too dark now. Even if that ginseng really is thick and long, it's not a good time to go look for it. Let's wait until it's light!"

"Alright. Let's wait until dawn." Old Tan agreed to Liu Bei's suggestion, then pointed to the wolf carcasses. "Little Bei, how do we divide the wolves?"

"Let's take them down the mountain, sell them in town, and split the profits!" Liu Bei decided.

"Okay. Whatever you say! Everyone should go to bed early. Get plenty of rest, and we'll go find ginseng as soon as it's light tomorrow!"

"Okay, Uncle Tan!"

……

Silent all night.

On the first day, it was just dawn.

Liu Bei was the first to wake up.

"Daqiang, are you feeling better?"

"Hmm. Much better. Brother Bei. Thank you so much for last night!"

"We're all in this together, no need to be polite. Da Yong, what about you?"

"I'm much better now."

"Since everything's alright now, let's eat some wolf meat. After we finish, we'll go find some wild ginseng!" Liu Bei instructed.

"Okay!"

Before long, the group lit a fire again and started roasting the wolf meat.

Two hours later, everyone had a hearty meal.

"Dayong, Daqiang, you two lead the way!" Liu Bei urged.

"Um!"

Nodding, Liu Bei and his companions, led by the Fan brothers, Fan Dayong and Fan Daqiang, walked towards the wild ginseng that the two brothers had discovered the day before.

After walking for about an hour, the two brothers, Fan Dayong and Fan Wei, finally stopped near a sheltered hillside.

He pointed to a towering tree.

That big tree looked a little different from the towering trees around it.

Its exterior is lush with branches and leaves, but the base of the tree is dry and has a large hole.

Judging from the appearance of the cave entrance, it can accommodate at least one person.

If they were wild people, they only needed to gather some weeds to make the tree hole their home.

Fan Ha'er looked surprised. "Brother Bei, that tree is so thick! I estimate it would take at least seven people to hug it."

"No. There need to be at least nine people. You said there are two missing." Liu Bei shook his head.

"Huh? Two more? My goodness. They're really thick. I wish I had ones that thick!" Fan Ha'er said enviously, stroking his chin.

Liu Bei: "..."

That's a brilliant statement!

He paused for a moment, then began to examine the tree closely.

Apart from a patch of grass, there were no other small animals outside the tree hole, including ants.

"Um?"

Liu Bei looked up at the tree along the tree hole.

Forget ants, I didn't see a single bird's nest or insect either.

Besides leaves, there were tree branches and, of course, entwined vines.

The wild ginseng was growing at the very top of the tree hole, at least seven meters above the ground.

There was a very thick and long tree branch there, covered with a thick layer of soil.

Apart from a lone wild ginseng growing there, there was no other plant.

It didn't even have a single leaf, standing out from the surrounding branches like a crane among chickens.

For a moment, Liu Bei's eyebrows furrowed.

"Xiao Bei, what's wrong?"

Noticing the change in Liu Bei's expression, Old Tan asked curiously.

"There's something strange about that tree!"

Liu Bei shared his opinion.

"Brother Bei, it's just a big tree, what could be so strange about it? Oh, I know. You think that ginseng is too tall to pick, right? Don't worry. I can climb trees. I'll get it for you!"

As he spoke, Fan Ha'er threw the hunting rifle to Liu Bei, and before Liu Bei could even speak, he ran over.

"This idiot..." Liu Bei shook his head. "Dazhuang, quickly pull him back!"

"Okay!"

Li Dazhuang ran over quickly.

Tan Si and the others looked puzzled. "Brother Bei, what's wrong with that tree?"

"Didn't you notice there weren't any small animals in the trees? Like birds or squirrels or anything?"

"If it's not there, it's not there. What's so strange about that?" Tan Si and the others still didn't quite understand.

"It's understandable that there are no small animals. But did you see a single ant?" Liu Bei asked again.

"Ant?"

Upon hearing this word, Tan Si and his companions suddenly understood.

"That's right. I didn't see a single ant!"

"No, not only did I not see any ants, I didn't see a single insect!"

"Oh, right. I really didn't notice that until you pointed it out. I didn't see any ants or bugs either!"

……

After Liu Bei reminded them, Tan Si and the others all realized what was happening.

"That's not all!" Liu Bei pointed to the branch with wild ginseng growing on it. "Did you see that branch? What's different about it?"

"There are no leaves!" Tan Si was the first to speak.

"There's no grass either!" Fan Shitou said.

"Not a single bud!" Fan Mao'er frowned.

……

"Yes. It's completely bare, with only a thick layer of soil and a single wild ginseng plant. It's completely different from the other branches and twigs around it. Do you think that's normal?" Liu Bei asked rhetorically.

"this……"

Upon hearing this, Old Tan and Tan Si fell silent.

They all clearly thought Liu Bei's words made a lot of sense.

"Brother Bei, I'm going to climb the tree. Watch closely!"

Just as everyone fell silent, Fan Ha'er's voice suddenly rang out.

Liu Bei and the others looked in the direction of the sound.

Li Dazhuang chased after him to the base of the tree.

Fan Ha'er has already climbed the tree.

Li Dazhuang stood under the tree, looking up at Fan Ha'er's buttocks.

"Hey, Brother Bei told you to stop climbing. Come down now!"

"No. I want to pick the ginseng before I go down."

Fan Ha'er didn't listen.

"Brother Bei said something's wrong with this tree. You'd better come down quickly!" Li Dazhuang advised again.

"Say one more word and I'll fart at your mouth!"

Li Dazhuang: "..."

Raising an eyebrow, he turned around and shrugged at Liu Bei, "Brother Bei, Ha'er ran too fast. By the time I caught up to him at the base of the tree, he had already climbed up."

"Don't come back yet. Stay under the tree and keep watch. If anything seems amiss, shoot immediately!" Liu Bei hesitated for a moment before making his decision.

"Um!"

Li Dazhuang raised his gun.

"Haha~"

Fan Ha'er shouted excitedly and deliberately turned around to look at Liu Bei and the others.

"Brother Bei, see? I've already climbed up. I'll pick some ginseng for you right away."

"Whoosh~"

The voice just fell,

The vines on the tree suddenly started to move.

"Um?"

Liu Bei's pupils suddenly contracted, and his eyes stared intently at the vines.

But the grass and vines moved faster and faster.

"Oh no! There's something wrong with those vines. Ha'er, hurry down, don't pick the ginseng, quick..."