1oo33 New Urban Farmers Chapter 80: The Road is Harder Than Ascending to Heaven

After Hong Wanzhong and Zhang Guodong led Lao Qing back to Zhongmi, the four of them ate poorly. The table was a mess, and Liu Dewang was diligently cleaning it up.

"Guodong heard from Wang that our first stop is Qingshuiping, where we can set up camp!" Li Ningguang said after everyone had eaten, drunk, and rested for a while. "Otherwise, there's nowhere to camp."

Zhang Guodong asked in confusion, "Qingshuiping?"

This desolate mountain actually has an official name?

According to Liu Dewang's explanation, Qingshuiping was probably named by the locals. It takes about half a day to get there from the foot of the mountain via the mountain path. Perhaps it's possible to get there before dark.

Otherwise, they would have to freeze in the ravines or on the mountaintops, fully clothed.

The ground is wet and slippery after the rain, and the trees are also damp enough to soak your clothes. The humidity in the mountains is also very high due to the fluctuating temperatures. Therefore, it's best not to stay in mountain gullies. If there's a flash flood, landslide, or mudslide, the first people to suffer will be those who have spent the night in the gully.

As for the mountaintop, you'll be hit by a cold wind. One night there could probably freeze you to death and make you sick.

After a short rest, the group went out again.

There's a mountain path leading from the farmhouse where Liu Dewang stayed into a small valley at the beginning of the mountain range. It's quite narrow, less than a meter wide. Zhang Guodong, Li Ningguang, and their group of five, carrying backpacks, began their ascent.

Fortunately, this section of the road is generally safe and the slope is relatively gentle, but it's slippery after the rain. You have to be careful when carrying things, otherwise you'll fall. Slipping into a ditch might not kill you, but breaking an arm or leg is very dangerous.

At first, everyone was in good spirits. It was quite high; they were about to reach a higher altitude. Of course, except for Liu Dewang. But after crossing a small valley, the mountain path ended, or rather, they had to find their own way. The path was uneven, with rocks tripping them up and small holes and hollows causing them to sink. They needed someone familiar with the area to lead the way, otherwise they would get lost.

It is located on the top of a small hill.

"It's been so long since I've climbed a mountain, and I'm already so tired!" Li Ningguang gasped for breath, sweating profusely. His obese body was definitely a challenge for mountain climbing.

Compared to Zhang Guodong, Wang Zhen, and Du Wenqiang, who were warm but not yet feeling particularly tired, Liu Dewang, whose physical condition wasn't great, climbed the mountain path with surprising ease, as if it were just a warm-up.

Seeing this, Zhang Guodong couldn't help but say, "Hiking and running are indeed very different. You have to get used to the mountain roads. But Brother Li, you must weigh over 170 pounds, right? You should exercise and lose weight. This is your chance!"

Li Ningguang, obese and with a flabby, loose body, found climbing mountains a real challenge. But the mountain trip wasn't for leisure; perhaps after spending half a month there, Li Ningguang would lose a considerable amount of weight?

Li Ningguang laughed and said, "It's time to cut back. His performance in bed seems to have declined quite a bit; this guy's energy is really limited!"

Zhang Guodong and Wu couldn't help but laugh, but they felt he was telling the truth.

Li Ningguang's previous attempt at a threesome was somewhat strained, but he managed to keep going. He hadn't known Zhang Guodong for very long, and Li Yuguang had gained weight. His sexual prowess had significantly diminished.

Zhang Guodong had some understanding of Li Ningguang's sensuality. Upon hearing this, he wondered just how potent the Golden Snake Grass Fruit was. It could restore a man's virility, far superior to pure aphrodisiacs, treating both the symptoms and the root cause. However, Zhang Guodong was currently reluctant to use this precious herb; it still needed to be propagated, and he only had a few plants left.

Besides, he doesn't need it.

In the midst of laughter and conversation.

After walking for a while, they came to a damp, shady mountain village. Li Ningguang shouted for them to stop and plopped down on a rock, refusing to move.

"**The egg can't move anymore. Take a break!" Li Ningguang, breathing heavily like a bellows, was sweating profusely and looked a little pale. He had already exercised quite a bit.

But they had only walked less than a kilometer, still a long way from the cliff, and everyone looked on with despair. At this rate, they wouldn't reach Qingshuiping by nightfall, but what could they do?

But as time went on, everyone felt the boredom, which was the most tiring thing. Perhaps the journey would be very different for a few ladies? Zhang Guodong smiled to himself.

Although he silently lingered at the back, it wasn't boring. He could sense whether there were any precious medicinal herbs within a range of several meters. He strolled leisurely at the back of the group with Lao Qing.

Bupleurum, Isatis root, licorice, dandelion, lily bulb, gentian root, and other common medicinal herbs were seen along the way and easily recognizable. However, these herbs were not considered "precious." Zhang Guodong only occasionally dug up three or five plants with a shovel and put them in his bag.

It is indeed not easy to find medicinal herbs with strong spiritual energy fluctuations.

At first, Li Ningguang was curious: "What kind of grass is this? Is it a medicinal herb?"

Ask it like that.

Zhang Guodong said, "This is called Scrophularia ningpoensis. Its main production area is Zhejiang, but it is also found in the Northwest. In fact, many Chinese medicinal herbs are found in wild plants in some primitive forests and small mountains, and there are many of them. However, most of them are very common or not concentrated and inexpensive, so they are overlooked. I like to collect some medicinal herbs." Zhang Guodong was trying to impart some knowledge.

Ginseng? Ginseng is very precious. Anything with "ginseng" in its name must be bad, right? Pointing to a net-dug ginseng root, Li Ningguang's eyes lit up as he asked, "Guodong, is this expensive?"

With a hearty laugh, Zhang Guodong saw through the businessman Wang Li's thoughts and said, "A jin (500 grams) is valued in the countryside..."

"Only this much?" Li Ningguang was taken aback, but then stopped asking. He should have brought at least one...

"Is it a 'ginseng' plant? Such a low price? The overall profit won't be much." So, seeing Zhang Guodong enthusiastically digging up some flowers and plants with a shovel, Li Ningguang lost all interest.

Liu Dewang eagerly chimed in, "Boss, there are plenty of medicinal herbs growing all over the mountains and fields, Boss Zhang. If you want some, I can dig some for you?"

Zhang Guodong didn't know much about medicinal herbs. But Li Ningguang knew even less; unless it was a rare and precious herb, it was hard to pique his interest.

"Forget it, I don't need these ordinary goods."

As Zhang Guodong dug up mosquito-repellent grass and liniment, Li Ningguang listened to the introduction.

"He muttered to himself, 'This medicinal herb is just ordinary stuff, isn't it? Without refining, how could it have such a mysterious and potent effect?'"

Even Wang Zhen and Du Wenqiang looked at them with disdain, as if they were watching a joke.

It's only early spring, where would mosquitoes come from? Besides, these days they all carry first-aid kits with all sorts of medicinal powders.

Compared to raw medicinal materials that have not yet been refined, it is not precious.

But Zhang Guodong ignored him and continued digging, though he didn't dig too many, only three or five of each kind, prioritizing the smaller ones.

Along the way, when we arrived at Shansizi Village, we dug up no less than a dozen kinds of plants.

"Then let's rest and get to Qingshuiping before dark!" Zhang Guodong said helplessly, looking at the four men on the mountain.

He couldn't rush the journey in such a dense forest, could he? It was here that Zhang Guodong realized the advantage of his good physical condition.

Shan Si Zi was just a small rocky cliff that offered shelter from the rain; it was damp and seeping water, and covered in moss. As soon as the group entered, they saw Liu Dewang crawling inside and drinking from the water source.

"Dewang, what are you doing?" Li Ningguang looked at his actions in surprise.

"Ah, that's great! Hehe, boss, this is spring water. Don't be fooled by the fact that it seeps out of the rocks and there isn't much, but it's different from other places. The water here is very sweet and delicious! I don't need to bring water anymore whenever I pass by here," Liu Dewang said, looking up with a smug smile.

Not only was Li Ningguang curious, but Zhang Guodong was also interested.

They also have water seeping from the cracks in the rocks, but that water seems to contain excessive fluoride, which is quite harmful to the human body. He's only in his forties and he's already lost all his teeth.

Otherwise, many young women and married women would have yellow teeth. The water quality is very poor, but the people in the countryside have no choice but to drink it. Otherwise, if the water source is cut off, where are they supposed to find water?

"Oh? Let me try some?" Upon hearing about the sweet mountain spring water, Li Ningguang forgot his fatigue and hurried over, while Liu Dewang made room for him.

There was a small water bowl there, roughly carved out of the stone with a stone pick. The water seeping from the cracks in the stone was only enough for one person to drink. The second person would have to wait several minutes.

Another point is that the area around it is covered in moss. It looks very unclean, and since everyone drinks from it, the small water bowl becomes a communal space. For people accustomed to city life, this is indeed an uncomfortable and troublesome situation. Li Ningguang hesitated to drink it.

"Do other places also have this kind of water?" Li Ningguang asked Liu Dewang somewhat awkwardly.

Liu Dewang, accustomed to rural life, naturally didn't know Li Ningguang's thoughts and honestly replied, "There are a few other places, but most of the water isn't as sweet as here."

This is what makes high-quality mountain spring water so precious. Not every place has a good water source, but the water volume in this mountain is too small.

"Cough, the water flow here is too slow, I'll finish drinking later," Li Ningguang said sheepishly, glancing at the small water bowl. "Dewang, are there any larger mountain springs in those areas?"

I thought to myself, if there were a bigger mountain spring, that would be a fortune!

The spring water business is very widespread nowadays. If it could be processed into drinking water like Nongfu Spring, it would be a highly profitable and stable investment.

Li Ningguang had this idea, and Zhang Guodong did too.

However, he immediately discarded it. This rock layer might contain springs and different dense, permeable layers to produce excellent spring water. But in the mountains, this is a huge undertaking.

If you blast open a crevice in the rock and sever a water source, the water will be unavailable. Furthermore, does the government allow you to destroy the vegetation in these mountains?

The Qinling Mountains are considered the dragon vein of China, and the state will not allow the destruction of their vegetation resources.

Liu Dewang had no idea about these intricacies. He chuckled and said, "Boss, without water, it's hard to find in these mountains. If I weren't familiar with this area, it would be very difficult to find." "Alright, alright, I knew you could do that. Take a break, have some water, and we can continue. We can't let my presence delay our journey!" Li Ningguang said, somewhat disappointed.

The mountain sanctuary was quite shady, and the ten-minute rest allowed everyone to catch their breath. Zhang Guodong, worried that someone might catch a cold, said, "Brother Li, you can't let yourself get completely chilled, or you'll feel awful. And I'm afraid you might catch a cold. I think we should leave."

After resting for about ten minutes, Li Ningguang was reluctant to get up. However, the coldness of his clothes against his back was indeed uncomfortable. So he agreed to Zhang Guodong's request, and the five of them set off again. Traversing the foothills and traversing the valley was extremely difficult, especially physically demanding!

Going up and down the mountain, crossing the ravines, the planks were worn blistered and the cries of pain were endless.

Li Ningguang rested several times along the way, saying he really couldn't walk anymore, but he would rest for a while, drink some water, and then immediately set off again. Even though he couldn't walk anymore, he had to keep going. After walking about four kilometers, with more than a kilometer of mountain road still to go to Qingshuiping, Li Ningguang collapsed from exhaustion!

Li Ningguang was pale and breathing rapidly. Zhang Guodong didn't dare to be careless and quickly rested on the spot. Wang Zhen and Du Wenqiang were very skilled in first aid and expertly checked Li Ningguang and administered oxygen.

Seeing Li Ningguang's complexion gradually improve, Zhang Guodong felt slightly relieved. At this moment, he thought of Bai Jiawei. How far could the expedition team go with only one woman? Don't be fooled by the beautiful scenery and clear air in the mountains; it is very difficult to truly cross them and conquer every inch of the forest.

The ancient saying goes, "The road to Shu is harder than ascending to heaven." Zhang Guodong lamented that if one were to trek across the entire Qinling Mountains, how many years would it take to emerge intact?

Hunger, thirst, cold, the threat of wild animals, and the dangers of natural traps—any one of these can be fatal.

However, Zhang Guodong was unaware that Bai Jiawei's expedition team had taken a different route. After spending the night in Qingyang, they brought along an additional guide familiar with the surrounding mountains and forests. At eight o'clock in the morning, they set off down a much flatter mountain road than the one Liu Dewang had led, so the guide walked ahead of Zhang Guodong and his group, seemingly in tacit agreement, heading in the same direction.

Bi: A new day begins, another long chapter will be updated, please vote with monthly tickets!