The more he looked at this strange rock, the more he liked it. Nature is so amazing; there are many ingeniously crafted rocks in Taishan.

He and his father had originally planned to continue their treasure hunt in the remote valley that afternoon, but seeing his mother so tired that she was dozing off, he had no choice but to abandon their plans for the day.

"Okay! Let's go home! Dad Zhou, let's remember this place and come back to play together next time we have the chance!"

It's very quiet here, with mountains and water, much more fun than the front mountain. Dad Zhou, have you ever climbed Mount Tai?

There were so many people ahead of us, and the stones on the mountain path were worn smooth, making it very difficult to walk on.

It was too crowded and not as interesting as the back hill.

Zhou Yi also found two unusual stones. One of them was a picture of an old man fishing. Although the stone was not big, it was only thirty centimeters high and weighed thirteen or fourteen kilograms.

However, the image on it is incredibly clear: an ancient old man wearing a straw hat and a long robe sits alone on the shore, fishing with a rod.

The river flowed around the strange rock, its ripples as if the surface of the water was being rippled by a gentle breeze.

The old man leans against a weeping willow, closes his eyes, and strokes his beard; the whole scene resembles the mythical legend of the immortal Jiang Taigong.

The artistic conception is truly beautiful; what a perfect Chinese landscape painting!

Another unusual stone is even more amazing. The back of this stone features a pattern of the welcoming pine tree of Mount Tai, while the front displays a complete and clear portrait of Chairman Mao.

The Chairman Mao figure on the strange rock looks to be only in his thirties or forties, wearing a long gown and leather shoes, exuding the air of a scholar.

Even more amazing is that it perfectly replicates the iconic large fleshy mole on Chairman Mao's chin.

The Chairman Mao on the strange rock looks very young, with a thick hairline and his forehead not yet showing.

Zhou Yi was overjoyed. He knew that if his grandfather saw this strange stone, he would definitely fight over it.

Their generation had boundless love and admiration for Chairman Mao, and this unusual stone would be the best gift for the old man.

The father and son hugged the strange stone they had found, washed it clean, and showed it off to Chen Hong for a long time.

After admiring the strange stones, Zhou Yi helped Chen Hong pack her backpack, then put four more strange stones in a sack, bent down to carry them on his shoulder, and led Chen Hong back the way they came.

Chen Hong found it somewhat amusing: "The road is difficult to walk on. You're carrying such heavy stones, so you should watch your step carefully."

I'm very familiar with this mountain path; I've walked it since I was a child. I'll follow behind you and walk on my own.

Yu Yang, are you sure you can do it? Can you carry it? Mommy will help you carry the stones, okay?

Yu Yang filled his small backpack with his favorite stones and strutted after Zhou Yi with great pride, hopping and skipping along the mountain path.

"Mom, I can carry you now, didn't you notice? I'm really strong now!"

Even if I carried another ten pounds, it wouldn't be a problem. This stone only weighs a dozen pounds, not much heavier than a bag of rice.

Mom, I feel incredibly powerful carrying Tiananmen Square on my back. I'm confident I can bring this stone home on my own.

Zhou Yi led the way, Yu Yang followed closely behind, and Chen Hong brought up the rear.

The family of three walked quickly down the mountain, and it took them three hours to get back to their parking spot.

"Phew! We've finally arrived!" Yu Yang was still just a child. Although he exercised every day, walking dozens of miles of mountain road had exhausted him.

Chen Hong opened the car door and let Yu Yang get in to rest, then helped Zhou Yi carry the sack into the trunk.

Zhou Yi also had a tough time. These four stones weighed about 140 pounds in total, and it took him three hours to carry them, leaving him drenched in sweat.

Chen Hong took out a towel and a water bottle from the car and handed them to the man and son respectively.

"Come on, get in the car! Wipe your sweat and have some water, we're heading back now."

The father and son took turns wiping their sweat and drinking water to regain their strength.

On the way back, Chen Hong drove. When they reached a rural market by the roadside, they got out and bought a basket of local specialty pine mushrooms.

On the way back, Yu Yang fell asleep in the car. Zhou Yi saw this in the rearview mirror and began to get restless again.

He sat in the passenger seat, stretched out his long arm, and tried to touch Chen Hong's hand.

Chen Hong had anticipated this, and slapped him hard, glaring at him fiercely.

"I'm driving! You better behave!"

Zhou Yi subtly withdrew his hand and changed the subject, chatting with Chen Hong: "Did you often come here to play when you were a child?"

Chen Hong couldn't help but smile as she recalled her childhood. "Back then, when I was in elementary school, our teachers would organize spring and autumn outings, taking us to places closer to home like Lingyan Temple and Liantai Mountain."

In middle school, our teachers organized a picnic and outing to the back of Mount Tai. It wasn't just for fun; the teachers also assigned us homework.

Each time, we must write at least one essay of no less than 800 words. Our primary and secondary school essays rely entirely on these scenic spots for inspiration!

Back then, everyone was poor. Students from better-off families would spend money to buy a few sesame seed cakes and a pot-baked flatbread in the village to take with them. Their families would also boil a few eggs and put them in their schoolbags.

Children from ordinary rural families like ours would carry three or four pancakes and a piece of pickled vegetable on their backs.

Students from impoverished families sometimes carried two cornbread or sweet potato flour buns on their backs, along with some pickled radishes and vegetables made at home.

Back then, water bottles were a luxury; very few families owned them. We couldn't carry water with us, so we drank spring water wherever we went.

Strangely enough, kids back then were really tough. They could eat cold cornbread and pancakes and drink icy spring water without getting diarrhea.

They were all full of energy, walking seventy or eighty miles back and forth, and even the girls didn't fall behind.

Did you know that most of the students would carry a bundle of firewood home, and the girls would also dig up a bag of wild vegetables to take home?

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