Chapter 35 Hilltop Design

"Winter bamboo shoots must be delicious. I happen to have a piece of bacon at home. I'll fry it for you to try tonight. If you like it, ask your dad to take you and Xiaowen to the mountains tomorrow, and we can dig some up."

As the name suggests, winter bamboo shoots are grown in winter and cannot be eaten in other seasons even if you want to.

From October to February of the following year, winter bamboo shoots are on the market.

Sometimes, due to the influence of temperature in mountainous areas, the time when winter bamboo shoots emerge is uncertain.

If Qiu Lan hadn't been idle and gone to chop firewood, and saw a lot of winter bamboo shoots growing in the bamboo forest, he probably wouldn't have thought of these things for a while.

Qiu Lan left most of the winter bamboo shoots she had dug up, and Liu Guizhen couldn't even push them away. Fortunately, the winter bamboo shoots were free, otherwise she would have felt embarrassed to take so many for free.

The processing of winter bamboo shoots was also simple and rough. Liu Guizhen used a machete to cut off the dark brown hard shell of the winter bamboo shoots, which were thicker than Xia Wu's legs, and peeled off layer by layer until only the bamboo shoot flesh, not much bigger than a fist, was left. She stopped.

After peeling seven or eight winter bamboo shoots, they only filled up an iron basin, but there were quite a few bamboo shoot shells piled up in the aisle.

When Old Man Yang and Yang Guojun returned from herbal medicine in the mountains, they saw a mountain of bamboo shoot shells piled high in the hallway. Surprised, they asked, "I just came down the mountain and saw winter bamboo shoots. They said they'd dig them up tomorrow. How come you were quicker than me?"

Liu Guizhen said angrily, "I didn't dig this. Qiu Lan sent it to me. Xiao Wu said she had never eaten it before. I'll make a few more dishes tonight so she can try it."

"Well, if Xiao Wu likes to eat it, I'll take you to the mountains tomorrow to dig for it. There's plenty of it."

"Did you find any herbs in the mountains today?"

"Found it. Look, isn't this all here? Chicken blood vine, Chinese yam, smilax glabra, everything. Enough to make medicine for Yang Mingyuan's grandmother."

Yang Mingyuan's grandmother has had rheumatism for many years. It is cold at the foot of the mountain in winter, and her rheumatism has worsened. Applying plasters alone is useless. She has not gotten out of bed for a week and has been screaming in pain all day long.

Last time, Yang Mingyuan came to Grandpa Yang for help. He took out all the money he had saved and asked if there was any way to make his grandmother feel better.

Seeing Yang Mingyuan's sincere filial piety, Old Man Yang couldn't bear to see his grandmother suffer, so he looked through medical books overnight and found a folk remedy for rheumatism. These past few days, he went up the mountain when he had nothing to do. Yang Guojun was afraid that the frost on the mountain would make the old man's legs and feet weak, so he followed him up and down the mountain every day.

There are quite a lot of good things on Zimu Mountain. He goes there every day with a basket on his back and can harvest a lot of wild goods, such as oyster mushrooms dried on trees, wild wood ear mushrooms, yam beans, and some wild fruits that Xia Wu can't name. In the end, they all fall into her and her brother's mouths. Those that can be made into dishes are also added to the menu by Liu Guizhen.

Grandpa Yang began to prepare medicine, and Yang Guojun shoveled the bamboo shoot shells in the aisle into the fertilizer pile. The bamboo shoot fertilizer is of high value and cannot be wasted.

Otherwise, the strawberry trees planted by Xia Wu would not be able to grow without pesticides or fertilizers.

In the kitchen, Liu Guizhen was busy making winter bamboo shoots into home-cooked dishes.

A dish of winter bamboo shoots fried with bacon, a dish of cold winter bamboo shoots, scrambled eggs with chili peppers, and fried meat with oyster mushrooms picked by Yang Guojun, paired with homemade firewood rice, simple and easy.

When the weather got cold, the Yang family no longer ate in the yard. A stove was burning in the hall, and the house was steaming hot. They had to take off their thick cotton jackets when eating.

It is very pleasant to eat cold winter bamboo shoots at this time.

Xia Wu likes the taste of winter bamboo shoots very much. They are tender, soft and smooth, crisp and sweet, delicious, and can be eaten in many ways. They can be steamed, fried, eaten cold, or made into bamboo shoot buns, steamed dumplings, etc.

There are not many kinds of vegetables in winter, and there are only a few that are changed all day long. Many of them have to be bought in town. I have to say that Xia Wu is very happy about the appearance of winter bamboo shoots.

While enjoying the meal, she still didn't forget the group friends she had ignored. She took out her mobile phone and saw that all the @ her messages were pushed to the top of 999+. Three people added her WeChat through the group name card. The notes of the three people were landscape design and house construction.

Xia Wu quickly accepted their friend invitation and then reappeared in the group chat, "Just now, the villagers came to give me winter bamboo shoots. My mother fried two winter bamboo shoot dishes tonight. They tasted really good. I want to share them with you."

She sent photos of winter bamboo shoots fried with bacon and cold-mixed winter bamboo shoots to the group, which caused another stir.

"Winter bamboo shoots! Delicious! My favorite!"

"Is it really delicious? I'm from the north and have never eaten it before."

“It’s a pity for those who haven’t tried winter bamboo shoots. You’ve missed out on the wonderful flavor!”

"Xia Xia, do you have any winter bamboo shoots for sale? I'd like to buy some."

"They should be selling it in the market now. This thing is too exaggerated. It looks huge when you dig it out, but it's actually very small once you peel it. I guess it's not easy to ship by express."

"The courier fee is fine, I can pay for it. I just want to taste the real mountain flavor."

You know what, there are really many hidden dragons and crouching tigers in the group, and there are quite a few rich people.

"I want to try it too. I've never had it before. I'm curious, how much do winter bamboo shoots cost per pound where you are?"

"I just went to the supermarket today. It's 25 per pound. I'd rather just go to bed. I can't bear to buy anything at all."

"A large winter bamboo shoot weighs one kilogram, and after removing the common area, there might only be 200 grams left. It's better to be cautious when buying, otherwise you will feel bad about buying it back."

This guy seems to have been preventing group members from asking Xia Wu to buy winter bamboo shoots, but in fact he has been paving the way for those who have never seen winter bamboo shoots, so that they don’t end up buying them and feeling dissatisfied, and instead blame Xia Wu.

In fact, Xia Wu had never thought about selling winter bamboo shoots. It was already troublesome to deliver strawberries every day, and if she had to sell some more winter bamboo shoots, she would be exhausted to death.

I don’t know if the words of the man who tried to dissuade him worked, but Xia Wu stopped talking and the discussion about winter bamboo shoots in the group became less and less.

Xia Wu stopped paying attention to the group chat and started chatting with the three people who added her.

The two claimed to be a couple who were engaged in landscape design. They were not very old, in their thirties. The man's name was Li Jianbin and the woman's name was Jiang Zhen. They were college classmates and studied the same major. They are now semi-retired and their biggest hobby is traveling around in an RV.

They also accidentally came across Xia Wu's video and became her fans. They were pulled into the group by Zhou Hui and bought several videos of Xia Wu farming. They resonated with a certain feeling conveyed in Xia Wu's videos, which is why they wanted to visit Xia Wu's hometown and help her plan the mountain.

Xia Wu welcomed this and asked them when they wanted to come so that they could book a hotel in town in advance.

Because Li Jianbin and Jiang Zhen were car owners and were traveling not too far from Xia Wu, the two parties arranged to meet a week later, on December 13th, to discuss the matter in detail.

Ma Fangzhou, a group member who is good at house design, is not as leisurely as Li Jianbin. He asked Xia Wu to send him the plan after he planned the use of the mountain, and he would design several houses with suitable styles for Xia Wu to choose from.

After thinking about it, Xia Wu pulled these three into a group. Knowing that Li Jianbin and Jiang Zhen could go to Xia Wu's hometown in person, Ma Fangzhou's eyes almost turned red with envy.

He is a hard-working designer. Working from nine to five has nothing to do with him. He is thankful if he doesn't have to work overtime or go on a business trip for a month.

It can be said that watching Xia Wu's videos can briefly free him from the suffocating steel and concrete. Before going to bed, he can smell the fragrance of strawberries and perhaps dream of turning into a wild deer strolling in a forest full of oxygen.

Yawning, Xia Wu said goodnight to the three group members, "I have to get up early to work tomorrow, I'm going to sleep first."

After she finished speaking, she put down her phone and started petting Bugs Bunny. She didn't know if Bugs Bunny drank too much spiritual spring water or was petted by her too much, but his fur was very smooth and he didn't shed much. Most importantly, his chubby cheeks made him look super cute!

Sleeping with Bugs Bunny in his arms every day is a great psychological comfort for Xia Wu.

In the second half of the night, at a fixed time, the snake brother, who violated the law of snake hibernation in winter, knocked gently on Xia Wu's bed again. Xia Wu was already used to this. Without opening his eyes, he added water to the snake, put it on the windowsill, and touched the snake brother's creepy scales. Without waiting for it to finish drinking, he closed the window and took it home.

Don’t ask Xia Wu why he didn’t add water to the snake in advance. The water in the mountains would really freeze solid at night!

She didn't want to see Brother Snake licking the popsicle all night and not being able to finish it until the next day, and then being seen by her family at home.

Someone was doing the job of picking and packing strawberries, and it was done smoothly. Xia Wu slept in for the first time in a long time and slept until after eight o'clock. She then got up, washed, and had breakfast.

Yang Mingyuan, Yang Ping and Yang An went to school together. Fourth Master Yang turned on the opera player and worked while listening to the opera.

Yang Hongwen loves to stay in bed even more than Xia Wu. As long as no one calls him, he can sleep until noon.

After Xia Wu returned home, she took on the task of waking her brother up.

Yang Hongwen wrapped himself in a thick quilt, burying his face below his nostrils, revealing the upper half of his handsome face. Although he looks a little silly, he does look a lot like Xia Wu. The brother and sister will be noticed if they go out.

It’s just that Yang Hongwen has a kind of silliness that doesn’t match his age. When others see that he is good-looking but a silly boy, those admiring eyes will become full of sympathy.

After Xia Wu got the spiritual spring water, she found that Bugs Bunny became smarter after drinking it, and the big snake was so smart that it asked for water in the middle of the night. So she wondered, would her brother become smarter after drinking too much spiritual spring water?

So Xia Wu tried many ways to get Yang Hongwen to drink the spiritual spring water. His skin became better and he looked better, but unfortunately his brain remained the same.

But no matter what, Yang Hongwen listened to and took special care of his sister who had returned home halfway, and Xia Wu could not ask too much of her brother.

"Brother, lazy pig, get up!"

Xia Wu tucked his quilt down a little, revealing Yang Hongwen's entire face.

He reached out from under the covers and pulled them back over his face.

"I don't want to get up. It's cold."

"Let's go to the mountains to dig winter bamboo shoots today and shoot a video. After that, I'll take you to town to drink double-skin milk."

Yang Hongwen loosened his grip on the quilt, as if he was moving.

It seems that the double skin milk is not enough, Xia Wu continues to increase the intensity: "Don't you still want to eat hamburgers? I will take you there to eat, and you should also have a portion of fried chicken. Forget the ice cream, it's too cold."

Yang Hongwen reluctantly put down the quilt. His eyes were already open, but he was still very sleepy. He was still bargaining with his sister: "I want ice cream."

"Get up first and see if the sun comes out today. If it does, I'll buy it for you."

Finally, she woke her brother up, and Xia Wu took him to deliver a batch of express deliveries. On the way, WeChat showed that someone had added her as a friend. She clicked on the verification and found that it was the group member who asked about buying winter bamboo shoots yesterday.

Xia Wu, through her friend, habitually checked the group's friends circle and initially concluded that this group member must be a wealthy housewife...

"Xia Xia, I'm sorry to have added you as my friend, but I still really want to buy some winter bamboo shoots from you. The price is negotiable, and I'll pay for the delivery myself. Is that okay with you?"

This request was not excessive, so Xia Wu quickly agreed. "No problem. Just tell me how much you want. I'll go dig it today."

Without saying a word, the other side transferred a thousand yuan.

"Just give me what you think the money can buy. Thank you."

Xia Wu was shocked and then burst into tears, thinking back then, she was also such a wealthy young lady.

As a result, he is almost becoming Huang Shiren in order to cover the mountain.

If you have money but don't make it, you are a fool. The thoughts of rich people may be so simple and unpretentious. They have never seen it and want to try it, that's all.

Xia Wu agreed readily, "Okay, dig it today and maybe ship it tomorrow. Send me the address and phone number."

After the address was sent to him, Xia Wu learned that the lady's name was Bai Ge.

As her name suggests, she is a beautiful woman with great temperament.

On the way, Xia Wu calculated that according to the market price, one catty of winter bamboo shoots costs 25 yuan, and this one thousand yuan can buy at least 40 catties of bamboo shoots. Although there are many winter bamboo shoots on the mountain, as Yang Guojun said, digging them is quite difficult.

The shipping fee is calculated separately, and Xia Wu decided that she couldn't earn this money alone.

So when the morning work was finished and everyone else was about to leave, Xia Wu called out to Qiu Lan, "Sister Lan, wait a moment. I have something to tell you."

Qiu Lan stayed behind, feeling somewhat bewildered. "What's wrong, Xiao Wu? Is there something I didn't do well? Tell me and I'll change it."

Xia Wu didn't know whether to laugh or cry. "No, don't think too much. I asked you to stay because I wanted to ask you if you wanted to make some money. It's like this..."

Xia Wu briefly recounted his story of filming a video and selling strawberries online.

"Right now, some people in the group said they want to buy some winter bamboo shoots to try. Anyone can make money from this. If you hadn't sent me bamboo shoots yesterday, I wouldn't have gotten this business. How about you dig some bamboo shoots today, and I'll help you ship them tomorrow. I'll share the sales with you. What do you think?"

Qiu Lan was stunned by this sudden fortune that fell on her head, and was so happy that she could hardly speak.

"I, I can sell things online too. Sure, why not? I'll dig up as many bamboo shoots as you want!"

Xia Wu was very pleased to see her so happy. If the winter bamboo shoots from the mountains could be sold, it would be a nice windfall for families like Qiu Lan in the village.

She wanted to try selling it to Bai Ge first to see the effect. If the response was good, she would post a link.

However, Xia Wu did not intend to earn all the money by herself. The bamboo shoots in the mountains were wild and not exclusive to her. She also did not have the energy to hide this and that and add another burden to her family to earn this money.

It’s better to be a good person and let the villagers earn some money too.