These bags were tied together in bundles of fifty, making ten bundles in total, while the remaining two were simply placed on top and not counted.
Yunling didn't just pick them up and leave. She picked up each bundle and weighed it in her hand. Then she took one out from a different spot in each bundle and compared the size, embroidery style, and stitches. She paid special attention to the loosening of the binding. Although there were some slight errors, they were within her acceptable range and she considered them acceptable.
Yun Ruoxia, on the other hand, focused on the accuracy of the quantity. She was determined to count the items accurately, and it had to be done in the shop. Otherwise, if the count was wrong after leaving the shop, she would be in for a world of trouble.
"The quality is good."
"The quantity is correct."
Upon seeing this, the owner secretly rejoiced that he hadn't turned the two away a while ago, otherwise he would have suffered a great loss.
With everything prepared, Yunling and Yunruochun went up the mountain the next day. The grass had grown as tall as a person, and Yunling didn't wait for it to continue growing taller before she and Yunruochun cut it down.
After returning home, Yunling put the elephant grass directly into the round wooden barrel, pulled the rope, and the elephant grass was immediately rolled down. Soon, fine grass particles came out from the outlet.
Yun Ruochun found it novel and immediately clamored to try it out. Yun Ling then took the opportunity to hand over the task to her and went to the mushroom house to pick mushrooms and collect mycelium herself.
Yun Ruoxia was also busy. Following Yun Ling's instructions, she collected the elephant grass grains with a winnowing basket, spread them out, and steamed them in a pot. Once they were cooked, she took them out to cool.
After Zhang finished washing the clothes and hung them on the bamboo pole, seeing that it was still early, she came over and opened the bags one by one, then filled them with cooled elephant grass grains.
Yunling came out of the mushroom house, squatted down next to Zhang, and put mycelium into the bags lined with elephant grass pellets one by one. Then she covered them with another layer of elephant grass pellets, put in mycelium again, and then put in elephant grass pellets again. She repeated this process twice before she tightened the bag opening.
"Ling-jie, is that all? Can we just wait to harvest the mushrooms?"
"Auntie, there's not a single opening, so where did the mushrooms come from? Did they come from your bed again?"
Old Lady Yun had just returned from delivering a baby. Hearing about incisions and cuts, she quickly grabbed her scissors and came over, saying, "Whoever needs an incision, come quickly to my side."
Yunling gestured briefly with the bag in her hand, and then her mother-in-law started cutting. Her hands moved swiftly and accurately.
With the family working together, three hundred bags were quickly filled and placed one by one on the shelves in the mushroom house. Yunling still felt it was a bit few, perhaps because the mushroom house had been expanded more than twice its original size.
She should have made some more, but the sun was about to set and Zhang was busy preparing dinner for the family, so she could only make these for now. Tomorrow she would go up the mountain again to cut some elephant grass and finish the remaining two hundred.
Yunling picked up the water bottle and used her supernatural ability to sprinkle water on the surface of the bag and the ground. Summer was approaching, and not only did the bees need to survive the summer, but the mushrooms also needed to avoid the heat.
Yun Ruoxia finished tidying up her things outside and came into the mushroom house. Looking at the dead wood on the ground, she sighed, "Ling-jie, is this dead wood... is it no longer usable?"
“No, Aunt, you should take all of these out and burn them for Mother.”
Yun Ruoxia was a little reluctant. After all, she had made her fortune by raising black mushrooms with Yun Ling. She even had to go up the mountain to collect these dead wood pieces. Now that they were all burned, wouldn't all her past work be lost?
Seeing that Yun Ruoxia didn't move, Yunling said with a smile, "Aunt, do you really think this piece of dead wood can keep growing mushrooms? Usually, you have to replace it after a few years. Mushrooms are the same, and so are bee colonies. There's no need to be so sentimental. If you really can't bear to part with it, you can take one and put it in your room. When it grows mushrooms, you can have a bite to eat when you're hungry at night."
"Oh, you have such a sharp tongue! You might as well join those monkey performers in a play during the Lantern Festival."
"Auntie, shall we go see the lantern festival this year?"
Because of the original owner's abduction, the family hadn't been able to go to the Lantern Festival for years. Yunling, who loved excitement, was naturally happy to join in the fun.
Yun Ruoxia, however, gave her a "you've finally met your match" look and teased, "That's none of my business. We can only go if my sister-in-law says it's okay. You'll have to ask her."
The thought of her mother's concerned face immediately deflated Yunling. But then she thought, she had already been to places as far away as Fujian, so why couldn't she go to this county town she frequented? That didn't make sense, and she figured her mother would listen to her excuses.
Seeing the subtle changes in Yun Ling's expression, Yun Ruoxia smiled as she carried away the deadwood. After leaving one piece in the room as a souvenir, she sent the rest to the kitchen for Zhang Shi to use as firewood.
The deadwood contributed its last bit of value, turning into a wisp of smoke that rose up the chimney, gradually drifting away into the distance and disappearing without a trace, but bringing with it the scorching summer.
This summer, Yunling felt unusually hot.
She lay under the tree, holding a chicken strip in her hand, teasing Little White and Big Black, who were drooling with desire, which helped relieve some of the summer heat.
The faint aroma of mung bean soup wafted from the kitchen, but Yunling was too lazy to move. She lay under the tree, staring blankly at the dappled sunlight filtering through the leaves, until her mother returned with a large bundle of bamboo leaves. Only then did she realize that the Dragon Boat Festival was approaching.
I heard that there are dragon boat races in the two towns during the Dragon Boat Festival. Every year when Grandma Fan comes back, she stops at their gate and tells them how lively it is. She really wanted to go then, but her mother wouldn't let her.
Yunling had no interest in relieving the heat. She sat up with a jolt and went straight to the kitchen. As soon as she got close, the heat from the kitchen hit her in the face and quickly spread throughout her body. She felt like she was in an oven, feeling stuffy and hot, and very uncomfortable.
If Yunling was like this, let alone Zhang Shi.
Zhang was sweating profusely, her handkerchiefs soaked through countless times, and her face flushed red, which added a touch of rosy glow to her complexion.
Yunling rushed into Zhang's room, took out a clean handkerchief, and then rushed back to the kitchen to wipe the sweat from Zhang's forehead.
While inspecting the glutinous rice and red beans in the wooden basin, Zhang said with a smile, "It must be that the sun rose in the west today to let our Ling'er come to the kitchen. She even thoughtfully wiped my sweat."
"Mother, the sun doesn't rise from the west."
"Come on, I know what you're thinking the moment you raise your tail. So, what's the plan this time?"
Yunling immediately wrapped her arm around Zhang's, "Mother, let's go see the dragon boats for the Dragon Boat Festival."
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