"Ah! There really are fish! It's a pity I didn't bring any tools today!" Jiang Zhi looked at the small fish with great anticipation.
These fish are only the size of a thumb, looking like tiny fry, but they are actually quite large.
She didn't know what kind of fish it was, only that it had fine scales and was especially delicious when deep-fried.
Besides the small fish, there were also a few green shrimp clinging to the grass leaves in the water.
A snail the size of a thumb lay on a rock, diligently nibbling at the moss.
Jiang Zhi's mouth was practically watering.
Xiaoman misspoke; he wanted to catch eels.
You should know that eels and loaches won't grow in such fast-flowing water, but there will be some small crabs and snails in the crevices of the rocks.
No one would climb a mountain for hours to catch a few hairy fish, except for Jiang Zhi who didn't mind.
She looked at the basket she had brought, then at the sweet potatoes growing on the cliff face...
Hey! Sweet potatoes won't run away, let's catch fish first.
Taking off her straw sandals, Jiang Zhi stepped into the icy water. First, she used the stones next to her to build a funnel-shaped dam to collect the water. Then, she tilted her basket and embedded it into the dam opening at the bottom of the funnel, creating a trap that the fish could not escape.
I picked a few sweet potatoes from the cliff, crushed them, and threw them into the water. The red flesh emitted an intoxicating sweet fragrance, attracting fish to dart about and scramble for them.
Some small pieces of fruit pulp drifted downstream with the current toward the basket, and the fish followed them downstream.
Haha, not bad, now all that's left is to wait!
Jiang Zhi's task this time is still to pick sweet potatoes. Whether she can catch fish is another matter; it's just a side benefit.
Climbing up the cliff face by pulling on the sweet potato vines, and parting the vines, you can see the reddish-brown sweet potato fruits half-buried in the soil.
Jiang Zhi pulled the hem of her clothes and tucked it into her belt, instantly creating a pocket. She then stuffed the sweet potatoes that couldn't be squeezed inside.
She threw bundles of vines off the cliff, and her pockets were bulging with sweet potatoes.
Suddenly, Jiang Zhi cried out "Ah!" and almost fell off the cliff. She quickly grabbed a bush next to her to steady herself.
To her horror, a startled centipede leaped out of a crack in the rock and quickly swam into another crevice.
Jiang Zhi patted her chest: "That scared me to death!"
Sigh! You always encounter these things when gathering herbs; she fears both those with extra feet and those without.
Snakes are manageable; just pat or knock down the grass and bushes beforehand to scare them away and there won't be any problems. But these little guys are unavoidable.
Jiang Zhi was startled and jumped down the cliff. Centipedes were a good medicinal ingredient, but she couldn't catch them.
By this time, there were already more than a dozen fish in the basket. Jiang Zhi did not disturb them, but instead stepped into the water again, moved the stones in the water, and felt for crabs and snails through the gaps.
The crabs here are not the lazy, plump hairy crabs.
In winter, the mountains lack water and food, and the harsh environment forces them to bury themselves in the mud to hibernate.
Mountain crabs look exactly like ordinary river crabs, except that their shells are dark brown, slender and small with no excess oil, and their bodies are as hard as iron. In his previous life, Jiang Zhi was used to calling them "iron crabs".
Jiang Zhi catches them not to eat, but for medicinal purposes.
In my past life, my grandfather used to crush iron crabs and mix them with herbs for treating bruises and sprains, applying the mixture externally to treat bone injuries.
This is probably because traditional Chinese medicine emphasizes "like cures like," so eating pig brains is believed to nourish the human brain, and eating tiger penis is believed to nourish the human penis.
Iron crabs are made of tough iron bones and are good at digging holes and crevices, so they can help to clear the meridians and strengthen muscles and bones.
It has a certain effect on improving diseases such as injuries, bruises, lower back and leg pain, and rheumatoid arthritis, and is suitable for people with sprains, bruises and fractures.
The herb is the common maidenhair fern, the whole plant of which is used medicinally, and reducing swelling is one of its important effects.
maidenhair fern
When crushed and applied topically, it can relieve joint swelling and pain, as well as sprains and strains. It is also effective for burns, scalds, and snake bites.
Alternatively, you can use sour grass, also known as wood sorrel, which can also promote blood circulation and reduce swelling.
Sour grass flowers
Fresh herbs can be heated with wine and rubbed on the affected area to treat redness, swelling, pain, and sprains. Generally, red-leaf herbs are more effective than green-leaf herbs.
Since there's no alcohol available, Jiangzhi can only be used externally in combination with other ingredients.
The seeds burst open when squeezed.
Although this combination looks disgusting, it can provide care for patients living in remote mountainous areas who have difficulty moving around and do not have the money to go to the hospital.
Xu Dazhu has been injured for two years now, and it's not a new fracture, so the outcome is hard to predict. We can only give it a try.
The iron crabs are the most alert and quick to react. After a lot of effort, Jiang Zhi only managed to catch five crabs the size of glutinous rice balls.
He tossed it into his basket and started collecting snails again.
The snails here are very large and plump. Jiang Zhi throws them onto the shore like picking sweet potatoes, and soon there's a pile of them.
The mountain stream water was too cold. Even though it was noon, Jiang Zhi couldn't stand it after a while and shivered so much that she quickly went ashore.
As soon as I picked up the basket, several more small fish fell for it. These fish are proud; they jump a few times out of the water and then die, not giving anyone a chance to mess with them.
Only the iron crab refused to back down, raising its two large pincers in a show of defiance while frantically spinning around in the basket, stepping on the fish carcasses in an attempt to find a hiding place.
Having no other choice, Jiang Zhi had to find some foxtail grass to tie the crabs up before they calmed down.
Snails are the most docile; they won't move at all if you just wrap them in leaves.
After repacking the sweet potato vines, sweet potato fruits, snails, and river branches, Jiang Zhi left the mountain stream and headed back.
The sun was already setting, but it was still scorching hot. Jiang Zhi simply broke off a branch and wove it into a sunshade hat to keep cool.
When she got home, Xu Errui was clumsily changing the baby's diaper, while Qiaoyun was preparing hot water to bathe the baby.
Living in the mountains, where it was damp and stuffy, Jiang Zhi asked Qiao Yun to frequently boil water for the children to bathe. Even though she herself couldn't bathe or wash her hair, she had to use medicinal water to wipe her body to keep it clean and fresh.
Qiaoyun was puzzled. In her mind, one shouldn't take a bath or wash their hair during postpartum confinement, and should just stay cooped up for a month.
But my mother-in-law insisted on rubbing her teeth with precious salt and wiping her body with medicine, keeping an even closer eye on her than usual, so she couldn't slack off at all.
She had no idea what Jiang Zhi was trying to do.
After childbirth, due to hormonal changes, women not only experience aches and pains all over their bodies, but their teeth may also feel a little softer.
Rubbing your teeth with salt can help prevent cavities and strengthen teeth.
The book "Mingyi Bielu" by Tao Hongjing of the Liang Dynasty during the Southern and Northern Dynasties in my country records that salt has the effects of clearing heat, cooling blood, and detoxifying.
According to traditional Chinese medicine theory, salt is salty and enters the kidneys. Teeth are an extension of bones, and the kidneys govern bones. Therefore, salt can strengthen teeth and prevent them from falling out in old age.
If possible, using rock salt is the best option!
Qingyan, also known as coarse salt produced in Qinghai, is something Jiang Zhi doesn't know if it's available here, but coarse-grained well salt would work just as well.
Jiang Zhi took the snails and went into the kitchen while the young couple took care of the child.
This time, we brought back two large bowls of snails. First, we carefully cleaned the snail shells, brushed off the moss, then put them in water with a few drops of oil and left them aside, waiting for the snails to expel the mud and sand from their bellies.
Taking advantage of this break, Jiang Zhi took the iron crab, along with the maidenhair fern and sour grass she had picked up along the way, and went to Xiao Man's house at the foot of the cliff.
Three months have passed since she went up the mountain at the end of February. With enough groundwork laid, she is now ready to administer the medication to Xu Dazhu.
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