While eating, Ye Yunyi and Wang Zixiang reviewed what they had seen along the way. There was a bamboo forest at the foot of the mountain with a few bamboo shoots. The zombies had been cleared away, and they could dig some up when they got back.
There are many kinds of fungi and wild vegetables on the mountain. She doesn't recognize them all, but she recognizes termite mushrooms because she ate a lot of them when she was a child. She also recognizes wood ear mushrooms that grow on trees. There are wild vegetables like bracken. She picked a lot of the ones she recognized and one of the ones she didn't recognize. She will take them back to show her parents. If her parents don't recognize them, they can compare them with the information they downloaded before.
The mountain also has many wild fruits: wild peaches, chestnuts, plums, dates, wild pears, as well as wild Sichuan peppercorns and wild wolfberries. The saying that the mountain can support a whole village is truly accurate. There are also tung trees; I'd heard from an old woman that they could be used to extract oil for lighting. She didn't know the specifics, but she was keen to keep an eye out for anything useful.
There are many medicinal herbs on the mountain. There's a large cluster of honeysuckle, which is in bloom right now. She recognizes common herbs like ophiopogon japonicus, bupleurum chinense, and isatis indigotica. Wild chrysanthemums are also common, but they're not blooming this season. She doesn't recognize the others, but she'll bring her parents next time.
Their medicine reserves were insufficient, and now that they had herbs, things were much better. She finished the pancake in her hand in a few bites, then went to pick honeysuckle and dig up bupleurum. Seeing her busy, Wang Zixiang also finished his meal quickly and went to help.
They couldn't resist digging a lot this time, but the burden was too heavy and the time was too long. Before they knew it, it was about 3 pm. They hid what they had dug in the grass and then, together with Wang Zixiang, cleared their way up. It took them about 20 minutes to climb to the top of the mountain.
The view from the mountaintop was expansive, encompassing everything around, even making tall buildings appear small and insignificant. On the other side of the mountain lay a village, seemingly unaffected. Ye Yunyi peered through her binoculars; only a few scattered zombies lurked along the country lanes. It appeared they wouldn't climb the mountain.
So they'll have this mountain to themselves from now on. I really want to burst out laughing.
There were several peach trees on the mountaintop, laden with fruit, many of them ripe and looking very sweet. Beside them was a clear pond, water gently flowing down its surface. Wang Zixiang picked a few, washed them, and handed them to Ye Yunyi, saying, "Yiyi, have a peach."
Ye Yunyi took a bite and found the fruit sweet and juicy, even tastier than the ones they grew themselves.
Wang Zixiang took out the water bottle that they had drunk dry and filled it up. It hadn't rained for a while, and the water stored at home was running low. With such good spring water, he definitely wanted to take it back with him.
They had a very fruitful trip up the mountain. Ye Yunyi picked some more peaches and put them in her quiver before reluctantly heading down the mountain with Wang Zixiang. As they reached their hiding place, they suddenly noticed the grass rustling.
They held their breath and hid behind a large tree to see what it was. A moment later, a wild rabbit emerged from the grass, its belly bulging. It had gone to steal food. Ye Yunyi gently drew her arrow and shot it, hitting the rabbit in the leg. The rabbit tried to run, but its injured leg prevented it from moving. Ye Yunyi and Wang Zixiang quickly caught the rabbit.
Ye Yunyi removed the arrow from the rabbit's foot, found some hemostatic herbs nearby, and bandaged its wound.
Ye Yunyi had actually planned to keep both male and female rabbits, but when she checked their genders, she discovered that their swollen bellies weren't from overeating, but rather from pregnancy. Ye Yunyi couldn't help but pick up the rabbit and kiss it; heaven was truly wonderful!
Yesterday she was still envious of the bunny, and today she gave it to them. Overjoyed at receiving the bunny, she and Wang Zixiang found their hidden things, packed them up, and, carrying the bunny, headed down the mountain.
When she reached the bamboo shoots, Ye Yunyi hesitated for a moment but decided to go home.
The bamboo shoots are so close by; they can dig them up tomorrow anyway, and they've already had a very good harvest today. Besides, only buildings 38 and 37 can see this road behind the mountain; the other buildings can't, so there's no worry about being seen along the way.
They soon arrived at Building 38, where Wang Xuanxuan was already waiting. They were very excited to see their parents return with their bags full of luggage.
When Wang Zixiang threw the rope ladder to the second floor, Wang Xuanxuan helped secure it. Ye Yunyi then climbed up carrying the wild rabbit, and immediately placed the rabbit in Wang Xuanxuan's arms.
“Rabbit,” Wang Xuanxuan said excitedly, stroking the rabbit’s fluffy back.
"Yes, and she's pregnant with bunny babies! We'll have lots of bunnies in the future," Ye Yunyi said happily.
As they were talking, Wang Zixiang came up too. He tidied up the rope ladder, and then they went home together.
It took us a whole day to get to the back mountain. When we got to Building 37, Dad was feeding the fish and Mom was feeding the chickens.
"Grandpa, Grandma, look! A bunny!" Wang Xuanxuan exclaimed excitedly in a soft voice.
Seeing the rabbit in Wang Xuanxuan's hand, Ye's parents also dropped what they were doing and rushed over. Seeing the wound on the rabbit's hind leg, they knew it was caught by Ye Yunyi.
"It's a female rabbit." Mother Ye said, stroking the rabbit's big belly with a hint of excitement in her voice.
Without a doubt, this female rabbit became the focus of the whole family's attention.
Before the rabbit's excitement had subsided, Ye Yunyi took out the two pheasants she had shot, and Ye's parents' eyes lit up.
"We're having a treat tonight. Old man, go and prepare these two chickens," Ye's mother instructed.
"Okay!" Ye's father readily agreed and went into the kitchen.
Then the whole family went into the kitchen. Ye Yunyi and Wang Zixiang took out the items from their bags one by one. With each item they took out, Ye's parents were happier.
Wang Xuanxuan washed the peaches that Ye Yunyi had picked from the mountain and gave them to everyone to eat.
"Mmm, it's definitely sweeter than the ones at home. Mom, can I go to the back mountain tomorrow too?" Wang Xuanxuan asked with anticipation.
Ye Yunyi and Wang Zixiang exchanged a glance. She was still thinking about the bamboo shoots, so she nodded and said, "Okay, we'll go tomorrow."
“I’ll go too. There are many people you don’t know, but I do,” said Ye’s father.
So they decided to go to the back mountain again the next day.
In the evening, Ye's mother made a spicy chicken with chili peppers and pheasant that she grew herself, and also cooked an egg and mushroom soup, along with a plate of green vegetables. The chicken's offal was stir-fried with pickled cabbage and celery. The family ate heartily and happily, their laughter filling the air.
The remaining half chicken was frozen by Ye's mother to be eaten slowly.
In the evening, they prepared their gear for going to the back mountain. The spring water was especially sweet today, much better than the rainwater they had stored. So, Ye's mother found several bottles and jars and asked them to fetch some water.
They found several more baskets and bags.
The bamboo at home is almost used up. There is bamboo on the back mountain, so it would be good to cut some down and bring it back, Ye's father thought.
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