Chapter 24 The Hoarder's Spring
The spring rain was falling steadily, and suddenly many small frogs appeared on the ground.
With the lingering effects of spring rain, it suddenly appeared along the damp streams and ditches, so densely packed that there was nowhere to step, and it was easy to accidentally step on several.
Su Yun, who suffers from trypophobia, was startled when she saw the densely packed little frogs on the ground.
"Why does it feel like there are more?" Su Yun felt that there were many more frogs now than before. Although the number of frogs had decreased significantly after she grew up due to the overuse of pesticides, there seemed to be more frogs now than she had seen in the fields when she was a child. It was as if they were raining down from the sky. She wondered if it was because she hadn't seen frogs for a long time.
As she pondered the frogs hopping around on the ground, Night Breeze also peeked over, followed her gaze, glanced at them a few times, and finally calmly said, "They're too small to eat yet."
Su Yun: ...
"Let's talk about it after they grow up?"
Well, the world of foodies is always so simple.
Su Yun suppressed the twitching of his lips and continued to follow Ye Feng as he surveyed the surrounding environment in the village.
After searching several small houses, we finally found a resilient potato in a small kitchen. It was climbing on the window frame and growing very lushly. It looked like it had been left in the kitchen and forgotten to be eaten, and then it sprouted and grew.
Su Yun dug up the potato plant along with the large clump of soil, and also unearthed several small potatoes that had just sprouted. She planned to transplant them all back to her own yard later.
Although the yard of this family was small, they still had a mango tree planted in it. It was in full bloom at the moment, and bees were buzzing around the tree, flying all over the bright yellow and slender flowers. Su Yun looked at the mango flowers that were in full bloom and took the time to weed the tree.
"Grow up well, and I'll come see you again next month." I remember that mango season is usually at the end of May, then we'll have mangoes to eat.
Su Yun was pleasantly surprised to find that although the village was not very big, almost every household grew fruit trees, and they did so almost all year round.
"In January, the sugarcane grows tall and tall; in February, the olives turn yellow at both ends; in March, the cherries are bright red; in April, the loquats are as sweet as honey; in May, the bayberries are as red as fire; in June, the watermelons are sweet and big; in July, the jujube trees are white-tipped; in August, the apples fill the baskets; in September, the pomegranates smile with their teeth showing; in October, the kumquats fill the garden with fragrance; in November, the pomelos are golden yellow; in December, the longans come in pairs..." Su Yun hummed the December Fruit Song, happily teaching Ye Feng to recognize the fruit trees.
Unfortunately, there were no real fruits, so I could only describe them: "This is a jujube, which will bear fruit in July; this is an orange, which will ripen in October."
Night Breeze was very clever. Although he hadn't seen the fruit with his own eyes, he could easily identify them just by looking at the tree a few times: "Su Yun, look, there's another orange tree over here."
"There's also an apple tree here."
And they are very much looking forward to the sweet and fragrant fruit that will grow on them. Basically, whenever they see them, they will go up and help them weed.
"I'll help you pull out all the weeds, so you can bear good fruit, Snow Pear." Night Breeze touched the trunk and said "concernedly" to the crooked pear tree.
Su Yun looked at the withered old pear tree leaning against the wall, feeling conflicted. She wondered if it could survive the summer.
But seeing the child's expectant little eyes, Su Yun regretted describing the pear as too delicious.
When I weeded that sour plum tree before, it didn't react at all. Sigh.
Su Yun and Ye Feng searched several more houses and eventually found a few scattered tomato plants, ginger plants, watermelon plants... oh, right, and a Sichuan pepper tree.
Su Yun was overjoyed and packed everything up to take home and expand her vegetable garden.
The small mountain village has few households, so the amount of vegetables collected is limited, and almost all of it is used to expand the variety of vegetables in the garden.
Su Yun had no choice but to resort to wild vegetables again.
It's been raining for the past few days, and many wild vegetables have sprouted. A clump of lush green wild celery grew by the ditch, and Su Yun's eyes lit up.
This wild celery is perfect for stir-frying previously dried pork belly.
Brilliant!
Su Yun immediately squatted down and grabbed a large handful.
Ye Feng searched for Banlangen (Isatis root) along the roadside. Since her injury, she had been drinking these herbs almost every day, sometimes toad leaves and sometimes Banlangen. These medicines are for clearing heat and detoxifying. She drank them from time to time mainly to prevent the wound from becoming infected.
After gathering the wild celery, Su Yun sat down on a large rock to rest, watching the figure of Ye Feng not far away. He walked along searching for herbs, his figure gradually blurring, leaving only a long tail swaying softly in mid-air, creating various shapes.
Su Yun stared for a while, then suddenly became curious: would the tail be pressed down when it sat down? Would it be very uncomfortable?
Strange thoughts pop into your mind and won't go away.
As Su Yun walked home, she kept staring at that fluffy tail, feeling a tickle in her heart.
A long, fluffy tail peeked out from the pants, swaying back and forth with the night breeze.
The hole in the pants was made by Su Yun; it was about the size of a fist, just big enough for the tail to pass through, with room to move without affecting its movement.
So the tail of the night wind looks very flexible and light, often swaying gently or bending into various flexible postures with the movement of the night wind. Looking at that thick tail and the fluffy feeling, it probably feels like a cat's tail.
Although the Night Wind's tail was very flexible, basically only the tip of the tail swayed gently with the movement. It could be seen that the base of the tail was slightly stiff, while the tip of the tail seemed to be soft and boneless, drawing small, delicate arcs in the air, as if saying to Su Yun, "Touch me, touch me."
Oh my god, so cute!
Su Yun felt a strong urge to stare at the tail, and even after returning home, she kept staring at it the whole way home.
Su Yun's eyes were practically spitting fire. Ye Feng, who was washing vegetables, finally felt her intense gaze and tilted his head to ask, "What's wrong?"
Su Yun said, "What else could it be? Your tail is tempting me again."
Oh, but she can't, it would make her seem like a pervert.
To be more tactful, she reached out her hand, her eyes full of longing, "I feel like your tail is wet, how about I wipe it for you..."...just for a moment...
Before she could finish speaking, its tail curved into a small arc and automatically offered itself to her palm.
Su Yun was taken aback at first, and Ye Feng himself was clearly stunned as well.
The little tail just came to our door on its own initiative!
Su Yun quickly realized that he couldn't miss this damn opportunity.
I can't give up this damn sweetness.
So she quickly seized the opportunity, grabbed the tip of the tail that was offered to her, and slowly stroked it upwards along the tail hairs.
ah!
This soft, boneless touch.
The exquisite softness, the fine texture, the silky feel... the wonderful sensation between your fingers.
Mom, I saw the gates of heaven.
Su Yun stroked the fluffy tail happily, feeling as if her soul had been healed.
Petting a cat's tail is a wonderful thing in itself, let alone with such thick, fluffy fur—it's pure bliss.
Once you've grasped it, you won't let go.
I still need to prepare lunch.
Su Yun lingered for a long time before finally letting go.
She had enjoyed the massage and happily left with the washed celery, completely unaware of the night breeze. Her eyes were glazed over, and when she stood up, her steps were so light she almost lost her balance.
He slowly moved back to the recliner, the sudden tail-stroking shock leaving him stunned for a long time.
When his tail was grabbed, a strange, tingling sensation swept through his entire body, like an electric shock. A light, tingling feeling traveled from the base of his tail, gripping his limbs. Suddenly, he stopped moving, clinging only to those soft hands, and continued...
"What a strange feeling." Night Wind was still savoring the strange, pleasant sensation as he hugged his tail. He held the tip of his tail, which had been deboned, in his palm and gently stroked it with his fingers, but he no longer had that special reaction.
That strange, tangy sensation has disappeared.
"What's going on?" The tail was held in the palm of his hand, and no matter how much he squeezed it, there was no special reaction, but his body was vaguely craving that feeling... What's going on?
Night Wind, clutching its tail, looked utterly bewildered.
On the other side, Su Yun had no such worries. She brought the washed wild celery into the kitchen, petted the cat, and began preparing lunch in a good mood.
First, cut the wild celery into small sections and set aside.
The previously air-dried pork has been soaked in hot water.
The hot water removed the yellowish-gray skin of the pork, revealing the glistening white and tempting meat inside.
Heat a little oil in a wok, add a few dried chilies, then add the sliced meat and stir-fry until a thin layer of oil is rendered. Once the pork is pressed dry and fragrant by the spatula, add the chopped wild celery and stir-fry together.
The fresh wild celery is very tender. After being stir-fried over a wood fire, it absorbs the juices from the meat and becomes tender and juicy. A bite of celery and a bite of meat, the wild celery with its natural aroma combined with the local pork makes this lunch incredibly delicious.
Even Ye Feng, who rarely speaks during meals, nodded repeatedly, praising, "This celery is very fragrant and delicious."
"It's a pity we can only eat this for such a short time each year. Shall we go dig some more later?" Su Yun suggested.
The night breeze nodded in agreement.
"But we need to plant the vegetables first."
Since the harvested crops were too few, Su Yun planted them all in the backyard for easy care day and night. He would transplant them to the fields he had previously selected once he had a slightly larger harvest.
After transplanting the crops.
Su Yun planted Sichuan pepper trees again, simply inserting the thick branches directly into the soil and covering them with wood ash.
Although the pepper trees in the village grow very well and produce a lot of peppers, they are a bit far away, so it would be more convenient to plant one at home.
If possible, Su Yun would be happy to plant more fruit trees near her home, such as mango and persimmon trees.
It has different fruits all year round, and it's like my own backyard garden.
Su Yun was bold and decisive. Once she had a rough idea in mind, she started to take action, first collecting branches from a round of fruit trees.
After searching almost all the houses in the village, the two slowly walked to the village entrance, where there was a small, flat cement playground. Further out, there was a paved cement road.
Su Yun stood at the entrance of the village and looked into the distance. The land on this side of the village entrance was flatter and the vegetation was more lush, obviously it used to be a large area of farmland.
Looking at the cement road leading outside, the narrow path is almost completely overgrown with weeds, making it nearly impossible to find a place to step.
Su Yun thought this was good. When summer came and the vegetation grew more lush, blocking the road, this place would be even safer. The village was dilapidated and no one would notice.
However, looking at the winding road stretching into the distance, Su Yun paused for a moment and asked, "Where is that over there? Do you know Ye Feng?"
Night Wind shook his head: "I don't know, I was washed ashore here. I woke up here."
"Okay." Su Yun didn't hesitate.
Well, we still have enough supplies for a while, so let's go out into the city to take a look after a while.
However, there was a lot of land in this area, and Su Yun thought she could go down and see if there were any other crops. She walked along the cement road and passed several low tiled houses. Suddenly, she felt that the grass and trees by the roadside were much more lush, like a pond.
Su Yun happily quickened her pace, parted the reeds by the roadside to look inside, and sure enough, it was a small, emerald-green pond.
"Oh my, there's a small pond! That's rare. I wonder if there are any fish." Su Yun poked at the reeds, peering around curiously.
"I'll go down and take a look. Hey, where's the path?" The pond was surrounded by lush vegetation, and she wandered around, but couldn't find the way down for a while.
Seeing this, Ye Feng took his sickle, stepped forward, and cleared a path for her. He was tall and had sharp eyes that spotted the not-so-obvious ridge between the fields.
After the branches and leaves were trimmed, the night wind beckoned, "Let's go this way."
"Oh! Okay!" Su Yun followed behind him.
After weeding through the roadside, the two of them made it to the edge of the pond. The water was so green that they couldn't see clearly whether there were any fish in it.
Su Yun asked Ye Feng to throw the wild grass he had cut down to the pond, "If there are fish, they should eat the grass, right?"
"Um!"
"Um?"
Su Yun wasn't entirely sure whether fish would eat grass.
As far as farming is concerned, fish farming is a blind spot for her; she doesn't know much about it.
Ye Feng didn't react much; he agreed with whatever Su Yun did.
Tender green grass floated on the pond with the current, and sure enough, after a while, several bluish-gray backs rose to the surface, tilting their heads back and opening their mouths to eat grass.
Su Yun's eyes lit up, and she said excitedly, "Night Wind, look, there really are fish inside."
"Fish tonight?" Ye Feng's eyes lit up, and he rolled up his sleeves, eager to catch some fish.
"No, no, no, we don't need it for now. It's not going anywhere anyway, we'll save it for later." Su Yun was very satisfied with the reserve food he had found this time.
So I cut several more handfuls of grass and fed them a bunch.
"If we feed it hay regularly, this place might become a natural grain storage pool by winter," Su Yun thought to herself, her calculations running wild.
"Yes!" Ye Feng, as her number one supporter, had no objection.
I wandered around the small pond again and found a few more longan and persimmon trees.
"There are still saplings on the ground!" Su Yun was pleasantly surprised to find that the longan seemed to have been left unpicked for a long time, and had fallen to the ground, sprouting into tiny saplings with two small green leaves on top, looking very fresh and cute.
It probably grew from a longan that fell to the ground a long time ago. It's growing very well, but since it's growing under the shade of a tree and lacks sunlight and rain, it's unlikely to grow very big.
Very good. Su Yun was happy to transplant them from the shade of the trees. He found a piece of land not far from the pond and planted them all in a row. Although it would be several years before they grew tall and bore fruit, Su Yun was not stingy to start now. After all, there is a saying: "The best time to plant a tree was ten years ago and now."
Su Yun recited the inspirational quote with a deep expression.
Night Breeze was very impressed and nodded, saying, "You're absolutely right."
After I told him a few more fairy tales, Ye Feng's comprehension and vocabulary improved significantly.
Su Yun felt that her education was quite successful.
So he enthusiastically devoted himself to learning and guiding Ye Feng, saying, "This is a longan; we can eat it in the summer."
"Yes, longan."
"This is a persimmon. It will be harvested in autumn."
"Um."
"We can plant a few near our house, so it will be convenient to eat them later."
"Can everything be planted?" Ye Feng followed Su Yun and planted quite a few things, and also tasted some of the joy of harvesting. Recently, he has become very interested in planting.
"Yes, you can basically grow any of them. If there's one you like to eat, you can give it a try."
"good."
Su Yun had only mentioned it casually, but a few days later, Ye Feng actually found something he liked to eat.
Author's Note:
I remember when I was in elementary school, every spring when it rained, the ground would be covered with little frogs. Basically, every time I stepped on it, a frog would jump over the ground... like little musical notes moving with my footsteps.
There were just too many of them, and stepping on them wasn't a pleasant experience... (covers face and cries)
There's also the longan tree part. When I was little, there was a really big longan tree downstairs from my house. Various small longan seedlings would often grow under the tree, all from the longan seeds that had been expelled. The seedlings were very square, with a small stem and two small tender leaves. I was just a kid and liked to pull them out to play house. Otherwise, there should have been a lot more longan seedlings growing there.
I think if it were the apocalypse, they would probably all grow into saplings.
Now all the old longan trees are gone, the land has been used to build houses, and we can no longer see the scene of people enjoying the shade under the trees, the joy of picking fruit, or the old longan trees.
Whenever I think of those old trees, I feel a pang of regret...
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