A big snake with a yellow body and black diamond-shaped spots stood up from under the tree roots with a "whoosh". It raised its head, looked at Dahei coldly, and trembled as it spit out its tongue.
"Ah~" Wan Xuejiao screamed in fright, and her high-pitched cry echoed in the valley for a long time.
Zhou Yiding hurried forward to support her, "Don't be afraid, this is a jade belt snake, it's not poisonous."
The scientific name of the jade belt snake is Elaphe dione, which belongs to the family of Colubridae. It is also known as the beauty snake and mulberry root snake. Its total length can reach about 1 meter.
The back is purple-gray, with three black spots on the head; there is a row of dozens of black diamond-shaped spots in the middle of the back, with yellow centers and edges; the abdomen is grayish white, with black horizontal spots arranged alternately on the left and right.
It lives in woodlands in hilly and mountainous areas, preys on lizards and rodents, is oviparous and non-venomous.
"So, so scary." Wan Xuejiao felt her heart beating wildly, her legs trembling slightly, and even her voice was shaking.
Zhou Huaian and Yang Chunyan threw down the Ganoderma lucidum and ran over, only to see that the snake was frightened and not only did it not run away, but it was still standing there with its tongue spitting out.
Zhou Yiding saw that it didn't leave, so he turned and looked at Zhou Huaian, "Do you want to eat dragon and phoenix soup?"
Before Zhou Huaian could respond, Wan Xuejiao waved her hands again and again, "No, no, it's disgusting just looking at it."
Yang Chunyan also said: "Yeah, forget it!"
Seeing her objection, Zhou Huaian said hurriedly: "Okay, forget it, don't beat it. Look, it hasn't moved for a long time, maybe it's hatching its cubs!"
"Okay, then just leave without fighting!"
Zhou Yiding patted Dahei, and the four of them turned and walked towards the dead tree.
Wan Xuejiao stopped picking up mushrooms and squatted beside the dogs to stroke their fur.
Zhou Yiding saw that she was still frightened, so he smiled and patted her shoulder, "Are you still scared? With Dahei and Dahuang following us, they will find Laosuo before we see him. Don't be afraid even if you get bitten, your sister-in-law has snake medicine."
"Hateful!" Wan Xuejiao slapped him, "I was scared to death, and you still say that."
Zhou Yiding looked at her with a smile, "Look, you're suddenly more energetic."
Wan Xuejiao rolled her eyes, "..." He has been like this since he was a child, and he can't even speak a word.
After Yang Chunyan and the others cut off a few Ganoderma lucidum and packed them up, Zhou Yiding said to them, "Let's go down the mountain to take a look, or go into the forest?"
Zhou Huaian picked up the backpack and said, "We are not familiar with each other. You tell us where to go, and we will follow you!"
Zhou Yiding thought for a moment and pointed to the path left by the logging team. "How about going to the ditch from there and then walking back along the ditch?"
Zhou Huaian nodded, "Let's go!"
Several people followed him inside. The sunlight shone through the treetops, making the dark woods brighter.
Going forward, Yang Chunyan discovered that apart from the big banyan tree, there were very few big trees like pine and fir in the forest. Only the big banyan tree with lush branches and leaves and evergreen all the year round was still alive and well.
The banyan tree has many branches and a short crown. In the eyes of carpenters, it cannot be used to make good furniture. In the eyes of mountain people, it is not as fire-resistant as the Chinese oak and other trees, but it has survived.
The emerald green moss on the tree trunk looked like a green coat, and the trunk was covered with jellyfish (Snow Li), with a few Snow Li fruits hanging sporadically on the vines.
Ficus microcarpa is also known as Magnolia. It is an evergreen climbing shrub with oval leaves and very small flowers hidden in the receptacle. The fruit is rich in gelatin and can be used to make jelly, which has the effect of relieving heat.
The fruit of Ficus microcarpa is also known as liangfenzi, wood steamed bun, magnolia, liangfen fruit, ice fenzi, etc.
Ficus pumila fruit: sweet and neutral in nature. It has the effects of strengthening yang, consolidating essence, stopping bleeding and promoting lactation.
The fig is dioecious, with male and female plants. The male fruit has a small bulge on the bottom, while the female fruit does not.
The bottom of the male fruit is flat or even concave, with very little flesh inside, or it is hollow and cannot be eaten; while the bottom of the female fig fruit is pointed, with a lot of flesh inside, which is the raw material for making ice jelly.
The method of making Xueli ice jelly is similar to that of making ice jelly seeds. Cut the fruit open and take out the flesh inside. Wrap it with gauze and rub it out to produce pectin, which will solidify into ice jelly.
Yang Chunyan asked Zhou Huaian to pull down a vine and pick a few fruits, only to find that they were already shriveled.
Zhou Huaian broke one open and took a look, "Yan'er, this thing is not worth eating."
Zhou Yiding also nodded, "That's right, it's not delicious at all."
Yang Chunyan put the fruit into the basket and said, "The jelly fruit is also a medicine. Let's save the seeds and bury them in the ground to see if they can grow."
"Is that so!" Zhou Huaian turned his head and took a look. "This thing has climbed quite high. I'll pull a few more down. I guess a few will grow next to the fence wall!"
"That's right!" Zhou Yiding pulled a vine and ripped it off with force. "There are still seven or eight fruits on this one!"
"Sister-in-law," Wan Xuejiao pointed at a tree and shouted, "Look, there are red fruits over there."
Yang Chunyan followed the direction she pointed and saw a bush full of red fruits. "That's Trichosanthes!"
"Let's go and take a look."
"Yes! Trichosanthes is also a medicine. Its seeds can be eaten as melon seeds after being dried. It is also known as the king of melon seeds."
“No wonder people say there are no weeds in the mountains, knowing them is a treasure.”
Wan Xuejiao pulled Yang Chunyan to the bushes, only to see that several of the surrounding bushes were covered with Trichosanthes vines.
The Trichosanthes vines at the roots, which were thicker than cables, wrapped around the trunk and climbed to the treetops. The vines were hung with green, yellow, orange, and bright red fruits, which bent the branches.
Wan Xuejiao looked up and exclaimed, "The red and round ones are the prettiest."
Yang Chunyan said with a smile: "Don't be fooled by its red color and beautiful appearance. You won't think so when you open it and see the flesh inside."
Wan Xuejiao looked at her curiously, "Are there any bugs?"
"How should I describe it?" Yang Chunyan thought for a moment, "The flesh inside is dark green, a bit like the poop of cabbage worms, and when it's ripe it looks like muddy pond mud."
"Ah!" Wan Xuejiao felt a little disgusted after hearing this, "Let me pull one down and see."
"No need. Call Huai'an and the others to come over and pick the fruits. We also need to dig up the vines. That will be enough for us to do for a while."
"Oh!" Wan Xuejiao turned around and waved at the two of them, "Come here, I found some herbs again."
"Here they come!" Two people came running over carrying baskets.
Zhou Huaian looked at the tree full of Trichosanthes kirilowii and said, "The leaves of this thing are quite similar to bitter melon leaves!"
Yang Chunyan thought it was true, "Pull down the vines and we'll pick the fruits."
Zhou Yiding took out a machete from his backpack and said, "It's so high, how long will it take to pull it up? This kind of shrub is useless, just cut it down and pick it slowly."
After hearing this, Zhou Huaian gave him a thumbs up and said, "My brother is really smart."
The scientific name of the gourd is Trichosanthes kirilowii, which is a perennial vine plant of the Cucurbitaceae family and the genus Trichosanthes kirilowii, which can grow up to 10 meters long. It is also called medicinal melon, wild melon, hanging melon, and wild gourd. The whole plant can be used as medicine.
Trichosanthes: sweet in taste and cold in nature. It has the effects of clearing away heat and removing phlegm, relieving chest congestion, moistening dryness and lubricating intestines.
Stir-fried Trichosanthes seeds: sweet, cold. It has the effects of moistening the lungs, eliminating phlegm, and smoothing the intestines and relieving constipation. (End of this chapter)
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