Chapter 46

Indeed, the next second Jiang Xiaoxiao saw her mother count the dozen or so snakes in the leather sack with satisfaction, "That's enough—these snakes will give Zuixianju a real headache…"

Jiang Xiaoxiao: "…"

No wonder she's the woman who tears zombies apart by hand—so brutal.

She could already picture the disastrous fate awaiting Jia, the Shopkeeper of Zuixianju…

Jiang Wei carried the leather sack full of snakes; Jiang Xiaoxiao kept her distance, lagging far behind.

Fortunately, her current strength far surpassed her former self—climbing or descending the mountain was now effortless.

Why didn't her mother put the snakes into her space?

Because everything inside Jiang Wei's space was utterly still—any living thing placed inside died instantly.

So Jiang Wei had no choice but to carry the sack of snakes down the mountain.

Unlike the drought-stricken, scorching heat below the mountain, the forest within was dense with shade, heavy with moisture, making the soil soft, damp, and incredibly fertile.

Jiang Xiaoxiao glanced around and silently deduced that the mountain's interior likely held rich underground water reserves.

But since a few years ago, when villagers hunting in the mountain nearly died inside, no one dared enter the Deep Mountains anymore—most only gathered wild vegetables at the Mountain Foot or along the outer edges, taking them home to make wild vegetable gruel.

Last time her mother hunted a Wild Wolf on the mountain, though many villagers envied her, none dared attempt it themselves.

After all, the Deep Mountains were home to jackals, wolves, tigers, and leopards—no one would risk their life for it.

As Jiang Xiaoxiao pondered this, she followed behind—until a tree branch tripped her, sending her crashing hard to the ground.

"Ah…"

Jiang Xiaoxiao gasped in pain—the soil here was still somewhat hard, and the grass was littered with small pebbles; her palms and fingers were scraped raw.

"How could you be so careless?" Jiang Wei turned back, immediately setting down the sack and rushing to help her up, "Are you hurt anywhere?"

"Mom, I'm fine—just a few scrapes on my palms."

No sooner had Jiang Xiaoxiao spoken than her mother pulled out a jar of Ointment from thin air, "Quick, use some water to wash your hands clean—this dense forest is humid, full of ants and venomous insects; wounds easily get infected."

Jiang Wei had once been a Special Forces soldier and spent time in remote tropical rainforests—she knew these things well.

Jiang Xiaoxiao didn't dare delay; she immediately used her ability to summon water and washed her wounds clean.

Jiang Wei squeezed out the Ointment and carefully applied it to her.

Watching this, Jiang Xiaoxiao felt embarrassed—she'd finally made it up the mountain, yet kept causing trouble and making her mother worry…

It was all that branch's fault!

Thinking this, Jiang Xiaoxiao angrily kicked the branch beneath her foot.

But then she noticed, beside the scattered branches, a small plant growing—a pale yellow-green flower, with a straight stem crowned by a cluster of bright red berries.

"Hey, this little herb is pretty—look, it even has berries…" Jiang Xiaoxiao laughed and gently kicked the small stem.

The next second, her mother seized her foot, "... That's Ginseng."

Jiang Xiaoxiao: "???"

What?

Ginseng??

Jiang Xiaoxiao snapped her head down—Jiang Wei had already picked up a branch and carefully brushed away the soil, revealing the thick, root-like shape hidden beneath.

"Looks like it's quite old…" Jiang Wei said, glancing at Jiang Xiaoxiao, "You nearly crushed it with one kick."

Jiang Xiaoxiao: "..."

Sorry—I had no idea!

She'd lived twenty-plus years in the Modern Era and had never seen Ginseng in real life—she'd been shortsighted!

As Jiang Xiaoxiao still wallowed in remorse, Jiang Wei had already pulled tools from her space and begun digging for the Ginseng.

The root was the most important part—Jiang Xiaoxiao, no matter how inexperienced, knew not to use iron or metal tools to dig Ginseng; only wooden sticks or bone shards could be used to gently excavate the soil below.

Jiang Wei clearly understood this—none of the shovels or hoes in her space could be used, so she took materials on-site, found several hard wooden sticks, sharpened them with a small knife, and slowly dug with makeshift picks.

As the soil was gradually removed, the Ginseng's root slowly emerged—long, slender tendrils stretching deep into the earth, drawing nutrients and moisture from the soil.

The further Jiang Wei dug, the gentler and more careful her movements became, afraid of damaging the delicate roots.

Finally, when all the soil was cleared, the entire Ginseng was revealed—its root was dark in color, deeply textured, unmistakably aged.

Jiang Xiaoxiao stared and sucked in a breath—this Ginseng radiated spiritual energy; its long, slender roots resembled human limbs, looking uncannily like a person!

Even Jiang Wei, usually stoic, showed a hint of delight: "This Ginseng is at least fifty years old—quite rare."

Jiang Xiaoxiao nodded in agreement—not just rare, this thing would fetch at least a hundred thousand in the Modern Era!

As Jiang Wei reached out to take the Ginseng, Jiang Xiaoxiao quickly tore off her red hair tie, "Mom, tie it with this first—I heard the elders say ancient things like this can grow legs and run away; you must bind them with red string."

"You know this too?" Jiang Wei took the red string, glanced at Jiang Xiaoxiao's loose hair, and smiled inwardly, "But red string alone won't do—you need this too."

Saying this, Jiang Wei pulled out two copper coins, tied them to the thick end of the red string, then wrapped the bundle around the Ginseng.

"There. These things depend on fate—you found it, so it's yours." Jiang Wei tossed the Ginseng she'd painstakingly unearthed to Jiang Xiaoxiao.

Jiang Xiaoxiao caught it with trembling hands, terrified of damaging it even slightly.

The Ginseng felt heavy in her arms—about one hundred and fifty grams.

But Ginseng must have been valuable in ancient times too…

Jiang Xiaoxiao thought for a moment and said, "Mom, let's sell this Ginseng and open a shop in Town—then we won't have to sweat under the sun selling Ice Cream every day."

"Opening a shop isn't that simple," Jiang Wei shook her head, "Keep this Ginseng safe—you never know when it might come in handy. Don't rush to sell it."

Since her mother refused, Jiang Xiaoxiao could only say, "Alright."

"Let's go home—I'll cook you something delicious." Jiang Wei picked up the sack of snakes again.

The mother and daughter walked home along the path, encountering no one along the way.

It was past the Shen Hour—every household was busy cooking inside.

As soon as Jiang Xiaoxiao got home, she handed the Ginseng to Jiang Wei, "Mom, you keep this Ginseng—I don't know where to hide it at home."

Moreover, no matter how you hide this thing, it's not as safe as inside your space.

Jiang Wei nodded, waved her hand to receive the Ginseng into her space, then began preparing food.

Today, she didn't rush to make Ice Cream and Snow Cake as usual; Jiang Wei had enough time to cook a good meal, and didn't have to eat pre-cooked food from her space like the past two days.

(Chapter Finish)