Mu Tong said with a sad face: "I don't mind the tiredness of transplanting rice!"

"Yeah!" An An stared blankly at the wooden barrel in front of him and nodded.

Chapter 80 Conflict

In March, the fields had just been planted, and every household was in the period of hunger. After a winter, everyone looked pale. In good years, people could go up the mountain to pick wild vegetables, and they could make do with the vegetables in the fields and serve them on the table.

But once the snow outside thaws, sea mice will crawl all over the ground the next day like cats smelling fish. When mice come, the snakes all over the mountains and fields will wake up from hibernation. Looking at the fresh wild vegetables all over the ground outside, everyone can only stand on the wall and drool.

The most uncomfortable thing is to be able to see but not be able to eat. When you have work in your hands, your mouth doesn’t feel bland, but once you have free time, everything you eat tastes bland.

Although Yang Dachuan's family had enough food, they were still envious of the wild vegetables outside. When Xu Lin and his family invited Yang Dachuan to go up the mountain, he agreed without thinking.

Although there are more snakes on the mountain than in previous years, there are no sea rats, and they also carry snake medicine prepared by people from the southwest. As long as they are careful, there will be no big problems.

"Bring back more bamboo shoots!" Yu Ge'er said as he helped Dachuan pack up: "I estimate that you will be back in the afternoon, so just bring food for lunch. I have prepared a large backpack, cloth bag, hatchet, and stick for you. You can pick them up and leave tomorrow morning!"

"You need to pick more bracken, too." Grandma Shen handed the bamboo basket to Dachuan, "Don't run around alone. Don't touch anything you don't know."

"Oh, I want to eat wormwood." Yu Ge'er sighed: "When I lived in Da Wan Village, I could eat it every year. Now when I think about it, it seems like a thing of my past life."

"Does wormwood grow on mountains?" Yang Dachuan knew this thing. It looked like lettuce, with long leaves, some of which were serrated. It tasted a bit bitter, so he didn't like it very much.

"There's nothing on the mountain, on the edge of the field!" Yu Ge'er rolled his eyes at him and said, "The wild onions on the mountain should be growing well now, remember to pick some and bring them back when the time comes."

"Oh, yes, there are mushrooms!" Grandma Shen had already gone out, but she turned back and told Yang Dachuan: "If you see any good mushrooms, remember to collect them. They are so fresh!"

"Dad, are there any fruits on the mountain? I want to eat some." Zhuangzhuang also came to join in the fun.

"Dad, there are no chestnuts at home. I want to eat that. Well, I want to eat persimmons too!" An An thought about it and put forward his own request.

"Go away, go away! It's springtime, where can we find wild food for you?" Yang Dachuan raised his hand and threatened them: "Do you want to eat fried pork with bamboo shoots?"

"These two kids are almost stupid. They don't even know when there will be any fruit!" Yu Geer smiled, glanced at the kids, and said, "The kids in the yard now are almost as good as the kids in the city! They don't know the seasons, they have never gone up the mountain to pick fruit, gone down the river to catch fish, and they have barely even left the yard."

"Hey, you're still slacking off! You've never even seen a fish!" Anywhere with water in the ditches and paddy fields outside is likely to be a rat's nest, and there won't be a single fish to be seen. The pond in the yard had long been filled in and used to grow crops, so it's possible that a child of Zhuangzhuang and An'an's age has never seen a fish.

"How about I go up the mountain and catch two more fish?" As the conversation progressed, Yang Dachuan began to crave fish after not having eaten it for two years.

"Don't run around, the mountain is too big, do you want others to wait for you?" Yu Ge'er said, "When you go up the mountain tomorrow, you must not go deep into the mountains. You can come back in the afternoon. If you go far, you can't walk with others, so we can save some trouble at home."

Early the next morning, Yang Dachuan had a simple breakfast and left. There were food and boiled water in his big backpack. When he was thirsty or hungry, he could just take them out and chew them!

After passing the village to the foot of the mountain, everyone breathed a sigh of relief and was in the mood to look at the scenery on both sides. Since the village had built a wall with bricks and stones, they no longer had to go up the mountain to cut trees every few days like before. When they first went up the mountain today, they felt it was quite fresh.

The path up the mountain was gradually covered by wild grass and vines. The trees on both sides were green. The gentle spring breeze rustled the grass and trees. Everyone was talking and laughing, and occasionally took out some water and food to chew. They felt relaxed and happy, just like a spring outing.

Before coming here today, we had discussed that we would first go to the bamboo forest to dig spring bamboo shoots, then go to the mid-mountain to pick bracken, and if we had some free time later, we would look for mushrooms, which are also very fragrant in spring. But today we were going to act as a group, and we couldn't just jump around alone. If anyone wanted to go out and cause trouble, or hurt someone or kill someone, they wouldn't care.

The bamboo forest is halfway up the mountain. No one has come to cut bamboo for nearly two years. Now it is a large area of lush greenery, which makes people feel relaxed and refreshed. However, bamboo shoots are delicious but difficult to dig. Moreover, there may be many poisonous snakes hidden in this dense bamboo forest. Although everyone brought snake medicine, for the sake of safety, the people who went up the mountain today were divided into two groups, taking turns to dig bamboo shoots and keep watch.

Yang Dachuan and Xu Lin formed a team, one of them dug bamboo shoots, and the other used a stick to search the nearby woods.

"It would be great if we came here in autumn!" Xu Lin leaned on his hoe and put the young bamboo shoots he dug into his backpack, panting, "In autumn, we can pick autumn fruits, and maybe we can run into some pheasants or wild rabbits. Now in spring, apart from some wild vegetables, the produce on the mountain is a bit thin."

"Then let's come back in autumn, so we can pick more fruits!" Yang Dachuan quickly knocked down a bamboo snake coiled in a bamboo joint and hit it at the vital point with a stick. The snake turned around a few times and could no longer move.

"Hehe, by that time, who will have the time to go up the mountain!" Xu Lin shook his head. October and November are the good times to harvest crops, and every household is so busy that even if they can spare some free time, they have to prepare firewood for the winter. How can they go up the mountain to collect autumn crops like before?

"We are guarding the treasure mountain but not digging for it!" Others heard this and came to join in the fun: "There is nothing to do in winter, so I was wondering why we should guard the fields at the foot of the mountain. We can just go up the mountain and be a mountain guard and live a good life."

"Haha, forget it, Xu Liuzi!" Many people around laughed when they heard Xu Liuzi's words, "You dare to say such big words relying on the snake medicine from the southwest. Why don't you stay in the mountains for a few more days and try it out? There are no walls or barriers. You never know when the snake fairy will take your life!"

"If we have more people, we can build this wall. It will be better than feeding sea rats at the foot of the mountain!" Xu Liuzi was not convinced and said angrily, "We don't have to be confined in the yard all day like we are now and can't move around!"

"What do you eat, then? Are you chasing rabbits in this mountain every day?" Someone retorted, "It's not easy to grow crops in this mountain. Even if you grow crops, the yield is not as high as in the mountains. Besides, who doesn't spread bone fertilizer on crops these days? Are you hiding in this mountain, waiting for the sea rats to fly into your bowl?"

"After all, you won't be hungry in this mountain.