Mountain God’s Forest Farm – CH50

Chapter 50: Ba-Snake Fertilizer

In the afternoon, the winter sunlight was just right.

Wen Zhongshan was chopping the deadwood that had recently been brought down to the courtyard.

These were naturally dried dead branches and trunks, mostly hardwood.

Ying Kongtu had dragged them down while tidying the mountain forest.

The deadwood still had branches attached. Piled in the courtyard, it looked rather messy.

Wen Zhongshan happened to be free today, so he sat in the courtyard and slowly split them. Later, he would stack them neatly along the courtyard wall into a firewood pile. That way, the courtyard would look much tidier.

With a soft “bang,” Wen Zhongshan brought the blade down. The wood split cleanly in two along the cut, then fell to the ground.

Quite a pile of such firewood had already gathered on the ground. The whole courtyard carried a faint fragrance of wood.

The family’s furry creatures slept nearby. Hearing the sound, they did not even move their paws. Only their ears occasionally twitched.

Even when Wen Zhongshan sent wood chips flying onto them, they did not care at all.

Wen Zhongshan was still sitting there, slowly chopping firewood, when the sound of a vehicle came from outside.

Immediately afterward came Ying Kongtu’s voice.

Wen Zhongshan listened carefully for quite a while before realizing it was Xing Chang.

Today, Ying Kongtu had ridden his motorcycle to a meeting.

Wen Zhongshan was somewhat puzzled. Why had Xing Chang brought him back?

Wen Zhongshan went over and opened the courtyard gate. He saw Xing Chang getting down from the back seat of Ying Kongtu’s motorcycle. To make it easier to get off, Xing Chang even steadied himself by holding Ying Kongtu’s shoulder.

Wen Zhongshan’s gaze landed on that hand.

“Brother Wen!” Xing Chang saw Wen Zhongshan and waved enthusiastically, greeting him. “Long time no see. What are you busy with?”

“Chopping firewood.” Wen Zhongshan stepped aside from the courtyard gate and let Xing Chang look inside.

Xing Chang poked his head in. “So much firewood?”

Ying Kongtu pushed the motorcycle through the gate. When he passed by Wen Zhongshan, he lightly held his waist and whispered with a smile, “Thank you for your hard work.”

Wen Zhongshan tugged his hand lightly with Ying Kongtu’s, then they let go at once. He also lowered his voice. “It was convenient.”

Xing Chang had already entered the courtyard. When he saw the courtyard full of furry creatures, his eyes lit up. “Xian Niao and Tiaozhu are here too?”

Xian Niao lifted its head slightly and greeted him. “Awoo.”

Tiaozhu ignored him completely, still leaning against Xian Niao and sleeping soundly in the sun.

Xing Chang’s hands itched. He did not dare touch the two furry mountain gods, so in the end he could only rub Jingwei’s big head beside him, then scoop up Dart and hold it in his arms.

Dart’s body was like a water bag. When it was scooped up, it stretched into a long strip. When it lay across Xing Chang’s knees, even its breathing rhythm did not change.

Xing Chang broke into a silly smile. He gently rubbed the cat’s belly, and his smile became even sillier.

Ying Kongtu could not bear to look. After parking the motorcycle, he went to the kitchen and brought back three cups of tea.

He specially dragged over a small tea table, placed it in front of Xing Chang, then set the tea on it.

Xing Chang had talked the whole way and was thirsty now. He picked up the cup and gulped down several mouthfuls. Only after swallowing did he realize, “Huh? Ginseng tea?”

“It’s been a little dry lately. Drink some ginseng tea to gently nourish yourself.”

“It’s pretty good. The honey in it smells so fragrant.” Xing Chang was briefly distracted by the ginseng tea, but soon reacted again. “Where were we just now?”

“You said Yue Chengji’s mountain has dropped in price again.”

“Right, right, right. The unit price for Qianchongcui Mountain has already dropped to fifty yuan per mu per year. I estimate that if you really negotiate with him, you can still bargain it down a bit more.”

Ying Kongtu pondered. “My ideal price is thirty yuan per mu per year.”

“That might be a little difficult. From what I can tell, he means that if he can sell it, he’ll sell it quickly now. If he can’t, he’ll buy fertilizer and grow kiwifruit for another year.”

Ying Kongtu shook his head. “I’m not in a hurry on my side. I’ll wait another year.”

In winter, darkness came quickly. They sat in the courtyard and chatted for a while, and soon the sun was about to set. The wind blowing over also turned into a cold night breeze, both chilly and dry.

Ying Kongtu looked at the sky and said, “Eat at my place today? Try the cured meat we just smoked.”

“Your cured meat was smoked rather late.” Xing Chang said this, then turned to look at the cured meat at his house.

“We originally weren’t planning to smoke any. Later, Wen Zhongshan found some excellent black pork, and we went to the village to buy half a pig. That’s when we started smoking it.”

“Huh, then I have to try it. If even you say it’s good, it must be delicious.”

Ying Kongtu nodded. “Sit here and play with Dart and the others for a while. I’ll go dig some wild garlic and winter bamboo shoots.”

Xing Chang immediately said, “I’ll go too.”

When Xian Niao heard the movement, it also stood up, looking as though it wanted to go with them.

Ying Kongtu quickly said, “The three of us can go. You all rest at home for a while and watch the house while you’re at it.”

Only then did Xian Niao lie back down.

Ying Kongtu rubbed its head. “We’ll be back very soon.”

Xian Niao opened its mouth, its voice deep. “Awoo.”

Xing Chang carried a big basket, somewhat excited. “Where are we going to dig wild garlic? Is there wild garlic this season? My family really hasn’t eaten much of it.”

“There is, just not as much as in spring.” Ying Kongtu said casually. “Wild garlic is rather thin and small, and it has a lot of debris mixed in. It’s pretty hard to wash, so most people can’t be bothered to dig it for no reason.”

In a small county like theirs, especially in places near the mountain forest rather than in the county center, almost every household grew vegetables.

Picking vegetables from one’s own garden was much more convenient than digging wild greens.

Unless they suddenly felt like eating something rustic and wild, most people would not go up the mountain to dig wild vegetables.

In reality, there were plenty of wild vegetables on the mountain. Even in this season, one could still dig up seasonal wild greens such as wild garlic and dandelion.

As for winter bamboo shoots in the bamboo grove, there were even more of those. It was just that most bamboo had been planted by individuals, and there were very few wild bamboo groves nearby, so no one went up the mountain to dig wild bamboo shoots.

Wuchuan Mountain was right behind the house.

Ying Kongtu did not feel like going far, so he brought them to Wuchuan Mountain to dig.

Ying Kongtu specifically went to the abandoned fields where terraced fields had once been opened.

The soil there was relatively fertile, and there was more wild garlic.

Just in time, he could also take a look at the condition of the terraces. In a couple of days, these terraces would be put back into use.

Xing Chang stood in the wild field and looked around. “These are the fields you said you wanted to reclaim?”

“Yes. This is only part of them. There’s another section on Bibi Mountain next door.”

“How many mu are there here?”

“About four and a half mu. There’s a little less on Bibi Mountain.”

Ying Kongtu walked through the field and soon signaled for Xing Chang to look for wild garlic first. It was getting dark, and the wind had also started to rise. They needed to hurry up, finish digging, and leave. Otherwise, they would freeze.

Only then did Xing Chang stop pulling him into conversation and begin searching through the abandoned field with the basket.

As a local who had grown up nearby, Xing Chang still recognized wild garlic. He dug it up very efficiently.

Ying Kongtu glanced at him. Seeing that he had not dug the wrong thing, he withdrew his attention and continued digging.

Wen Zhongshan crouched opposite Ying Kongtu.

Ying Kongtu was carefully digging wild vegetables. The wind lifted his half-long hair and curled it into the air, making him look especially gentle and lingering.

At this moment, dusk was falling, and the sky was a muted blue.

Ying Kongtu’s eyes had a faint gray-blue tint, as though the sky had been condensed inside them.

His skin was very fair and finely textured, but it was not the tender sort of delicate fairness. Instead, it had the cool, clear quality of jade.

When Ying Kongtu raised his head, he met Wen Zhongshan’s gaze directly.

He smiled, and while Xing Chang was not paying attention, he leaned forward and suddenly kissed Wen Zhongshan on the lips.

Wen Zhongshan followed forward a little and kissed him again.

Ying Kongtu pressed against Wen Zhongshan’s body and said in a low, amused voice, “Xing Chang will see.”

“See what?” Xing Chang, whose ears were sharp, shouted loudly from the side.

“Nothing. Dig your wild garlic.” Ying Kongtu said, “Let’s hurry up and finish digging, then go dig winter bamboo shoots.”

“Oh, oh.” Xing Chang agreed, then hurriedly buried his head and dug hard again. “The wild garlic on my side is really plump.”

They were only digging up some side ingredients to stir-fry with cured meat. They did not need much.

Before long, Ying Kongtu led them away from the abandoned field and into the bamboo grove to look for winter bamboo shoots.

The light was very dim now, and the winter bamboo shoots had not broken through the ground yet. At most, they had only formed a bulge.

For ordinary people, finding winter bamboo shoots in such an environment would truly be rather difficult.

Ying Kongtu did not let them freely improvise. He swiftly found several spots in the bamboo grove. “There are winter bamboo shoots under these spots. Let’s dig separately.”

Xing Chang and Wen Zhongshan swung their hoes and dug them open. Sure enough, tender, plump winter bamboo shoots grew underneath.

They dug up the whole bamboo shoots and tossed them into the basket.

In a short while, they had dug up half a basket.

“All right, let’s go back and cook.” Ying Kongtu glanced at the basket. “This is enough.”

When they returned home, the furry creatures were still sleeping, only they had moved from the courtyard into the house.

Xian Niao had even turned on the air conditioning. Everyone slept, and the furry creatures slept in the warm breeze, their long fur trembling slightly under the warm air.

It was winter now, and all the furry creatures in the house had grown relatively long coats.

Ying Kongtu took one look, then brought Wen Zhongshan and Xing Chang into the kitchen to cook.

Everyone cooked while chatting.

Ying Kongtu cut off a large piece of cured meat and a large piece of cured spare ribs. After rinsing them briefly, he put them into clear water to boil.

He usually liked to boil out some of the salt, scrape and wash off the smoked layer on the surface, then cut the meat again before stir-frying it.

Xing Chang rarely stayed to eat at his house. Watching his movements, he could not help saying, “This cured meat is really good.”

Ying Kongtu said, “It was smoked for several days, dried in the sun for several days, then hung for a few days to let the oil return. It looks pretty good.”

The weather had been very sunny recently, and the wind had also been strong. When the cured meat was drying, the surface dried out completely and became as hard as stone.

After it was hung in a cool place for a few days, the oil returned slightly, allowing the fat to seep out again and slowly moisten the whole piece of meat. Now, the condition of the cured meat was much better.

After boiling, washing, and cutting it, Ying Kongtu began stir-frying.

Since there was a guest today, Ying Kongtu made three dishes and one soup: winter bamboo shoots stir-fried with cured spare ribs, wild garlic stir-fried with cured meat, quick-fried pickled greens, and seedling vegetable soup.

Today’s seedling vegetable was made with cabbage seedlings, giving it a fresh, tender taste of its own.

As for the other three dishes, they were all dishes made to go with rice.

The wild garlic was rich and fragrant. The winter bamboo shoots were sweet and crisp. The cured meat and cured spare ribs were both extremely savory and rich.

Especially the cured spare ribs. Even after boiling, the meat was still very firm.

The salty, fragrant, glossy meat clung tightly to the ribs. With every bite, the umami spread out, savory and fragrant, with a salty flavor that made it perfect with rice.

“Delicious! Why is it so fragrant?!” Xing Chang gnawed on the cured spare ribs until he was almost teary-eyed. “Your family’s food is way too good, isn’t it? I had winter bamboo shoots stir-fried with cured meat the day before yesterday too, but it didn’t have this sweet, fragrant taste!”

Ying Kongtu smiled.

Xing Chang did not need an explanation. After gnawing another bite of cured spare rib, he said, “That’s true. How could ordinary people’s cured meat and winter bamboo shoots compare to yours? Kongtu, you’re a mountain god. It’s really so fragrant. This cypress aroma is smoked so well too. It cuts through the greasiness so nicely!”

Ying Kongtu said, “Then eat more.”

After finishing the meal, Xing Chang took the initiative to help tidy the kitchen before going home.

Ying Kongtu divided the boiled cured spare ribs among the furry creatures at home.

Dart could only eat a very small bit for a taste. Jingwei was the same, only gnawing on the bones.

Tiaozhu and Xian Niao were much freer. They could gnaw on a big piece of cured spare rib.

After Ying Kongtu divided their food, he took the plates into the kitchen and washed his hands while he was at it.

Wen Zhongshan asked, “What did you discuss at the meeting today?”

“It was just an ordinary commendation.” Ying Kongtu remembered. “There was also a bonus. This year, I was named an Advanced Individual in Tree Planting and Forest Protection in Changchuan County. There’s a bonus of twenty thousand yuan. I stuffed it into the motorcycle’s storage box.”

Ying Kongtu wiped his hands and went to the storage box, taking out a large red envelope full of cash.

The red envelope was heavy. Inside was exactly twenty thousand yuan.

“The meeting lasted the whole afternoon, and they even called me up to take commemorative photos.”

When Ying Kongtu thought of himself holding the red envelope and taking a group photo beneath the banner, he found it rather novel and could not help smiling again.

Wen Zhongshan was also a little surprised. He pinched the red envelope. “Changchuan County gives quite generous bonuses?”

“No.” Ying Kongtu shook his head and quietly told Wen Zhongshan, “Pei Lejiu told me privately that this bonus was specially approved to thank me for my contributions. Their usual bonuses aren’t this much.”

Wen Zhongshan nodded. “It’s good that they remember.”

Ying Kongtu smiled. “Yes. Although going up to take a photo, and then having them try to make me give a speech, was a little awkward, it still felt pretty good.”

After thinking for a moment, Ying Kongtu told Wen Zhongshan again, “After receiving this commendation, my connection with the local area deepened a little. Even my divine power increased somewhat. Maybe it’s because the government acknowledged my achievements.”

“Then that really is a happy occasion.”

“Yes! That’s why I said we should eat something good to celebrate. Most importantly, I specifically asked Pei Lejiu today whether we could reclaim land on the mountain. He said as long as it’s for cultivation, it’s fine. In a couple of days, we can clear the irrigation channels, repair the field ridges, and soak the terraces first.”

The terraced fields on Wuchuan Mountain and Bibi Mountain had not been used for a very long time.

The terraces were overgrown with weeds, and small shrubs had grown there too. To plant them again, they had to be reclaimed.

In addition, they needed a major repair.

After all, the terraces no longer even had field ridges. The whole field was bare. During the decades of abandonment, the ridges had been slowly worn flat by wind, rain, and plants.

Ying Kongtu said, “I’ll go up the mountain tomorrow to repair the ridges. The weather is good these few days.”

“I’ll go with you.”

“All right. With your help, it’ll be much easier.”

The terraces were not very regular, and there were too many weeds and shrubs on the mountain.

Ying Kongtu did not bother looking for agricultural machinery. He directly went up with Wen Zhongshan, each carrying a hoe.

Modern agricultural machinery was indeed very convenient, but sometimes, repairing farmland by hand made it easier to understand the state of the land.

Water sources, soil, plants, insects—while repairing the ridges, Ying Kongtu kept every detail of the terraces in mind.

Ying Kongtu planned to plant rice in all the terraces on the two mountains.

The temperature here was relatively low. Rice could barely be grown twice a year, but it was better to grow a single annual crop.

Rice grown this way had a longer growing period, accumulated more flavor compounds, and would taste better.

The two spent three days repairing the ridges of more than seven mu of land.

Of that, Wuchuan Mountain had four and a half mu, and Bibi Mountain had three mu.

Neither of these two mountains had much land suitable for terraces. On top of that, because the terrain was relatively high, every piece of land was quite small.

Otherwise, people would not have abandoned them back then.

Ordinary people who planted such terraces would find the roads difficult and agricultural machinery hard to bring in, making it inconvenient.

But for Ying Kongtu, it was just right.

This place was relatively remote and would not attract much attention. It was also convenient for him to plant whatever he wanted.

“The ridges are built. Tomorrow, we’ll go up the mountain and clear the irrigation channels. Then our tasks before the New Year will be more or less complete.”

Both mountains had irrigation channels.

Bibi Mountain had always been planted with trees, so the condition of its channels had been preserved fairly well. There was not much debris inside. They only needed to clear out the silt and fallen leaves.

This mountain also had a winding concrete mountain road built for transporting fast-growing eucalyptus.

Although the road was not very close to the terraces, they could ride the motorcycle to the mountain summit, then clear the channels downward from the top. It was very convenient.

Wuchuan Mountain was a little more troublesome.

No one had used this irrigation channel for so many years. Dead branches, fallen leaves, and silt had almost blocked it completely, and a large amount of weeds had grown inside.

Now, all the water in this channel overflowed and kept flowing to both sides.

Quite a few places on the mountain had accumulated water, but the water in the channel itself grew smaller and smaller as it flowed, drying up halfway down.

Ying Kongtu and Wen Zhongshan slowly cleared out the dead branches, fallen leaves, and silt, piling them on both sides of the channel to widen and raise the edges. They also removed the weeds inside the channel.

After clearing it bit by bit, the channel looked almost completely new.

The clear springwater from the mountain soon flowed down. It grew larger and larger, and by the time it rushed toward the terraces, it already looked rather like a small stream.

Wen Zhongshan said, “I didn’t expect this stream to be so large.”

“Wuchuan Mountain, after all.” Ying Kongtu smiled. “This mountain naturally has a lot of rain and mist. This year, I planted many trees on it. As the state of the forest improved, the amount of springwater it stored also increased.”

Ying Kongtu dug open the field ridge and guided the water from the channel into the terraces.

The raised and widened ridges firmly enclosed the water inside the fields. The weeds and shrubs in the fields soon had their roots submerged.

“Soaking them for ten days to half a month should be about right. Then we’ll come back to clear the plants and apply some base fertilizer while we’re at it.”

Ying Kongtu stood on the ridge and looked at the completely renewed terraces. He felt a strong sense of accomplishment.

Wen Zhongshan asked, “Will the base fertilizer still be pig manure?”

Ying Kongtu shook his head. “Pig manure isn’t suitable for paddy fields. Some chicken manure and sheep manure will do.”

As he spoke, Ying Kongtu felt regretful. “The original condition of these terraces should have been quite good. After so many years, so many rounds of wild grass have grown, and the soil has become poor.”

“Then should we scoop up some lake mud to fertilize the fields?”

The lake mud they had scooped from Ai Lake last time had been extremely useful. One only had to look at the woad growing all over the mountains to know.

Those woad plants grew especially vigorously. They had directly become the dominant plants, and even weeds could not compete with them.

If they could scoop up some lake mud to fertilize the fields, next year’s rice would surely grow very well too.

Ying Kongtu regretfully shook his head. “Lake mud is also part of the ecosystem. We scooped quite a lot last time, so we can’t scoop any more.”

Wen Zhongshan looked at the terraces before him. “That’s true.”

After thinking about it, Ying Kongtu said, “I do know where there’s excellent fertilizer. Unfortunately, we probably can’t get it.”

“Where?”

“Do you know about Ba snakes?”

“I’ve heard of them. There are Ba snakes nearby?”

“Yes. They’re in the continuous mountains behind us, but they’re separated from us by several cities. Last year, when the Abnormal Management Bureau tried to recruit me, they mentioned them. Come to think of it, I still have their contact information. No, I should say their contact information.”

“Then the fertilizer is—”

“Ba-snake fertilizer.” Ying Kongtu said quietly. “Doesn’t the saying go, ‘The Ba snake eats an elephant and only expels its bones after three years’? They eat food, and only defecate once every three years. The fertility accumulated inside is extremely abundant, and it carries a special demonic aura. If we’re talking about fertilizer, the best fertilizer I know of nearby is Ba-snake fertilizer.”

Wen Zhongshan looked thoughtful. “Can’t we buy some? They don’t have any use for it, do they?”

“We can, but they don’t use human currency.”

“Why?”

“Many good things can’t be bought with money. Money also isn’t very durable, and it depreciates. Over time, non-humans prefer to keep the actual products themselves rather than exchange them for money. Especially things that can be stored for a long time. Very few non-humans will directly exchange them for currency.”

Wen Zhongshan said, “I remember now. You seem to be the same. Unless necessary, you don’t really sell things from the mountain.”

“Yes.” Ying Kongtu smiled. “If I need them, I’ll sell them then. Usually, it’s better to let them remain in the mountain.”

“Then ask the Ba-snake side. Maybe they happen to want money recently?”

Ying Kongtu felt there was little hope, but he still asked.

The contact information the Abnormal Management Bureau had given him for the Ba-snake clan should belong to someone with a certain amount of authority within their clan.

When the other party heard Ying Kongtu’s request, they did not reject him outright. They only asked: [Besides currency, what do you have to trade?]

Ying Kongtu: [I only woke up recently, so I may not have many plants carrying divine power. Are you interested in ginseng from the mountain? I have hundred-year-old ginseng here.]

Wen Zhongshan sat beside Ying Kongtu and looked at the phone with him. “We also have lingzhi, yam, and woad.”

Ying Kongtu then wrote these three things down too.

Ba Snake: [We live in the mountains. We’re not short of mountain goods. We also have plenty of things like lingzhi and ginseng. Anything else?]

Ying Kongtu thought for a moment. [I have several-hundred-year-old aged wine. It tastes pretty good. Would that work?]

Ba Snake: [Wine… always makes me think of clansmen who were caught and used to steep medicinal liquor…]

Ying Kongtu: [Wild honey?]

Ba Snake: [Is it wild honey brewed from flowers nourished by divine power?]

Ying Kongtu: [Uh, not for now. I haven’t had much time to nourish the mountain forest yet.]

The Ba snake did not reply for several seconds.

Ying Kongtu and Wen Zhongshan exchanged a glance. Ying Kongtu said helplessly, “I told you we don’t really have anything the other party would be interested in.”

Wen Zhongshan patted his shoulder. “I’ll ask someone for you.”

Ying Kongtu’s phone lit up. The Ba snake had sent another message: [Does your mountain have a kind of very delicious fish? Several hundred years ago, a clansman of ours heard about that fish. Do you still have it now?]

Ying Kongtu hesitated for a moment, then replied: [There aren’t many lake fish either. They need several years to rest and recover, so they can’t be caught on a large scale for now. Also, the lake fish haven’t been nourished much by divine power at the moment, so their quality may be worse than it was several hundred years ago.]

After sending that, even Ying Kongtu felt somewhat helpless.

The Ba-snake side was probably also a little speechless.

After quite a while, the Ba snake sent a sighing emoji: [The people from the Abnormal Management Bureau said you’re a mountain god, and we wanted to form a good connection. But now—there really isn’t much on your side that can be traded, is there?]

Looking at the message from the Ba snake, Ying Kongtu could not help sighing.

As a “poor” mountain god, there was nothing he could do.

Author’s Note:

Xian Niao is so cool and handsome that a passerby once invited it to shoot an outdoor advertisement, the kind where it would wear hiking clothes and glasses.

This mature, handsome, cold, yet gentle wolf king—

Does not eat bitter things.

Does not eat bland things.

Does not eat greasy things.

Does not eat things with strange flavors.

The wolf king is picky, but the wolf king does not say it.

In the past, the wolf king only gave food it did not like to its subordinates.

Now, the wolf king always shows care for Dart and Jingwei.

Dart and Jingwei, who have become rice buckets but are deeply grateful to the wolf king: [Heart face emoji.]

Xian Niao, who dumped off unwanted food but has never damaged the wolf king’s image: [Sunglasses face emoji.]

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