I was a stepmother in ancient times, and I led my whole family to wealth.

Chapter 72 Going up the mountain

Dongfang Jin was about to pat his chest when he suddenly realized that this was ancient times, and such a gesture would make him seem frivolous.

Finally, he waved his hand and said, "Leave it to me, I'll make sure you're satisfied."

"Then it's settled. I'm leaving now. Don't forget that I'll be slaughtering a pig in mid-autumn, and you must come."

Gu Chenglin: "I understand, I will definitely go."

Jun Qirui: "..." Why not invite them in for a seat?

Watching Sun Xing walk away, Dongfang Jin looked at his retreating figure and said, "Your buddy is pretty good."

Gu Chenglin stared at Sun Xing's receding figure: "Yeah, when we were little, he often stole food from home and gave it to me. The clothes I wore underneath in winter were all his too."

Sun Xing's mother and Aunt Gu are cousins. They're from Liujiadian, Ping'an Town, Linyang County, Qingshan Prefecture, which is quite far from our area.

Upon hearing this, Jun Qirui realized that it was not an auspicious place: "Qingshan Prefecture? It's closer to Guangxi Prefecture. I traveled there once."

The area is famous for the Daqingshan Mountain Range, and there are hundreds of temples of all sizes in the surrounding area.

Unfortunately, Aoyama Academy was involved in that... battle, and it's probably been demolished long ago.

The surrounding temples were also significantly impacted…

Gu Chenglin shook his head: "I've heard about this in the military. I heard that hundreds of students caused trouble..."

Many of the monks also participated, and the scene was said to be no less intense than the fight.

Jun Qirui looked up at the sky and sighed, "It's all because of power. Alright, let's not talk about it anymore."

Dongfang Jin listened from the side, never expecting that such a thing could happen in this dynasty.

She seemed to recall student riots during the Ming and Qing dynasties, apparently due to problems with exam questions, and also the May Fourth Movement...

But it's rare to see monks joining in the fun.

"Father, Mother, Uncle," Gu Jingye called out as he brought his younger sister out.

Gu Chenglin saw the two children and waved to them: "Come and help us move things."

“Okay!” The two children ran over happily.

After they finished moving their things, the two children followed Jun Qirui into the yard.

Dongfang Jin followed Gu Chenglin around the back of the house to the stable, where she watched Gu Chenglin unload the cart and tie up the ox.

Dongfang Jin leaned closer to Gu Chenglin and said mysteriously, "Gu Chenglin, will you take me for a walk in the mountains?"

Gu Chenglin added some hay to the cow's fodder and looked at her expressionlessly: "Call me brother or Brother Lin."

Dongfang Jin pouted: "You're such a busybody, Brother Lin, how about we go for a walk in the mountains?"

This man is really stubborn. It's just a form of address; why take it so seriously?

Gu Chenglin nodded in satisfaction: "Go back and get some clean clothes, I'll take you to that cave to take a bath."

The water over there is hot; please tell the two children and Aunt Hui while you're at it.

Dongfang Jin said excitedly, "That's a good idea."

Hot springs!

……

And so, Gu Chenglin, carrying a basket on his back and holding Dongfang Jin's hand, headed towards the back mountain.

Along the way, Dongfang Jin saw many wild vegetables: shepherd's purse, dandelion, large patches of perilla, groves of purslane, and plantain.

Do the people here not eat wild vegetables? Thinking this, I asked Gu Chenglin, but the answer I got was that they use these to feed pigs.

I go……

Looking at the wild onions growing in the cracks of the rocks, and the wild chive flowers and chrysanthemums that can be seen everywhere.

Chrysanthemums come in white, yellow, and a few purplish-red varieties.

Dongfang Jin asked again, "Does no one pick this?" The answer was the same: no one eats it, and nobody wants it.

What's even more infuriating this time is that Gu Chenglin said even pigs wouldn't eat those things.

Oh my god...

Dongfang Jin also saw several wild wolfberry trees, black jujube trees, wild walnut trees, persimmon trees, and chestnut trees on the mountain.

Seeing the chestnuts on the ground, Dongfang Jin shook off Gu Chenglin's hand, ran over in small steps, and was about to step on them when her body suddenly leaped into the air.

"What are you doing? Put me down quickly."

Gu Chenglin: "Don't step on it, the thorns on this spiky ball are very hard, what if you prick your foot? Wild boars and rabbits all avoid it."

Dongfang Jin was furious with this ignorant man: "Gu Chenglin! Put me down! These are chestnuts, something to eat."

Seeing her say that, Gu Chenglin put her down in confusion: "Don't move, I'll step on it. Tell me how to do it."

Is this edible? How come he didn't know that there was another hard shell inside this spiky shell? He had no idea that this thing was edible.

You know, there was a drought one year, and the fields yielded nothing. When the villagers came to the mountains to look for food, not a single person picked it up.

Also, in the mountain west of Nanshan, there are large groves of these trees, at least dozens, if not hundreds, and some of them are older than this one.

Every autumn and winter, a thick layer of these spiky balls would fall under the tree.

Dongfang Jin was speechless at his suspicious gaze. These ancient people really didn't know what they were talking about.

Chestnuts are a great food; they can strengthen the spleen and stomach, and fortify muscles and bones...

What the heck is this?

Its functions and indications are: nourishing the stomach and spleen, tonifying the kidneys and strengthening muscles, promoting blood circulation and stopping bleeding. It is used to treat nausea, diarrhea, weakness in the lower back and legs, vomiting, nosebleeds, hematochezia, traumatic injuries, swelling and pain from fractures, and scrofula.

Eating it raw is very effective in treating weakness in the lower back and legs... and promotes blood circulation...

Why is this even on her mind? She's not a doctor, and she has no intention of practicing medicine.

Seriously, let's stop...

Dongfang Jin pointed to a spiky ball and said, "Do you see the crack in the middle of that ball? If you gently crush it with your foot, the chestnuts inside will come out."

As Dongfang Jin spoke, she stretched out her foot to demonstrate for Gu Chenglin.

“We can take this shell home too. We want the chestnuts inside, and we can use the shell to start a fire.”

Gu Chenglin held a chestnut, his face serious: "Xiao Jin, is this really edible?"

You should know that this shell is also very hard.

Dongfang Jin said affirmatively, "Of course, you can pick some first, and I'll cook them for you tonight. We'll come back tomorrow and get more, and I'll make you some sugar-roasted chestnuts."

Wow... that's all money!

Chestnut ribs, braised chicken with chestnuts, braised pork with chestnuts, chestnut cake...

Hehe... they can all be sold for money...

Dongfang Jin simply ignored what was appearing in her mind; she wouldn't look, she just wouldn't look.

Almost as soon as she finished muttering, the word "stubborn" popped into her mind.

Dongfang Jin just didn't see it, otherwise he would definitely have gotten furious.

Gu Chenglin went from being clumsy at first to finding the right technique and picking up more and more chestnuts: "Look what else is edible, I'll bring it all home."

If that's the case, he can remember it well. He believes that this thing also exists in other mountains, so he will send a message to his uncle and ask him to send it to the army.

Winter is just around the corner, and the border region is experiencing the most difficult time of the year.

Thinking of the imperial treasury...

Dongfang Jin pointed around and said, "There's so much to eat! Those little red berries over there are wild goji berries."

Those clusters of small green fruits on that tree are black dates.

And these white flowers are chive blossoms, and those clumps of wild onions growing in the cracks between the rocks over there..."

Gu Chenglin was taken aback by what she said: "Now that you mention it, there's food everywhere on this mountain?"

If that's the case, will those soldiers still have to go hungry? Thinking about the various mushrooms the wind brought back, I wonder if my uncle will take any action when he sees them.

Thinking about this, his biological father and his family still don't know he exists? It's probably for the best that they don't.

Dongfang Jin picked a sour jujube and put it in her mouth. It was really sour. "Pretty much, but it seems like people here don't eat these?"

Gu Chenglin shook his head and laughed, "Hehe, if the villagers have enough to eat at home, they won't come to the mountains to look for food."

Except during periods of major disaster, there has only been one drought in my memory.

But that drought only lasted for two years, after which we had frequent rainfall.

See that river that surrounds the village? It was formed after several heavy rains following the drought that year.

Since then, the river has never stopped flowing; it started as a small stream.

The water level rose year by year after that, and over a decade later, it became what it is today.