It was the beginning of summer, after a few summer rains, and the pine needles all over the mountain were still covered with crystal water drops, shining brightly under the long-lost sunshine.
There are only about twenty households in Songshan Village surrounded by green mountains and green waters, and most of them gather together.
There are only two separate families at the foot of the mountain, the Song family and the Zhang family.
There are seven or eight houses clustered together in the courtyard on the left, all of which are blue brick houses. This is the Zhang family.
The fenced courtyard on the right near the foot of the mountain has only three simple wooden houses, two large and one small. This is the Song family.
With nearly a dozen members of the Zhang family living together, it was naturally lively, while the Song family had to rely on each other for life, so the Song family was much more deserted.
There are vegetable fields on both sides of the yard, leaving only a road in the middle. Vegetables that should be planted in this season are planted in the vegetable fields. The vines of courgettes, luffa and sword beans are tied into a dense net and hung in the corner of the yard. They are almost pulled out.
Outside the fence, there are all kinds of flowers blooming, and they are growing very happily.
A dozen boys and girls were walking this way from the main road in the village carrying baskets or carrying baskets on their backs. From a distance, someone shouted to two courtyards.
"Song Qiu! Lihua! Let's go! Let's go pick up mountain mushrooms!"
"Eh!"
Two voices responded immediately. First, Zhang Lihua, who was carrying a basket on her back, ran out of the backyard from the Zhang family's yard on the left. Then, Song Qiu, who was carrying a basket on her back, also ran out quickly from the Song family's house on the right.
The two of them joined the group of boys and girls, and the group headed up the mountain talking and laughing.
The villagers in Songshan Village do not have their own fields, so they either go to the landlord's house to do part-time work during the busy farming season, planting land and harvesting grain for the landlord's house, or they rely on the mountains and rivers to feed themselves.
This season is when the mushrooms on the mountain are blooming. You can pick up the mushrooms and take them to the market to buy, or you can pick up too many and process them and dry them into dried goods. You can wait until winter or when there is no harvest and then sell them. It is also a good dish. It’s funny.
People are buying it.
Especially after it rains, the mountain fungus becomes more severe. As long as you have good eyesight, you can pick out half a basket in less than half an hour.
After a group of people climbed up the mountain, they spread out, got into the forest, and carefully picked up mountain mushrooms.
Song Qiu's clothes were a lot too short. Although it was cool, it was still very tight when walking in the mountains, but she didn't care at all.
It has been almost two months since I came here, and I have been seriously ill for a month and a half. I have seen the poverty of this family. All the money in the family has been used to treat her illness, and she also owes a lot of foreign debts.
Life is hard, and it’s good to be able to survive. Who cares about whether the clothes fit me now?
Thinking of her grandma who went to Xiaojiachang more than 20 miles away as soon as the rain stopped in the morning, Song Qiu secretly gritted his teeth, looked around under the tree with his eyes wide open, and accelerated the action of picking up mountain mushrooms.
In her previous life, in her hometown town, every June and July, everyone liked to go up the mountain to pick up mountain mushrooms. The mountain mushrooms were crunchy and refreshing, and stir-fried with chili peppers. It was delicious and won.
Overeating meat.
When she was in school, every time she returned to her hometown during the summer vacation, she would often go to the mountains to pick up mountain mushrooms with her neighbors and others in the yard.
So, she is good at picking up mountain mushrooms.
After a while, the mountain mushrooms in the basket in my hand piled up, and it was almost full before my eyes.
Zhang Lihua, who was looking at the tree from a short distance away and picked up a flower from time to time, opened her eyes wide when she saw the mountain fungus in her basket, "Ah Qiu, your eyes are so good this year!"
How could we be so good at picking up mountain mushrooms in previous years?"
Zhang Lihua is the original's best friend. They grew up together, and their friendship is naturally beyond words.
Song Qiu also likes this lively, bright, hard-working and kind-hearted girl.
Hearing this, he looked at the mushrooms she had only half in her basket and said, "I'll pick them up for you when my basket is full."
"That's feasible, Ah Qiu, you're the best. If I don't get enough of this basket, I will be scolded when I go back." Zhang Lihua stuck out her tongue and turned down the thorn. She happened to see a green flower.
The mung bean fungus is down there.
Song Qiu also turned around and continued to go into the forest that he had not been to before.
But no matter how they walked, they would never be too far apart. They always maintained a distance that could be answered by calling.
Unlike other people in the village who came up the mountain together, some of them had already gone up the mountainside in front.
The mountain on the back of Songshan Village is called Songshan. It is not just the mountains behind it, but the higher mountains reaching more than ten miles away. That one is the main peak of Songshan.
There is Songshan Temple on the main peak. There is a monk named Yuanfa in the temple who has some efficacious powers. There are so many people who go to Songshan Temple to burn incense and worship Buddha.
Even in the county town, which is half a day away, there are believers who come here specially.
If you meet the monk Yuanfa giving a lecture, there will be countless people who come and rub shoulders with each other, and it will be very lively.
Therefore, Ping'an Village under Songshan Temple has formed a large market, and people from the surrounding seven or eight villages like to go there to attend the market or sell their eggs.
For example, if they pick up mountain mushrooms and don't go to Panshi Town, which is further away, to sell them, they can just go to a gathering in Ping'an Village, which is more than ten miles away.
Other villages don’t rely on mountains. If you want to eat mountain mushrooms and don’t want to go all the way to the mountains to pick them up, don’t you just have to buy them?
Anyway, there are things here on the mountain, and they are not expensive. I have a little loose food at home, so it’s okay to buy a pound or two of it and take it home to taste it.
The people of Songshan Village, who sell mountain mushrooms every year, are naturally very enthusiastic about collecting mountain mushrooms.
Song Qiu was eager to make money. As soon as the rain stopped, the mountain fungi began to bloom. Of course, he had to pick them up quickly and take advantage of the season when the fungi were blooming to earn more money so that he could pay off his family's debts.
Not long after, Song Qiu walked out of the forest with a backpack on his back. The basket was already full, and he still had a handful in his hand, "Pear blossoms!"
As soon as she shouted, Zhang Lihua climbed up from the slope on one side, with a few pine needles in her hair and mud on her face.
Song Qiu smiled when she saw it, walked over in a few steps, put a handful of mountain mushrooms in her backpack, and raised her hand to take out the pine needles from her hair.
"Let's go, let's pick it up as we walk back."
Zhang Lihua nodded in response, looked around and saw other people gathering around, all going down the mountain.
"It's a bit slippery going down the mountain, Aqiu, be careful as you step on the leaves."
The two of them carried their backpacks on their backs and walked carefully down the mountain.
It had just rained, and the mountains were wet. The roads usually used by people were still slippery, so walking in the woods was actually easier.
Along the way down the mountain, I picked up the mountain fungi and filled Zhang Lihua's backpack.
The group of people met at the foot of the mountain. Everyone was joking when they saw that both of them had picked up a full back.
Zhou Shitou also picked up a basket full. He looked at Zhang Lihua and said, "Lihua, my father is going to the town tomorrow. Can you go to the town to sell mountain mushrooms? You can take my ox cart."
Zhang Lihua hadn't spoken yet. When the others heard this, they all said, "Shitou, I'm going to the town!"
"I'll go too! Give me a ride!"
"And I!"
－－－－－－Digression－－－－－
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