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Early the next morning, Barefoot Aunt, Aunt Li, and Aunt Li's daughter-in-law Meizi arrived at Aunt Zhou's house. Yezhi appeared before everyone with dark circles under her eyes, yawning. Last night, she and Xiao Fang had been brainstorming ways to make quick money, staying up late without coming up with any ideas. They planned to go up the mountain today to see what they could find.
"Yezhi, what were you doing last night?" Meizi asked with a smile, pointing at Yezhi's dark circles.
"She was like a child! So excited about going up the mountain that she couldn't sleep, tossing and turning, and no amount of urging helped," Aunt Zhou answered before Yezhi could respond.
Yezhi sighed inwardly: it wasn't excitement that kept her awake; it was worry!
The group carried their baskets to the village entrance when they heard the sound of a cart approaching from behind. The cart slowly came to a stop, revealing an old farmer in his forties or fifties with dark red skin and a square face. When he smiled, three deep wrinkles appeared on his forehead.
"Cart Master!" Yezhi called out happily.
"What are you ladies up to?" he asked.
"We're going up the mountain to gather some mountain goods."
The Cart Master patted the side of the cart and called out robustly, "Get in! I'll take you there."
It was Yezhi's first time riding in a stagecoach, and she found it quite novel. The Cart Master cracked his whip sharply, and the cart set off at a leisurely pace from Zhoujiatun toward the mountains in the east.
As they got closer to the mountains, the roads became narrower and the forest denser. Yezhi felt incredibly fortunate to have met the Cart Master; otherwise, with just her small feet, she probably wouldn't have made it very far before being unable to continue.
With a loud "whoosh," the Cart Master stopped the cart on a barren hillside. Looking around, they saw vast green grasslands dotted with yellow flowers.
After bidding farewell to the Cart Master, Yezhi and her companions headed down the slope into the forest. The fresh scent of grass and soil combined with the forest's phytoncides made Yezhi feel refreshed and invigorated.
"Master, this can be sold for money."
The virtual Xiao Fang appeared beside Yezhi. Confused, Yezhi replied, "Master, the scent of the forest can be sold; this kind of primal forest aroma is worth 100 Bodeton per cubic meter."
"Really!" Yezhi's eyes lit up!
"How do we sell it?"
Xiao Fang scratched its square head with a square hand, feeling dejected. "Master, there's no way to sell it; we don't have any collection tools."
Seeing Yezhi's eyes widen like copper bells, it weakly added, "We could have bought it online... or rented it, but... we're currently offline!"
Yezhi felt a wave of helplessness, thinking that this robot Xiao Fang was a bit useless.
The virtual Xiao Fang hung its head and followed closely behind Yezhi as they walked through the dense forest, stopping at a weedy ravine where a small stream flowed down from the mountains. Yezhi imitated Barefoot Aunt and scooped up some water to drink; the stream was incredibly cool and sweet.
Aunt Zhou instructed Yezhi not to wander off before they dispersed to gather wild vegetables. Yezhi didn't recognize any of the wild vegetables and pulled Meizi over to teach her.
Meizi picked up a hairy plant and said, "This is called shepherd's purse; it can be stir-fried or made into soup."
"This one that looks like a small palm is called ground ivy. My grandmother makes stir-fried rice cakes with it, and it's so delicious it makes you want to bite your tongue." Hearing this made Yezhi's mouth water.
Xiao Fang was also busy, taking photos of every type of wild vegetable Meizi introduced and, at Yezhi's strong request, snapped many flattering pictures of her.
While gathering wild vegetables, Yezhi communicated with Xiao Fang through her thoughts. "Haven't you discovered any new valuable targets in this mountain?"
Xiao Fang's eyes emitted a virtual glow, and after about three minutes, it reported, "Master, I've detected a ginseng within 100 meters and three wild rabbits, slightly…!"
Upon hearing the word ginseng, Yezhi couldn't remain calm. Ginseng is one of the three treasures of Northeast China; it's valuable!
"Xiao Fang, where is the ginseng? This time we can make a fortune; we won't have to worry about internet fees anymore!"
Xiao Fang retracted the light and pouted, "Master, listen to me. Ginseng is abundant in the original mountain spirits of Cabrera Planet. You would need to sell 1,000 rabbits and 100 roots of 30-year-old ginseng just to cover the network fee."
"Is ginseng really that worthless where you are?" Yezhi, who had finally found a glimmer of hope, felt disheartened and pressed on.
"Ginseng under 100 years is only considered ordinary; it's available everywhere. Only those over 300 years are considered top quality."
Whether one could find a 300-year-old ginseng in this vast mountain was uncertain. However, finding ginseng without digging it up would be foolish. Yezhi reassured herself that she wasn't foolish and urged Xiao Fang to lead her to dig for ginseng.
Xiao Fang and Yezhi entered the thicket beside a small ravine, with Xiao Fang leading the way. They occasionally spotted towering trees.
"Right there," Xiao Fang pointed. Following her finger, Yezhi looked toward a patch of grass not far from a large tree. There, a vibrant green plant stood out, with a stem shooting up in the middle and bright red fruits adorning the top.
That was ginseng. Yezhi had never seen fresh ginseng before. She bent down carefully to clear the soil, afraid of breaking the roots. After much effort, she finally unearthed the ginseng—a round head and a plump body, with two large legs at the bottom, just like the legendary ginseng doll people spoke of.
"Xiao Fang, quickly see if there's more!"
Xiao Fang obediently began searching while Yezhi gasped for breath and placed the ginseng in her basket.
"Master, nothing was found within a 100-meter radius."
Yezhi thought for a moment; there was plenty of time ahead. She called Xiao Fang back to her glasses and, carrying the basket, walked out of the thicket. Just as she reached the edge of the forest, she heard Aunt Zhou and Barefoot Aunt anxiously calling her name. Yezhi hurried over to them.
Aunt Zhou saw her and gave her two firm pats on the back. "You girl, why didn't you listen? Didn't I tell you not to run off?"
Feeling guilty in front of Aunt Zhou's concern, Yezhi lowered her head.
Barefoot Aunt pulled Aunt Zhou aside and advised, "Look, she's standing right in front of you now! Yezhi, don't do that again!"
Yezhi quickly nodded honestly, "Aunt, I promise I won't run off again."
Then he happily pushed aside the wild vegetables in the basket to reveal the ginseng.
"Aunt, look at what I found!"
Aunt Zhou and Barefoot Aunt gasped when they saw the plump white ginseng in the basket, exclaiming, "What a treasure!" Yezhi smiled and nodded.
Barefoot Aunt picked up the ginseng and kept muttering, "This is good ginseng, at least thirty years old. It's been a long time since I've found wild ginseng of such age."
Aunt Li, who was helping Yezhi search, along with Meizi, also arrived at the clearing and marveled at the ginseng, saying, "Wow, this one alone is enough for over a year's worth of rations."
"Yezhi, you can't just leave it like this."
Barefoot Aunt found some moss and two pieces of bark. She carefully arranged the roots of the ginseng one by one, then wrapped it in moss and secured it with bark and long grass. "I'll dry it for you when we get back."
Yezhi didn't quite understand but was glad to have an expert helping him. "Thank you, Barefoot Aunt!"
Perhaps it was the joy of finding something good that lifted his spirits; carrying a full basket of Mountain Goods, Yezhi only took two breaks on the way home and didn’t lag behind.
Upon returning home, Aunt Zhou made a dish of mixed wild vegetables and had a simple meal with Yezhi alongside some dry rations. Afterward, she began sorting through the Mountain Goods. After eating, Yezhi felt like a wilted eggplant and curled up on the kang, dozing off in a daze.
When he woke up, it was already the next morning. Aunt Zhou was in the kitchen making breakfast.
"You’re awake! I saw you sleeping so soundly last night that I didn’t want to wake you. Are you hungry?"
Yezhi rubbed his empty stomach and replied with a soft "Mm!" Aunt Zhou served him a bowl of millet porridge, signaling him to eat something first. While sipping the slightly hot porridge, he asked, "Aunt, where's the ginseng?"
"Last night, your Barefoot Aunt came to take it out to dry!"
"Oh!"
After breakfast, Aunt Zhou went to the fields. Yezhi finished feeding the chickens and, accompanied by the virtual Xiao Fang, wandered along the village by the mountains, hoping to make some new discoveries.
However, for four consecutive days, Yezhi and Xiao Fang found nothing of value. Yet through their constant conversations, Yezhi realized that Cabrera Planet was quite similar to Earth; not only did people look alike, but most animals and plants were also the same. Therefore, the species on Earth were not particularly rare. However, items from Cabrera Planet were quite popular on other planets in the Bodria Star System. Unfortunately, the internet was down; otherwise, there were many ways to earn Bodeton.
"Sigh! Sigh! The deadline is tomorrow. Xiao Fang, why didn't you remind me earlier to pay the internet bill!" Although life and death are fated, Yezhi kept comforting herself that few female protagonists ended up like this.
Xiao Fang held its head in a very aggrieved manner and said, "Master, you didn't ask!"
Yezhi stumbled a bit, almost falling over. Not wanting to suffer from talking to Xiao Fang again, she called Xiao Fang back to Glasses and strode over to Barefoot Aunt. Barefoot Aunt was drying herbs in the yard, filling the air with a fragrant herbal scent.
"Yezhi, just in time; the ginseng is dried." Barefoot Aunt warmly welcomed Yezhi into the house. Upon entering, various bottles and jars cluttered every corner of the room. A large medicinal bowl sat on the table, and bundles of herbs hung from the ceiling. Yezhi sat down by the kang with two bones hanging above her head.
"Master, Master, this is valuable," Xiao Fang exclaimed excitedly as it pointed at the two bones above Yezhi's head.
Yezhi really couldn't see what was special about these two bones; there was still a pile more at the corner of the kang!
Seeing Barefoot Aunt come in with Mountain Ginseng and pointing at the hanging bones, Yezhi asked, "Auntie, what are these?"
After handing Yezhi the dried Mountain Ginseng, Barefoot Aunt replied, "These are Tiger Bones."
"Tiger Bones."
"Xiao Fang, are you sure these two Tiger Bones are enough to pay the internet bill?"
"Master, one is enough; there’s plenty more. This one Tiger Bone is worth at least 100000 Bodeton. If auctioned at a Bodria Star System auction house, it would fetch a sky-high price. Tiger Bones belong to an extraterrestrial species; scientists can extract DNA from them to revive tigers with a 50% chance of survival in the Bodria Star System."
Xiao Fang was getting more and more excited, a 3-meter-long Northeast Tiger with brownish-yellow fur and a "king" symbol on its forehead vividly appearing before Yezhi.
Yezhi thought for a moment, squeezed the wild Mountain Ginseng in her hand, and reluctantly said to Barefoot Aunt, "Barefoot Aunt, can I trade this wild Mountain Ginseng for those two Tiger Bones of yours?"
Barefoot Aunt found it a bit strange. The value of wild Mountain Ginseng far exceeded that of Tiger Bones, but Tiger Bones were also hard to come by. Agreeing to the trade seemed like a bargain, yet she genuinely needed the wild Mountain Ginseng as a medicinal catalyst.
After some consideration, Barefoot Aunt took out a white Cloth Bag from the cabinet, carefully opened it, revealing over twenty colorful banknotes—mostly one yuan, two yuan, and five yuan notes for Workers and Peasants.
"Yezhi, there are 83 yuan here. How about adding those two Tiger Bones?"
"Barefoot Aunt, no need for money. Tiger Bones are quite precious too. Even if there are tigers in the mountains, they aren't easy to catch every day." Yezhi stuffed the white cloth into Barefoot Aunt's arms and thought to herself: the Northeast Tiger is a nationally protected animal; she didn't want to take advantage.
"If you won't take money, then I won't trade." Hearing Barefoot Aunt say this, Yezhi dared not refuse. After accepting the money and holding the Tiger Bones, she happily returned home with Xiao Fang.
As soon as they entered the yard, Big Yellow wagged its tail and affectionately approached them. After patting Big Yellow and closing the yard gate, Yezhi asked Xiao Fang, "How do I use the Tiger Bone to pay for internet fees? Should I pay directly or exchange it for Bodeton?"
"Master, wait a moment!" Xiao Fang emitted a burst of white light from its head—one point, two points, three points... After about ten minutes, a flash of lightning-like white light appeared in the sky, and a silver box appeared before them, its material indiscernible with the word "good" printed on top.
"Just put the Tiger Bone inside this box," Xiao Fang instructed.
With another flash of lightning-like white light, the silver box vanished without a trace.
Finally relieved from the crisis, Yezhi let out a huge sigh of relief.
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