The Entire Mountain Is My Hunting Ground

In the Qingtang Forest on the North-facing Slope, Zhao Jun paced slowly, occasionally striking the nearby trees with the stick in his hand.

This side of the mountain was north-facing, so the snow melted later, and the plants sprouted and revived later as well. To even dig for wild vegetables here, one had to kick away the dead branches and rotten leaves on the ground.

But Zhao Jun was by himself. If he searched like this, he probably wouldn’t find even a hint of Ginseng by this time tomorrow.

Going into the mountains alone was called a "single stick," but it was a rare occurrence because sweeping the area was too exhausting.

According to Elder Zhao’s record on that red pine, sixty-one years ago, when those seven men had hunted for Ginseng here, they were led by a Leader. The seven of them lined up their sticks, forming a single row.

The Elder Leader was the first stick, at the far right of the line, while the person on the far left, called the edge stick, was usually the Second Leader.

Zhao Jun surveyed the slope. He could imagine the seven of them starting from the left, sweeping up the slope from the bottom. At the top, they would turn right one by one and sweep back down to the bottom. Then, they would turn right again and head back up... After three or four such passes, they would have covered the entire slope.

Although Zhang Yuanmin was here, Zhao Jun didn’t dare use him.

The reason was simple: Ginseng could only be found by a person with good fortune.

And in Zhao Jun’s eyes, Zhang Yuanmin’s luck was as bad as it could possibly get.

To be honest, all those methods he’d come up with to kill the bear should have worked.

But what was the result? He’d practically brought a dead bear back to life.

So, Zhao Jun would rather go it alone as a "single stick" than use Zhang Yuanmin.

But if he worked alone, he couldn’t sweep the area in an orderly line. It was truly too much for one person.

Zhao Jun glanced at Elder Zhao’s carving, then turned to Zhang Yuanmin and said, "Brother, go have a look around. See which side of this slope has water."

"Ah... okay." Zhang Yuanmin had his doubts, but he remembered what Zhao Jun had just instructed and didn’t dare ask any questions. He headed east first.

After speaking, Zhao Jun walked up the slope, continuously striking the trees with his stick as he passed them.

This was called "calling with the stick."

He didn’t rush to search among the dead branches and rotten leaves on the ground, instead observing the lay of the land. Suddenly, he saw Zhang Yuanmin running back from the east. As he ran, he pointed eastward and nodded at Zhao Jun.

Zhao Jun raised a hand and waved, signaling that he understood, then walked toward the eastern side of the slope.

It is said that a phoenix will not land in a place without treasure, and likewise, Ginseng does not grow in ordinary places.

Ginseng grows in mixed-conifer-broadleaf forests, and this forest must be a Qingtang Forest. Even in summer and autumn, there must be sunlight filtering through the gaps in the branches and leaves to provide the Ginseng with light.

There must be sunlight, but not too much.

The forest must also be well-ventilated. Places where the grass is so thick it grows as tall as a person will definitely not produce Ginseng.

Light and wind are not enough. The most crucial element is moisture.

Even during dry seasons, there must be ample groundwater to sustain the Ginseng.

Zhao Jun headed to the east and began to sweep downwards from the very top of the slope, bit by bit.

Unlike in July or August, when one could use a searching stick to part the grass and look for Ginseng while sweeping...

...at this time of year, the Ginseng shoots were hidden under dead branches and rotten leaves. A sweep with a stick could easily break them.

If the Ginseng shoot was broken, how could one find the Ginseng?

So Zhao Jun used his hands to part the dead branches and rotten leaves. The first handful he cleared revealed some wild grasses and vegetables.

Because they had been pressed under the dead branches and rotten leaves, the leaves of these plants were yellow or yellowish-green.

Zhao Jun continued downwards, and after clearing more debris, he saw that the leaves were not as yellow. As he continued his sweep down the mountain, the color of the wild grass and vegetable leaves gradually turned greener.

Zhao Jun grew more and more careful, until he pushed aside a pile of dead branches and rotten leaves and saw two small shoots. Their buds were curled inward.

Zhao Jun leaned down, almost pressing his face to the ground. After a close look, he stood up, picked up his stick, and planted it in the ground beside the two small shoots. He shouted loudly, "Ginseng! Ginseng!"

This was the mountain-call announcement, used to inform companions that a discovery had been made. It was the name all Mountain Men used for Ginseng!

Hearing Zhao Jun’s shout, Zhang Yuanmin, who had been sitting and spacing out, jolted. He quickly came to his senses and yelled back, "How many leaves?"

Zhao Jun had made the mountain-call; this was called "answering the call," asking what grade of treasure Zhao Jun had found.

Zhao Jun then gave the mountain-response, shouting, "Mountain-Opening Key!"

From ancient times to the present, Mountain Men have bestowed a mystical aura upon Ginseng, which has also given rise to a great many rules.

From the moment they enter the mountains, everyone must abide by the rules.

When you’re hungry, you don’t say "eat," you say "get food." If you’re tired and want to sit, that’s called "getting a seat." When you’re sleepy, it’s called "getting some sleep."

Furthermore, you can’t sit on tree stumps in the mountains, because those are the Mountain God’s thrones.

These are all rules, and they must never be broken.

This was especially true after discovering Ginseng. From the mountain-call announcement to digging up the Ginseng, anyone who dared to make a mistake would incur the wrath of the entire group.

Especially during the mountain-response, if one found a Second-class Ginseng, one must never say "Second-class." One had to say "Mountain-Opening Key."

Just as Zhao Jun’s voice faded, Zhang Yuanmin shouted again, "How many stalks?"

He was asking how many Ginseng plants Zhao Jun had found.

There were only two small shoots in front of Zhao Jun, but he shouted back at the top of his lungs, "The whole mountain is full of them!"

Even though there were only two small shoots, he had to shout that the whole mountain was full.

But this too was a rule, one that contained a hopeful wish—a wish for a mountain full of treasure, where everything they dug up would be a fortune.

So, no matter how many Ginseng stalks were found, this was the proper call!

After Zhao Jun yelled, "The whole mountain is full of them!" Zhang Yuanmin came running over. In his haste, he tripped and face-planted, but he ignored it, scrambled back to his feet, and kept running toward Zhao Jun.

When he arrived, Zhang Yuanmin looked at the small Ginseng shoots amid the dead and rotten grass and asked Zhao Jun excitedly, "Brother, should we dig it up?"

In truth, Zhang Yuanmin was asking Zhao Jun what to do. Digging up Ginseng required tools, from small items like red string and probes to larger ones like axes, knives, and scissors. But the two brothers had nothing right now, which put Zhang Yuanmin in a difficult position.

But he didn’t dare speak carelessly, so Zhang Yuanmin could only ask Zhao Jun if they should dig the Ginseng up now.

Zhao Jun nodded. But seeing the troubled look on Zhang Yuanmin’s face, he rummaged on the ground nearby, picked up a small wooden stick, and handed it to Zhang Yuanmin, saying, "Brother, you dig."

"No..." Upon hearing this, Zhang Yuanmin wanted to say something, but he caught himself, swallowed the words on the tip of his tongue, and shook his head at Zhao Jun.

Zhao Jun shook his head back at him and said, "We don’t even have a ginseng lock, so let’s skip setting up the frame. Just go ahead and dig."

Zhang Yuanmin couldn’t hold back any longer. Waving the small branch in his hand at Zhao Jun, he asked, "Just with this?"

"Yeah." Zhao Jun pointed to the ground. "Hurry up." After speaking, he looked at the two small Ginseng shoots. He saw their leaves bent down, pointing diagonally up and to the left.

Zhao Jun looked up and saw a Zhaoshu tree about five meters away. Taking the tree and the two small Ginseng shoots as two points to form a line, Zhao Jun started from the leftmost shoot, picked up his searching stick, and began walking toward the Zhaoshu tree, muttering something as he went.

After taking six steps, he bent down and cleared away the surrounding dead branches and rotten leaves. Once he got a clear look, he plunged his searching stick into the ground and shouted, "Ginseng! Ginseng!"

Zhao Jun’s shout made Zhang Yuanmin, who was on the ground about to start digging, jump in fright. He instinctively asked, "How many leaves?"

Zhao Jun gave the mountain-response: "Ascending the stage, step by step!"