With nearly two hundred in unexpected earnings, Jiang Heng’s mood soared.
She hadn’t held out much hope for this to begin with, but now that she’d succeeded, she felt light and relaxed, as if she’d already hit her quota.
Thinking of the bag given to her by the young lady selling sushi next door, Jiang Heng grabbed a small bag of mushrooms and handed it over one by one: “Thank you just now, I almost ran out of bags.”
Song Ming hadn’t expected that just by giving away a few bags, she’d receive so many mushrooms in return.
They felt heavy in her hands—must be about a jin.
Song Ming felt a bit embarrassed. “This is too much, just for a few bags. How about I pay you for them?”
“No need, no need.” Jiang Heng stuffed the bag into her hand and quickly pulled back, returning to her own stall.
“I picked these on the mountain, so they didn’t cost me anything. I’ve already made enough today, so don’t worry about it.”
Even if you counted labor, in their small city, a day of manual work only brought in about a hundred and eighty, sometimes not even that much.
Seeing this, Song Ming didn’t insist.
She wasn’t used to back-and-forth anyway, so she said straightforwardly, “Then let me give you some of my sushi! It’s really tasty!”
As she spoke, she picked up the most expensive set—an eighteen-yuan box of eel sushi—and handed it over, a little proud.
“This is really good! I love eel myself. The flavors are all adjusted to our local taste, so it’s very popular. Give it a try?”
Jiang Heng took it. “Alright, thank you.”
Seeing Jiang Heng accept it, Song Ming was happy too and gave her a few more bags.
She always brought extra bags when setting up her stall, and this time they’d finally come in handy.
“Good luck selling! These mushrooms look great. Want to add me on WeChat? If you come tomorrow, I’ll save you a spot.”
Most of the vendors here were older folks, and she was the only young person with a stall in this area.
She’d always felt a little lonely, so having someone her own age made her naturally want to get closer.
Jiang Heng wasn’t sure if she’d come tomorrow, but since Song Ming was being friendly, she didn’t refuse. “Sure.”
They exchanged contact info, and then another customer arrived at Song Ming’s stall, so Jiang Heng carried her sushi back to her own spot.
She hadn’t had dinner yet and was planning to eat at home, but now there was no need.
She opened the box and picked up a piece of sushi, popping it into her mouth.
First came the subtle saltiness of the seaweed, then as she bit in, the rice mixed with the tender, gelatinous eel touched her tongue.
It was honestly pretty good, especially the sauce on the grilled eel—savory with a hint of sweetness, perfect with rice.
The sushi itself already had rice, making it just the right combination.
No wonder it was so popular.
The eel was unexpectedly fresh, so the meat was tender but held together well, and even when it turned warm, there was hardly any fishy taste.
Jiang Heng ate with relish.
She was already good-looking, and just as the streetlight behind her flickered on, the warm yellow glow highlighted her as she lowered her eyes and savored each bite.
Passersby couldn’t help but glance her way—again and again—until some, attracted by how appetizing she looked eating, went over to buy sushi.
Others were drawn by the mushrooms, skillfully picking one up and sniffing it: “Boss, these are a bit pricey. Can you give me a discount?”
Jiang Heng kept her polite smile. “Sorry, these are wild mushrooms I picked from the mountain just this morning. The mountain paths are tough, so I don’t bargain.”
Some people were unhappy about the no-bargaining policy and put the mushrooms down, leaving.
Others, impressed by the quality, bought some anyway.
As it neared seven o’clock, more people arrived, and Jiang Heng’s stall grew busy too.
She’d thought she wouldn’t sell much, but more than half of her mushrooms ended up sold!
Surprisingly, the first to sell out were actually the most expensive Wuzhong Mushrooms.
Maybe the real connoisseurs knew their stuff, and besides, she hadn’t brought many—less than four jin in total.
In the end, only some Pine Mushrooms and a few Chashu Mushrooms were left.
By eight o’clock, Jiang Heng decided not to wait any longer and said goodbye to Song Ming: “I’m heading off.”
Song Ming was surprised. “Eh? It’s still early, why leave so soon?”
Jiang Heng replied, “My house is in a village a bit far away.”
Song Ming immediately said, “Then you better get going, be careful on the road.”
Jiang Heng smiled, started up her electric tricycle, and carefully made her way out of the crowd.
She hadn’t even been on the road ten minutes when the two girls who’d bought mushrooms first rushed over.
Seeing the empty space beside the sushi stall, their faces fell in disappointment. “Ah? She’s gone?!”
“Ugh, I knew it!” the other one sighed.
They were none other than Wang Miaoyuan and Yu Gui.
After buying mushrooms, they’d gone home right at dinnertime and decided to cook together.
Among the groceries they’d bought was chicken leg meat, so naturally, they made Little Chicken Stewed with Mushroom.
Following an online tutorial step by step, when the dish was almost done, the aroma was enough to make them dizzy with hunger.
They were used to making Two Dishes and One Soup, but when dinner hit the table, they completely forgot about the other dish and soup, focusing only on the chicken leg meat stewed with mushrooms.
The chicken leg meat was already tender and smooth, but after stewing, the rich broth and the mushrooms’ umami blended together, elevating the chicken’s flavor to a whole new level.
The mushrooms were soft, springy, and had soaked up the broth, so each bite burst with the chicken soup’s deliciousness, creating a layered taste that amazed them both.
Wang Miaoyuan muttered as she ate, “Did we really make this ourselves? It’s way too good!”
Yu Gui didn’t even look up. “Maybe our cooking skills have improved?”
“Ha, do you believe that?” Wang Miaoyuan chewed on a tender mushroom, savoring the moment the soup burst in her mouth and brought joy to her tongue.
From tongue to stomach, she felt utterly satisfied. “I don’t even want to eat out anymore! I could eat this every day!”
Yu Gui nodded in agreement. “If we could eat like this every meal, who’d bother going out for a treat?”
In no time, they’d cleaned their plates and still wanted more, but the Rice was gone.
Looking at the half-pot of leftovers, they wordlessly took out Noodles and boiled them in the broth.
That’s how they ended up tasting the best noodles of their lives.
Soaked in the double umami buff of chicken and mushroom broth, the noodles didn’t need any extra seasoning—they were so fresh, it made your eyebrows twitch!
Full and satisfied, the two collapsed on the sofa, sending messages to friends and relatives to rave about the amazing mushrooms they’d bought today.
As they chatted, Yu Gui suddenly realized something was off. “Ah?! Did we buy too little?!”
Wang Miaoyuan jolted upright too. “Right, we’ve finished it all. What about tomorrow?!”
They exchanged a glance, didn’t need to say a word, and quickly changed clothes and shoes before rushing out.
They had to buy more!
But when they hurried back, they found the tricycle was already gone.
And the key was, it seemed like the stall owner had only come on a whim.
Who knew if she’d be back tomorrow? They’d never seen her before.
Song Ming noticed their crestfallen faces and immediately understood, offering, “I’ve added the mushroom seller’s contact. If you want to buy more, you can add me, and if she comes tomorrow, I’ll let you know.”
They nodded gratefully. “Thank you! Let’s add each other! These mushrooms are really delicious.”
Wang Miaoyuan glanced enviously at the bag of mushrooms hanging on Song Ming’s stall.
“We made Little Chicken Stewed with Mushroom tonight, and it was so fresh! Totally different from the ones you buy at the supermarket. But we’re full now, so we’ll buy from you tomorrow, sorry.”
“No need to apologize! The seller even gave me a bag of mushrooms, so of course I should help call over customers.” Song Ming grinned, looked at her own mushrooms, and felt like she’d hit the jackpot.
She was definitely going to try Little Chicken Stewed with Mushroom tomorrow!
Meanwhile, the much-missed Jiang Heng had just arrived home.
It was nearly nine o’clock.
The village was peaceful at this hour, with only the dogs barking at each other because of her arrival.
Their house was on the edge of the village, so she didn’t run into anyone.
Jiang Heng parked the tricycle in the yard, plugged it in to charge, then locked the gate and the front door before going inside to wash up.
Having eaten the eel sushi earlier, she wasn’t hungry, so there was no need to cook again.
Thank you, sushi-selling young lady.
Jiang Heng lay on her soft bed, phone in hand, and started tallying up today’s earnings.
Less than four jin of Wuzhong Mushroom brought in 378 yuan, over ten jin of Pine Mushroom earned 1,650 yuan, and the remaining Chashu Mushroom and Forest Mushroom netted 545 yuan—a total profit of 2,573 yuan!
She’d made a fortune!
Jiang Heng’s eyes sparkled, as if she’d returned to the days when she’d first entered the Sect.
Back then, she no longer had to do illegal work for others, and could grow Spirit Plants to sell for a pile of Spirit Stones.
That time was busy but genuinely happy.
Maybe because her mindset was good, even though she had Three Spiritual Roots, her cultivation speed wasn’t slow at all—she could even keep up with some Double Spiritual Roots peers in the Sect.
That made her quite valued within the Sect.
After reaching the Foundation Establishment Stage, she was taken as a disciple by an Inner Sect Elder, who taught her hand-in-hand until the Golden Core Stage.
She even gained a certain status in the Sect and had Outer Disciples assigned to take care of her.
So later on, she didn’t have to tend Spirit Plants herself.
She only needed to check on her Spiritual Field and Beast Garden each day, using Spiritual Energy to temper her Spirit Plants.
Now that she’d suddenly returned, was this what they called finding one’s original intention again?
Jiang Heng shook her head.
More like poverty had brought her back to her roots.
After tallying up her gains, she completed her daily game tasks, replanted the crops that took a long time to harvest, and, surrounded by the quiet night and the occasional chirp of insects, soon drifted into sleep.
She woke again at just past three in the morning.
Ever since cultivating, Jiang Heng’s energy had improved, and she didn’t need as much sleep.
So she spent her extra time cultivating.
After a quick wash, she sat cross-legged on the bed to meditate.
When her technique circulated, the Spiritual Energy from her Spiritual Vein in her sea of consciousness would spread out, guided by her technique to flow through her Meridians again and again, until finally gathering in her Dantian, becoming her own spiritual power.
She continued until after six in the morning, as the dawn light grew.
Early May air was moist and cool—just the way Jiang Heng liked it.
She picked out a short-sleeved shirt and threw on a jacket, then lazily went downstairs.
Before opening the door, she cast the Dust Removal Art in the living room and other areas, sweeping away a day’s worth of dust, then finally opened the door.
She had a simple breakfast.
Leftover Rice from last night, plus eggs from Da Boiniang’s chickens, and lettuce from Shen Liniang, made for a plate of lettuce and egg fried rice.
The tender green lettuce, pale yellow rice, and golden egg crumbles, seasoned only with salt, white pepper, and a little soy sauce, already gave off a delicious aroma.
This was the nice thing about being back in the village—food was a bit less high-tech than in the city.
For example, the eggs were genuine free-range eggs, small but with a flavor that supermarket eggs just couldn’t match.
Hard to describe, but you could taste the difference.
The vegetables still had some pesticide, but much less than the ones sold outside.
After all, if you didn’t use any, you’d have to watch the crops every moment and pick off bugs by hand, or end up with nothing but a stalk chewed bare by insects.