Chapter 122: A Great Harvest

Han Li had shared a few drinks with Zhang Xiangjun, but his tolerance for alcohol was truly mediocre. After splitting a single bottle between the two of them, Han Li was already feeling lightheaded. When he returned home, only the Yun sisters remained.

They were yawning, looking listless and clearly struggling to stay awake.

"Han Li, you're back. I’ve already boiled the bathwater for you. I’ll go pour it into the tub now."

"No need. Look how sleepy you are; hurry back home with your sister. I can handle the water myself."

Han Li was currently covered in the scent of sweat and alcohol, making him ill-suited for any intimate interactions. Besides, there would be plenty of opportunities later on, so he thoughtfully walked the two of them to their doorstep.

After scrubbing himself clean, Han Li dove straight into his bedding and fell asleep.

The next morning, although his internal clock woke him up on time, Han Li stubbornly remained burrowed in his blankets for another half hour. After he finished his martial arts practice, he felt a slight sense of unease at not hearing the bell, inwardly cursing himself for being so finicky.

The surroundings were deathly quiet; neither the educated youth dormitory nor the other individual residences showed any signs of life. Unable to sit still, Han Li looked at the few wolf-dog pups that had yet to fully grow and shook his head. He strapped on his Ka-Bar 1217 knife, placed a rope and his crossbow into his pack, and headed toward the mountains.

Following his usual routine, he let a few sparrows lead the way, moving with familiar ease and speed through the forest. Faint sounds of insects and birds echoed through the woods, and the late autumn breeze carried a heavy chill. Fallen leaves had turned to soil, piling up into a thick, carpet-like layer, and mushrooms were growing abundantly. However, Han Li did not linger on the outskirts and marched swiftly until he crossed the nearest ridge.

He paused at the summit to survey the distance just as the sun broke the horizon. In the dawn light, the golden birch forests, the dark green pine groves, and the fiery red maple woods—interspersed with various nameless wildflowers—created a vibrant, quiet, and breathtaking tapestry of autumn colors. It was a truly magnificent sight.

Han Li only took a brief moment to appreciate the view before hurrying deeper into the mountains.

Today, his luck was good; he discovered a herd of wild goats in a valley. This discovery delighted him, as he had grown tired of eating pork despite the abundance he’d had lately. He had only intended to wander into the mountains to clear his mind after all the recent labor, never expecting to stumble upon a herd of goats. He immediately began imagining a full-course goat feast: braised goat, stir-fried goat, spicy goat, goat soup, and hot pot goat.

However, wild goats are extremely vigilant. They are not only fast but possess incredible balance, capable of jumping swiftly and steadily from rock to rock. To escape danger, they prefer treacherous terrain, making steep cliffs no obstacle for them. Traps were largely ineffective, making them very difficult to hunt.

Han Li moved toward the herd, carefully muffling his footsteps to avoid startling them. He tucked several homemade short javelins into his belt and drew his crossbow from his pack. Once close enough, he used the trees as cover to observe the herd and gauge their numbers. There were dozens of them, scattered and grazing vigilantly. A few large ones occasionally scanned their surroundings, prompting Han Li to creep even closer.

He was now within range. Crouching behind a tree, he braced himself in case the startled goats charged in his direction.

He stuck a few short javelins into the ground, raised his crossbow, aimed at a large goat, and pulled the trigger.

*Thwip, thwip, thwip.*

Three bolts struck the goat’s throat; it let out a half-cry and collapsed. The other goats froze for a split second, during which Han Li hurled four short javelins in quick succession. These claimed two more goats before the rest of the herd scattered and vanished into the wilderness.

Han Li quickly ran to the fallen goats. One was still struggling, its legs kicking, so he threw another javelin to end its misery. He retrieved his three bolts, wiped them clean, and stored them away. Having learned his lesson, he did a quick field dressing of the three carcasses and promptly left the area.

With his harvest secured, he was in no hurry. He walked along, gathering mushrooms as he went. Suddenly, the sparrows signaled the presence of several "flying dragons"—also known as hazel grouse or tree grouse. Han Li had long heard of them; they were said to have tender, delicious, and highly nutritious meat, earning them the reputation of being "dragon meat from the heavens" and ranking among the Eight Treasures of the Northeast.

He was surprised to encounter them today. He observed the birds carefully; they were small, smaller than a domestic chicken but larger than a pigeon, with brown-gray feathers marked by dark brown horizontal bars. Though they appeared to be together, they were actually scattered, maintaining distance and occasionally chirping, clearly on high alert. This made hunting them much harder; if he missed his shot, he might catch nothing at all.

Han Li raised his crossbow, steadying his nerves to do his best.

*Thwip, thwip, thwip.*

"Damn."

Out of six, he only managed to snag one; the others vanished the moment he reached for his javelins. He comforted himself by thinking that even one would be enough to taste this legendary "heavenly dragon meat."

After securing the grouse, Han Li arrived at a large grove of oak trees. In a thicket nearby, he found hazel mushrooms carpeting the grass. They were clustered together, as if the mushroom family were holding a meeting on how to survive the winter. Han Li quickly found a place for them to "winter" by packing them away, then entered the oak forest.

Inside, he discovered two lion's mane mushrooms—these furry little fellows were also among the Eight Treasures. Lion's mane is rich in protein, containing twice as much as shiitake mushrooms, along with seventeen types of amino acids, various vitamins, and minerals. It is known for its medicinal and culinary benefits, aiding digestion and protecting the stomach. Although they were growing seven or eight meters up in the trees, Han Li didn't need to climb; he simply used his ability to harvest them.

Recalling what the villagers had said—that where you see one lion's mane, others can be found nearby—he searched the vicinity. True to their word, he harvested over a dozen more, though they varied in size.

Han Li examined the fuzzy mushrooms, noting their unique, pleasant fragrance. He realized that the size of the lion's mane directly influenced the intensity of its aroma, though it likely wouldn't affect the taste once cooked.

Today had been a success: three wild goats and two of the Eight Treasures. Checking the time, it was already past one in the afternoon. In this season, the forest paths would become invisible by four o'clock. Moreover, one shouldn't exhaust their luck in a single day, so he decided to head back.

On the way, he collected every pine nut, hazelnut, walnut, and edible wild fruit he could find. The amount of pine nuts was pitifully small—probably only enough to fill a small bowl once roasted.

As he neared Shanghe Village, he took out the flying dragon; it was a small bird that didn't need to be turned over to the collective, so it was safer to keep it in plain sight.

The Yun sisters were busy at his place. When they woke up and found him gone, they had pooled their resources to trade with villagers for vegetables, bringing back plenty of green beans, eggplants, amaranth, mustard greens, and ginger. They were discussing how to pickle the vegetables when Han Li pushed the door open.

Yun Yingying: "You’re back! You even caught a wild bird, but you didn't take me with you when you went into the mountains today."

Han Li: "I just wanted you to sleep in a bit more. This isn't a wild chicken; it's called a flying dragon."

Yun Jingjing, who truly loved to cook, exclaimed upon hearing the name: "Is it the hazel grouse, known as 'dragon meat from the heavens'? It was a royal tribute and is listed as one of the local Eight Treasures!"

Seeing her excitement, Han Li handed over his pack.

"Lion's mane mushrooms? How far did you go, Han Li? The aunties told me there’s nothing like this around here."

Han Li whispered: "I walk a bit faster when I'm alone. Also, I caught a wild goat and left it outside; I’ll go get it after dark. But what were you two discussing?"

Yun Yingying was eager to go hunting, and the way she looked at Han Li was a bit unusual. Han Li coughed and repeated: "I thought I heard you discussing something when I walked in?"

Yun Jingjing: "You like sour pickled beans, don't you? I was just discussing how to pickle them."

Hearing this, Han Li thought of someone: Qi Zhaodi, a girl from Chengdu, Sichuan. As a Sichuan native, she should be very skilled at pickling such things, right?