The pastoral life of the grass tribe chief

Lu Yao went to patrol the pond, and occasionally a few fireflies flashed by in the drainage ditch.

An uninformed person might mistake it for will-o'-the-wisp, but Lu Yao knew it was fireflies.

When I was a child, I could see a lot of fireflies on summer nights, especially after rain. They appeared in fields, swamps, forests, valleys, mountaintops, and even in front of windows, like legendary fairies, a sight to behold.

After I went to university, fireflies became fewer and fewer, and in recent years they have become even rarer. I never expected to see them again tonight.

Lu Yao walked over and saw only a dozen or so fireflies resting among the grass blades by the drainage ditch.

Fireflies don't bite and are completely unguarded. Lu Yao held up his finger and lifted it up; it still danced on his finger, its glow shimmering.

Lu Yao put them into space.

Fireflies are most sensitive to the quality of the environment. Sensing that the conditions here are most suitable for survival and reproduction, they rest among the herbs by the spring.

Fireflies have a very short lifespan, generally only living for about a week, with some living for ten or twenty days.

In a space, they can live longer and reproduce more.

When the environment in Wumutang is better in the future, we will raise fireflies in large quantities.

Lu Yao searched other places but found no trace of fireflies.

It seems that his place is the only one in the entire village, and even the entire Maoyuan Township, that has fireflies.

After patrolling the pond, Lu Yao returned to the house, took out a bone from the refrigerator, cut up some pumpkin, and made soup together.

After simmering the pumpkin and bone soup, I poured it into an insulated lunchbox and carried it to the bamboo shed where my parents lived.

The fourth dog ran out of its kennel next to the bamboo shed to greet its owner.

The fourth dog is a female, and she is already a month pregnant. She will give birth in another month.

Lu Yao's place is bustling with people, and pregnant animals are very sensitive. He was afraid of hurting people and also the fourth one, so he let it stay here to give birth.

The fourth child is very docile. Since becoming pregnant, she has stayed in the vicinity and avoided crowded places.

Seeing that the mother and baby were safe, Lu Yao poured pumpkin and bone soup into its food box, watched it finish eating, and then stroked its head before going back.

After its owner left, the fourth dog also went back to its kennel to sleep.

Just as Lu Yao returned to the front of the house, car headlights appeared at the mouth of the valley.

Lu Yao, with his keen eyesight, recognized the car as Li Yunbo's.

Soon, Li Yunbo's car drove in, and he and Lu Changping got out of the car.

"I ran into my wife just as I was leaving my uncle's house."

Lu Changping said.

"I was just politely asking him if he was coming to your place, and he actually said yes, which surprised me."

Li Yunbo took an unopened box from the car.

In the past, we never invited Lu Changping to our classmate reunions because his wife was very strict with him.

His wife wouldn't say anything unless Lu Yao asked him to go out, but he didn't dare to stay out too long or too late.

Now it's different. As long as he tells his wife he's going to Lu Yao's house, she won't ask how long or how late he stays.

"What is this?"

Lu Yao took the box that Li Yunbo handed him.

"I personally went to Fengcheng and asked my brother-in-law to find wild Solomon's Seal slices."

Li Yunbo said.

Lu Yao used scissors to cut open the packaging box. Inside, the jade bamboo slices were yellowish-white, intact, with little skin and much flesh.

Lu Yao picked up the jade bamboo slice, and a refreshing fragrance wafted over.

He took another piece and chewed it. It had no sulfur taste, no sour taste, no astringent taste, but a slightly sweet medicinal aroma and a strong sticky texture.

"It's truly remarkable that you were able to find such high-quality wild Solomon's Seal slices."

Lu Yao was quite surprised. Although these wild jade bamboo slices could not compare to those he had grown with spiritual spring water, they were still rare and top-quality.

"We were introduced by a friend and bought it from an old Taoist priest for 200 yuan per jin."

Li Yunbo said.

"The old Taoist priest didn't rip you off; they're worth the price."

Lu Yao learned from his grandfather that the price of Solomon's Seal slices was at its peak twelve years ago, at around 120 yuan per kilogram.

He didn't know the quality of the Solomon's Seal slices from back then, but this batch of Solomon's Seal slices was indeed worth the price.

Lu Yao took some jade bamboo slices, brewed them into tea, and the three of them drank it.

"It has a smooth texture, a refreshing sweetness, somewhat like the sweetness of sugarcane, but without any cloying feeling. It is indeed better than most teas."

Li Yunbo nodded as he tasted the food.

"I'm not very educated, but I think it tastes a bit like licorice tea, but not as bitter."

Lu Changping said.

"It is known as the king of herbal teas, suitable for all ages."

"Good Solomon's Seal slices can not only lower blood sugar and fight tumors, but also clear heat and detoxify, nourish the kidneys and replenish essence, strengthen the body, and beautify the skin."

Lu Yaodao.

"That's amazing."

The two were amazed.

"Only high-quality Solomon's Seal slices will have a good effect; ordinary ones can be drunk as tea."

Lu Yaodao.

"How does your Solomon's Seal compare to this one?"

Li Yunbo asked.

Lu Yao didn't say anything, but went and got two small pieces of Solomon's Seal rhizome that had been dried that day for the two of them to eat.

The two took a bite, their eyes wide open, seemingly unable to believe what they were eating.

"How does it feel?"

Lu Yao wasn't surprised at all by the two's exaggerated reactions.

"Indescribable."

Li Yunbo said.

Lu Changping nodded as well.

"Actually, the best things are often the most amazing at first glance or the first taste. But once you've fully accepted them, they seem ordinary and nothing special."

Lu Yaodao.

"Now that you mention it, it really does remind me of the taste of bamboo leaves after the rain when I was a child—fragrant and clean."

Li Yunbo said.

"A very natural, mildly sweet taste."

Lu Changping said.

"And now?"

Lu Yao asked again.

"It has a slightly astringent and bitter taste."

Li Yunbo savored the moment.

"How could this happen?"

Lu Changping shared the same sentiment.

"Regret is nagging at my heart."

"Having tasted success for the first time, I'm afraid I'll never get to taste it again, and that makes me feel a little uneasy."

"Actually, the taste hasn't changed; what has changed is my state of mind."

Lu Yaodao.

The two looked at Lu Yao.

"What's wrong?"

Seeing that the two were just looking at him without saying anything, Lu Yao waved his hand in front of their eyes.

"I feel that you are increasingly showing the demeanor of a wise and enlightened person."

This time, Lu Changping spoke first.

Li Yunbo nodded in agreement.

Lu Yao was also taken aback by what he said.

Looking back, he was surprised and touched by what he had just said, and it felt very unfamiliar.

Did I really say that?

He was so young, and he hadn't experienced any major ups and downs in his life. How could he have such a profound realization, or rather, how could he have such insight?

Li Yunbo and Lu Changping left, and Lu Yao fell into deep thought again.

He still couldn't figure it out, but he could feel as if he had touched something.

As for what it was, he couldn't say.

He had a vague feeling that he was missing a catalyst, and once that catalyst appeared, he could step into another realm at any time.

"Take a shower, go to sleep."

That's just how Lu Yao is. If he can't figure something out, he won't think about it and will just let things take their course.

"It's cool, I can get a good night's sleep tonight."

After taking a shower, a mountain breeze blew by, making me feel incredibly refreshed.

The sky after the rain was bathed in moonlight.

The sound of frogs croaking came from the field.

Lu Yao didn't find it noisy at all; instead, it felt like a lullaby his mother used to sing when he was a child, and he quickly drifted off to sleep.