Blossoms on both sides, each branch unique. For most modern people, days without television or computers in the mountains are absolutely torturous.
For soone like Zhu Xiaoxian, who transmigrated and had not been exposed to what modern people had, every corner of the Southwest Mountain Area held its delights. She had gotten used to the fruit-flavored toothpaste foam in her mouth and to listening daily to the broadcasts from the "DeSheng" radio.
At the crack of dawn, the grandfather-grandson duo of the Zhu Family would pair up and walk towards Leigong Mountain behind Ge Village, not too tall nor too short.
Leigong Mountain has an elevation of over six hundred ters, and facing it is the eight hundred plus ters tall Black Mountain. Between the two mountains lies the depth-unknown White Dragon Pond, over which a swaying iron chain bridge stretches, linking Ge Village and Dongnan Miao Village.
The place where old Zhu Shijun exercises is at the peak of Leigong Mountain, where one can see White Dragon Pond at a glance, and further down, a clear view of the mountains of both mountain areas.
According to Sister-in-law Lian, who was born in Ge Village, the original site of the village was situated even higher, but it was moved down following the governnt's promotion of the developnt of the western areas.
When the old village chief initially tried to persuade the villagers, none of them agreed, saying that if the Miao Family lived at four hundred ters, so must the Han Family, otherwise wouldn't it be allowing the Miao Family to lord over them, leaving them no chance to turn over a new leaf in their lives.
Later, it was the current village chief's father, the old chief, who walked door to door, offering cigarettes and eggs, explaining that the governnt would provide each household with new fields and brick houses. Only after much persuasion, were the villagers of Ge Village relocated from the peak of Leigong Mountain to the mountainside.
"Grandpa, are those bamboo houses over there the suspension houses where the Miao people live? Why do they look different from the houses in the village?" The child's eyesight was good, and, influenced by the spiritual energy of the space, he could see across the mountain.
The slope where they exercised was at the top of Leigong Mountain, more than four hundred ters up, and through the deep forest of the mountain, the tall Miao Clan's buildings could be seen.
Just after the start of autumn, the morning wind in the mountains carried a chill. The bamboo leaves in the mountains rustled as the air blew through them, and the song of the Miao girl emanated crisply from the Miao Family's suspension houses.
The Miao people love to sing. During the busy farming seasons, the entire Black Mountain would be imrsed in songs that were sotis as lodious as orioles and sotis as rough as galloping horses. Zhu Xiaoxian's previous interactions with the Miao people were mostly through Li Ye, the mischievous kid, so she didn't have much of a favorable impression of them.
"The Southwest Mountain Area is different from the northeast; there is not much lumber for building houses, the mountain roads are treacherous, especially around Dongnan Miao Village where the village is situated very high. Good timber and stone can't be transported there, so the village chose bamboo of over five years old for construction. Xiao Xian, don't underestimate the suspension houses of the Miao Family; although those bamboo houses may not be as sturdy as the tiled houses in the village, they are quick to build, cost-effective. People live upstairs, keep livestock downstairs; in city terms, it's a kind of green and eco-friendly dwelling," said Zhu Shijun before instructing Xiao Xian not to wander off from his sight, to stand properly, and he began practicing Tai Chi.
Zhu Xiaoxian did not co up to the mountain to play aimlessly. When Zhu Shijun cald his breathing and closed his eyes to focus, she moved to a position where her grandfather could see out of the corner of his eye but not make out her specific actions.
"The oil tea planted half a year ago, the characters are illegible. The characters on camphor wood of five years old are much clearer than on white pear, but the clearest characters are those on Moso Bamboo that Grandpa spoke of, especially once the bamboo is over six years old." Zhu Xiaoxian observed various types of trees along the way, but most were economic trees planted by the village next to Ge Village after moving down from the mountain, with nearly none over ten years. Not to ntion wild grass that sprouts in spring and dies co autumn.
Having examined nearly a hundred trees, Xiao Xian had a rough idea; the older the tree, the more complete the data displayed, and data from cultivated trees was more comprehensive than that from wild ones.
Not far away, Zhu Shijun was now performing the closing movents of Tai Chi. Xiao Xian dared not stare at the tree bark too intently any longer. She planned to survey the tree that stood one ter away, overhanging White Dragon Pond, before heading down the mountain.
This tree that Xiao Xian couldn't na towered over thirty ters tall with a diater of about half a ter at breast height. The main trunk bore marks of being broken, with the straight trunk twisting towards the water at the break. Its grand stature and curved trunk made it stand out among the surrounding economic forests.
"?" Xiao Xian walked around the tree's roots, wondering why it was different from the other trees. This water-loving tree seed to be the oldest one Xiao Xian had encountered since she entered the mountain.
"Xiao Xian, what are you doing circling that Water Fir?" For several days, Zhu Shijun had found it odd to see his precious granddaughter walking around plants and trees. Ever since Xiao Xian's legs recovered, she loved to run around. Before you knew it, she would be out of sight. Zhu Shijun couldn't help but reminisce about the tis when Xiao Xian's legs weren't well, and she would cling to him asking to be held.
"Water Fir? Grandpa, I've never seen this kind of tree before," said Xiao Xian. The Yunteng World she ca from had many species in common with the new world, but there were also many that were different.
"Water Fir is a southern tree, it loves sunlight and withstands drought. Logically, it's not a tree from the Guizhou Mountain Area. This tree must have been left by the older generations of Ge Village when they fled into the mountains during warti. Looking at the diater and height, its age is probably about the sa as mine," said Zhu Shijun as he patted the Water Fir, noticing that after its trunk had broken, it stubbornly regrew, a thoughtful expression in his eyes.
Zhu Shijun was sixty-three this year. If he was of a similar age, then this Water Fir must also be over sixty years old. Xiao Xian looked at the Water Fir, then at the trees with legible characters. "Ten years for Iron-grade, fifty years for copper, this tree is over sixty years old, so it's no wonder I can't see the tree's origin clearly. It's a pity that during daylight I cannot absorb spiritual power, or else with day and night absorption, I could advance to the copper space sooner."
Xiao Xian had stumbled upon a rule by chance. Carrying an Iron-grade space, although plants and animals lack intelligence, they still co in different tiers; the trees under fifty years old, sensing the spiritual power of Xiao Xian's Iron-grade space, couldn't help but reveal themselves.
"Xiao Xian, what are you mumbling about?" Zhu Shijun looked at the sun; it was ti to go down the mountain. It wouldn't do to let the child go hungry. He was about to speak when several Water Fir leaves fell to the ground. The old man noticed the thick humus ford from decades of fallen leaves mixing into the soil beside the sixty-year-old Water Fir.
"Xiao Xian, weren't you and Sister-in-law Lian complaining last ti that the rice at ho doesn't taste good? I've thought of a thod, so you can enjoy delicious rice next year," said Zhu Shijun, his eyes brightening as he looked at the two to three centiters thick layer of dark soil under the trees.
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