Chapter 276: Picking Mushrooms
Author: White Pear Flower
Raws: https://book.qidian.com/info/2386994/
Translated by Gumihou
Proofread by Pill Bug
Gumihou: Just gotten confirmation that Dongfang Island is NOT Taiwan. In the words of AR Qiuning, ‘there are no mountains here’, when in fact, Taiwan has 268 mountain peaks over 3,000 metres tall.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_mountains_in_Taiwan
“Although there are no mountains here, look up, isn’t there a range of green mountains just ten miles away? The woods there are dense, so there must be game. Don’t worry, there will be wild game for you to eat,” [1] said Jin Fengju with a smirk.
Jin Zhenyi immediately said, “In that case, I want to go hunting too. I can hit the bullseye with five arrows out of ten!”
Jin Fengju snorted, “No mischief allowed. Want to show off with only that much skill on your little bow and arrows? You can’t even take down a rabbit. Behave yourself, or you won’t get to eat the game we hunt.”
Jin Zhenyi puffed out his chest and said, “Don’t underestimate me, Father. I can hit the bullseye every time when I use the smaller bows and arrows. I hit half the targets with the large bow and arrows.”
After he finished speaking, Fu Qiuning said, “He has natural strength and interest in all things relating to hunting and warfare, to the point that he can pull an adult’s bow with some effort.”
At that moment, Yang Ming walked over carrying a fish. He heard Fu Qiuning’s words and smiled, “Truly like father, like son. It turns out the Second Young Master is so capable. The Duke of Jing’s estate has many civil officials already, and with the Second Young Master’s gifts, if we hire a good martial arts teacher for him, he could grow to be a fierce warrior and be a great general in the future.”
Jin Fengju hastily said, “Enough with your flattery. Don’t let that nonsense get into his big head. Speaking of which, why have you brought that fish here? Do you have no space on your stove? Why bring this thing here?”
Yang Ming quickly replied, “Your Excellency, please do not wrong this one. How could this one be so crass as to barge in on Your Excellency’s precious family time? In fact, I saw this rare grouper fish and brought it for Your Excellency to have a taste. I’m sure that Madam and the young masters and young misses will be very happy if Your Excellency were to grill this for them. This kind of grouper [1] fish is well known for its deliciousness.”
Jin Fengju took the fish and chuckled, “Oh, this fish is quite big. Very well, I shall accept your sincerity and take this fish. Changfeng, fetch a new iron netting and place this fish on top.” Then, he turned to Jian Feng and said, “Collect some razor clams and give them to Yang Ming…”
Before he could finish, Imperial Guard Yang Ming was already walking away, waving his hand and saying, “It’s fine, Your Excellency, there is no need to bother with such little favours. We also have clams and razor clams on our side.”
By the time the large grouper was done grilling, everyone was already quite full. In the end, the delicious fish ended up eaten by Mister Cat. In fact, Mister Cat had also eaten a lot but could not resist the grouper in the end. When there were only bones left of the fish, the plump Mister Cat collapsed to the ground on his back, exposing his bulging belly for all to see.
That afternoon, although there was hardly any staple food for lunch, everyone ate till they were quite full. After lunch, the entire troop of over 1000 people trooped towards the mountains, presumably to hunt. [2] Fu Qiuning only wanted to have a little walk, but it ended up being a trek through the jungle towards the mountains that were not actually mountains ‘just 10 miles away’. In fact, when Jin Fengju said that there were ‘no mountains’ on this island, she became even more convinced that this was not Taiwan.
[2] However, for a small island that was so close to the Fujian coastline, the trees here were oddly dense and tangled. The air was hot and heavy with moisture, making everyone sweat. Fu Qiuning picked her way through the trampled vines and branches that had been made by the dozens of Imperial Guards who went ahead. Some of the guards had even been conscripted to carry litter and bamboo chairs for the women. [2] Personally, Fu Qiuning was too interested in the surrounding plant life to want to be carried like that. Moreover, it was not like she had any interest in hurrying forward to the ‘mountain’ jungle 10 miles away. Therefore, when Jin Fengju asked Fu Qiuning to sit on one of the litters, she looked offended. “Since we are already here, I wish to take the time to look at the plant life here. There is no need to sit on a litter.”What could Jin Fengju do but agree with her?
Mister Cat ambled along next to her, leaping up trees and hopping down with something in his mouth from time to time. He had apparently digested the fish that he had practically swallowed whole earlier.
Four hours of walking later, Fu Qiuning felt more annoyed than tired. Sure, it was tiring to walk on stupid silk shoes, but the path was clear enough with very little elevation. The boys ran about cheerfully, Jin Changjiao skipping along with them. However, Jin Fengju kept asking whether Fu Qiuning was tired, thirsty, etc, completely ignoring an exhausted Jin Zhenxuan tramping moodily next to them.
[2] The sun was still high in the sky even after four hours of walking, and Fu Qiuning had to wonder just what time they had set out, and whether the days were just longer there.Eventually, they stopped. About a dozen or so of the guards were left to guard the half a dozen or so female family members while the rest dispersed to hunt. [2] Fu Qiuning stared into the distance for a while, feeling sorry for the wildlife here, as close to a thousand Imperial Guards were tasked to hunt down the animals, and probably caused great disturbances to the natural order of things in this jungle…
Jin Zhenyi pestered Jin Fengju, wanting to join in the hunt. [3] Jin Changfeng looked at the drooping Jin Zhenxuan, who looked like he was about to expire from the four-hour walk. “Mother, I leave Brother Zhenxuan with you,” said Jin Changfeng before setting out with Jin Zhenyi for the ‘hunt’.
Fu Qiuning looked around the camp where the servants had spread out mats to rest between the banyan roots. Fortunately, there were not too many insects around. It was unclear whether caterpillars or other insects would fall out of the tree, [4a] but since they had reached an area that was basically an open field of grass, there was no need to fear things falling out of trees.
The girls were particularly active right now, after having rested on the litters. As for Jin Changjiao, she had looked longingly in the direction where her brothers had gone to ‘hunt’, but turned around to start collecting long grasses and vines to weave into baskets and garlands. [4] The island did not have many flowering trees, but she could still make little baskets. Her sisters all gathered around, and everyone started making little baskets and other crafts.
Cui’shi looked at this scene and sighed audibly, “It is Second Madam Ning after all. In the past, I could not accept her, but now? I really and truly admire her. No wonder the master has been charmed by her after five years. Just look at the sisters. Back when Madam Wan was in charge, had they ever been so harmonious? But now? The sisters aside, even the brothers seem more united than before. Who but Second Madam Ning has such a skill?”
Yue Lan laughed and said, “Indeed, as the saying goes, it is odious to be compared. I believe that Second Madam Wan is also an intelligent one. When she was fifteen, she had already started helping Elder Madam with household matters. I used to think Madam Wan was the best of women, if a little harsh, as who else had her ability? But today, I realised that there are always people above you and heavens beyond skies.”
As they were sighing and speaking loudly to each other, they suddenly heard Jin Changjiao’s excited voice calling, “Mushrooms, Mother, come see, such big mushrooms!”
Fu Qiuning stood up, glad for an excuse to leave the two women who were obviously in a competition to see who could flatter her more, and made her way towards where the girls were gathered.
Indeed, in the grass under the shade of the trees, there was a large white mushroom with caps bigger than an adult man’s palm. Jin Changjiao had already picked the mushroom and ran over to show Fu Qiuning.
“Goodness, it’s a large white mushroom [5]. Well, while not as rare as the Matsutake, it’s still fresh and tasty. If your father happened to come back with some wild chickens, we can stew it with these mushrooms.” Fu Qiuning looked around a little more. “Come, let us see if we can find more of these, you may all put your little baskets to use.”
The children cheered. Just as they were about to set out, Jian Feng stopped her, pleading, “Madam, please don’t be greedy. This maid often hears that there are many poisonous snakes in the south. The vegetation is lush here. If Madam goes in and gets bitten by a snake, this maid won’t be able to explain to the young marquis. Not to mention, Madam should also think of the young ladies.”
Fu Qiuning looked at this anxious maid and said, “I would be shocked if there are still some snakes around after [2] a thousand people have trampled through here…”
“Pfftt~ Cough,” the guide next to them coughed before saying, “That’s right, if there are any snakes who wished to attack someone, they would have already done so…”
When Jian Feng still did not look reconciled, he put his hand into a bag and scattered some powder in a large circle, “Madam, this is realgar powder [7], it is now absolutely safe here. If Madam wants to pick mushrooms, feel free to go. The mushrooms here are very delicious.”
With this assurance, everyone hurried into the area. Only [6] Jian Feng was still a bit worried and asked the guide, “Since there are snakes on the mountain, will the young marquis and others hunting be bitten by snakes?”
The guide shook his head and smiled, “Miss, don’t worry too much. The young marquis has already thought about it. I saw them check something and smelled realgar on them. There are not many snakes here, only occasionally seen, mostly harmless grass snakes.”
“I see,” Jian Feng still did not look reconciled, but who cares about that?
The girls hunted through the grass for mushrooms with Cui’shi and Yue Lan. Jin Zhenxuan finally stirred to join them. Jin Changjiao took charge of him and gave him one of her baskets. Soon, the grassy area was filled with laughter and joy.
Half an hour later, everyone came back with their makeshift baskets and scarves bearing mushrooms. From the amount on the mat, there had to be over 10 catties of mushrooms. Having nothing better to do, Cui’shi and Yue Lan started trimming the mushrooms, cleaning the stems and brushing the caps, putting the cleaned mushrooms neatly into baskets.
Suddenly, a shadow flashed by them. It turned out to be Mister Cat with a large rabbit in its mouth. After placing it on the felt mat, the cat dashed into the nearby wood.
This sight left Cui’shi and Yue Lan dumbfounded, but Jin Changjiao was unfazed, smiling and boasting, “What’s there to be surprised about? Don’t forget, our Mister Cat has bitten through the throats of Japanese pirates before. Just wait, maybe it will bring back a wild chicken later.”
As the guide marvelled at this, he exclaimed, “I had not paid attention before, but Madam’s cat appears to be a wildcat of sorts. How incredible. These creatures can be quite ferocious.”
Fu Qiuning smiled and said, “I’m not sure about the details. The children were the ones who brought him back.”
The guide was already in his fifties, and seeing how casual Jin Changjiao and the rest were with him, he dared to talk openly with them. Otherwise, he dared not even speak unless spoken to.
[Gumihou: Enjoy the chapter with its warped logic] [Pill Bug: I facepalmed so hard at food safety in this chapter. Added my thoughts in the notes.]
[1] Surely, not even AR Qiuning could possibly know whether this island is mountainous or not? Change dialogue tag from FQN to JFJ. [2] Let’s have a little fun poking at logistics, eh? [3] Dude, you really expect Jin Changfeng and Jin Zhenxuan to ‘pester JFJ to go hunting’? Let the kid rest, it’s not like it influences the story at all. [4] If it’s a place that grows coconut trees, it won’t have many flowers. You need open fields to have naturally occurring wildflowers dear. [4a] Ok, fine, they found an open area, please mention it earlier rather than several paragraphs later. [5] 大白蘑 is basically a ‘large white mushroom’. It’s unclear what kind of mushroom it is, but most mushrooms of this size and colour have a mild flavour and can be stewed. Don’t know why 松茸 ‘matsutake’ was mentioned in the next breath, but presumably, the kids should know it since Night Breeze Pavilion has its own ‘pine forest’ where FQN mentioned she expected to find matsutake once upon a time. [6] Let’s have the city girl rather than the snake-eater worry about the snakes, yeah?
Pill Bug Edit Notes:
[7] Oi, keep that stuff away from people! Realgar powder is ARSENIC sulphide, it is toxic! https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/RealgarYou just scattered this stuff around the area and now you want to take the stuff here to eat? WTF?
[8] Also, please please please be VERY careful when foraging for mushrooms in the wild. Even mushroom experts have died from mushroom poisoning by misidentifying edible mushrooms!
Come join kitchennovel’s subscription!
Or, you can still support us through Patreon or tip us via Kofi~!
Although… it’s, um, you only get half the benefits… but, the decision is in your hands!
Do also comment at Novelupdates and raise our ratings!
