Chapter 1699
Encountering Bandits Again
Mu Xueli's ginseng-digging handle is much better than Wang An's and Wang Li's, which may be the reason why Mu Xueli's knife skills are also so good.
Of course, besides having good hands, personality is also a very important factor in ginseng digging. You must have enough patience, otherwise digging ginseng is a double torture for both your body and mind.
As Mu Xueli cleared the soil around the ginseng, the ginseng's rhizome was revealed.
This ginseng root is a two-section root, which is composed of a piled-flower root and a goose-neck root, making it a very precious ginseng.
If it's a three-section ginseng, then even if this ginseng seedling only has four leaves, it can be priced as if it had five leaves.
The term "three-section reed" actually refers to a type composed of three sections: horse tooth reed, piled flower reed, and goose neck reed.
All ginseng with three sections can be called truly precious, because only wild ginseng with four leaves from high-age plants, and wild ginseng with five or more leaves, will have three sections.
After observing for a while, Wang An stood up, took the leash from Huang Zhong, and then said to Wang Li and Huang Zhong:
“There must be other sticks around here. Let’s not just sit idly by. Let’s all put them here and look carefully. Even if we find a few to use on the stage, that would be good.”
Wang An felt that this fourth-grade leaf was very likely the one Han Shuisheng had mentioned, so he didn't have high hopes for the search. If he could find a few third-grade leaves, that would be quite an achievement.
Fortunately, with this fourth-grade ginseng as a good start, Wang Li and Huang Zhong's enthusiasm was instantly aroused. After Wang An finished speaking, the two of them couldn't wait to start searching in the vicinity.
Wang An, of course, wasn't idle either; he also led Xiaobai on a search.
For a time, the surrounding area was filled with the "crackling" sound of copper coins hitting the rope-pulling stick.
The saying "wealth moves people's hearts" was perfectly exemplified in the actions of these four people at this moment.
The main reason is that these four people, because they found ginseng, completely forgot about the corpse that was already infested with maggots.
However, this is normal. The four of them went into the mountains to dig for ginseng. Now that they have found ginseng, how could they possibly back down because of a corpse?
Two hours passed quickly, and Mu Xueli was still digging for the fourth-grade ginseng root, while Wang An and the other two had not yet found a second ginseng root to dig up.
The reason for this is that Wang An and the other two found several seedlings of Sanhuazi and horsehair, but they didn't find even a single Erjiazi.
As a "key to unlocking the mountain," the second-generation ginseng still has some value for exploration, mainly because it may be a reincarnated ginseng. Even if it is not a reincarnated ginseng, it can still be worth thirty to fifty yuan.
But ginseng and horsehair are different. Ginseng that is as thick as an embroidery needle or at most the size of a toothpick is as worthless as grass roots.
However, during this time, Wang Li and Huang Zhong discovered several small pits that had been dug up and then filled in, meaning that the old embankment had been dug up by someone, but they didn't know what grade of leaves had been dug up.
Hoping to find a bargain, and mainly waiting for Mu Xueli to dig out the fourth-grade leaf intact, time passed by and it was noon.
Just as Mu Xueli was smiling broadly as she took the fourth-grade wild ginseng out of the pit intact, and Wang Li was happily wrapping the ginseng with bark and moss, Xiao Bai and Xiao Hei suddenly started barking at the same time, barking wildly in the direction of the tent.
From the barking, everyone could tell that Xiaobai and Xiaohei must have sensed a ferocious beast or strangers approaching. Instinctively, everyone looked in the direction of the barking.
However, the group was still halfway up the mountain, so their view was blocked by the mountain below.
Without hesitation, Wang An hung the rope holding Xiao Bai on a tree branch, shrugged, and the Type 56 rifle slid into his hand. He cocked it and ran up the slope.
As soon as Wang An moved, Mu Xueli and Wang Li also forgot about wrapping the ginseng. Mu Xueli picked up the Type 56 rifle that had been stuck to the tree stump because it was in the way of digging for ginseng. Wang Li casually put the ginseng bun on the ground, and with a flick of his shoulder, the Type 56 rifle fell into his hand. Huang Zhong also hung the rope that was tied to Xiao Hei on the tree and took the Type 56 rifle that he had been carrying on his back into his hand.
Then, the three of them chased after Wang An.
When Wang An reached the top of the mountain and looked down at the hillside where the tent was located, he saw four men on horseback who had already reached the tent and were dismounting. The man who had dismounted was carrying a gun and swaggering into the tent.
Wang An thought for a moment and realized that he had encountered those legendary bandits.
There are quite a few such bandits in these mountains. Most of them are people who fled into the mountains because of various major cases. They usually form groups of three to five and roam around these mountains committing crimes.
Their targets are mostly solitary mountain dogs, hunters who go into the mountains, and people who go deep into the mountains to dig for ginseng.
The three animals that Wang An killed in the mountains not long after his rebirth were among them.
However, to Wang An's utter surprise, he encountered bandits again today.
It must be admitted, however, that the bandits who survived and lived comfortably were basically the elite of the elite, because those who were ruined were killed in the process of being double-crossed.
That's right, it's a classic case of gangsters fighting each other. Besides committing crimes while on the run, they also fight each other whenever they run into each other, showing absolutely no humanity.
Without any hesitation, Wang An raised his gun to the man's face, aimed at the man who was swaggering into the tent with a gun, and pulled the trigger.
As the saying goes, "He who strikes first gains the upper hand, he who strikes last suffers the consequences." Wang An didn't care whether the other party was a real bandit or not; as long as they dared to break into the tent with a gun, they were bandits in Wang An's eyes.
Even if they're not bandits, they're still bandits, it's that simple.
After firing the first shot, without caring whether the man lived or died, Wang An quickly moved the muzzle of his gun and mercilessly pulled the trigger again on a man who had just dismounted.
The sudden gunshot, coupled with the fact that two men had already been shot, caused the remaining two bandits to leap and hide behind the tent, thus depriving Wang An of the opportunity to fire.
It must be said that these two bandits were incredibly fast and agile, definitely elites among bandits.
Following closely behind Wang An, Mu Xueli and the other two ran up, each holding a gun to their faces and nervously aiming towards the tent. At that moment, Wang An quickly said:
"You're all hidden, there are two more behind the tent." (End of Chapter)