Chapter 866: Into the Cave

The price was still acceptable to the old man.

“Would you like to have a drink of water and take a rest?”

“I’m not very tired,” Wang Yilong said with a smile. When he went to the clinic, he was feeling a little tired. After taking the medicine and receiving the acupuncture treatment, he felt as if he was more energetic and less tired.

“I’ll go check the field.”

“Go.”

In addition to his work, Wang Zecheng was also interested in the herbal field. Since Wang Yao had said that as long as the herbs could be harvested, they would sell well. He also knew that a pharmaceutical factory had been built in town. Wang Yao had an unusual relationship with the boss. When the time to buy medicinal herbs came, the people in his village would be given priority. As of now, only he and Wang Fengming were planting medicinal herbs in the village, and they had been expanding their scale.

The medicinal herbs on the mountain were growing well.

I hope I can get a good price after harvesting them.

In a mountain village, there were not many sources of income. As the saying went, one who was close to a mountain relied on the mountain to survive, and one who was near a stream relied on the stream to provide. The so-called ways to make money on the mountain was to grow food and trees. Now, there was another way of making money, which was to plant medicinal herbs.

…

Thousands of miles away in southern Yunnan, in a dense jungle, a car was slowly driving. The road ahead was a narrow dirt road. It was the kind that could barely accommodate a single car. It was also uneven.

Inside the car was Yang Guanfeng and a young man who looked about 30.

“What the hell? What kind of sh*tty road is this? Don’t people from the Valley of Thousands of Medicine need to get out?” The young man grumbled discontentedly. “Fortunately, we have a four-wheel SUV. Otherwise, we would not be able to get in!”

The man sighed. His buttocks were getting sore as they traveled along the road.

“I don’t know why there would still be people living in such a sh*tty place.”

“Hey, don’t talk crap about it. I checked the local county records before I came here. The Valley of Thousands of Medicine was originally a mountain stronghold. It has a history of at least 400 years.”

“More than 400 years? Has it been around since the Ming Dynasty?” the young man asked in surprise.

“At least the Ming Dynasty. Maybe even earlier,” Yang Guanfeng replied.

“I did not expect it to have such a long history!”

“When you go in, pay attention to what you say. What mustn’t be said should not be spoken, and what shouldn’t be done should not be done.”

“I got it, speak less and do things according to your expression.”

“Yes.” Yang Guanfeng nodded and lit a cigarette.

“Boss, will we be in any danger?” the young man suddenly asked.

“What danger would there be?”

“Don’t they know how to use poison and cast spells? Will we unknowingly die inside since we are just walking in there like this? Will insects suddenly explode from within our bodies a few years later after we come out from this place? The insects would crawl out of our eyes, ears, and noses and eat our internal organs, flesh, and blood clean. We would die in extreme pain.” The more the young man spoke, the more excited he became.

“I’ve told you for a long time to read fewer of those novels,” Yang Guanfeng said. “You are getting prone to overthinking and daydreaming from reading them too much.”

“What exactly is a bug spell?” the young man asking.

“I guess it is a special parasite. To be honest, I don’t want to see it.” Yang Guanfeng puffed out a circle of smoke as he spoke.

The car continued to struggle through the dense forest, which seemed to be getting narrower.

“Could there be no more road ahead?”

Just when the young man was getting worried, the road ahead seemed to become wider and flatter. The car’s progress accelerated.

In the woods, a shadow flashed over the treetops.

“Do you hear any sounds?” Yang Guanfeng looked up at the trees around him.

“Sound? What sound? I didn’t hear anything!”

“I probably made a mistake.” Yang Guanfeng looked outside again.

They drove in the jungle for three and a half hours before they saw a canyon. However, the entrance of the canyon was a big river with only a suspension bridge. There was a wooden fence blocking off the road a little further in.

“Here it is,” Yang Guanfeng said.

“Oh my god. We are finally here.”

The suspension bridge was not wide, less than 64 feet. The vehicle would be unable to pass through. They had no choice but to get out and walk.

“Oh, my bones are all falling apart,” the young man said as he stretched his body.

“Boss?” He saw Yang Guanfeng looking into the canyon.

Yang Guanfeng observed their surroundings for a long time before saying, “This is a naturally dangerous place. It is easy to defend and hard to attack.”

“What do you mean naturally dangerous place? What kind of society is this? If several airplanes came, all of the natural danger zones would be razed to the ground.”

“What did I tell you when I was in the car? Control your mouth a little, will you? Let’s go to the valley.”

Creak! Creak! Creak! Creak! The suspension bridge precariously shook.

Below them was a turbulent river.

“I hope it doesn’t break!”

“Shut your mouth!” Yang Guanfeng roared.

The two of them nervously crossed the suspension bridge without meeting danger. A young man was waiting outside the valley.

“Hello, my name is Miao Qingfeng. Welcome to the Valley of Thousands of Medicine.”

“Thank you.” Yang Guanfeng said before making an introduction.

“Please.” Miao Qingfeng led the way in front of them and brought them into the valley.

The buildings in the valley were built along the terrain. They were all wooden houses and main buildings. No reinforced concrete buildings could be seen, which preserved the natural and original feel. The people in the valley were wearing coarse cloth clothes, which seemed to be made using basic craftsmanship. Even a bicycle could not be seen. The two outsiders seem to have been transported from modern society to an ancient one.

“This is?”

“Excuse me, do you have televisions and computers here?” the young man asked.

“Yes, but they are rare,” Miao Qingfeng said with a smile.

“Oh, that’s good. I thought I had time-traveled back to ancient times!”

Miao Qingfeng led them to the outside of the biggest wooden house in the valley.

“Just a moment, please. I’ll go in and notify him.”

“OK.”

In a short time, he came out of the house and invited them in. In the wooden house, they saw a middle-aged man who seemed to be in his 40s. His face was pale gold, and his eyes were bright.

“Welcome, guests from afar.”

“Sorry to disturb you,” Yang Guanfeng said.

“My name is Miao Xihe. I’m the clan head of this mountain stronghold. What matters do you two distinguished guests have to come this far?”

“Ah, it is like this. There are major cases happening hundreds of miles away from here. There is evidence that the perpetrator has some connection with the Valley of Thousands of Medicine. So, we have come to investigate a little to see if we can find any useful information.” Yang Guanfeng spoke without hiding any information.

“What are the characteristics of the dead?” Miao Xihe asked.

“There’s nothing unusual about the dead. It’s just that toxins have been found in their bodies,” Yang Guanfeng replied.

Miao Xihe was silent for a while.

“I don’t know how you got the information. Are you sure it has something to do with us?”

“I’m sorry, but I can’t tell you that,” Yang Guanfeng said. He could not possibly say that he was relying on a piece of information from an unknown source.

“How about if Qingfeng takes you around to see if you can find any useful clues?”

“Alright, I’ll have to trouble you then.”

“You’re too polite.”

After they exited the wooden house, they began to wander around the village. Miao Qingfeng, who was like a guide, introduced the situation of the village, such as how many people there were and what they normally did.

As Yang Guanfeng listened, he carefully observed the people in the mountain village. They were still engaged in traditional farming life, relying on farming to make a living, working at sunrise, and resting at sunset. What they saw on their faces was calm, peace, and satisfaction.

This might be the “paradise” that Tao Yuanming was talking about.

“Why is it called the Valley of Thousands of Medicine?” Yang Guanfeng suddenly asked.

“There are over a thousand kinds of herbs here,” Miao Qingfeng said with a smile.

“Over a thousand? So many?”

“Yes, the mountains around us are full of treasures. You also know that Miaojiang’s Miao medicine is very famous. There are unique ways to prepare Miao medicine in this mountain village. If you two have any discomfort, you can tell us and we’ll prescribe several prescriptions for you here. I ensure a full recovery.”

“For real?”

“Of course it is.”

“Well, I’ve been suffering from neck pain recently,” the young man said. “Can you take a look for me and see what’s going on?”

“I don’t know about that. Let’s go. I’ll take you to someone who knows,” Miao Qingfeng replied.

Thwack! Yang Guanfeng slapped the young man on the back of his head.

“Ouch, Captain, what are you doing? Oh, I’m sorry, I’m sorry!”

Miao Qingfeng brought the two of them to a bamboo building. There was an old man in his 60s inside. The old man’s hair was gray, but his spirit was good. He seemed surprised upon seeing that Miao Qingfeng had brought people in, especially people who were dressed so differently.