After the father and daughter cleared the air, Father Xu looked at Xu Jianing with some heartache. "Ning'er, does your leg still hurt?"
"Why didn't you wait for Father to come? You wait, I'll go chop a better bamboo pole right now. Stop kicking with your foot. I thought..."
He didn't finish the rest of his words, and Jianing knew that her Father probably thought she was not right in the head. After all, she had injured her head before.
She could only nod awkwardly.
Worried that her honest Father might reveal their money-making secret, she cautiously instructed him, "Father, for the next few days, let's quietly gather all the chestnuts from the trees. Someone might see and ask you, so you absolutely must not tell them the truth."
"Don't worry, Ning'er, Father knows. Everyone wishes they had nothing to do with our family right now; who would pay attention to our affairs?"
"You wait here. I'll look for a bamboo pole nearby, and also check if those beehives are still there. If they are, I'll bring one or two back."
Xu Jianing nodded in satisfaction and continued picking up the chestnuts on the ground.
Not long after, Father Xu walked toward her, dragging a moderately thick bamboo pole in his left hand and holding two honeycombs in his right.
Seeing him like this, Jianing quickly stepped forward to help carry things. "Father, are you alright? Did those bees sting you?"
Father Xu shook his head at her with a somewhat unnatural expression.
"It's fine, it's fine. Father has been taking out beehives since he was little. At my age now, how could I possibly still get stung by them? Look, is this much honey enough? If not, Father will go find more for you."
"Are you really fine?" Jianing stared at her Father suspiciously.
This look made Father Xu feel a bit uneasy. Why did he feel a little afraid of this Girl now?
Unconsciously touching his slightly aching hands, he had been stung a few times by the bees just now when he was carelessly taking out the honeycombs.
It didn't feel like much at the time, but unexpectedly, it was starting to feel both painful and itchy now. How could he bring himself to say anything and make his child suffer too?
This small movement of his naturally did not escape Xu Jianing's eyes.
Taking him by surprise, Jianing suddenly pulled his hand over and looked at it seriously.
Upon seeing it, she couldn't help but gasp. Both hands were swollen red like a fermented Steamed Bun, making it difficult to even form a fist now.
Seeing that some bee stingers hadn't been dealt with yet, she sighed softly and gently pulled them all out.
After finishing, she accused him angrily, "Father, you lied to me! Look at your hands, they are so swollen, and you still say you're fine?"
Father Xu did not expect Xu Jianing's emotions to be so agitated.
He explained uneasily, "Ning'er, don't be angry. Father was afraid you would worry. It's really fine, look, it doesn't affect my work at all."
To prove that what he said was true, Father Xu picked up the sickle from the Back Basket and began trimming the bamboo pole he had dragged back.
The sweat instantly breaking out on his forehead betrayed his physical discomfort.
Watching him pretend to be unconcerned, smiling at Xu Jianing, and not forgetting to comfort her, "See, I told you I was fine, now you believe it? When Father finishes making the pole, I'll knock down all those chestnuts from the tree for you."
He didn't know that his action made the sensitive Jianing feel terribly upset inside.
She quickly turned away, secretly wiping away her tears. After composing herself, she turned back and said to the busy Father Xu who was looking down, "Father, there's no rush, take your time. I'll go find something nearby."
Fearing Father Xu would refuse, she left quickly after saying this.
Watching her receding back, Father Xu couldn't help but call out loudly, "Ning'er, don't go too far! Be careful, and remember your whistle!"
Jianing was seen turning her head, waving at him, and gradually disappearing from his line of sight.
Marking her path as she went, Jianing was poking around in the grass with a wooden stick.
But after working for a long time, she hadn't found what she was looking for.
Feeling discouraged, she fiercely jabbed the dirt on the ground with the wooden stick. She had been paying attention along the way; why couldn't she find a single useful Herbal Medicine?
Her idea was simple: she just wanted to find some Herbal Medicine to help reduce her Father's swelling.
But she was starting to doubt her own life for failing at such a simple task.
It was ridiculous that she was taking out her frustration on something completely unrelated. What was wrong with her?
Looking at the vegetation on the ground, which was poked into an unrecognizable state, revealing several whisker-like things, she was greatly surprised. Could it be that she had found Ginseng?
To confirm her guess, she carefully continued digging.
Finally, after gently pulling the object out of the soil, she was delighted. Was this what they called finding a blessing in disguise? She had actually found a Ginseng.
However, she didn't have the ability to determine the age of this Ginseng. Suddenly, she thought of something.
She closed her eyes and silently recited in her heart, "Treasure Appraisal Little Meng Beast, quickly tell me, is this thing in my hand Ginseng or not?"
"Congratulations, Master, you have obtained one Thousand-year Ginseng."
"What?" Xu Jianing opened her eyes and exclaimed, "Thousand-year Ginseng? It's actually a Thousand-year Ginseng! I'm going to be rich!"
She danced with joy and spun around three times on the spot.
No, she had to hurry back and tell her Father this great news.
Having made up her mind, she quickly walked back along the markers she had made.
When she found Father Xu, she noticed that the previous chestnut tree was completely bare. Chestnuts were scattered all over the ground.
The two Back Baskets they had brought were now filled to the brim.
Seeing her return, Father Xu said to her with a worried expression, "Ning'er, it's all because Father was too greedy, always thinking of gathering more, but I didn't consider that our Back Baskets couldn't hold that much."
"Now look, there are still so many chestnuts we can't take back. I wonder if someone will notice. How about you wait here, and I'll send these two loads back first, then come back to pick you up?"
Xu Jianing nodded, then shook her head, saying to him with excitement, "Father, don't rush. Let me show you something good."
Saying that, she took out the Ginseng she had just dug up from her bosom and handed it to Father Xu as if presenting a treasure. "Father, look what I found? I dug up a Thousand-year Ginseng. Am I amazing?"
Father Xu was stunned at first. "What? Ginseng?"
"Oh my goodness, Ning'er, is this really Thousand-year Ginseng? This is the first time I've ever seen such a thing. Forget the whole village; even the rich families in the Town rarely have something like this."
We're rich, Jianing's first reaction was that they were about to strike it rich.
She never expected that she would accidentally dig up a Thousand-year Ginseng.