Chapter 170: Celadon Antique? And Mushrooms in Early Winter

The man wasn’t a stranger—it was none other than Zhang Zhigen, the one Li Baiquan, Lin Heng’s uncle-in-law, had mentioned. Since he hadn’t shown up yesterday, Lin Heng thought he wasn’t coming at all.

“What’s up?” Lin Heng stopped and looked at him.

Zhang Zhigen didn’t answer right away. He walked straight up to Lin Heng, glanced at Xiulan, then pulled Lin Heng aside and asked in a low voice, “Hey, I heard you took down a leopard. Do you still have the leopard’s penis?”

Lin Heng nodded. “Yeah, still got it. I only sold a bit of the meat. Didn’t really want to sell the rest—not like it’d fetch much anyway.”

Zhang Zhigen’s eyes lit up. He looked at Lin Heng and said, “I want to buy the leopard’s penis. Name your price.”

Lin Heng glanced at him and smiled. “Uncle Zhang, to be honest, I really don’t want to sell it. This kind of thing is rare—I don’t know if I’ll ever get another one. I was planning to dry it and keep it.”

Zhang Zhigen wasn’t stupid. He quickly caught on—Lin Heng was already well-off and didn’t need the money. And something like a leopard’s penis was a rare find; trying to buy it with cash was a long shot.

He thought for a moment and said, “How about I trade you some antiques? I’ve got a few old items passed down in the family. Maybe you’ll find something you like?”

Lin Heng didn’t immediately agree. He frowned a little. “That could work, but I wouldn’t know if your antiques are real or not.”

Zhang Zhigen patted his chest. “Don’t worry about that. I guarantee they’re at least from the Qing Dynasty—some might even be older.”

Lin Heng thought it over. “Alright then, how about this—I’ll come by your place tomorrow and take a look. We’ll talk then. I’m heading into the mountains today, don’t have time to deal with this right now.”

He wasn’t in any rush—but Zhang Zhigen was.

Truth be told, Lin Heng didn’t think the leopard’s penis had any miraculous effects, but most people believed in it. And if it could fetch a good price, he wasn’t about to say no.

Zhang Zhigen was getting impatient. “Can’t we do it now? I heard the fresher it is, the better. Come take a look at the stuff—I’ll even throw in a little extra for your trouble.”

“No can do. I promised my wife we’d go foraging today. My sister’s got school tomorrow, and there’ll be no one to watch the kid,” Lin Heng shook his head. He wasn’t particularly interested in antiques anyway.

Zhang Zhigen was desperate now. He went straight to Xiulan to plead his case.

Xiulan looked helpless and gave Lin Heng a glance. “Why don’t you just go with Uncle Zhang real quick? His place isn’t far. If you go now and come back quickly, we should still have time.”

Lin Heng had no choice but to nod. “Alright, Uncle Zhang, what all do you want? I’ll bring it with me.”

Zhang Zhigen thought for a moment. “Bring the penis, the balls, and the heart. I want them all.”

Lin Heng looked at him. “No problem, but those three are the best parts of the leopard. They won’t come cheap.”

Zhang Zhigen waved it off. “How about I trade you three antiques for them? You young people sure like to haggle.”

Lin Heng wasn’t offended. He grinned. “Depends on what kind of antiques they are. Different items, different values.”

Zhang Zhigen said, “Let’s put it this way—I’ve got plenty of old stuff. You pick whatever you want. If you’ve got a good eye, you might find something valuable. I don’t even know what they’re worth.”

“That works.” Lin Heng nodded. The three of them went back inside to fetch the leopard’s penis, testicles, heart, and a chunk of meat with bone.

After telling Xiulan, Lin Heng followed Zhang Zhigen to his house, which was halfway up the mountain on the other side of the river. It took them half an hour of climbing to get there.

In front of Zhang Zhigen’s house was a large lotus pond. To the left was a small ravine. The two of them followed the stream up to his place.

His house was a mud-brick structure. Since he was in his forties and still childless, it was just him, his elderly mother, and his wife living there.

“Lin Heng, want a glass of water before we start?” Zhang Zhigen asked.

“I’m in a hurry—better skip the water.” Lin Heng shook his head. He wasn’t thirsty anyway.

Zhang Zhigen didn’t waste any more time. He nodded. “Alright, come upstairs. I’ll show you the stuff.”

Lin Heng set down the leopard parts, and the two of them went up to the second floor of the house. In one of the rooms, Zhang Zhigen showed him the so-called antiques.

There were quite a few—at a glance, at least thirty or forty pieces. Hard to say if that was the full collection.

“All the stuff’s here. Pick any three you like.” Zhang Zhigen handed Lin Heng a flashlight.

“Alright.” Lin Heng took the flashlight and began inspecting the items.

Most of them were pottery—plain and rustic in appearance. There were only about a dozen porcelain pieces, mostly bowls and plates, and four porcelain vases.

Lin Heng looked at the pottery first but didn’t see anything special, so he turned his attention to the porcelain. Most of it was the typical blue-and-white kind, decorated with vivid blue floral patterns—nothing too unique.

He picked up one plate. There was a red seal on the bottom, but he didn’t recognize it. He had no experience with this kind of thing in his past life.

But among them was one plate he did recognize. It was a pale celadon color with a dense network of “cracks” on the surface, making it look broken. But when held, it was smooth and delicate. The color was soothing—like the sky after a spring rain.

He remembered seeing something like it before—supposedly a piece of Ru ware from the Song Dynasty, known to be incredibly valuable.

Still, as a complete amateur, he had no way of telling if it was real.

“I’ll take this one,” Lin Heng said, picking it up.

Since he couldn’t tell real from fake anyway, he might as well go for the prettiest and potentially most valuable one. If it was real—jackpot. If not, well, at least he did a good deed.

“For the other two, I’ll take that vase and that jar.” He pointed to a long-necked, round-bodied vase with a flared mouth, and a plump, round jar.

Both were decorated with blue patterns, different in style from the celadon plate.

“You sure about these three?” Zhang Zhigen asked with a grin.

Lin Heng nodded. “I don’t know much about this stuff—I just picked the ones that looked nice.”

“I don’t know either. No idea where to sell them. If you ever find a buyer, I’ll give you a cut,” Zhang Zhigen chuckled.

Then he grabbed a handful of old coins from the windowsill and handed them to Lin Heng. “These aren’t worth much, but take them for fun.”

“Thanks.” Lin Heng took them and looked them over. The coins were stamped with the characters “Yongzheng Tongbao,” from the Yongzheng era. They were probably real, but he had no idea if they were worth anything.

Back downstairs, Lin Heng wrapped the porcelain pieces carefully in some coarse bristle cloth. Then he looked at Zhang Zhigen and said, “Uncle Zhang, I’d suggest you go to the hospital for a check-up when you have time.”

He still trusted modern medicine more than folk remedies.

“Don’t worry about me,” Zhang Zhigen shook his head.

“Alright then, I’m off.” Lin Heng shrugged. He was just making a suggestion—if the guy didn’t appreciate it, there was nothing he could do.

The way back was all downhill, so he jogged home in just over ten minutes.

Xiulan was surprised to see him back so soon. “That was fast!”

Lin Heng grinned. “Of course. I still want to go foraging. It’s not even ten yet—we’ve got time.”

Caiyun, holding Xiao Xia, said, “Second Brother, let me see the porcelain you brought back.”

Lin Heng nodded and took out the pieces one by one.

Caiyun exclaimed, “These are all so pretty! Even if they’re fake, they’re still a good deal.”

Xiulan picked up the pale celadon plate and said, “This one is really beautiful. Why didn’t you grab a couple more like it?”

Lin Heng shrugged with a smile. “I wanted to, but there was only one.”

“Too bad,” Xiulan said with a hint of regret.

They stored the three porcelain pieces in the bedroom cabinet, then soothed Xiao Xia and grabbed their tools to head out with Xiong Ba.

Xiong Ba led the way, Xiulan walked in the middle, and Lin Heng brought up the rear. This time, there were no delays. They made it all the way to the ridge and entered a tall oak forest.

“Finally found one after walking so far.”

Lin Heng spotted a cluster of yellow-brown mushrooms growing on a dead tree stump. They looked a lot like tea tree mushrooms—dozens sprouting from a single point in tight bunches.

These wild enoki mushrooms, known locally as “winter fungi,” were one of the few types that grew even in winter.

The caps were yellow, with a maximum diameter of about seven centimeters—most were only three or four. The stems had no rings and were covered in fine fuzz.

The morning frost had just melted, making the caps feel sticky to the touch.

Xiulan came over. “You’ve got good luck. I only found a few wood ears.”

Lin Heng grinned. “This isn’t much either—maybe half a pound. I’m guessing someone else already combed through this patch.”

Wild enoki mushrooms taste far better than the cultivated kind—their flavor is richer, the texture smoother, and they don’t get stuck in your teeth. They’re truly a top-notch mushroom.

Xiulan nodded. “Exactly. So let’s just keep an eye out along the way and head farther out.”

With Xiong Ba in tow, the two of them soon arrived at Tongshu Gully. On the way, they picked up a cluster of oyster mushrooms growing on a tree stump—big, white, and easy to spot. These mushrooms grow in bunches, and each cluster weighs at least half a pound, whether it’s enoki or oyster mushrooms.

But on both sides of Tongshu Gully, they didn’t find much. The area should’ve been rich in mushrooms, but it was clear someone had already been through.

“We’ll have to go even farther,” Xiulan said, pouting slightly.

Whenever she went into the mountains, she’d tie her hair into a ponytail that fell over her chest, giving her the charming air of the girl next door.

Lin Heng nodded. “Looks like we have no choice.”

They followed the pine forest trail, heading toward Baishi Gully. The pine needles were slippery, and they kept slipping, needing to use walking sticks to keep their balance.

“Woof woof~~”

Just as they were nearing the top, Xiong Ba barked from about thirty meters ahead on their left.

“What is it?”

Curious, the two of them walked over.

What they saw made them freeze. They’d expected oyster or enoki mushrooms, but instead, they found a patch of morel mushrooms.

“What a pleasant surprise!” Xiulan exclaimed. “And there’s quite a few of them!”

Lin Heng nodded repeatedly. At this time of year, morels were rare. Finding some was truly unexpected.

After picking them all, they ended up with over thirty mushrooms—almost two pounds. Fresh morels would make an amazing mushroom soup or hotpot.

“Good dog! I’ll give you meat when we get home,” Lin Heng said with a grin.

“Woof woof~~”

Xiong Ba spun in place and hugged Lin Heng’s leg, as if saying, “You really are a great master.”

After crossing the mountain, they didn’t search much in the forest. Enoki mushrooms usually grew near gullies, so the chances of finding them higher up weren’t great.

Sometimes Xiong Ba would find something, and they’d rush over to pick it.

They picked up the pace and reached the lower part of Baishi Gully by noon. From there, heading upstream would take them to the spot where they’d previously hunted a yellow muntjac and caught an old softshell turtle.

This area was old-growth forest, filled with thick trees over thirty centimeters in diameter and plenty of fallen logs—prime mushroom territory.

Xiulan pointed to a patch of elm stumps ahead. “Look! So many enoki mushrooms! Looks like no one’s been here yet.”

Lin Heng’s face lit up. “We’ve hit the enoki jackpot!”

They rushed over to gather them. Each cluster weighed at least half a pound, and it was incredibly satisfying to pick them. In no time, they each had over ten pounds—heavy and fragrant.

The rich aroma of the mushrooms was so tempting that Lin Heng could hardly believe how good they’d taste in hotpot.

Xiulan looked at him. “Should we eat a bit now or keep going?”

“Let’s keep going. I’m not that hungry yet,” Lin Heng replied, shaking his head.

They had already agreed: they’d take the left bank going up and the right bank coming back, so they wouldn’t miss anything.

There weren’t many oyster mushrooms around here, and they hadn’t seen any lion’s mane mushrooms either. But enoki mushrooms were everywhere—you could spot a cluster every few meters.

Along the way, Lin Heng also noticed wild boar and muntjac droppings. They weren’t fresh, but probably no more than a month old.

He’d brought a bow and arrows today, clearly hoping to hunt. He kept his eyes and ears open, occasionally hearing birdsong, though it always seemed far off.

The wind in the valley was strong, but since they were constantly on the move, it didn’t feel too cold.

After walking about five or six hundred meters, they reached a large bluestone that offered some shelter from the wind.

“Let’s take a break and eat here. I’m starving,” Xiulan said.

“Sounds good. I’m pretty hungry too,” Lin Heng agreed.

Xiulan had brought meat pies made the day before, filled with leopard and pork meat. They lit a small stove and roasted the pies until they were hot and crispy.

The crust turned golden and crunchy, while the inside stayed soft and juicy. Each bite was packed with savory meat, and the aroma wafted far into the woods.

Xiong Ba sat nearby, staring longingly, practically drooling.

“Here.”

Lin Heng tossed him one, and Xiong Ba caught it mid-air, devouring it in seconds.

Then he looked up at Lin Heng again with those same pleading eyes.

“This is the last one, okay? Work hard this afternoon,” Lin Heng said, tossing him another. Any more and he’d feel too guilty giving them away.

After finishing the pies, Xiulan took out a large water bottle, took a sip, and passed it to Lin Heng.

“Let’s rest a bit before moving on,” Lin Heng said after taking a drink. Their legs were sore from all the hiking.

“Okay.”

Xiulan nodded and leaned gently against Lin Heng’s shoulder.

There wasn’t much to see in early winter, but the quiet, still forest had its own kind of charm—a peaceful, tranquil feeling that they both enjoyed.

After warming themselves by the fire for a while, Lin Heng put it out by peeing on it, then covered it with dirt. They set off again.

Along the way, they kept finding enoki mushrooms, and though it was repetitive, they didn’t mind—these mushrooms were just too delicious.

As they walked, Xiulan suddenly stopped, eyes lighting up as she looked ahead.

“Honey, come quick! I found something amazing!”

Finding something like this in the forest was completely unexpected.

(End of chapter)