Rebirth in 1984, starting from beekeeping in the mountains

Chapter 2 Mashiling, luring bees
Fang Hongan, carrying a bamboo basket and holding a hoe, walked out of the small earthen brick house as Lan Wenxiu watched.

This small village is called Shiwan Village. Except for a bay to the southeast, the other three sides are surrounded by mountains. There are about 150 households in the village and the population is just over 500.

Excluding the women who married into the village, the vast majority of villagers were surnamed Fang or Xie, with Fang being the most common.

Houses in those days were not built along the road like in later generations. Houses were relatively concentrated, and most were made of blue bricks and tiles. However, there were also many "rich families" who had already built red brick houses. There were only a few earthen brick houses like Fang Hongan's, and... most of them were used to keep livestock such as pigs, cows, and sheep.

Because they were so close, Fang Hongan was noticed by many people as soon as he went out in this outfit.

"Hey! Hongan! Are you going to go up the mountain to dig kudzu?"

As he walked along, many people greeted Fang Hongan in a similar way.

The tone of voice varies, some are caring, and some are simply greetings.

Others have a sarcastic and mocking tone.

Digging kudzu refers to digging kudzu roots.

Pueraria root is the root of wild kudzu vine, which looks a bit like cassava and yam. It has a relatively high starch content. It can be dug and ground into powder or peeled and cooked directly.

Nowadays, the loss of flour is too great if it is ground into powder, so most of it is used for cooking.

After being boiled, the kudzu root pieces become hard and stringy, and their texture and taste are far inferior to those of Chinese yam, but they can satisfy hunger, so when food is scarce, many people will go up the mountain to dig kudzu.

That's why those people spoke with sarcasm.

Last year, most families in Shiwan Village suffered poor harvests. Since early spring, there has been an endless stream of people going up the mountain to dig kudzu.

I'm afraid all the kudzu roots within five miles have been dug out.

It is really too late to go up the mountain to dig at this time.

Fang Hongan walked along with a smile on his face.

Be it concern or ridicule, these are not what he cares about at the moment.

As for the fact that he didn't go up the mountain to dig kudzu this time, he was too lazy to explain.

Fang Hongan followed the main road out of the village and turned onto a small path, then walked towards the area called Mashiling.

Mashiling is nearly three miles away from Shiwan Village by mountain road. The ridge is mostly covered with rocks and prickly moss (a thorny shrub-like plant commonly seen in rural areas and wild areas). There is no kudzu root to dig and it is not suitable for grazing cattle and sheep. There is even no firewood to harvest.

In Shiwan Village, Mashiling is not a popular place.

However, Fang Hongan knew very well that the real "treasure" was hidden among the rocks under the thorny moss!
That's why he came.

Three miles may not seem long, but because it is a mountain road, Fang Hongan was in a hurry. By the time he climbed up the ridge, beads of sweat were already hanging on Fang Hongan's forehead.

Without taking time to wipe the sweat off his face or rest, Fang Hongan put down the backpack, took out a peeling enamel cup from it, and then took out a small glass bottle filled with amber liquid.

Pour a small amount of the amber liquid in the glass bottle into the enamel cup.

Fang Hongan was extremely careful throughout the whole process.

The bottle contained nothing else but the honey that Fang Hongan's aunt had specially sent to Lan Wenxiu to nourish her body two months ago after she learned that Lan Wenxiu was pregnant.

However, Lan Wenxiu has always been reluctant to drink it. Almost two months have passed, and there is still a lot left.

This time, in order to find the treasure in Fang Hongan's heart, I brought some here as bait.

Since it is bait, it is enough to use it, and don't waste it.

After tightening the bottle cap, Fang Hongan took out the kettle and filled the enamel cup with half water. Then he looked around and quickly found a relatively open and ventilated area. He walked over and dipped his hand in the honey water in the enamel cup and sprinkled it on the stones and thatch.

Afterwards, Fang Hongan pulled a grass root and chewed it in his mouth, then leaned in the shade under a rock nearby and waited patiently.

It is not that hot in the mountains in May, and there are gusts of breeze on the hills.

The honey water that was spilled spread quickly in the breeze. Fang Hongan leaned to the side and could faintly smell the alluring sweetness in the air. After swallowing for a while, Fang Hongan stared at the areas where the honey water was spilled.

As we all know, human sense of smell is not particularly good in the animal kingdom. Not to mention dogs, even the sense of smell of most insects is far more sensitive than that of humans.

Under Fang Hongan's gaze, some black figures were already moving in the areas where the honey water was splashed.

Most of them are ants, with some beetles mixed in.

Fang Hongan remained unmoved, these... were not his goals.

He shifted his gaze upward, looking towards the sky.

His aim was in the air.

Or, to be more precise, the target he was waiting for was flying over from the air.

Fang Hongan didn't have to wait too long. About three minutes later, several small black dots appeared in his field of vision. Their flying speed was not very fast. When they came closer, he could faintly hear the "buzzing" sound of their wings vibrating.

"coming!"

Fang Hongan's body shook, and there was suddenly a light in his eyes!

The size, the way it flew, and the buzzing sound of the logo.

Fang Hongan was already certain that the few small black dots flying over were the wild bees he was looking for.

Bees love to eat nectar and are extremely sensitive to sweet things. According to Fang Hongan's experience in his previous life, this method of splashing honey water to attract bees can even attract bees as far as one kilometer away.

Of course, Fang Hongan’s goal in splashing honey water to lure the bees was not to catch them.

There have been no beekeepers in Shiwan Village in recent decades.

The bees in the mountains and fields are all native wild bees. Wild bees build nests in the mountains, and in the hives there is wild honey that is extremely precious in this era!
Fang Hongan’s target this time is these honeys.

Sweets are a rarity these days.

This is especially true with natural honey.

Not only can you easily exchange it for rice, you can also take it to the state-owned purchasing station to sell it for money.

This is also the best solution Fang Hongan can think of to solve the current predicament.

However, if you want to get honey, you must first find a beehive.

Wild bee hives are mostly found in cracks in the soil and rocks, with entrances and exits quite hidden.

Searching for it with the naked eye on this mountain covered with rocks, weeds and thorny moss is like looking for a needle in a haystack.

Therefore, we have to find the key "guide".

And these bees that have been lured here are the best candidates to be the "guides".

Sprinkling honey water to attract bees is the first step in Fang Hongan’s plan.

buzzing...

Soon after the first batch of bees arrived, more waves of bees came with the sound of wing vibrations increasing.

This area splashed with honey water has become a happy foraging ground.

Fang Hongan noticed that among the dancing swarm of bees, some had already started to take off and fly away from this area.

Fang Hongan stood up suddenly and prepared to start the second step of his plan...

(End of this chapter)