"Yue'er, which is better, Liangshu's lingzhi mushroom or my Black Spirit Ginseng?" Xu Yuqing asked impatiently, jealous, afraid that Zhong Liangshu's superior lingzhi mushroom would outshine her previously found Black Spirit Ginseng.
"They are comparable, both are excellent," Huangfu Yue saw the look in Xu Yuqing's eyes and knew she was jealous and anxious. She complained inwardly for a moment before replying with a smile.
"Then how should we rank them? Who is first? Currently, only you and Liangshu have found the best items, capable of winning first place," Xu Yuqing said.
"For now, you are tied for first place. Once we reach the mountaintop and no one has found anything better than you, we will ask Grandmother to decide whose is superior and who should take first place. How about that?" Huangfu Yue suggested after some thought.
Xu Yuqing and Zhong Liangshu exchanged glances and nodded together, seemingly in agreement and without objection, though Xu Yuqing did have objections.
She huffed indignantly in her heart. What was this about being tied for first place? Her Black Spirit Ginseng was clearly better, and she should be first. Why did it feel like Huangfu Yue was favoring Zhong Liangshu?
Unfortunately, she was currently poisoned by this little vixen and had to be wary of her. Otherwise, she would have made a scene and ensured that first place belonged only to her.
"Let's go. There's still some distance to the mountaintop, and we need to reach it before evening," Huangfu Yue said, pointing towards the summit.
Everyone agreed in unison and followed Huangfu Yue, climbing higher, setting off towards the mountaintop once more.
As they climbed, they searched for edible items and precious medicinal herbs. However, this time they dared not scatter and followed closely behind Huangfu Yue, continuing their ascent.
Without Huangfu Yue's permission, they did not dare to spread out to search.
"There's a stream over there, with fish in it. Let's catch some fish and take them to the mountaintop to roast and eat later."
After climbing for the time it takes two incense sticks to burn, Huangfu Yue spotted a stream, the very same one she had seen through Little Black's eyes from the carriage. Delighted, she led everyone towards it.
Upon reaching the stream, they found the water incredibly clear, with many fish swimming playfully. Everyone was happy and immediately began catching fish.
The men could go into the water, and many did so to catch fish. The stream was shallow, making it easy to catch fish once in the water.
The women found it inconvenient to enter the water, and even more so for the ladies like Zhu Jiayi. So, Huangfu Yue taught them how to make fishing spears and stand by the stream to spear fish.
Huangfu Xuan and his sisters were still young, and the adults naturally did not feel at ease letting them enter the water. Therefore, Huangfu Yue also taught them how to make fishing spears and stand by the stream to spear fish.
Fearing that Grand Consort Zheng might feel lonely watching the young people catch fish if she didn't join in, Huangfu Yue insisted she also try her hand at it. She made her a fishing spear and taught her and the younger ones how to catch fish. Zhu Jiayi and others who didn't know how to catch fish also followed along to learn.
Huangfu Yue's instructions were simple and easy to understand. Under her guidance, everyone soon caught fish, and Grand Consort Zheng also caught one – a black fish weighing over two jin.
The elder was extremely happy, beaming with joy.
"Although I fished in the imperial garden's fish pond when I was in the palace, I never managed to catch anything. I never expected to catch fish with this simple fishing spear made of branches."
Grand Consort Zheng gazed at the fish she had speared herself not long ago, a hint of elation in her eyes.
"Grandmother, you've surely never roasted fish before, right? When we get to the mountaintop later, you can roast the fish you caught. I'll teach you how..."
"When I tell you about roasting a fish you caught yourself, you'll feel a great sense of accomplishment when you eat it," Huangfu Yue said with a smile, leaning closer to Grand Consort Zheng.
Grand Consort Zheng nodded, "Alright."
A flicker of anticipation shone in the elder's eyes.
She was quite eager to try roasting fish herself. As her granddaughter said, she had never roasted fish before.
She wondered if roasting fish would be as enjoyable as catching it herself?
She found catching fish quite interesting, it felt rather fun.
It had been many years since she had found anything interesting or fun.
Speaking of which, picking mulberries earlier had also been quite interesting and fun.
"Since everyone has caught fish, let's leave and continue climbing to the mountaintop," Huangfu Yue said, looking at the fish in everyone's hands.
"Okay," the crowd responded.
Huangfu Yue immediately led the large group to set off again, continuing their climb. After another twenty-odd minutes, they finally reached the summit. During this time, under Huangfu Yue's leadership, they searched for food and medicinal herbs once more and rested for a few minutes.
"We've finally reached the mountaintop!" many cheered happily.
"The scenery from the summit is truly magnificent!" someone praised. "The view is excellent."
"Looking down from the mountaintop is so beautiful!" someone exclaimed.
Huangfu Yue carefully surveyed everything on the summit and then looked down, nodding.
Indeed, the scenery from the summit was excellent, very beautiful, with a great view. Looking down from the summit was a breathtaking sight.
Moreover, the air on the summit was particularly good.
"It was worth the effort and hard work to climb up here. This scenery is truly unparalleled," Grand Consort Zheng also scrutinized everything on the summit, then gazed down at the mountain, sighing with admiration.
"Grandmother, you must be tired. Please sit down and rest," Huangfu Yue said as she approached Grand Consort Zheng, taking a Grand Tutor's chair from her spatial dimension for the elder to sit on.
She then took out a large number of chairs from her spatial dimension for the others to sit on. She also brought out several tables and asked everyone to place what they had found on them to see what everyone had discovered.
Everyone immediately complied, placing everything they had found onto the tables. After Huangfu Yue quickly reviewed them, she announced the winners. Zhong Liangshu took first place, much to Xu Yuqing's discontent.
"Why is Liangshu first?" Why isn't it me?
"Because Sister-in-law San found the best items," Huangfu Yue said, looking at Xu Yuqing, rolling her eyes internally.
"Didn't you say that the Black Spirit Ginseng I found earlier was as good as the lingzhi mushroom she found?" Xu Yuqing exclaimed slightly agitatedly, her face full of indignation.
"But you only found the Black Spirit Ginseng... oh, and you also caught a fish. However, Sister-in-law San also found mushrooms, wood ear fungus, and wild fruits, and she speared two fish. Her items are more than yours, so naturally, she is first," Huangfu Yue explained.
Upon hearing this, Xu Yuqing remained unconvinced and wanted to object further, but she received a signal from Jiang Shangyun, telling her to let it go.
Xu Yuqing hesitated for a moment, thinking about the poison in her body, and bit her lip. Finally, she decided to follow Jiang Shangyun's advice and endure it.
"Sister-in-law Er, although you are not first, you can be second," Huangfu Yue said.
She actually didn't want to award Xu Yuqing second place, as she didn't want to give her the nine hundred taels of prize money for second place. However, the Black Spirit Ginseng she found was the best after Zhong Liangshu's, and no one could compare. Despite disliking her, she had to treat her fairly and award her second place.
When Xu Yuqing heard that she was second, and realized she would receive a substantial amount of money, her furrowed brow immediately relaxed, and the gloom in her heart vanished, replaced by a smile.