Chapter 74 (continued)

Zhao Hexi: "I never imagined that fresh bamboo juice came from there. It's really not easy to get some fresh bamboo juice."

The old man said, "That's right, so now basically no one makes it; if you want to drink it, you have to make it yourself."

Zhao Hexi suddenly remembered, "That's not right, is it? I've seen fresh bamboo sap at the pharmacy too."

The old man scoffed, "That fresh bamboo juice isn't pure; it's just concentrated water boiled with bamboo. It's not the same as our fresh bamboo juice."

Qing Mengzhu: "Now many are compound fresh bamboo juice formulas. It's possible that some of the fresh bamboo juice is concentrated with the water used to boil bamboo, and then other medicinal materials are added."

Zhao Hexi sighed, "It sounds like things are going to get complicated."

Qing Mengzhu: "The cost of making fresh bamboo sap like we do is too high. That kind of fresh bamboo sap is also effective."

The old man said, "It has only a slight effect, and it doesn't make me feel well after drinking it."

They guarded the bamboo, waiting until the fresh bamboo sap inside was almost roasted before replacing it with fresh bamboo.

After waiting for a long time, the bowls were still only half full, and not much fresh bamboo juice had been extracted.

Qing Mengzhu replaced the bowl with a new one, then replaced the bowl containing the fresh bamboo juice with another large bowl covered with gauze, and filtered the fresh bamboo juice into the large bowl.

Fresh bamboo juice is roasted, so it contains some ash; it needs to be filtered before drinking.

Zhao Hexi couldn't wait any longer. "Can I try this fresh bamboo juice?"

Qing Mengzhu asked the old man, "Can I drink it even if I don't cough much?"

The old man said, "Yes, but don't drink too much, or you'll get a cold."

Zhao Hexi: "I cough, why don't I cough? My throat wasn't feeling too good when I woke up this morning, I really need to clear it."

The old man said, "It's okay to drink it in this situation."

Qing Mengzhu then poured a small bowl of the filtered fresh bamboo juice for Zhao Hexi to drink, and asked Ming Chunxi beside her, "Do you want some?"

Ming Chunxi: "I won't drink, you drink some yourself."

Even drinking water couldn't shut Zhao Hexi up; he nodded repeatedly beside him, "Yes, yes, Mengzhu, your voice is a little hoarse too, you can try some."

Qing Mengzhu said, "Don't talk nonsense, my voice is perfectly clear!"

As they spoke, Qing Mengzhu and Ming Chunxi exchanged a glance, their expressions somewhat subtle.

Qing Mengzhu's voice is indeed a little hoarse occasionally, but it has nothing to do with internal heat.

Neither Zhao Hexi nor the old man noticed their expressions.

After drinking about half a bowl, Zhao Hexi sighed, "I must say, it really makes me feel better, and the tightness in my chest doesn't feel like it anymore."

Qing Mengzhu: "How could it possibly work so quickly? It's purely a placebo effect."

The old man replied, "The remedies passed down from our ancestors are naturally good. When we were young, if children coughed up yellow phlegm in autumn and winter, we would go up the mountain to cut bamboo and boil fresh bamboo sap. After the children drank it, they would get better. It's better than giving them medicine."

Hearing this familiar explanation, Qing Mengzhu smiled with mixed feelings.

They boiled three bundles of bamboo to make several large bowls of fresh bamboo sap.

Qing Mengzhu filtered the contents, filled a thermos for the old man, and put the rest into a sealed jar. She then steamed the jar in a pot, let it cool naturally, and stored it in the refrigerator.

Fresh bamboo sap treated in this way should keep for up to two weeks in the refrigerator.

With lunchtime approaching, the old man didn't linger at their house. He happily took his thermos and hailed a taxi to find his son.

Qing Mengzhu watched the old man's retreating figure with envy in her eyes.

As he was looking, a hand pressed on his shoulder, and when he turned his head, he saw Ming Chunxi's face was inches away from his.

Ming Chunxi pressed down on his shoulder and led him into the house. "Dinner's ready, I just made stir-fried chicken."

Qing Mengzhu: "Was it made with the sauce Brother Zhou gave me?"

Ming Chunxi: "Can you smell the fragrance?"

Qing Mengzhu nodded. "I can smell it, it smells wonderful!"

As he spoke, Qing Mengzhu had already forgotten the envy he once felt; now he had a family too.

While the bamboo juice was still hot, the old man went straight to Qing Xun's company.

Qing Xun was touched but also a little reproachful. "Aren't you tired of running around like this?"

The old man said, "Hey, if it weren't for you, would I be doing this? Drink it while it's hot; I specially put it in a thermos, it's more effective when it's hot."

Qing Xun opened the thermos and poured half a cup. "This fresh bamboo juice is really good, it's a greenish-yellow color and looks so clear."

The old man said, "We brewed and filtered it ourselves, how could it not be clear?"

Qing Xun drank half a cup in one gulp, then closed the thermos, put his arm around the old man's shoulder, and said with a grin, "That's so nice, my dad still thinks of me the most."

The old man's eyes also held a smile, "Who else would I think of if not you? How about that? Did it work?"

Qing Xun patted his chest. "Yes, I feel much better after drinking it. My lungs feel so much more relaxed."

The old man became worried again. "Is your lung still feeling tight? Have you been to the hospital?"

Qing Xun: "I went to the doctor, and he said it's nothing serious, just a cough and a fever."

As he spoke, Qing Xun glanced reluctantly at the thermos. "If only Mengzhu's family knew how to brew and sell fresh bamboo sap, it would be great. Selling it outside doesn't seem to have any effect, it's a pity they're just wasting the name of fresh bamboo sap."

The old man said, "Mengzhu has only just started planting bamboo, how could he bear to cut it down to make fresh bamboo sap? I had to swallow my pride and ask him for this little bit of fresh bamboo sap."

Qing Xun: "Then his family can give it a try in the future. His fresh bamboo juice is really good. If they make it and sell it, even if the price is a bit higher, there will definitely be a lot of people willing to buy it."

The old man's heart skipped a beat. "Let me remind him, it's definitely better than selling bamboo."

Qing Xun: "Exactly. It's easy to get a health food business license these days. I see his company has a lot of projects, so we could give it a try."

The old man said, "Okay, I'll talk to him about it later."

The old man had many things to worry about and was afraid he wouldn't remember, so after having dinner with his son, he immediately called Qing Mengzhu to tell him about his son's suggestion.

The old man knew his family's treasures very well. "I think your lotus seeds are quite good; they should sell well as a health tea. And your Gastrodia elata from the mountain—isn't it growing well? You could process it into Gastrodia elata cakes or something. The fresh bamboo sap is also good; if you're willing, you shouldn't have to worry about sales."

"Take advantage of the free time now and get the certificate done. That way you won't have to rush when you need it later. Even if you don't need it, getting the certificate isn't a big deal."

Qing Mengzhu's heart stirred, and she thought she could really give it a try in the future.

The bamboo in his yard is Superior Grade Cloud Mirror Bamboo. Although it is currently being treated with Growth Liquid and its quality is not yet at the Superior Grade, it is still better than most bamboo on the market.

If we actually sell fresh bamboo sap in the future, we'll definitely be able to open up the market.

The quality of food that goes into our mouths is paramount; consumers can immediately tell whether it's good or bad by tasting it.

Qing Mengzhu told Ming Chunxi about this.

Ming Chunxi agreed, "Let's find someone to handle it. It's a good opportunity to market health gift sets later, which sell better than regular agricultural products and fetch a higher price."

Qing Mengzhu nodded. "That's what I was thinking too. We can make lotus seed soup with white fungus and lotus seeds, similar to bird's nest soup. Auntie mentioned before that lotus seeds are quite nourishing and can beautify the skin."

Ming Chunxi: "Her complexion did look much better after she ate lotus seed soup."

Qing Mengzhu: "Then let's give it a try. We happen to have over two hundred catties of dried lotus seeds left. I'll see if we can sell a gift set around the Mid-Autumn Festival, so the quality of the lotus seeds won't deteriorate if they're stored for too long."

Agricultural products are better when they are fresh; the longer they are stored, the worse their quality becomes, even for things as easy to preserve as lotus seeds.

Qing Mengzhu had kept the lotus seeds to use as seed, but recently Ji Qinglin and Wu Tianqing reported that the lotus flowers grown from their seeds were of unstable characteristics. They said that if they were to transplant them, it would be better to use rhizomes instead, so he gave up the idea of propagating the lotus seeds.

Next year, we'll transplant lotus roots to the newly rented pond again, and we'll just use up these lotus seeds as food.

Qing Mengzhu also discussed this plan with Zhao Hexi.

Zhao Hexi slapped his thigh. "I think that's a good idea. We can take this opportunity to build up our marketing department and train them gradually. We should also open our online store. Don't worry about whether we have anything to sell yet, just open it first, so we won't be scrambling when we need to sell something later."