Chapter 245 (continued)

Zhao Hexi: "I'll go with you. Our ladder is long enough, right?"

Ping Lin: "That's enough. We even brought a ladder over during the day to pick durians. There's no problem."

Zhao Hexi rubbed his hands together. "Then hurry up, can we pick durians from every durian tree?"

Ping Lin: "That's not necessarily true. Every durian ripens at a different rate. I checked during the day and know which durians on which trees are ripe. I'll point you in the right direction."

With Ping Lin there, they quickly found a suitable durian tree.

Ping Lin said, "The durian growing in the middle of the tree is ripe; pick it slowly."

Zhao Hexi volunteered to go up and pick them. "I used to climb trees a lot when I was a kid, I'm very familiar with these things, watch me."

Ping Lin: "It's different here. Be careful when you're picking them, there might be fruit bats on the trees. Don't be surprised if you touch a lizard or gecko."

Zhao Hexi shuddered. "No way, so many small animals?"

Seeing his expression, Ping Lin hesitated, "Why don't I just go and pick it myself?"

Zhao Hexi considered for two seconds, then firmly refused. "I'll do it."

Chu Yanhuan: "He Xi, I'm fine with it too. I can't wait to try durian."

Zhao Hexi leaned the ladder against the tree trunk and asked them to help hold it up, "Don't rush me, I'll be done soon."

Zhao Hexi climbed up the ladder, holding a flashlight in one hand and holding onto the handrail with the other.

As we went up, we did startle a few small animals, but they weren't fruit bats; they looked like birds.

Even so, Zhao Hexi was still startled and almost cried out.

He had no time to carefully observe the durians on the tree; under Ping Lin's direction, he simply picked one of them.

Zhao Hexi got down to the ground, and everyone turned on their flashlights to examine the durian he had picked.

This durian probably weighs only four or five pounds. It's quite well-shaped, round, with long, slightly curved thorns and clear boundaries between them.

Its stem is quite thick, but the bottom side hasn't split open yet, so it seems it's not ripe enough to split open.

Chu Yanhuan reached out and pinched the sharp thorns of the durian. "You can pinch it, so it looks ripe."

Qing Mengzhu: "The aroma is quite strong; it should be ripe."

Ping Lin: "Yes, apart from a few durians that are already ripe enough to split open, most durians are at this level of ripeness. I'll open it."

Ping Lin was quite familiar with durians. He took a small knife, pried it open from the bottom of the durian, and then broke it open.

As soon as the durian is opened, its rich, fruity aroma immediately wafts out.

Qing Mengzhu held out her palm and compared it to the durian flesh. "I didn't expect that such a small durian would have such plump flesh and such a thin skin."

Ping Lin: "I asked the technician before, and he said that well-managed durians look like this."

Zhao Hexi: "Is this durian ripe? It smells so good, is it ready to eat?"

Qing Mengzhu: "Eat, eat, eat."

The durians were divided among everyone. Each piece was perfectly ripe, feeling somewhat dry to the touch, but the flesh inside was soft.

Qing Mengzhu took a bite of the durian flesh and could clearly feel a thin layer of rind on the outside of the durian flesh. After breaking through the rind, the dense and sweet durian flesh inside came out.

The durian flesh is incredibly smooth, with a texture like a cloud when you bite into it. Every bite is rich, sweet, and fragrant, with the aroma and flavor fully enveloping everyone's nose and mouth.

Qing Mengzhu has tasted many kinds of desserts, including some made by master chefs.

No dessert is as silky and creamy as durian flesh, sweet but not cloying, making it irresistible.

He didn't even have time to savor the durian before it was quickly devoured.

Qing Mengzhu opened her eyes, looking longingly at the empty durian shell.

It was obvious that everyone hadn't had enough to eat.

Zhao Hexi, still wanting more, said, "This durian is so delicious! I've never had such a good durian before. It's so fragrant and sweet. Can I have another one?"

Zhou Yan: "Natural durians are indeed delicious, and the aroma of freshly picked durians is even more complex; I can hardly distinguish all the different aromas inside."

Chu Yanhuan raised his hand. "I haven't had enough either, I'd like another one."

Qing Mengzhu and Ming Chunxi exchanged a glance, and Qing Mengzhu readily agreed, "Then let's have one more."

Ping Lin: "There's only one ripe durian on this tree. If we want to pick another, we'll go pick one from the tree next to it."

The durian we just ate was delicious, and everyone has great faith in Ping Lin's durian-identifying skills.

Hearing him say that, Zhao Hexi and Chu Yanhuan took the initiative to carry the ladder and follow behind him, wanting to pick more ripe durians.

The second durian they picked also weighed only five or six pounds, and was round and rather small.

This durian was also fully ripe, but it hadn't split open yet.

Ping Lin used the same method, inserting and prying with a knife, and successfully opened the durian.

The flesh of this durian is also dry on the outside and soft and juicy on the inside.

Qing Mengzhu and the others took a bite, and the exquisite sweetness lingered in their mouths.

The difference was that after taking a bite, everyone looked up with strange expressions, and Zhao Hexi and Chu Yanhuan even let out a "Huh?"

Qing Mengzhu said, "This durian tastes a little different from the last one?"

Zhou Yan: "This durian has a more mellow and fragrant flavor, with a rich, aged quality like fine wine."

Meeting everyone's gaze, Zhou Yan carefully chose his words: "I didn't mean it tastes like alcohol. I mean, it's incredibly sweet and intoxicating, with a very rich aroma, and it gives you a slightly tipsy feeling."

Ming Chunxi said, "It's a bit like the rich, creamy texture of fat, like the taste of chocolate."

Zhou Yan: "Yes, it has a slightly fatty feel, like the best cheese. It's not the smell, it's the feeling."

Qing Mengzhu understood a little. "You mean, it's not bland like ordinary fruit, but rather rich and flavorful, with a lingering aftertaste."

Zhou Yan took another bite of durian and carefully savored it. "It's still not quite right. This feeling is something that can only be understood intuitively, I can't explain it."

Ming Chunxi agreed, "That's exactly the feeling."

The two durians had two different flavors.

Qing Mengzhu looked up and said, "Let's pick another one and see if the third durian will have a third flavor?"

Zhao Hexi was the first to respond, "Pick, pick, pick! I feel like I could eat three, four, five, or even more!"

He had completely digested the roasted sweet potato and milk tea he ate and drank before driving here, and now he was so hungry he could eat a whole cow.

Ping Lin said, "There should be another ripe durian on this durian tree. I'll pick one for you."

This time, no one tried to take it from Ping Lin; they let him climb the tree to pick the durians.

Ping Lin quickly picked the durians, opened them again, and let everyone taste them.

The newly opened durian was indeed subtly different from the previous two.

Although all three durians were fragrant, sweet, and incredibly smooth, their aromas differed.

The durian had a wonderful nutty aroma, though they couldn't quite place which nut it was.

Everyone held the durian and savored it carefully. Even after finishing, the fragrance lingered in their mouths, and all they could utter was praise.

So, they naturally picked the fourth durian.

The fourth durian indeed had a different aroma, and tasted somewhat like the second durian, but not exactly the same.

Qing Mengzhu looked up at the durian tree in the darkness. "Just like opening a blind box, every single one is a surprise."

Ping Lin said, "I heard that in the place where durians originated, their wild durians look like this, and each durian has a different flavor."