Entering The Forest

Shuang woke up early in this morning. She planned to enter the forest this time. She dressed up in a male outfit that Grandma Ren tailored for her using the black textile that she bought from the town last time. She covered half of her face with a piece of black silk and tied her long thick black hair with another piece of black silk.

Father Tao and Grand Uncle Mo were already waiting for her outside when she step out of the house. Mother Shan send them off up to their bamboo gate.

"Father, what are you going to hunt this time?" Shuang asked Father Tao when they started to enter the forest.

"I plan to hunt a wild boar because I can't find any in the three mountains anymore." Father Tao answered. How many days had it been that he always returned home empty handed. Even wild rabbits is hardly to find. He wondered if where did the wild animals go. In the past he could always find and caught easily but later this past few months, the wild animals just suddenly gone which he found it odd. So he will try to find his luck in the forest.

"Father, how big is this forest?" Shuang asked. They still can't find some herbs or flowers in their way. She had decided to collect flowers from the wild to make perfumes.

"I really have no idea. The forest is so big that even I, have not explored it all yet. I have only gone to the outer part and never gone to the inner part. "

" Why is that father? Is the Inner part very dangerous? "Shuang was curious.

"The inner part is very dangerous. Aside from its terrain that full of deep holes, there are a lot of dangerous wild animals in habitant too." This time, It's Mo Fang who answered the girl.

"Really? Are there any tigers and wolves too?" Shuang asked excitedly. She's an animal lover and Tiger and Wolf are her favorite to pet. In her past life, this two animals are parts of their bloody training test before graduating. In order to survive and to continue, you have to deal the very hungry tiger and the crazy wolf in each dungeon. The test is 'Kill or be Killed'. Many of her companions died in that so called training ground.

Mo Fang and Ren Tao were both speechless of her excitement about the Tiger and the Wolf. But Shuang didn't notice the bewildered faces of the two men.

The trio finaly reached the outer part were they can see growing herbs and flowers.

" Finally, I can see flowers." Shuang exclaimed and started plucking flowers around while Ren Tao and Mo Fang were plucking herbs. Each of them has basket on their back. After plucking the flowers and the herbs in the area, the three of them advanced further. The inner they go, the more herbs and flowers they found. They were very excited that the three of them did not notice that they were already entering the first inner part of the forest.

"Woah! So many! And they are so fragrant!" Shuang smelled each of the different colored flowers before she carefully plucked them and put it on her basket.

" Uncle Mo, did you see what I see?" Ren Tao asked.

" I think we both unbelievably see the thing that I see and you see." Mo Fang answered dreamily.

In front of them are the various variety of rare and expensive medicinal herbs that valued from 5 to 20 gold coins each. There are also some herbs that cost 100 to 300 gold coins!

"And did you think what I think?" Mo Fang asked his nephew-in-law.

The two men look at each others eyes brightly. 'With this many herbs, we could finally start to open our own pharmacy.'

The trio were happily collecting the herbs and wild flowers when Shuang suddenly heard a faint noise of animal from the further inner part of the forest.