Every day is one step closer to reality

Chapter 5 Xiaofeng Mountain

The driver just thought Feng Yi was pretty good-looking, a bit like those young people who are popular in the entertainment industry now. In fact, he couldn't tell which one was which, they all looked the same to him. Recently, he heard that a celebrity came to Yangcheng to film a program, so he asked more.

Feng Yi said he was not a celebrity, and he believed him.

That's right, how come a celebrity can't even get a taxi?

I heard that some celebrities are picked up and dropped off wherever they go. Moreover, no celebrities would go to a place like Xiaofengshan, right?

Therefore, the thought "Am I transporting a celebrity?" floated around in the driver's mind and then flew away.

"Why are you going to Xiaofeng Mountain? For scientific research? To shoot videos? Or for adventure? A few Internet celebrities have been there to shoot videos in the past two years, but the experience was not very good, and no one goes there now. Yes." the driver said.

"Looking for someone." Feng Yi saw that the driver talked a lot, and wanted to get more information from him.

"What's on Xiaofeng Mountain? This is my first time going there." Feng Yi asked.

"There are snakes. It's said to be Snake Mountain. Even the birds don't build nests there. Oh, there are also many companies related to agriculture and animal husbandry there, and there are large areas of farmland and pasture at the foot of the mountain."

"Then if I want to go up the mountain, I can only walk?" Feng Yi asked again.

"Not necessarily. I heard that there seem to be people living on the mountainside over there, and there are cars going up and down the mountain. I'm not sure about the details. If you are lucky, you can meet a car going up the mountain. Just pay some money and let them take you a ride. I Listen to what others say.”

"What should I pay attention to when going there?" Feng Yi opened the memo on his phone and prepared to write down the driver's words.

"What should you pay attention to?" the driver said, "Bring more food with you when you go up the mountain. Don't touch the things in the wild if you can. You don't know if they are poisonous or not. There are also animals. Don't go there no matter how curious you are. Damn it, the security drones there are everywhere, and they patrol every day anyway, the time is variable."

Thinking of something, the driver added: "In June last year, three boys who were in the first year of high school came here to explore from out of town. They secretly carried a bunch of things up the mountain to have a buffet barbecue and were going to catch snakes. No one was there. The plane detected the source of the fire and flew over to catch it.

"Later, those three were arrested and sent to education. They had to take exams, such as secret forest management papers, ten sets of animal protection and so on. They were admitted only after passing the exams."

"What about animal protection?" Feng Yi didn't hear clearly.

"'Forest Management Secret Volume', 'Ten Sets of Animal Protection', these are our joking terms, which refer to forest law, fire prevention regulations, wild fire source management measures, etc., referred to as forest management. Animal protection refers to animal protection, For those related to ecological and environmental protection, an expert summarized ten sets of test questions. Later I heard that the three children with an average height of 1.8 meters cried when they took the test papers!"

Feng Yi suddenly realized and wrote down the key words.

The driver continued, "Anyway, that's a protected area. Don't touch any animals on the mountain. Don't worry about snakes, birds, and frogs. Just treat them as protected animals. Just stay away for safety reasons. If you're not careful, There will be trouble if you are killed or injured. Just remember one sentence - one is illegal, ten are punished."

"This... is a bit exaggerated. What if you encounter a mouse? You can't fight it? There have been many rats infestation recently." Feng Yi asked.

"Are you kidding me? Are there rats on Snake Mountain? Snakes are the natural enemies of rats! The king of Xiaofeng Mountain is the King Jin Snake, which is very fierce at swallowing rats. The rats there have long been confiscated and exterminated!

"Do you know why there are still people living on the mountainside of Xiaofeng Mountain? The people living there have to feed them! Rats have to be transported from other places every once in a while, otherwise the snakes isolated in the reserve will starve to death."

"Oh yes, the King Jin Snake eats mice." Feng Yi nodded, "And it's non-toxic."

The driver smacked his mouth again, "The King Snake is the cauliflower snake that many people call it. We also call it the King Snake here. A long time ago, it was actually raised for food..."

"I'm not allowed to eat it now." Feng Yi said.

Driver: “My grandparents’ generation used to say, ‘It’s a three-point crime not to hit a snake when you see it’.”

Feng Yi: "Now it's 'one violation and ten punishments'?"

"Absolutely." The driver sighed, "Okay, why can the climate change so easily and so many animals die so easily?"

Feng Yi was silent. He didn't know how to answer this.

During the climate abnormality period of the past two decades, too many animals and plants disappeared, common ones became endangered, and endangered ones became functionally extinct.

Those who support the strictest protection laws do not necessarily have compassion for those animals and plants, nor do they necessarily have any awareness of ecological environmental protection. They regard mass extinction events as early warnings. The living conditions of animals and plants are also indicators of the human living environment and are the data that the sixth database needs to collect.

Therefore, "data" must be protected. This is shared consciousness.

The atmosphere in the car was a little heavy.

It's just this heaviness that starts to stir again as we get closer and closer to our destination.

There are fewer and fewer buildings on both sides of the road, and more and more warning signs, including ones with phone numbers printed on them.

The driver said: "If you see a snake outside the quarantine area, call the phone number on the warning sign. It is very likely that the snake is in the protected area and has escaped."

Feng Yi saw the isolation belt pulled up not far away, and the further he walked, the closer the road was to the isolation zone.

This was already within the scope of Xiaofeng Mountain. Feng Yi could see a snake standing slightly on a big rock in the isolation zone and looking at them, as if looking at a loach that had strayed into the group of snakes.

The further you go, the closer you are to the isolation zone, and the more you can see the figures crawling on the edge of the isolation zone.

"There are indeed a lot of snakes here."

Feng Yi turned pale.

The driver was fine. It wasn’t his first time here, so it wasn’t surprising. “They just like to get to the edge of the isolation belt and watch the passing vehicles and pedestrians.”

"So brave?"

"This kind of snake is generally very courageous and ferocious. Now that no one dares to eat them, they are becoming more and more arrogant. Okay, here we are!"

The driver parked the car at the designated location, and Feng Yi had to walk up the road behind him. Outside vehicles were not allowed to go up the mountain.

Seeing that Feng Yi was tense, the driver patted Feng Yi on the shoulder and said, "Don't be afraid, it's just a cauliflower snake."

Feng Yi was not comforted.

Cauliflower Blossoms Everywhere might just be a local drama, but Cauliflower Blossoms Everywhere and Snakes Everywhere is a horror movie!

The driver looked around the parking lot and parked the car in the smoking area. I don’t dare to smoke while driving on the road. Xiaofengshan has set up a special smoking area without getting out of the car.

Lighting a cigarette, the driver watched Feng Yi put on his equipment.

Just armed to the teeth.

Smiling, the driver said: "We have an old saying here, 'A golden snake is king within a mile, and there are no poisonous snakes within ten miles.'"

There are two types of sentences when listening to something:

There are no venomous snakes in ten miles - there are no venomous snakes in this place.

Shili/Nonvenomous Snakes – Snakes are everywhere here! It's just that they're not poisonous.

In fact, they are all the same!

The driver said: "Although it sounds exaggerated, Wang Jinshe also eats snakes. You have to believe that the foodie's strength is unquestionable."

Feng Yi twitched his lips: "Thank you, master, you are really good at comforting people!"

The driver smiled and shook his head, "You said you are so afraid of snakes, what are you doing here? Aren't you looking for abuse?"

Feng Yi said quietly: "Life is not easy."

These words instantly touched the driver's point of abuse. He held a cigarette in his mouth and looked at the vicissitudes of life: "It's not easy."

Feng Yi asked: "Aren't you afraid of snakes?"

Driver: “What am I afraid of if I don’t get out of the car?”

Feng Yi: "..." That makes so much sense.

Driver: "As long as I'm in the car, no snake can sneak into my car! I won't even go to the toilet! I'll find a place to deal with it when I leave here."

Feng Yi: "...so rigorous."

Driver: "We also have a saying here, 'When there is thunder during the Jingzhe, insects and snakes swarm.' After this year's Jingzhe, the old people said that there might be more insects and snakes this year than last year. Now that the weather is getting warmer, there are more snakes and snakes on the mountains." There are indeed more rats and ants, so be careful.”

"Thank you, master. Master, please leave your phone number. I will contact you when I return and add money." Feng Yi said.

"Okay." The driver had a good impression of Feng Yi. He couldn't bear to miss the big order and was a little worried about Feng Yi.

After thinking about it, the driver said: "This way, if you don't call within three days at most, I will call you. If you can't get through, I will call the police, okay?"

"OK!"

Feng Yi was also worried about his personal safety, so the driver's method suited him.

After exchanging phone numbers, the driver finished smoking, checked the car again, and left immediately.

Feng Yi carried his bag, turned his helmet with some discomfort, took a deep breath, and went up the mountain holding the snake repelling stick.

We have come this far, what are we still afraid of?

Walking further up the mountain, the isolation nets were pulled up on both sides of the road. The cauliflower snakes gathered on the other side of the isolation nets, spitting out letters, and moved along with Feng Yi's movements.

Two-meter-long cauliflower snakes are not uncommon here, and there are also larger ones, but Feng Yi didn't look at them.

Now he felt like goosebumps all over his body were about to explode.

After living in the city for more than 20 years, I often go to major scenic spots or elegant farmhouses to get close to nature. This is the first time I have been close to this wild ecological reserve where animals and plants grow wildly and seem to be inaccessible.

Waves of unnamed flying insects could be seen at intervals. When Feng Yi walked past, several flying insects rested directly on his helmet visor.

Something flew down on my shoulder, and flew away again after a while. Feng Yi only caught a glimpse of a black figure.

It’s not even summer yet, but these flying insects are already active.

Continuing to go up, you will see a stuck point where someone is guarding it. After registering, Feng Yi was allowed to go up the mountain, and he also told Feng Yi the location of the Feng family's ancestral home.

"There is only one old house on this mountain. It seems to belong to the Feng family. I am not sure about the details. There is only one person living there. If you are talking about that old house, keep walking up this road. You should be able to see it. You can ask people when you meet them, they all know.”

After Feng Yi thanked him, he continued walking up the mountain.

Fortunately, I didn't go far when I heard the sound of a car approaching and got a ride.

The two people driving the car worked at a feed factory at the foot of the mountain, and they also had work assignments going up the mountain.

"The ancestral home of the Feng family? Are you looking for Uncle Mute?" someone asked.

"Uncle Mute? That's right. The elders in the family just told me that the house there is being taken care of. I have something to do at the old house." Feng Yi said.

The other party looked at Feng Yi's equipment and said, "Looking at you, I know it's your first time here."

"You live in the mountains? Are you okay?" Feng Yi asked.

The two laughed.

One person explained: "Who would be willing to live on a mountain these days, even if there is no WiFi, no one will deliver you a takeaway at night, let alone a place where you can sit in a pit and be surrounded by eight snakes. Would you rather do it for you?"

"Isn't there an isolation zone?" Feng Yi asked.

"The isolation net is right next to it. When you are squatting in the pit, if you look out the window, you will see seven or eight snakes on the isolation net not far away, staring at you. Except for rotations or temporary assignments, we all live in the company at the foot of the mountain at other times. Dormitory. Those who can live safely in the mountains are not ordinary people."

"Like Uncle Dumb?"

"Yes, Uncle Dumb is really not an ordinary person. He lives quite happily."

"What's Uncle Dumb's last name? How do you call him?" Feng Yi asked.

"Name? Just Uncle Mute. I don't know what his last name is. Anyway, everyone calls him Uncle Mute. He can't speak."

The mountain looks desolate, but the road is well built and the car is not bumpy when driving on it, and you can't even see any larger stones.

"There are vehicles cleaning the road every day." One person explained, "Uncle Mute often asks people to carry things for him. There are not many vehicles going up and down the mountain, but they are not uncommon. We will send you up the mountain first and come back later."

The car drove up the mountain for a while. After passing the mountainside, the isolation belt gradually moved away from the driveway. Traces of artificial activities could be seen in the woods on the roadside. The trees planted were obviously planned. Some were fruit trees and had already bear fruit, and some were still wind-blown. Yi had never seen it.

Just as he was thinking about it, Feng Yi suddenly heard the person next to him shout: "Hey, I saw someone else, Uncle Mute! Uncle Mute!"

The car stopped on the side of the road.

Feng Yi looked in the direction they pointed.

A man who looked about seventy years old and dressed as an old mountain farmer came out of the woods.

Probably because he spends a lot of time outdoors, his face is dark and there are deep wrinkles on his face. He wears civilian clothes and rubber shoes in a big bamboo basket, with half-dried mud marks on his trouser legs. He wears a straw hat slightly tilted on his head, with a few strands of slightly long gray hair sticking out from the brim of the hat, swinging with his steps.

The bamboo basket carried by the old man contained freshly picked fruits and vegetables. Most of the varieties were unrecognizable to Feng Yi. They were all specialties from the mountains.

The young man in the driver's seat opened the car window and waved to the old man, "Uncle Dumb, you have a guest, I'll bring it to you!"

Uncle Dumb looked towards the car.

Feng Yi met his gaze and didn't see any gloom in his eyes.

Uncle Mute raised his hand to wipe his sweat and showed a bright smile to Feng Yi.

Then, Feng Yi saw the old man take out the latest smartphone from his pocket stained with mud and water -

It's the same series as Feng Yi's phone, but the old man's phone has more "plus" than Feng Yi's.

The top model is three thousand more expensive than the one Feng Yi has. And it's hard to buy.

Thank you to the cute owner Deep Blue Crow! Thanks to all the book friends who tipped and voted for their support!

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