"Haha, it's pointless fussing, but I have this problem: if there's something I want to do, I not only have to do it, I have to do it well..."

"You might be disappointed..." the boss added another blow.

"What, don't tell me there are really no wild Maca seeds for sale..." Wang Xiaoqiang's heart sank, wondering if he really had to climb up to the snowy mountain and dig them out himself?

"They're available, but extremely rare and very expensive..."

"If it's expensive, that proves it's good stuff!" Wang Xiaoqiang said nonchalantly.

"I'm just afraid they won't sprout... it'd be a total waste of money..."

"Boss, don't worry about me; just tell me quickly. I came to Yunnan just for the Maca seeds; I won't go back without them..."

Seeing Wang Xiaoqiang's determination, the boss suddenly lowered his voice and said, "Actually, the old friend I mentioned earlier has some. Every time he goes up the mountain, he would pick some Snow Tea and Maca. He keeps all the Snow Tea here with me, but keeps the Maca for using as herbs..."

"Er, could you contact him for me..."

The teahouse boss showed a troubled expression and said, "My friend is quite eccentric. His parents died when he was young, and he was taken in by a Daoist. He grew up in a Taoist temple and never married, maintaining the Daoist's ascetic lifestyle. He doesn't like interacting with strangers..."

"Boss, I won't let your efforts go to waste," Wang Xiaoqiang hinted vaguely.

"Haha, young man, that's not what I meant..." the boss waved his hand, "Don't think I'm greedy, wanting to profit from slight favor; I, Xiao, am not that kind of person..."

"I'm sorry, Uncle Xiao, I misunderstood you," Wang Xiaoqiang sincerely said.

"It's all right, er, by the way, I haven't asked for your esteemed name yet..."

"Just call me Wang Xiaoqiang!"

"Er, Xiaoqiang, how about this? The day after tomorrow is the time to collect Snow Tea. I'll take you to my friend when I go to collect the Snow Tea. Come back here the day after tomorrow... How does that sound?"

"Thank you so much, Uncle Xiao! In that case, let me treat you to dinner tonight!"

"No need, no need," Boss Xiao gestured with his hand.

The place was not far from Jade Dragon Mountain, blessed with beautiful scenery, where throngs of tourists were seen heading towards Jade Dragon Mountain every day.

On the appointed day, bright and early, Wang Xiaoqiang arrived at Jade Dragon Teahouse where Boss Xiao was also up early, waiting for him. After exchanging pleasantries, they both got into Wang Xiaoqiang's Humvee.

Boss Xiao told Wang Xiaoqiang that his friend's name was Lin Bogu, who lived on the southern slopes of the main peak of the snowy mountain, at a place known as White Sand Jade Lake Village—reputed to be the first village under Jade Dragon Mountain, around ten miles from the ancient city.

Following Boss Xiao's directions, Wang Xiaoqiang drove to the village, got out of the car, and followed Boss Xiao into a farmhouse. Finding the door tightly shut, they knew no one was home. Boss Xiao said, "He must not have come down from the snowy mountain yet. Let's wait here for a bit... There are many attractions here; I'll take you to see them in the meantime..."

Wang Xiaoqiang agreed.

The main attractions around Jade Pillar that pierces the sky, which is roughly 2800 meters in altitude, include Giant Stone Wall Text, Crown Prince's Cave, Guanyin Rock, Snow Pine Temple, Thousand-Year Old Tree, Upper and Lower Deep Pool Waterfalls, the former residence of the famous Austrian scholar Rock, Mountain Leech Dam, Immortal Cliff of Footprints, Azalea Mountain, Wood King Ranch, Garden of Myriad Flowers, Rock Against Rock, Think Thrice Water, Feng Guangyi, Remarkably Skilled.

Boss Xiao took Wang Xiaoqiang to visit each of these attractions. At noon, Wang Xiaoqiang invited Boss Xiao for lunch. Claiming to have enteritis and unable to eat rich foods or drink alcohol in the hot weather, Boss Xiao suggested having a bowl of cool jelly instead. So, he took Wang Xiaoqiang to a jelly shop where the owner soon brought them two servings of black jelly.

Wang Xiaoqiang had only ever eaten white jelly made from corn but had never seen black jelly, which caught him by surprise, and he felt a bit averse to the color of the jelly.

Seeing Wang Xiaoqiang's reaction, Boss Xiao laughed: "Little Wang, don't you find the color of this jelly a bit off-putting?"

Before Wang Xiaoqiang could reply, Boss Xiao said, "This is our local famous Black Jelly..."

It turned out that this Black Jelly was made from a local Lijiang product known as "chicken broad beans," also called "chicken bowl beans." Ground into flour and made into jelly, it appears black due to the high melanin content in the beans, hence the name "Black Jelly." Historically, officials unaware of its ingredients had caused Qianlong to refer to this delicacy as "eating black tofu" in his 'Annals of Lijiang County,' when in fact "black tofu" is what is now known as "Black Jelly."

In both the new and old districts of Lijiang, on the streets and in the alleys, with several hundred years of history, chicken broad bean jelly is a long-lasting local delicacy.

Eaten cold in summer, and hot in cold weather, it's mixed with sour vinegar, soy sauce, green onions, garlic mash, sesame oil, and other seasonings for eating cold—it can relieve summer heat and aid in digestion; for eating hot, the jelly is fried on both sides in a flat pan with sesame oil, served with seasonings and eaten while hot; it can also be dried and fried later.

Jelly is a summer cooling food, and apart from being eaten cold, Lijiang chicken broad bean jelly can also be eaten hot. Shops selling jelly have preparations for both to cater to customer preferences.

Eaten cold mostly in summer, the translucent jelly slices mixed with red chili, green chives(details), Sichuan pepper, green onions, mustard, and sour vinegar offer a delicious, appetizing, and refreshing meal.

In the cold season, those square blocks fried golden brown on both sides in a flat pan and then customized with a mix of spicy, numbing, and sour seasonings according to each person's taste resulted in a bowl that warmed the entire body when eaten.

Chicken bean jelly, cost-effective and highly favored by people. Its essence, the jelly skin, had even become a delicacy served to guests in some hotels and restaurants.

After Boss Xiao finished speaking, he said to Wang Xiaoqiang, "Little Wang, are you more picky than Emperor Qianlong himself? After all, Emperor Qianlong loved chicken bean jelly and even wrote about it in his books, which shows how fond he was of it..."

"Well, I must try what makes it so delicious." Although the black jelly didn't look appetizing, Wang Xiaoqiang was tempted by what Boss Xiao said. He then started to taste the jelly, which was smooth, cool, and deliciously fragrant. It was a completely different flavor from those made from corn, very novel and tasty. Wang Xiaoqiang heartily enjoyed it, quickly finishing his plate.

Boss Xiao immediately ordered another portion for him.

After finishing the jelly, they went sightseeing until it started to get dark, when they arrived at Lin Bogu's front door, only to find it still tightly closed.

This result inevitably led to disappointment, with Boss Xiao distressedly saying, "Old Lin clearly knew today was the day I came to pick up the tea, how come he's still not back..."

"Let's wait in the car for a while!" Wang Xiaoqiang said. If he didn't know Boss Xiao to be an honest person, he would have thought it was all a scam.

Although it was a village, each house was isolated like sheep droppings scattered here and there. At night, every household closed up tight, giving it a desolate feel like a wasteland, which might scare anyone.

But to be honest, Wang Xiaoqiang wasn't frightened at all, not to mention it wasn't a scam, but even if it were, with his current abilities, ordinary groups of up to ten were no match for him,

"We can only wait, I hope he comes back soon, otherwise the two of us might have to wait here all night..." Boss Xiao said helplessly.

The two returned to the car and just waited. The sky had completely darkened, a wind had risen, rustling the leaves outside the car noisily, and not a soul was in sight, not even a shadow.

Boss Xiao, after all, was getting on in years and suffered from multiple chronic inflammations. Having walked around all day, he was inevitably tired and felt heavy with sleep, while Wang Xiaoqiang was full of energy, his body replenished by the Five Elements Spiritual Spring.

To stay awake, Boss Xiao took out two cigarettes, lit one for himself, and offered one to Wang Xiaoqiang, who refused.

After smoking a cigarette, Boss Xiao still couldn't pep up, and Wang Xiaoqiang said, "Don't push yourself, get some sleep, I'll keep watch..."

"Alright, I'll take over when I wake up…" Boss Xiao said, relievingly closing his eyelids heavy as if they weighed a ton, and immediately fell into a deep sleep.

Once Boss Xiao was asleep, Wang Xiaoqiang started to get bored. The car was parked not more than forty meters away from Lin Bogu's house. If Lin Bogu returned, he would definitely notice, so there was no need to keep an eye out all the time. Thus, he closed his eyes, and focused on his Dantian, beginning to practice the Daoist Qi Guiding Technique.

He was currently advancing towards the Hinayana Realm of the Qi Guiding Technique, so he needed to practice several times daily. Through his training, he found that he was gaining smoother control over the inner Spiritual Qi.

Half an hour later, Wang Xiaoqiang concluded his practice and opened his eyes. When he looked outside towards the window, everything was still utterly quiet, not a soul in sight, and it seemed the wind had grown stronger, rustling the leaves loudly.

Feeling utterly bored after another hour of surveillance, Wang Xiaoqiang suddenly spotted a black Xiali car driving up in silence, with its headlights off, stopping intermittently, especially as it neared Lin Bogu's house, resembling a thief, moving a few meters before stopping again. Eventually, it stopped right in front of Lin Bogu's house.

Seeing the Xiali car stop in front of Lin Bogu's house, Wang Xiaoqiang immediately woke Boss Xiao, who groggily opened his sleepy eyes and asked, "Is he back?"

"I don't know, a car drove up to his house..." Wang Xiaoqiang pointed at the Xiali car.

After a glance through the car window, Boss Xiao immediately shook his head, "No, Old Lin doesn't have a car..."

Just then, a person exited the Xiali car, dressed in black from head to toe, tall and robust, wearing dark glasses that covered the top half of his face. Upon disembarking, his gaze shifted towards the Hummer, appearing extremely cautious.

"What's going on? Is this person also looking for Old Lin?" Boss Xiao stared intently at the person outside the Xiali car, puzzled.

The black-clad man looked around at Lin Bogu's doorway, like a sentinel, lingering for quite a while before finally knocking on the right side window of the Xiali car.

Then, three people descended from the car.

Three people, the two on the sides tall and also dressed in black, each wearing sunglasses, surrounding the middle one, who at a glance seemed to have the demeanour of someone drunk, except, oddly enough, the middle person was also wearing a large pair of sunglasses.

In the dead of night, wearing sunglasses was already highly unusual, and for a drunk person to be wearing a pair suggested there was something amiss.

Clearly, the person wasn't drunk. (To be continued. If you enjoy this work, please visit qidian.com to cast your recommendations and monthly votes. Your support is my greatest motivation. Mobile users, please read on m.qidian.com.)

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