35: Chapter 35 Delicious Food from the Deep Mountains

After a series of commotions, Zheng Jing felt exceptionally exhausted.

He hadn't slept well last night, and just when he wanted to take a nap, he had unexpectedly run into a venomous snake, keeping his nerves on high alert.

Once the tension faded, exhaustion instantly flooded his entire body.

Zheng Jing mused to himself that being this sleepy and tired, it didn't seem appropriate to keep running around in the mountains.

Setting aside whether he might run into more danger, even if the system told him right now that there was a treasure right under his feet, he was afraid he wouldn't even have the strength to dig it up!

Since that was the case, why not go back and get some sleep?

It wasn't that he wanted to slack off; it was just that balancing work and rest was the only way to achieve twice the result with half the effort.

Besides, he had already dug up something good this morning, so he couldn't be considered to have come up empty-handed.

Thinking and acting at once, Zheng Jing immediately decided not to venture deeper into the forest.

Instead, he turned around, ready to head back to the campsite and return to the vehicle to catch up on some sleep.

Looking down at the King Cobra by his feet, which was as thick as an arm, Zheng Jing estimated it weighed at least five or six jin!

It was definitely a big one among King Cobras.

This thing had a high market value, especially one this big, which could sell for at least seven or eight hundred per jin.

But now, deep in the mountains and wild forests, far from any village or shop, and with the one in front of him already dead, it probably wouldn't be easy to sell.

Furthermore, this creature carried the label of a second-class national protected animal; even if someone wanted to buy it, he might not dare to sell it.

After much thought, considering this was a rare wild delicacy, it would be a pity to throw it away. It would be better to take it back and let everyone who came Gold Panning together have a feast and improve their meals.

With this in mind, Zheng Jing used his small shovel to cut a few vines from the side, securely tied up the King Cobra, and carried it as he walked quickly toward the campsite.

He didn't walk long before he saw the iveco parked in the clearing.

Zheng Jing walked straight to the front of the vehicle, bent down, reached above the front tire, and felt around until he pulled out a car key.

This was something Guo Jianjun had specifically instructed everyone to do before they arrived.

Since they were all Gold Panning in the mountains together, some would inevitably return early while others would return late; there was no way they could all make it back to camp at the exact same time.

Guo Jianjun was worried that if people returned early and didn't have a key to get into the vehicle, it wouldn't be convenient for them to rest when tired, so he simply made an arrangement: the car key would be hidden at the wheel. Whoever returned first would just take it themselves; it was simple and convenient.

Zheng Jing used the key to open the car door, but he didn't go to sleep right away.

Instead, he rummaged through the car to find a small kitchen knife, then carried the King Cobra to the nearby stream.

Because the weather was getting hotter and the snake had been dead for a while, if left for too long, it would easily spoil and breed bacteria. If he didn't process it in time, it would rot and go bad, which would be a real shame.

Zheng Jing crouched by the water and skillfully began processing it. He first drained the remaining blood, then carefully skinned it, slit open the snake's belly, and cleaned out the internal organs and impurities until it was completely clean.

If he were at home, Zheng Jing certainly wouldn't be willing to peel off the snake skin.

Because he loved the taste of snake skin; it was chewy and springy, absolutely delicious.

It could be said to be the most fragrant part of the snake!

But here in the deep mountains and wilderness, conditions were too primitive, and there were no suitable tools to remove the scales.

The snake scales were thick and dense; he couldn't clean them off properly with just a kitchen knife, and there were many parasites hiding inside.

So, even if it was a pity, Zheng Jing had to painfully discard the entire snake skin.

When he finished processing the snake meat, Zheng Jing caught a glimpse of a cluster of plump and fresh zingiber mioga growing by the stream, also known as wild ginger.

"Heh, even Heaven knows we're going to eat you today and has prepared some good stuff for me to remove the fishy smell."

Zheng Jing's eyes lit up. He reached out and picked some of the wild ginger, rinsed it simply with water, and planned to take it back with him later.

After cleaning the large chunks of snake meat he had cut, Zheng Jing didn't delay.

He walked straight to the stone campfire stove that everyone had built together yesterday, picked up some dry firewood nearby, added a few handfuls of dry pine needles, took out his lighter, and lit it.

Then, he set up the simple cooking pot that someone had brought in the car, added mountain spring water, and put the snake meat in to blanch it and remove the fishy smell.

It wasn't that Zheng Jing wasn't sleepy after returning and had time to fuss around; it was just that this King Cobra was so big, it must have lived for quite a few years, so the meat would surely be tough. If he waited until everyone returned in the evening to stew it, he was afraid it wouldn't be tender even by bedtime.

So, Zheng Jing figured it wouldn't hurt to spend a little extra time now to start stewing it slowly. That way, when everyone returned in the evening, it would be perfectly tender and flavorful, ready to eat right away.

He put the blanched snake meat back into the pot and added the wild ginger he had just picked.

Although this wild ginger was quite effective at removing fishy smells and enhancing flavor, snake meat had a naturally strong, gamey odor, and it would be hard to completely suppress that earthy smell with just that.

Zheng Jing thought for a moment, turned around, walked back to the car, found the unopened bottle of Erguotou that Guo Jianjun had brought, and poured a third of it directly into the pot.

There was no other way; conditions in these deep mountains were primitive, and seasonings were scarce. Without relying on high-proof white liquor to suppress the fishy smell and enhance the freshness, this pot of snake meat would definitely be both fishy and tough, wasting the ingredients.

With the white liquor and wild ginger all in place, Zheng Jing slowly reduced the open flame in the stove to let it simmer. The soup in the pot slowly rolled and surged, and the unique, crisp aroma of the wild ginger gradually spread, mingling with the distinct, fresh fragrance of the snake meat, drifting outwards in wisps. The white liquor completely suppressed the gamey odor, and the longer it stewed, the richer and more lingering the aroma became, with a faint, savory scent drifting everywhere on the mountain breeze.

Zheng Jing occasionally turned the pieces of meat to ensure the fire was steady and there was enough soup in the pot, making sure no such blunder as burning the bottom would happen, only then did he finally set his mind at ease.

After finishing the snake meat soup, he could no longer fight off the sleepiness.

Zheng Jing tidied up the surrounding area, climbed into the car, reclined the seat, and within moments, fell into a deep sleep.

It was very peaceful and sound.

He didn't know how long he had been sleeping soundly when voices and footsteps gradually sounded outside the car, and the campsite suddenly became lively.

Before the group had even reached the campsite, they were stopped in their tracks from afar by the rich aroma drifting on the wind.

This rich, savory scent of wild game went straight into their nostrils, making their mouths involuntarily water. The fatigue from a day of rushing about instantly dissipated by more than half, and everyone couldn't help but quicken their pace.

Wisps of the rich, savory aroma unique to wild game drifted in through the cracks in the car window.

Zheng Jing slowly opened his eyes and woke up.

He pushed the door open, got out of the car, and saw that Guo Jianjun, Guo Kui, and The Zhao Brothers had all returned.

Everyone's gaze fell in unison on the steaming pot bubbling on the stone stove.

Their noses were filled with the enticing scent of meat, and their faces were full of surprise and delight.