1984: Making a Living in the Yunnan Mountains

Lin Haisong returns to 1984, to Eryuan County in Yunnan. The sound of horse bells rings through the mountain village, and the Ancient Tea Horse Road lies just a few kilometers away. At this point, he hasn’t yet suffered the accident that will leave him half-paralyzed. He can still work the fields and search the mountains for treasures. This time around, he’ll make sure his whole family eats well and lives in comfort. Drawing on his memories, Lin Haisong digs up precious medicinal herbs, hunts wild animals, gathers mushrooms, and collects ore in the mountains. October is the season for gathering herbs and hunting. The mountains are full of Paris polyphylla, gastrodia, and Solomon’s seal, while wolf and fox pelts are fetching increasingly high prices. There are also plenty of wild mushrooms. Few people yet know that matsutake, black tiger paw mushrooms, and dried bolete mushrooms are being bought up for export. First, he’ll forage for mountain produce through autumn and winter, then lease a whole mountain and wait for next year’s mushroom season. (Voice dictation, followed by meticulous manual editing in the traditional way)