In the outskirts of City Z, there is a lush, green hill, filled with the sounds of birds and the fragrance of flowers. Three years ago, this place was converted from farmland back to forest in response to a national call. Now, it has become a popular spot for the people of City Z to go for a spring outing, escape the summer heat, or enjoy the autumn scenery.
Sunlight shone on the young forest, casting a warm glow on the ground. If one had the leisure, lying on the grass here, gazing at the blue sky and white clouds, would be a great pleasure compared to the concrete jungle spoiled by civilization.
However, reality is never perfect. Shen Xingkong was neither lying on the grass nor looking at the blue sky and white clouds. He was wandering through the woods on the hill, his mood deeply depressed.
Shen Xingkong is a student at the Medical Vocational School of City Z, currently in his second year. His academic performance is just so-so. In fact, the medical vocational school he attends isn't a great one; a score of just over 300 points was enough to get in. It used to be a secondary technical school, which later upgraded to a vocational college during the nationwide expansion of universities and restructuring of secondary schools.
Few students at the vocational school study seriously. They all hope to graduate quickly, then, with their parents' help, get a job in a hospital as a junior doctor, earning at least 3,000 yuan a month.
It doesn't matter if they aren't good at diagnosing diseases. Nowadays, how many doctors actually diagnose patients properly? They usually have patients undergo a bunch of tests first, then prescribe some medicine based on a handful of memorized prescriptions. If the patient doesn't die, that's considered successful.
Even if a patient dies, the hospital will cover for them!
Compared to others, Shen Xingkong is considered a decent student. His parents have no influence to offer him; they are laid-off workers who take on small construction projects in southern cities to earn a living.
Shen Xingkong has been living alone. He owns an old 70-square-meter apartment in City Z and enjoys his solitary life.
Shen Xingkong's major is traditional Chinese medicine. During a medicinal plants class this morning, he had a stomach ache and sneaked out of his seat to go to the restroom. Just as he reached the door, he accidentally let out a loud fart, which, unfortunately, was directed towards the podium, angering the teacher.
The teacher, Ms. Gao, is a 35-36-year-old unmarried woman. Her prolonged hormonal suppression has inevitably made her temperamental.
Ms. Gao believed Shen Xingkong's behavior was highly inappropriate and politely asked him to find a Panax notoginseng plant in his spare time. She also warned him that if he didn't bring back the plant by 1 PM, he wouldn't pass the medicinal plants course this semester.
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In university, failing a course can delay graduation by at least six months. When Ms. Gao "requested" Shen Xingkong to find the Panax notoginseng, it was already 10 AM.
Panax notoginseng is a hill plant that only grows on the slopes of hills. It definitely couldn't be found on the vocational school campus. Thus, Shen Xingkong had to buy a bus ticket to the suburbs and arrived at this small hill before 11 AM. So far, he had been searching for an hour with no success.
Shen Xingkong didn't want to delay his graduation by six months, as it would greatly affect his job prospects and, more importantly, his dignity. With no other option, he ventured deeper into the forest.
The trees on this hill weren't all part of the reforestation project; some were part of the original forest, maintaining a more primitive appearance.
Tall trees with dense canopies and wildflowers covering the ground.
Shen Xingkong's legs were about to give out. He wanted to lie down and take a nap, perhaps dream about the cute round-faced girl from the class next door wearing a bikini. Boys at Shen Xingkong's age are all in their hormonal peak, and who doesn't harbor romantic thoughts?
"Hmm?"
Heaven rewards the diligent. Shen Xingkong suddenly noticed a green plant among the yellow flowers between two large trees. The plant had a straight stem, green and shiny leaves, and long petioles, standing about twenty centimeters tall. This was the legendary hemostatic herb—Panax notoginseng.
"Haha, little Panax, I finally found you…" Shen Xingkong was overjoyed. It seemed his luck wasn't too bad. He rubbed his hands together and walked briskly to the Panax notoginseng, then carefully harvested it.
The root of Panax notoginseng isn't large, resembling ginger, with some knobby protrusions.
Shen Xingkong was now certain this was the treasure he was looking for. He quickly put it into his waist bag. If he hurried, he should be able to hand it to the teacher before 1 PM.
Just as he straightened up to leave, he suddenly heard a buzzing sound and noticed a strange shadow on the ground.
The place where he picked the Panax notoginseng was between two large trees. The canopies of these trees weren't very large, so they didn't completely cover the space between them.
In other words, there had been a small patch of sunlight where he picked the Panax notoginseng, but now it was covered by a shadow with no connection to the adjacent tree canopies.
Instinctively, Shen Xingkong looked up.
About eight or nine meters above him, there was a strange bird, its body shaped like the number 8, golden in color. It flapped its wings rapidly and hovered steadily in the air.
"What is this thing?" Shen Xingkong was stunned. He recalled watching a nature documentary that explained while many birds can fly, only hummingbirds can hover in mid-air.
The strange bird above him was over a meter long. Even if a hummingbird ate feed every day, it couldn't grow this big.
Regardless of what kind of bird it was, a meter-long bird was definitely not a good bird. Given its strange appearance, who knew if it was carnivorous or herbivorous? It was best not to provoke it. Shen Xingkong patted his waist bag and turned to run back the way he came, eager to return to school and complete his task.
"Buzz…"
The buzzing sound of the bird's wings followed Shen Xingkong persistently, no matter how fast he ran, as if there was a magnetic force on him attracting the bird.
Shen Xingkong, already agitated by his teacher and now harassed by this strange bird, suddenly stopped and turned around, shouting, "If you keep following me, I'll roast you and eat you… Ah~~"
Before he could finish his threat, he was stunned.
The strange bird was now only about two or three meters away, with a pair of football-sized compound eyes on its head, two antennae as long as vines, covered in fine golden fur, and four semi-transparent wings refracting sunlight into rainbow colors.