The ugly thing people used to fear at the sight of has now become a rare commodity selling for 200 yuan apiece

The countryside has plenty of trees and grass, and after a few rains it stays cool for quite a few days, especially in the sweltering heat like now when everyone is desperate for the weather to cool things down, and sure enough, it just rained a few days ago. As soon as the sky cleared, many of the little kids around here ran up into the woods on the hills at high noon to raid bird nests and catch katydids, and my ten-year-old cousin from the city and I went along to join the fun. And sure enough, it really was cool in those woods, with all kinds of wild fruits and wildflowers that I could not even name. "Wow, this tree has gourds growing on it!", my cousin shouted, pointing at a tree ahead.

A few of the older, sturdier boys were climbing the tree, their eyes fixed greedily on the "gourd" hanging there. This gourd was about the size of a washbasin, dark brown, as if wrapped in a thick layer of yellow mud, and very ugly to look at, hanging on the tree as if it were about to fall. An uncle who had finished his farm work happened to pass by and quickly shooed the children down from the tree, saying that with a wasp nest that big, poking it open would get someone stung to death. I thought to myself: is it really that bad?

This kind of gourd that grows on trees is both a treasure for making money and a pest that harms people. That's right, the "tree gourd" is a wasp nest. In the countryside, this kind of wasp nest is very common; any tree that grows tall and is sheltered from the wind may be favored by wasps, and coming across one or two of these gourds in the woods is nothing unusual.

Back in the era when my grandmother was a child, when clothes and food were scarce, wasp honey and wasp larvae were an exclusive "luxury" for country people, but wasps are extremely venomous, and stings and even deaths from stings were common occurrences, so in the past, wasp nests were also something people feared at the sight of. It was also because of how terrifying wasps are that today, with material goods gradually becoming more plentiful, even in the countryside very few people risk raiding a wasp nest just to eat the honey.

Although few people nowadays would pick this tree gourd to enjoy a wild delicacy, that does not mean this gourd is worthless; this ugly little gourd is a treasure from head to toe. The honey, bee pollen, propolis, beeswax and so on in the nest are all extremely rich in medicinal value; take nest water, for instance, which can boost appetite, improve sleep and strengthen immunity. I have seen elderly people in the village pat a white nest clean and eat it straight away, and they all say it is a top-grade Chinese medicinal material that can prolong life!

Nowadays wasp nests are in hot demand in all the major cities, and a top-quality wasp nest can sell for around 200 yuan per jin. Whether as a delicacy of wasp larvae, a beauty-boosting wonder, a supreme Chinese medicine or a health-preserving treasure, the tree gourd that once frightened people can now be considered a rare commodity, and also a fine medicine that can bring wealth.

Fellow country friends, do you have this kind of gourd that grows on trees where you live?