Giant salamanders and the secrets of the mountains helped him make money

The giant salamander has a big mouth, and being ferocious and combative is its nature. This little companion's head gets swallowed just like that; once it bites, it never lets go, thrashing while it swims, showing off its victory. But Mou Jianhua, holding his giant salamander, dares to make such a dangerous move. Because of the giant salamander, he dreamed of getting rich overnight, but a single oversight nearly turned it into a nightmare. Carrying nearly a million yuan in debt, he started over from scratch, and not only succeeded in breeding giant salamanders, but also led 40 local farming households to make money together from giant salamanders. See how Mou Jianhua, amid a sharp drop in giant salamander prices, relied on the local mountain forest resources to break through the siege?

He is today's protagonist, Mou Jianhua. Before the reporter arrived, he had said that giant salamanders are very ferocious. To let us feel just how ferocious a giant salamander is, Mou Jianhua put two giant salamanders of different sizes into the viewing pool. Unexpectedly, in less than half an hour, the reporter saw this scene: one of the giant salamanders kept chasing and biting the other, and although the other kept dodging, it could not escape no matter what.

Just then, the reporter saw a horrifying scene by the pool: this slightly larger giant salamander swallowed the other one's head into its own mouth. We thought it would let go, but unexpectedly, once it bit down, it kept swimming and thrashing, as if showing off its victory; even when it stopped, it showed no intention of letting go. The two giant salamanders remained locked in this stalemate.

Zhang Huajun: Hurry.

Reporter: Did you see that? What do we do? Does it often do this?

Mou Jianhua: It often does this, attacking its own kind.

Reporter: Be careful it doesn't bite you.

Mou Jianhua: It won't, it won't.

Reporter: Could it already be bitten to death? Are you using your hands?

Mou Jianhua: Its teeth are clamped on.

Reporter: Careful, careful. Oh no, is this giant salamander not going to survive? Quick, on its head, there's a huge wound on its head.

After a giant salamander is bitten, a white secretion appears at the wound. Mou Jianhua says that although the giant salamander's head is big and cute, its mouth is as big as its head, and it can swallow anything narrower than its own body.

Mou Jianhua: Once a giant salamander bites something, it won't let go; it has to bite it to death. This kind of thing is common. That giant salamander has a rather ferocious personality; it probably figured it could eat this smaller one, so it bit its head, and it swallows from this side downward, just like a snake.

Mou Jianhua also told the reporter that giant salamanders are actually like people: every one has a different personality. This one likes to chase and bite its companions, but Mou Jianhua says he has another giant salamander, and that one is rather gentle.

Mou Jianhua: It's afraid of light. When there's noise, it hides in a dark place.

Reporter: In this small bridge opening.

Mou Jianhua: Right, I'll catch it and bring it over.

Reporter: It's been dragged out. I can see it's very docile.

This giant salamander weighs over 20 jin and is the one Mou Jianhua has raised the longest. Mou Jianhua says that by gentle he actually means it won't bite people, but when people come near it, it still struggles hard out of fear.

Reporter: I feel it's very strong.

Mou Jianhua: Very strong. A giant salamander like this, one or two people can't necessarily hold it.

After being released, this giant salamander immediately swam toward the water. In a place where it felt safe, Mou Jianhua let the reporter touch the giant salamander.

Reporter: It really feels like the underside of a child's arm.

Mou Jianhua: Right, and the skin is very soft too.

Reporter: Yes, and so slippery and soft. It raised its head. Forget it, never mind, I'm really scared of it; as soon as it raises its head I get very scared.

Mou Jianhua: Good girl.

In the reporter's eyes, this giant salamander could open its big mouth and turn to bite at any moment, but Mou Jianhua treated it like no stranger at all, and right in front of us he made a dangerous move.

Zhang Huajun: What are you doing?

Reporter: Aren't you afraid it will bite you?

Mou Jianhua: It's fine, I'm watching it.

Reporter: Careful, careful, it really won't bite you?

Mou Jianhua: It won't, it's very well-behaved.

Today, Mou Jianhua not only breeds giant salamanders, but has also built 50 mu of fish ponds to breed Chinese sturgeon. His farmstead draws quite a few tourists every holiday. What attracts guests, besides the giant salamanders and sturgeon that simply must be tasted, is also the wild game Mou Jianhua gathers from the mountains. Not only that, going down into the fields to experience the fun of a countryside tour is also a major feature of Mou Jianhua's farmstead.

During the interview, Mou Jianhua kept the reporter in suspense in front of a stretch of terraced fields.

Mou Jianhua: There's another feature in these terraced fields that you can't see.

Reporter: Something tasty?

Mou Jianhua: Definitely tasty. It's also a very precious dish around here.

Reporter: So can we go catch some later?

Mou Jianhua: You can catch them at night.

Reporter: Catch them at night? Do they have to be caught at night?

Mou Jianhua: They only come out at night, with the lights on at night.

Reporter: Go catch them with a flashlight?

Mou Jianhua: Right.

When night came, Mou Jianhua took the guests and friends, and together we went into the fields to find the tasty thing he had mentioned.

Mou Jianhua: This rice field eel, see it?

Reporter: Which one? Where?

Mou Jianhua: See it? This is a rice field eel.

What we were looking for was exactly this kind of wild rice field eel. Don't underestimate it: this kind of eel that grows naturally in the fields is almost impossible to buy on the market. Mou Jianhua says that if you want to eat it, you have to go down into the field and work for it first.

However, how many you can catch in these fields and how big they are all depend on luck, and today our luck was very good. See, before long we caught one this big.

Mou Jianhua insisted that the reporter try to catch one, saying that coming to his farmstead is all about experiencing a bit of countryside fun.

Mou Jianhua: You grab it, hurry up, hurry hurry. Grab it with your hand like this. Right.

Reporter: Like this? That's grass, it's over here. I'm very scared of it.

Mou Jianhua: All right, all right.

Reporter: My task for today is done.

The group busied themselves in the field for over ten minutes and caught more than 20 rice field eels. These eels are first flash-fried in oil, then cooked with the chili peppers and ginger that Sichuan people love most, and a dish of spicy eel is ready to serve.