Growing Wealth: Clearing the Fog to Unearth a Fortune

In the mountains of Zhaotong, Yunnan, wild Gastrodia elata only pokes its head out of the soil for a few days each year, and is rarely seen at other times. But he is a veritable legend in the eyes of the villagers: he became an orphan at 13, survived by farming on his own, went out to work at 16, and after fourteen years of entrepreneurship became a multimillionaire. When he encountered Gastrodia elata, a wealth plan became reality in 4 years. See how Yang Xueyin of Zhaotong, Yunnan, sold more than 20 million yuan worth of Gastrodia elata in a single year.

During the interview, the moment they met, one of Yang Xueyin's actions left the reporter stunned.

He tied red strings around each Gastrodia elata one by one, and locked them up one by one with padlocks.

Yang Xueyin: People think it will run away. Everyone says it is ghost Gastrodia elata, so when we bury the seeds, we use this red band to tie it up and lasso it. When planting, after tying it up, we stick a stick in here, then lock it with a lock, and finally see whether it actually runs or not.

Yang Xueyin told the reporter that 4 years ago, when he started growing Gastrodia elata, he had treated these locks as a lifesaving straw, hoping to lock the Gastrodia elata in place. In fact, Yang Xueyin locking up the Gastrodia elata was not to prevent people from stealing it, but was related to a legend about Gastrodia elata.

Ge Changhai, a villager of Banjiu Village, Weixin County, Zhaotong City, Yunnan Province: It is said to have a foot this big.

Reporter: Gastrodia elata has a foot that big?

Ge Changhai, a villager of Banjiu Village, Weixin County, Zhaotong City, Yunnan Province: Mm, but this legend has existed since our ancestors' time, and it is called ghost Gastrodia elata.

Hu Gaowen, a villager of Banjiu Village, Weixin County, Zhaotong City, Yunnan Province: Because when I was little, I had a wish to grow Gastrodia elata, but the elders told me that this Gastrodia elata cannot be grown, because once planted it is no longer there, it will run away. There was this saying, so none of us ever grew Gastrodia elata.

Many villagers say Gastrodia elata can run and fly, and can cross several mountain ridges in a day. What everyone says is quite mystical, but no one has seen with their own eyes Gastrodia elata fly or run. In 2011, after Yang Xueyin planted Gastrodia elata, the Gastrodia elata often vanished without a trace, which made Yang Xueyin suffer greatly, but 3 years later it brought him more than 20 million yuan in wealth every year. Yang Xueyin said that to uncover the wealth story behind Gastrodia elata, one must first take a trip up the mountain.

On December 6, we followed Yang Xueyin to this place, to go up the mountain to look for wild Gastrodia elata.

Yang Xueyin: Wild Gastrodia elata only grows in this kind of steep and perilous shrub forest.

Reporter: You have to go to a place like this, there is not even a path here.

Yang Xueyin: There is no path. If you go to those places that are easy to walk through, it (Gastrodia elata) will not survive.

Ge Changhai, a villager of Banjiu Village, Weixin County, Zhaotong City, Yunnan Province: In the past, sometimes in a day, in this kind of place where no one walks, one could find one jin to two jin, or even three jin, and sometimes for several days one could not find a single one.

For many villagers, finding Gastrodia elata depends on luck. After a whole day, it is possible not to find even one. But for Yang Xueyin, if he finds one, it may be exchanged for tens of thousands of yuan in wealth. Following experienced farmers, we split into several groups and searched deep in the dense forest. More than 2 hours passed, and everyone was very anxious.

Reporter: Could there be one here?

On site: There should be, it ran away again.

Reporter: I did not see it.

Yu Lang, a Gastrodia elata grower in Zhaotong City, Yunnan Province: Gastrodia elata hides itself. In fact, Gastrodia elata does not see the sky. As long as you touch it, places like the ones we have passed through will almost no longer grow Gastrodia elata.

Reporter: So you mean that once we have walked over a path, it will no longer grow Gastrodia elata.

Yu Lang, a Gastrodia elata grower in Zhaotong City, Yunnan Province: Almost none will.

The wild Gastrodia elata that sounds so strange is actually buried in the ground. Because it has no roots and no branches or leaves, it hides in the shallow soil beneath these trees, and is very hard to discover. At this moment, suddenly someone brought good news.

Reporter: What did you say, you saw one?

Villager: Mm.

Everyone was very excited, but what the reporter saw was only this yellow thing with half of its body exposed.

The Gastrodia elata that was found with such difficulty, Yang Xueyin was in no hurry to take out. This Gastrodia elata can sell for more than 200 yuan on the market, but if used well, it can bring Yang Xueyin tens of thousands of yuan in wealth. Whether Yang Xueyin can earn this sum of money from this Gastrodia elata depends on this one move of taking it out.

Reporter: How are you planning to handle it now?

Villager: Take it out.

Reporter: Dig it out, you need to wear gloves. Do you think this one is very big?

Villager: This one is big.

Reporter: I saw you were especially excited just now.

Villager: Among wild ones, this counts as big. Look, he still has not given up. He thinks there should be more there, but whether there is or not, you have to dig to know.

Reporter: I see that even though he ignores us, he just keeps digging there nonstop.

Ge Changhai, a villager of Banjiu Village, Weixin County, Zhaotong City, Yunnan Province: Look, he is still digging with rapt attention.

It is now early winter, the time when Gastrodia elata grows most beautifully in the year. Yang Xueyin wants to find wild Gastrodia elata to use as seed corms, and cultivate Gastrodia elata seeds, in exchange for greater wealth.

Reporter: This one cannot even be held in one fist.

Yang Xueyin: This one probably weighs four liang, close to half a jin.

Reporter: Does this count as good-looking?

Yang Xueyin: It is okay. If we succeed in growing it, at the current market price it would be worth 20,000 yuan.

Reporter: Just this one, in the end it can?

Zhang Zuoxiang, Director of the Gastrodia elata Industry Development Office of Zhaotong City, Yunnan Province: Because our Zhaotong City is a provenance protection area for Gastrodia elata, every county has a Gastrodia elata provenance protection area and a wild resource protection area. In other places (places that are not provenance protection areas), wild Gastrodia elata may be collected.

From dawn until nearly dark, we found only 2 wild Gastrodia elata. The reporter was very puzzled. Could it be that finding wild Gastrodia elata depends entirely on luck? During the interview, we discovered that there really are some tricks to it.

Yang Xueyin: For people who dig Gastrodia elata, this is a secret. Where there is some, he will not tell others.

Reporter: He will not tell you?

Yang Xueyin: If he told, and others dug it all away, how would he dig again?

Reporter: He has his secret?

Yang Xueyin: Right, he has his secret.

Reporter: He does not tell us.

Yang Xueyin: He generally does not tell us.

Reporter: Where does he look? Does it take some experience?