The rich man grew ginseng, but nearly lost his life to the ginseng

During the Qing Dynasty, at what is now the border between Tibet and Yunnan, there was a famous ginseng grower named Qi Niu. His family had grown ginseng for generations, and the ginseng he planted covered the hillsides and filled every corner of the mountains.

In fact, what truly made him famous was not the sheer number of ginseng plants he grew, but that among the ginseng he cultivated there was one enormous plant, larger than all the others, known as the King of Ginseng.

Legend has it that the King of Ginseng, grown among ten thousand ginseng plants, gathered the essence of ten thousand ginseng plants and the accumulation of the sun and moon. Day after day, year after year, the longer the time, the more essence the ginseng contained, and the greater its miraculous powers. There was a folk saying that when the King of Ginseng appeared, it was like a deity descending to earth, with the power to bring the dead back to life.

In Qi Niu's ginseng fields there was indeed such a plant. It had been there since his ancestors first began planting, and no one knew exactly how long it had been growing. Over the years, many people had come drawn by its fame, hoping to catch a glimpse of the King of Ginseng. Of course, many were also willing to spend a fortune to buy it, or even just to beg for a single look at it. But Qi Niu had never agreed. The Qi family rules stipulated that the King of Ginseng was the foundation that protected the Qi family's ginseng business, and no matter who it was or how much money they offered, it could not be sold.

There was a wealthy man from out of town named Li Dafu, who also came drawn by its fame. The richer a person gets, the more afraid of death they naturally become, so when he heard that the King of Ginseng held the secret of immortality, he came to visit. Of course, he had long heard of the Qi family rules, so he knew that no matter how much money he offered, he would not get his wish.

So he came up with a plan: he put on ordinary clothes and went to visit under the pretext of seeking to become an apprentice. Since the King of Ginseng could not be bought, and one was not even allowed to look at it, the number of people who had actually seen its true form could probably be counted on one hand. Li Dafu thought that since he could not buy it, at least catching a glimpse of its true form would make his life worthwhile.

Qi Niu was naturally very welcoming to those who came to seek apprenticeship. Moreover, Li Dafu had weathered the ups and downs of the business world and had plenty of experience, so the two hit it off very well in conversation. Qi Niu liked him greatly and naturally took him on as an apprentice.

Qi Niu had quite a few apprentices. After Li Dafu joined, he asked the others about it, but none of them had ever heard of it. Even Che Jiukai, who had stayed there the longest, knew nothing about it. Helpless, Li Dafu could only use his planting time to search on his own, but the ginseng covered the whole mountainside, and it was impossible to tell at a glance. How could it be easy?

Li Dafu was so eager to find the ginseng that he did not mind the trouble and searched plant by plant. Weeks passed, and he still had not found it. But he was still not ready to give up. One day, his master took him up the mountain to dig for ginseng. He saw his opportunity had come and hoped to take the chance to ask his master, thinking that since their relationship was so close, there should be no reason for refusal.

Some things in this world are just so coincidental. While digging for ginseng on the mountain, Li Dafu noticed a light shining near a cliff in the distance. Driven by curiosity, Li Dafu slowly approached. When he got close, he was startled: at the very edge of the cliff there was a huge ginseng plant, two or three times larger than ordinary ginseng, still glowing with light, clearly very different from the other ginseng plants. Li Dafu thought this must be the legendary King of Ginseng. Just then, the King of Ginseng grew larger and larger, until it was tall enough to reach the sky. Two eyes opened on its branches, a great mouth opened, revealing an eerie smile, and then a branch reached out and bound Li Dafu, pulling him straight toward its mouth. As it came closer and closer, his master's shout rang out, and then Li Dafu saw himself enter the King of Ginseng's giant mouth, and after that he knew nothing more.

When Li Dafu woke up, he found himself lying on his master's bed, with his master sitting to one side, holding a jar and cooking something. He sat up and quickly asked, "Master, where is the King of Ginseng? Did it not eat me?"

"Still thinking about the King of Ginseng? At the time, you were bewitched by the King of Ginseng's deceptive light and began hallucinating, then jumped off the cliff yourself. No matter how I shouted, you would not listen. If I had not blindfolded myself, cut down the King of Ginseng, and cooked you King of Ginseng soup, you probably would have long since been dead. Ah, people should not be too greedy. The length of one's life is destined by heaven. Although the Qi family rules say the King of Ginseng must not be shown to outsiders, it is because we fear you would all be bewitched by its deceptive light. But there is another line in the family rules: when a person's life is at stake, the King of Ginseng saves them." Qi Niu shook his head as he spoke.

After hearing this, Li Dafu lowered his head. At that moment, a faint, delicate fragrance filled the room.....