A day in the mountains passed in the blink of an eye.

Huo Ling led the Zhao brothers over a mountain ridge, across several slopes and valleys. After more than four hours, they collected a total of three pairs of deer antlers, gathered a few liang of withered kidney grass, and cut down more than a dozen pieces of pine resin in the pine forest.

On the way back, only Huo Ling was still striding along as if flying; the three dogs darted back and forth ahead and behind, while Zhao Yinsheng and Zhao Chensheng were both too exhausted to speak.

Even so, Huo Ling didn’t stop to rest more than a couple of times. As able-bodied village men, they weren’t about to collapse from such a short distance; getting home before dark was more important than taking a break.

Once they entered the courtyard and returned to the house, Zhao Yinsheng and Zhao Chensheng took off their hats and padded jackets, which were already soaked through with sweat.

Huo Ling came in carrying water and poured a bowl for each of them.

“How are you guys? Are you completely exhausted?”

Fearing Huo Ling might think they couldn’t handle hardship, Zhao Yinsheng feigned nonchalance and said, “We’re fine. It’s just that we’re bundled up for winter, so it feels heavy when we walk.”

Huo Ling didn’t call him out on it. He lit the charcoal brazier, buried a few sweet potatoes in it, sat down on the kang, and said, “Walking on flat ground down in the valley is different from walking mountain trails up here. Since this is your first time here and you’re not familiar with the terrain, there are bound to be moments when you’re on edge. When your mind is tired, your body gets even more tired. It’ll get easier once you’re more familiar with the way.”

Zhao Chensheng couldn’t help but ask, “Bailong Mountain is so vast—do you really know all the paths, Master? Can you find your way back no matter how far you go?”

Huo Ling replied, “I’ve been roaming these mountains ever since I could walk. I’ve traversed every mountain path within a twenty-li radius. Besides, even if we did wander too far and get lost, as long as we have the dogs, we’ll definitely find our way back.”

Zhao Yinsheng and Zhao Chensheng had already heard Huo Ling explain that mountain porters must bring dogs when entering the mountains, and he had repeatedly emphasized that this expense was non-negotiable. But for now, they couldn’t afford good hunting dogs and would need to save up some more money.

By then, they would likely be ready to set out on their own.

Or perhaps, with a stroke of luck, they might come across a stray dog like Huangyae—one with no owner but willing to be trained.

That evening, Huo Ling slaughtered two freshly caught hazel grouse. Zhao Yinsheng, claiming he knew how to cook, refused to let Huo Ling help and took charge of the kitchen, simmering a chicken soup and stir-frying a plate of Chinese cabbage on the side. The three of them enjoyed a hearty meal, pairing the dishes with the dried rations and sweet potatoes Huo Ling had brought from home.

Neither of the brothers could remember the last time they’d had chicken soup, and seeing that Huo Ling’s dog was fed meat every day only strengthened their resolve to learn a proper trade.

Never mind how much the mountain produce they brought down would sell for after learning to forage in the mountains—even if they didn’t sell it, as long as they could navigate the mountains without getting lost or losing their lives, their family wouldn’t go hungry and might even be able to eat meat every now and then.

At home, they were used to conserving lamp oil; before bed, the two of them would wash up and undress in the dark. Once they got onto the kang, Zhao Chensheng couldn’t wait to say, “Big Brother, the mountains are truly wonderful. We can hunt in the woods, catch fish in the streams, and every tree bears something we can sell. Take those big deer antlers, for example—back when we were working in town, we’d see people selling them and get so envious. But now that we’re in the mountains, they’re all over the ground—just pick them up. I can tell even our master doesn’t care much about them anymore—he’s got such a beautiful one in his room, and he just uses it as a coat rack.”

He was already of marriageable age, but his poverty had delayed his plans. With his parents and older brother to support, he’d never had to run a household, so there was still a touch of childishness in his speech.

Zhao Yinsheng certainly felt the same way. Before entering the mountains, he’d only heard others say that Bailong Mountain was a treasure trove—that as long as Bailong Mountain existed, even if famine struck the foothills, anyone who made it into the mountains wouldn’t starve to death; and even during times of war, hiding in the mountains meant staying alive.

Both brothers were utterly exhausted today, yet in reality, they had covered no more than the area of a fingernail.

“Our master is kind and generous; he hasn’t held anything back while teaching us. He’s putting his heart into it, so we have to put our hearts into learning. We can’t bring shame upon him, and we certainly can’t harbor any ulterior motives.”

“Don’t worry, bro. They say ‘once a teacher, always a father.’ Now that Brother Huo Er has become our master, he’s practically half a father to us. If we dare do anything to betray him, the whole village will point fingers at us, and our parents certainly won’t forgive us.”

With their path ahead now clear and their worries put to rest—and exhausted as they were—the two brothers fell asleep shortly after they stopped talking.

In the east room, Huo Ling continued to stare at the ceiling beam, thinking for a long while about his husband down in the valley.

He wondered if the ger had gone to sleep yet. Is he cold, lying all alone on the kang?

At this thought, he couldn’t help but smile. The kang was heated at home—how could he possibly be cold? Besides, ever since Yan Qi became pregnant, he’d grown even more sensitive to heat. Rather than worrying that he might be cold, he should be more concerned that he might kick off the covers in the middle of the night and catch a chill.

Huo Ling tossed and turned, lost in these thoughts for quite a while, before finally drifting off into a drowsy sleep.

He was usually a sound sleeper and rarely dreamed, but that night he drifted off gently.

In the dream, he was still a little rascal barely as tall as an adult’s knee. The scenery in the mountains remained the same; the only difference was that the family estate looked newer, with far fewer signs of the passage of time.

His parents were both still alive and looked as young as ever.

“Xiaofeng, Xiaoling, come home for dinner!”

“Got it, Mom!”

As the two boys ran, the big dog their father had raised back then accompanied them, looking as imposing as Dager.

During dinner, the big dog lay under the table waiting for his young master to toss him a bone, while Huo Ling secretly kicked off his shoes and rubbed his bare feet back and forth on the dog’s back.

This dream felt very strange. On one hand, he knew it was a dream—that he wasn’t the child inside that body—yet on the other, he couldn’t pull himself out of it. He found himself running around with his younger self, doing all sorts of things only a child would do.

The spring snow hadn’t melted yet. He and his older brother, one on each side, were holding onto a freshly found pair of antlers as they followed in their father’s footsteps. Their father kept repeating, “When you find antlers, you must find a pair. If you find one, the other is never far away. Remember this well…”

In early summer, when wild greens began to sprout, he went with his mother, each carrying a basket, to forage for them. He accidentally dug up the wrong plant with a shovel, so he pulled it out by hand and shook off the dirt. It wasn’t until they got home that he was told he’d dug up an inedible weed.

The red berries in the grass were still green and tart, but he couldn’t resist picking and eating them with his older brother. The sourness made his teeth ache so badly he couldn’t chew his dry rations at mealtime, yet he held it in and didn’t dare say a word.

Next came identifying mushrooms, searching for gastrodia, recognizing wild mushrooms, and hunting for mole crickets…

And so, in his dream, he spent the four seasons in the mountains, witnessing the coming of winds and the falling of rain, and mastering a host of skills. Just as the first heavy snow began to fall and he was about to take the handful of freshly cracked walnuts his mother was handing him, he suddenly woke up.

Huo Ling sensed a salty taste at the corner of his mouth. He raised his hand to touch it and found that his pillow was wet and his face was streaked with tears.

His drowsiness vanished instantly. He sat up, clutching the quilt, and stared blankly into the night.

Perhaps the various events of the day spent teaching his apprentice had stirred memories of his childhood, when he used to follow in his father’s footsteps to learn the art of living on the mountain.

“If the two of you were going to visit me in a dream, why didn’t you stay a little longer?”

He muttered to himself. After staring blankly for a while, he suddenly lay back down, closed his eyes, and tried to fall asleep, hoping to pick up where the dream had left off.

Unfortunately, when he opened his eyes again, it was already daylight.

Ten days later, Huo Ling led two new apprentices—who were only a few years younger than himself—down the mountain.

The three of them carried ten pairs of deer antlers, five jin each of birch mushroom and pine resin, three jin of loose kidney grass, as well as five hazel grouse and two wild rabbits. Huo Ling gave two grouse and one rabbit to the Zhao family; the rest of the mountain produce he kept for himself, intending to sell it all at his stall when he went into town to sell buns.

“So many deer antlers? It’s a wonder the three of you could carry them all. Why didn’t you call Dager to come find me at home? I would’ve come to help carry some.”

Huo Feng went out to help unload the goods, but faced with the incredibly hardworking Zhao Yinsheng and Zhao Chensheng, he could hardly find a way to help. All he had to do was tell them where to put things, and the two of them would pick them up and carry them away without a word.

“Apart from these antlers, there’s nothing else that takes up much space. How could three people not manage to carry it all?”

Huo Ling tossed the backpack—which had been accidentally torn by a tree branch on the way down—into a corner, planning to mend it later. He realized quite some time had passed, yet Yan Qi still hadn’t come out.

“Big Brother, where’s Qi?”

“He’s inside.”

Huo Feng glanced at the wood shed and, seeing that the Zhao brothers hadn’t come out yet, explained quietly to Huo Ling, “Your sister-in-law isn’t feeling well. She asked the Ma family’s wife to come take a look. She’s worried the child might get fussy, so she asked Qi to keep him occupied for a while.”

Huo Ling furrowed his brow. He was just about to ask why they hadn’t called Bearded Ma when she was sick—and why they’d called his wife instead—when it suddenly dawned on him: it must be an ailment that’s more appropriate for a woman to examine.

“Is my sister-in-law all right?” he asked, as tactfully as he could.

“It’s nothing serious.”

After a while, once they’d put the items away, the Zhao brothers were about to take their leave and head home. Huo Ling invited them to stay a while, but Zhao Yinsheng said, “No, thanks. We haven’t been home in quite a while, and Master, you must have a pile of things to take care of.”

“Very well. There’s plenty of time ahead, so I won’t stand on ceremony with you two. Just remember to take the items back with you.”

The brothers thanked him repeatedly before leaving. Watching their retreating figures, even their steps seemed lighter than before. Huo Feng closed the courtyard gate and came inside, musing, “The Zhao family will finally be able to have a couple more hearty meals. I thought they were both nearly as thin as chopsticks. With bodies worn down by hunger like that, if they go to town to carry heavy loads, they’ll end up getting sick from overexertion if they’re not careful.”

“They really should eat more meat to build up their strength. They’re already gasping for breath after walking less than an hour in the mountains.”

He added, “They’re still young; they’ve got room to grow.”

Huo Feng clicked his tongue, his face contorted as if he had a toothache.

“You really are acting like a master now. Listen to what you’re saying—if I didn’t know better, I’d think you were old enough to be their father.”

Huo Ling chuckled. “I’m certainly not going to be their father.”

Just as they were speaking, the door was pushed open from the inside, and Yan Qi poked half his body out. “Big Brother, the guests are ready to leave.”

This meant it was time to settle the bill. Huo Feng quickly replied and went to the east room to check on his wife, while Yan Qi finally turned his attention to Huo Ling, giving him a once-over from head to toe before reaching out to adjust the man’s collar.

Huo Ling couldn’t help but feel that after ten days apart, the ger’s cheeks had plumped up just a little, making him look even softer.

If it weren’t for the fact that his clothes were a bit dirty, he would have loved to pull the other into his arms and hold him close.

Come to think of it, ever since they’d come down from the mountains at the start of the snow season, the two of them had been together every single day—they hadn’t been apart for quite some time for so many days.

But because Yan Qi was pregnant, there wasn’t much they could do.

After changing his clothes, he had Yan Qi sit on his lap for a while. Once he’d had his fill, Huo Ling lifted his head, listened to the sounds outside, and guessed that his older brother had already seen the Ma family’s daughter-in-law off. He asked Yan Qi, “Is my sister-in-law doing all right?”

Yan Qi nodded slightly. “Just the usual postpartum ailments—nothing serious.”

“What kind of common ailments happen during the postpartum period?”

It was one thing for Huo Ling not to ask, but once he did, he started to worry—fearing that Yan Qi might end up suffering as well.

“Don’t they say that if you observe the postpartum confinement properly, you won’t have any problems? I remember when my sister-in-law gave birth to Yingzi, she didn’t see a doctor once during her confinement.”

“You’re a man—why are you asking about this?”

In fact, Ye Suping was experiencing a bit of blocked milk ducts, so she’d asked Bearded Ma’s wife to come and help clear them. When the woman arrived, she mentioned that the Huo family already ate quite well on a regular basis, and during the postpartum period, they’d gone a bit overboard with the tonics; she advised them to give the new mother less soup.

But Yan Qi couldn’t tell Huo Ling that, and besides, as a ger, he wouldn’t have this problem during the postpartum period anyway.

Huo Ling tactfully refrained from asking further questions and raised his hand to gently stroke the ger’s belly.

“Has the baby been moving much these past few days?”

Even though she was nearly five months along, he still held his breath every time he touched that spot.

“Of course it has, but it’s quiet right now.”

Yan Qi placed his palm over the man’s slightly rough hand. After they waited a moment, he said, “Wait until right after I’ve finished eating to check. I’ve noticed this little one always gets restless after meals and right before bedtime.”

Huo Ling smiled.

“Maybe it’s a little glutton—that’s fine too. A good appetite is a blessing.”