If there’s anything important to do during the first lunar month, it’s nothing more than visiting relatives and friends.

Aside from welcoming the New Year and paying respects to their ancestors at home on the first day of the New Year, on the second day, Huo Feng went to Ye Suping’s parents’ home to pay New Year’s calls. He brought back the elderly Ye couple, who had come to see their daughter, as well as Ye Suping’s older brother and sister-in-law; Huo Ling and Yan Qi naturally accompanied them.

On the third day, it was time to visit his uncle’s family, but Huo Feng stayed home to keep his wife company; only Huo Ling and Yan Qi took Huo Ying along, carrying gifts as they set out.

It wasn’t a big loss not to see them this time; once the baby was born, Uncle’s family would surely come for the full-moon banquet, and they’d have plenty of opportunities to see each other then.

The village where his in-laws lived was called Wozi village, which was no longer part of Baojia Town.

Thinking they might come today, the whole family had swept the kang clean long ago, set out fruits and pastries, and were waiting at home.

Only Yue Songbai couldn’t sit still; before long, he got off the kang and went out into the courtyard to look around. Mrs. Qiao chased after him with a cotton hat and pulled it over his head.

“Dafeng and Erling always arrive around noon. The villages are far apart—if they were to make it by now, wouldn’t that mean they’d have set out at daybreak? And with a child in tow, they can’t walk very fast. You’re at your age, yet you still can’t keep your cool.”

“It’s stifling here. What’s wrong with me coming out for a walk?”

Yue Songbai was stubborn and refused to go back inside. Mrs. Qiao didn’t feel like leaving him, so she went to the kitchen to check on the goose stew.

Goose meat takes a long time to become tender, so she’d put it in the pot early to ensure it wouldn’t be tough when everyone arrived.

As for Yue Songbai, after wandering around outside for a while, he actually began to feel a bit cold. He rubbed his hands together and glanced down the village road—naturally, there wasn’t a soul in sight.

Just as he was hesitating whether to go back inside and sit for a while, he suddenly heard the sound of wagon wheels. Looking up, he saw an oxcart carrying people turning onto the road ahead—heading straight toward his house.

And the figure of the driver was unmistakable—it was none other than his tall, strapping nephew!

“Who said he couldn’t come? Here he is!”

Yue Songbai called out joyfully toward the house, not caring whether anyone inside had heard him, and went out to greet them himself.

“Uncle! Happy New Year!”

“Hey! My dear Yingzi! Happy New Year, Happy New Year! I’ve missed you to death!”

The old man and the young man shouted at the top of their lungs from a distance. Huo Ling and Yan Qi exchanged a glance, and both smiled helplessly.

Seeing they were just a few steps away, Huo Ling reined in the ox, jumped down first, and then helped Yan Qi down.

Yue Songbai approached and, seeing that only three people had come, hurriedly asked, “Where are the eldest brother and his wife?”

Huo Ling smiled. “My older brother’s wife is pregnant—she’s in her third trimester—so she couldn’t make it this year. My older brother stayed behind to be with her and asked me to apologize to Uncle and Great-Uncle on their behalf.”

“Oh my, that’s wonderful news!”

Yue Songbai was surprised at first, then feigned annoyance: “You two kids—why didn’t you send someone to let us know?”

With that, he greeted Yan Qi, took Huo Ying’s little hand, and led her back, saying, “Come home with your great-uncle to enjoy a good meal—your great-uncle and your aunt have stewed a whole goose together.”

Hearing the commotion, everyone inside had already come out. Mrs. Qiao stood at the front, accepted the New Year’s greetings from the younger generation, and slipped a red envelope into Huo Ying’s hand.

Upon learning the reason why Huo Feng and Ye Suping hadn’t come, she declared it a good thing.

“As soon as the baby is born, be sure to let us know right away.”

“Don’t worry, Uncle. When the time comes, we’ll definitely invite your whole family over for a proper full-moon banquet.”

Yue Songbai’s eldest son, Yue Qian, saw that Huo Ling had driven the ox cart all the way and helped him tie up the oxen and park the cart. Huo Ling then unloaded a pile of gifts from the cart—it seemed he had brought all the finest mountain produce from the past year.

Yue Songbai teased him about wasting money, insisting that with such high-quality mountain produce, it would have been better to sell it—after all, the family wasn’t short on supplies—but as he looked at the oxcart, he added, “It’s a miracle you managed to borrow an oxcart during the first lunar month; it really saved you a lot of walking. Your uncle even said you wouldn’t make it by this time—but look, here you are.”

“When Xiaoqi and I got married, didn’t you, Uncle, specifically tell us to come early for the New Year and stay a little longer? I still remember that.”

Huo Ling smiled slightly and patted the ox on the head, saying, “Actually, this oxcart isn’t borrowed—it’s a new addition to our family this year.”

These words drew the entire Yue family out to look at the ox. After a moment, Mrs. Qiao spoke up first: “We’ve been standing out here like fools, chatting away. Come inside quickly—the heated bed is all warm. You two are tough as nails, but don’t let Qi and Yingzi freeze.”

“Uncle, I’m not cold.”

Yan Qi had only interacted with the Yue family once before, so he was still a bit reserved.

Yue Qian’s wife, Mrs. Yao, stepped forward and linked her arm through his. “Of course you’re cold. Our village isn’t as sheltered as Xiashan Village—the wind blows much harder here.”

Mrs. Qiao added, “That’s right. Let’s all go inside first.”

Huo Ling was left behind in the courtyard, surrounded by Yue Songbai and his son, who asked him how much he’d paid for the ox.

Knowing that his maternal uncle wasn’t the type to keep secrets—and that he loved dropping by neighbors’ homes to drink and chat, spilling all sorts of things when drunk—Huo Ling had argued with his uncle many times over this.

So Huo Ling didn’t mention Hou Li at all; he simply said he’d bought it at the town livestock market at the going rate.

“That’s a good deal. You two are smart—you knew to go pick one out after the fall harvest.”

The Yue family had actually been using ox-drawn carts for quite some time; with so much farmland of their own, they simply couldn’t plow it all without draft oxen—it would have worn a person to death trying.

Now, seeing his nephew’s family’s life getting better and better, Yue Songbai felt equally gratified.

Once they were inside and getting ready to climb onto the kang, Huo Ling caught a glimpse of his uncle and aunt looking at Yan Qi with smiles that were clearly out of the ordinary, and he had a vague premonition.

Sure enough, my uncle then smiled at my other uncle and said, “There’s another piece of good news today—guess what it is.”

“Another piece of good news?”

Yue Songbai sat down on the edge of the kang and looked around.

“My eldest niece-in-law is expecting, and my youngest nephew’s family bought a cow—aren’t those two pieces of good news enough?”

He scratched his head, unable to figure it out either way.

At this point, Huo Ling realized that his uncle and cousin-in-law must have caught on—after all, women and men who’ve raised children are the most perceptive when it comes to such things.

Back when he’d taken Yan Qi to town and detected the pulse of pregnancy, his eldest sister-in-law had been the first to notice it once they got home.

“You old fool, use your brain a little more.”

Mrs. Qiao took Yan Qi’s hand and patted it. “Your little nephew’s husband is expecting too!”

Yue Songbai jumped right to his feet. “Really?”

A grin stretched from one ear to the other. Even though his nephew’s child was a generation removed, the blood of the Yue family still flowed through his veins.

Since his younger sister was gone and she wouldn’t get to hold a grandchild, he was happy for her instead.

Huo Ling then sat down on the kang next to Yan Qi and smiled, “Since he’s not very far along yet, only our immediate family knows about this for now.”

“That’s only right. You can’t make a big fuss about it during the first few months—there are traditions to follow.”

Mrs. Qiao wholeheartedly agreed.

Yue Songbai asked, “Have you told your parents yet?”

Huo Ling nodded. “I’ve told them both—I went once before the New Year and again on the first day of the New Year.”

“Good, good!”

Yue Songbai pushed the bowls and plates on the table toward them. “See which ones you like best—eat as much as you want; help yourselves!”

He turned to Yan Qi, “You’re at your uncle’s house—make yourself at home. Don’t be shy.”

Yan Qi replied with a nod, picked up a dried persimmon, and began to eat it slowly.

Yue Qian had a son who was at that awkward age—seven or eight, when even a dog would shun him—and he didn’t get along with Huo Ying. But he was quite well-behaved in public; when it came to food, he knew to be considerate of his younger sister. He took the initiative to hand Huo Ying a piece of stove-baked candy. Huo Ying broke it in half. “Big brother, you eat some too.”

The boy was in the midst of losing his baby teeth; when he opened his mouth, a small gap was visible, but he still happily ate the candy.

A group of adults watched the two of them, smiles playing on their faces.

“That’s why they say a house is livelier with more kids,”

Mrs. Qiao remarked wistfully.

She had two children, but one was a ger who had married far away; they hadn’t seen each other in years. Whenever he finally managed to come back, he could stay for no more than ten days or half a month at most, and when they parted, they’d cry until their hearts ached.

Now, with only his eldest son’s family left in the house—hardly a large household—she still hoped his eldest daughter-in-law would conceive again. But with no sign of pregnancy all these years, her hopes seemed slim.

They’d consulted a doctor, who implied that his daughter-in-law was in good health, but his son had some issues. Because of this, the young man had taken medicine for two months last year. The doctor said they shouldn’t rush things after taking the medicine—they should wait and see. To this day, they still don’t know if it’s helped at all.

Upon hearing this, Yue Songbai looked at Huo Ling and said, “Now that Qi’er is expecting, he can’t keep going into the mountains with you. You need to be sensible about this.”

“Yeah, we went up there two weeks ago to clean things up. We agreed that until the baby is born, Xiao Qi would stay down here to keep my sister-in-law company.”

Huo Ling replied without hesitation.

Yue Songbai started to speak but stopped himself.

He really wanted to ask his nephew standing before him if he truly had no intention of finding a different line of work, but just as the words were on the tip of his tongue, he realized Huo Ling wouldn’t like to hear it. Bringing this up during the New Year celebrations would only put a damper on the mood, so in the end, he swallowed his words.

Though it was merely a meal for his nephew, besides the braised goose, there were a full eight dishes on the table—a feast fit for the New Year—and two large platters of dumplings to boot.

During the meal, the conversation turned to how Huo Ling and Yan Qi had been selling pastries in town since winter set in. Yue Songbai seized the opportunity to say, “I think selling food is a pretty good line of work. Why not give it a try? In the fall, you can go up into the mountains, look for some ginseng, and make a little money. That way, our family will still have a steady income.”

Mrs. Qiao looked at him, then at Huo Ling. Seeing that the latter was keeping his head down and eating dumplings without saying a word, she interrupted Yue Songbai as she reached for some food.

“Erling is about to become a father—he’s no longer a child. He can still tend the mountain without missing a beat, and the business is already up and running. There’s no need for you to be giving him advice here.”

“That’s exactly why he needs advice; he’s about to become a father.”

Having had a few drinks, he couldn’t hold his tongue and launched into a long-winded lecture with Huo Ling.

But this time, after just a couple of sentences, it wasn’t Huo Ling who countered him, but Yan Qi. The ger had been quiet and reserved ever since entering the house, saying very little, but at that very moment, he suddenly spoke up: “Uncle, the truth is, it’s not just Huo Ling who loves herding in the mountains and can’t bear to leave the mountain life behind—I feel the same way. When I went up the mountain before the New Year, thinking that I wouldn’t be able to go back into the mountains or return to my home up there for a long time, I’m not ashamed to admit it, but I felt miserable for several days.”

He said earnestly, “If you ask me, Huo Ling is only truly himself when he’s in the mountains.”

Yue Qian finished chewing a piece of goose meat, placed the bone in his bowl, and said to his father, “Father, Erling grew up in the mountains. To him, that’s his true home. Not to mention him—even Dafeng goes into the mountains every autumn to herd the livestock.”

As a man himself, he could understand Huo Ling to some extent. Life as a farmer was predictable and monotonous; some people were naturally drawn to a stable life and could settle into it, while others had no other skills and had no choice but to live that way.

He was quite certain he belonged to the latter group.

Unexpectedly, besides his husband and uncle, his cousin had also spoken up for him. Huo Ling quietly set down his chopsticks.

“I know Uncle means well, but the truth is, there’s no way I can give up herding in the mountains. The mountains are my territory; I’ll probably stay there until I’m old and can no longer run.”

Yue Songbai clicked his tongue. “You’ve been a stubborn one since you were a kid.”

“A stubborn one is someone who insists on doing something they know is wrong. Herding cattle in the mountains isn’t wrong.”

Huo Ling didn’t back down verbally, but he did take a step back and said, “Still, I’ve been thinking about how I can spend more time down in the valley with Xiao Qi and the kids over the next year or two, without neglecting my trips into the mountains to forage for wild produce.”

The group discussed it for a while, but everyone agreed it was a difficult situation. There was only one of him—he couldn’t exactly split himself in two. There’s no such thing as having it both ways in this world; if you want one thing, you have to give up another to some extent.

In the end, they changed the subject and turned to more cheerful topics.

Only Huo Ling wasn’t worried. He believed that when the time was right, a solution would present itself—just as he had once thought he’d remain a bachelor for life, only to meet Yan Qi, a husband who not only didn’t dislike mountain life but had come to love it just as much as he did.