Thanks to Koshka HP for the kofis, enjoy the bonus chapters!

The snow in the yard was really thick. Lin Yu worked up a sweat shoveling snow. He was dressed thickly, so he didn’t feel cold at all.

At the doorway of the small cabin, He Dongdong and Zhao Yueniang were coaxing the children. The two babies could already roll over now. Yun-ger especially liked to roll over. Even dressed in thick clothes, if you didn’t keep an eye on him for a moment, he’d flip over. Once flipped, he couldn’t flip back. When he got tired, he’d start making “yi-yi-ya-ya” sounds, calling out to be flipped over again.

He Dongdong was showing the two little ones the snow. This one looked, that one looked—they were both getting equal attention. The two little ones had never seen snow before, and when they saw it, they waved their little fists happily.

But as soon as He Dongdong put Yun-ger down, he became unhappy, opened his mouth, and started fake-crying. He Dongdong patted him, saying, “Why are you so hard to please? Look at your brother, he’s a boy and not nearly as hard to care for as you.”

So He Dongdong had no choice but to pick Yun-ger up again and sit him on his lap to watch the snow. When Lin Yu got tired from shoveling, he made a snowball and tossed it toward the door, making Yun-ger giggle. A big smile spread across Lin Yu’s face, too. “Yun-ger, Ama is throwing snow at you! Come down, come down and play in the snow.”

Yun-ger waved his little fists, laughing so hard that his eyes disappeared. “Yah~ yah yah!”

Lin Yu was completely amused by him. “Dong-ger, this little guy is probably like you. Auntie He said you were such a naughty kid when you were little, hahaha.”

He Dongdong’s old face turned red from laughing. “Nonsense! Don’t listen to my mom’s nonsense. I was a good kid when I was young.”

Even He Dongdong didn’t believe himself after saying that. He chuckled. Yun-ger was probably just like him—already naughty at such a young age. Whenever he was with Lei-zi, as soon as he learned to roll over, he would fight with Lei-zi and often made Lei-zi cry loudly from being bullied.

That morning, Lin Yu made dried bamboo shoots and black mushrooms stewed with preserved meat. The small iron pot sat on the fire barrel, bubbling away. Wheat flour mixed with cornmeal was turned into a batter and stuck to the side of the pot to make flatbread. Even though it had cornmeal, it was even tastier than eating just plain wheat.

The four of them sat around the fire barrel. The two little ones had just been fed rice porridge and were full. Now they were lying in the cradle playing by themselves, making “yi-ya” sounds as if asking someone to play with them.

The dried bamboo shoots and bamboo mushrooms in the pot had absorbed the aroma of the preserved meat and were stewed until soft and tender. Everyone ate heartily, especially He Dongdong, who already loved Lin Yu’s cooking. Now that he was living with Lin Yu, he was even happier.

When He Dongdong had first arrived, his chubby little face had slimmed down a bit. After staying here for a while, the chubbiness had come back. He was eating with his cheeks puffed out. “Yu-ger, your cooking is really delicious. I don’t even want to go back down the mountain.”

“When spring comes and we go down the mountain, you can still come here to eat.” Lin Yu scraped some of the flatbread off the side of the pot. “It’s ready, eat up, eat up. After you eat this, I’ll stick on another round.”

Each of the four took two pieces of flatbread soaked in the broth. Lin Yu was stuck on another batch. The flatbread soaked in meat broth was even tastier than the preserved meat inside the pot.

The four of them sat around the steaming hot pot, not feeling cold at all. As they ate, they even felt warm.

That afternoon, with nothing to do, Lin Yu played with the two little ones. The small courtyard was filled with laughter and joy every day.

He Dongdong whispered to Lin Yu, “Yu-ger, what’s going on between you and Qingshan-ge?”

Lin Yu blushed from the question. “I don’t know either. Maybe it’s because my pregnancy mark is shallow and I can’t get pregnant easily.”

“I heard people say that eating more red dates and goji berries, and such, can help. Maybe that’ll make a difference. But it’s not urgent—haven’t you and Qingshan-ge only been married for less than two years? Didn’t Chun-ger also take two years after marrying before getting pregnant?”

Lin Yu nodded and kept it in mind. From then on, he directly brewed red dates and goji berries in the family’s teapot. Anyway, there was no harm in drinking it, so the whole family might as well drink it together.

It was cold in the mountains, and once the snow fell, it wouldn’t melt. Wei Qingshan went out again with his hunting gear. Lin Yu helped him put on his rabbit-fur hat, then wrapped him in a rabbit-fur coat. Wei Qingshan also wore rabbit-fur boots on his feet, so even the mountain cold couldn’t freeze him.

Only then did Lin Yu clap his hands in satisfaction. “Alright, be careful out there. Use your stick to probe the road as you walk.”

“I know. You just keep the courtyard gate locked at home.”

In snowy weather like this, prey was easier to hunt than usual. Plus, wild beasts were easier to spot, making things a bit safer than usual. With snow on the ground, it was easy to spot animal tracks, but the most dangerous part was that the thick snow covered up gullies and ditches. When walking in the snowy forest, one had to be especially careful. If they slipped and fell, it would be troublesome.

Lin Yu saw Wei Qingshan off. In the snow, Dahei was especially conspicuous. After recovering from his injuries, Baixue still stayed at home to guard them.

The three of them had nothing to do, so they sat around the fire bucket in the wooden cabin, warming themselves. He Dongdong sighed that Wei Qingshan really had it tough. “Even in this cold weather, he still has to go out hunting.”

“Mm, Qingshan said it’s a bit easier to hunt in the snow.”

It was much colder in the mountains than in the village. In the village, the snow would melt after a few days of sunshine, but in the mountains, not only did the snow fall heavily, it stayed thick and didn’t melt. It was fine while sitting around the fire bucket, but the moment they stepped away from it, they felt cold to the point of shivering.

Lin Yu had now finished embroidering his silk handkerchiefs, and there wasn’t much work to do at home. The snow in winter was too deep to go out. Now that there were two little ones in the house, Lin Yu didn’t feel bored anymore. He found it quite entertaining to play with the two little ones every day.

He took some charcoal and started drawing plum blossoms on the back of the door panel. Zhao Yueniang rested her chin in her hands, watching him. “Brother, what are you doing?”

“Drawing a ‘Nine-Nine Dispelling Cold Chart’. In these mountains, we don’t know what day it is. I’m afraid we might forget even to celebrate the New Year.”

He Dongdong also laughed. “Yeah, the days in the mountains pass pretty fast, too.”

Lin Yu drew eighty-one small plum blossoms on the back of the door panel. “When all these plum blossoms are filled in, we’ll be able to go down the mountain.”

Zhao Yueniang nodded vigorously. “Then we can go back home and farm again!”

The three of them laughed, and even the two little ones, not knowing what was happening, giggled along. As long as they made it through this winter, the natural disaster would pass, and the common people could go back to living peacefully as before.

Wei Qingshan came back in the afternoon, leading a half-grown mountain goat tied with a straw rope behind him. As soon as Lin Yu heard movement, he went to check the door. His face bore a smile. “You’re back.”

“I’m back.”

“Wow, you hunted a mountain goat today!”

“Mm, the snow was thick, so this one ran slower. I caught it. The meat of a half-grown mountain goat is the most tender. I’ll clean it up tomorrow.”

“Alright, come inside quickly and have some hot water. It’s cold outside.”

Wei Qingshan shook off the snow and wind as he came into the house. Lin Yu quickly handed him hot water to warm him up. He Dongdong secretly sighed—he really had it tough. In this heavy snow, being outside all day must’ve been freezing.

Wei Qingshan drank the water and warmed himself by the fire bucket. Lin Yu sat beside him, holding Yun-ger and playing with him. Lin Yu teased Yun-ger, “Uncle is back. Will Yun-ger hug uncle?”

“Ya!”

“Aiya, our little Yun-ger is willing!”

As Lin Yu spoke, he made a show of handing Yun-ger over to Wei Qingshan. Wei Qingshan gave the child a stiff smile. As a grown man, he didn’t know how to entertain kids—his smile looked completely unnatural. Lin Yu let out a snort of laughter.

Wei Qingshan gave a light cough to cover up his embarrassment. He had never held a child before and had no idea how to coax one to play.

Little Yun-ger was dressed in thick layers, wrapped up like a round ball. He wasn’t afraid of Wei Qingshan at all. He reached out his little hands to grab him. “Ya!”

As soon as Wei Qingshan extended his hand, Yun-ger grabbed hold of his finger. Seeing that Wei Qingshan actually liked children, Lin Yu placed Yun-ger on his lap. “Hold him. He’s very soft.”

Wei Qingshan hurriedly supported Yun-ger with both hands, stiff-armed and afraid to move. Yun-ger sat on his lap, bubbling and blowing spit bubbles.

He Dongdong also snorted with laughter. “Qingshan-ge, it’s fine to move a little. Yun-ger isn’t going to eat you.”

Wei Qingshan blushed from being laughed at by the two of them. This little guy, though bundled up thickly, was soft like nothing else. He was afraid his own strength might hurt him. Lin Yu reached over and scooped Yun-ger back into his arms. Yun-ger kicked his little legs and babbled nonstop. He Dongdong teased Lei-zi, “Why don’t you let Uncle Qingshan hold you too?”

As he spoke, he pretended to hand him over. Little Lei-Zi furrowed his tiny face and wailed, clutching He Dongdong’s clothes tightly and refusing to let go.

Everyone was amused. He Dongdong patted little Lei-Zi’s butt. “You’re a little boy, and you’ve already got such a tiny bit of courage. You’re not even as brave as your little brother.”

Little Lei-Zi clung to his little daddy’s clothes and burrowed into his arms, burying his little face and only showing his butt.

Yun-ger stood on Lin Yu’s legs and bounced a couple of times, pointing his little finger at his big brother. “Ya~ ya!”

As if saying, “Big brother’s a dummy, big brother’s a scaredy-cat~”

A room full of people was amused by the two little ones, who were laughing nonstop. Even Wei Qingshan had a smile in his eyes.

That night, Lin Yu and Wei Qingshan lay in bed talking. “Lei-zi and Yun-ger are really adorable. Yun-ger is a little boy, even sturdier than Lei-zi.”

“Mm.”

“When we have children, they’ll definitely be this cute too.”

“Mm.”

“Do you like little boys or little gers?”

“I like you.”

As they talked, Wei Qingshan started getting impatient. Lin Yu was caught off guard by the sudden bluntness and blushed. He muttered in a low voice, “Who asked you that?”

Although the two of them were not in a rush to have children, Lin Yu still liked children very much—they were so soft and cuddly, very adorable.

Lin Yu tugged at Wei Qingshan’s clothes, pressing him for an answer. “Hurry up and tell me, do you like little boys or little gers?”

“Little gers.”

Lin Yu rubbed his face against his chest. “You like little gers, huh? Don’t they all usually prefer boys?”

“A little ger would be like you.”

Lin Yu scratched Wei Qingshan lightly. “You’re spouting nonsense again.”

Wei Qingshan had never seen what Lin Yu looked like as a child. If their child looked like Lin Yu, he wouldn’t even know how to pamper them enough—he’d want to give them the very best of everything he had.

“All right, enough talking, time to rest.”

“I don’t want to.”

“Then let’s not sleep yet.”

As Wei Qingshan spoke, he pressed down on Lin Yu. The bed board creaked, and Lin Yu blushed at the sound.

The next morning after breakfast, Wei Qingshan dealt with the mountain goat in the courtyard. They had grown tired of eating wild chickens and rabbits from the mountain, so it was perfect that he had hunted this goat. Mutton was the most nourishing food to eat in winter.

Lin Yu stewed a full pot of it and stored the rest in the yard by chipping ice to freeze it. It was bitterly cold in the mountains, so storing it this way prevented spoilage. Whenever they wanted to eat it, they could just chop off a piece and cook it.

The courtyard was filled with the fragrance of the meat, and even Lin Yu couldn’t help but swallow his saliva. The mutton soup was fresh and delicious. This time, since Wei Qingshan had hunted a mountain goat, everyone could eat heartily.

The pot of mutton had been stewing all morning. The rich aroma had long since tempted everyone. Lin Yu ladled out a pot and placed it on the fire bucket to keep warm, and the few of them carried their bowls and began fishing pieces out.

On such a cold winter day, eating a steaming hot pot of mutton was beyond satisfying. Lin Yu also cooked a few thin pancakes, cut them into strips, and soaked them in the mutton soup—they were especially tasty. The four of them ate quite a lot.

He Dongdong even felt a little embarrassed. While he was living here, Lin Yu and Zhao Yueniang helped take care of his child, and even the food was much better than in the village at the foot of the mountain. Every few days, they would get to eat meat. By now, the village probably couldn’t even fill their stomachs. This kindness—his family had no way to repay it.

Several more snowfalls came down on the mountain. With the piercingly cold wind outside, they couldn’t even open the door. The wooden cabin was tightly shut with a fire bucket burning inside. Lin Yu was at the doorway smudging a plum blossom with charcoal. “Tomorrow is New Year’s Eve.”

“So soon, huh? Another year has passed without us realizing it.” He Dongdong was a little sentimental. This year had finally been endured.

“Yeah. Once New Year’s Eve passes, the weather will gradually warm up,” Lin Yu looked at Wei Qingshan. “Let’s not make dumplings this year. It’s too cold—your hands freeze as soon as you stretch them out. Why don’t I stew the rest of the mutton?”

“Okay.”

On New Year’s Eve, the snow on the mountain still hadn’t stopped. It was terribly cold—the coldest days of winter. This year, there were no couplets pasted and no firecrackers set off. It was just the few of them celebrating the New Year together.

Lin Yu still changed into his newest padded jacket and took out the little fish hairpin he usually couldn’t bear to wear and placed it in his hair. Everyone’s spirits were especially high today—they had finally made it through a long winter and a difficult year.

To add to the festivity, He Dongdong tied two little topknots for the two little ones using red string, and Zhao Yueniang changed her hair tie to a red one as well.

On the table were fried peanuts, roasted chestnuts, and small sugar pancakes the size of a child’s palm made by Lin Yu. As for fruit or pastries, they couldn’t get any in the mountains this year, so Lin Yu had deliberately made sugar pancakes to add to the festive mood. At the end of the year, one had to eat something sweet.

The two little ones could now stand. Yun-ger learned faster than Lei-zi—just a few days ago, he could pull himself up to stand by the cradle. Lin Yu was afraid the bamboo was too cold to the touch, so he had specially wrapped a layer of cloth around it. That way, when the little ones held onto the bamboo, their hands wouldn’t get cold.

Back when Wei Qingshan made the cradle, he had made it tall enough. Now the two little ones standing inside were just the right height. When it was mealtime, they let the little ones play in the cradle, and they wouldn’t fall out.

Lin Yu gave each of them a chestnut to play with. Yun-ger was greedy and stuffed the chestnut right into his mouth. With two tiny teeth that had just grown in, he gnawed at the chestnut until it was covered in drool.

Lin Yu was amused into laughter. “Only two teeth have just come out, and you already want to eat chestnuts. When our Yun-ger gets a bit older, then he can eat them.”

Yun-ger gnawed at it for a while but couldn’t bite through, so he stopped playing. His little hand loosened and pa, it fell into the cradle. Since his own was gone, he went to snatch Lei-zi’s. Lei-zi was holding his in his hand, playing happily, but Yun-ger reached out and let out a loud “ya!” as he snatched it away.

Lei-zi stretched out his little hand to snatch it back. Lei-zi couldn’t win against Yun-ger and, unable to keep his balance, plopped down on the mat with a thud. The little guy blinked his eyes in a daze and began to cry out loud.

He Dongdong picked Lei-zi up. “Why are you so useless, always crying? Look at your little brother, he’s more like a boy than you.”

Lin Yu also picked up Yun-ger. “Why are you so tough? Don’t want your own, so you go and snatch from others?”

He Dongdong had a bit of a headache. “They can’t even run yet—once they can, I don’t know how mischievous they’ll get.”

Lin Yu lowered his head to play with Yun-ger. As he leaned down, the little fish on his silver hairpin swayed slightly, and Yun-ger was immediately drawn to it. He didn’t want the chestnut in his hand anymore—it dropped to the ground with a pa—and he stretched out his little hand, trying to reach the silver fish on Lin Yu’s hairpin.

His little hands were too short to reach it, so he grabbed Lin Yu’s hair instead. His little mouth smacked and chomped right onto it. Lin Yu quickly pulled his hair back. “Why do you eat everything?”

“Ya, eat!”

Lin Yu’s eyes widened in surprise. “Dong-ger, could he be about to start talking?”

“Who knows. This little thing learns everything faster than this stinky rascal. Once we get down the mountain, he might even be calling ‘dad.’”

Lin Yu teased Yun-ger. “Say ‘Ama,’ Ahhh- Maa- Ama”

“Ya!”

“Stupid Yun-ger, can’t even say ‘Ama,’” He Dongdong joked from the side.

“Ya, eat!”

Everyone was amused into laughter. Couldn’t say anything yet, but had already learned to say “eat.”

For the New Year’s Eve dinner, Lin Yu made some braised lamb. The weather was too cold, so they didn’t stay up for the New Year’s vigil. Everyone went back to their rooms.

Lin Yu and Wei Qingshan lay in bed chatting. “In the blink of an eye, we’ve already lived on the mountain for over half a year.”

“Mm.”

“Once we get down the mountain, we can plant our land again. Is there still food left in the cellar? Is it enough to last us until we harvest the new grain?”

“There are still four bags left, enough for us to eat.”

“That’s good. Once spring starts, food prices will probably go up.”

While they celebrated the New Year on the mountain, the villagers were celebrating as well. Though this year had been difficult and not easy to get through, they had at least survived the winter.

The village had become much more peaceful. It was said that the troops sent by the court had wiped out many bandits, and only a few scattered ruffians remained. Now that the people saw the court was actually taking action, they felt at ease.

Once the weather warmed and spring came, and the new rice was harvested by the end of May, the natural disaster could be considered completely over. Even if there was no food to eat, once wild vegetables started sprouting in the mountains, no one would starve to death. With the warmer weather, life would be much better for everyone.

A few days before the New Year, He Dazhu and He Erzhu brought their wives and children over. Sang Niang also returned with Qing-ger. Now that everyone knew about the court’s campaign to suppress the bandits, their hearts had settled. It was said that even the famine refugees in town had started returning one after another.

They said the court had distributed food—anyone willing to return was given a dou of rice per person. Once the New Year was over and the wild vegetables began to sprout, no one would starve. Many people accepted the rice and returned.

Even Wei Er took advantage of the night to sneak back to the village. Their Aozi Mountain was remote, and the court had begun suppressing the bandits as soon as winter started. They had only just received the news, and the people in the mountain stronghold were all panicking.

Besides, they were all refugees, and this group of people had plundered quite a few villages and committed countless crimes—there was no way out for them, so they just decided to throw their lives away and keep robbing, determined to take over the mountain and be kings.

But Wei Er was different. His family had a house and land. He had originally mixed in with the bandits just to get a bite of meat, to strike it rich. And now he had saved up more than three hundred taels of silver, plus gold and silver jewelry. He didn’t want to lose his head.

That night, he tricked Xia Banzi out and pushed him straight off a cliff, then took all of Xia Banzi’s and his own money and snuck back to the village in the dark. Now he had over five hundred taels of silver on him—enough to live in luxury for the rest of his life!

When Wei Er got home, Xia Hehua was so hungry she was gnawing on straw, while Wei Laotai was steaming dry rice in the house. When Xia Hehua saw Wei Er, she thought she had seen a ghost and screamed. Wei Er covered her mouth. “Keep it down.”

“Wei Er, you’re not dead? I thought you were dead.” Xia Hehua saw Wei Er perfectly fine and burst into tears. “Do you have food? Do you have food? Give me a bite!”

Wei Er pulled out a flatbread and handed it to her. Xia Hehua hugged it and devoured it in big bites.

Hearing the commotion, Wei Laotai also came out. When she saw Wei Er return, it was as if she had seen a ghost. “Why are you back? You’re not dead!”

Realizing the situation, she immediately changed her expression and cried out, “My son, you’re finally back!”

After eating the flatbread, Xia Hehua had a bit of strength. “Pah! Wei Er, don’t listen to that damn old woman. Back then, she hid food and wouldn’t give us any. Once you left, she ate dry rice every single meal! If you don’t believe me, go inside and see—she’s cooking it right now!”

Wei Er rushed inside and, sure enough, saw a clay pot steaming dry rice. He kicked it over with one foot. “Great! You damned old woman, you’d rather starve your son than share the food!”

Wei Laotai, seeing that she had been exposed, simply stopped pretending to be a kind mother with filial children. “You want to blame me? If you want to blame someone, blame Xia Hehua. If it weren’t for her mother and brother coming over, would we have run out of food? If I hadn’t hidden some grain, our whole family would’ve starved to death!”

Wei Er snorted and couldn’t be bothered to deal with her. He went back into the house and put the bundle he carried on the bed. Xia Hehua’s eyes lit up the moment she saw it—on the bed were silver taels and gold hairpins, silver bangles!

“Where did all this silver come from? Did you really go become a bandit?”

“Stinky woman, stop spouting nonsense. Back then, when we had no food, were we supposed to starve at home? I fled to Jiangnan and did business with others. That’s how I made my fortune.”

Xia Hehua clearly didn’t believe him. What kind of business could make that much silver?

Everyone in the village said her man had run off to join the bandits, but she didn’t care anymore. Now that they had this much silver at home, they could eat well and drink richly from now on. No matter where it came from, she was going to swear it came from doing business.

Wei Er thought the same. Xia Banzi was already dead, and once the bandits on Aozi Mountain were completely wiped out, who would know he had ever been a bandit? Dead men tell no tales. Then this silver would be considered money earned through business.

News of Wei Er’s return spread through the village. Now, no one in the village liked their family. Xia Hehua’s eldest brother had snatched the Feng family’s ger, and Wei Er had run off too. The village chief brought people to question Wei Er about where he had gone. Wei Er swore he had fled to the south to escape famine.

Everyone suspected him but had no evidence. The village chief had no choice but to let him go. The Feng family’s parents also came, crying and asking about their ger’s whereabouts. Wei Er swore he had never seen him—but he knew that the ger had died long ago!