"Both are flesh and blood?" Du Jianshan stopped and glared at his mother. "Then why do you always protect the second son? It's been like this since he was a child. When he steals chickens and dogs, you say 'the child is young and doesn't know any better.' When he gets into fights and causes trouble, you say 'he's just straightforward.' When he comes home and doesn't farm or do any work, you bring him food and deliver it to his house. But what about me? I go hunting in the mountains, running seventy or eighty miles through the forest every day. When have you ever said a word of concern for me?"

"Jianshan, don't say anymore, Mother has had a hard life too..." Lanzi whispered a word of advice.

"Lanzi, shut up!" Du Jianshan roared, startling her so much that she shrank back, her eyes filled with panic.

Liu Xiuqin's tears streamed down her face: "I...I'm not being biased, I...that second son is frail, he fell into a well when he was little, I'm afraid he can't take hardship..."

"You're afraid he'll suffer, so you make me suffer instead?!" Du Jianshan's eyes also reddened, suppressing his anger. "That year I was fifteen, and my father fell ill and never recovered. I went up the mountain and down to the sea, hunting badgers and catching loaches. I even encountered hungry wolves in the mountains a few times. How did I survive? Did you even look at me once? You only care about your precious son!"

A moment of silence fell over the room. Liu Xiuqin sobbed and wiped away her tears, her voice trembling as she said, "Mom... I'm sorry... but your brother... he's pitiful too... now his leg has been broken, and he's stuck in the clinic, unable to get out of bed. I, his mother..."

"He brought it on himself!" Du Jianshan's voice turned cold. "He stole cigarettes from the supply and marketing cooperative and got caught red-handed. They beat him up, which was considered lenient! If I hadn't pulled some strings to plead for him, he would have been in jail long ago! I go up the mountain once a month, braving wild boars and tigers, just to supplement my family's income, and he, on the other hand, has given it all away!"

"You still dare to talk back!" Liu Xiuqin suddenly shouted, her eyes wide. "You really think you're so capable? If it weren't for the hunting rifle your father left you, would you still be able to go into the mountains? Hunting in the mountains isn't something young people can do anymore. If you hadn't relied on Lanzi's uncle's hunting permit back then, you would have been reported and arrested by now!"

Upon hearing this, Du Jianshan's face instantly froze, a vein throbbed on his forehead, and his lips tightened.

"Okay, okay, okay." He said "okay" three times in a row, then turned and walked out the door with a cold face.

"Where are you going?" Lanzi asked anxiously, climbing off the kang (a heated brick bed) to chase after him.

"Let's go hunting!" Du Jianshan said without turning his head. "Didn't you all say that all I know how to do is hunt? Then I'll do what I know how to do and show you who's the real head of this family!"

"Jianshan, it's raining outside, don't go!" Lanzi called out anxiously.

"It's better to die in the mountains than to be stuck here and suffer this humiliation!" Du Jianshan said, and then left.

The door slammed shut, even the paper windows trembled a few times.

The room was so quiet that only Liu Xiuqin's sobs could be heard. Lanzi stood at the door, staring blankly at the rain outside.

The forest was gloomy, and the rain pattered against the branches and leaves. Du Jianshan, wearing a tattered raincoat and carrying the hunting rifle left to him by his father, stepped into the depths of the forest.

The mountain paths were muddy, and a slip could send you tumbling down a slope. Yet, he moved like a silent shadow, darting through the trees. As the daylight faded, he took advantage of the weather, hoping to reach "Tiger Gully," an old hunting trail his father had trodden in his youth.

There's a cave in Tiger Gully, said to be frequented by leopard cats. Last time a hunting party came here, two men were killed—one broke his leg, and the other got lost. But Du Jianshan isn't afraid; he knows how to deal with the mountains.

When he reached the halfway point of the mountain, the bushes rustled in the distance, and he immediately crouched down. A quick glance with his left eye revealed a hare, but he didn't move. There was a fishy smell in the wind; something was wrong. It was a feline, at least a lynx, or perhaps even a leopard.

He held his breath, his finger already on the trigger.

Just then, a series of hurried footsteps came from behind.

"See the mountain!" It was Lanzi's voice!

Du Jianshan was taken aback. He turned around abruptly and saw Lanzi wearing a raincoat, her face covered in water droplets, panting as she caught up.

"Are you crazy!" Du Jianshan lowered his voice. "Why did you chase after me at this time?"

"I'm afraid something will happen to you!" Lanzi almost cried. "I'm home alone, I'm afraid you really won't come back!"

Du Jianshan's heart softened, but he stubbornly said, "What could possibly happen to me? I've been walking this mountain for over ten years, I know it better than my own backyard."

"If something happens to you, what will I, a woman, do? I have your baby!" Lanzi suddenly clutched her stomach.

"What?" Du Jianshan's eyes widened. "You...you're pregnant?"

Lanzi nodded, tears mingling with the rain: "It's been three months, and I haven't dared to tell you... I was afraid you'd think I was a burden..."

Du Jianshan was speechless for a moment, staring at Lanzi for a long time before finally muttering, "You fool..."

He unloaded his gun, put his arm around her shoulder, and said, "Let's go back, let's not do it today. I went hunting not out of spite, but so that you can have a good life."

Lanzi leaned against him and whispered, "Let's not argue with Mother anymore. She's old, and I'm afraid she'll never change."

"If she continues to give all her money to the second son, I won't care!" Du Jianshan's tone was tough, but his tone was gentler.

Just as the two were about to descend the mountain, they suddenly heard a scream from below; it was a man's voice.

Du Jianshan immediately became alert, told Lanzi to hide behind a large pine tree, and then crouched down and rushed down.

On the hillside halfway up the mountain, lay a blood-soaked man—it was none other than the second brother, Du Jiandong!

"Why did you come to the mountains?" Du Jianshan frowned.

Du Jiandong's face was deathly pale, and several broken tree branches were stuck in his legs, as if he had fallen from somewhere: "Brother... save me... someone is chasing me... they want to kill me..."

"What trouble have you gotten into now?" Du Jianshan asked angrily as he pulled down his trouser leg to check the wound.

Du Jiandong's lips trembled: "I...I stole some goods in Haikou...I got caught...they beat me, I ran..."

Du Jianshan gritted his teeth, his mind a jumble of thoughts. He knew that his younger brother was probably truly ruined.

But this wasn't the time to settle scores. He tore strips of cloth and used them to tie Du Jiandong's legs: "Lanzi! Go find a sturdy wooden stick. I need to make a stretcher!"

"Okay!" Lanzi replied and disappeared into the woods.

"This stuff is even more potent than the tiger bone wine the old man passed down." He smacked his lips and muttered to himself.

"If I could bring some back, maybe my mother's leg would really get better." He squatted down, took out his small aluminum kettle, carefully filled it with spring water, sealed the lid tightly, and put it back in his pocket.

Suddenly, a deep voice rang in my ears, as if it were coming from underground.

"The sacred spring water cannot be taken outside."

Du Jianshan was startled and jumped up: "Who!?"

"This place is a trial ground, not the mortal world." The voice came slowly, neither male nor female, and without any anger. "You may use the spring water yourself, but if you take it out of here, it will turn into clear water."

Du Jianshan was stunned for a long time before he realized: "So this is the only place we can drink our fill? That's fine, better than nothing."

He simply took off his shirt, jumped into the spring, and soaked in it with great relish. Streams of warm spiritual energy seeped into his bones through his skin, and he groaned contentedly.

"I need to come here more often."

As they were talking, a wisp of white mist suddenly rose from beside the spring, and a familiar old face appeared in the mist. It was none other than Shi Laosan, the old hunter from the village.

"Young Du, congratulations on passing the first round of trials." Old Man Shi smiled broadly, but his voice carried a hint of seriousness. "The rest won't be so easy."

Du Jianshan looked bewildered: "Uncle Shi, what are you doing here?"

“When I was young, I also came to this Spirit Spring Space,” Shi Laosan sighed. “But I was unlucky back then and was kicked out before the second round. You’re different. You have that wildness in your blood; you’re one of us from Dujiashan.”

Du Jianshan raised an eyebrow: "What's the second round?"

"Hunting." Old Man Shi's eyes narrowed. "But not ordinary hunting, it's hunting spirit beasts."

"Spirit beasts?" Du Jianshan frowned. "Those old weasels and long-eared badgers in the mountains are considered spirit beasts?"

“Of course not.” Old Man Shi shook his head. “The spirit beasts in the Spirit Spring Space are all intelligent and perceptive, much more so than the wild boars and tigers we’ve ever seen. You have to hunt them down with your own skills, skin them, and take their bones to successfully pass the test.”

Du Jianshan grinned: "Isn't this exactly what I wanted? I grew up hunting, what haven't I seen in the mountains?"

Old Man Shi shook his head: "Don't underestimate your opponent. The weakest of the spirit beasts here is equivalent to the strength of three adult men. If you rely on brute force, you will suffer sooner or later."

"What should we do then?" Du Jianshan frowned.

"Use your brain." Old Man Shi stared at him. "Catching mountains and seas isn't about fighting to the death, it's about skill and experience. Remember, the spiritual spring only grants you power for one hour. If you don't hunt a spirit beast within one hour, you'll be sent back to reality, empty-handed."

After saying this, the white mist dissipated, and a sudden, upside-down sensation swept over him. Du Jianshan felt a darkness engulf his vision, and when he opened it again, he found himself in a dense forest.

The surrounding area was filled with towering trees and intertwined vines. The ground was damp, and there was a faint smell of blood in the air.

"Alright, let's begin."

Du Jianshan untied his hunting knife from his waist, climbed a tall tree, and peered into the distance. Before long, he saw a badger-like creature, about the size of a calf and covered in blue fur, licking a dead rabbit by a mud puddle in the forest.

“Blue-striped badger.” He squinted, recalling the drawing Shi Laosan had made. “It’s fast, good at burrowing, and has a reverse scale under its neck, which is its only weakness.”

Instead of making a move, he quietly explored the terrain, circled around to the side of the animal trail that the badger often used, and used the wire cloth he carried with him to make a snare.

"Let's try our luck first."

As dusk settled, the chirping of insects began to rise in the forest. Du Jianshan lay motionless in the tree, like a stone. After about an incense stick's time, the badger reappeared, its nose twitching, lingering near the lasso.

“Come on, little darling…” Du Jianshan held his breath, gripped the throwing knife tightly in his right hand, and dug his left fingernails deep into his palm.

"Click!"

The badger's front paws stepped into the snare, and the wire suddenly tightened. The badger roared furiously and struggled wildly, sending dirt flying everywhere.

"Now!"

The subdistrict office is located in a drab two-story building, with a faded wooden sign at the entrance that reads "Red Star Subdistrict Revolutionary Committee".

As soon as he pushed open the door, the air was filled with the smell of stale ink and wet paper. Several people dressed in cadre uniforms were engrossed in flipping through documents behind a table.

"Who are you looking for?" a woman wearing glasses asked, looking up.

"I've signed up to go to the countryside," Du Jianshan said decisively.

"Going to the countryside?" The woman sized him up. "How old are you?"

Twenty-one.

"Family composition?"

“A town resident, whose father was a technician in a factory, and whose mother passed away.”

The woman nodded and gestured for him to come inside, saying, "Go and register with Director Wu."

Du Jianshan walked in, and a middle-aged man with a buzz cut was sitting behind an old-fashioned desk, smoking and flipping through household registration files.

"Director Wu, I'm signing up to go to the countryside."

Director Wu didn't even lift his eyelids: "Was it voluntary or were you persuaded?"

"voluntary."