Lanzi lowered her head, gripping the wood-chopping knife tightly in her hand, her fingers already red and purple from the cold rain. She bit her lip, her eyes red-rimmed, "If you're going to hike alone in the mountains, then I won't go with you anymore."

She turned to leave, but her foot slipped, and she fell to her knees in the mud, one sleeve instantly covered in wet mud.

Du Jianshan frowned. Although he was still angry, he didn't really want her to fall. After hesitating for a moment, he finally stepped forward and lifted her out of the mud: "Alright, stop fooling around."

Lanzi gritted her teeth and remained silent. She turned around, wiped her face, but said nothing.

The two remained silent for a while. The rain gradually subsided, and only the sound of dripping water could be heard in the forest. The tree trunks were slippery, and the fallen leaves were sticky.

Du Jianshan sighed, took out half a dry cloth from his waist and handed it over: "Wipe your face. You choked, but you have to hold it in next time. Working in the mountains is different from working in the fields. Even the slightest noise can be fatal."

Lanzi took the cloth and whispered, "I understand."

Just then, a rustling sound came from not far away, like an animal snapping a branch. Du Jianshan became alert and lowered his voice: "Don't speak."

The two quickly hid behind a crooked pine tree. Du Jianshan stared intently and saw a gray shadow slowly moving through the forest. It was short and strong, with a steady gait, unlike the lynx which was agile.

"Wild boar," he whispered, a hint of excitement immediately appearing in his eyes.

“It’s a lone hog,” he judged. “It’s probably a boar that’s strayed from the herd.”

"Can you fight?" Lanzi asked.

“It depends on the terrain.” Du Jianshan glanced around and whispered, “There’s a slope over there, slippery and muddy, it can’t get up there. Go over there and hide behind the pine trees, don’t make a sound. Wait for my signal.”

Lanzi nodded, quietly went around to hide behind a tree. Du Jianshan, meanwhile, crouched down and laid out a route along the other side of the slope, unloaded his basket, and moved out a rope and a short fork to set up a simple obstacle.

After waiting for a while, the male wild boar indeed slowly walked down the slope, rooting around in the ground and occasionally grunting.

"Waaah—"

Suddenly, Du Jianshan let out a bird call; that was a signal.

Lanzi gritted her teeth and threw a piece of wood from behind the tree, which hit the wild boar right next to it.

The wild boar was startled and charged up the slope, falling right into Du Jianshan's trap.

"Hey!" He leaped out suddenly, plunging his fork into the boar's shoulder. The wild boar thrashed about wildly, but slipped and fell to the ground due to the muddy slope. Taking advantage of the opportunity, Du Jianshan stepped on its neck, twisted his short knife, and stabbed it into the boar's ear. Blood spurted out, and the wild boar struggled a few times before gradually becoming still.

"It's done!" Lanzi rushed out from behind the tree, her eyes shining. "You...you really stopped!"

Du Jianshan, panting heavily, pulled out the knife, casually wrapped the blade with a cloth, and smiled, "About a hundred pounds, enough to eat for half a month if we take it back."

"I'll help you carry the legs." Lanzi squatted down and deftly tied the pig's trotters with hemp rope. "You carry the front, I'll carry the back, and we'll work together to pull it down the mountain."

Du Jianshan was taken aback. Looking at her rain-soaked hair clinging to her cheeks, his eyes flickered: "You really aren't delicate."

Lanzi gritted her teeth. "My dad used to say that people in the mountains aren't afraid of getting dirty or tired, but they are afraid of being soft-hearted. Since I've come with you, I don't want you to look down on me."

Du Jianshan remained silent for a moment, then finally said nothing more. The two of them worked together to tie up the pigs, one on each end, and pulled them back.

I hadn't walked far when I suddenly heard a strange noise behind me.

"Pat-pat-pat-" The sound was soft, but extremely fast, reaching behind in one or two moments.

Du Jianshan turned around abruptly, his brows furrowed. "Someone's here."

Sure enough, a figure emerged from the shadows of the trees. It was a tall, thin man in a blue-gray shirt with dark circles under his eyes and a fake smile on his face: "Oh, isn't this Du Jianshan?"

"Cai Changgui?" Du Jianshan frowned. "Why are you following me?"

The man grinned: "I wasn't following you. I was hunting a rabbit, and I came here by the smell of blood. Who knew you'd actually be so capable, managing to catch a pig as soon as you came up the mountain."

Du Jianshan didn't reply, but his eyes grew even colder: "Your hunting rifle was confiscated years ago. What are you going to use to hunt now that you're up in the mountains?"

“Hey.” Cai Changgui chuckled dryly, “Well, I still have my hands, right? At the very least, I can help you carry the pig.”

Lanzi couldn't help but say, "We hunted this wild boar ourselves, so we don't need your help."

“Girl, this mountain isn’t yours to own, and you don’t have exclusive rights to the hunt.” Cai Changgui’s eyes flashed. “I saw you hiding on the side when I came here. How did it become your job to shoot?”

"What did you say!" Lanzi was furious, her face turning red. "You clearly followed us here, how can you be so shameless?"

Du Jianshan sneered and tightened his grip on the knife: "Cai Changgui, don't try to play tricks on me. If you don't leave now, I'll make sure you can't walk down this mountain."

Cai Changgui stared at him, a fierce glint in his eyes, but he still forced a smile: "Tsk, why are you so angry? It's not like we've never met before. If you're afraid I'll steal it, fine, I'll just leave."

As he spoke, he turned and walked away, but his body was slightly tilted to the side, as if waiting for some opportunity.

Du Jianshan remained vigilant, coldly watching his retreating figure until he was completely out of sight before turning his head and whispering, "Don't trust this man in the future; he's a venomous snake with a smile on his face."

Lanzi nodded: "I've heard of him. He stole public medicinal herbs when he was in the production team. He went into hiding for a while. Why is he back?"

"I guess they've got their eyes on the mountain goods." Du Jianshan squinted. "News travels fast in these mountains lately. A wild boar or a leopard skin can be traded for salt or cotton cloth, so some people have started to have ulterior motives."

Lanzi gritted her teeth: "Then what do we do?"

"Hurry up and deal with this pig. We can't stay here tonight." Du Jianshan's gaze darkened. "Our next stop is over at the lime kiln. I know an abandoned warehouse where we can rest."

"You believe me?" Lanzi suddenly asked.

Du Jianshan didn't say anything, but simply took out the half of dried meat again and stuffed it into her arms.

Why are you giving it to me?

"You watch the fire, I'll peel the pig skin. We'll have pig liver soup tonight."