Ai Guo asked with his eyes, "What's wrong?"

An Moxue whispered, "I can hear the sound of wild boars moving around. They're still getting closer. Don't make a sound yet, let me listen for another one."

Upon hearing An Moxue's words, Ai Guo held his breath, his eyes filled with excitement, ready to go all out, when he heard An Moxue say, "Quick, climb the tree, the wild boar herd is coming!"

Ai Guo was visibly startled upon hearing this. When he met An Moxue's gaze, he shuddered and then climbed up the nearest large tree.

An Moxue was very satisfied when she saw this, and she climbed up another big tree.

The two had just settled down in the tree when they heard a tremor, accompanied by the squeals of wild boars. The sound grew louder and closer.

Ai Guo saw a group of wild boars, more than twenty in number, pass under the big tree where he and An Moxue were sitting, running together from the northwest side of the mountain to the southeast side.

He stared in disbelief at everything before him, feeling it was all so unreal. No wonder Mo Xue wasn't going to kill a pig but climb a tree; there were just so many pigs, and they were so big. He saw several wild boars with long tusks, which must have been males, and he estimated that a few others weighed over 300 pounds each. It was truly a sight to behold.

The wild boar herd came fiercely but also left quickly. After An Moxue climbed down the tree, Ai Guo followed suit.

He clutched his chest and exclaimed dramatically, "My God! This is the first time I've ever seen so many wild boars! What are they doing? Are they all fleeing this late at night?"

An Moxue said seriously, "They might be being chased and are on the run. Why don't you wait a little longer and see who's chasing them?"

After An Moxue finished speaking, she glanced at the direction and headed due west from where the wild boar had come from.

Ai Guo glanced at it and then chased after it.

And so, the two crossed another mountain and stopped halfway up a valley.

An Moxue pointed to the shimmering river in the valley and said, "Doesn't it look like the Milky Way? Tomorrow morning, a group of animals of all sizes will gather to drink, and there will be fish in it too! We'll see if you can catch any tomorrow. Let's stay here tonight. It's a sunny day now, so we can find a big tree that's sheltered from the wind, climb up, and sleep for the night."

Ai Guo looked around, somewhat worried, and asked, "Won't another group of wild boars come tonight?"

An Moxue said playfully, "Not necessarily! Who knows, maybe a pack of wolves will come to drink the water!"

"Tch, who are you trying to scare?" Ai Guo said dismissively, then ignored An Moxue, found what he thought was the thickest and strongest tree, and climbed up it.

Seeing Ai Guo climb the tree, An Moxue climbed up the tree herself as well.

The next morning, Ai Guo was awakened by the chirping of various birds. After waking up, he could smell the fragrance of grass and trees and hear the sound of flowing water.

In the early morning, the mountain forest was shrouded in mist, filled with birdsong and the fragrance of flowers. Ai Guo was captivated by the beautiful scenery and sat on a tree for a long time, gazing at it in a daze.

"Aiguo, are you awake? Come down." An Moxue stood under the tree and called out to Aiguo in the tree.

Hearing An Moxue's call, Ai Guo snapped out of his daze and replied, "I'm awake. Come down right away."

After Ai Guo came down, he saw that An Moxue had already set up a small pot, in which thick rice porridge was being cooked. As he got closer, he could smell the aroma of rice.

Ai Guo looked at the wild vegetables in An Moxue's basket and asked with interest, "Moxue, when did you wake up? The porridge is already cooked! And you picked these green plants, are they medicinal herbs?"

An Moxue stirred the porridge in the pot and said, "I haven't been awake for long. These aren't medicinal herbs, they're wild mountain vegetables. A lot of wild mountain vegetables are too old now. If you came in spring, there would be plenty of them! But these can be eaten in summer too. You can stir-fry them or use them as fillings. They're very delicious, I guarantee you've never had them before. I'll make them for you when we get back. Eat first, then we'll go down and catch some wild game, maybe even some fish. This afternoon I'll take you to see my Chasing Wind and Lightning, and then we'll go home."

As An Moxue spoke, she took the iron pot down, removed the firewood on top, revealing a clod of mud. She pulled the mud out, buried the fire back up, and covered it with a thick layer of soil until she was sure all the embers were extinguished before stopping her actions.

Ai Guo walked over and asked, "Is there anything else? I'll take care of it."

Ai Guo took the clod of mud and gently tossed it on the ground. The mud shattered, revealing a pheasant wrapped in leaves inside. He cleaned the mud off the clod and said excitedly, "Mo Xue, you're really amazing! How did you manage to catch a pheasant? Impressive!"

He picked up the pheasant, peeled off the leaves from its wrapping, and immediately the aroma of the pheasant wafted out.

He took a deep breath and said with delight, "Delicious!" Then he tore off a chicken leg and handed it to An Moxue. An Moxue took it and handed him a funnel-shaped bowl made of several layers of leaves, which contained the porridge that An Moxue had cooked that morning.

"Mo Xue, you're so talented! You really know how to use what you have on hand. This porridge now has the fresh scent of tree leaves, it smells so good, and it goes perfectly with the roast chicken." Ai Guo held up the bowl of porridge in his hand and praised.

An Moxue smiled and said, "Then you should eat more. I only need one chicken leg. The rest are all yours."

"How can that be? Here's another chicken leg for you." Ai Guo ate his chicken leg and porridge, and after An Moxue finished her chicken leg, he tore off another chicken leg and handed it to her.

And so, a pot of porridge, a chicken, and breakfast for two.

After finishing his meal, Ai Guo said with lingering satisfaction, "Eating amidst these beautiful mountains and rivers is truly a unique experience, but I just haven't had enough!"

An Moxue ignored him, finished packing her things, and said, "Haven't you had enough? Look over there!" She pointed to the river running through the valley below and said, "Come on, what do you want to eat? Catch it yourself and climb it. They have everything, they can satisfy you, provided you can catch it."

Ai Guo immediately became interested. "Mo Xue, what do you have?"

Two people carrying things on their backs walked downhill.

As An Moxue walked, she said, "Pheasants, rabbits, hedgehogs, roe deer, deer, goats, wild boars, badgers, wolves, wild dogs—I just don't know what you'll encounter. There will also be wild ducks, cranes, and maybe even geese in the meadows by the river. There are so many things!"

"Hurry, let's hurry, just catch one roe deer. Isn't it said that you can catch roe deer with a stick and fish with a ladle? I want to catch two more fish today." Ai Guo said, pulling An Moxue's hand and running down the valley.

"Mo Xue, are those things you described really true?"

"You'll see in a bit. But be careful of leeches and water snakes later. I'll put your sachet on properly."

"Understood." As he spoke, Ai Guoxian rushed towards the river.

Ai Guo, seeing the birds taking flight in fright, became even more excited and shouted to An Moxue, "Moxue, come quick, I found a nest of duck eggs!"