Chapter 1
The bleak cold wind blew across the mountain tops, bringing a biting chill. The sky was gloomy and the clouds hung very low, as if foreshadowing the coming of the cold winter.
Looking around, the sacred grass that was lush in spring and summer on the sacred mountain has become completely bare, with only a few roots left to wait for the next year when all things revive and sprout again; and the animals that were usually the most lively have mostly found nests to hide from the cold wind and snow, preparing to spend the winter in sleep.
Only a few small animals that do not need to hibernate but whose fur is not warm and thick enough are still busy outside storing food for the winter.
"Guji!"
On the still green pine branches, a small figure stepped on the swaying pine branches, and with a force of his feet, he swung himself onto the branch of another tree.
"Gugu!"
The little guy shook his two little feet, and proudly threw the big pine cone in his arms into the sky and caught it again.
This is a young squirrel. Its back is covered with thick, long gray-white hair. The hair from its abdomen to its chest is slightly shorter and as white as snow.
Its head is only the size of a baby's fist, and its two small ears are covered with erect brown-red ear hairs. Its big black eyes are smart and cute, and its fluffy tail, almost as long as its body, is swaying leisurely behind it.
The little squirrel has a name that suits him very well, Song Shu.
"Song Shu, have you stored all the food for the winter?" The antelope stepped on the ground with its hard hooves and asked with its head raised.
Lingshan is a fairy mountain, but it seems no different from ordinary mountains in the mortal world.
As the seasons change in the mountains, the scenery there changes accordingly. Most of the goblins living in the sacred mountains have only a little more intelligence than ordinary animals, and only a few animals can comprehend the magic of immortals.
But fortunately, Song Shu is one of the very few.
"It's already been saved."
Song Shu used his tail to hang himself on the branch, hanging upside down to show the antelope the pine cone he had just found. He patted the shell of the pine cone with his small claws and showed off proudly:
"Lingyang, look, this pine cone is full of spiritual energy. If you eat it, you won't feel cold for three days."
As Song Shu moved, a trace of white spiritual energy overflowed from the pine cone, looking very tempting.
A trace of envy flashed in his gentle eyes, and Ling Yang praised sincerely: "Song Shu, you can always find the food with the most spiritual energy. It's amazing."
Before Song Shu could feel proud, Ling Yang changed the subject and gave a serious reminder: "However, it is estimated that it will snow tomorrow night. You'd better not go out tomorrow. It's very dangerous."
Winter in Lingshan is very dangerous, especially after the snow falls.
"I know."
After blinking, Song Shu exerted force with his tail and swung his body back onto the branch.
"I have stored enough food for the winter. I will seal the entrance of the tree hole when I return to it and wait until the snow stops falling before coming out again."
"It's a very smart move."
Ling Yang nodded and said in agreement: "Remember to seal the door tightly. I'm leaving first. If you need anything, you can mark it on the door panel. If I see it, I will come and knock on your door."
Ling Yang has a good level of cultivation, and antelopes are naturally cold-resistant, so they are not afraid of winter.
If he wanted, he could even maintain his human form and move around in the mountains at any time. However, compared to the human form with only two legs, he preferred his hard horns and powerful four hooves. He could knock down the enemy in a fight, and he could also escape at any time if he found that he could not win.
"That's great."
Putting the pine cone down, Song Shu freed a paw and waved it towards Ling Yang, saying happily, "When spring comes, I'll find spiritual herbs for you."
After the rat and the sheep made an agreement, Ling Yang took a step and quickly disappeared from Song Shu's sight.
Watching Ling Yang running away, Song Shu looked at his long legs with envy, then looked down at her own small feet, kicked the shaking branches as if to let out a breath, Song Shu picked up the pine cone again, and disappeared into the woods with a few jumps.
"Pine cones, acorns, peanuts..."
Song Shu recited the food he had saved as if he were counting it on the back of his hand, his tone becoming increasingly cheerful, as if he was proud of his superb ability to save food.
His home was a dead tree with a thick trunk and cracked bark that fell off when touched. It was a very inconspicuous tree, but Song Shu liked it very much.
He had found this tree a year ago. Because it had been dead for so long, the smell of decay had faded from its interior. The tree looked fragile, but it was actually strong enough to withstand the weight of wind and snow. Even when a wild boar crashed into it last year, Song Shu only felt a slight tremor from inside.
More importantly, water can be drawn from the bottom of the tree, so Song Shu doesn't have to worry about what to do when he gets thirsty.
After climbing to the cave entrance by stepping on the winding tree roots, Song Shu held the pine cone and jumped lightly into the tree hole, and landed at the bottom.
"Place pine cones on the east wall, acorns on the west, peanuts on the north, and walnuts on the south!"
Song Shu walked towards the east with a pine cone in his arms, smiling. The older turtle spirits in the mountains would teach the other spirits from human books from time to time. Song Shu went there often, and learned a lot from them.
But unfortunately, he does not have amazing literary talent and can only compose some doggerel.
However, after the mortal's thumb-long foot moved forward two steps, it suddenly stopped.
The pine cone in his hand fell to the ground, and Song Shu washed his eyes with his two paws. He felt like he was hallucinating.
When I opened my eyes again, the entire tree hole was still empty. There was only a wisp of air left on the east wall, west wall, north wall, and south wall where the walnuts were hidden. There was no trace of the accumulated pine cones, acorns, peanuts, and walnuts.
The only winter food left for Song Shu was the pine cone he had just brought back at his feet.
"Gu!"
A bolt from the blue struck Song Shu on the forehead. His legs stiffened, his claws clenched tightly, his fluffy tail drooped behind him, and his whole body fell straight back.
He was so angry that he fainted.
-
A tree hole without winter food is like an empty wallet of a mortal.
If you don't have any silver at the beginning, you can still bear it, but if you fill your purse with silver and it is stolen...
Damn it!
"Who stole my winter food?"
When Song Shu woke up, there was no change in the tree hole. It was still empty. Apart from the pine cone he had just brought back at his feet, there was no trace of other winter food.
"Leave none for me!"
A cold breeze was blowing in his heart, Song Shu took a breath and almost fainted from anger again.
How dare this grain thief come to steal from Grandpa Song?
Song Shu pounded the tree trunk with his small fist several times and swore silently:
If he catches the grain thief, he must show his power to others!
After punching the air a few times as if it were a grain thief's face, Song Shu first let out a shallow breath, then bent his legs and squatted on the ground, his dark eyes staring blankly ahead.
What to do if there is no food?
Over the years, it has snowed heavily on Lingshan Mountain. Layers of white snow have piled up on the branches and peaks, covering the entire Lingshan Mountain in silver, which makes it look like a fairy mountain.
But the fairy mountain style is useless!
The snow was so heavy that it covered up all the food scent in Lingshan. Song Shu might not be able to find any food even if he worked hard for a whole day.
what to do?
Looking at the only remaining pine cone at his feet, Song Shu lowered his head in frustration, cursing angrily and aggrievedly: "The grain thief has no conscience. He has no hands or feet, so he steals other people's food!"
Despite the curses, Song Shu was depressed for a while, then quietly got up and crawled along the vines towards the cave entrance.
Leaning through the tree hole and looking at the sky outside which was about to get dark, Song Shu looked a little hesitant.
He had not been unconscious for long, and it was not completely dark yet. He could also see at night. If he went down the mountain now, he might be able to leave Lingshan before it snowed.
But leaving Lingshan...
Song Shu hesitated for a moment, then said to himself in a comforting tone, "It's okay, I'll come back next spring."
Lingshan will accept all spirits who practice in the mountains.
"I can't starve to death."
His cultivation was not strong enough. If he did not eat food for a winter, by the spring, all that would be left in the tree hole would be the skeleton of a squirrel. If he was lucky, his skin and flesh would not be completely corroded.
"Damn grain thief!"
Unable to help but curse again, Song Shu jumped back into the tree hole, tied the only pine cone to his back with a vine, tied a rough knot, and climbed the vine to stand at the entrance of the cave again.
The cold wind blew, blowing the fluffy hair on Song Shu's ears back. The little squirrel stood facing the wind with a big pine cone on its back, looking quite unrestrained and imposing as if traveling the world with a sword.
Stay alive first!
Kill the grain thief again to avenge him!
The sky in Lingshan brightened and then gradually darkened.
Lingshan was too big, and Song Shu's steps were too small. Even if he could use branches to climb, it still took him a whole day to reach the foot of the mountain.
Snowflakes fell on Song Shu's forehead, bringing a slight coolness.
Song Shu looked up at the sky and saw endless snowflakes pouring down, landing on every inch of Lingshan, dyeing the mountain a pure white.
It's so cold.
Song Shu shook his body. He didn't feel anything just now, but as the snow fell, the biting cold came. Song Shu felt as if all his thick fur had been stripped away, leaving only bare flesh, and he was so cold that his whole body ached.
Got to run faster.
With his two claws clenched into fists, Song Shu looked ahead firmly, and then the little one disappeared at the foot of the mountain against the wind and snow.
"Hoohoo, it's so cold."
Finally leaving Lingshan, Song Shu sat down on the ground and blew on his frozen paws, his two small black eyes looking around smartly.
He had never been down from Lingshan, but he had heard from Old Turtle that there were bad guys outside Lingshan who loved to catch squirrels like this and take them home as pets.
If you are lucky enough to meet a wealthy family, you may be able to live a prosperous life, but if you meet someone with bad intentions, your life may be in danger.
Although he is not afraid of people, it is always right to pay attention.
However, there were no people at the foot of Lingshan Mountain. After being alert for a while, Song Shu relaxed a little. He looked around and hesitated about which direction to go.
but--
There was a rumbling sound from his empty stomach. Song Shu had been running all day and was already hungry. Moreover, the cold snow from Lingshan Mountain had penetrated into his body, so he needed spiritual food to drive away the cold.
Taking off the pine cone behind him, Song Shu held both sides of the pine cone with his hands, bit open the hard shell with his teeth, and began to chew the white flesh happily.
After eating the food, Song Shu felt warm all over.
He stood up and stretched his numb legs. Just as he was about to walk around in a random direction, he suddenly smelled a familiar scent.
A sweet, tempting, and spiritual food flavor.
More importantly—
It smells like him!
Food thief!
He stole my food and still dared to provoke me at the foot of the mountain. This shows that he doesn't take me seriously at all!
Staring in a certain direction with eyes blazing with fire, Song Shu sharpened his claws, bared his teeth, puffed up his cheeks fiercely, raised his tail high, and sprinted towards the place where the smell came from.
The smell of food gathered in a thatched hut not far away. The wooden window of the hut was half-closed, and a small candle was lit, looking extremely warm in the snowy night.
Song Shu climbed up to the window frame by stepping on the wooden wall. He grabbed half of the window with his little paws and quietly stuck his head inside.
Sitting at the wooden table by the window was a young man in white clothes and a jade crown on his head. He was holding a scroll in his hand and was reading it intently, seemingly unaware of the "little guest" who had come.
The young man was handsome, with a sharp jaw and eyebrows that looked like they were covered with cold snow on a cold mountain. He was as handsome as a god made up in a storybook.
Unfortunately, the squirrel spirit from Lingshan didn't understand the good of the handsome man, and her eyes were only fixed on the peanuts and hazelnuts on the table.
Song Shu twitched his dark nose and sniffed. He was sure that this was the lost winter grain.
He looked at the peanut shells left on the table, and then at the young man in white clothes in the breeze and bright moon.
Song Shu gritted his teeth and glared at the young master with his dark eyes. Unexpectedly, the young master also looked over at him for some reason, and the gazes of the man and the rat met strangely.
The scene was quiet for a while and no one moved. After a while, the little squirrel spirit suddenly got angry and slammed open the window.
"Grain thief!"
Song Shu shouted loudly and pounced towards the confused young man.
Grandpa Song will send you to see the King of Hell today!
A light breeze blew by, and two unconvinced "cooing" sounds were heard from the thatched hut, which had been peaceful just now. Then, a squirrel doing crazy sit-ups was hung upside down on the young man's bony hands.
Pinching the big furry tail wrapped around his fingers, the young master smiled slightly, and the snow between his brows suddenly melted. He whispered:
"Where did these squirrels come from? They're out wandering in the winter, aren't they afraid of freezing to death?"
The author has something to say:
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Song Shu: Grain thieves are asking for a beating! [Waving hands]
Qin Mian: Eh, I can’t hit it. [Lop-eared rabbit head]
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