Chapter 255

Chapter 255

Wolves howled relentlessly, a chill setting in.

The deeper they ventured into the mountains, the lower the temperature dropped. Even in thick clothing, with an extra quilt draped over them, they couldn’t ward off the biting cold that seemed to seep through every crack.

The Divine Land could only fit two people. For safety’s sake, Old Man Zhao had no choice but to let his daughter sleep outside with them. If any trouble arose, having more people would not only scare off enemies but also make it easier to decide together whether to run or fight.

With Qing Xuan included, there were four men in total, split into two pairs: Old Man Zhao and Qing Xuan kept watch during the first half of the night, while Zhao Dashan and Zhao Ertian took over for the second half.

They made two bedrolls by the fire. Since no outsiders were around, they pulled out their old quilts one by one, layering them thickly, and covered themselves with two winter blankets. It was warm enough, though.

Still, it was the wilderness, and even with Blackie on guard, Old Man Zhao couldn’t rest easy. He wrapped his daughter tightly in the bedding and held her in his arms as he slept, not letting go for a moment.

Qing Xuan tended the fire nearby, keeping watch, getting up at the slightest sound or movement.

When the second half of the night came, Zhao Dashan took over holding Zhao Xiaobao, while Zhao Ertian replaced Qing Xuan at his post, staying alert until dawn.

They had listened to wolves howling all night, and determined the direction to be north.

As they drank hot porridge and chewed on meat pies, Old Man Zhao made a decisive call: “Then we’ll head in the other direction. Let's try to avoid a confrontation with the wolves if we can.”

Wolves had long memories—provoke one, and you’d face the whole pack. They wanted to avoid making enemies unless absolutely necessary.

“I was thinking the same,” Zhao Dashan agreed with a nod.

The mountains were dangerous. Avoiding wolves didn’t mean they wouldn’t encounter bears or tigers. They had already steeled themselves for the risks; hunting in the deep woods was perilous, with no room for wishful thinking. If the worst happened, they’d have Xiaobao take Qing Xuan to the Divine Land, while the three men handled things outside. As long as they had enough to eat and strength to spare, the father and sons had the courage and strength to fight. They’d protect the two kids at all costs.

With Xiaobao around and the peaches as their safety net, as long as they hadn’t drawn their last breath, even a missing limb or two wouldn’t keep them down.

Zhao Xiaobao sat on her little stool, gnawing her meat pie until only a tiny piece was left. Then she dawdled, looking around.

Old Man Zhao took the crust she didn’t want and popped it into his mouth, chewing as he lifted her into the basket. “Good girl, once we're in the mountains, we can't take things out so openly anymore.”

He adjusted her felt hat and spoke gently, “The villagers down below said that deep in the mountains, there are many hunting families and those wretched fugitives. We’re bound to run into people, so we need to be extra careful. Can’t let anyone discover your divine abilities.”

“I know, Dad. Xiaobao understands.” The little girl nodded obediently. Her father had explained it all the night before. They had even gone to the Divine Land to pack a full basket of dry rations, bedding, and a clay pot for boiling water. He said once they crossed Eagle Stone, they couldn’t set up a table to eat anymore.

“But don’t worry too much. We have Blackie—his nose is sharp. If there are people around, he’ll bark.” Old Man Zhao felt bad for his daughter. Away from the main refugee group, with no prying eyes, he wanted to make sure she could enjoy a treat without hiding. “Our basket is tightly woven. You can sit inside and have a piece of maltose candy or whatever—don't be afraid, go ahead and eat. Dad’s here, I’ll keep an eye out for you.”

“Mm-hmm!” Zhao Xiaobao replied brightly.

Qing Xuan watched the fire die down, then scooped a few handfuls of snow over the ashes to make sure it was out. He followed the group as they crossed the dreaded Eagle Stone and pressed deeper into the dense forest.

…

Towering ancient trees; the woods were deep and silent.

In other years, once the Lantern Festival had passed, the weather would gradually warm up.

This year, whether due to being in a strange place or some other reason, it felt like their feet never really got warm, day or night. It wasn’t about how thickly they dressed—it was a bone-chilling cold that cut right through.

Zhao Xiaobao wore two thick padded coats and had a quilt draped over her. She was snugly bundled in her basket, yet the wind slicing across her face still felt like a knife. Her fingers and toes were numb, and rubbing them did nothing to warm them up.

Along the way, they left markers and never stopped. Though they couldn’t tell how far they’d walked, they could feel the forest had changed—denser, wilder than the day before. Signs of animal activity were more abundant. In the snow, they occasionally spotted fresh tracks of all sizes, from unknown animals.

Squirrels darted through the trees, and strange little beasts they’d never seen before scurried about—some foraging, some fleeing. Since they didn’t recognize them, they weren’t sure if they were edible or poisonous, so they didn’t bother.

They also spotted a fox—a pure white ball curled up in the snow, blending perfectly into its surroundings. Whether it was starving or just naturally sluggish, the famously cunning white fox in storybooks didn’t move an inch as they approached.

The men exchanged silent glances, paused to admire it, then continued on.

They had come into the mountains for food, targeting game like pheasants, hares, wild boar, and deer—the usual fare. Fox pelts were valuable, but they weren’t about to kill it for its skin out of greed.

Animals had no inherent worth, and they weren't exactly virtuous—after all, they ate meat too.

But as the old saying went: kill for food, but don't torment for sport. Tormenting living things is an outrage to both man and heaven.

“Dad, it’s so beautiful,” Zhao Xiaobao whispered, her eyes fixed on the white fox. She remembered hearing about foxes from the storyteller outside the teahouse in the prefectural city when she went with her brothers. She remembered clearly: the storyteller said fox spirits were incredibly beautiful and could enchant people. The luckiest ones were always the young scholars, who encountered fox spirits repaying kindness on their way to the capital for exams or when they were feeling dejected after failing the exams.

When she heard that story, she was so envious. She wished she could meet a fox spirit repaying a kindness too!

Zhao Xiaobao gazed longingly at the white fox as it faded into the distance. In her heart, she whispered: Little white fox, one day, come repay Xiaobao's kindness, okay? Xiaobao will treat you well, never betray you like the Scholars in the plays.

I'll have Brother Qing Xuan farm, and we'll raise you together!

She acted on the thought. She craned her neck to look at Qing Xuan walking ahead and called out, “Brother Qing Xuan, Xiaobao wants to discuss something with you.”

“What is it?” Qing Xuan didn’t turn around, the path ahead was treacherous; one wrong step and he'd fall.

“Let’s keep the little white one!”

Qing Xuan didn’t even ask who “Little White” was. After spending so much time together, he had learned to anticipate her wild ideas. “Foxes like to eat chicken. If you keep it, you’ll have to give it one of your drumsticks from now on.”

He paused, then added, “One drumstick might not be enough. If you give it both, you won’t have any for yourself.”

Another pause, then he continued, “Of course, I know you won’t mind, because you like it so much and want to keep it, right?”

Wrong! Xiaobao minded very much! Xiaobao wanted to eat both drumsticks!

The thought that had just bloomed died instantly. Zhao Xiaobao looked away wistfully, closed her eyes, and pretended to sleep. “Brother Qing Xuan, I was just talking in my sleep. Don't disturb me sleeping.”

Then she even snored comically, making the father and sons, who had been listening in, burst out laughing.

“Xiaobao, if you really want to keep it, Big Brother will catch it for you.”

“Yeah, we can put it in the Divine Land. It’s not like our family can’t afford to raise it,” Zhao Ertian added.

“No, no!” Zhao Xiaobao stopped pretending and waved her hands frantically. “Our family has a lot of chickens. What if Little White sneaks in and eats them when I’m not looking? Mom would be so mad. She and my sisters-in-law worked hard to raise those chickens. They lay eggs too! You can't just let them be eaten like that!”

“So it’s Mom you’re worried about, not the two drumsticks!” Zhao Dashan teased her.

Zhao Xiaobao couldn’t take the teasing. She started squirming in the basket, shaking her little fists, and yelling that her brother was annoying.

Old Man Zhao didn’t join in, just smiled, his face full of wrinkles, his eyes overflowing with love.

Laughing and bickering along the way, the journey didn’t feel so tiring.

They didn’t waste time like the day before. Though setting snares and digging pits in the deep forest would increase their chances of catching game, they gave up on that plan.

Opportunity often came with danger. If they ran into a large predator, they’d have to hightail it out. No matter how many traps they dug, it would be useless, so they didn’t bother.

As midday approached, their legs were growing heavy. They found a dry spot, lit a fire, cleaned the rabbits they had caught along the way, and roasted them over the flames.

A clay pot of rice porridge simmered, prepared for Zhao Xiaobao. Whatever she didn’t finish, the men could have some too.

Zhao Dashan pulled out the flatbreads they had prepared earlier, handing a few to each person. They ate them piece by piece, washing it down with cold water from their water skins.

The sky was overcast, and a strong wind gusted now and then. It looked like snow was coming.

The ceramic lid rattled against the rising steam. Old Man Zhao cradled his daughter in his arms, gazing at the gloomy sky, a trace of worry rising in his heart: "The weather isn't cooperating. We'd better find a cave to hole up in tonight; sleeping out in the open won't do."

He hadn't expected it would take a whole day just to reach the Eagle Rock area the villagers had mentioned. Originally he planned to descend the mountain in three days at most, but given the current situation, if they didn't run into anyone today and couldn't hunt enough meat, they'd have to stay two more days.

They couldn't go home empty-handed, after all.

"Xiaobao, how much provisions did you leave for your mother and the others?" He looked down at his little daughter sitting obediently on his knee—the little glutton's eyes were fixed on the rabbit meat her second brother was handling.

"A lot!" Zhao Xiaobao spread her arms wide to show just how much. "My nephews eat so much! I was worried they'd go hungry, so I secretly stuffed lots and lots of flatbreads and jerky under the baskets in our house."

"That's good." Old Man Zhao felt relieved. The old timers back in the village weren't fools. Even though they only had three to five days' worth of rations left, they would surely arrange for the men to find food nearby. Even if they couldn't catch game, they could gnaw on grass roots and tree bark until they returned.

After mulling it over, he said, "I don't know where those fugitives are hiding, but they probably aren't deep in the dense woods. No matter how brave or ruthless they are, they only prey on those weaker than themselves. Wild beasts don't care about human schemes—when two sides clash, humans get the short end. People fear pain and death; beasts only fear losing the prey in their mouths."

Zhao Dashan nodded, even putting himself in their shoes: "The mountain paths are rough. Even without delays, it would take almost a full day to get out of the mountains. Humans can't live without salt, grain, and clothes. The fugitives went to the village to grab women. If they left their hiding place and came out, they'd have to guard against the women escaping—whether by binding them or locking them up. They wouldn't stay away from their base for more than three days. Calculating the time, if we keep going for another half day, we should be near where they're hiding."

Qing Xuan nodded silently beside him. Elder Brother's analysis made a lot of sense.

"When we get there, I'll climb to a higher vantage point and look around for a water source," he said thoughtfully. "You can't live without water for drinking, cooking, and using the bathroom. Where there's water, there are people."

To go even deeper into the woods, even generations of hunters would hesitate to take the risk. With Eagle Rock as the boundary, the villagers who lived fairly stable lives only dared to go that far, because they had elders and children to care for—they couldn't afford to gamble or fight recklessly. Their courage and boldness were fettered by the laughter and warmth of their homes at the foot of the mountain.

The fugitives were ruthless and had no way out in the outside world. They entered the mountains to carve out a path to survival, so naturally they dared to step beyond Eagle Rock into the deep forest.

But even they had limits. After all, the whole point of fleeing was just to stay alive.

The deep woods were the domain of wild beasts. They could only huddle behind Eagle Rock, on the edge of the deep forest, scrounging for food.

"Qing Xuan is right. People are hard to find, but water sources are easier to locate. If the fugitives live nearby, they'll leave clues. Then we'll follow the trail—I'll bet we won't go back empty-handed." Old Man Zhao slapped his thigh, feeling that everyone in his family was getting smarter by the minute. Look at those brains! Truly remarkable!

Drinking the water from that divine land really worked wonders—just look at them, they've wised up!

Zhao Ertian, who had been silent all along, finally spoke: "We need to first figure out how many fugitives are in the mountains, whether they're living together in a group or each alone."

He had no fear of the latter. After killing the bandits that had invaded the village, he wasn't afraid of any fugitives. Could fugitives compare to those cold-blooded bandits? That was a bunch of killers who slashed people like they were butchering livestock.

He'd stabbed men worse than that, so fugitives were nothing.

But if it was the former, they'd need to think twice. After all, on this trip only the three of them—father and sons—were combat-ready. As for Qing Xuan, they never intended for the lad to fight. They brought him along mainly to keep watch and protect Xiaobao up close.

That was a real problem to consider. Old Man Zhao frowned and said nothing.

"They can't possibly live together," Qing Xuan said calmly. "People who've come this far all have blood on their hands. They don't trust outsiders, much less their own kind."

Not only would they not huddle together for warmth, they would be guarded and wary of each other. Food, money, women—in a sense, they were all easy legacies to inherit with a single slash of a blade.

Fugitives hid in the mountains to live in seclusion, but when many people go into seclusion, they form a circle. And within that circle, it's often a different kind of slaughter.

Living is the secular world, and there has never been a true paradise in this world.

"Dad, the rabbit is done!" Zhao Xiaobao didn't understand the adults' lamentations. Her eyes and mind were fixed entirely on the roasted rabbit before her. Second Brother had sprinkled salt and even spread on some fruit jam made by the sisters-in-law—it smelled even more delicious!

"The porridge is ready too." Zhao Dashan stopped overthinking. He lifted the ceramic lid with his bare hands, stirred it with a spoon, and it smelled pretty darn good.

Blackie had been squatting nearby, drooling profusely. Seeing this, he couldn't help but bark twice urgently.

"Let's eat first. Nothing is more important than this meal!" Old Man Zhao decided to stop worrying. Since they'd come this far, it wasn't them who should be worried.

Taking the half rabbit leg that his second son had cut off, he quickly coaxed his daughter, who was squirming impatiently on his lap: "Daddy will hold it for you. Eat it like this, baby. The rabbit leg's too hot for you to hold."

Zhao Xiaobao was easy to please, nodding eagerly before taking a big bite. Once the meat hit her mouth, she finally calmed down, squinting her eyes in enjoyment as she nudged her father's hand, signaling him to eat too: "Daddy, eat! So yummy! Second Brother is awesome!"

With just one sentence, she pleased two people, leaving both father and son grinning from ear to ear.

Zhao Dashan ladled a bowl of porridge and set it aside to cool, shaking his head with a smile as he saw Second Brother toss an entire roast rabbit to Blackie. If the villagers down the mountain saw this, they'd probably beat their chests in anguish—what kind of family feeds their dog like this?

"Here, big bro." Zhao Ertian also handed him a rabbit roasted to a crispy golden brown on both sides. Flatbread was just to fill the belly; meat was the real indulgence.

Seeing Qing Xuan already eating, Zhao Dashan didn't stand on ceremony. He took the rabbit and began tearing into it with great gusto.

After setting one aside for their father, Zhao Ertian also started devouring his share.

But somehow, the rabbit that looked so big while roasting didn't seem to last long once it hit their mouths.

The brothers wiped their mouths and exchanged glances, silently agreeing they'd need to hunt a wild boar to truly fill up.

This little thing wasn't even enough to plug a tooth gap.