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But catching even one rabbit was already considered good luck—a whole nest? That was just wishful thinking.
When Jiang Le heard Yu Hezhong’s response, he decided to tease him with a playful jab: “You coward—at least I dare to dream!”
But seeing Yu Hezhong’s blank expression, he sighed inwardly. So lonely… No one gets my jokes.
The two walked deeper into the mountain, but not a single mushroom could be found near the outskirts. Yu Hezhong pointed at some footprints on the ground. “Someone got here before us. They’ve already picked everything clean.”
In these times of scarcity, mushrooms—more fragrant than meat—were a prized delicacy. Of course, no one would leave them untouched.
“Ah well, let’s go further in,” Jiang Le suggested, referring to the area Yu Hezhong often frequented. He wouldn’t dare venture anywhere else—who knew what kind of large predators lurked deeper in the mountains?
Yu Hezhong nodded and led the way.
Jiang Le found it fascinating. The mountain seemed like an endless maze of dense trees, yet Yu Hezhong never got lost. How does he even remember the path?
As Yu Hezhong walked ahead, using his sickle to clear away the overgrown weeds and carve out a trail, he replied, “You just remember after walking it enough times.”
Jiang Le studied him for a moment, then suddenly exclaimed, “Hezhong, I think you’ve grown taller!”
He stepped closer to compare their heights. Before, Yu Hezhong had only reached his shoulders, but now he stood slightly above them.
Jiang Le’s eyes sparkled. “You really *have* grown! I’ve been getting taller too, so that means you’ve shot up even more!”
Yu Hezhong glanced at Jiang Le, a faint trace of happiness flickering in his eyes at the observation.
Feeling smug about his own height, Jiang Le grinned. “Just aim to be as tall as me—I’m already considered tall, you know.”
The Jiang family had good height genes. Even though he was lean now, he was already around 170 cm at fifteen—and still growing. He was confident he’d hit 180 cm eventually.
Back in this era, 180 cm was practically giant status.
At that moment, Jiang Le was basking in his tall-boy glory, completely unaware that the boy who now had to look up at him would one day tower over him instead.
The path was rough, and the two trudged forward with difficulty before finally reaching their destination.
Technically, this spot wasn’t deep in the mountains—they hadn’t gone straight inward but had circled around to the other side of the mountain.
Because the trail was so hard to navigate, hardly anyone ever came here.
Instead of checking the traps right away, Yu Hezhong helped Jiang Le gather mushrooms.
With Guagua’s assistance, Jiang Le discovered a cluster of mushrooms and gasped in delight. He gently patted them to release their spores—ensuring new growth next year—before carefully plucking them. Instead of tossing them into his basket right away, he held one up to examine it.
“These mushrooms are a lot smaller than the ones we picked last time,” he remarked.
“That’s normal,” Yu Hezhong said. “It’s getting hotter now. After this batch, there probably won’t be any more.”
Hearing this, Jiang Le’s mind once again drifted to his mushroom cultivation project. He remembered there were two main methods for growing mushrooms: using mycelium or spores.
Spores were far too tiny for the naked eye to see, so that option was out—mycelium it was.
Originally, he’d considered digging up some wild mycelium from the mountain, but he’d quickly dismissed the idea.
Picking mushrooms was one thing, but uprooting the mycelium would be like not just plucking fruit from a tree but chopping down the entire tree itself. What would others do if they wanted mushrooms too?
After all, this mountain didn’t belong to any one person—it was collective property, shared by everyone. He couldn’t just take such liberties.
So, he’d have to figure out another way.
This batch of mushrooms wasn’t just small—they were also scarce. After what felt like ages, he’d only managed to gather enough to barely cover the bottom of his basket. Still, Jiang Le wasn’t discouraged. At least it was something. Better than nothing.
Rubbing his hands together, he said eagerly, “Let’s go check the traps—maybe there’s a little rabbit waiting!”
Seeing his hopeful expression, even Yu Hezhong found himself wishing for a stroke of luck—maybe even that mythical nest of rabbits.
As they approached the trap, Yu Hezhong noticed something off from a distance. The grass around the pit was trampled and chaotic, as if some animal had rampaged through it. Some blades had even been torn out by the roots, scattered haphazardly.
Frowning, Yu Hezhong’s guard went up. He grabbed Jiang Le’s arm. “Wait. Don’t go any closer yet.”
Having zero experience in this, Jiang Le obediently froze, his nerves tightening at Yu Hezhong’s tense expression.
Gripping his sickle, Yu Hezhong cautiously edged toward the trap—then paused in surprise at what he saw inside.
“What is it?” Jiang Le whispered.
When Yu Hezhong motioned for him to come over, he exhaled in relief and stepped forward. One glance into the pit made his eyes widen in shock.
It wasn’t a nest of rabbits.
Instead, lying in the trap was a small wild boar—about half a meter long—that must have stumbled in by accident. The sharp wooden spikes Yu Hezhong had embedded in the pit had impaled its body. How long had it been lying there? Now, it was barely clinging to life.
Yu Hezhong immediately understood why the surroundings looked so ravaged.
Young boars usually traveled with adults. The mother must have seen her offspring trapped, been unable to rescue it, and vented her fury on everything nearby.
Up close, Yu Hezhong noticed deep gouges on a nearby tree—likely from the enraged sow’s tusks.
A sense of danger, sharper than anything he’d felt before, prickled down his spine. He quickly hauled the boar out and handed it to Jiang Le.
The little creature was too weak to struggle, so Jiang Le lifted it effortlessly, watching as Yu Hezhong scrambled out of the pit.
The trap was about 1.4 or 1.5 meters deep—designed to prevent prey from escaping—with no footholds along the sides.
If Jiang Le had fallen in, he probably wouldn’t have known how to get out. But Yu Hezhong? He just gripped the edges of the pit, flexed his arms, and effortlessly hoisted himself up like it was nothing.
Jiang Le: “!!!”
Guagua: [Is Yu Hezhong part monkey or something?]
Jiang Le: […]
Honestly, with Yu Hezhong’s lean frame and those nimble movements, he did kinda resemble one—albeit a handsome monkey.
While Jiang Le was lost in thought, Yu Hezhong grabbed the little boar, tossed it into his own basket, then glanced at his muddy hands. Deciding against pulling Jiang Le along, he simply said, “Let’s go. Fast.”
Jiang Le didn’t understand why, but he obediently followed.
He quickly realized Yu Hezhong was walking much faster than usual—probably because he usually slowed down to match Jiang Le’s pace.
Now, despite carrying a boar weighing dozens of jin, Yu Hezhong moved like the wind. Not wanting to hold him back, Jiang Le gritted his teeth and half-jogged to keep up.
Only when they reached the area where villagers frequently gathered did Yu Hezhong finally relax, slowing to a stop. He turned to Jiang Le. “Tired?”
Jiang Le, panting but refusing to admit defeat: “N-not at all.”
Yu Hezhong glanced at the sweat beading on Jiang Le’s forehead but didn’t call him out.
Now that they were safe, he explained: “There’s an adult boar in that area. We can’t go back there.”
Finally, it clicked for Jiang Le—Yu Hezhong had rushed them away because the mother boar might still be lurking nearby.
The marks left by that adult boar on the tree flashed in his mind—the trunk, not very thick to begin with, had been nearly split in half.
He shuddered at the thought of what would’ve happened if they’d run into it.
Well, Yu Hezhong might’ve stood a chance with his speed, but me? No way.
For the first time, the dangers of the deep mountains—something he’d only heard about—felt real.
Guagua comforted him: [Don’t worry, Host~]
Jiang Le couldn’t help but feel a glimmer of hope: [Guagua, if I ever run into a wild boar, you’d save me, right?]
Guagua: [This system doesn’t have that capability. However, I can notify your family to prevent you from rotting in the woods or getting eaten by wild animals.]
Jiang Le: […] Wow. Thanks. Really.
The absurdity of Guagua’s response actually snapped Jiang Le out of his fear. Wiping his sweat, he said, “It’s fine. We’ll just avoid that area from now on.”
Then, he glanced worriedly at Yu Hezhong. If they couldn’t go back there, would that mean Yu Hezhong could no longer rely on traps for hunting?
But Yu Hezhong didn’t seem overly concerned. Having lived alone for so many years, he’d long since learned not to dwell on setbacks—if he had, he wouldn’t have survived this long.
Besides, they still had the little boar, didn’t they?
Though “little” was a relative term. Yu Hezhong estimated it weighed nearly a hundred jin.
The half-meter-long boar barely fit in the basket, its head still poking out.
Jiang Le solved the problem by stacking his own basket on top of Yu Hezhong’s, completely concealing the boar. They took a rarely used path down the mountain, avoiding any encounters, and arrived home safely.
Once inside, Jiang Le shut the door and exhaled in relief. Turning, he saw Yu Hezhong set down the baskets. Remembering how heavy the boar had been when he’d lifted it earlier, he asked, “Aren’t you tired?”
Yu Hezhong meticulously washed the dirt from his hands, then filled a basin with water for Jiang Le to wash his face. “I’m fine.”
Jiang Le, drenched in sweat, eagerly splashed his face and instantly felt better. Only then did he think to ask, “What are you planning to do with the boar?”
Considering the hot weather and the fact that Yu Hezhong couldn’t possibly eat all that meat alone, Jiang Le was about to offer to buy some—when Yu Hezhong cut in:
“It’s yours.”
Jiang Le: “???”
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Dreamy Land[Translator]
Hey everyone! I hope you're enjoying what I'm translating. As an unemployed adult with way too much time on my hands and a borderline unhealthy obsession with novels, I’m here to share one of my all-time favorites. So, sit back, relax, and let's dive into this story together—because I’ve got nothing better to do!