Chapter 140: Chapter 139: Courage Through and Through

Liu Ji was just blending in, not stupid; accompanying others with drinks and flattery was fine.

Gambling? That was absolutely a no-go!

And that figure, was it really Qin Yao after all?

Thinking of this, Liu Ji was completely sleepless.

Especially when he went to find the coachman for living expenses the next day and didn’t get a single cent, the sense of unease could no longer be suppressed and surged out.

Luckily, he still had some private savings that could last him another half month.

Fan Xiucai never called on him again, and he was completely kicked out of their circle.

Afterward, Liu Ji sent letters home, none of which were returned.

Every deep and quiet night, Liu Ji felt a sense of desolation as if he’d been abandoned by the entire world.

This led to sleepless nights, and in just a few days, his whole person looked as withered as if a goblin had sucked out his essence and blood, which gave Fan Xiucai and a few others a big fright.

They just didn’t include him in their activities anymore, was this necessary?

…

Another letter from the county school was sent to the Liu Family’s old house.

Mrs. Zhang received the letter, but not knowing a single character, she had to take it to ask Second Lang, who was playing under the eaves with Jinbao and Jinhua.

Second Lang glanced at it, “Oh, it’s from Dad at the academy to Mother.”

Mrs. Zhang nodded, “I’ll keep it first and hand it over to your mother later.”

Second Lang wasn’t interested in this matter at all and continued to fight with Jinbao and Jinhua, using small branches as weapons on the ground.

Mrs. Zhang shook her head helplessly and went inside to put this fresh letter together with the two that had arrived a few days earlier.

Two days earlier, Qin Yao had headed into the mountains with Da Lang, so the letters had to wait for the mother and child to return to be opened.

Second Lang and the Dragon and Phoenix Twins were sent to the old house by Qin Yao, but at night, He or Liu Fei would send the three of them home to sleep.

The chickens and horses at the house also needed to be fed, and the locks had to be checked to prevent thieves from sneaking in.

He could never understand Qin Yao’s thinking; if she wanted to go into the mountains, fine, but why bring a child?

How old is Da Lang? Can a nine-year-old boy really hunt?

Every time Second Lang heard his aunt nagging, he would correct her, “Mother took Big Brother for hands-on training; there’s no hunting this time, it’s just practice.”

Of course, if they caught any prey, Mother said she would bring it back to add to their meal~

Second Lang and the Dragon and Phoenix Twins were confident in their mother’s combat abilities, so this time, Qin Yao leaving home to enter the mountains was completely different for them compared to last year.

But Da Lang had a bit of a breakdown in the mountains.

That day, Qin Yao returned from the county, fed the horse, and went inside to tell him, “Get ready, we’re going into the mountains the day after tomorrow.”

Da Lang was so excited that he swung the hatchet and chopped wood in the shed until the excitement passed and he began to prepare immediately.

“It’s not easy to come out of the mountains once inside, so we must prepare fire-starters, cooking pots, bamboo tubes, supplies for cold weather, and finally your weapons.”

“There are a lot of things, and strength is limited, so it’s essential to simplify, simplify, and only bring essentials.”

Qin Yao taught him hand by hand how to prepare supplies for going into the mountains. Pots were a must because not all water sources are clean, boiling it significantly reduces the chance of diarrhea.

Cooked food also effectively kills parasites, providing nutritious and clean food.

The temperature difference between day and night in the mountains is large, especially in this season when it’s hot during the day and cold at night, with dew in the morning. So, clothing that covers the entire body and is easy to wear and take off is very necessary.

Only after preparing survival materials adequately did they check their weapons.

They needed to prepare enough arrows and bullets first.

Their hatchet and dagger were carried on them, one for clearing the way, the other for self-defense.

Strong rope was also essential, useful for tying prey and as a life-saving device at critical moments.

Once everything was ready, the mother and son each carried a bundle and headed into the mountains under Da Lang’s expectant gaze.

The first half hour before entering the mountains was the most novel; Da Lang carried a small pack over ten pounds, running all the way.

The outskirts only had some low shrubs, and the trees were scattered; the path was very easy to navigate.

Plus, villagers often entered and had already worn a trail; you just had to follow it.

The child entering the mountains for the first time naively believed that all the roads ahead were like this and hadn’t realized the seriousness of it yet.

Therefore, when a large “wall” of intertwined vines, weeds, and branches appeared in front of them, Da Lang’s first reaction was to turn to Qin Yao and say:

“Auntie, I think we’ve taken a wrong turn, there’s no road here.”

Qin Yao smiled, walked up, chopped open the vines and weeds woven together over a year at the front with a hatchet, bent down, and ducked inside.

“Follow behind me, put your face mask on, and don’t get bitten by poisonous insects,” she instructed, then moved two or three meters forward.

Da Lang was incredulous, pulled up the bandana always around his neck to cover his lower face, cleared away the branches in front, and followed her in.

No one knew how long they walked like this when suddenly the view dimmed, and strange cries occasionally came to his ears, making Da Lang jump with fright every time.

Suddenly his foot slipped, and he almost fell, quickly extending a hand to brace him on the ground, preventing himself from falling entirely.

Then, a cold, slimy sensation came from under his small hand.

Da Lang was all goosebumps, “Auntie!!!”

Qin Yao quickly turned and slid down, scooping up the boy from the ground with one hand and wielding the hatchet like lightning in the other. A flash of silver passed, and a black snake two fingers wide was cut in two and dangled from an overhead branch.

The snake’s tail dangled down, brushing against Da Lang’s cheek, and in Qin Yao’s arms, the boy held his breath, not daring to exhale.

“That poor snake was sleeping at home, and you clapped its den apart,” Qin Yao tried joking to relax the child, but it was of no use.

After this, Da Lang’s eyes watched the ground and surroundings closely while moving through the underbrush, not daring to follow along carefree with Qin Yao as before.

That black snake left a shadow in Da Lang’s heart.

Even though Qin Yao kept telling him the snake was non-venomous and snakes in this season were low in energy and wouldn’t randomly come out of their dens.

Still, whenever he saw a long black stripe, he would stop far away, carefully inspect it, and only then move forward.

Seeing this, Qin Yao had to carve a long stick for the little guy, “This is to beat the grass to scare the snake away beforehand, so there’s no problem.”

Thus, this stick became an amulet in Da Lang’s heart.

He hugged it while eating, while resting, and while sleeping in the mountain nest with his mother.

When going to the toilet, he hugged it even more!

Seeing this, Qin Yao couldn’t let it continue; if a small snake scared him like this, what about other hairless lizards or enormous bugs? Would there be any hunting?

Qin Yao couldn’t remember how she overcame the fear of hairless animals in the forest herself, but she knew that fear mostly comes from ignorance.

Thus, she decided to rest temporarily for two days at the mountain nest camp while leading the stick-carrying boy to poke through all the nearby snake dens, dissecting one by one to show him the types with venomous fangs and those that attack frogs and mice.

Or she would pull out a giant python as thick as an adult’s arm, cut it into eight segments, and explain how this type of python coils its prey to death before swallowing it whole.

Seeing the increasingly calm expression on Da Lang’s face, Qin Yao was pleased.

Little did she know, the child was already frightened stiff, numb.

Seeing his stepmother still wanting to lead him to probe bigger snake dens, on the third night in the mountains, Da Lang voluntarily abandoned the snake-beating stick and decisively said:

“Auntie, I’m not afraid anymore. Let’s continue forward.”

Now he had nothing on him but guts!

Source: Webnovel.com, updated by NovelKeep