Before he died, my grandfather forced me to marry the richest man in the capital.

On the 17th day of the first lunar month, the Lan family returned to Lan City. Ji Xinhan accompanied Ji Xinyu to register for school. Before Hanhan went abroad, Ji Xinyu planned to go home every day and sleep in Hanhan's room at night.

On the 20th day of the first lunar month, Ji Hancheng, along with his daughter, Lin Yuan, and 10 bodyguards, boarded a private plane bound for the snow-capped mountains, carrying several bags of equipment.

One bag contained tools for felling trees, as well as other emergency supplies; another bag contained a tent, a down sleeping bag, and a range of warm clothing, along with some common medicines—the items were quite complete.

Indeed, as Ji Hancheng said, they went there for tourism, not for adventure.

Before leaving, Ji Xinhan asked her brother and sister-in-law to choose an auspicious date. In order to help Hanhan recover better, Lu Yiyue selected three dates for Hanhan to choose from: May 20th, October 1st, and New Year's Day.

Hanhan didn't want her brother and sister-in-law to wait too long, so she chose May 20th, which was also the day her brother and sister-in-law started dating, making it a very memorable day. She believed she could let go of the past.

I'll happily welcome my sister-in-law into the house then, and if I can even return to the battlefield...

Watching the plane take off, Tang Junyao looked up and tears streamed down her face. Ji Jiale reached out and hugged his mother, his deep voice saying, "Mom, I'm here. Don't worry."

Tang Junyao put her arm around her son's waist, took a deep breath, and said, "Let's go. You and Yueyue go to work. I'll go back and tell your grandma and grandpa."

Ji Jiale was worried about her mother and planned to take her back to the Ji residence before going to the company. "Okay, I'll take you back."

Seeing her son's firm tone, Tang Junyao didn't press the matter. She took her son's wrist with one hand and her daughter-in-law's arm with the other, and walked out.

Ji Hancheng didn't tell Han Yue and Lu Jinnan that he was leaving today, because he didn't want the parting to be too sad.

Unbeknownst to them, Han Yue and Lu Jinnan's car was already parked outside the airport parking lot, watching the private jet soar into the sky.

Seeing the three of them come out, Han Yue stubbed out his cigarette, stood up from his half-bent back leaning against the car door, and nodded to Tang Junyao.

Lu Jinnan stepped forward and said a few words to Tang Junyao. Tang Junyao nodded and said, "I know. I'll definitely call you if anything comes up. Go ahead and get busy."

Han Yue opened the car door, paused for a few seconds, rested one hand on the door frame as if he had thought of something, and then handed a cell phone to his nephew, "The mecha team is in your hands now. Call me if anything happens, anytime."

Ji Jiale held the black phone his uncle had given him, paused for a few seconds before putting it in his pocket, and replied, "Understood, Uncle."

Lu Yiyue and Ji Jiale escorted Tang Junyao back to the Ji residence, while Lu Jinnan and Han Yue went to the company. Since Ji Hancheng was not in the capital, they, as his brothers, had to take care of him from time to time.

A few hours later, the private jet circled directly above the snow-capped mountain. The cabin door opened, and the raging wind stung the face like a knife. Lin Yuan grabbed the rope and landed first. The second person to get off was Ji Xinhan, who was also very agile and not at all inferior to Lin Yuan's speed. Ji Hancheng was the last to get off, followed by ten bodyguards, each carrying a backpack.

The bodyguard was shivering from the cold, and suddenly yawned and shrank his neck.

Ji Hancheng couldn't help but shudder. His lips trembled as he zipped up his down jacket to the top and then turned to zip up his daughter's black down jacket as well.

As far as the eye can see, there is an endless expanse of white. The trees around are all white, without a trace of green. The trunks are brown, and you can see from the nearby branches that the bark has been cracked by the frost.

The snow was already above his calves, showing how thick it was. Ji Hancheng looked around and thought this place was not bad; it was spacious and habitable. He gave an order, "Let's use this spot. First, clear the snow off the ground and make room to set up the tents."

Lin Yuan skillfully placed his backpack on the ground, took out a shovel from another large bag, and handed one to Ji Xinhan, "Try it, shoveling snow is very stress-relieving."

Ji Xinhan took it, her breath lingering for a long time. "Thank you, Uncle Lin."

"It gets warmer once we start moving around. Once we set up the tent and make a fire inside, the temperature inside the tent will be 30 degrees Celsius different from the outside. You can even wear short sleeves inside," Lin Yuan told Hanhan as he shoveled snow, sharing his experience.

"Will there be wolves and wild animals around here at night?" Ji Xinhan asked Lin Yuan as she carefully shoveled the snow. Her father was right; snow really does seem to purify the soul. At this moment, it seemed that only the cold remained in her senses.

The thick snow had long since buried the grass on the ground, and white was everywhere. If you gently shook the dry tree trunks, a lot of snow would fall off.

Snow has always given people a feeling of comfort and tranquility.

The trees standing tall on the snow-capped mountains give people a sense of resilience; even in the biting cold wind, they stand straight and upright.

"Yes, look over there, those footprints are from wolves, and those over there should be from bears."

Lin Yuan's words didn't frighten Ji Xinhan; instead, she found them quite exciting and a little thrilling. "Can we see it tonight?"

"I doubt you'll see them. We'll be building fires around the edges of the tents. But your dad brought a drone that can capture the wolf pack's movements. You can take a look then; it'll feel like you're actually there, and it'll be quite an experience."

Seeing his daughter chatting happily with Lin Yuan, with a smile on her lips, Ji Hancheng knew he had come to the right place. It was Lin Yuan who had given him the suggestion. He directed his bodyguards to gather firewood, while he took out the tent to prepare to set up the tent for his daughter and him.

He didn't intend to let his daughter sleep alone in a tent in such extreme weather and conditions; she had to be within his sight.

In no time, a large open space was prepared, big enough to fit two tents side by side. The bodyguards were quick on their feet and were already setting up the tents.

Ji Xinhan felt the temperature on the snow mountain must be at least -20 degrees Celsius. Even with thick gloves on, she could feel the cold; her hands were numb with cold. But the feeling was actually quite nice. "Uncle Lin, have you been here before?"

I know it all too well. You wouldn't know such detailed differences in temperature between indoors and outdoors unless you experienced it yourself.

"My situation is the same as yours, but I'm the captain. Because of my misjudgment, my teammate lost his life in another country, South Africa." So he stayed there until Ji Hancheng needed him and he returned to the capital. Otherwise, he probably would never have come back in his life.

Upon hearing this, Ji Xinhan paused, unsure of what to say. She had never known that Uncle Lin was the captain and had such a painful past.

Lin Yuan told Ji Xinhan everything without holding anything back. Ji Xinhan listened so intently that she forgot to shovel snow, but she couldn't find any words of comfort because she herself hadn't emerged from the shadows. "So you quit?"

Lin Yuan smiled, a smile of relief and acceptance.

"I can no longer command. Wearing that uniform reminds me of my comrades. Actually, I'm also running away. To put it nicely, I'm sick. To put it bluntly, I'm just running away from what I can't accept. What do you think?"

After a moment, Ji Xinhan nodded blankly. She felt the same way because she was also running away. She didn't want to wake up and wanted to hide, as if hiding meant that the incident had never happened and that no one had sacrificed themselves.

It's just self-deception.

Listening to their conversation, Ji Hancheng felt uneasy. It took Lin Yuan a long time to get over it, but he still couldn't go back to that place. He could only quit and find another job.

He was conflicted, feeling both fear and anxiety. He hoped that Hanhan could completely move on, but he was also afraid that even if his daughter did move on, she would go back to her old ways. He selfishly didn't want to experience that again, or even a more serious accident... He didn't even dare to think about it.

The father and daughter helped set up the tent and inflate the air mattress. Ji Hancheng instructed his daughter to weigh down the edges of the tent with snow to prevent cold wind from blowing into the tent during the night's heavy snow.

"Dad, how about we build a wall with the snow to enclose this place after we're done? That way it'll be warm at night, and we won't have to worry about the cold wind getting into the tent," Ji Xinhan suggested, resting her chin on the shovel with both hands.

"Sure, let's set up the tent first, then lay out all the things, light the firewood, and then we'll get started."

"Okay." Away from the hustle and bustle, the endless white expanse, coupled with Lin Yuan's story, made Ji Xinhan feel much better.

Lin Yuan said that the captain has a mission, and his comrades also have their missions. However, the captain may also make unpredictable mistakes. We are all human, not gods, and we cannot save the whole world, but we can make up for our mistakes in our own way.

Lin Yuan has spent his entire life atoning for this sin.

He was an orphan, without father, mother, wife, or daughter. He donated every penny he earned to the families of his fallen comrades, and used the rest for charity. His entire fortune probably amounted to only a thousand yuan, but that was enough for him.

A few hours later.

The tent was set up and the fire was lit. Lin Yuan skillfully picked up pots and pans to prepare for cooking in the wild, and the bodyguard followed suit.

That evening, at the Ji residence, everyone was waiting for Ji Hancheng's message; judging by the time, it should have arrived long ago.

A little worried, Tang Junyao held her phone in her hand, her eyes filled with concern. Seeing this, Ji Jiale said, "Mom, don't worry, they probably want to settle themselves down before calling us."

The phone rang as soon as he finished speaking. It was a video call. Ji Hancheng always managed to get a signal in the snowy mountains, just to let them know he was safe. The camera showed a dimly lit tent. Ji Xinhan was sitting on an air mattress, hugging a pillow, wearing a thin sweater, waving at the screen with a smile on her face. "Mom, Grandpa, Grandma, Brother, Sister-in-law, look at our environment, how is it?"

Ji Hancheng was very thoughtful; he even hung colorful lights inside the tent. The heater crackled and burned, and the temperature inside the tent kept rising. A man wearing a black sweater held a mobile phone in his hand. The white hair on his head was long gone; on the first day Hanhan woke up, Yaoyao had plucked them out one by one, afraid that his daughter would see it and feel guilty.

"We're fine, Yao Yao. Want me to show you the snow-capped mountains?"

"Tomorrow, don't go out." From inside the tent, you could see a lot of snow piled up around the edges, and snow kept sticking to the tent outside, which showed how harsh the environment was.

Ji Hancheng insisted, wanting to show his wife the environment of the snow-capped mountain. "It's okay, I'll show you. I've added a fire outside, it's very safe."