"Don't speak!" Chen Yongqiang's deep voice carried an unquestionable determination as his hand slipped under her clothes, touching her delicate, warm skin at her waist.

Ding Wanru did not push him away. A complex light flashed in her eyes, like the relief of someone who had gotten what they wanted.

Chen Yongqiang's mind raced. If he refused now, given Ding Wanru's fiery temper, she might really spitefully let that old bachelor He Jun have his way.

That was a situation he absolutely could not tolerate. Rather than wait until it was too late to regret it, it was better to…

This thought was like the last straw, breaking all his hesitation.

He stopped thinking about it and bent down to seal away all the words he hadn't yet uttered.

The shadow cast by the rock wall perfectly enveloped the two figures, with only a few sparks occasionally popping from the campfire not far away.

The mountain wind still rustled through the treetops, and the faint hooting of owls echoed in the distance, all becoming silent witnesses to the darkness.

Just as the two confirmed their relationship at the foot of the cliff, a faint cracking sound suddenly came from the distant forest, but Chen Yongqiang did not hear it.

It was the wild boar king that appeared. It was attracted by the sweet potato that Chen Yongqiang had set in the trap, and triggered the mechanism as soon as it bit into the sweet potato.

The bushes sprang up, tightening the rope and trapping the boar king's forelegs.

Just then, a violent struggle suddenly came from the forest. Branches snapped, ropes tightened, and heavy groans filled the air.

Chen Yongqiang turned his head and looked towards the woods.

"What...what is that sound?" Ding Wanru asked nervously.

"It seems the trap has caught something." Chen Yongqiang listened intently and judged from the noise, "Judging from this noise, it's probably a wild boar."

"Should we go take a look?" Ding Wanru suggested softly, her hand still clutching the hem of his clothes.

"No rush. We can check again tomorrow at dawn." Chen Yongqiang looked away and hugged her even tighter.

With a beautiful woman in his arms, he had no interest in dealing with a wild boar.

The struggles in the forest grew louder, the trees shook violently, and the ropes creaked under the strain. The beast was clearly incredibly strong, rampaging through the trap.

A moment later, the rope snapped. The struggling sounds ceased abruptly, and the forest fell silent once more.

He looked down at the person in his arms, gently stroking her hair as he continued to caress her tenderly.

The next day, Chen Yongqiang and Ding Wanru tidied their clothes and walked one after the other toward the place where the trap had been set.

The scene was a mess. Bushes were uprooted, soil was rummaged through, and deep and shallow hoof prints were left on the ground.

The hemp rope used to set the snare was broken in two, the fibers jagged at the break, clearly snapped by immense force. The surrounding vegetation was askew, as if it had just survived a fierce battle.

"Judging from the size of these hoof prints and the strength of the broken rope, we've probably encountered a wild boar king." Chen Yongqiang squatted down and carefully examined the broken rope and the hoof prints on the ground. Ordinary wild boars don't have that much strength.

Ding Wanru stood behind him, feeling somewhat guilty: "It's all my fault... If it weren't for me, I should have come to check last night, and it wouldn't have run away."

Chen Yongqiang stood up and looked into the depths of the dense forest, following the messy marks on the ground.

"Although it broke free, it left so many traces in this forest."

Chen Yongqiang led Ding Wanru into the deep mountains, following the trail left by the wild boar king.

The wild beast that escaped the trap left obvious tracks along its path: broken bushes, hoofprints in the mud, and scattered bloodstains on the grass.

After walking down a steep slope, Chen Yongqiang naturally reached out his hand to Ding Wanru behind him.

Her hand rested in his palm, and with his help, she landed easily.

When they let go of each other's hands, their movements were slightly hesitant, as if the warmth of last night's intimacy still lingered.

After passing through a dense thicket of bushes, Chen Yongqiang pushed aside the overgrown branches and turned back to signal Ding Wanru to be careful.

"Are you tired?" Chen Yongqiang asked her as they rested on a gentle slope, taking the water bottle from his waist and handing it to her.

Ding Wanru took the water bottle and took a sip. There were no extra words exchanged between them, but every glance they exchanged held an unspoken warmth.

The deeper you go into the mountains, the denser the forest becomes.

At a stream, Chen Yongqiang leaped across the rushing water first, then turned and opened his arms to her.

Ding Wanru leaped lightly and landed right in his arms. Chen Yongqiang caught her, his arm lingering around her waist for a moment before letting go.

Chen Yongqiang saw a patch of overturned soil. "It rested here last night."

The two continued their pursuit, but the wild boar king's tracks became increasingly elusive. This beast was clearly familiar with the ways of the mountains and forests and knew how to conceal its presence.

Chen Yongqiang stopped at a fork in the road and carefully examined the almost indistinguishable hoof prints on the ground.

Ding Wanru's gaze was suddenly drawn to a cluster of inconspicuous plants growing in a crevice in the rock.

"Brother Yongqiang, look!" she called softly, carefully parting the weeds.

Several Solomon's seal plants were growing in the shady spot on the rock, clearly old plants that had been growing for many years.

Ding Wanru exclaimed in delight, "This condition must be at least twenty years old!"

Similar discoveries continued to emerge along the way.

"There really are treasures hidden in these deep mountains." Ding Wanru put the newly picked medicinal herbs into her medicine basket.

Chen Yongqiang stood by as a lookout, his hunting rifle never leaving his hand. Although he hadn't caught up with the wild boar king yet, this trip was already worthwhile.

At that moment, Chen Yongqiang spotted a sika deer. He remembered that the old cobbler had told him that he was willing to pay a high price for a good pelt.

Chen Yongqiang immediately raised his gun, about to pull the trigger, when a clear voice suddenly rang in his mind:

This deer is considered to possess a spiritual nature and should not be hunted.

The sika deer in the crosshair seemed to sense something, looked up in his direction, and then leaped away.

Seeing that he hadn't fired, Ding Wanru asked with some regret, "What's wrong?"

Chen Yongqiang put down his hunting rifle, his eyes still following the deer: "It ran too fast."

Ding Wanru gazed in the direction the deer had disappeared, "I see."

Just then, Chen Yongqiang noticed something vaguely visible in the grass where the deer had just been standing.

Upon closer inspection, it turned out to be a complete deer antler, shaped like coral, with a solid texture, clearly having fallen off naturally.

"It seems this is its gift to us." Chen Yongqiang picked up the antlers.

He remembered his grandfather saying that spiritual deer would leave behind their antlers at certain times of the year and give them to those who are destined to receive them.

Ding Wanru stroked the deer antlers curiously: "This quality is probably more precious than a deer hide."

Chen Yongqiang put the deer antlers into Ding Wanru's basket. "Let's go, let's take another look ahead."

Since the mountain god had given a warning, Chen Yongqiang would naturally let the deer go.

Tap the screen to use advanced tools Tip: You can use left and right keyboard keys to browse between chapters.

You'll Also Like