After becoming a widow, I became the apple of a rough man's eye.

The slippery red soil felt like it had been smeared with oil. Song Weihe wrapped her arms around Mu Wenbin's neck, her gaze following his every step, and she could just make out the beads of sweat seeping from his temples.

She reached out her finger and gently wiped away the beads of sweat before they rolled down.

"Are you tired?" she asked.

"What are you tired about?" Mu Wenbin's breathing was still steady. He tightened his arms and lifted the person up a little.

Song Weihe nuzzled her face against his neck, like a cat that had just finished eating and wanted to find a comfortable spot to take a nap.

Mu Wenbin smelled very nice, without any of those weird perfumes, just a faint, dry scent. Even now, mixed with the smell of sweat, it still made people feel at ease.

As we walked halfway up the mountain, the forest thinned out a bit.

The sound of water crashing against the rocks drifted through the trees, bringing a sense of coolness.

"The sound of water!" Song Weihe, with her sharp ears, sat bolt upright. "I want to go see!"

Mu Wenbin frowned. "Go back and take a shower first."

"No, I want to go see if there are any fish!" Song Weihe started squirming in his arms. "The fish in these mountains must be delicious. Let's catch a couple and make soup. Mu Wenbin, put me down, I'll walk there myself."

Mu Wenbin was furious at her twisting. Did this woman even know what she was doing?

He stopped and glanced at Qin Lie.

Qin Lie walked ahead, carrying a hunting rifle on his back and two wild rabbits in his hands.

Hearing the noise, he stopped and looked in that direction. "That's the Xiangshui River. The water isn't deep, and there are fish, but they're hard to catch."

"Let's go take a look," Lin Qingqing said, her face flushed from walking, her bangs damp with sweat. "It'll be a good opportunity to rest."

Without a word, Qin Lie immediately changed direction.

Mu Wenbin could only follow along, carrying this living ancestor with him.

The riverbank was covered with pebbles, smoothed and rounded by the water. The river water was crystal clear, and you could see the dark blue back of a river darting past among the water plants.

Song Weihe came to life as soon as she was born and pulled Lin Qingqing to the riverbank.

Mu Wenbin stood under the willow tree on the bank, took out a handkerchief from his pocket, carefully wiped his hands, and then unbuttoned two buttons on the collar of his shirt.

This awful weather! It's not hot, but it's so stuffy it's hard to breathe.

Qin Lie tossed his prey aside and went to the river to wash his face.

The cool river water splashed on his face, taking away the heat. He straightened up, water droplets running down his strong jawline. He shook the water off his hands and turned to walk to a huge blue stone slab.

He took out two bottles of unlabeled liquor from his cloth pocket; the glass bottles gleamed coldly in the sunlight.

"Want some drinks?" Qin Lie asked Mu Wenbin.

Mu Wenbin looked at the two bottles of liquor, which were clearly made using traditional village methods and were probably strong enough to burn through one's throat.

He's a germaphobe; he even drinks water from his own cup, let alone bulk wine with no hygiene guarantees.

But he still walked over, plopped down on the not-so-clean bluestone slab, and stretched out his uninjured left hand.

"Come."

Qin Lie handed him a bottle of wine and opened the cap of another bottle himself.

There were no snacks to accompany the drinks, and not even the polite gesture of clinking glasses.

The two tilted their heads back, put the bottle opening to their mouths, and gulped down a large mouthful.

The strong liquor felt like swallowing a red-hot knife, burning all the way down into his stomach. Mu Wenbin let out a long breath, his breath reeking of alcohol.

"It doesn't taste good," he said.

Qin Lie wiped his mouth. "Don't be so picky."

The sun was setting in the west, the river surface shimmered, and the intermittent laughter of two women splashing in the water drifted over from afar, making the air here seem exceptionally quiet.

"Back in Laoshan, we drank it like this too." Mu Wenbin shook the bottle, looking at the clear liquid inside. "Back then, it was alcohol diluted with water. Don't even mention the taste; I never want to drink it again in my life."

Qin Lie remained silent for a while; that was many years ago.

"Xiaodong likes to drink this," Qin Lie suddenly said.

Mu Wenbin tightened his grip on the wine bottle.

Xiaodong, the nineteen-year-old spotter, was a soldier trained by Qin Lie. On the battlefield, the spotter is the sniper's eye.

"That kid died with half a compressed biscuit still clutched in his hand," Mu Wenbin said in a low voice, with a barely perceptible hoarseness. "He said he wanted to save it for your birthday."

Qin Lie didn't speak, but tilted his head back and took another big gulp. His Adam's apple bobbed violently, and the sound of him swallowing was particularly clear in the wind.

That battle was incredibly brutal.

Xiaodong revealed his position while trying to report his location to Qin Lie, and was subsequently hit by enemy artillery fire.

Qin Lie was less than fifty meters away from him at the time, and watched helplessly as the child died.

"Later, no one dared to be your observer." Mu Wenbin turned to look at Qin Lie, his eyes filled with a mixture of scrutiny and nostalgia. "Everyone says you, Qin Lie, are unlucky; whoever follows you dies."

"Then why did you come up here? Aren't you afraid of dying?" Qin Lie said.

"Yeah, I took over," Mu Wenbin chuckled. "You can imagine how bad we were back then. You were a top soldier, and I was the paratrooper commander. You complained that I didn't understand combat, and I complained that you were disorganized and undisciplined."

Back then, we really couldn't stand each other.

Qin Lie thought Mu Wenbin was just a gilded young master, while Mu Wenbin thought Qin Lie was an untamed beast. Whenever they disagreed, they would fight; they'd pick a fight even for no reason, neither willing to give in.

Unexpectedly, when Qin Lie was recalled for the last time, it was Mu Wenbin who gave him the information for that final shot.

It was also during the retreat that Mu Wenbin took a bullet for Qin Lie that would have pierced his lung.

"Why did you save me back then?" Qin Lie asked the question that had been buried in his heart for many years. "I disobeyed your orders."

Mu Wenbin turned to the side and looked at Song Weihe, who was weaving a flower wreath for Lin Qingqing in the distance. His eyes softened for a moment, but then turned cold and hard again when he turned back.

"Who saved you? Stop trying to glorify yourself." Mu Wenbin pointed at Qin Lie's hand. "If my hand were more accurate than yours, I would have done it myself. I was saving a comrade, not you, Qin Lie."

Qin Lie looked down at his hands.

These hands, calloused and with thick knuckles, have been used to kill and skin people, yet now they hold a hoe in this remote mountain valley.

"Let's go back," Mu Wenbin suddenly said.

Qin Lie paused in his drinking motion.

"My old comrades are still here." Mu Wenbin stared into Qin Lie's eyes, his tone becoming solemn. "You can see the current situation. Next April, I will lead a team to Zheyin Mountain. There are still many battles to fight."

"I lack someone I can entrust my back to."

Mu Wenbin took an envelope out of his shirt pocket. The envelope was warm from his body heat and the edges were slightly worn. He placed the envelope on the bluestone slab and pushed it in front of Qin Lie.

"What is this?" Qin Lie asked, glancing at it.

"The will," Mu Wenbin said casually.

Qin Lie suddenly looked up and stared intently at Mu Wenbin.

"Don't look at me like that." Mu Wenbin smiled, with a hint of magnanimity. "In our line of work, who doesn't risk their life? I'm planning to step down next year and be transferred to build an elite team. Before I go in, everyone has to write this down first."

"I've made all the arrangements for my funeral." Mu Wenbin pointed to the envelope. "There's a transfer document inside. If I die before I turn forty, all my houses in Beijing, and everything under my name, will go to Yunqi."

"Li Dongye?" Qin Lie frowned.

"Yes, that's the jerk."

Mu Wenbin sighed when he mentioned Li Dongye: "You have no idea what a mess my family is in. If I'm gone, my uncles and brothers will swallow me whole. He's not doing well in J City, and I don't plan to force him to leave, but I have to leave him a way out."

"Why should I have it?"

"Because I can't trust anyone but you." Mu Wenbin looked at Qin Lie. "You're his older brother, and I'm his older brother too. If I'm gone, you have to keep an eye on him for me, make sure he's not bullied, and don't let him go astray."

Qin Lie was indeed unaware of Mu Wenbin's situation within the Mu family, but having come this far, he couldn't say anything more.

He lost both his parents at a young age, and he knew that Li Dongye had been traveling all over the country as a truck driver for so many years, and there must be some unresolved issues in his heart.

"Give it to him yourself." Qin Lie pushed the envelope back. "I won't accept it."

"Don't provoke me, I'm not falling for that." Mu Wenbin smiled.

"I didn't agree to let you go back." Qin Lie picked up the wine bottle and clinked it against the one in Mu Wenbin's hand, making a crisp "clink" sound. "Besides, Li Dongye didn't explicitly say that he acknowledged you as his brother, so I can't make that decision for him."

Mu Wenbin stared at him for a long time, then picked up the wine bottle, tilted his head back, and drank the remaining half bottle of wine in one gulp.

"Fine, if you don't want to accept it, then don't." Mu Wenbin tossed the empty bottle aside. "But I'll leave it at that. I'll be waiting for you next April, and I'll reserve a spot for you."

Qin Lie didn't speak, he just looked in the direction of the village.

There, smoke rises from chimneys, dogs bark, and the figure of Lin Qingqing hanging clothes to dry in the yard these past few months. That's his fate now.

But then he looked at Mu Wenbin's face, which was full of determination yet indifferent.

These are his comrades-in-arms, his past, and the ever-flowing, never-cooling smoke of battle that runs in his blood.

"Hey! Have you two grown men finished drinking yet?" Song Weihe's voice broke the tense atmosphere.

She carried her shoes, walked barefoot on the pebbles, and skipped over.

Lin Qingqing followed behind her, holding a bunch of freshly picked wildflowers in her hands.

"I'm done drinking." Mu Wenbin stood up and patted the dirt off his pants.

In that instant, the resoluteness he once possessed vanished completely, and he transformed back into the aloof and dignified Young Master Mu.

"Carry me on your back after you finish drinking!" Song Weihe opened her arms to him, "My feet hurt, I can't walk anymore."

Mu Wenbin looked at her sand-covered feet, frowned in disgust, and said, "They're filthy."

He said that, but his body betrayed him; he turned around, squatted down, and said, "Get on."

Song Weihe cheered and climbed onto his back, not forgetting to turn around and make a face at Lin Qingqing.

Qin Lie stood up and picked up the prey from the ground. Lin Qingqing walked over and naturally reached out to take what was in his hand, "Let me take it, you've been drinking."

Qin Lie avoided her hand. "Heavy."

The group walked back, each lost in their own thoughts.

As soon as I reached the village entrance, I saw the old village chief running towards me, panting heavily, followed by several other panting villagers.

"Qin Lie! Qin Lie!" The old village chief waved a large pipe. "It's connected! It's connected!"

Qin Lie stopped in his tracks. "What's open?"

"The road!" The old village chief wiped his sweat. "The county's construction team, along with the strong laborers from our village, worked day and night, and they finally cleared that landslide area! The trucks will be able to leave first thing tomorrow morning!"

That shout instantly froze the previously relaxed atmosphere. The old village chief looked at the two important figures from the city with a self-satisfied expression, but he couldn't see a trace of praise on their faces.

The road is open, which means that my "paradise" life for the past few days has come to an end.

Song Weihe lay on Mu Wenbin's back, her smile gradually fading. She buried her face in the crook of Mu Wenbin's neck and muttered, "How did it get through so quickly... How come those people worked so fast?"

Mu Wenbin said helplessly, "Didn't you say you couldn't sleep well here?"

Song Weihe said fiercely, like a kitten, "When we get back, I'm going to kill my brother to avenge you."

"Don't talk nonsense." Mu Wenbin tightened his grip on her hand and asked again, "Do you need a gun? I'll lend it to you."

Qin Lie and Lin Qingqing reached past the two of them and gave them a strange look.

Li Dongye was leaning on his cane, peering out the door. Upon hearing the news, his expression was incredibly complex. It held both the relief of finally being free and an indescribable sense of loss.

Even Li Dongye, who is usually the most talkative, was unusually quiet at dinner time.

Lin Qingqing prepared a table full of dishes, all wild game from the mountains. There was braised rabbit, pheasant stewed with mushrooms, cold wild vegetable salad, and several small fish caught from the river, fried until crispy and golden brown.

"Eat more." Lin Qingqing put a piece of rabbit meat on Song Weihe's plate. "Once we go back to the city, we won't be able to eat this fresh anymore."

Song Weihe bit her chopsticks, looked at the men at the table, and cleared her throat: "Qingqing! Why don't you come with me? I'll have my dad arrange a job for you in Beijing. It'll definitely be better than staying in this remote mountain village."

Upon hearing this, the chopsticks of the five men at the table simultaneously stopped.

Qin Lie raised his head and looked at Song Weihe with a deep gaze.

Gu Qiangying pushed up her glasses, the lenses reflecting a cold light.

Even Xiao Yong, who had been engrossed in his food, looked up, his face tense.

"Sister Weihe, what are you saying?" Lin Qingqing smiled and poured Song Weihe a glass of water. "This is my home. I'm not leaving."

Upon hearing this, the men's tense shoulders relaxed.

"Exactly, what are we going to do without my cousin?" Li Dongye chuckled. "Besides, the capital is a dangerous place. If Qingqing goes there, she'll be devoured alive."

"You're the one who got devoured alive!" Song Weihe glared at him, then turned to Mu Wenbin, "Mu Wenbin, say something!"

Mu Wenbin was slowly and methodically eating the small fish, carefully removing all the bones.

Upon hearing this, he glanced at Qin Lie and nodded, saying, "You're right."

Qin Lie slammed his chopsticks on the table. Mu Wenbin shrugged and then changed his tune, saying, "That's not right either. It's easier and safer here than in J City."

Qin Lie also understood Mu Wenbin's meaning; he was simply trying to make him uncomfortable.

After dinner, Mu Wenbin called Li Dongye to the courtyard.

The moon rose, casting a ghastly white light on the millstone in the courtyard.

"What's all this serious about?" Li Dongye leaned against the wall, looking nonchalant.

Mu Wenbin looked at his younger brother and suddenly kicked him in the leg that wasn't injured.

"Ouch! Holy crap! What are you doing?!" Li Dongye jumped up, clutching his leg. "Are you crazy?!"

"Stand up straight," Mu Wenbin snapped.

Li Dongye immediately stood up straight, although his posture was a bit strange.

"I'm leaving first thing tomorrow morning." Mu Wenbin looked at him. "Take good care of yourself here. Contact me if you encounter any problems you can't solve. If you want to go back to the capital, give me a call. If you don't want to go back..."

He paused, glanced at the light in the room, and said, "Just stay here."

"Aren't you going to arrest me and take me back?" Li Dongye asked incredulously.

"Why would I bring you back?" Mu Wenbin said sincerely, "You've gotten used to being wild outside, and seeing you happy now makes me happy too."

"And another one." Mu Wenbin took out a card from his pocket and tossed it to Li Dongye. "This is my American Express card from Hong Kong. I regularly send money in, so you don't have to be frugal, but you can't gamble or go whoring."

Li Dongye caught the card, feeling its heat. Looking at Mu Wenbin's cold face, he suddenly felt a lump in his throat.

"Oh……"

"Oh what?" Mu Wenbin turned and left. "Stop acting all girly. Go to sleep."

Looking at Mu Wenbin's retreating figure, Li Dongye felt a pang of sadness, a sense of profound emotion that filled his heart.