Reborn in the Great Northern Wilderness in 1982, I farmed and hunted to support my whole family.

Li Mu has been in the mountains for almost half a month. Today is the first day of the twelfth lunar month. Liang Meizhen looks out from the foot of the mountain every day, hoping that Li Mu will come out of the mountains.

But as I waited day after day, I was disappointed time and time again.

The villagers soon learned about Li Mu's trip into the mountains, and at first they were all talking about it, thinking that Li Mu was young and daring.

But three days ago, after news spread in Xiliu Village that a tiger had come down from the mountain and injured people, the tone of the conversation began to change.

"I think that Mu boy is in grave danger. It's been so many days and he still hasn't come back."

"You bet he's run into a tiger!"

"Pah, pah, pah! Say something auspicious quickly, if Meizhen hears this, won't it tear her heart out?"

The area beneath the large millstone at the village entrance has always been a popular spot for villagers to chat.

Regardless of the season, at midday or after dinner, people would always gather here, cracking sunflower seeds and peeling peanuts while gossiping about this family and that family.

Although everyone had their own suspicions, they still harbored some kindness and didn't want to definitively say anything.

But to their surprise, just as they were talking, Li Jianjun walked over with two young men.

"The real heart-wrenching part is yet to come!"

Li Jianjun's sarcastic shout instantly drew everyone's attention to him.

However, this also drew dissatisfaction from some people, including Fang Xiaocao.

"What do you mean, Jianjun kid? You and Li Mu both have the surname Li, but you're from different clans yet share the same origin."

"You can't say those heartless things and harm people."

The person speaking was the aunt who had just told everyone not to talk nonsense.

She is also the cousin of Zeng Dazhen, the wife of the village chief Tao, and came here with Zeng Dazhen's family when they fled during the war.

They knew the reason why Li Mu went into the mountains!

However, everyone chose to keep quiet about this matter to avoid gossip and slander against Tao Yimei.

After all, Tao Qingshan's position had long been coveted by others.

To put it bluntly, as soon as Tao Qingshan dies, someone in the village will immediately take his place.

"That idiot Li Mu didn't need me to trick him! He thought he could catch two rabbits, so he foolishly ran into the deep mountains."

"By now, it's probably been gnawed to bits by tigers, leaving not even bones behind." As he spoke, Li Jianjun spat viciously on the ground.

Unexpectedly, Tao Yimei, who had come to find Fang Xiaocao, overheard his words.

"Li Jianjun, what nonsense are you spouting? Did your mother see Li Mu being eaten by a tiger?"

Tao Yimei spoke coldly, giving Li Jianjun a big eye roll.

“Yimei, how could I be lying! Although I didn’t see it, the people from Xiliu Village saw it.”

When Li Jianjun saw Tao Yimei, his eyes lit up, and he quickly moved closer and said confidently.

"So what if Xiliu Village saw it? Unless I saw it with my own eyes, I don't believe it," Tao Yimei said indignantly.

As he spoke, he placed the large winnowing basket filled with jade grains heavily onto the millstone.

But to Li Jianjun, these words felt like a stab to the heart, filling him with anger and resentment.

"Yimei, why are you speaking up for Li Mu like that?"

Even if you don't want to believe it, you can't deny the facts!

As soon as Li Jianjun said this, one of the two followers behind him quickly chimed in, "That's right, Yimei. You're speaking up for Li Mu like this... you should talk to him..."

As he said this, the man revealed a lewd smile.

Tao Yimei's face flushed red with anger, and she angrily cursed at the man, "Pah! Shameless! You can't produce any evidence, so you just spew slander. I'm going to report you to the inspection team later."

Upon hearing this, Li Jianjun felt even more hatred for Li Mu.

They all grew up with Tao Yimei, so why does Tao Yimei always side with Li Mu?

He wouldn't believe it if you said there was nothing between them.

A dark glint flashed in Li Jianjun's eyes, then he grinned and moved closer to Tao Yimei, "Yimei, don't be angry! We were just worried about Li Mu, that's why we asked about Hu Lai's bad news."

However, as soon as he said this, before Tao Yimei could say anything, a familiar and deep voice rang out from behind Li Jianjun.

"You're worried about me? I didn't even notice!"

Li Mu spoke coldly.

Everyone was overjoyed to see that it was Li Mu.

"Mu! You're finally back! Do you see your mother?" Fang Xiaocao spoke first, her eyes scanning Li Mu up and down.

Seeing that he was wearing a brand-new green military overcoat and a brand-new Lei Feng hat, I was momentarily speechless.

Didn't we say we were going into the mountains? They even give out military overcoats and Lei Feng hats in the mountains.

Li Mu noticed Fang Xiaocao's confusion and quickly replied, "I saw her; she took her things home."

“When I left, Village Chief Tao was sick, wasn’t he? Now that I’m back, I should at least tell him so he can rest assured.”

As he spoke, Li Mu looked at Tao Yimei and asked, "Yimei, how's your dad? Is he feeling any better?"

"I'm much better, but I'm still thinking about you. He asked me to stop you that day, but I couldn't, and I've been thinking about it ever since."

Tao Yimei replied with a smile, and then picked up the winnowing basket filled with the jade grains to be ground.

"Come on, let me take you to my house to see my dad first."

As they talked, Li Mu followed Tao Yimei away.

As she passed Li Jianjun, she couldn't help but give him a disdainful glare.

Li Jianjun was furious!

"Damn it, you dog. What's so smug about it! Pah!"

Although the low growls and curses were faint, Li Mu heard them very clearly.

Despite not showing any outward anger, he had already come up with several ways to deal with Li Jianjun.

Before he could even think of a way to trap Li Jianjun, Tao Yimei asked with concern, "How are you? Did you get hurt in the mountains?"

The gentle words reached Li Mu's ears, instantly causing a tingling sensation. He gritted his teeth, shook his head, and snapped out of it.

He then chuckled and said, "It's nothing serious, and besides, men look more handsome with scars."

Tao Yimei rolled her eyes at Li Mu, feeling a little embarrassed and annoyed, and complained in a low voice, "Can't you just speak properly?"

Li Mu's heart skipped a beat, and he quickly replied, "Of course! But what's the point? Let's talk about it when we get home. It's really inconvenient to discuss these things outside."

Tao Yimei didn't ask any more questions after hearing what he said.

Once the two of them had entered the Tao family's gate and met Tao Qingshan, Li Mu took out a red cloth bag from his pocket without saying a word.

"Uncle Tao, this is some wild ginseng I got. Please have your aunt send it to Old Mantou later."

As he spoke, Li Mu handed the red cloth bag to Tao Qingshan.

Tao Qingshan accepted the red envelope in disbelief, and opened it to find a perfectly formed wild ginseng, about three fingers wide, lying quietly inside.

Before Tao Qingshan could recover from the sudden shock, Li Mu's next question left Tao Qingshan in an awkward position.

"Uncle Tao, how's Yimei's marriage going? Has the Liu family made things difficult for you?"