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

"Well, I want to brew some wine and try my hand at it. Aunt Huang, you know my husband always likes to have a drink or two, so I thought I'd brew some wine to satisfy his craving."

Upon hearing this, Huang Xiu'e looked at Li Mu with suspicion: "Mu Zi, aren't you making things difficult for Aunt Huang? Brewing wine is not an easy task. The process is very complicated. It takes several years to brew good wine."

"I just brew some strong liquor, not ordinary liquor, and I want to see if I can brew something different."

Upon hearing this, Huang Xiu'e frowned slightly: "Brewing strong liquor? Mu Zi, this is no joke. Strong liquor can easily make you drunk. Do you look down on your sister? Just tell me what kind of liquor you want to brew, and Aunt Huang will get you some ingredients. I guarantee your husband will enjoy it. Don't bother with strong liquor; it's bad for your health."

Upon hearing this, Li Mu's heart stirred, and he first asked, "What is the strongest liquor you have?"

Huang Xiue thought for a moment and said, "My strongest liquor is 'Shaodaozi'. It's very strong, and most people can't drink more than a few sips."

Upon hearing this, a hint of excitement flashed in Li Mu's eyes: "'Shaodaozi'? I'll buy two to try first."

"Why are you being so polite with me? If you want to drink, I'll treat you to as much as you want! But Mu Zi, you have to promise Aunt Huang that this liquor is strong, so drink less and don't hurt yourself."

As Huang Xiue spoke, she went inside and brought out a bottle of strong liquor, pouring a cup for Li Mu.

Li Mu picked up his wine glass and drank it all in one gulp. He felt a surge of heat rush from his throat to his head, and his whole body was instantly invigorated.

"Good wine!"

Li Mu couldn't help but give a thumbs up.

Seeing that Li Mu liked it, Huang Xiu'e was also very happy: "Muzi, I'm glad you like it. Come to Aunt Huang's place whenever you want to drink, and Aunt Huang will give you plenty!"

"Aunt Huang, your wine is good, but I came here today to ask you to brew it stronger for me! At least a few degrees stronger than this strong liquor! The kind that can ward off the cold! I have some herbs here, could you see if you can add them to the wine to increase its strength?"

As Li Mu spoke, he took out a packet of herbs from his pocket and handed it to Huang Xiu'e.

Huang Xiu'e took the herbs, smelled them carefully, and frowned slightly: "These herbs... Mu Zi, where did you get these herbs? The smell is rather strange."

“Aunt Huang, don’t worry, I picked these herbs from the mountains, they’re definitely not poisonous. I was just thinking, could I use these herbs to brew a special kind of wine?”

Huang Xiu'e hesitated upon hearing this.

She has been brewing wine for so many years, but she has never tried brewing wine with herbs. If something goes wrong, she will ruin her reputation.

But looking at Li Mu's expectant eyes, Huang Xiu'e couldn't bear to refuse.

She thought for a moment and said, "Mu Zi, your idea is quite bold, but I've never tried brewing wine with herbs before. How about this, I'll try it with these herbs first, and if it really makes good wine, I'll sell it to you, okay?"

Upon hearing this, Li Mu was overjoyed: "Aunt Huang, thank you so much! Don't worry, these herbs are absolutely fine. If anything goes wrong, it's all on me!"

Seeing Li Mu's confident promise, Huang Xiu'e felt more confident herself.

"Alright, then Mu Zi, you can go back now. I'll let you know when I've finished brewing the wine."

Li Mu responded and got up to take his leave.

As he stepped out of Huang Xiu'e's house, he felt exceptionally relaxed. He trusted Huang Xiu'e's skills; in his previous life, Huang Xiu'e had established herself in Lijia Village with her excellent winemaking skills, and her two children had also lived a good life in the village.

He was the first to become a wealthy household with ten thousand yuan in income, sending his two children to university and becoming the envy of everyone in the village.

Back home, only Li Guozhang was sitting on the kang (a heated brick bed), puffing on his pipe.

Upon seeing Li Mu return, the old drunkard immediately smelled the aroma of wine, his eyes lighting up: "Mu Zi, where did you get this good wine? Let me have a taste!"

"Dad, I didn't drink any. This is Aunt Huang's liquor. I'll keep it for you and you can drink it when you're feeling better."

Li Mu placed the wine cup on the table and walked to the head of the kang (a heated brick bed) to sit down.

Upon hearing this, Li Guozhang became somewhat displeased: "Hey, you little brat, you're starting to boss me around? Hurry up and give it to me, I'm drinking today!"

Li Mu shook his head helplessly, handed the wine glass to Li Guozhang, and instructed, "Then you should drink less, don't harm your health."

Li Guozhang took the wine glass, drank it all in one gulp, and felt a warm current slide from his throat into his stomach, which invigorated him.

"Ah! It's been so long since I've had such strong liquor! Mu Zi, this is good, pour me another glass!"

"Drink, drink, drink! They're drinking like crazy again!" Jiang Xuefen came out of the kitchen, rolling pin in her hand, and punched Li Guozhang in the back. Li Guozhang winced in pain, dropping his wine glass and spilling wine everywhere.

"How could you be so heartless, you old woman!" Li Guozhang said, rubbing his back and grimacing.

Jiang Xuefen glared at him: "Drink, drink, drink! All you know is drinking! Look at your body, can it withstand this kind of abuse? If you keep drinking like this, you'll get sick sooner or later!"

Seeing this, Li Mu quickly tried to smooth things over: "Mother, don't be angry. Father was just being greedy."

"Didn't you go into the mountains? How come you came back empty-handed? There are so many wild animals in these mountains, how come you didn't catch anything?"

Li Mu gave a wry smile: "Mother, I just couldn't find any. You know how difficult it is to hunt wild animals in these mountains."

Small villages have one bad habit: in such a tiny place, even the slightest disturbance is known to the whole village. Sure enough, as soon as Li Mu entered, everyone in the village knew he had returned empty-handed.

The next morning, everyone gathered at Li Mu's doorstep, chattering amongst themselves.

"Look, isn't that Kong Tou? What's going on? You've come back empty-handed again?"

"That's right! I'm waiting for him to come back with some wild game so the kids can have a good meal!"

"Heh heh, I think he's all show and no substance, all looks and no action!"

Hearing the gossip outside the door, Li Mu felt annoyed. Jiang Xuefen put her hands on her hips and cursed a few times before rushing out to confront them.

Li Mu quickly pulled Jiang Xuefen back: "Mother, don't go. Let them say whatever they want, we'll just ignore them."

"How could they say that about you! I have to go and teach them a lesson!"

Li Mu advised, "Mother, if you go, wouldn't you be falling right into their trap? The more we care, the smug they become. Let's just pretend we didn't hear anything and let them run wild."

After listening to Li Mu's words, Jiang Xuefen felt that there was some truth to them, so she suppressed her anger and did not go out again.

But Li Mu knew that Jiang Xuefen wouldn't swallow this insult; after all, who could?

Returning empty-handed is shameful enough, but to be pointed at and gossiped about by the villagers like this is upsetting for anyone.