My 1995 Small Farm.

The drizzle, like smoke, enveloped the entire mountain forest in a hazy gray-green hue.

The air is cool and moist. Take a breath and you'll be filled with the complex aroma of soil, decaying leaves, and new shoots, which is refreshing and invigorating.

Yet it also possesses a wildness unique to the mountains and fields, a wildness that makes one's nerves slightly tense.

The rain washed away the rocks and tree trunks, but it also made the withered branches and leaves under the trees even more slippery and soft.

Chen Ling walked steadily through the bushes in his high-top mountain boots, his raincoat rustling softly against the bushes beside him.

Afu and Ashou followed on either side of him, their massive bodies appearing surprisingly agile amidst the dense forest.

Its thick, fleshy paws landed silently, only occasionally when it shook its head would the water droplets condensed on its mane be flung away, drawing faintly bright arcs in the dim light.

In this kind of weather, most of the small animals in the mountains stay in their dens and sleep soundly, unwilling to come out and move around.

The journey was exceptionally quiet.

Only a few startled pheasants, flapping their wet wings, flew up in panic from the bushes, clucking as they fled into the distance.

Beneath a steep cliff, a pair of eerie green eyes flashed by – it was a wary leopard, which had clearly recognized the two enormous creatures that terrified it.

Before Chen Ling could see clearly, it silently retreated into the crevice of the rock and disappeared without a trace.

After passing through a dense oak forest, a very faint "whooshing" and rustling sound came from ahead.

Afu's ears twitched, and he stopped in his tracks first.

Chen Ling gestured for Ah Shou to stop as well, and quietly parted the branches to look.

Not far away, beside a burrow half-hidden by weeds, several half-grown wolf cubs were frolicking and rolling around at the entrance, biting each other and practicing their attacks.

A mother wolf lay at the entrance of the den, licking her fur and scanning her surroundings warily.

"Hey, found a wolf's den," Chen Ling whispered.

The mother wolf seemed to sense something, and suddenly raised her head, her nostrils flaring violently.

The next moment, its eyes were instantly filled with fear.

It didn't even let out any warning growls, but just let out a short, sharp wail, snatched up the nearest wolf cub, and turned to disappear into the depths of the cave.

The other wolf cubs were also terrified and scrambled to follow their mother inside.

In the blink of an eye, the cave entrance became empty, leaving only a few trampled grass stalks and messy claw marks.

Afu and Ashou had no interest in this; they merely glanced indifferently at the dark cave entrance before continuing on their way.

For them, these wolf pups are not even enough to fill their teeth, let alone arouse their interest in hunting.

Chen Ling noticed that there seemed to be an unusually small number of jackals in the mountains this year.

In previous years, every spring, these sly and cunning creatures could be seen scurrying around in the mountain gullies.

I spent most of the day this year and didn't see a single one.

"It seems that the ferocity of that yellow jackal is truly formidable, scaring these vicious jackals away, or... eating them?"

He muttered to himself.

The rain gradually stopped, but the fog in the forest grew thicker.

Afu and Ashou's playful spirit was gradually awakened by the tranquility after the rain.

They no longer focus solely on tracking the faint scent of Huanghuali.

They began to develop a strong interest in the "little things" they encountered along the way.

A plump gray squirrel was happily munching on a pine cone when it suddenly felt the light above its head dim.

It looked up blankly and met a pair of amber tiger eyes, like huge glass balls.

Afu's huge head was less than three feet away from it, curiously examining the little one holding food.

The squirrel froze instantly, letting out a pitiful squeak, but instead of running away.

Instead, it lay flat on its back with its four paws in the air, its tail stiff, and the pine cone in its little paws fell to the ground with a "plop".

I don't know if he fainted from fright or was just pretending to be dead.

Afu gently nudged it with his nose, but the little thing didn't react at all.

It suddenly felt bored, snorted, spraying the squirrel with wet air, shook its head, and walked away.

Only when the enormous figure was far away did the squirrel secretly open one eye, and then "whoosh" it darted up to the top of the tree.

I was so scared that I didn't dare to come down again.

After walking a while longer, a deer that was munching on grass roots was startled by Ah Shou's approaching scent. Terrified, it jumped up and ran desperately down the hillside.

Ah Shou didn't chase after him with all his might, but just followed behind at a leisurely pace, occasionally letting out a low, playful roar.

Every time the roe deer heard a tiger's roar, it would stumble in fright and almost tumble down the hillside.

His disheveled appearance elicited a pleasant "humming" sound from Ah Shou's throat, as if he were playing a fun chase game.

Only when the deer disappeared in a dense, impassable thicket did Ashou reluctantly stop.

He strolled back to Chen Ling's side.

Watching these two kings of the forest toying with the poor little beasts like mischievous children, Chen Ling couldn't help but shake his head and burst into laughter: "You two big guys, you're really bored! All you know how to do is bully those who dare not fight back!"

Afu seemed to understand its master's teasing, and affectionately rubbed its huge head against Chen Ling's arm with such force that it almost knocked Chen Ling over.

The look in their eyes seemed to say, "It's just for fun, we're not really going to eat them."

As Chen Ling continued his investigation, he discovered several more fresh traces left by the chrysanthemum.

The huge claw marks were deeply embedded in the mud, with sharp edges.

The tree that had been tickled by it had a large patch of bark scraped off, revealing the white wood underneath.

There were also several remaining droppings, emitting a strong, foul odor with a sulfurous smell.

This indicates that it had just left.

But this guy is just too agile and cunning.

It seemed to clearly sense the terrifying aura of Afu and Ashou, these two "kind" apex predators.

They always maintained a skillful distance.

Its tracks shift from east to west, circling around, making full use of the complex terrain and the rising mountain mist to conceal itself.

Like a yellow ghost, it drifts elusively through the mountains and forests, leaving only traces but never revealing itself.

"Damn it, this bastard is playing hide-and-seek with me?"

Chen Ling stopped, wiped the moisture from his face, and cursed under his breath.

He could sense that the yellow pheasant was active in this area.

They might even be watching them coldly from behind some rock or in the canopy of a tree not far away.

Seeing that Afu and Ashou were getting a little anxious because they kept missing their targets, they would occasionally scratch the ground with their claws and growl.

Chen Ling's eyes darted around, and an idea came to him.

"Alright, stop wandering around aimlessly."

He beckoned to the two tigers: "That guy is as cunning as a ghost. Knowing you're here, he definitely won't show his face."

"We can't come here empty-handed; we have to give it a warning!"

He pointed to a spot where he had just discovered fresh droppings from a yellow catfish: "Afu, Ashou, come here! Right here, let's teach it a lesson!"

"Let it know who's in charge here from now on!"

Upon hearing this, Afu and Ashou immediately became excited.

They seemed to fully understand Chen Ling's intentions.

This is a familiar, instinctive behavior for them: marking territory.

Afu walked to the mark first, lowered his head and sniffed it carefully, a hint of disdain in his eyes.

It raised one of its hind legs, and with an extremely domineering and skillful posture, "splash—" a stream of hot, extremely pungent tiger urine.

It was precisely poured onto the feces and claw marks left by the wild gooseberry!

Immediately afterwards, Ah Shou stepped forward and did the same, leaving his mark on another spot.

This is not over yet.

At Chen Ling's signal, the two tigers began to walk back and forth in the area.

Choose some conspicuous tree or rock corners, or lift your leg to spray, or rub with anal glands.

It fully releases its own aura.

The strong, dominant odor of tiger stench quickly spread, forcefully covering and neutralizing the fishy smell of wild yellow roe in the air.

"Good job!"

Chen Ling clapped his hands and laughed: "This is called an eye for an eye, 'fighting fire with fire,' let's see if that bastard dares to come back here and act arrogantly again!"

After doing all this, Afu and Ashou seemed to feel much better.

Raise your head and let out a deep, intimidating roar.

"Awoo-roar-!"

The deep roar of the tiger pierced through the rain and mist, echoing through the valley and forest, startling a flock of birds in the distance.

This also seems to indicate that this mountain forest has welcomed a new and more powerful master.

Chen Ling patted the two tigers' wet necks with satisfaction: "Alright, the warning has been delivered. That's enough for today, let's go back!"

"Let's come back tomorrow and see if that wild yellow chrysanthemum still dares to leave its mark everywhere!"

The fog thickened and the sky darkened.

Chen Ling didn't linger. He called over the two big cats who had completed their "territory-claiming" task and were satisfied, then turned around and embarked on his journey home.

It's not even evening yet.

But the sky grew completely dark.

That's how it is in the mountains; even in spring, the days are still very short.

Night falls exceptionally early and exceptionally deep in the mountains.

The heavy twilight, like an ink-soaked tide, spread rapidly from the valley floor to the treetops.

The distant mountains and nearby trees were swallowed up into a blurry, inky shadow.

Only a faint, bluish-gray band of light remained on the horizon, outlining the jagged contours of the western mountains.

The air was cool and damp, carrying the freshness of the rain and the earthy smell of soil. Taking a breath of it was refreshing and invigorating, yet it also made one shiver.

When Chen Ling returned to the farm with Afu and Ashou, walking along the slightly slippery mountain path, the courtyard was already lit with a dim, yellow light. The light shone through the paper windows, casting a warm glow in the damp courtyard and dispelling the surrounding darkness and chill.

"Wang Wang!"

Hearing the familiar footsteps, Heiwa and Xiaojin stood up from under the eaves, letting out low, welcoming whimpers.

Its tail wags, sweeping up tiny water droplets.

With a creak, the door was pushed open from the inside.

Wang Susu stood at the doorway wearing an apron, the light casting a soft silhouette behind her.

Her face showed a hint of worry mixed with relief: "You're finally back! It's completely dark now. The mountain roads must have been slippery, right? Did you get hurt?"

Her gaze swept quickly over Chen Ling, and seeing that although he was wet and his raincoat was covered with grass, he was full of energy and his eyes were bright, she finally breathed a sigh of relief.

"It's okay, I'm fine! These boots are non-slip and easy to walk in."

Chen Ling chuckled, stamped his feet to shake off the mud from his boots, and took off his wet raincoat to hang it under the eaves.

Afu and Ashou, imitating their masters, vigorously shook their massive bodies at the door, splashing water droplets that looked like tiny diamonds scattered under the light.

"Ouch..."

They let out satisfied, slightly weary growls from their throats, as if reporting their safe return to their mistress.

"Come inside and warm up. The food is warming up in the pot, just waiting for you to come back and we'll have dinner."

Wang Susu stepped aside to make way, and looked gently at the two docile tigers.

"Dad! Big tiger!"

Hearing the noise, Rui Rui ran out of the inner room with half a biscuit in her hand, her little face excitedly looking up at Chen Ling and the two giant beasts.

Kang Kang and Lele were also carried by Liang Hongyu to the door.

The two little children stared curiously at their wet father and the "big cat" at the doorway with their big, dark eyes.

"You little rascal, aren't you asleep yet?"

Chen Ling bent down to hug her son, but found that she was still cold, so she just rubbed his head.

"Wait for Daddy to eat! Eat meat!"

Rui Rui answered loudly, then stuffed the biscuit into Chen Ling's mouth like a precious treasure.

"Okay, Dad will wash his hands and eat."

Chen Ling felt a warm glow in his heart, as if the fatigue of the journey and the chill of the mountains had been instantly dispelled.

The eight-immortal table in the main room was already set with bowls and chopsticks.

In the middle, a small iron pot was bubbling and steaming.

Inside is a soup made by Wang Susu using her family's old hen and dried mushrooms, which has a rich aroma.

Next to it was a plate of stir-fried wild rabbit with scallions, glistening with oil and garnished with bright green scallion segments.

A plate of stir-fried shepherd's purse, tender, green, and refreshing.

There was also a plate of finely shredded pickled vegetables drizzled with sesame oil, and a basket of steaming white steamed buns.

It's simple, yet full of the warmth and comfort of home.

"Sit down and eat. This soup has been simmering all afternoon, and the meat is tender. It's perfect for warming you up."

Wang Susu served Chen Ling a large bowl of chicken soup, with a plump chicken leg lying inside.

I put a small piece of rabbit meat on Rui Rui's plate, blew on it carefully to cool it down, and then put it in his bowl.

"Have you eaten?" Chen Ling asked, taking the bowl from him.

"I've already fed you Kang Kang and Le Le, and I'm just waiting for you."

Wang Susu sat down, picked up a steamed bun, broke it open, and added some pickled vegetables: "Rui Rui insisted on waiting for you, and it took a long time to coax him to eat half a piece of bread."

Chen Ling's heart softened, and she looked at her son.

Rui Rui was trying hard to scoop up soup with a spoon and drink it, blowing on it with a "whoosh" sound.

Feeling her father's gaze, she looked up and grinned, revealing a few small white teeth.

"Silly boy."

Chen Ling smiled and lowered his head to drink the soup in large gulps.

The warm and delicious soup slid down the esophagus into the stomach, as if a warm current was quickly spreading to every part of the body.

It dispelled the damp and cold air brought from the mountains.

The chicken was stewed until extremely tender, melting in your mouth, and the mushrooms absorbed the broth, making them exceptionally delicious.

Take another bite of the fluffy steamed bun, along with the crisp shepherd's purse and spicy rabbit meat, and you'll feel completely comfortable inside and out.

Afu and Ashou lay quietly under the eaves, with two large ceramic basins in front of them.

Inside were chunks of meat and broth with bones, prepared by Wang Susu for them.

They lowered their heads and licked themselves, making satisfied "purring" sounds, their huge bodies resembling two stable mountains under the light.

Outside, a light rain began to fall again, tapping on the tiles and window frames with a soft, gentle patter.

This made the indoor lighting feel even more inviting and the food even warmer.

After dinner, I felt completely warmed up, but also a wave of fatigue washed over me.

Wang Susu cleared away the dishes, and Liang Hongyu carried the already drowsy Kang Kang and Lele into the inner room.

Rui Rui was tired from playing, so she lay on Chen Ling's lap, her little head nodding off.

Chen Ling picked him up and gently patted his back.

The little guy mumbled "Daddy... Big Tiger..." and then nestled in his arms, his breathing becoming even and long, as he fell into a deep sleep.

After settling Rui Rui in, I covered her with her blanket.

Chen Ling, however, did not feel sleepy immediately.

The rainy night was quiet and the air was cool. His mind was unusually clear due to the stimulation of the mountain hike and the satisfaction of a full meal, and his thoughts were particularly active.

The tension of tracking in the mountains during the day, and the excitement of competing with the wild boar from afar.

The comical antics of Ah Fu and Ah Shou teasing the black bear, the ethereal tranquility of the mountain forest in the rain...

Various images and emotions intertwined and swirled in my mind, stirring up a creative impulse.

He tiptoed to his desk, turned on the lamp, spread out the manuscript paper, and picked up the familiar fountain pen.

The light cast his long shadow on the wall.

The sound of rain pattering outside the window is like natural white noise, making it easier for one's heart to calm down.

He originally just wanted to write something down, to record the interesting things that happened during his hike in the mountains today, or to come up with a few new short stories for children.

But what flowed from the pen tip onto the paper was neither the adventure of Heiwa Xiaojin nor the daily life of Ruirui and "Little One".

Instead, it's an opening chapter imbued with the damp atmosphere of a rainy night and a blend of chivalry and tenderness...

[It had been raining continuously in Yuhang Town recently, and the bluestone pavement was washed smooth by the rain. Li Xiaoyao yawned and leaned against the door frame of the inn, looking at the continuous rain lines outside the eaves, pondering how to sneak out of his aunt's sight to the gambling den to win back his losses...]

The words seemed to have come to life.

He was drawn into a world interwoven with fantasy, legend, and tragic destiny.

The unbridled spirit of the Sword Immortal, the innocent destiny of Zhao Ling'er, the dashing and fierce nature of Lin Yueru...

Each character gradually comes to life under the pen, and each plot unfolds naturally.

He was so engrossed in writing that he didn't even notice when Wang Susu finished cleaning the kitchen and quietly came in.

He only snapped back to reality when a pair of warm, soft hands gently pressed against his temples, massaging them with just the right amount of pressure.

"What time is it? Why aren't you asleep yet?"

Wang Susu's voice carried a gentle reproach as she leaned down to look at the handwriting on his manuscript.

"Writing those fighting and killing stories again? It's a waste of time."

Under the light, her profile was soft and delicate, carrying a faint fragrance after her bath.

Chen Ling put down his pen, leaned back, enjoying the gentle touch of her fingertips, and smiled, "It's easy, my mind is clear, and I write smoothly."

"The rainy night is just right, it feels right."

"No matter what you feel, you shouldn't stay up too late."

Wang Susu gently traced his forehead with her fingertips: "The children are asleep, let's... get some rest too."

Her voice gradually lowered, carrying a hint of shyness and suggestion.

Chen Ling was slightly taken aback, then realized what was happening.

Looking at his wife's face glowing softly under the lamplight and her eyes sparkling slightly.

Thinking that the children had indeed been sleeping soundly for several days in a row, the couple had indeed not been affectionate with each other for a long time.

A warm feeling and a knowing smile immediately welled up in my heart.

He reached out and took Wang Susu's hand, gently scratching her palm with his fingertips, a playful and knowing smile in his eyes: "Oh... so the children are asleep, some comrades... are planning some 'nighttime activities'?"

Wang Susu's face flushed red instantly. Embarrassed and annoyed, she lightly slapped him, saying, "Get lost! You're so indecent! Write or don't write, I'm going to sleep!"

As he spoke, he turned around.

Chen Ling wasn't about to let her go. He smiled, stood up, pulled her into his arms, and whispered in her reddened earlobe, his warm breath tickling her neck:

"What's the point of writing? Nothing is more important than sleeping with your wife..."

"Let's go to bed!"

The teasing and anticipation in his tone were undisguised.

Wang Susu's ears turned even redder as he held her. She struggled slightly before leaning softly against him, her voice barely audible: "...smooth talker...the light's still on..."

"Turn off the lights! Turn off the lights!"

Chen Ling smiled, embraced his wife, and casually turned off the bedside lamp.

The room was plunged into darkness, with only the soft patter of rain outside the window gently enveloping the warm and tranquil spring night in the farmhouse.

In the distance, the two giant tigers lying under the eaves seemed to sense something, and their ears twitched slightly.

It made an extremely low, almost inaudible "groove" sound from its throat and shifted to a more comfortable position.

It buried its large head in its front paws, sinking into a peaceful state of guarding and dreaming. (End of Chapter)