American Hunting: Starting with Solitary Life in the Wilderness

Chapter 233 Emily's Surprise! (6k views, please vote!)
Emily stopped a few steps away from him.

Unlike Arya, she wasn't unrestrained; she simply stood there quietly, her fists clenched at her sides, her chest heaving violently with suppressed emotions.

Her gaze was filled with heartache, greedily tracing her husband's thin face and weary figure inch by inch.

After the kiss ended, Lin Yu'an finally released Alia, who was so passionate that she almost suffocated him.

He looked at Arya's flushed cheeks, then at Emily, who stood not far away with red-rimmed eyes, silent. His heart swelled with two equally intense yet completely different emotions.

He didn't let go of Arya's hand, but instead extended his other arm, making a silent, inviting gesture to Emily.

Emily looked at his outstretched hand but did not immediately step forward.

She simply looked at him quietly with her red eyes, her voice soft but trembling with a hint of grievance and reproach: "You still know how to come back?"

Lin Yu'an was taken aback, somewhat puzzled.

In his memory, Emily had always been a gentle and reserved person, and her emotional expression was always like a deep river, calm and profound.

But at this moment, although she didn't have Arya's outward enthusiasm, she was filled with an almost overflowing sense of grievance.

Her words, almost like a coquettish accusation, made her seem more like a young girl waiting for her boyfriend to come home late, stamping her feet at the door to express her dissatisfaction.

He had never imagined Emily had this side to her, and for a moment he was speechless.

"Emily, I..."

Emily's brows furrowed slightly; she seemed even more agitated than Arya, her eyes brimming with tears, as if they were about to burst forth at any moment.

"Do you know that for the past two months, we've been praying for you every night, and we've been afraid every day that we'll receive bad news from the production team..."

Seeing Emily's completely different demeanor and extreme emotional fluctuations, Lin Yu'an was filled with confusion.

Just then, Arya, who was standing nearby, couldn't stand it anymore.

She gently patted Emily's back to comfort her, then smiled and smoothed things over, saying, "Okay, okay, he's back safe and sound, isn't he?"

"Let's go inside first. Your face is all white from the cold. Come on in, don't catch a cold." Emily's emotions calmed down a bit after being comforted by Arya.

But she didn't go inside immediately. Instead, she slowly walked forward step by step and placed her cold hand into Lin Yu'an's large, calloused, and scarred palm. Then, he pulled her into the embrace that had been waiting for her for fifty days.

Lin Yu'an stretched out his arms and embraced his two wives, his entire world, tightly. On one side was passionate love, on the other gentle love; two completely different kinds of love enveloped him.

He lowered his head and first planted a deep kiss on Arya's forehead, then turned to Emily.

Looking into her eyes, so close yet brimming with unspoken words, I kissed her slightly cold lips with a tenderness that I cherished dearly.

He could feel their bodies trembling from the cold and their excitement, and he could smell the familiar scent of shampoo in their hair that he cherished so much.

"I'm sorry... I made you worry." He buried his face deeply in their necks, greedily inhaling the scent of home that had haunted his dreams for fifty days and nights.

"Alright, alright, let's go back inside quickly, you're all shivering from the cold."

Everyone finally returned to the warm room.

The dry aroma of burning wood mixed with the warm scent of home finally allowed his heart, which had been tense for fifty days and nights in the wilderness, to completely and safely relax.

He looked around and found that the entire cabin had been carefully decorated and was filled with a strong Christmas atmosphere.

Above the fireplace hangs a row of small fairy lights made of pine cones and red berries. In the corner of the living room stands a spruce tree cut down from the forest, covered with natural decorations.

Although there were no gifts under the tree yet, the fresh scent of pine resin already heralded the approaching festival.

Arya slammed the heavy wooden door shut, completely shutting out the cold outside.

Then he immediately rushed to the fireplace and added several pieces of the most heat-resistant hardwood, causing the calm flames to roar and burn brightly again.

Emily, on the other hand, took a clean, soft towel and gently wiped away the cold snow water from his cheeks, her movements so gentle that it was as if she were dealing with a fragile piece of porcelain.

Looking at Emily carefully wiping him down, Lin Yu'an felt a little surprised. He vaguely felt that something was off about Emily, but he couldn't quite put his finger on it.
She felt like she loved him a little more? And that she was more dependent on him? Lin Yu'an didn't think about it any further, attributing it to the longing caused by their long separation.

His gaze had already been drawn to the two little ones on the carpet, who were staring at him, this "stranger," with their big, round eyes.

He walked slowly over, each step feeling like he was walking on clouds. He avoided the blocks on the ground and finally crouched down in front of Ethan and Olivia, positioning his tall frame at eye level with the children.

“Hi, Ethan, Olivia… Daddy’s back.” His voice was filled with an unprecedented tenderness.

The two little ones, who were nearly eleven months old, were clearly a little shy around this man who exuded an air of unfamiliarity and hardship.

Ethan was bolder, simply looking at him curiously, still clutching a block tightly in his hand, as if assessing this new big guy.

Her younger sister, Olivia, instinctively shrank back, her little mouth pouting slightly, as if she were a little scared.

Lin Yu'an felt a little disappointed. Fifty days of absence was enough for a child who was not even a year old to forget what his father looked like and smelled like.

He didn't rush to hug them, as that would only frighten them. He gently placed the birchwood teddy bear and puppy he had brought back from Labrador, which he had polished to an incredibly smooth and warm finish, on the carpet in front of them.

The two little ones were immediately drawn to this novel toy.

Ethan was the boldest. He hesitated for a moment, but finally reached out his chubby little hand, grabbed the little wooden bear, and held it up to his eyes, examining it curiously.

A gentle smile appeared on Lin Yu'an's face. He knew that rebuilding the trust between father and son would only require a little patience and time.

Finally, everyone sat around the large, soft sofa in front of the fireplace.

Arya and Emily flanked Lin Yu'an, sandwiching him between them as if afraid he might disappear again for a long time.

Ethan and Olivia, after their initial tentative steps, finally became familiar with the warm and reassuring aura emanating from their father, and were held on Lin Yu'an's lap without crying or fussing.

Ethan sat on his left lap, still curiously munching on the wooden bear, while Olivia wasn't so interested in the toy, nestled in the crook of his right arm, her little hands tightly gripping his clothes.

Lin Yu'an told them everything that had happened in the past two months.

He recounted the sudden blizzard, the thrilling hunt for the lone wolf, and the snow house he built himself to smoke the snow... Of course, he focused on the story of December.

From the moment he found the tiny, nearly frozen life in the snow; to how he prepared milk substitutes for it and clumsily assisted with its excretion; to Dr. McCormick's intervention; and finally, that heartbreaking farewell.

When they heard that their husbands had spent more than ten days alone with a wild polar bear cub and had successfully saved it, the two women's faces were filled with disbelief and shock.

Arya held Lin Yu'an's hand tightly, while Emily tenderly stroked his face, which appeared even more angular due to his thinness, with her fingers.

They couldn't imagine how he, all alone and helpless, could bear such immense pressure and risk to protect another equally fragile little life.

"Then... how is she now?" Emily asked softly, her eyes filled with worry and maternal love.

"She's fine." Lin Yu'an took the red rubber ball out of his pocket and placed it on the coffee table.

"Dr. McCormick promised me that I could visit her anytime after I finished the challenge. In addition, she invited me to become a special consultant for their institute and participate in the follow-up growth and rewilding training in December."

He looked at Arya and Emily and said earnestly, "So, I think that after I rest for a few days and recover a bit, I'll take you and the children with me to Anchorage to see our...other family."

"If possible, I plan to spend a few days there every month to participate in her growth."

He quickly added, afraid they might misunderstand, "Of course, I promise I will spend much more time at home with you and the children. I owe you so much."

Upon hearing his words, Arya and Emily exchanged a glance and suddenly burst out laughing.

“Okay.” Arya nodded without hesitation, then glanced at Emily and added, “However, we may have to wait until Emily’s condition is more stable.”

Lin Yu'an was taken aback, and looked at Emily with some confusion: "Emily? What's wrong? Are you feeling unwell?"

"I'm fine." Emily shook her head, but an unnatural look flashed across her face, and she subconsciously shrank back into the sofa.

Lin Yu'an's heart jumped, thinking she was ill. Just as he was about to press her for details, Ailiya cleverly changed the subject.

"You just said you plan to spend a week in Anchorage every month?" Arya looked at him, a mischievous smile in her eyes.

"What about home? You're such a hands-off manager, gone for two months straight. Are you already planning your next 'business trip' as soon as you get back?" Lin Yu'an immediately caught the teasing in her voice and quickly added, "Absolutely not! I won't be away from you for so long this time. This home is the most important place to me."

"Since Emily isn't feeling well, we can plan the trip to Anchorage slowly. Everything is for your sake and the family's sake."

Upon hearing his words, Arya and Emily exchanged a glance.

This time, they didn't laugh. Instead, their eyes revealed a mixture of relief and a hint of mystery, as if "it's time."

Arya's tone was gentler than ever before as she looked at him and said slowly, "Darling, we know you are a responsible man, both to December and to this family."

"Therefore, we believe that you are certainly ready to take on a new and greater responsibility."

"What's wrong?" Lin Yu'an was a little confused by their serious atmosphere.

Arya didn't speak again. She simply took Lin Yu'an's large, scarred hand and gently guided it to cover Emily's still flat stomach.

Lin Yu'an's body stiffened abruptly. He could clearly feel that the body beneath his palm, even through his clothes, was radiating a heat that seemed hotter than usual.

Arya looked into his eyes, her voice filled with uncontrollable happiness and joy, "Darling, I think you might really need to spend more time at home."

Emily also looked up and met Lin Yu'an's somewhat shocked gaze. She said in an extremely happy tone, "Because you're going to be a father again. I'm almost two months pregnant."

Lin Yu'an's mind went completely blank!
He looked incredulously at Arya, then at Emily, before his gaze slowly returned to the warm belly that his palm was covering, where a new life was growing.

In an instant, all my previous confusion was answered.

He instantly understood why Emily, who was usually reserved and gentle, had displayed such intense emotional fluctuations, almost like a spoiled child, that he had never seen before, outside the door.

"Pregnancy...the emotions during pregnancy...so this is how it is...and it turns out I wasn't there for them when they needed me the most during their pregnancies." He murmured to himself, his heart filled with guilt and heartache after realizing the truth.

He looked up at Emily with an extremely complicated expression. He wanted to say something, to apologize, to express his remorse, but all the words stuck in his throat.

Arya seemed to see through his thoughts and changed the subject to ease his guilt, "We only found out about ten days ago."

"It's strange, but after carefully calculating the dates, I realized that the day we learned of this good news was exactly the same day you discovered December in the snow!"

Emily reached out and placed her hand on Lin Yu'an's: "We are blessed by God. You saved a little life, and God also gave us one."

Lin Yu'an was speechless. An immense, indescribable joy and shock instantly enveloped him. He felt that he was the happiest person in the world at that moment!

His body, stiff with shock, finally began to move again. With utmost care, he placed Ethan and Olivia, who had been on his lap, onto the sofa beside him.

Then, he suddenly burst into laughter like a child, without any warning!

"Haha...hahaha!"

It was a pure, heartfelt laugh! Filled with irrepressible joy, it echoed throughout the small wooden cabin!

His eyes, which were bloodshot from exhaustion, suddenly shone with an unprecedented brightness, as if all the gloom had been swept away by this wonderful news!

"I'm going to be a dad again... I'm going to be a dad again! This is such a wonderful surprise!" He said, as if announcing to himself and showing off to the whole world.

He stretched out his arms and first gave Arya a hug that almost suffocated her, then kissed her hard on the cheek!
Then he turned around and knelt down in front of Emily.

He didn't immediately embrace her, but instead reached out his large, scarred hands and gently cupped Emily's cheeks.

"Thank you, Emily."

His voice trembled with excitement, "Thank you... for joining our family, thank you for bringing new life into our family!"

After saying that, he lowered his head and, with an almost reverent gesture, gently placed a kiss on Emily's flat belly, which was pregnant with a new life.

This gesture conveyed his ecstasy more than any words, and his deep affection and love for Emily and the little life growing inside her.

Emily's eyes welled up with tears again, and happy tears streamed down her cheeks. During her pregnancy, she was just as emotional as Arya had been.

After doing all this, Lin Yu'an stood up again, bent down, and hugged Arya, Emily, and the two children tightly, as if he owned the entire universe!
After a long while, he finally snapped out of his overwhelming happiness and switched back into "head of the household" mode, starting to care about the most practical and mundane issues at home.

Lin Yu'an released the hug, but his hands remained tightly holding Arya and Emily's hands.

He looked at Arya and asked earnestly, "Is the heating in the house sufficient? When I left, it was just the beginning of winter, and now it should be the coldest time of the year. Is the water heating system still running stably? Has the backup diesel generator been checked?"

Arya smiled and replied, "Don't worry, the water heating system and fireplace system you designed have been very stable. We check the boiler pressure gauge and circulation pump regularly every day, and everything is normal."

"The room temperature has been kept at 22 degrees Celsius, and the kids kick off their blankets while sleeping. I just had the backup generator serviced last week, so it's ready to start anytime. Don't forget, we're classmates in the same major."

Lin Yu'an nodded, then thought of another crucial question.

"Then... what about water? Is it still easy to get water? The well we dug in the summer must be frozen solid by now. How have you managed to get water for the past two months?"

“You underestimate us. I’m Emily, who has lived alone in Wiesman for many years. How could I be stumped by a small water problem?”

“But that well is indeed unusable now, so we bought another water tank and put it in the storage room. Once it’s full, it’ll be enough for a month’s worth of drinking water.” Emily smiled, a hint of pride on her face.

Arya added, "And we also melt snow water, which is more than enough for washing clothes and flushing toilets."

Hearing this, Lin Yu'an finally felt relieved. Water is a more fundamental lifeline than food and heating.

His two wives not only memorized everything he taught them, but also applied it to other situations, doing even better than he had expected.

They are not delicate flowers that need his constant protection, but partners who can stand shoulder to shoulder with him and take root in this harsh land.

He then turned to Emily, his eyes filled with concern: "Are there enough vegetables and meat?"

Emily smiled gently: "The cherry radishes and hardy cabbages in the vegetable greenhouse were just harvested a while ago. They are fresh and crisp. We have no shortage of fresh vegetables right now."

“As for the meat,” Arya continued, “you forgot? That huge moose, half of it’s still frozen in the fridge. Enough to last us until next spring.”

"I haven't had a proper meal in over fifty days, honey. How about we have your favorite hot pot for dinner tonight?"

Upon hearing the word "hot pot," Lin Yu'an's eyes lit up instantly! His stomach, which had been suppressed by the wilderness for fifty days, began to send out strong signals.

He licked his lips and said in a longing tone, "Then... let's have hot pot tonight! We'll use moose tenderloin slices, with the freshest cabbage and radishes."

"Right now, all I want is to have a proper, satisfying meal of food that is truly human."

Seeing his childlike, greedy expression, Arya and Emily burst into laughter.

"Okay! Whatever you say! Hot pot!" They immediately got up and headed to the kitchen excitedly.

"You, just stay here and play with your son and daughter."

Lin Yu'an smiled, nodded, and lifted Ethan in one arm and Olivia in the other, raising them high into the air and swirling them around.

The two little ones finally overcame their shyness and started giggling, their clear laughter filling the entire cabin.

The flames in the fireplace crackled and popped.

Soon, the sounds of chopping vegetables and preparing ingredients came from the kitchen, filling it with the aroma of cooking.

Arya skillfully sliced ​​the frozen moose meat into red and white stripes using a sharp meat cleaver.

Emily, meanwhile, hummed a song as she washed the freshly picked cabbages from the greenhouse.

The two large dogs, also infected by the happy atmosphere of the impending meal, lay contentedly in front of the fireplace, resting their heads on their front paws and dozing off happily, their tails occasionally twitching.

Half an hour later, a lavish family hot pot feast officially began.

Looking at everything before him, Lin Yu'an was certain that he had returned.

He returned to the safest and warmest sanctuary in the world, a place he was willing to protect with his life, a place he called "home".

(End of this chapter)