Reborn in 1985, starting from the mountains of Northwest China

Yang Chengwu coughed for a while before gradually calming down. His eyelids twitched, and he opened them with difficulty, just a crack.

His gaze was unfocused, as if he didn't recognize anyone, and he just stared blankly at Chen Feng's face.

Chen Feng moved closer so that the firelight could illuminate his face.

"Chengwu, do you recognize me?"

Yang Chengwu stared at him for a long time, his lips moved, and a hoarse sound came out of his throat.

"Chen... Brother Chen Feng..."

The sound was as soft as a mosquito's buzz, but Chen Feng heard it clearly.

He nodded.

"It's enough that you recognize me. Don't say anything, save your energy."

Yang Chengwu's eyes suddenly turned red, and tears streamed down his cheeks, into his ears, and onto the ground.

He wanted to say something, but his lips trembled and he could only utter a few broken syllables.

"My uncle... my uncle he..."

"Your uncle is fine."

Chen Feng interrupted him, speaking very softly, "I'm waiting for you at home. I've come to take you home."

Yang Chengwu opened his mouth, but couldn't say anything; instead, his tears flowed even more fiercely.

Chen Feng looked at him, feeling as if something had clenched his heart.

The cotton-padded coat had several holes, and the exposed cotton was black, stained with mud and blood. I don't know if it was from a fall or from being scratched by tree branches.

What exactly happened to this kid?

Chen Feng didn't ask any more questions, but simply brought the water bottle to his lips again.

"Have some more."

This time, Yang Chengwu drank slowly, taking small sips. After drinking about half a pot, he shook his head, indicating that he couldn't drink anymore.

Chen Feng laid him down and took off his own cotton-padded coat to cover him.

Lin Xi was stunned for a moment.

"Brother-in-law, you..."

"I can handle it," Chen Feng interrupted him.

He called Taxue over and had it lie down next to Yang Chengwu. Taxue's warmth could help keep him warm.

Yang Chengwu was curled up, still trembling, but he was a little better than before. He half-opened his eyes, looked at Chen Feng, and his lips moved.

"Brother Chen Feng...you...why are you here...?"

"I came to find you," Chen Feng said. "Your uncle is desperate and came to me for help."

Yang Chengwu's tears fell again.

"I...I'm so sorry to my uncle...we didn't find any ginseng...and...we even put you at risk..."

Chen Feng patted him on the shoulder.

"Don't say those things. Just being alive is enough."

Yang Chengwu nodded, closed his eyes, and said nothing more. But his body was still trembling, one beat after another, like he had malaria.

Lin Xi squatted down beside him and looked in the direction of the cave entrance.

"Brother-in-law, it's started snowing again. We probably won't be able to leave tonight."

Chen Feng nodded.

The snow outside is heavy, the roads are slippery, and there's a bear hiding there.

Furthermore, given Yang Chengwu's condition with burns, he is unable to leave.

"I'll stay here tonight. I'll leave when it gets light and the snow lightens."

Lin Xi nodded, put the gun beside him, and sat down against the wall.

The cave fell silent, save for the occasional mutterings of Yang Chengwu and the howling wind outside.

Chen Feng leaned against the cave wall, closed his eyes, and tried to doze off for a while.

His mind was in turmoil. One moment he saw the bear pouncing at him, the next he saw Yang Chengwu's face burning red, and then he saw Xiuer standing at the gate to see him off.

He touched the amulet in his pocket.

It was warm and cozy, as if a little person who missed him lived inside.

After an unknown amount of time, a rustling sound suddenly came from the direction of the cave entrance.

Chen Feng suddenly opened his eyes and grabbed the homemade gun beside him.

Lin Xi also woke up, picked up his gun, and aimed it at the cave entrance.

Ta Xue stood up, making a low whimpering sound in her throat, but she didn't make a sound.

The sound was getting closer and closer.

Rustle. Rustle. Rustle.

It was the sound of footsteps.

Chen Feng lowered his voice: "Who?"

There was a moment of silence on the other end, then a hoarse, trembling voice came through.

"It's...it's a person...hiding from a bear..."

Chen Feng and Lin Xi exchanged a glance.

Lin Xi took out the fire seal and blew it brightly.

In the dim firelight, three figures crawled in from the cave entrance, one after another. They were all men, the oldest in his forties and the youngest in his early twenties. Their cotton-padded coats were torn, and their faces and hands were covered in frostbite, some of which had turned purple.

They were stunned when they saw Chen Feng and Lin Xi.

The two sides just stared at each other, neither of them moving.

Several seconds passed before the older one finally spoke, his voice trembling.

"You...you are...?"

"We're hiding from bears," Chen Feng said. "Are you guys too?"

The man nodded, but his eyes looked deeper into the cave, where he spotted Yang Chengwu lying on the ground.

"Chengwu!"

He strode over, squatted down to look at Yang Chengwu, and then reached out to touch Yang Chengwu's forehead. His expression changed.

"It's burned like this..."

The other two also gathered around, asking questions all at once.

"Is he still alive?"

"Did you give him water?"

"Are you here to see him?"

Chen Feng nodded.

"We're here to find someone. Are you all with him?"

The older man nodded.

"Yes...we were together...eight of us went into the mountains, then got separated...and later the four of us found our way back together..."

He pointed to himself and the other two.

"Cheng Wu and I came here first, and then we met the other two, making a total of four. We were hiding in this cave last night."

Chen Feng looked at the three of them.

Where did you go just now?

The man gave a wry smile.

"Looking for food. I haven't eaten for two days, and I can't stand the hunger. I'm going out to try my luck now that the snow has stopped, to see if I can find anything."

He thought for a moment and then explained, "Chengwu has had a high fever since yesterday afternoon and can't walk."

"We had no choice but to let him lie down for now, and then we went out to see if there was anything to eat. We searched for most of the day, but we couldn't find either of the two tree roots..."

Chen Feng nodded and didn't ask any further questions.

At times like these, not helping is not a favor, but helping is a matter of goodwill.

He did a quick mental calculation; he still had three steamed buns in his bundle, and Lin Xi had two on her person.

The steamed buns in the countryside are big and filling, one of them is almost as big as half of Chen Feng's face.

He took one out of his bundle, broke it into four pieces, gave one piece to each of the three men, and left the last piece for Yang Chengwu.

"Eat."

The three of them were stunned for a moment, staring at the steamed bun with wide eyes.

"This...this is..."

"Eat."

Chen Feng repeated, "Eat your fill, so you can go down the mountain tomorrow."

When people are starving, they're capable of anything. His goal on this trip was simply to bring the Yang family boy back safely.

The three of them held the steamed buns and began to wolf them down, choking and rolling their eyes back, but they still wouldn't stop.

Chen Feng looked at them, feeling a mix of emotions he couldn't quite describe.

Eight went into the mountains, and four stayed here.

What about the remaining four?

The key point is that none of the Wang family boys he knows are among them.

He glanced at Yang Chengwu.

The boy was still half asleep, his face still burning red.

Lin Xi leaned closer and whispered, "Brother-in-law, will these people be able to leave tomorrow when we go down the mountain?"

"I can walk. Just a little slowly."

They didn't really know these people, and there was a patient among them. If pushed too far, they might do something...