My sister broke off her engagement to marry someone richer? My older sister married me and became in

Lu Qingshan took the slap.

The old man took a few deep breaths and cursed, "You've got some nerve! Take another half step forward, and your mother will be burning paper money for you today."

Lu Qingshan wiped the back of his head. "Sir, I was wrong."

"What's wrong?"

"You shouldn't have stood so close."

"Anything else?"

"I shouldn't have let you fall."

The old man raised his foot and kicked, "Stop talking nonsense! Look at the dog first!"

Lu Qingshan immediately squatted down and rummaged through his bag for a first-aid kit. Qingwei had a long gash on its neck, and blood was still gushing out. Dahuang's old wound on its hind leg had reopened, and it lay groaning in the snow.

The old man frowned when he saw the cloth bag.

"You know how to do this? Should I do it?"

Having spent his past life running alone in the mountains, he had long since learned first aid. At this moment, he paused, mumbled an agreement.

"I used to get into fights all the time, and I was afraid my mom would worry, so I learned a little bit on my own."

The old man felt sorry for the dog, and his voice immediately rose.

"You only know a little bit, yet you dared to make a move?"

Lu Qingshan touched his nose. "That's still better than just watching."

The old man scolded, but his hand was already on Qingwei's shoulder and back. "Be gentle. It'll bite if it hurts."

Lu Qingshan parted the hair around the wound, first used medicine powder to suppress the blood, then wrapped a strip of cloth around the base of the neck and tied it securely to avoid the airway.

Qingwei let out a soft whimper and nuzzled its head against Lu Qingshan's arm.

Lu Qingshan wrapped Da Huang's leg again. Da Huang stuck out its tongue and licked the back of his hand. He patted the dog's head, "You two did a good job today, you'll get extra meat when we get back."

The old man scoffed, "Meat? Let's figure out what this big guy is like first. It weighs over 300 pounds; dragging it back through the snow will break my back."

Lu Qingshan stood up and walked to the wild boar.

The cannonball was no longer moving; blood flowed down its neck into the snow, and steam rose upwards.

Lu Qingshan drew his knife. "Master, bleed him while he's hot, otherwise the meat will taste awful."

The old man stared at his movements, his doubts deepening. "You know about this?"

"I'll give it a try."

"Alright." The old man tucked his pipe behind his waist. "You do it."

Lu Qingshan first turned the wild boar into a suitable position, tied its hind hooves with a rope, found a small birch tree for leverage, and lifted its belly to an angle.

The old man watched his movements, muttering incessantly, "Don't go in with the knife recklessly. The skin is thick, the flesh is firm, a slight misstep and the dish will be ruined."

"Um."

Lu Qingshan first made an incision at the base of the thigh, the tip of the knife following the skin, making a shallow cut. Once the skin and flesh separated, he used the back of the knife to push against the inside, inching forward little by little.

The old man was squatting at first, but then he stood up a bit.

"Who taught you that?"

"You."

"Don't blame me, I didn't teach you that much detail."

Lu Qingshan didn't look up. "I used to love playing with Heizi, you know that. It used to watch you being dissected every time, and after watching it so much, I learned how to do it."

When the name Hei Zi was mentioned, the old man stopped talking, and his eyes dimmed slightly.

Lu Qingshan didn't stop. When he reached the chest, he slowed down, pulled out the internal organs, and prevented the dirty stuff from touching the meat.

First, separate the pig liver, pig heart, and pig kidneys and place them on a clean snow surface. Then, cut off a few pieces of the meat from the edges.

The old man squatted back down, looked down for a long time, and said, "Not bad, it's not broken. You've hidden it well, kid."

Lu Qingshan wiped the knife clean in the snow. "I was a hoodlum before, so I never had the chance to please you."

The old man glared at him. "Don't give me that crap. Knowing how to dissect is no skill. Do you even remember the rules of the mountains?"

Lu Qingshan placed the cut-off pieces of pig liver on the leaves and then cut off two pieces of bloody fat.

"The first offering is to the mountain god. It's not to ask for blessings, but because after taking things from the mountains, we need to leave something for ourselves. There are wolves, foxes, and small creatures that didn't survive the winter in the mountains. They come for the blood, so they'll eat this first, and we'll have time to clean up."

The old man, holding his pipe, squinted and nodded: "Go on."

"The second portion is for the dogs. Hunting dogs guard the rear and shield people from fangs; they shouldn't be left to go hungry."

Lu Qingshan cut a piece of meat next to the pig's heart into small strips, feeding it to Qingwei first, then to Dahuang, saying, "Eat slowly, don't fight over it. You two have done a great job today."

Big Yellow carried the meat in its mouth and swept the snow with its tail. Green Tail, heavily injured, ate slowly, and after finishing, it lay back down at Lu Qingshan's feet.

The old man picked up the meat offered to the mountain god, placed it on a rock upwind, and then grabbed a handful of snow to cover the bloodstains.

"Anything else?"

Lu Qingshan packed the filthy contents from the wild boar's belly into a snow pit some distance away. "We can't leave the blood trail near the den; wolves will follow the scent and chase us. Take what you can keep, and bury the rest far away."

The old man was finally satisfied and went to smoke.

Lu Qingshan carefully put away the pig liver. "Grandpa, I'll stir-fry some liver tips for you when we get back."

"What are you going to do with me?"

"Your legs are always sore, have something hot to eat."

"Your mother loves to eat it too."

"Then leave half for Mother."

"Xiulan brought you cornbread before dawn, so you should bring her some too."

Lu Qingshan replied, "I'll remember."

The old man glanced at him. "Are you really sure?"

"I've made up my mind."

"Don't rush into marriage just because you're in a moment of impulse. Life is long, you can't act on impulse."

"Sir, I didn't do it on impulse."

"What's that?"

Lu Qingshan threaded the rope through the wild boar's hind leg. "She's a good person. I've fallen for her. I was blind before."

The old man raised his hand to knock on him, but put it down halfway. "At least you said something sensible."

The two finished packing in no time. The old man wandered around, and Lu Qingshan didn't urge him; he hadn't forgotten the purpose of coming into the mountains.

Wild boars don't roam much in winter, and Lu Qingshan soon spotted a leather ring under the roots of an old pine tree.

Lu Qingshan's throat tightened, and his voice involuntarily became hoarse: "Master...look there!"

The old man followed his gaze, froze, stumbled over, and knelt in the snow.

He stretched out his calloused hands, trembling, and slowly brushed away the cold mud and snow.

Beneath the soil, the remains of a dog lay quietly.

"Kuroko...it's Kuroko..."

The old man's rough fingers stroked the broken dog skull, a few hot tears sliding down his cheeks. His voice was terribly hoarse, filled with endless longing and guilt:

"Old buddy... I'll take you home."

Lu Qingshan's eyes were red as he silently stepped forward and helped the old man pick up the scattered bones, along with the rusty bell, piece by piece.

"Come on, sir, let's take Hei Zi home!"

The two men didn't linger. They wiped the wild boar meat cavity with snow and then tied it tightly with rope. The over 300-pound load couldn't be carried whole, so they had to dismantle it, tying the head and four legs separately.

The old man slung a bundle of meat over his shoulder. "I'll carry this one."

Lu Qingshan reached out and snatched it away, saying, "You can just carry the gun and the pig liver."

"Do you think you're made of iron? Two hind legs plus half a carcass, that's at least 150 or 160 pounds."

"I can carry it."

"Even if you can carry it on your back, you're not allowed to show off."

Lu Qingshan simply hoisted both bundles onto his shoulders, tied the ends of the ropes to his chest, stood up, and took a few steps.

The snow sank up to his ankles, but he remained steady on his feet.

The old man's eyelids twitched. "What did you eat last night?"

"Corn porridge".

"Bullshit. Can corn porridge really produce that kind of energy?"

Lu Qingshan laughed and said, "My wife gave me corn porridge; it gives me energy."

The old man was amused and annoyed. "The banquet hasn't been held yet, so don't shout yet."

"Then I'll start practicing."

"Get lost."

Lu Qingshan didn't dare to show too much, so he slowed down his pace and waited for the old man and the two dogs to walk down the mountain together.