1940s: I supported my wife and sister-in-law by hunting.

My thoughts drifted for a moment, then were pulled back by the mountain road in front of me.

The sky grew darker and darker, and the sun began to set.

This desolate wilderness is not safe at night; there are green-skinned cats and wild boars in the mountains.

Liu Hongying was covered in sweat as she walked, watching the sky grow darker and darker.

He took two steps to catch up and reached out to grab Brother Gaoshan's sleeve.

"Brother Gaoshan, it's getting dark. Let's not go any further into the mountains. What if some thugs come down?"

"How about we stay overnight in this village and continue our journey when it gets light tomorrow?"

Chen Gaoshan glanced at the road ahead.

"Okay, then let's not travel at night. Let's find a family to stay with for the night."

The two of them followed the road forward, and just after turning a corner, they saw a little boy of about five or six years old squatting in front of the gate of a mud-brick house by the roadside.

The little child, with his thin arms and legs showing, was squatting at the door playing with a mud pot.

Chen Gaoshan casually pulled out a small piece of candy wrapped in paper from his pocket and stepped forward.

"Kid, are your parents at home?"

The little child heard the noise, raised his head, and stared at him with a bewildered expression.

"You called me, this is for me."

"Here you go, take it and eat it."

Chen Gaoshan casually handed over the candy. "We're traveling from out of town and we're tired. We were wondering if we could stay at your place for the night."

Upon hearing that there was candy, the little boy immediately threw down the mud pot he was holding, quickly wiped his hands haphazardly on his clothes, and took the candy.

He unwrapped the paper package, popped the candy into his mouth, and his little face immediately lit up with joy.

After finishing the candy, he didn't forget to put the wrapper in his pocket.

With a candy in his mouth, the little boy asked indistinctly.

"Your candy is so sweet! What does 'staying overnight' mean?"

"It means someone stays at your house for one night and leaves at dawn."

Upon hearing this, the little boy immediately understood. He blinked and blurted out the truth, making everyone's heart skip a beat.

"Oh, I see. Lots of people come to stay at my house at night, they all come down from the mountain. Are you from the mountain too?"

Chen Gaoshan frowned.

This village is full of ordinary farmers; where would so many people from the mountains come from to stay?

Ordinary hunters would go down the mountain to go to the market and buy things; they would never gather together to stay overnight.

There is only one possibility: this family is not an ordinary household at all, but a lookout post for the mountain bearded man in the village.

The bearded man doesn't eat the grass near his nest, nor does he rob his own village.

I almost fell headfirst into his beard.

Chen Gaoshan pretended that nothing was wrong.

"It's nothing, you can continue playing."

Without saying a word, he grabbed Liu Hongying next to him and turned to retreat out of the village.

The little boy was stunned when he saw the two turn and leave, and chased after them, shouting at the top of his lungs.

"Hey, why did you leave instead of staying with my parents?"

At that moment, a woman's voice came from the courtyard.

"Hey Gou Danzi, who are you chatting with?"

Little Gou Danzi stared at the two figures walking further and further away, then took out a candy wrapper from his pocket and licked it to taste.

"I don't know, they were just two people passing by."

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Liu Hongying was pulled along by him and ran a little, her short legs moving very fast.

Seeing the frightening look on Gao Shan's face, she didn't dare to ask any questions and obediently followed him as fast as she could.

The two walked for more than two miles until they could no longer see the houses in the village, at which point Chen Gaoshan slowed down.

He glanced back at the village.

"Brother Gaoshan, weren't those family members good people?"

"Whether it's a good or bad place, I don't know, but it's definitely not a peaceful or ordinary family. How could people from the mountains stay there every day? That's a lookout post for the bandits, a place for them to keep watch and find a place to stay."

"If we stay here tonight, we'll still be sound asleep when the people on the mountain come down in the middle of the night. How will we escape?"

Upon hearing this, Liu Hongying grabbed his arm in fright.

It was now completely dark.

"Brother Gaoshan, where are we going to stay tonight?"

Chen Gaoshan glanced around. He was a hunter by trade and was used to walking at night.

"Don't be afraid, I'm here, the wild beasts won't dare to come near."

He spotted a dilapidated temple, half-collapsed, in the ravine below. Most of the walls had collapsed, but at least it could block the wind.

"That's fine, we'll just make do here for the night."

He put the large willow basket on his back into the corner of the wall.

They gathered a bunch of branches and lit a fire.

He came out with his submachine gun in his hand, leaned against the earthen wall, and kept watch on the path leading into the mountains.

"You can sleep soundly. I'll wake you up immediately if there's any noise. Don't be afraid."

Liu Hongying's eyelids were already drooping, but she still managed to ask a question.

"Brother Gaoshan, is your back itchy again? Let me scratch it for you."

Before he could reply, her little hands were already on his back, scratching him—a daily routine.

Chen Gaoshan smirked, "Look at the benefits of being raised like this."

That means Yadanzi is obedient, does whatever you tell him to do, and is malleable; you can mold him however you want.

Liu Hongying fell asleep shortly afterward.

Chen Gaoshan opened his eyes, pondering the state of the world.

It's not that the two of them caused trouble; it's that trouble always seems to target strangers.

Although Eighth Master Grey had already cleared out the bearded bandits on the mountain before heading south, any gang that occupied a large mountain and had a lot of manpower was either wiped out in one fell swoop, or those who were willing to surrender were incorporated into the army and followed the main force to fight south.

But there were still a lot of people who slipped through the net.

Three to five people could get together, get a couple of homemade guns and old-fashioned rifles, and set up their own little gang, roaming around and robbing people on the road.

These sly foxes even learned the team's sixteen-character mantra.

When the enemy advances, we retreat; when the enemy stays, we hide; when the enemy captures us, we surrender; when the enemy retreats, we return.

As soon as the main force arrives, they immediately retreat to their village to hide, waiting until the others have left before coming out to cause trouble again.

There are many forests in the Northeast, and it's really hard to get rid of a beard in a short time.

He stayed up most of the night, holding the gun in his hand the whole time.

I stayed up until after 3 a.m., and around 4 a.m., the sun was about to rise.

Chen Gaoshan reached out and scattered the fire, then covered it tightly with soil.

"Hongying, wake up, it's dawn, let's keep going."

The little girl rubbed her eyes sleepily and sat up, her arms and legs aching and numb. She let out a long yawn.

"Understood, Brother Gaoshan."

With only forty miles left to go, getting home is the most important thing.

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