After emerging from the tomb, Xu Muchan discovered that it was still daylight outside. It looked to be only around two or three in the afternoon.
However, when he glanced at the date on his phone, he discovered that it was already the second day since they had entered the tomb.
They had entered the tomb early the previous morning. In other words, they had spent more than a full day and night inside.
Xu Muchan had returned to the past because the yin residence and the yang residence of the Wei family had converged over the Black River, so it was understandable that he had not sensed the passage of time inside the tomb. But what had Wei Xilou been doing during all that time?
The several people who had previously been trapped inside the wooden tower, Liu Gaoming and the others, clearly had not gotten there on their own either.
Xu Muchan turned around and looked at him inquisitively. “Big Brother, what were you doing in the tomb for so long?”
Wei Xilou showed a thoughtful expression. Under Xu Muchan’s expectant gaze, he let out a long sigh. “What else could I do? A-Chan had disappeared, so naturally I had to look for A-Chan first.”
Xu Muchan: “……”
He turned his head away and stopped paying attention to Wei Xilou.
If he wasn’t going to say it, then forget it!
Wei Xilou smiled and rubbed his hair. He did not remind Xu Muchan that his hair had grown long again and needed cutting. Instead, he said, “The car will be here soon. It’s about four hours from here to Leigong Village.”
Xu Muchan nodded. The two of them packed their luggage simply. Once the car arrived, they set off for Leigong Village.
The mountain roads in Yundong were difficult to travel, so they were still using a Jeep this time. Xu Muchan rolled down the window and watched several other vehicles drive into the village. More than a dozen strong, muscular men jumped out of the cars.
Xu Muchan asked quietly, “Who are those people?”
Wei Xilou said, “People Old Man Wei contacted. They should be from the same security company as Liu Gaoming and the others. They’ll be responsible for clearing out and transporting the things from the underground vault afterward. There are also some matters in the tomb that need to be dealt with.”
The formation trapping the tributary of the Black River had already been broken by him. Once everything in the underground vault was transported out, this enormous tomb that the Wei family had built at some unknown time would forever sleep beneath the earth.
Listening to this, Xu Muchan always felt that this company was not exactly a legitimate one.
But seeing how unconcerned Wei Xilou was, and considering that the driver in front was probably also an employee of that company, Xu Muchan could only silently swallow his worries.
Four hours later, they arrived at Leigong Village.
Leigong Village was an extremely remote little village. It sat halfway up Guiyi Mountain, connected to the outside world by only one steep and winding concrete road. The concrete road had only been built within the past two years. Before that, there had only been a dirt road. Whenever it rained, the dirt road would fill with rainwater, and every step would sink into a muddy pit.
Now that the concrete road had been built, it was much easier to travel, but it was still somewhat difficult for a Jeep to make its way up the narrow, winding path.
Having the driver stop the car at the foot of the mountain, Xu Muchan said, “The road up the mountain isn’t suitable for cars. Let’s walk up ourselves.”
Wei Xilou had no objections. He picked up the luggage and walked up the mountain together with him.
By this time, it was already evening. The fiery sunset spread across the mountainside of Guiyi Mountain. With the mountainside as the dividing line, above it was a gradient of deep red, orange, and pink rays of sunset, while below it was a sea of forests turned brilliant gold by the evening glow.
A gust of wind swept past, and the forest sea rustled. Startled birds flew past the treetops, their crisp calls ringing through the air.
And Xu Muchan and Wei Xilou walked beneath the vast expanse of sunset light, passing through the golden forest.
All the luggage was in Wei Xilou’s hands, leaving Xu Muchan free and unburdened. He walked lightly ahead, occasionally turning around and walking backward to look at Wei Xilou, who was slowly following behind. His face was filled with joy and excitement.
Wei Xilou asked in confusion, “Does A-Chan really like this place?”
He had thought Xu Muchan would not particularly like this isolated and remote mountain village.
Xu Muchan shook his head, pressing his lips together in a smile. He did not tell Wei Xilou why he had insisted on coming back, or why returning here made him so happy.
This remote little mountain village had raised him, but it had also left him with many memories he did not want to recall.
Ever since elementary school, he had made a plan for himself to leave Guiyi Mountain.
Where he would take his middle-school entrance examination, where he would attend high school, where he would go to university, what major he would study… After graduating from university, if he had enough resources, he would pursue graduate school. But if money was tight, he would find a job first.
Preferably in a major city with a developed economy. Once he had saved enough money, he would buy a small house and settle down there.
He would never return to Yundong again, nor would he ever return to Leigong Village.
And in fact, Xu Muchan had indeed followed his plan step by step. He attended the ideal middle school and high school, his grades far ahead of everyone else at school. Eventually, he would also get into his ideal university and then settle down in some major city.
If he had not lost his eyesight and the Xu family had not come looking for him, perhaps it would have taken him a very, very long time to realize that after he had traveled very, very far away and looked back, the first thing that came to mind would actually be the crude, gloomy Mountain God Cave.
Xu Muchan turned around again and walked backward. The wind lifted the long hair hanging over his shoulders, and his eyes, reflecting the evening glow, were filled with a smile.
He did not tell Big Brother that he was not happy because he had returned to Leigong Village.
He was happy because he could walk home with him.
When he was very young, walking to and from school alone through the thin morning mist and the dim darkness of night, he had imagined countless times: If only Big Brother really were his brother, that would be wonderful.
Then perhaps he could be like the other children in the village—going to school together with his brother in the morning, and walking home together again in the evening.
This long, winding little road, where something eerie would occasionally spy on them from the shadows, perhaps would not feel quite so frightening anymore.
Xu Muchan smiled and said to Wei Xilou, “Big Brother, this is the first time I’ve realized that the scenery along this road is actually so beautiful.”
Wei Xilou looked at the smile spread across the corners of his eyes and brows and always felt that there was some deeper meaning behind those words. But since Xu Muchan did not want to say it, he could not guess it for the moment. He could only take the boy’s hand and pull him closer, not letting him walk too quickly or too far ahead. “If the scenery is beautiful, then take your time and walk slowly. We have plenty of time. There’s no need to hurry.”
Xu Muchan let him hold his hand and gently swung it once. “Mm.”
By the time the two of them reached Leigong Village, dusk had already spread across the sky.
Lights had come on throughout the village, and smoke rose from the chimneys of several houses. Some elderly people were sitting beneath the big tree at the village entrance, enjoying the cool air. When one of them saw Xu Muchan, he was so startled that he stood up and said incredulously, “The Mountain Lord is back!”
That shout was not quiet. In an instant, everyone in the village came running out, looking at Xu Muchan with unusual enthusiasm and calling out “Mountain Lord” again and again.
The so-called “Mountain Lord” was a local term in Leigong Village. Xu Muchan did not really understand its exact meaning either. In any case, ever since he had been sent to the Mountain God Cave, the villagers had always called him that.
Because they revered the Mountain God, the villagers also held a certain amount of awe toward Xu Muchan. Normally, they would not let the children in their families get too close to him. Whenever they saw Xu Muchan themselves, they would greet him from a distance by calling him “Mountain Lord” before avoiding him. But if Xu Muchan needed anything and went to the village chief, they would do their best to take care of it.
The two sides maintained a relationship that could barely be called harmonious.
But today, these villagers were obviously a little too enthusiastic. Xu Muchan vaguely felt as if they had been waiting all along for him to return.
The two sides could not exactly be called familiar with each other, so naturally there was no small talk. Xu Muchan nodded and greeted the villagers, then took Wei Xilou by the hand and walked through the eager-looking villagers toward the Mountain God Cave.
Along the way, he saw quite a few collapsed houses. They should have been destroyed by the mudslide back in April. Although the debris had been cleared away, because the owners of the houses had not returned, they had not been rebuilt, leaving the ruins to continue collapsing.
The population of Leigong Village was actually not large. The village was remote and transportation was inconvenient, so anyone with some ability had already moved to the towns or cities. The young people who remained had also gone out to work. Those left behind in the village were mostly elderly people who had no ability to make a living and were attached to their homeland, along with children left behind by their parents in their hometowns to be cared for by their grandparents.
Xu Muchan glanced over the houses that had been washed away and muttered, “That mudslide wasn’t particularly serious. I wonder whether the Mountain God Cave was affected. If the Mountain God Cave was also washed away, I guess we’ll have to sleep out in the wilderness tonight.”
Wei Xilou said, “It didn’t collapse.”
Xu Muchan said, “How do you know?”
Wei Xilou said, “A-Chan forgot? I’m the Mountain God of Guiyi Mountain.”
Xu Muchan suddenly realized it. He had almost forgotten about that fact. Smiling brightly, he said, “The villagers worship you every day, yet now that they’ve seen the real you, they can’t even recognize you.”
Wei Xilou smiled. “They worship the Mountain God who can protect and bless them. As for who this Mountain God actually is, they may not care.”
Xu Muchan felt that this indeed made sense. He nodded and was about to say something when he looked up and saw the large locust tree in front of the Mountain God Cave. He immediately forgot what he had wanted to say and happily exclaimed, “We’re here! The big locust tree is still fine. Looks like the house really wasn’t affected.”
Xu Muchan eagerly strode forward. He first touched the old locust tree by the entrance and greeted it, then pushed open the door and went inside.
There was quite a bit of dust in the mountains. Since no one had lived here for too long, as soon as the door opened, a choking cloud of dust rushed toward them.
Xu Muchan covered his nose and mouth as he slipped inside. Looking around, he said, “It’s fine. There’s just a lot of dust. Everything else is still the same as when I left. Looks like even though we weren’t here, no one came in and messed with anything.”
Wei Xilou looked around the tiny house, his brows deeply furrowed, and said, “We’re only staying one night.”
Seeing that he seemed to be complaining about it, Xu Muchan remembered that this man was quite particular nowadays and muttered quietly, “I lived here for more than ten years before and did just fine.”
Wei Xilou did not argue with him. He went into the kitchen, picked up a bucket, and said, “I’ll go get some water.”
There was thick dust everywhere in the small house. Without wiping it down, even staying for one night would be difficult.
Seeing him carrying the wooden bucket out, Xu Muchan poked his head out and asked, “Do you know where to get the water?”
Wei Xilou ignored him. Back when Xu Muchan used to go fetch water, he had gone along to watch him before. There was no need to mention such a small matter.
Xu Muchan saw him carrying a wooden bucket in each hand and already heading toward the little river behind the house. He quickly took off his sneakers, rolled up his pant legs, changed into slippers, and chased after him.
“Big Brother, wait for me!”
Wei Xilou, who had already walked quite a distance, stopped and stood among the weeds that reached his calves, turning back to look at him. Mosquitoes from early summer buzzed around him. His expensive shirt, dress pants, and leather shoes looked completely out of place in this primitive little mountain village.
For some reason, Xu Muchan suddenly could not help wanting to laugh. He tried hard to hold back his laughter as he reached into his pants pocket for his phone. “Wait, don’t move. Let me take a picture of you.”
He took out his phone, opened the camera, and took several pictures in succession.
Wei Xilou was obviously having a hard time with this primitive environment and began urging him. “Are you done yet?”
Xu Muchan was afraid he would leave without waiting for him. He said, “Okay, okay,” then grabbed his phone and hurried after him.
He flatteringly used his hand to shoo away the mosquitoes around Wei Xilou. “There are so many mosquitoes. There should still be mosquito coils and flower water at home, right?”
After thinking hard for a moment, Xu Muchan remembered that there should still be some that had not been used up, and only then did he relax.
The two of them chatted and laughed all the way to the little river. Wei Xilou was obviously not very skilled at fetching water, but he did not ask Xu Muchan, who was standing nearby taking pictures, for help. Relying on his tall stature and great strength, he carried a full bucket in each hand up the somewhat slippery riverbank.
Xu Muchan calmly watched him roll up his sleeves and carry the two large buckets of water forward. The buckets were filled too full, and as Wei Xilou walked, water sloshed out over the rims. His very expensive suit pants were already soaked over a small portion.
Wei Xilou’s brows were knitted tightly, but he did not say a word.
Behind him, Xu Muchan burst into laughter, holding up his phone to record him. When Wei Xilou turned around unhappily, Xu Muchan covered his mouth with his hand as if that could somehow hide his laughter, but the thick amusement still flowed uncontrollably from his eyes.
One carried the water while the other filmed. Laughing and fooling around, the two of them returned home, only to see several villagers peeking out from behind a tree some distance away, looking toward the Mountain God Cave.
Xu Muchan and Wei Xilou had come around from the side, which happened to be in the villagers’ blind spot, so the villagers could not see them. Xu Muchan immediately fell silent and gestured for Wei Xilou to stop. Frowning, he whispered, “I told you there was something strange about the village. What are they looking at?”
Wei Xilou listened for a moment, then relayed what several villagers were saying to Xu Muchan. “It seems something happened in the village. They think it was because you left the Mountain God Cave and angered the Mountain God, so they’re worried you’ll run away again. They want to keep you in the village.”
Xu Muchan found it inexplicable. “What strange thing happened in the village?”
Wei Xilou shook his head. “They didn’t mention it.”
Those few villagers watched from a distance for a while, but ultimately did not dare approach the Mountain God Cave recklessly. Besides, it had gotten dark, so they soon left.
Only then did Xu Muchan and Wei Xilou return. Fortunately, there was still electricity left from the bill they had paid previously, so the house had not been disconnected. Xu Muchan turned on the lights, and he and Wei Xilou cleaned the small house together.
Afterward, they fetched another round of water and took showers outside. Xu Muchan took the quilts out of the cabinet, shook and patted them, then spread clean sheets over the bed. He eagerly threw himself onto it and rolled around.
Back when the family had been too poor, they had slept on the same set of cotton sheets for many years. Even the color had already been washed away, but the fabric had become thin and soft, making it very comfortable against the skin. Later, after Xu Muchan went to Jiangcheng, the Xu family’s bedding sets were made of more expensive and beautiful fabrics, but Xu Muchan always felt that none of them were as comfortable as his old, faded bedding set.
After happily rolling around once on the small bed by himself, Xu Muchan rolled onto his back and came face-to-face with Wei Xilou’s gaze. Only then did he belatedly remember that there was still someone standing beside the bed.
Wei Xilou had just taken a shower. There was no hair dryer in the house, so after washing his hair, he had only roughly dried it with a towel. The ends of his hair hung damply, with cool droplets of water rolling down and making his brows and eyes look even darker and wetter, setting off the large expanse of pale skin exposed across his chest.
Xu Muchan abruptly sat up. Even his ears had turned red, and he did not know where to look. “Why don’t you wear my pajamas?”
Wei Xilou gave an “Mm,” still standing by the window like a statue, completely motionless, his eyes fixed on Xu Muchan.
Xu Muchan had just taken a cool shower himself and, feeling lazy, had not bothered putting on a shirt. He had eagerly thrown himself onto the bed wearing only a pair of shorts. Only now did he belatedly realize that there really was another person in the house, which made him feel a little embarrassed.
Strangely enough, they had lived together for so many years. Back then, when he took showers, Big Brother might even have been able to see him, yet he had never felt embarrassed about it.
But now, not only were Xu Muchan’s ears red, his heartbeat had also quickened a little. He burrowed into the wardrobe and rummaged around before hurriedly pulling out a short-sleeved shirt and putting it on. Then he found another set for Wei Xilou.
Wei Xilou took it and tried it on. “It’s too small.”
Xu Muchan glanced at Wei Xilou’s luggage bag. “You didn’t bring any other clothes?”
Wei Xilou said, “I only brought two sets. There’s another set I need to wear tomorrow.”
The other set had already gotten dirty when he went to fetch the water.
Xu Muchan could only compromise. “Then… then let’s just sleep like this.”
He slowly climbed to the inner side of the bed and lay down facing the wall. “The bed is a little small. We’ll just have to squeeze together.”
Wei Xilou gave another “Mm.” Then Xu Muchan felt the space beside him sink slightly. A body with an overwhelming sense of presence lay down next to him, almost skin-to-skin with him.
Xu Muchan edged closer to the wall, his whole body almost pressed against it.
Wei Xilou laughed softly, reached out, and pulled him toward himself. Then he turned him over.
“You’ve practically stuck yourself to the wall.”
When Xu Muchan turned over, he inevitably touched Wei Xilou’s body. His ears turned even redder, and he somewhat awkwardly arched his waist and moved backward, complaining softly, “It’s too close. It’s a little cramped.”
Wei Xilou said doubtfully, “I don’t think it’s cramped. I think it’s just the right size.”
He even began considering whether he should replace all the large beds in the Jiangcheng villa with beds like this.
Xu Muchan was speechless for a moment before closing his eyes and deciding to hurry up and sleep.
But Wei Xilou himself did not sleep, nor did he let him sleep. Xu Muchan felt a pair of cool fingers slip inside his collar. He suddenly opened his eyes, only to see Wei Xilou’s fingertips hooking onto a section of red cord—he had pulled out the Mountain God plaques from inside Xu Muchan’s clothes.
Seeing the two Mountain God plaques hanging from the red cord, Wei Xilou’s expression darkened slightly. “You got this one at the old Wei family residence?”
Xu Muchan of course knew which old Wei family residence he meant. For some reason, he inexplicably felt a little guilty and short of breath. He mumbled an “Mm” and secretly lifted his eyes to observe Wei Xilou’s expression. He asked tentatively, “Both of these should be used to invite you out, right?”
Wei Xilou released his hand and gave a disdainful scoff. He pressed a finger against Xu Muchan’s chin and lifted his face. “Other than me, who else would A-Chan want to invite?”
This posture was a little strange. Their faces were too close together. Xu Muchan leaned back a little and muttered softly, “Other than you, who else could I invite…”
Wei Xilou was barely satisfied with this answer. He pressed his palm against Xu Muchan’s back and pulled him into his arms a little more, saying, “Don’t move around. Go to sleep properly.”
Xu Muchan could only lean against his chest and sleep.
Perhaps because he was in such a good mood, even though he was sleeping on an extremely small and cramped bed, Xu Muchan slept very well that night. When he woke up in the morning, it was as if he had had a beautiful dream, with the corners of his lips still curved into a smile.
Wei Xilou was already no longer in bed. Xu Muchan stretched freely, then sat up groggily while hugging the blanket. He casually pushed open the window and glanced outside. The sunlight was a little dazzling. It was a beautiful, sunny day.
Xu Muchan hugged the blanket and stared blankly for a while. When he realized that he could not hear any movement outside, he yawned and got up, put on his slippers, and went outside to look for him.
He did not know where Wei Xilou had gone, but the bucket in the kitchen was already filled with water.
Xu Muchan scooped up some water to brush his teeth and wash his face. Just as he finished tidying himself up, Wei Xilou returned. Xu Muchan wiped the droplets of water from his face and asked him, “Where did you go?”
Wei Xilou said, “I went to the village. Someone in the village died.”
Xu Muchan’s hand paused. He hung the towel on the line, and his expression became serious. “What happened?”
Most of the people in the village were elderly or middle-aged people who had been left behind. Death was actually nothing unusual, but the fact that Wei Xilou put it this way meant that the person had not died a natural death.
Wei Xilou said, “The villagers called the police. The police want to ask us about the situation.”
Xu Muchan changed his clothes and went with him to the village chief’s house.
All the villagers had gathered in front of the village chief’s house, along with two police officers who were questioning them about what had happened.
According to the villagers, at around five in the morning, someone in the village had gotten up to work and discovered a person lying on the big tree at the entrance of the village. At first, they thought it was some mischievous child who had climbed the tree, but after getting closer, they discovered that the ground beneath the tree was covered in blood. The person on the tree had been hollowed out, their body spread out like a piece of cloth and hung from the branches, still dripping blood.
The first villager to discover it was an elderly man, who fainted on the spot from fright. By the time his family came looking for him and discovered the scene, they immediately called the police.
However, after the police arrived, the villagers’ explanations split into two factions.
The older villagers insisted that it was because the Mountain Lord had left and the Mountain God had become angry and sent down punishment. They insisted on having someone go and bring Xu Muchan back, perform a ritual to worship the Mountain God, and ask the Mountain God to calm his anger.
The somewhat younger middle-aged villagers were not as superstitious. They suspected that some wild animal had come down from the mountains and eaten someone.
The police officers obviously agreed more with the wild-animal theory. They first calmed down the agitated elderly villagers, then questioned the villagers one by one and recorded their statements. Xu Muchan, who arrived later, was naturally questioned as part of the routine as well.
When the police officer heard his name, he suddenly realized. “So it’s you. The person who came to pick you up last time came to our station to handle the paperwork.”
The matter of Xu Muchan being reunited with his biological family had made the hot searches after all. It was also a major piece of gossip in Yundong. The people at the nearby police station might not have personally seen Xu Muchan, but most of them had probably heard of him.
“Why did you suddenly come back?” the police officer casually asked.
Xu Muchan said, “It’s the Dragon Boat Festival holiday, so I came back to have a look.”
The police officer nodded. After finishing his questions according to procedure, he then quietly said to Xu Muchan, “If you don’t have anything urgent to take care of, you should hurry home and leave. There have been several cases of wild animals eating people around Guiyi Mountain recently, and the place where you’re staying is also very remote. I’m afraid it isn’t very safe.”
The police officer was only kindly warning him. Xu Muchan had indeed planned to leave that day anyway, so he thanked him. “Okay. We’ll leave today.”
Seeing that he was willing to listen, the police officer did not say anything more and went to help his colleague with the records.
But the elderly man who had just been calmed down and was resting nearby heard that Xu Muchan was going to leave and immediately became agitated again.
“The Mountain God is angry! You can’t leave! If you leave, something terrible will happen to our Leigong Village!”