Chapter 12: Getting Up at Night
The journey up the mountain, with stops and breaks, took a little over an hour. By the time they reached the house that Hunter Liu had built on the mountain, it was almost noon.
It was a wooden house built on a gentle slope, simple in appearance but equipped with the essentials. A small yard had been fenced off with uneven sticks. The two unlocked the gate and entered the yard.
There was no rush to unpack the items on the cart. It had been a while since anyone had been here, so the inside of the house was hardly warmer than the outside, with a thin layer of dust covering everything.
Erxi was tied at the gate, and Qiu Henian gave him a cotton mat to rest on. The dog, also tired, lay down to rest. Qiu Henian cleared the ashes from the stove, arranged new firewood, and started a fire.
Qingyan gathered up the old bedding from the heated bed, packed it away, and tidied up the clutter in the house. Old Liu had always lived here alone and wasn’t very diligent about cleaning.
When the water on the stove boiled and the buns were warmed up, they sat by the stove and ate the buns with hot water for lunch. Though simple, the buns were slightly browned on both sides and dipped in the spicy sauce given by Aunt Li. The combination of salty, spicy, and slightly sweet flavors was quite satisfying.
After the simple meal, the heated bed began to warm up, and the room gradually became more comfortable. Qiu Henian then unloaded the items from the cart, and they worked together to organize everything inside. Finally, they made the bed with their own bedding, completing the setup.
At this point, Qingyan looked cautiously towards the gate, opening and closing his mouth several times before finally saying, “Let’s bring Erxi inside. It’s too cold outside.”
Upon hearing this, Qiu Henian glanced at him, paused, and then responded, “Alright.”
Qingyan realized why the man had looked at him. He felt a bit regretful for having not spoken to him all morning. That remark had broken the ice.
When Erxi entered the house, he wagged his tail like a windmill in a strong breeze. Qiu Henian tied him in the farthest corner from the bed. Erxi lay down obediently, breathing heavily without a sound, a testament to his good temperament.
With everything settled, the couple washed up with hot water, took off their outer robes, and lay on the heated bed to rest for a while. Being young, they soon felt much better.
After resting, Qiu Henian retrieved several wire loops, preparing to go out. Since they had already spoken, there was no need to hold back. Besides, Qingyan had found it suffocating not to speak.
He followed Qiu Henian closely, curious about the loops, and asked, “What are these?”
Standing tall, Qiu Henian didn’t shy away, calmly explaining, “These are used to trap rabbits.”
Qingyan didn’t understand, so Qiu Henian looked at him and asked in a low voice, “Do you want to come along?”
Qingyan immediately brightened up, smiling and nodding vigorously.
The snow on the mountain was much thicker than below. Each step Qingyan took sank to his calves. He wore a fur hat and mittens, dressed lighter than when they had climbed up the mountain for ease of movement, and the activity soon warmed him up.
Qiu Henian also wore a fur hat and scarf, which covered most of his face and the scar spreading across half of it, leaving only his serene, lake-like eyes visible.
He walked steadily ahead of Qingyan, glancing back occasionally. He carried a bow and arrows on his back and an axe at his waist, in case of encountering non-hibernating wild animals. Fortunately, they didn’t have to go far to reach their destination.
Breathing heavily, Qingyan accepted the water bottle from Qiu Henian, sipping it slowly. His eyelids and cheeks were flushed from the cold, his lips a vivid red, glistening from the rapid breathing.
Once he had caught his breath, he asked, “Is this the place? It doesn’t look any different from other spots. How do you know rabbits will come here?”
Qiu Henian took back the water bottle and pointed to the tracks on the ground, “Those are rabbit tracks.”
Qingyan looked closely and saw a trail of footprints extending from the depths of the forest, disappearing into the dense woods ahead. Near the tracks were clusters of small black droppings.
“This trail is called a rabbit path. The rabbit follows the same route every time, so you just need to set the traps along it,” Qiu Henian explained.
Qingyan found it fascinating. Following Qiu Henian’s instructions, they identified several spots to set the traps, completing the task.
Next, they needed to remember the locations and check back in a few days to see if they had caught any rabbits.
The sun was already setting, and the woods darkened faster than the mountain. Without resting, they started the return journey immediately.
By the time they reached the small wooden house, it was almost completely dark.
For dinner, they heated some buns, stir-fried pork with chili peppers, and cooked a pot of egg soup. They ate a warm and satisfying meal. Erxi also enjoyed some soup with his meal.
Since there was no bathtub here, bathing was inconvenient. They just used hot water from a basin to wash up simply. Lying on the heated bed again, Qingyan still felt it was quite novel.
He had seen heated beds before but had never actually slept on one. The bed was much harder than a regular one, and although the mattress was thick, turning over could still be uncomfortable.
However, the advantage was that there were smoke channels beneath the bed connected to the stove. Lying on it felt warm and cozy, easing his bones and relieving his fatigue.
After the oil lamp was extinguished, the tall figure returned to lie beside him on the bed and said softly, “If you need to relieve yourself, don’t go outside. It’s cold out there. Just use the bucket on the floor.”
Qingyan responded with a soft “Mm,” snuggled a bit closer to the person beside him, and soon fell asleep.
He didn’t know how long he had slept when he woke up with a need to urinate. He had drunk a lot of egg soup at dinner, and now it was digested.
He carefully got up, trying to climb over the person beside him without waking him, but despite not touching him, the man stirred, woke up, grabbed his arm in the dark, and pulled him back under the covers.
“Hey, hey…!”
Qingyan whispered, mumbling, “I need to go to the bathroom, can’t hold it anymore.”
Qiu Henian didn’t let him leave the bed. Instead, he sat up, draped a piece of clothing over Qingyan’s shoulders, and got out of bed himself.
In the moonlight, Erxi, near the door, woke up at the noise, raising his head and looking over.
Qiu Henian picked up the bucket from the middle of the room, brought it back, and placed it by the edge of the bed.
He said, “The fire in the stove is out, it’s too cold. Don’t get out of bed, just use this.”
The wooden house didn’t block the wind as well as a brick house. While the heated bed still had residual warmth, the room air had cooled. Sitting on the bed’s edge, Qingyan felt a chill at his chest where his collar was loose.
But looking at the tall figure standing by and waiting, Qingyan felt like the man’s gaze was fixed on him.
He thought, how could he possibly go in this situation!
Spoiler for the Next Chapter:
The tie of his undergarments must have been loose, and because he was moving away, the opposite force caused his garment to open…
