The eastern side of Fengxia Mountain was so dangerous that very few villagers ever went there. Unlike Wang Cheng, they had not grown up on Fengxia Mountain and practically treated it as their own home.
In all of Shiquan County, aside from the old monk who had already passed away, Wang Cheng could probably be considered the only person who knew Fengxia Mountain inside and out.
Since Chu Yifeng wanted him to lead the way, Wang Cheng chose the easiest route to walk. It was the path he used most often. The trees were extremely dense, but he had left markers there in the past.
It was broad daylight and the weather was clear, with a dazzling golden sun hanging overhead, yet the thick canopy blocked the sunlight so completely that almost none of it reached the ground. The moment the two entered the forest, their surroundings abruptly darkened.
“Boss, hold my hand.” Worried Chu Yifeng would not adjust to the sudden darkness, Wang Cheng held out his hand.
Chu Yifeng stared at the hand extended toward him. Wang Cheng noticed nothing unusual and merely assumed his boss’s eyes had not yet adjusted to the light. Only a few seconds passed before Chu Yifeng reached out his right hand.
Wang Cheng’s hand was somewhat rough, especially the web between his thumb and forefinger, where the wear was most pronounced. Thick calluses covered the area, as though he had spent years constantly gripping something. Overall, it was an unremarkable, perfectly ordinary hand. That was Chu Yifeng’s assessment of Wang Cheng’s hand, unaware that the other man had also become momentarily distracted.
His boss’s hand was warm. Wang Cheng had always assumed that a wealthy man accustomed to comfort and privilege would naturally have smooth, delicate hands, but it turned out he had guessed wrong. The hand in his own was indeed long and elegant, yet the palm was covered in calluses just like his. Wang Cheng had to restrain himself from rubbing at them to see whether they were really there.
Still holding hands, the two finally reached a relatively level stretch of ground.
The leaves overhead remained dense, but they were noticeably thinner than along the path they had just taken. Mottled sunlight filtered through the gaps, making the surroundings much brighter.
“I found this place a long time ago. From here, you can see some of the plants nearby. Most of these trees are over a hundred years old, and some are several centuries old. This forest has remained relatively intact, and many of the species are rare, including Masson pines, Chinese sweetgums, trident maples, Burmese rosewood, and others. It would be a shame to dig them all up.”
Chu Yifeng gave no response. He walked to the edge of a rocky outcrop. The slope below was not particularly steep. Although the light remained somewhat dim, numerous tall trees were clearly visible, and the farther into the forest one looked, the thicker their trunks became.
“What did you just say?”
“I said I found this place…”
“The last two sentences.”
Wang Cheng thought about it. “Masson pines?”
“Keep going.”
“…Chinese sweetgums, trident maples, Burmese rosewood, and others. It would be a shame to dig them all up.”
“It would be a shame.”
“…” Wang Cheng felt this was highly unethical behavior. If his boss had wanted to say that, couldn’t he have simply responded when Wang Cheng first finished speaking? Instead, he made him repeat the whole thing and almost had Wang Cheng thinking he was being tested on his memory.
A sudden rustling sound came from overhead. It was not loud and could easily have been mistaken for leaves brushing together, but the forest was so quiet that both men noticed it immediately. They looked up just in time to see a small black shape tumble down and land at their feet with a plop. The little creature seemed to have twisted a leg. It struggled upright crookedly, only to stumble again.
“Stupid pig.” Wang Cheng crouched down and looked at the little creature in amusement.
“This is a pig?” Chu Yifeng watched as Wang Cheng picked it up. It was indeed a pig, only much smaller than an ordinary one, though otherwise it did not look particularly different.
“It’s a miniature pig, a wild one. I found it here half a year ago. Its temperament is way too wild. It loves running everywhere and it’s so agile you can’t even catch it. I have no idea how it managed to grow up like this. There are plenty of wild animals around here, so it’s lucky nothing ate it.” Wang Cheng smacked his lips. He had heard that this kind of pig was also called a fragrant pig and could even be roasted. Wild pork was always especially flavorful. The miniature pig struggled several times in his arms, and Wang Cheng patted its backside. Its leg was already hurt and it was still squirming around.
“You want to keep it?” Judging from the way Wang Cheng was holding it, Chu Yifeng could tell he planned to take the pig back with him.
“It’s injured. If I don’t take it back and bandage the wound, it probably won’t last long. But actually keeping it probably isn’t possible. Starting tomorrow, I’ll be working in the city, so I probably won’t come home very often. I won’t be able to look after the little thing, and my parents and little sister are all busy too… Hmm. It needs somewhere to recover as well.” By the end, Wang Cheng looked troubled. He had not thought that far ahead when he picked it up, but only now realized how big the problem was. Never mind raising it, he did not even have anywhere to let it recover.
“You’ve already found somewhere to stay?” Chu Yifeng abruptly asked something that seemed completely unrelated.
Wang Cheng understood what he meant. “My eldest brother has an apartment in the city. My parents want me to stay with him, but my brother doesn’t like small animals, so there’s no way this pig can come to the city with me.”
“Why don’t you rent an apartment yourself?”
“Having money doesn’t mean I should waste it. If I already have somewhere to live, why rent another place?” Wang Cheng knew Chu Yifeng was referring to the money from the sale. After selling Fengxia Mountain, his net worth had already surpassed both his Eldest Uncle and Second Uncle, but he did not want to spend that money on unnecessary things. More importantly, it was exactly as he had said. Unless his elder brother got a girlfriend someday, only then would Wang Cheng move out and rent a place of his own.
Now that they had acquired an extra pig, the two did not continue farther down the mountain. They simply turned around and retraced their steps.