Chapter 77 She No Longer Wishes to Live

"What... what did you say?" Hua Qinci, shaken so much that she could hardly speak, stammered her words.

"It's nothing. Let's go home." Qin Youtian's eyes held a deep, lingering smile, his face flushed redder than ever. He no longer wished to pay any mind to the little spirit clinging to his back and buried his head, running wildly.

The night was deep and heavy with dew; the rain-soaked road was especially slippery, and the biting wind was bone-chillingly cold.

The nightingales, like ghosts and phantoms, cried endlessly in the darkness. Hua Qinci felt herself growing colder, sleepier, and more fatigued.

She curled up against Qin Youtian's broad back, shrouded in the shadowy night, with the calls of the nightingales echoing intermittently. Everything seemed to blur before her eyes—sights and sounds alike fading away.

In the middle of the night, chaos erupted in the Qin household of Creek Village.

Qin Mingyue wore an expression of utter dejection and sorrow, her face streaked with tears, unable to sit still, as if she had cried several times already.

Qin Youtian had never stayed overnight in the mountains while hunting. But tonight, even as midnight passed, he had not returned.

With the onset of night came a torrential downpour; they had expected that, however late, he would be home by midnight. Yet now it was the third watch, and neither Qin Youtian nor Hua Qinci could be found.

Qin Mingyue questioned everyone who had gone up the mountain, and all claimed not to have seen the two.

After the rain, the mountain was shrouded in thick fog. Qin Mingyue feared Qin Youtian had lost his way, or perhaps encountered the wolves and tigers that haunted Dove Mountain.

She could not live without her son; if Qin Youtian were lost, she would not wish to go on living either.

She called all the villagers to the Qin household, where everyone offered their opinions, one after another.

In the end, a reward was agreed upon, and several able-bodied young men were summoned, torches in hand, to climb the mountain in search.

Qin Mingyue wanted to go herself, but her health was poor—she struggled even with the climb during the day, let alone at night. She could only restrain her impulse and wait anxiously at home.

Liu Bingbing, too, was forbidden from joining, but her concern for Qin Youtian compelled her; carrying Shuimu Qianzi on her back, she quietly followed her brother Liu Qingyun.

Upon hearing Hua Qinci and Qin Youtian had yet to return from the mountain, Liu Qingyun moved as if his feet were greased, charging ahead of everyone.

Wei San'er, meanwhile, sat atop his own roof, watching the lights in Hua Qinci's home; learning she was still on the mountain, he too was among the first to rush forward.

Several other men from the village joined the search.

As a young woman among a group of men, Liu Bingbing was frightened, so she sought out Wei Dachun from the Wei family.

Wei Dachun was sturdy and robust, accustomed to farm work since childhood, often venturing into the mountains and fields.

It was said he'd once killed a wolf bare-handed.

Liu Bingbing was always persuasive; although Wei Zhen was initially unwilling to let his daughter go out so late at night, a few words from Liu Bingbing changed his mind. Moreover, Hua Qinci often treated the couple's illnesses without charging a fee.

Wei Dachun had a good rapport with Hua Qinci; since she began visiting their home, their three children had become more talkative and diligent about chores.

Wei Dachun had long wished to learn medicine from Hua Qinci, so upon hearing she had not returned, he hurriedly strapped Shuimu Qianzi to his back, grabbed a hoe, and prepared to head up the mountain.

With Liu Bingbing accompanying him, Wei Zhen felt more at ease.

"Cousin? Cousin's wife? Cousin? Cousin's wife?" Liu Bingbing called out as she moved forward.

Each of them carried a torch, braving the fierce, cold wind, forcing a bright glow onto the pitch-black mountain path.

The torches, battered by the wind, flickered ominously; from afar, they seemed like strings of ghostly flames rising from the underworld.

Wei Dachun shouted loudly as well: "Qinci, sister-in-law! Qinci, sister-in-law! Brother Qin! Brother Qin!"