Is what you're learning correct?

Chapter 25 A Visit

On February 17, several cars were parked in Lihuashan New Village.

On a sunny and warm morning, a few NPC villagers occasionally peeked over and chatted amongst themselves.

Good cars are not unusual, but when the same car logo and the same model appear in this remote mountain corner on a day when there are no holidays or special occasions, they are quite eye-catching and create a strange sense of incongruity.

Then, an elderly man with white hair got off the car in front, followed by an old woman, then a young woman, and finally they formed a small group.

The young woman, wrapped in an oversized black down jacket, had a dignified appearance, but her meticulous makeup couldn't hide her weariness. She walked a few steps into the village and greeted each villager, speaking softly in a Mandarin that blended the charm of Yanchuan with a touch of the Jiangnan water towns: "Hello, hello, it's like this, I'd like to find Grandpa Lu, may I ask—"

"Ha!" The villagers exclaimed in unison, "Just as I thought!" and looked at the burly man in the thick fur coat—so muscular you couldn't tell if he was middle-aged or elderly—and said, "Let's go up the mountain, on foot!"

The young woman was initially startled by the man's loud voice, but then realized she had found the right person. Her expression relaxed, but sensing that his tone wasn't exactly friendly, she reached behind her back and waved her hand forcefully. When she brought it back, she had two packs of good cigarettes in her hand: "I understand, I understand, sincerity is key!"

Unexpectedly, the man in the thick fur coat refused the cigarette: "No, your car can't drive into the mountains. Just find a yard to park in, don't block people's doors or the road!"

The young woman hesitated for a moment, then quickly pushed the cigarette forward: "Uncle, we've come from far away and don't know anyone here. Could you please help us?"

Eighth Master glanced behind the young woman and frowned, "Can she still walk?"

The young woman's face darkened, and she bit her lip and shook her head.

Can you lie down in the tractor bed?

"I'm afraid...it's impossible..."

Eighth Master said, "Then you few won't be able to carry it up there."

The young woman knew their physical strength all too well, and she also understood that carrying someone uphill and simply walking along mountain paths were two completely different things, especially given the weather, the snow, and the wind. She forcefully shoved a cigarette into their hand: "Please, please, please help me think of a solution!"

Eighth Master turned around, his voice booming like thunder: "Hey you, Lu Yuan, take them inside to warm up. Xing Yuan, go and call a few idlers!"

"Hey, Eighth Master!"

"Alright!"

"Come with me, let's go inside. Don't turn off the car yet, cars coming from the south often don't start. Wow, no snow tires, you're really brave!"

In just ten or twenty minutes, Lu Xingyuan returned, followed by several short, stocky, but elderly men. They carried a wooden stretcher covered with a rough tarpaulin and several small disposable oxygen cylinders. They seemed quite experienced, clearly not the first time they had encountered such a situation.

"Do you guys have this thing?" Eighth Master asked. "Do we tie it up?"

The young woman quickly stood up: "No need, no need, Eighth Master, he's wearing a restraint garment underneath, and his legs are bound; he won't move around!"

"Okay, let's go then."

"good!"

Eighth Master directed a few people to move the person wearing the straitjacket from the car onto a stretcher. He picked up an extremely heavy fur coat and asked, "Do you have a sleeping bag? You can cover yourself with two more layers of this down jacket. People who can't move can't get cold."

"That's so professional! That's so skillful!" The young woman realized what the other person meant and quickly replied, "Yes! I have another down jacket! Jin Dong! Go find the clothes in the trunk!"

A man of similar age to the young woman responded and handed the down jacket to Eighth Master.

Eighth Master glanced at the situation and had someone lift the stretcher. He wrapped the stretcher and the person in a down jacket with the back facing up, zipped it up at the back, covered their face with the hood, and then covered them with a thick fur coat: "Give him oxygen. This thing is a bit too heavy. If he can't breathe, it'll be a disaster."

"Eh, eh!"

"You two with white hair, are you going up the mountain too?"

The elderly couple said in unison, "Let's go! We'll go too! We're perfectly healthy!"

Eighth Master glanced at the group of people, young and old, a few more times: "Put on what you can wear, take what you need, and throw the rest in the car. You won't be able to get out before dark, so take it easy, slow down, watch your step, and if your hands or feet go numb or hurt, or you get tired and can't keep up, just say so!"

The group of people looked at each other, all wearing hats, scarves, and glasses, and clearly no one could see anyone else's expression. After exchanging a few words, they all started packing their things, including four large suitcases.

Eighth Master was getting impatient: "Are you deaf? Can't you understand? I've told you, you can't lift these things. They're like the three pillars of a mountain. There's no need for you to go!"

After another round of trouble, the number of large suitcases was reduced to two.

"Let's go! You're so slow!"

So they huffed and puffed their way up the mountain. It might not have been as difficult as they had imagined. There was a path, and it wasn't narrow. However, the snow on the path hadn't been cleared much. Every few meters there was a sharp snow ridge, sometimes half a meter high, with a hardness comparable to a dried adobe brick.

"Give it to me."

A short, stocky middle-aged man who looked at least fifty years old reached out from behind. Wei Heng, who was in his twenties, blushed under his hat and scarf, let out a long sigh of embarrassment, and handed over the large suitcase.

"Thank you... thank you..."

"Yeah, don't take off your scarf and mask. The mountain wind is so cold, it's no joke if it blows your lungs out."

"Oh... thank you..."

In fact, Wei Heng didn't understand what "exploding lungs" meant, but he could roughly understand what the other person wanted to express. So he obediently gasped for breath under his scarf and mask, which were already soaked with moisture. The frost on his eyelashes and the ice on the outside of his scarf made him feel like he had gained several pounds. He couldn't open his mouth or his eyes.

"Uncle, how much further do we have?"

"We haven't even entered the mountains yet!"

"ah??"

After passing through a pine forest, Lu Xingyuan pointed ahead and said, "See that tower? It's right there, separated by three mountain ridges. The Long March has just begun!"

Wei Heng's legs started to cramp, and he almost remembered the fear of being dominated by Mount Tai in the distant past. What did it mean to climb for half a day and still not reach the ticket office? He looked back at his unreliable sister in despair, only to find her squatting there, happily studying the snow crust, having basically forgotten what he had come for.

Go ahead and play.

You'll be crying later.

When we entered the mountains, it was already bright daylight in the morning. We rested three times. The sun had almost crossed the mountains and was about to set, so no one spoke and we just mechanically kept going.

"arrive!"

Lu Xingyuan's words startled everyone, and they looked up sharply.

What came into view was a dilapidated stone village, half-buried by a torrent of boulders. The collapsed cliff was clearly visible, as if the entire mountaintop had been cleaved off with a single stroke, a complete mess. In the stone-enclosed courtyard, a large-antlered stag suddenly leaped out, almost jumping over two low stone walls and the road from one courtyard to the other, disappearing in the blink of an eye.

"Deer! Sika deer! Such a big sika deer!"

"Where...is this place...?"

"The place where Master lives, hmm, it is indeed different..."