The wild boar had charged at Qin Qingman with all its might. When she dodged, it couldn't stop itself and barreled down the slope, gaining speed. A moment later, she heard the heavy thud of the boar hitting the ground, followed by its enraged howls.

"Great, it's not dead. No idea if it's injured!"

Qin Qingman didn't dare waste time to check on the boar. Every second now was precious for escaping.

But she wasn't running blindly-she had a plan.

She quickly made her way back to the spot where she had been watching Zhu Hongxia and her group earlier. There, lying in the snow, were two flat wooden boards. These weren't just any boards-they were broken skis, which Qin Qingman had uncovered earlier while laughing at Zhu Hongxia's group.

The broken skis were left by some hunter, long discarded because the bindings for the boots had snapped. While Zhu Hongxia had been blundering around, Qin Qingman had been figuring out how to make them usable again.

Now, in this life-or-death situation, her earlier thoughts quickly took form. She removed the scarf from her neck.

Pulling out the knife hidden in her boot, Qin Qingman swiftly cut the scarf in half and used it to tightly bind her feet to the makeshift skis.

As she worked, she remained calm. Even though she could hear the boar approaching, her hands were steady, her focus unwavering.

Her composure under pressure bought her enough time to finish the task. When the boar finally appeared in her line of sight, both of her feet were securely strapped to the skis. But her escape plan was far from complete-she still needed one crucial thing.

Ski poles.

Without poles, she was like a car without an engine.

The boar, which had fallen off the three-meter-high ledge, was injured. Though the deep snow had cushioned its fall, its large size meant it wasn't unscathed. Its speed had slowed, but its rage had only grown stronger, making it even more dangerous.

The moment it spotted Qin Qingman, it let out a furious roar and charged at her once again. Fortunately, this time it was running uphill, and the injury slowed it down enough for Qin Qingman to react.

The knife in her hand was sharp-an essential tool for anyone venturing into the mountains.

She quickly hacked off two sturdy branches from a nearby tree. Cutting them took time, and removing the smaller twigs and leaves took even longer, but Qin Qingman didn't panic. She worked methodically, even as the boar closed in on her.

Just as the wild boar drew near, she managed to finish crafting two rough ski poles. With a firm push off the ground, she glided away.

The scarf-bound skis didn't carry her far, but they were much faster than running.

The sight of Qin Qingman escaping infuriated the boar even more, causing it to bellow in rage and continue the chase.

For the next five or six minutes, it was a relentless pursuit-Qin Qingman skiing ahead, the boar charging behind. Then, just as Qin Qingman was starting to slow, she saw Qin Xiang's group in the distance.

It appeared as though Qin Qingman was fleeing in desperation, her makeshift skis carrying her forward as the angry boar charged after her.

The boar, already in a frenzy from its injuries, didn't care who was in its way. As it tore past, it slammed into Qin Xiang and her two sisters-in-law, sending them tumbling into the snow with pained screams.

Fortunately, the boar's primary target was still Qin Qingman, so its collisions with the others weren't as forceful. Even so, Qin Xiang and the others were left groaning in the snow, their faces pale from the pain. They lay there, unable to move, when the rest of the village women led by Zheng Guihua arrived and witnessed the chaos.

"Boar... A wild boar! Director, what do we do?"

A-Yun Aunt trembled as she turned to Zheng Guihua, terror written all over her face.

It was horrifying-such a massive wild boar, and they had no weapons to defend themselves with. The thought of trying to help Qin Qingman seemed impossible.

The other villagers, who had rushed over after hearing the commotion, were equally terrified.

None of them had expected to encounter such a huge boar in this part of the woods. Without guns, they were too afraid to confront it.

"Director, maybe we should call Secretary Zheng and the others back. They have hunting rifles," Zhang Hongmei, the oldest of the women, suggested. Nearly sixty, she had more experience than anyone and knew that in situations like this, you needed backup.

Zheng Guihua's face was already creased with worry. "Secretary Zheng and the men left over an hour ago. I don't know how far they've gone, and there's no way to reach them now. Here's what we'll do-you check on the injured, and I'll blow the whistle to gather everyone and head back to the village."

"Alright, we'll check on them."

With the boar out of sight, Zhang Hongmei and the others no longer felt as afraid. They rushed over to Qin Xiang and the others who had been knocked over by the boar.

As for Qin Qingman, still being chased by the boar, they could only hope she managed to escape. Without rifles, there was nothing they could do to help.

Zheng Guihua blew her emergency whistle, the shrill sound piercing through the trees.

In the mountains, a whistle like that was a command-no matter what you were doing, you had to respond.

The sound carried far, reaching not only the other villagers but also Wei Ling, who was deep in the forest.

Although the whistle wasn't military, the urgency in its tone alerted him that something was wrong. Tugging on his horse's reins, he urged the animal forward, heading in the direction of the whistle.

Meanwhile, Qin Qingman was pushing herself to the limit, the cold wind stinging her skin as she skied through the trees.

Without her scarf, her neck and ears were exposed to the biting cold. The speed at which she was moving made it feel even colder.

It was so cold, in fact, that she feared she might get frostbite.

But survival came first. She couldn't worry about the cold right now.

Qin Qingman kept pushing herself, trying to put more distance between herself and the boar. If she could just keep going, eventually the boar would give up.

With that thought in mind, she continued, propelling herself with the ski poles.

Wei Ling, now on his horse, spotted Qin Qingman far ahead. He also saw the wild boar, which had been chasing her for quite some time. The boar's aggression had only increased, and its eyes were locked on Qin Qingman's back, determined to catch her.

This wasn't just a matter of rage-the boar's primal instincts had fully kicked in.

Although it was a massive, strong creature, its small eyes gleamed with an unsettling intelligence. The boar wasn't as dumb as it looked.

For Qin Qingman, the chase was becoming unbearable.

Her makeshift skis and poles had served her well so far, but they weren't going to last much longer. She could feel it.

Crack!

Just as the thought crossed her mind, one of her ski poles snapped in half, sending her tumbling to the ground.

"Snort, snort!"

The wild boar, seeing Qin Qingman fall, let out an excited grunt, charging at her with renewed vigor.

Lying in the snow, Qin Qingman barely had time to wipe the snow from her face before more snow was kicked up by the boar's furious charge. She looked up, her vision blurry from the snow, and gave a bitter smile.

She hadn't expected her story to end so soon after being thrown into this strange new world.

Her thoughts turned to little Chuchu, who was waiting for her back at home. The poor child was so young-without Qin Qingman's protection, how could he survive? She could only hope that Secretary Zheng would take care of him after she was gone.

Boom!

The sound of a heavy impact filled the air.

But the boar hadn't struck Qin Qingman.

Instead, it let out a deafening scream as its enormous body collapsed to the ground.

Through the melting snowflakes on her eyelashes, Qin Qingman saw a tall figure approaching her.

At first, the man's face was blurry, but as he drew closer, it became clearer and clearer until it was unmistakable.

It was Wei Ling-the man she had briefly met at the state-run restaurant in town.

Wei Ling's presence was commanding, his expression calm as he reached out a hand to Qin Qingman.

"Comrade, are you hurt?"

"N-no..."

Qin Qingman's gaze shifted from Wei Ling's face to his hand, which was covered in blood. She shivered instinctively.

Seeing her reaction, Wei Ling paused. He started to offer his other hand, but before he could, Qin Qingman reached up and grabbed the bloody one.

Her clean, delicate hand gripped his rough, blood-stained one-a sharp contrast.

As Wei Ling helped her to her feet, trouble was brewing back in Kaoshan village.

Chuchu, happily playing with the geese, heard a loud banging on the front gate. Qin Qingman had locked it before leaving, so whoever was outside had to knock forcefully.

Thinking his sister had returned, Chuchu excitedly opened the gate.

But standing outside were Qin Caiyun and her two brothers.

"Chuchu, open the gate!" Qin Jianming barked impatiently.

"Jianming-ge, what do you want? My sister isn't home. If you need something, wait until she gets back," Chuchu said, refusing to let them in. He could tell by Jianming's annoyed expression that they weren't here for anything good.

"Open the gate now! Stop talking so much nonsense!" Qin Jianjun snapped. He was already cold and irritated from standing in the freezing weather, his hands tucked into his sleeves for warmth.

Bang!

Chuchu's response was to slam the door shut in their faces.

Qin Caiyun: ... This kid is getting bold!