The distance between the two was so close that Yuan Mu seemed to be able to feel the towering tip of his nose touching his cheek.
He tilted his head back and said, "Brother Leng, are you okay? I...I'm going to cook."
Yuan Mu covered his heart that was beating too fast, and the red color on his face could not go away.
He prepared the meal without thinking.
The man ate with gusto, and Yuan Mu narrowed his eyes happily. There was nothing happier than being recognized for the food he cooked seriously.
He picked up a piece of meat and put it in his mouth, and a strange sweet taste appeared on the tip of his tongue.
Yuan Mu quickly drank water to cover up the strange taste on his tongue.
"Brother Leng." Yuan Mu's expression was a little sarcastic. He was still laughing at the man's poor cooking skills just now, but he didn't expect that it would be his turn so soon.
"It's delicious, but today's meat is not good. I'll go get some other meat tomorrow, and it happens to be mine." After Leng Song finished speaking, he finished the braised pork in a few mouthfuls.
Yuan Mu opened his mouth, and there was a sense of joy deep in his heart, as well as an unknown feeling, a bit like feeling like a family member.
He hesitated for a moment and looked at the man expectantly, "Brother Leng, can I... call you brother."
Because of his nervousness, the young man spoke in a very low voice, and the last two words were so quiet that it was almost inaudible, but Leng Song captured these two words very accurately.
And chewed it slowly and savored it.
"Of course, then can I call you Mumu from now on?" He looked at the young man expectantly.
The young man shook his head, and then the tips of his ears turned redder, "You can call me Liuliu, this is my nickname."
"Liu Liu, it sounds good."
Leng Song kept chewing these two words and felt that the air he breathed became sweeter.
Seeing the man's sincere eyes,
"elder brother."
"Um."
"Brother~"
"Um."
The log was close to the man, feeling extremely lucky.
When he was in another world, due to illness, his parents basically never appeared in front of him except when they provided medical expenses to the hospital.
But now, he has his own brother, he and his brother live together, and he has his own family.
Thinking of this, Yuan Mu hummed softly.
The village has been very lively recently. Yuan Mu watched them walking around holding various things, some white and some red. These villagers seemed to be waiting for some ceremony.
Apart from the two strangers living by the river, there is another person recognized by the village as the source of the disaster.
*
Two days before the village ceremony started, Leng Song happened to leave the cabin by the river, saying he was going to find something.
The atmosphere in the village became more and more depressing day by day, and the villagers muttered words that could not be understood.
The logs were carefully guarded against each other, and they locked the door carefully every day, but to their surprise, they still failed to prevent it.
When he woke up, he was tied up and sitting in a rickety sedan, and people outside were singing loudly in a language that no one could understand.
The logs were tied tightly, and I could only squirm and try to untie myself.
The sounds outside the sedan suddenly stopped for an instant. Yuan Mu felt as if they had lowered the sedan and read a few more words that he didn't understand.
Then there was a sound of footsteps.
Everyone outside seemed to be gone.
Yuan Mu waited for a while, then moved and opened the car window to look out. It was dark all around.
He seemed to be the only one left in the vast forest.
The log squirmed, trying to find something to free his rope. Just as the log bit the hemp rope on his feet, the sedan curtain was suddenly opened.
It was pitch dark all around, and Yuan Mu couldn't see the man's face clearly.
He could only silently hold the thing in his hand and rub the rope away from his hand.
The tall man walked in, the hair all over Yuan Mu's body stood up, and he struggled to use words to delay time.
However, the other party remained unmoved. At the moment when the tall figure reached out his hand, Yuan Mu happened to loosen the rope for himself.
He held the thing in his hand and hit the man, then he held up his body and tried to run out.
"It's me." A familiar voice sounded in the darkness, the voice was hoarse and almost only breathy.
"Brother!" Yuan Mu stopped struggling, "Why are you here?"
"While collecting herbs, I was encountered by the villagers and had a fight with them. As a result, I alarmed the wild beasts in the forest, and I was chased here."
Yuan Mu felt a little strange. Before he could think about it, the man snorted and his body trembled violently.
"elder brother!"
"It's okay, I'm just sick. It hurts." He looked at the log hopefully, "Can I hug you?"
Yuan Mu hugged him without hesitation.
Yuan Mu felt the man's chiseled jaw rub against him, and the next second his hand was stuffed into Leng Song's clothes.
"Liu Liu, I feel so uncomfortable. It seems like it's not enough. Can you help me more?"
Chapter 49
When the man spoke, he lowered his eyes in embarrassment, as if he was ashamed of his request.
Yuan Mu felt a little soft-hearted. He moved his stiff legs and feet and wanted to go forward and hug him, but he was tied up with the rope for too long.
He moved, but his feet didn't obey him at all. At the same time, there was an unspeakable soreness and numbness that surged out. Yuan Mu couldn't help but stumbled, his body tilted, and he fell into the arms of Leng Song, who supported him in time.
"Are you okay?" Leng Song said with some self-blame while supporting him, "It's my fault. I forgot that you were tied up for too long."
Through the dim moonlight, Yuan Mu could clearly see the wrinkles between the man's eyebrows, as well as the undisguised concern for him in his eyes.
Perhaps it was because the environment in the forest was too dark, or perhaps the temperature at night was too low. Looking at the man's dark eyes, Yuan Mu suddenly thought of a terrifying beast.
The palm surrounding his wrist seemed to be filled with moisture. When the wrist was held, it was like being surrounded by a rope soaked in water.
The man's strength was not strong, but he held it tightly, as if he was afraid that the log would escape from his arms.
Yuan Mu struggled uncomfortably.
"Brother, I'm fine."
He whispered, trying to pull his wrist back, but suddenly thought of Leng Song's uncomfortable look just now.
He also felt that it was really inappropriate for him to alienate his brother who took the risk to save him because of an inexplicable association.
The tips of his ears turned red, and he hesitantly put the palm of his hand that had just been separated for half a minute back.
The wet palm made him feel a little unable to hold it for some reason. The man's body temperature was transmitted through the small piece of skin between the two of them, and the heat climbed up his arm until it stained his cheeks and the tips of his ears. red.
At this time, he was somewhat grateful that he was in a dark jungle and Leng Song couldn't see him.
The two stood in a stalemate for a while, their palms holding each other were sticky, and it was impossible to tell whose sweat it was.
It wasn't until a slight noise came from the grass nearby that the two of them seemed to have come to their senses.
Yuan Mu shook away the inexplicable thoughts in his mind, moved his still numb legs, and discussed with Leng Song in a low voice.
In any case, they would definitely not be able to return to the village, and Yuan Mu wanted to leave the mountain.
Leng Song seemed a little hesitant, as if he couldn't make up his mind.
He frowned and touched the young man's cold palm.
He directly tore off all the fabrics on the sedan, and then pushed the sedan into the river not far away.
Yuan Mu was helping the man with the movements. He didn't need Leng Song to explain. He could understand that this was to prevent the villagers from coming back to check again.
It was really dangerous to look for a place to live in the middle of the night. Fortunately, the two of them were lucky. There was a crack not far away where people could rest.
The location of the crack is good. You can see the place where the sedan chair was before, but it's not easy to find.
The two of them draped the sedan's fabric on the ground, and Leng Song sprinkled some powder that they carried with them to repel snakes, insects, rats, and ants.
Then he snuggled up and lay down in the cave.
There were a lot of things going on tonight, and Yuan Mu had just woken up, so he couldn't sleep.
"Why did they send me here? And they had to carry me here in a sedan chair."
He had no interaction with the villagers at all on weekdays, and he didn't quite understand the motives of those people doing this. He just felt confused.
"It should be for sacrifice. Every year, the village will learn a suitable person to sacrifice to the River God."
The man held him in his arms, his cold fingers greedily sticking to the young man's skin to capture the warmth from it. The distance between the two of them became closer and closer at some point.
Yuan Mu was almost completely wrapped up in his arms, and the degree of intimacy between the two might have gone beyond what he thought was brotherhood.