Ch 12: My Wolf Husband

As the sound of trickling water reached his ears, Lin Shuishi followed Fuli out of the forest, and his view suddenly opened up.

The source of the thick, smoky mist he had seen earlier was finally revealed before his eyes, and Lin Shuishi was struck by the awe-inspiring power of nature!

Before him lay a series of interconnected hot springs, stretching across the landscape. There were four or five separate springs in sight, some calm and still, while others boiled and spouted water high into the air before it came crashing back down. The steam rising from the springs condensed into thick mist in the cold air, blanketing the entire mountainside. The vapor swirled and drifted with the wind, giving the place an ethereal, otherworldly feel.

Standing amidst it all, Lin Shuishi was rendered speechless, feeling as if the world around him had fallen into a tranquil silence.

Deer and small horses moved in and out of the mist, occasionally revealing a wolf or leopard. The animals showed no fear, for the predators did not hunt here. Instead, they lazed in the hot springs, soaking up the warmth of winter.

This warm, humid mountainside seemed to bring all life into harmonious coexistence.

The scalding spring water continuously bubbled up from underground, spreading outward until it finally converged into a steaming river that flowed down the mountainside and into the world below.

Lin Shuishi finally understood why, in the original body’s childhood memories, the rivers in the winter of Rehe village always emitted a slight warmth and never froze. Every household would go to the river to wash clothes and fetch water.

He had once thought this was a child’s imagination, but now he saw it was real. The boiling spring water flowed down from underground, retaining enough warmth even as it reached the village.

With warm water, the village’s climate would be milder. The distant village where the original body‘s uncle lived, without any hot springs, saw people freezing to death in winter. But in Rehe village, that would never happen; if it got too cold, one could always warm up in the river.

Fuli, carrying the hides, walked to the edge of a shallow hot spring and placed the items on the ground. Lin Shuishi snapped out of his reverie and crouched by the pool, dipping his hand in. The water was hot, pleasantly so.

When he turned back, Fuli was no longer where he had been. As Lin Shuishi anxiously looked around, a cold wind blew, parting the mist and clearing his view.

He saw Fuli soaking in an upstream hot spring, his black hair clinging wetly to his honey-colored back before disappearing into the water. There were several other wolves in the lower part of the pool, appearing older. They had instinctively given Fuli a wide berth, moving to the downstream area. No other animals approached that part of the hot spring, as if it were a space reserved exclusively for the wolves.

The distance from here to Fuli’s wolf den was quite significant, but it was clear that most of the wolves came to this area to bathe and drink. When Lin Shuishi thought about it, he realized that no wolves seemed to bathe in the hot springs near the den, and they rarely drank from them either. He found it puzzling since the springs near the den tasted much better than these sulfur springs—crisp, clear, and with a beautiful blue hue, incredibly clean.

As the wind blew, the steam rose again, obscuring his view. But knowing that Fuli was just upstream, he wasn’t afraid. He began soaking the hides and then gathered some wood from the nearby forest to build a fire, burning it down to ash for simple tanning.

However, the area around the hot springs was too damp, so he had to go into the forest to get the fire started. After working for a while, he carried the burned ashes back to the stone wall near the spring in an animal skin pouch, mixed them with water, and spread the mixture on the inside of the hides. Now, he just had to wait for the hides to cure before washing and softening them.

With nothing else to do for the moment, Lin Shuishi dipped his feet into the hot spring, letting the heat rise and turn his face red. Gazing into the clear, misty water, he finally had the leisure to take a good look at his new appearance.

His skin was fair, his eyes were bright and moist, and his eyebrows were like small willow leaves, giving him a very delicate and gentle appearance. As a “ger,” he had a red mole between his eyebrows, though it wasn’t very bright or noticeable. According to local beliefs, a pale birthmark meant poor fertility. Otherwise, the original body’s uncle would have sold him off as a male concubine long ago, and he wouldn’t have survived until now.

Lin Shuishi even felt a bit fortunate that he had been sold as a sacrifice to the wolves. Although life in the Eastern Mountains was precarious, the freedom and lack of constraints were worth it.

Moreover, he had been lucky enough to be found and saved by Fuli, allowing him to survive. But deep down, he still feared Fuli and didn’t know how to repay him.

As he thought about this, his mood darkened. Was he becoming someone else’s burden again? He had already been a burden to his family for 20 years and didn’t want to be a burden to anyone else, especially not to this person who might not even be entirely human.

As he was lost in thought, absentmindedly splashing his feet in the spring, there was a sudden “plop” sound, and a rock fell into the water, splashing his face and stinging his eyes with the sulfur-laden water.

Lin Shuishi quickly stood up, cautiously looking around. Suddenly, a wild monkey jumped out in front of him, baring its teeth to scare him. Seeing that Lin Shuishi wasn’t much of a threat, the monkey became even bolder, and when he wasn’t looking, it grabbed one of the hides and tossed it into the water.

At first, Lin Shuishi didn’t want to bother with a stone-throwing monkey, but when it started causing trouble, he became angry. The more he thought about it, the angrier he got! He realized that tolerating it only made the situation worse. So, he picked up a stone from the ground, ready to throw it back at the monkey.

But before the stone could leave his hand, Lin Shuishi awkwardly froze because a group of monkeys, big and small, had jumped down in front of him, chattering noisily.

“…”

Monkeys are omnivores, aggressive, and they hold grudges. Lin Shuishi had no choice but to swallow his frustration and cautiously take a step back. To his surprise, he backed into something hard and warm.

He let out a small “oof” as he collided with a solid chest. Turning around, he saw Fuli standing behind him, shirtless, revealing his strong, muscular arms. Steam rose from his body, and droplets of water slid from his brow, falling onto Lin Shuishi’s forehead as their eyes met.

Fuli glanced at the small face lifted towards his chest, then looked up at the monkeys. He spread his arms slightly, drawing his chest inward, revealing the sharp wolf-like teeth at the edge of his lips. A growl rumbled deep in his throat, a sound meant to intimidate, making him appear even more formidable.

The monkey troop immediately grew restless. The robust monkey leader stepped forward to confront Fuli, but under the piercing gaze of those golden eyes, it retreated. The monkeys quickly followed their leader, retreating into the forest and disappearing from sight.

At that moment, Lin Shuishi was enveloped in Fuli’s embrace. Before him were Fuli’s broad chest and arms, stretched wide to intimidate the monkeys, and in his ears was the fierce growling of a beast. His heart pounded wildly, and his cheeks felt as if they were being scorched by the steam rising from Fuli’s body.

But beyond the fear, he felt an overwhelming sense of safety. What place could be safer than in the embrace of this human-shaped beast king?

Fuli calmly watched the monkeys retreat. The other small animals nearby, sensing the confrontation, had already fled. He looked down, the wet strands of his hair brushing against his chest and tickling Lin Shuishi’s shoulder. As he gazed at the little creature nestled against his chest, Fuli felt an urge to bite the back of its neck.

But he restrained himself. The old hunter had spent five years teaching him to control these impulses, especially when dealing with “people.” When he detected the scent of fear, he was supposed to distance himself, although he had never actually had to practice this.

Yet, he didn’t smell fear this time—just a faint, sweet scent that was hard to identify, making it difficult for him to decide what to do.

Lin Shuishi suddenly realized the situation and quickly stepped back a few paces. Just as he was about to say something, Fuli pointed behind him. Lin Shuishi turned around, confused, only to see that the hides were about to sink!

Panicking, he quickly rolled up his pants and rushed to retrieve them, but the soaked hides were much heavier than he anticipated!

Seeing this, Fuli clicked his teeth, jumped into the hot spring, and scooped up both the hides and Lin Shuishi in one arm, carrying them back toward the wolves’ hot spring pool.

Lin Shuishi, held securely under Fuli’s strong arm, remained silent, only gently resting his hand on Fuli’s firm abdomen. He obediently let himself be placed into a warmer hot spring, where he relaxed and even quietly washed himself.

Both of their clothes were soaked, but while Fuli seemed unbothered by the cold, Lin Shuishi couldn’t afford to be so careless. He had no choice but to set up a fire to dry their clothes, even including Fuli’s somewhat stiff animal hide, which he started to tan as well.

Seeing Fuli’s simple and rough clothing, Lin Shuishi had an idea: why not sew a proper garment for him? But he didn’t have any needle and thread. As he pondered this, he noticed the wolves soaking downstream starting to shake off the water, preparing to return to their den.

Observing their fluffy coats and the tufts of fur they shed, he had another idea. Why not gather some of the wolf fur and spin it into yarn? He could knit a warm and close-fitting garment! One for Fuli, and one for himself!

Excited by this plan, Lin Shuishi felt a burst of energy and began to take in the scenery around him. The natural beauty of the area was breathtaking. Surrounded by vast, rugged mountains, the hot springs created a unique and enchanting landscape. He speculated that this place had once been a massive volcano, its underground magma still not fully cooled, causing the water to boil and create such a spectacular phenomenon.

As he explored, Lin Shuishi noticed some animals having a dispute near a rocky slope. Concerned about getting caught up in it, he moved closer to a stone wall to observe from a safe distance.

He soon realized it was a group of majestic black horses, their coats gleaming like silk, fighting over a piece of milky-white crystal rock. They were eagerly licking the crystalline stone, competing for access. Nearby, several cows and sheep were scattered around, also licking stones, accompanied by their young. It seemed as if the older animals were teaching the newborns where to find essential nutrients—a wisdom passed down through generations.

Lin Shuishi grew excited, suspecting what the shiny rocks might be. To confirm, he carefully approached a gazelle and picked up a small fragment of the rock from under its hooves.

The gazelle didn’t flee; the creatures of Dongshan had rarely encountered humans. Even though Fuli was around, they categorized him as a wolf. And Lin Shuishi, with his small stature and calm demeanor, posed no threat. To the herbivores, he seemed even less intimidating than a young calf or lamb.

Reassured by their indifference, Lin Shuishi licked the crystalline rock and smiled with satisfaction—it was salt. He realized that this discovery would help him survive even longer.