Chapter 71

When the man saw it was just a monkey, he let out a sigh of relief and put away his gun. Then he picked up the mango from the ground, shouted, and threw it at the monkey. The mango flew past the monkey's head, hit a branch, and shattered, splattering juice and pulp all over the monkey.

The monkey shrank back, looking very afraid, while the man laughed heartily, waved at the monkey, and the monkey let out a few "ji ji" sounds before quickly fleeing.

"Is anyone here? Is anyone here?" the man in the car called out again, but still received no response.

The other man walked a few steps to the hammock and saw a clay pot on a rack between two trees. He picked it up casually. The pot was not very large, and its mouth was covered with a ceramic bowl. It felt quite heavy, about five or six pounds.

The man shook it casually, and the contents inside clearly seemed to be some kind of liquid.

Seeing this, the man in the car hurriedly stopped him, "Don't touch other people's things."

The other man laughed dismissively, "Let's see what it is."

He casually removed the ceramic bowl, and a strong, fragrant aroma mixed with a faint alcohol scent immediately rushed out from the pot. The moment he smelled it, he was stunned and blurted out, "What a good wine!"

"Heaven! Is that wine?"

The fragrance was not particularly strong, but it spread far, seemingly coalescing into a tangible presence, transforming from an intangible scent into a concrete existence. It did not diminish or weaken with distance. Therefore, even though the man in the car was farther away, he still clearly smelled it, his face full of disbelief, and he exclaimed in surprise.

He walked over to the other man without thinking and said, "What kind of wine is this, so fragrant?"

The other man did not answer, lifted the pot, and poured a bowl into the ceramic bowl. The wine was amber in color, not very transparent, and clearly contained some other ingredients besides alcohol. Just by looking at it, it did not seem extraordinary.

But when it was poured out of the pot and exposed to the air, the fragrance became even stronger, intensely assaulting the nose and even the stomach.

Without hesitation, the other man, drawn by the even stronger fragrance, picked up the ceramic bowl and drank it in one gulp.

"How does it taste?" the man in the car asked urgently.

After drinking the bowl of wine, the other man seemed to be in a daze, not answering, even forgetting to breathe, standing still for a long time.

Seeing his eyes wide and his face flushed, the man in the car was startled and couldn't help but push him, "Hey! What's wrong with you?"

Pushed by him, the other man finally came to his senses, took a long breath, but his expression was indescribably excited, as if he had a thousand words to say but couldn't find the words. Then he remembered something, poured another bowl of wine from the pot, and handed it to the man in the car, inviting him to taste it.

The man in the car took the ceramic bowl hesitantly. He was much more cautious than the other man and not as impulsive. He first raised the bowl to his mouth and tasted a small sip.

But after that sip, he immediately became like the other man, eyes wide, and extremely excited. In an instant, he forgot everything and drank the remaining wine in one gulp. He closed his eyes and savored it, feeling as if countless warm currents had entered his body, spreading to every part, every limb, and every pore, making him feel comfortable and content. Every cell in his body seemed to be singing, responding to the unimaginable deliciousness.

"Another bowl."

The man in the car then handed the ceramic bowl to the other man and said. At this moment, his voice sounded like a dream, unreal, due to the intense stimulation of the wine.

Just then, a voice suddenly said, "Gentlemen, isn't it a bit inappropriate to take someone else's things without asking?"

Startled, the two men turned around and saw a man standing in the mango grove, bare-chested, wearing only a tattered pair of shorts, looking at them. A monkey that had left earlier was by his side.

The man's hair and beard were long, completely obscuring his face, making it impossible to tell if he was handsome or ugly. Only his black, bright eyes were visible, like stars shining in the night, seemingly able to see through one's soul.

The man's eyesight was incredibly sharp. When the two men met his gaze, they felt as if their eyes had been pressed, causing an indescribable pain.

This man was Xu Mo, and the monkey by his side was Mango.

A month ago, he discovered a red, unknown wild fruit that tasted a bit sour and was not particularly delicious. However, when fermented into wine, it had an excellent flavor. Adding some pre-prepared herbs gave it special effects, and long-term consumption could preserve one's youth and slow aging.

Xu Mo became very interested in this discovery. Therefore, in recent days, he had been sending his monkeys to search the mountains for that red fruit.

He had gone to the mountaintop to train his mind the day before yesterday and had not returned. When these two men arrived, only Mango was at home. After being scared away by the man, Mango immediately went to the mountaintop to find Xu Mo.

After gesturing for a long time, Xu Mo still didn't understand what Mango meant. When he returned, he saw the two men stealing his newly brewed red fruit wine.

Caught in the act, the man in the car was somewhat embarrassed, while the other man looked unconcerned, still holding the clay pot, showing no intention of putting it down. He said sarcastically, "It's just a jar of wine. If you want, tell us how much it costs, and we'll pay you."

The man in the car quickly stopped him from continuing and then said to Xu Mo, "Sorry, my friend is a bit straightforward. As for the wine, when we came over, we called out a few times, but no one answered, so we thought it was unowned and took it. How about this, you name a price, and we'll buy it."

Although he was apologizing, his face showed little remorse, indicating he wasn't very sincere.

"No need," Xu Mo waved his hand, not in a good mood, thinking to himself, "Unowned? Trying to fool me? If it's unowned, would it grow on trees?"

He had no good feelings towards these two men. However, having lived alone in the wilderness for over two years, with only a group of monkeys for company, he felt a deep sense of loneliness and isolation, despite their intelligence.

Now, seeing two live people, even though they were somewhat annoying, he didn't want to drive them away.

He approached them, waved them over to sit on the grass, and asked, "This place is rarely visited. What brings you two here?"

The man in the car replied, "I and Mr. Wei here are colleagues at the same company." He pointed to the other man.

Xu Mo looked at their uniforms and nodded, "I can see that."

The man in the car continued, "We are both salesmen. With the summer vacation, there's no business, so we decided to come to the mountains for a vacation and to escape the heat."

Xu Mo responded with an "Oh," not committing to anything, but his eyes inadvertently swept over their waists. With his sharp eyesight, he could see the outlines of the guns they had hidden.

The man in the car then introduced himself, "I'm Mr. Chu, as in Chu Suiliang."

He only gave his surname, not his name.

Xu Mo, hearing this, said, "Xu, as in Xu Yuhu."

He also did not reveal his name, partly because he didn't think these two were worth getting to know deeply, and partly because he had killed someone before leaving Huai City, fearing that the police might be looking for him. If he revealed his name and they recognized it, it could be problematic.

The man in the car said casually, "So, Mr. Xu." He looked at Xu Mo's hair and beard and asked, "How long have you been living here, Mr. Xu? Have you always lived here, or did you move here later?"

"I've always lived here," Xu Mo lied casually.

Mr. Wei, still holding the pot of red fruit wine, poured himself another bowl, drank it in one gulp, licked his lips, and exclaimed, "What a good wine!"

Xu Mo was extremely annoyed that he didn't even ask before drinking his wine, but seeing the guns at their waists, he guessed they were not good people and held back his anger.

Mr. Chu, noticing the tension, quickly changed the subject, saying to Xu Mo, "This wine is really good. Did you brew it yourself?"

Xu Mo casually replied, "I just tried brewing some wine to satisfy my craving in my free time."

Mr. Chu gave a thumbs up, "Impressive! Mr. Xu, I've traveled far and wide and seen all kinds of expensive wines, but none have matched the flavor of your homemade wine. In fact, before this, I never even dreamed that such an excellent wine could exist."

He paused, as if worried Xu Mo wouldn't believe him, and emphasized, "Really, Mr. Xu, your homemade wine is truly amazing. The taste... I simply... I can't even find the words to describe it. If you took it to the city, any so-called famous or expensive wine would be worthless compared to this, fit only to be poured down the drain."

At first, he was just trying to flatter Xu Mo and divert his attention. But as he recalled the taste of the wine he had just drunk, his praise became genuine. He became more and more excited, his face flushing with emotion.

It was no wonder he was so excited. In his homemade wine, Xu Mo pursued not only medicinal effects but also the ultimate in human taste. The taste produced under such precise control was far beyond any wine in the world.

Mr. Wei, hearing this, suddenly interjected, "Such excellent wine must have a recipe, right?"

Xu Mo's face changed, and Mr. Chu fell silent. The scene became so quiet that a pin could be heard dropping.