"Adasi, jakusi!" Hearing the noise, Jade Mountain River hurried out of the Winter Camp. He was delighted to see Harimu and Li Long, and came over to shake their hands and embrace them. "I'm so glad you could come! Come on, come inside."
"Jade Mountain River Eldest Older Brother, here are the things you asked me to bring." Li Long pointed at the supplies on the horse's back. "I also brought you a sack of rice and a sack of flour. Let's unload them first. Let me know if you need anything else later."
"Thank you so much!" Jade Mountain River exclaimed. "If you hadn't brought these things, we might have had a hard time in the days ahead. The snow is too deep!"
Jade Mountain River's daughter was adding fodder at the sheep pen, while his son kept the dogs from rushing over. The boy also looked curiously at Li Long.
When Li Long looked his way, the child lowered his head shyly.
The three grown men unloaded everything from the horse together and carried it into the Winter Camp, then sat on the wooden kang to drink milk tea.
Jade Mountain River's wife deftly mixed the milk tea-the kettle on the small stove provided a constant supply of hot tea. She only had to spoon some milk skin into a bowl and pour the tea over it, and a simple version of milk tea was ready.
Li Long took a deeply satisfying sip. Warmth spread from his stomach through his whole body, driving away the bitter chill.
"You're having Hand-Pulled Meat here today," Jade Mountain River said. "Li Long, I knew you'd come back. I'm a good judge of people. You're a friend worth having!"
There was nothing reserved about Jade Mountain River's words, and Li Long was