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Qin Fang and his companions set out from the city, driving into the mountains. Upon reaching the foot of the mountain, they could only disembark and proceed on foot. There was a public bus route into the mountains, but it only ran once every three days. They couldn't wait that long, so they chose to go by foot.

Qin Fang had originally planned to buy or rent an off-road vehicle. However, Auntie Song and Uncle Wen merely gave wry smiles and declined the suggestion, causing Qin Fang a slight frustration.

In Qin Fang's view, since there was a bus service into the mountains, even if the road was in terrible shape, the performance of an off-road vehicle should surely be much better than that rickety bus.

But only when actually walking on this road did Qin Fang truly grasp just how terrible it was—perhaps not even a Hummer would withstand it.

This could hardly be called a road; there wasn't a single intact spot on the ground, just fragments of rock—and not small ones at that, with many the size of a fist and very sharp edges.

The mountain path twisted and turned. Lush mountains lay ahead, and beside it might be a deep cliff. Walking on the narrow two-meter-wide path, they occasionally had to brush past ox carts and donkey carts...

With roads like this, it was pointless to drive any vehicle. A sharp rock could easily puncture a tire, and the whole car might plunge off a sheer cliff, leaving no trace of the dead.

Their destination lay deep in the mountains, hundreds of miles from the base. Walking speed would take more than a day, so they had to rest overnight in the mountains before continuing the journey to reach their destination on the second day.

The Wen Family Couple had no issues—Auntie Song grew up in the mountains, and although she had lived in the city for decades, she visited her hometown annually, making this part of the journey not too difficult for her. Uncle Wen was a policeman and a martial practitioner. He had once chased fugitives for hundreds of miles, so this rugged terrain was nothing to him.

There was no need to mention Qin Fang and Song Qingshan. For them, although the mountain paths were not entirely flat, it was almost similar. Their strong True Qi and enduring energy made the journey even easier than for the Wen Family Couple.

The only one truly suffering was Wen Yan, who had rarely ventured into the mountains since birth. Although active, the lengthy trek was a torment for her.

It wasn't that she was unwilling to enter the mountains, but rather that some of the local customs were quite inhumane. Auntie Song, coming from the mountains, did not want her daughter to be treated the same as the women there.

If it weren't for the fact that the elderly at home were in poor health and really wanted to see their granddaughter, she wouldn't have wanted Wen Yan to set foot in the mountains.

"Come on, I'll carry you on my back..."

Seeing Wen Yan struggle, Qin Fang couldn't help feeling distressed. He stopped and offered to carry her. After all, with such a long way to go, this was the only way to keep going.

"Okay!"

Wen Yan did not refuse and obediently nodded, promptly lying on Qin Fang's back, allowing him to carry her lithe form forward.

"Xiao Qin..."

Auntie Song watched this scene, opened her mouth as if to say something, but Uncle Wen beside her tugged on her clothes and shook his head, indicating that she should hold back her words.

"Auntie Song, what's the matter? Is there a problem?"

Although Uncle Wen had stopped her, Qin Fang's hearing was exceptional, and he inquired curiously.

"Sigh, in these mountains, women have a low status and men's authority is paramount. Carrying a woman like this... For now, carry her, but as soon as we're near any tribe, quickly let Wen Yan down, or else—someone might try to take her by force!"

Auntie Song said with a bitter smile, looking at her husband.

Clearly, the tribes deep in the mountains were backward and their thinking rigid. Some practices seemed utterly unreasonable to outsiders.

For example, carrying a woman on the back was not allowed by many tribes. If a man did so, he would lose all status within the tribe, and the woman would face severe punishment—sometimes so severe that she might be subjected to group humiliation by the tribe's men...

Of course, that was a long time ago, and things have slightly changed now.

In some tribes, men are allowed to carry women, but only if the man is the woman's father or brother. If seen by the tribe, it signifies that the woman is to be married, and the male members of the tribe can take her as a wife through bridal raiding...

If he's lucky, he'd take her as his primary wife; if not, she might end up as the Seventh or Eighth Concubine...

(Please note this is part of the plot, fabricated by the author for creative purposes and not to be taken as fact.)

So, when Auntie Song saw Qin Fang carrying Wen Yan, that's why she wanted to say something. Otherwise, why would Uncle Wen, Wen Yan's father, bear to watch his precious daughter suffer on the mountain path?

"Don't worry, Auntie Song; no one can take her away!"

Hearing Auntie Song's explanation, Qin Fang and Song Qingshan looked at each other and smiled, unconcerned. With their capabilities, unless the mountain tribes had Grandmaster-level Experts, no one could touch them.

Naturally, to reach the Grandmaster level one would usually be quite aged, well into their seventies or eighties, halfway into the grave—who would then bother to snatch a bride?

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