After that brief interlude, Frank joined the meal as an elder, and the log cabin became lively once more.

Everyone gathered around the dining table, chatting about whatever they pleased. The atmosphere was completely relaxed and casual.

After the meal, Zhang Kai and the others could only hang around the River Beach Camp in the afternoon due to their lack of proper gear. Feng Shan arranged for Yves to take them to the river beach for some target practice. After all, they had more than enough ammunition at the house, and it would expire if it just sat there.

Beside the log cabin’s fireplace, Feng Shan, Frank, Xiaohua, Hu Zi, and Black Hide sat chatting on the living room sofa. They recounted funny stories from their youth, and of course, some of the hardships they’d faced.

The warm fire danced in the hearth, casting a soft light and gentle heat that filled the space with a cozy and comfortable ambiance.

Frank listened with a smile, chiming in from time to time to share her own insights and experiences.

Gradually, Xiaohua, Hu Zi, and Black Hide grew accustomed to Frank’s presence.

"Hua’Er, have you considered immigrating?" Frank said suddenly, her gaze falling on Xiaohua’s slight baby bump. She then looked over at Hu Zi and Black Hide. "That goes for you two, as well. If you want to immigrate to Alaska, I can help. It would solve a lot of problems."

’Immigrate?’

The word felt incredibly foreign and distant to Xiaohua, Hu Zi, and Black Hide.

Feng Shan, who was sitting nearby, chimed in. "She means moving to the Crown Territory for good, not going back to China. You can see for yourselves—more and more tourists are going to be coming here. I can’t manage it all by myself. It would be a huge relief to have people I trust helping out."

’Move abroad to live.’

The three of them—Xiaohua, Hu Zi, and Black Hide—had never considered it.

Back in China, they often heard people talking about wanting to go abroad and how great life was in other countries.

’But what would we even do here?’

’We don’t speak the language, we’re not used to eating meat every day, and we wouldn’t even be able to find anyone to talk to.’

Seeing the hesitant looks on their faces, Feng Shan didn’t press the issue.

He understood their concerns; after all, leaving behind a familiar environment and way of life is no easy task.

"It’s okay. Frank was just being kind. Whatever you decide, I’ll support you."

Xiaohua gave Feng Shan a grateful look, feeling a little comforted.

Hu Zi and Black Hide also breathed a sigh of relief. They knew Brother Shan’s character; he would never force them to do something they didn’t want to do.

Sensing the atmosphere had become a little awkward, Feng Shan stood up from the sofa.

"Let’s not just sit around talking," he said. "I’ll take you to see the vegetable patch. I’m not bragging, but give a Chinese person a patch of dirt, and we can grow vegetables on it."

At this, the others chuckled, remembering how they had made a vegetable patch out of foam boxes on a rooftop in Hai City. They had grown more vegetables than they could possibly eat.

They headed outside. Frank said she was going back to her bus to rest, and after saying her goodbyes, she rode off on a snowmobile.

Feng Shan led his younger "siblings" on a leisurely stroll along the riverbank, and they arrived at the vegetable patch, talking and laughing all the way.

Tammy and Maria were in the patch, clearing away the moss that had cropped up. Under the influence of the Fire Seed, the moss’s already vigorous life force had been amplified. Just a few days after being cleared, it was sprouting up from the ground again.

"Khilla." Seeing Feng Shan, Tammy and Maria stood up and greeted him.

Ever since arriving in Alaska, Xiaohua, Hu Zi, and Black Hide had noticed that everyone called Feng Shan "Khilla." Xiaohua finally asked in a low voice, "Brother, why do they call you Khilla?"

"Khilla means ’Iron Brown Bear’ in the Indian language," Feng Shan explained with a grin. "They’re saying I’m as tough as a brown bear."

’As tough as a brown bear?’

The three of them nodded, though they didn’t fully grasp it. They couldn’t imagine how a person could be stronger than a bear.

"Look at the tomatoes and peppers I planted. What do you think? They’re already flowering. In a few more days, they’ll start bearing fruit." Feng Shan beckoned the trio into the vegetable patch, then squatted down and held up a tomato plant covered in small yellow flowers.

"They’re growing well, Brother," Black Hide said, seeing the plant covered in an abundance of tiny flowers. "But why aren’t you staking them? With this many flowers, you’re going to get a lot of fruit. The weight will snap the stems."

’Oh, right! I was planning to build supports, but I got busy and forgot.’

Feng Shan called Maria and Tammy over to explain what needed to be done.

The steps were simple.

You insert two stakes into the ground on either side of the tomato plant, crossing them at the top to form an A-frame. Then you tie them together at the apex. A horizontal stake is then placed between each frame, connecting them all to increase stability.

It wasn’t just the tomatoes that needed support; the eggplants, cucumbers, and yardlong beans did as well.

Unfortunately, Maria and Tammy couldn’t understand a word of it. They were fine with weeding, but this kind of gardening was clearly beyond them.

Hu Zi and Black Hide chuckled.

"Forget it, Brother. Where are the tools?" they said. "We’ve got nothing better to do. We’ll handle it. What do foreigners know about growing vegetables, anyway?"

"Exactly, let Hu Zi and Black Hide do it," Xiaohua chimed in.

Feng Shan gave a wry smile. It was the only way. He left Xiaohua to hang out in the vegetable patch and led the two men to the toolshed to pick out what they needed.

The last time the North Slope Petroleum Company’s construction crew was here, they’d left behind a lot of tools, which Feng Shan had gotten for a bargain.

Among them was a gas-powered circular saw for cutting lumber.

Once they had the tools, Feng Shan led them to the lumber pile.

"Brother, using such good wood for stakes? What a waste!" Hu Zi exclaimed. The lumber pile was full of logs, each over ten meters long and more than ten centimeters thick. Back in China, this would all be considered high-quality timber.

"A waste of what? Wood is the one thing I’m not short on around here. These thinner logs are just for firewood," Feng Shan said, casually picking out a ten-centimeter-thick larch log. "Come on, give me a hand. Let’s get this to the toolshed."

’Holy cow!’

Hu Zi and Black Hide exchanged a look, seeing the astonishment in each other’s eyes.

A log this big... if you cut down a tree like this back in China, you wouldn’t just be fined, you’d probably end up doing some time.

But here, at Brother Shan’s place, it was only good for firewood.

"What are you spacing out for? You two take the front. Think you can handle it?" Feng Shan said, positioned at the base of the log where it was heaviest.

"A man can never say he can’t."

Hu Zi and Black Hide said in unison. They walked to the front of the log, bent down, and heaved up the tip.

The three of them carried the log back to the toolshed and set it on the ground.

Feng Shan used a tape measure to mark the required lengths, then cut the log into several sections with a chainsaw.

"Brother, why didn’t you just cut it back at the lumber pile?" Hu Zi asked, shaking his aching arm. He didn’t understand the logic.

"I forgot!" Feng Shan rolled his eyes at him. He lifted a section of the log onto the workbench and started the gas-powered circular saw, which roared to life with a piercing whine.

As he fed the log into the blade, the outer layer was sliced away, revealing a flat surface. Then, he began to rip it into long strips.

Soon, he had a pile of wooden strips, each about two centimeters thick. A good amount of wood was wasted in the process, prompting Hu Zi and Black Hide to keep exclaiming what a waste it was.

Once the strips for the frames were ready, Feng Shan found some thin rope in the toolshed, and the three of them carried the wooden strips back to the vegetable patch.

They followed the procedure, driving the stakes into the ground next to the vegetable plants and securing them with rope. A proper-looking garden support system gradually took shape.

By the time they finished building the supports for the whole garden, the sky was growing dark again. The sky was now a deep shade of blue, slowly transitioning to black.

They had been too jet-lagged when they arrived yesterday to notice the changes between day and night in the Far North Tundra.

Now that they had recovered a bit, Xiaohua, Hu Zi, and Black Hide finally realized how different the Crown Territory was from home. Hu Zi pulled out his phone, glanced at it, and muttered.

"The sun doesn’t come up until 10 AM, and it’s already dark by 6 PM. What kind of life is this!"

Feng Shan laughed. "This is nothing. At least you can still see the sun. During the polar night, from mid-November to mid-January, there’s no sun at all for two months."

’Two months without any sun.’

’What in the world is a polar night?’

Having lived their whole lives in China, used to four distinct seasons and the daily rhythm of sunrise and sunset, the trio simply couldn’t comprehend the concept of two months without a sun.

"If there’s no sun, what do you do for two months?"

"What do you do? Eat, drink, and sleep," Feng Shan answered simply.

The three of them exchanged blank looks, unable to even imagine it.

Back in the log cabin, everyone who had gone out had returned. Feng Yang was showing off photos of the big fish he’d caught to Zhang Kai and the others.

A meter-long humpback salmon, a meter-long pike, plus Arctic grayling, freshwater cod, Arctic char...

Feng Yang had caught the fish, taken a picture, and then released them back into the lake, a gesture that made a very good impression on Feng Shan.

Zhang Kai’s group returned from the river beach, praising the snow-capped mountain scenery to no end. Su Ziweng even asked Feng Shan if they could climb one of the mountains.

Feng Shan flatly refused the request.

For one, he wasn’t at all familiar with the terrain of the nearby snowy mountains, and the camp had no mountaineering gear.

For another, he had no experience climbing snow-covered peaks himself. Mountaineering was no joke, and it was best not to attempt it without professional experience.

Seeing Su Ziweng’s disappointed expression, Feng Shan promised that he would hire a staff member with mountaineering experience. The next time they visited the Crown Territory, he would be able to fulfill his request.

The sky outside the window had turned an inky blue.

It was the Tundra’s way of telling the Crown Territory that night was about to take the stage.

Just then, the sound of a propeller echoed over the river beach. A moment later, a small Cub aircraft flew over the log cabin’s roof and descended toward the airstrip.

"That must be Tom!" Feng Shan said, sending Yves out on a snowmobile to meet him.

A short while later, Tom walked into the log cabin wearing a heavy fur coat. He saw the many unfamiliar faces and recognized them as Chinese tourists—people with pockets full of Franklins. He immediately broke into a wide grin and approached them, calling out a greeting in his mangled Chinese.

"Hi, hello! I’m your daddy, I’m your daddy!!"

Pfft!

Remembering what had happened the day before, Xiaohua couldn’t help but burst out laughing. Hu Zi and Black Hide let out incredibly awkward chuckles, their eyes darting toward the culprit.

Zhang Kai’s group looked completely bewildered.

’Who the hell is this guy?’

’Greeting people with "I’m your daddy, I’m your daddy!"’

"Brother Kai." Unable to watch any longer, Hu Zi went over to Zhang Kai and quickly explained the situation. It finally dawned on Su Ziweng and the others. They shot a look at Feng Shan, then swarmed Tom, patting him enthusiastically on the shoulder and replying in kind.

"I’m your daddy! I’m your daddy!"

"I’m your *real* daddy!"

"I’m your real daddy’s daddy!"

"Su Ziweng, you’re taking advantage of me!"

Seeing the Chinese tourists being so enthusiastic, Tom grinned from ear to ear.

After the introductions, Tom noticed Xiaohua, Hu Zi, and Black Hide standing next to Feng Shan and immediately remembered Yves telling him that Feng Shan’s younger "siblings" had arrived.

After saying hello, he immediately turned and walked out of the log cabin, returning a moment later with three fur coats in his arms.

Judging by the material, it didn’t look like reindeer or bear hide. The fur was thick and brownish-black, with long, fine, distinct hairs.

"A gift for you," Tom said, presenting the fur coats to the three of them.

"Brother!" Xiaohua looked helplessly at Feng Shan. ’Why does everyone here love to give gifts right after meeting someone?’

’Ever since yesterday, the members of the Crown Territory had been giving her little trinkets.’

’And Frank had given her a red envelope when they met. When she opened it in her room that night, she found 2,000 US Dollar inside.’

’2,000 US Dollar... that was over 10,000 RMB!’

’And now he was giving them fur coats.’

Feng Shan reached out and felt the fur. His eyes widened slightly.

’Well, I’ll be.’

’The old guy is seriously generous!’

...