Rebirth of Bayi Fishing and Hunting in the Northwest

In front of Li Long and the tractor was a cow.

The owner of the cow is called Sulitan, a man in his fifties. He is squatting beside the cow with a worried look on his face.

"This cow fell off the mountain. Sulitan originally planned to move to another pasture today," Bolati whispered. "At night, the pen was opened and the cows and sheep ran out. He searched for the whole morning and found most of the cows and sheep, but this one got frightened and fell off the mountain and died."

In fact, it was not completely dead yet. Li Long saw that the cow was still twitching occasionally, but it was not far from death.

According to their ethnic customs, animals that died accidentally cannot be eaten. But a cow is not a sheep. This large animal is much more valuable than a sheep. It is inevitable that the old man will be sad after losing this cow.

This is also the reason why people say "Even if you have a million dollars, the money you take out on others (with hair) doesn't count". There are too many accidents, and when you die, your money is worthless.

"Then can I buy this cow?" Li Long thought for a moment and said, "I can use money or exchange it for food." When he came here, his car was loaded with several bags of rice and flour, as well as some other supplies that herders often use and are in short supply. Once these supplies enter the summer pasture in the deep mountains, it is almost impossible to replenish them.

Actually, Bolati called Li Long over to let him get a bargain. Anyway, Sulitan definitely didn't want the cow anymore, so if Li Long wanted to take the cow away after Sulitan left, he could do it.

But Li Long couldn't do this, especially when he saw Sulitan was quite sad, so he thought that the cow was going to die anyway and the meat could be used, so if he wanted it, he could give the old man some compensation.

Sulitan did not understand Chinese, so Bolati translated for him. Bolati was quite surprised by Li Long's compensation, but he was also very happy after hearing it, and felt that he was right to make friends with Li Long.

After hearing what Bolati said, Sulitan turned his head and looked at Li Long, with a puzzled look on his face. He still didn't understand this. He had been herding in the mountains for many years and didn't know much about what was happening outside the mountains.

Bolati explained it again and pointed to the supplies in the tractor. Sulitan believed it was true. He stood up, his expression eased, looked at Li Long, then at the tractor, and then spoke.

"He said he only wanted a bag of rice and a bag of flour." Bolati smiled, "He said that if the cow died, it would be a complete loss. Now he can exchange it for something, he is very happy."

"Two bags of rice and two bags of noodles." Li Long felt that it was unfair to give such a big cow only one bag of rice and one bag of noodles.

Polati was a little surprised, but still translated it.

"Really? He said it's unnecessary."

"Then ask him if he can help me skin and gut the cow, so that I can give him two bags of rice and two bags of noodles, and I can give him some brick tea or something."

The deal was done, and Sulitan no longer had that sad expression on his face. He took out a knife and started to process the cow.

The cow is very big. Li Long guessed that an adult cow would weigh at least two hundred and fifty or two hundred and sixty kilograms. Even if the meat is produced, it would be more than one hundred kilograms, maybe even more.

Although animal husbandry in northern Xinjiang has always been quite developed, at this point in time, beef is not common in Ma County and Shicheng, and pork and mutton are the main meat. Beef is relatively expensive, and the herders' cattle are usually taken away by food factories to be given priority to some units, such as making canned beef, and shipped to the inland areas, and not much flows into the local market.

Therefore, beef is more expensive than pork and mutton at this time, and is considered a luxury meat in the eyes of the lower classes. Even herders may only slaughter a cow for food during the winter, and at most a sheep during festivals.

Bolati also came to help. Li Long did not do anything. He just moved the rice and flour to the board of the tractor bed to make it convenient to put the meat in the bed later.

Although the beef was still being processed, Li Long was already thinking about how to deal with the meat.

I don't plan to sell it. I'll keep one leg for the big yard, one leg for the stable, one leg for my father-in-law, and the rest of the meat will be kept mainly with my eldest brother. Daqiang also has to carry two kilograms over. Although the captain's presence is low, he still has to get two kilograms, right?
Of course, I have to give a few kilograms to Li Xiangqian from the supply and marketing cooperative, and Chen Hongjun also has to give a few kilograms. I also have to ask Zhong Guoqiang whether he wants any. Then when I return to the county, I have to ask Gu Xiaoxia whether she wants to send some to Director Wang.

With this point, there won't be much left.

In short, with such a cow, everyone can eat it and everyone is happy.

Sulitan and Bolati worked quickly. In less than an hour, the cow was skinned and gutted. The head, hooves, and other parts were placed aside. The contents of the stomach were taken out, and the feces in the stomach and intestines were squeezed out and placed on the cowhide. Li Long only brought a large basin, which could barely hold half of the internal organs - cow internal organs are not like sheep internal organs, they are really big! The rest of the internal organs were piled on the cowhide.

As for the meat, there was nothing to be done; it was all piled on the cowhide, which, when spread out, almost filled up the entire truck bed.

Sulitan smiled as he unloaded the rice and flour from the cart and tied it to his horse's back. Li Long gave the remaining supplies to Bolati. There were also sugar cubes, bricks, salt and other things. Bolati was also very happy and said with a smile:

"When something like this happened later, I still called you. I knew you were a good friend, and Sulitan was very happy too!"

All right, everyone is happy. All of Li Long's stuff costs less than a hundred yuan, but the price of beef is probably close to two yuan now. If you do the math, he still got a great deal.

But such things are hard to explain. If he hadn't come, Sulitan would have lost a cow in vain and gained nothing. At least now he has exchanged it for rice and flour. These four bags of rice and flour can allow his family to eat well for two months in the summer pasture.

Worth it.

Li Long drove the tractor to the wooden house, got a few urea bags and sacks, filled them with water, and covered the beef with them. The sun had risen, and the temperature had risen, so it was easier to attract insects, so it was better to cover it. He didn't have time to deal with the tripe and intestines, so he just took two more basins and put the internal organs in them. The lard alone filled a large basin, which was a good thing!
After packing up everything, he gathered the Fritillaria outside into a bag and put it in the car. Then he locked the door, carried his gun, drove the tractor and headed out of the mountain.

Li Long added water to the tractor on the way and took a rest, then they continued on their way to the county.

It was already lunchtime, and Li Long drove directly to the small courtyard south of the Wuyi Highway. Sister Yang and Gu Xiaoxia, who were eating in the courtyard, ran out immediately when they heard the sound of the tractor.

They were all very happy to see Li Long. When Li Long got off the car, Sister Yang hurriedly served him food. Li Long did not hesitate and told them what happened while eating.

"Put a beef leg here. Sister Yang, after you process the beef leg, braise some meat and then Xiaoxia will take it to the big yard. As for the bones, just cook them here and eat them." Li Long made the arrangements.

"Okay." Sister Yang naturally had no objection.

Li Long turned to Gu Xiaoxia and said:

"Xiaoxia, do you want to bring some meat to your Director Wang?"

Gu Xiaoxia hesitated for a moment and asked:

"Should I bring some for other leaders as well?"

"Take a look at it yourself. I suggest you just give some to Director Wang. Do it quietly. Of course, if you want to give some to other leaders, just make it a little public." Li Long was actually unsure. In this day and age, it seemed normal for him to give gifts to Li Xiangqian, but it was different for Gu Xiaoxia. He was unsure.

"Then I'll just send it to Director Wang." Gu Xiaoxia thought for a moment and said, "Wrap it tightly and bring it to work."

"That's fine. Just tell her that this is the meat I just brought back from the mountain. I just slaughtered it this morning."

Li Long told Gu Xiaoxia what had happened during the meal. Gu Xiaoxia knew a little about it. Sister Yang was very curious and couldn't understand why meat that had to be slaughtered could not be eaten?
After dinner, Li Long took out an ox leg from the trunk and handed it to Sister Yang. After more than half a year of contact, he found that Sister Yang was still trustworthy.

Then he took out another piece of meat and gave it to Gu Xiaoxia. Sister Yang found a clean cage cloth from the kitchen to wrap it up, and then wrapped it with newspaper. Gu Xiaoxia put it in her bag and rode away on her bike.

Li Long drove the tractor to the big yard, parked it, and then rode his bicycle to deliver meat to Chen Hongjun, Zhong Guoqiang and Li Xiangqian respectively.

"Beef!" Zhong Guoqiang was still willing to buy some. Li Long didn't give him much, so he planned to take it home to eat.

"I can give you some balance, but not much."

"I don't want much, just 20 to 30 kilograms will do." Zhong Guoqiang knew that Li Long had to take care of many people, so he stated his requirements, "Market price, two yuan per kilogram, how about that?"

"Okay, I'll drive the tractor over to you later."

Chen Hongjun received the meat from Li Long just after he started working. He was very happy and accepted it with a smile. He also asked Li Long how much Fritillaria he could get this year.

"About a few dozen kilograms. The rain has been good this year, so there are many people like this in the mountains." Li Long was quite trusting. He had already lost several kilograms.

Li Xiangqian was not surprised that Li Long came to deliver something. He pulled him aside to chat for a few words, mainly to ask him to be well prepared and not to be careless about the matter of making up the banner. Li Long agreed.

After delivering the meat, he rode his bicycle back to the compound, then drove out on his tractor to the big meat canteen, left 20 kilograms of meat, collected 40 yuan, and then drove the tractor back.

When they met the school after class on the way, Li Long took a careful look and saw Li Juan and Li Qiang walking together when they were almost at Team Three.

Hearing the sound of the tractor, the other children quickly hid to the sides. Li Juan and Li Qiang looked back first, and when they found that it was Li Long, they ran over with happy smiles.

Li Long asked them to sit on each side of the paddle board. Although it was dangerous, the car drove slowly and he kept reminding them to hold on to the seat rims, so they got home safely.

Li Qingxia and Tao Daqiang went to set up the nets, while Li Jianguo and Liang Yuemei were packing up tools in the yard.

Li Long drove the tractor directly into the yard. After turning off the engine, Li Jianguo asked, "Why are you back? Is everything alright in the mountains?"

"No, I got a cow back and I have to divide it up and process the meat."

"Niu? How did you get that thing? It's so big, you didn't buy it, did you?"

Li Jianguo understood Li Long and knew that he would not buy beef without a reason.

"A herdsman's cow fell down the mountain and was half dead. He didn't want to eat it, so I exchanged it for rice and flour." Li Long lifted the bag on the truck bed, revealing the beef underneath. The flies that were already attracting wasps must be dealt with as soon as possible.

"Then quickly get a basin, grab a board, and boil some water. We also need to light the stove outside." Li Jianguo took a look and immediately gave orders.

Liang Yuemei and Chen Lirong both moved.

"Brother, I want to borrow your car. I need to deliver a leg of beef to Xiaoxia's father and Uncle Luo at the stable."

"Okay, you can give it to me. When Dad and Daqiang come over later, let Daqiang take a piece of meat back with him. Daqiang has been catching fish and selling fish with Dad these days, and he has done a great job."

"I thought so too," said Li Long.

So he went to deliver the meat first. Uncle Luo actually heard the sound of the tractor, but when he saw that the tractor had not come here, he did not pay much attention. Li Long put down a cow leg, which also surprised him a little. Li Long then told him the origin of the cow leg.

"You're lucky." Uncle Luo smiled. "I'll cut the meat and cook it for you to eat when you come back."

"That's not necessary," Li Long said, "Just cook and eat. Once you are healthy, you can help me raise pigs and feed deer."

"Okay, okay." Uncle Luo was also happy to hear this. The old man fears most that he is useless. If he can work and have work to do and meat to eat, then he will be satisfied.

Li Long sent the remaining leg to Gu Boyuan's home. Gu Boyuan went to the field, so Li Long took the key under the flower pot on the windowsill to open the door, took the leg to the chopping board and started to cut the meat.

The neighbors across the street were not surprised to see Li Long, after all, he was one of their family members.

Li Long was halfway through carving the meat when Gu Boyuan came back. Seeing the bicycle in the yard, he knew that someone from the Li family was coming. Seeing that the door was open, he knew it was Li Long.

"Uncle Gu, I got a cow in the mountains. This cow leg was sent to me and I am now cutting the meat."

"Let me do it." Gu Boyuan was very happy to have beef. Since Li Long had a cow, it was no big deal to give him a cow leg. "How are you doing in the mountains?"

"It's very good. Except for the lack of electricity, we have everything. We receive Fritillaria every day. I also got some coal and other meat."

"That's good, but you still have to pay attention to safety. There should be a lot of vagrants in the mountains, right?"

"It's more than before. I even encountered a person who wanted to steal my things. Another migrant friend of mine caught him and sent him to the forestry team detention center."

"Well, you should bring your gun if you need it. There are also desperate people in the mountains. If you encounter danger, just shoot first. Whether you can hit them or not, just scare them first."

Li Long agreed honestly.

Before all the meat was cut, Li Long asked Gu Boyuan to go home. Gu Boyuan knew that he was busy, so he didn't keep any more meat.

When Li Long returned to his eldest brother's yard, his father Li Qingxia and Tao Daqiang had already returned and were helping to prepare the beef.

"Daqiang, you go back first. Take this piece of meat with you and stew it for dinner." Li Long looked at Tao Daqiang busying around and said with a smile, "Is your wife about to give birth?"

"No, no." Tao Daqiang said, "There are still three or four months."

"Well, that's something we have to pay attention to." Li Long said, "Go back and bring some meat and bones. They are all needed for replenishment."

Tao Daqiang nodded and went home carrying the meat and bones.

He really didn't need to be polite to Li Long.

Li Qingxia then asked:
"The herdsmen in the mountains, do they really not eat their animals if they die from falls?"

"I really don't want to eat it." Li Long explained to his father, "They have rules, just like we have rules, but the rules are different."

The aroma of meat wafted through the yard. After finishing their homework, Li Juan and Li Qiang ran around. Especially when they saw the huge beef bones, they were amazed. This thing was really huge!
The cowhide has been sorted, smeared with salt and hung out to dry. This big piece is the only one of its kind in this yard in all these years.

"Are you going back to the county today?" Li Jianguo asked while holding chopsticks by the pot.

The pot was boiling with beef bones, which were bubbling with the boiling water. Although three legs were sent out, there were still enough remaining bones to clean up. The head and hooves also had to be cleaned up slowly. An iron rod was stuck in the stove hole under the pot. Li Qingxia planned to burn the head and hooves with the red-hot iron rod after burning them, so that the hair roots in the skin could be burned cleanly.

At that time, there were no blowtorches or spray guns, so we could only use the most primitive methods.

After burning, you need to scrape it with a knife, and then burn it again after scraping, and it takes several times to clean it up. After that, you need to cook it, not just cook it until it is cooked, but mainly cook the head, separate the upper and lower jaws, and then clean up the dirt in the mouth and other parts.

After cleaning everything up, you need to braise or cook it, which is very troublesome.

But once it’s prepared properly, it tastes really good when braised.

These days, when there is meat to eat, no one complains about the trouble, only about the lack of meat. Even the laziest families in the village would not be afraid of the trouble if they had a cow's head or cow's hoof.

After all, everyone knows that this thing tastes good!

"I'll be back later." Li Long explained, "I have to go to the mountains tomorrow. These past two days, those migrant workers who were digging for Fritillaria came to me to exchange things. I thought I could stay for two more days to exchange more. In a few days, I have to lead people to the mountains to make poles."

"Then I'll go and deliver the beef to the captain," Li Jianguo said. "Wait until the meat is cooked and eat it before you leave."

"Okay." Li Long didn't act pretentiously. He had to eat the beef that he had obtained with great effort before leaving.

There is a lot of beef left at home, more than 100 kilograms. If we want to braise it, we will need two large pots and one large jar, which is enough to eat until the end of the year.

"Sister-in-law, we have to send some to Uncle Liang," Li Long said to Liang Yuemei, "We used to eat a lot of food sent by Uncle Liang."

"Okay, I'll ride my bike to deliver it there tomorrow." Liang Yuemei was also happy. She was very happy that her brother-in-law still remembered the kindness of her mother's family.

Chen Lirong listened and gradually understood why her husband kept talking about his brother-in-law after he came home a few years ago. This brother-in-law was very thorough in everything he did, no wonder he was so popular.

"Second sister-in-law, when the meat is stewed, you can take some back. There is stewed meat in the stable. But you cook for Xueqin and Xueping, they will still need it sooner or later." Li Long said again.

Chen Lirong nodded hurriedly.

Although her husband is not around, her uncle, sister-in-law, and brother-in-law all remember her and her children, and that is enough.

Li Qingxia had planned to have a couple of drinks with his older and younger sons in the evening, but when he learned that Li Long was going to drive a tractor back to the county town, he became a little disappointed.

But he also knew that Li Long was busy, otherwise how could he have such a good life?

Then let's prepare some more delicious food. He also planned to braise the bull's head and save some for Li Long to eat when he comes back. He can't just prepare a bull and have Li Long eat some meat and leave, right?

So when Li Long had eaten beef and was about to leave in the evening, Li Qingxia got a basin and filled it with a lot of cooked meat for him, and Li Jianguo also asked him to put more stomach and intestines in it.

"It's cold in the mountains and you're busy, so just prepare some cooked food, simmer it in oil, heat it up in a pan and you're ready to eat. How convenient!"

This was the truth, so Li Long accepted it.

When they left, there were two more pots in the tractor, one with cooked meat and the other with stewed meat, with a lot of other things added in them.

It's convenient after all. (End of this chapter)