Rebirth of Bayi Fishing and Hunting in the Northwest

Li Long added oil and water in his eldest brother's yard, and then drove the tractor back to his own yard.

Although no one lives in the yard now, all kinds of vegetables have grown in the vegetable garden, and the chives are already edible. The yard is also cleaned up, and there is not a single weed on the ground.

Li Long opened the door and entered the house. Because the door and windows had not been opened for several days, there was a musty smell in the house. He opened the window to let in some air, sprinkled some water on the floor, and seeing that the sun was shining brightly outside, he took out a few quilts to dry them in the sun.

While I was drying the quilts, I heard voices outside the yard. When I turned around, I found that it was Tao Daqiang pushing a bicycle with luggage on the back seat, and Tao Jianshe following beside him.

"Uncle Tao and Daqiang are here." Li Long said as he arranged the quilt, "Put the luggage in the car, we'll leave soon."

In addition to the luggage, there were also tools. Tao Daqiang had been a porter last year and was very familiar with the situation there. Tao Jianshe had also done this before, so this time he brought not only sickles and short shovels, but also some dry food, pickles and other daily necessities.

"Brother Long, when are you leaving?"

"Five-thirty. It takes two hours to get to the mountain. We have to repair last year's winter shelter when we get there, otherwise it will be difficult to live in." Li Long said, "We can move in today and start working tomorrow. My eldest brother and Tietou's father have already started making the handlebars today."

"Having a tractor is more convenient." Tao Jianshe touched Li Long's tractor with envy, "I wonder when our family will be able to get one."

Li Long glanced at Tao Daqiang, then smiled and said to Tao Jianshe:
"It won't be long. Daqiang is fishing every day now, so he should have saved enough money by the end of the year, right? Then when the baby is born, we can buy a tractor. Hey, your family will have a wonderful life then."

Li Long knew that Tao Daqiang had always been targeting him. He bought a tractor, so Tao Daqiang naturally had the same goal in this regard. Now he works hard every day to make money. In addition to having children, he should also have such a goal.

"If I can't buy it this year, I'll have to wait until next year." Tao Daqiang said with a grin, "It's not that easy to buy."

"What are you buying?" Another person's voice came from outside. The three looked over and saw that it was Lao Huang and his son. He was carrying not only luggage, but also pots and other cooking utensils. Lao Huang's son was only fourteen or fifteen years old, and it was a bit difficult for him to carry those things. Li Qiang hurried over to take the things and put them in the car.

"What are you talking about buying?" Old Huang smiled, revealing his big yellow teeth.

Xiao Huang's name is Desheng. After putting down his things, he climbed onto the seat of the tractor, shook the steering wheel, and drove away imitating the sound of the tractor starting.

It is true that every child these days dreams of driving a tractor.

"Nothing." Tao Jianshe said hurriedly, "Did you bring all these things?"

"I brought everything. I'm just going to cook." Old Huang said with a smile, "Why not bring anything? I also brought a sickle. When I have free time, I can also make some money by carrying a few tools."

Li Long was a little surprised by Lao Huang's idea. Last year, Gu Boyuan was cooking, so he cooked for real. Today, Lao Huang wanted to do both, and he didn't know if it would affect the quality of the food.

But I think everyone should have no objection. After all, we are already in the mountains and it’s enough to fill our stomachs.

After chatting for a few more words, Huang Desheng was driven away by Lao Huang, who told him to go back to work. As soon as Huang Desheng left, Xu Feihu came over.

Xu Feihu looked at the people here and seemed a little shy. He smiled, greeted everyone one by one, then put his luggage on the bed of the truck and climbed up.

Let’s get a good seat first.

Lao Huang and Tao Jianshe both glanced at him, and Tao Jianshe turned to Daqiang:
"Aren't you going to cast the net? Don't stay here, go over there."

"Then Dad, take care of yourself when you get to the mountains." Tao Daqiang said this with a slightly red face, somewhat uncomfortable with this way of speaking.

"Hey, you don't even need to tell me that." Old Huang laughed at the side, "Your father is no longer a child."

Tao Daqiang said hello to Li Long and pushed his bicycle to the backyard. The nets were all picked up, but he couldn't go fishing with Li Qingxia every day. After all, there was work to do in the fields, and he couldn't just let his father do it alone. In the next month, he would only be able to go fishing less than half of the time, but even so, he would go whenever he had the chance. It didn't matter if he was a little tired, the money he got every day was real income, and every little more, he felt more at ease.

After Xu Feihu came, Xu Dejun came next, and then Jia Weiguo. Li Long hadn't seen Jia Weiguo for a few days. The last time he saw him was when he was collecting rabbits. Now he found that he had gained some weight. When he saw Li Long, Jia Weiguo smiled and didn't say hello to others. He put the luggage on the car and climbed up and sat in the corner.

"Okay, that should be it." Li Long looked at his watch. It was five minutes to half past five. He clapped his hands to attract the attention of the people who were chatting, and then said:
"Everyone, we are ready to go now. Let me tell you the situation first. I will drive the tractor to the county, buy some things and then go into the mountains. I estimate that we will arrive at the location around 7:30.

There are dugouts in Xiaobaiyanggou. You can pick one and fix it up, and live in it at night. My eldest brother and Tietou's father are already living there. If you have any questions at night, ask them. I shot a wild boar this morning and left half of the meat there. Brother Huang, you can take care of it and put it in the dishes for everyone to eat. "

When they heard that there was meat to eat, their eyes lit up. Except for Tao Jianshe, whose family conditions were relatively good in the team, the others were basically average. There were not many days in the summer when they could eat meat. So now there was half a wild boar, even if it was a little smaller, everyone would definitely be able to get some meat. At least a few kilograms, right? In this way, if we save a little, wouldn't we have meat every day?

"Hey, that's great!" Xu Dejun said with a smile, "Xiaolong, since you are so generous, we have to make up our own tricks!"

"The second thing I want to talk about is the quality of the handles. Brother Yundong will be there tomorrow, and he will tell everyone the requirements for weaving handles. The quality must be high, otherwise I will reject them when I inspect them. The poles cannot have burrs, the strips must be woven tightly, and the width and length must be sufficient. Let me be frank, I was able to get this year's job because the quality of the handles I submitted last year was good enough. The price of this job has increased, and everyone can make money if they weave well, and maybe there will be this job next year. If the weaving is not improved, I will be criticized when I submit it, and then everyone will not have a good ending."

Seeing the expressions of these people, Li Long waved his hand and asked them to get on the bus without waiting for their response. He then took the handle and started to crank the bus.

The rumbling sound of the tractor was heard. Li Long collected the quilts that were drying in the yard and put them into the house. After locking the door, he backed the tractor out of the yard, waved to his parents at the door of his eldest brother's house, and then drove towards the county town.

The wind blew up dust all the way, and the road was very loose. Although Li Long drove at the fifth gear, the wind from the tractor brought dust and enveloped the people on the back bucket. It felt like the monsters in Journey to the West were running fast with the wind. When we got to the county road in the countryside, it was a gravel road, and there was not so much dirt, which was better.

The people on the cart kept spitting out the dirt in their mouths, blowing their noses, looking at each other, and then bursting into laughter. They looked like terracotta warriors, as if they had just emerged from the earth.

Wiping the dust off their faces with clothes, the new experience made them cheerful. They talked loudly in the sound of the tractor engine, looking forward to how much money they could earn every day, and thinking about what they would buy with the money.

Almost everyone set their sights on bicycles.

I don’t want to buy a tractor for the time being, and I can’t think of this thing either, but I should still be able to buy a bicycle, right?
After half an hour's drive to the county town, Li Long went to the grain and oil store and bought a basket of cooking oil for them to use for cooking. He also asked them to buy some red tofu, and he also bought a jar for the public use.

It didn't take too long to buy things. Li Long drove the tractor and took everyone into the mountains.

Although he was supposed to arrive before 7:30, Li Long was driving at the fastest speed, gear 5, all the way, so he arrived at Xiaobaiyanggou around 7 o'clock.

As soon as we entered the mountain, everyone's curiosity was aroused. Most of these people had not been here last year, so everything was new to them. Tao Jianshe and Lao Huang had been here before, but now the scenery had changed a little, so they also looked around with great curiosity.

"The tractor is still better." Tao Jianshe said at last, "It's much faster than a horse-drawn carriage. When we first came here, it took us half a day to ride in a horse-drawn carriage, and our waists ached. Now it's better, we arrived in less than two hours. With this tractor, who would want to use a horse-drawn carriage in the future?"

"You need money to buy it." Xu Feihu smiled, "This big thing is not cheap, only Li Long can afford it." Tao Jianshe didn't say anything, but his expression was complicated. He thought about the previous conversation between his son and Li Long. Could it be that next year, his family could really have a tractor?

A year ago, I would never have dreamed of doing this!

Li Jianguo and Lu Yingming had already formed two groups of people and stood beside the dugout. When they saw the tractor coming, they stopped what they were doing and stood up.

Li Long parked the tractor at the edge of the digout area. The two members of the Xu family jumped off without waiting for the engine to be turned off, ran over with their luggage and started picking out the digouts.

Old Huang and Tao Jianshe were not in a hurry. Anyway, there was no difference between these dugouts, or the difference was not big, so they had no problem choosing. After they got the things down, they said hello to Li Jianguo and Lu Yingming and went to cut branches.

"Whose dugout is this? Xiaolong, is this yours?" Xu Feihu asked as he saw three dugouts where people were living.

"A friend of mine, a migrant worker, digs Fritillaria and also lives here." Li Long took a look and said.

"Digging Fritillaria? How much can you make in a day?" Xu Feihu's eyes lit up and asked, "Is it more profitable than weaving a band?"

"He knows the forestry team, so you won't be caught if you dig for Fritillaria. If you go dig, I can't save you if you get caught." Li Long said, "Since you're here, you'd better behave yourself."

Although Xu Feihu was somewhat dissatisfied with Li Long's words, he thought about what Xu Chengjun said when he came here, and finally nodded.

Speak of the devil, and he will appear. When several people were digging a hole in the ground, Sun Jiaqiang came out of the woods carrying a bag. When he saw Li Long, he smiled and waved at him.

"We have a good harvest today." Li Long said with a smile, "This bag must be six or seven kilograms, right?"

"Well, I found a nest." Sun Jiaqiang also said with a smile, "You are here just in time. I didn't have time to pick up the grass when I dug these, so they are a bit dirty. Please weigh them less for me."

"Okay." Li Long took the bag of mother-of-pearl from Sun Jiaqiang, weighed it and said, "It's more than six kilograms. I'll charge you nineteen yuan."

"No, just give me eighteen." Sun Jiaqiang said with a smile, "One dollar is my protection fee. Your people are forming a group here, I don't think the forestry team will come here."

Li Long smiled. This was the truth. He suddenly thought of something. After giving the money to Sun Jiaqiang, he walked to his eldest brother Li Jianguo, took out a piece of paper from his pocket and said:

"Brother, this is the certificate I got from the supply and marketing cooperative. When someone comes to check, you can show it to them."

"Okay, my hands are dirty, you put them in my jacket pocket." Li Jianguo said. His hands were stained with blackened willow branches, and he was weaving them methodically. It looked like he could weave at least three today.

There are a lot of things to prepare on the first day, so if there is less, there will definitely be more later.

Putting the note into Li Jianguo's pocket, Li Long turned back to put the Fritillaria in the car. Seeing that everyone else was busy making their own winter nests, he stopped disturbing them and pointed to Old Huang to Sun Jiaqiang, saying:
"He is the chef this time. If you want to join, go find him. It depends on whether you give Fritillaria or money."

Sun Jiaqiang excitedly went to find Lao Huang after hearing this. Lao Huang was cutting the strips, and Sun Jiaqiang helped to clean them up. After a few words, Lao Huang nodded. Li Long thought Sun Jiaqiang was a community hero, very outgoing, and could get along with everyone very quickly. He was a great guy.

After finishing the work here, he said goodbye to the others, put down the cooking oil, red tofu and other things, and drove the tractor to the wooden house.

When he arrived at the wooden house, he found footprints and horse hoof prints nearby, which meant someone must have come to look for him. He checked the door lock and found it was OK, so he opened the door, took a basin from inside, put the Fritillaria he had received from Sun Jiaqiang into the basin, rinsed it with water, washed off the sand and leaves, and spread it on the table to dry.

The fire in the stove had gone out, so Li Long lit a fire. He was not going to light the stove outside. After he set up the stove, he boiled water on it. After the stove below turned red, he stuffed a cold steamed bun into it.

Dinner is easy to solve. Just bake two steamed buns and put a piece of red tofu in them.

After a simple dinner, it was already dark. Li Long went outside to collect the Fritillaria and put them in a large basin, ready to dry them out in the sun tomorrow.

He planned not to hunt in the next few days, but to dry the Fritillaria every day and wait for the harvest. Then he would go to Xiaobaiyanggou in the afternoon to check the braided handles there and then bring them back. This would also save the trouble of checking the final number.

After locking the door, turning on the stove, and blowing out the oil lamp, Li Long went to bed.

At this time, Li Zhongtang and Li Zhongting were panting and rushing into the mountains. It was getting dark. They had walked all the way here, carrying some purchased things on their backs. As they were about to enter the mountains, Li Zhongtang didn't want to go any further. After entering the mountains, they were still several kilometers away from their hiding place. If they really encountered a group of wolves, they might not be able to deal with them.

In the afternoon, after Sister Yang finished selling food on the cart, the two brothers sold less than two kilograms of Fritillaria. They regretted it so much.

When Sister Yang said she was going to buy their Fritillaria, they both almost cried. So they just paid 3.5 yuan without even talking about it. After receiving the money, the two put the bag in Sister Yang's car, and were afraid that Sister Yang would regret it, so they quickly took the money and left.

The two of them weighed more than 30 kilograms but less than 40 kilograms of Fritillaria. Sister Yang borrowed a scale from the side and weighed them, and gave them 121 yuan. The booth fee was paid by Li Zhengtang, so the 121 yuan was 61 yuan for Li Zhengtang and 60 yuan for Li Zhengting. The two of them didn't clearly divide it.

With the money, the two bought baskets, snacks, and food in the market, and went to the department store to buy clothes, salt and other daily necessities. Seeing that there were still two or three hours before sunset, the two discussed and prepared to go into the mountains.

If we can go into the mountain today, even if we only go to the edge of the mountain, we can go to dig for Fritillaria tomorrow. Otherwise, we have to walk for another day. If we waste a day now, we will waste more than ten yuan, and both of us are reluctant to do so.

The two of them carried their newly bought bags and walked into the mountains. When they reached the edge of the mountain, it was completely dark. They each broke off a red willow stick and continued to walk into the mountains. When they passed the first hill, they heard the howling of wolves in the distant forest.

"Brother, let's not leave. Let's find a place to hide for the night and leave early tomorrow morning. If we leave now, I'm afraid we'll alarm the wolves and then we won't be able to leave." Li Zhongting became scared. Of course, there was another important reason: he was tired.

"Okay." Li Zhengtang also had the same idea. He said, "Zhongting, let's just dig the Fritillaria peacefully and sell them to the tractor driver in the future. If you still have this plan, then we can bring the Fritillaria down the mountain in the last two or three days. They won't go bad. But this Fritillaria season is long. If we do this frequently, it will delay our earnings."

"I understand, cousin. I was wrong this time." Li Zhengting admitted his mistake very frankly. "Let's dig for Fritillaria tomorrow and go to him to exchange things and money in the afternoon. If he has any objections, I will beg him!"

Li Zhengtang was very satisfied with Li Zhengting's attitude. He began to look around, looking for a place to hide.

After a while, the two finally found a crack in the rock. It was quite narrow, so lying down was impossible. However, they could squeeze in and sit against the rock for a while.

"Let's stay here. We've been here for almost a night. We need to get up early tomorrow morning and go back to our cave." They had already stayed in the bridge hole for a whole night. It was also sheltered from the wind. Li Zhengtang and Li Zhengting were confident that they could hold on.

At night, when the two were half asleep, the wind started to blow in the mountains. The wind was getting stronger and stronger, and the two were getting colder and colder, and finally woke up from the cold. The temperature in the mountains was much lower than that of the bridge hole under the Qingshui River! (End of this chapter)