Rebirth of Bayi Fishing and Hunting in the Northwest

After get off work at noon, Gu Xiaoxia rode her bicycle to Sister Yang, humming a cheerful song.

After entering the alley and not seeing the tractor, she wondered if her husband, Li Long, had come here on his bicycle for dinner or if he hadn't come today.
She got off the bike at the door and pushed it into the yard. She saw Sister Yang busy in the kitchen. There was no bicycle in the yard. Gu Xiaoxia's heart sank. Could Li Long have gone into the mountains again?

Otherwise, why didn’t you come to eat?

"Aunt, you're here." Sister Yang heard the noise and poked her head out of the kitchen to take a look, then smiled and said to Gu Xiaoxia:
"This dish will be ready soon, and the rice will be ready soon. By the way, his uncle went to the market this morning and told me that he was going to Shicheng to buy some things and would be back in the afternoon, so we shouldn't wait for him to eat."

"He went to Shicheng." Gu Xiaoxia was relieved. Everything would be fine if she went to Shicheng. She had been to Shicheng less often, but she had heard a lot about it. The old man Li Qingxia and Tao Daqiang went to Shicheng to sell fish from time to time. Sometimes when she didn't go back to the village on weekends, they would send some fish over.

Li Long had dinner with Chen Xingbang and then left. Chen Xingbang had to sell mutton in the afternoon. Li Long could roughly calculate that he could earn at least ten yuan a day. Although it was hard-earned money, it was better than staying in his hometown with no hope.

Moreover, if you accumulate little by little and keep doing it, becoming rich will not be a problem.

The tractor drove out of Shicheng and headed for Ma County. From time to time, you can see people in groups of three or four, some walking and some driving. Now there are buses from Shicheng to Ma County, but not everyone is willing to take them. Some people would rather walk to save that little money.

A little bit adds up to a lot. This is the same mentality as some people in later generations who would rather not take the highway and not pay the highway toll when carpooling.

Someone waved at him, and Li Long kept waving, driving all the way to Ma County. After entering the compound, he took down the TV.

Now the most important thing is to assemble the antenna.

Although the county town is relatively close to Shicheng, an antenna is still needed to receive TV signals, but it is better than in the village.
There were all kinds of materials at home, including poles. Li Long was familiar with the process. He first took the poles and folded them into various required shapes with electric wires, fixed them on the wood and connected them with wires, and finally tied them to the poles and set them up.

There was no TV signal at that time, so Li Long erected the pole without adjusting it first. After placing it there, he placed the TV in the bedroom so that the two of them could watch it after dinner.

There was only one power strip in the bedroom, at the head of the bed, a little far from the cabinet where the TV was placed. Seeing that there was still time, Li Long rode his bicycle out to the Wujiaohua Shopping Center and bought some power strips and wires.

Over the past year, Li Long's hands-on ability has significantly improved. He can connect the power strip and nail it to the wall by himself. The wiring is also very concealed and basically invisible.

It works just fine after plugging in the TV cable, but unfortunately the screen is still full of snow.

I kind of miss the last life when I could just turn on the TV and watch all kinds of channels and programs. Unfortunately, most people didn’t watch TV anymore and were playing with their phones or computers every day.

After sighing, Li Long stopped, waiting for Gu Xiaoxia to come back, and the TV would start, so he could turn it on. Now that it was almost time, he decided to go cook.

The morels I brought back earlier can be used to make soup, which is my specialty.

It is usually better to stew sheep intestines in chicken soup. Although there is plenty of meat at home, there is no chicken.

This did not bother Li Long. He looked at the time and rode his bicycle to the market quickly.

The market was still open, and Li Long looked around and actually found a stall selling chickens. Chicken soup is usually made with old hens, but unfortunately the stall owner only had roosters.

The chickens at that time were pure local chickens, and Li Long was not picky. He spent three dollars and fifty cents to buy a big rooster weighing more than three kilograms.

According to the practices of the previous life 20 to 30 years later, if there are not many people in the family and the appetite is small, one chicken can be cooked in three ways. The chicken legs and chicken wings can be made into a big plate of chicken, which is one meal. The chicken rack can be stewed with chicken soup, which can be eaten directly, which is one meal. The chicken breast can be fried with chili, or made into Kung Pao Chicken, which is another dish.

But that was a time of abundance in later times. Given people's lack of meat and their love for it, a chicken like this would usually be eaten up in one meal.

The stall owner had two hens, and Li Long bought them after thinking about it. Now the hens are ready to lay eggs. He settled them down and fed them every day. It would be good if they could lay two eggs.

As for worrying about chicken poop in the yard, that’s easy to deal with. Just mark the area like you would with roe deer.

Li Long took the chickens back and put the two hens in the yard to let them get familiar with the environment. He then slaughtered the rooster, boiled water, plucked the feathers, scalded the chicken, and skinned it all in one go.

When the rooster was put into the pot, Gu Xiaoxia also came back.

Gu Xiaoxia was a little puzzled when she smelled the blood in the yard. When she saw Li Long coming out of the kitchen with a spoon, she asked:
"What are you doing?"

"Stew chicken soup." Li Long said with a smile, "Come here quickly, don't worry about the chicken soup stewing. I bought the TV back, and it should have a signal now. The CCTV Channel 2 should be broadcasting the news. You watch it inside while I shake the antenna outside."

It was only then that Gu Xiaoxia discovered the pole planted in the corner of the main hall.

The height of the pole is two or three meters higher than the main house. It is not too high, nor too conspicuous, just right.

Gu Xiaoxia was a little excited. Although there was already a TV at home, to be honest, she had hardly watched it except for the two days of the wedding. After that, she started working and didn't think about moving the TV over. After all, it was the new house, but sometimes she felt that it was a bit of a waste to put the TV there.

Now Li Long has gone to Shicheng to buy a new color TV, so he can watch TV at home when he has nothing to do.

A woman's life is not just about her husband, children, kitchen and cleaning. She also needs her own space and her own topics. There are many women in Gu Xiaoxia's office, and there are actually many topics. If Gu Xiaoxia doesn't participate at all, she will be out of touch.

She parked the car with a little excitement and went into the bedroom with her bag.

"Turn on the TV, press channel 2, you watch, I'll tune it here..." Li Long shouted while standing outside the window.

"There's a signal, but there's a little snow... No, no, turn it back, it's all gone..." Gu Xiaoxia shouted in the house, "Okay, just like that, slowly a little more, a little more... OK!"

After hearing what Gu Xiaoxia said, Li Long stopped moving. After fixing the antenna pole, he went into the house to see the effect.

The news broadcast was playing on TV, and it was indeed very clear, with almost no noise.

"Okay, okay, that's it. You watch first, I'll go take some chicken soup." Li Long glanced at the host on TV who was dressed relatively simply, and felt a little emotional.

I will have to watch the news more often in the future. I still need to learn about national affairs and major trends from here. Although I know some specific changes, I still need to learn about the specific policy trends.

After all, this life is completely different from the last one. Even if I want to live a plain rural life, I'm afraid I need to plan well. I have to follow the trend of the times. If I really encounter an extraordinary opportunity, shouldn't I follow it?
Gu Xiaoxia didn't watch TV in the house. After she watched the TV clearly, she turned it off, washed up, changed her clothes, and went to the kitchen to watch Li Long stew chicken soup.

One advantage of morels is that they are not infested with insects. If left alone without any treatment, they will slowly die. Li Long plans to go back to the team with Gu Xiaoxia on the weekend and take the morels back with him, so that both sides can share a portion.

"I went to Sister Yang's place at noon, but I didn't see the tractor. I thought you had gone into the mountains again." Gu Xiaoxia leaned against the door frame and said, "I was wondering at the time, do you have deeper feelings for the mountains than for your home?"

"I told Sister Yang when I went to Shicheng." Li Long felt a little aggrieved, "I told you that I had to stay at home during this period. We have been married for almost two months. I know that I have not stayed at home for a long time. Now I am back."

"Hehe, I just want to make you anxious. Sister Yang said that I'll be relieved if I know you've gone to Shicheng." Gu Xiaoxia seemed to want to make Li Long anxious. She smiled and said, "Knowing that you will stay at home, I feel at ease."

Li Long understood what Gu Xiaoxia meant. Although both of them could understand each other, it was normal for a woman to be a little bit temperamental, and it could occasionally add interest to life.

Previously, he was too rational and attached too much importance to making money, which was not a good thing.

He thought that he would stay at home for the next period of time. Occasionally he would go to the team or Shicheng, and try to return on the same day. He had a wife and children, and although he didn't have any children yet, he should be enjoying his happiness now. Why would he run out every day? He was actually making money in the county town.

Soon, the chicken soup was ready, and the staple food was pancakes. Li Long served the chicken soup, one bowl for each of them, and cut a plate of pickles. Eating pickles at this time would definitely not be allowed in the future, but in this era, it was considered normal.

After all, in May, the fresh vegetables in the vegetable garden are mainly leeks and celery that can survive for several years, and Chinese cabbage planted in spring.

The peppers and eggplants haven't come yet, so it's normal to eat some pickles.

"This mushroom tastes a bit strange, but it is very nutritious. It is best to stew it in soup. It would be a bit of a waste to stir-fry it." Li Long explained as he blew away the oil on the edge of the soup and took a sip. It felt good.

Gu Xiaoxia didn't say anything, but the smile on her lips revealed her emotions, which was that as long as she was with Li Long, any food would taste delicious.

After dinner, Gu Xiaoxia cleaned up the dishes and the two of them went into the house to watch TV.

The news is over, the weather forecast is over, and next is the good TV series.

Li Long didn't really care what was in the TV series, but at that time television was not yet popular. In the northern Xinjiang area, perhaps only one out of ten families had a television. Watching a color TV at home was something to be proud of anyway.

Gu Xiaoxia was quickly attracted to the TV program and even chatted with Li Long occasionally - women seem to be naturally better at empathy than men.

Gu Xiaoxia finished watching the TV series. Li Long urged her twice before she reluctantly turned off the TV and prepared to go to bed.

Li Long felt a little regretful. Would the quality of his happy life be compromised after having a TV?

Fortunately, this was just a joke and the evening was still very happy.

Two days later, on Saturday afternoon, Li Long drove a tractor and brought Gu Xiaoxia back to the team.

They came back late and school had already been over. Li Long's tractor was almost driven back by the setting sun.

When we arrived at the team, the sun had set, but it was not yet dark. The tractor first drove to Gu Boyuan's yard. Gu Boyuan was cooking soup at the stove in the yard. Hearing the sound of the tractor, Gu Boyuan had a premonition, and seeing Li Long and Gu Xiaoxia, he was also a little surprised.

Li Long drove the tractor into the yard, Gu Xiaoxia got off, and Li Long went to the back and took the TV down.

"What is this? TV? I don't want it!" Gu Boyuan took one look and immediately widened his eyes, "What is this? Why would I need this by myself? Can't you just keep the money for yourselves? Return it!"

"Once you buy it, you can't return it." Li Long said with a grin, "How can I return it? It's not broken."

"Then move to your eldest brother's place!" Gu Boyuan was able to support himself, and he had always tried his best to avoid gossip that he was taking advantage of his daughter. After all, he was middle-aged and still capable, and it was no problem for him to support himself.

"We are going to move the TV in our yard to my father's house." Li Long said, "We also bought one in the yard in the county. Now we can watch it on three sides. You can keep it here. It's late today. I will come over early tomorrow to get you an antenna."

"Does it require you to do that? You don't think I've been a college student for nothing, do you? Although I didn't study physics, but I can do this thing, hey." After hearing that Li Long had made all the arrangements, Gu Boyuan didn't say anything more. However, as for the antenna, he really didn't brag and said he could do it himself.

"Dad, are you busy with the work in the fields?" Gu Xiaoxia finally had time to ask her father about things at home.

After chatting for a few words in the yard, Gu Boyuan began to drive people away:
"Go back quickly. I didn't cook for you today. Why do you come to my place after you come back? Okay, okay, I'm fine. Go away."

Li Long didn't know whether to laugh or cry. He actually understood what Gu Boyuan meant. Nowadays, in the general sense, the woman still married the man, not the man and woman forming a new family.

So in Gu Boyuan's opinion, since his daughter married into the Li family, she must give priority to the Li family, otherwise he, as a father, would be laughed at.

Moreover, Li Long and Gu Xiaoxia have their own yard in the team. After returning from the county, shouldn’t they go back to their own home first?
Of course, there is another point he is too embarrassed to say. A middle-aged man living here, lunch is quite formal, and in the evening, he just cooks a sweet soup to make do. This meal is enough for himself, but how can he eat this meal when his daughter and son-in-law come to visit? It's embarrassing.

Li Long and Gu Xiaoxia put down some meat and morels, and then drove the tractor back to Xinzhuangzi.

The neighbor next door came to visit at this time, and seeing Gu Boyuan packing his things, he asked:

"This son-in-law came to visit, and you didn't make him anything delicious?"

"What delicious food can you cook? They eat much better than me. Look at these mushrooms. The dried food sells for more than ten yuan per kilogram. And this meat, it's stewed bear meat. How can my food be as good as theirs? Let them go back."

All his words were complaints, but his tone was extremely proud.

"Is that... a TV box? What did this big box bring you?" the neighbor asked when he saw the big box.

"Bring me a TV." Gu Boyuan hasn't taken a closer look yet.

"A TV? Wow, Li Long is really rich! Your Xiaoxia is really married to a good man. We have only been married for two months and she has given you a TV... Wow, it's a color TV—18 inches! It's so big!"

Only then did Gu Boyuan see the size and specifications of the TV. It was too late to blame the two of them.

"Hey, he shows off just because he made some money. See if I don't scold him tomorrow!" Gu Boyuan really didn't want Li Long to show off like this, as it would make the villagers uncomfortable.

"This is not showing off. Haven't you seen that every family that followed him to make bicycles bought a bicycle? That's real money." The neighbors were actually quite envious. In fact, deep down, they had thought about asking Gu Boyuan to help them get in touch with Li Long.

If you really want to get involved, wouldn't it be easy to make money?
Li Long and Gu Xiaoxia drove the tractor to the edge of their eldest brother's yard and stopped.

Li Qingxia and his men had been waiting for a long time. When the tractor rang in the team, they already knew that Li Long had returned.

After all, there are only two tractors in the team now, one is an old Dongfanghong 75, which Wang Caimi drives to plow the land, and the other is Li Long's small four-wheeler.

The two got out of the car. Li Long carried the dried bear meat, venison and morels, while Gu Xiaoxia carried some snacks bought with her own salary.

"Just come back, why bring anything with you?" Li Qingxia and Gu Boyuan had the same complaint.

"I haven't been back for a few days, so I have to bring some things with me." Li Long said with a smile, "Come on, Qiangqiang, give everyone a piece of sesame cake!"

Li Qiang and Li Long have a good relationship. He glanced at his father, then took the sesame cake from Gu Xiaoxia and distributed it to everyone.

The family chatted and laughed together, and soon the atmosphere became lively.

There was a lot to cook for dinner, so Liang Yuemei improvised two dishes and the family ate at two tables.

"Dad, let's move the TV from my yard to your room tomorrow so you can watch it." Li Long brought up the topic at the dinner table. "We don't come back often, so don't let the TV get broken."

"How could it be damaged?" Du Chunfang was unhappy. "Your room is in good condition. Your second sister-in-law and I ventilate and clean it every day. How could it be damaged?"

"I told you guys to watch more TV." Li Long smiled. "Xiaoxia also said that you can watch it if you leave it there, but it's not convenient anyway. Let's move it to your room. It will be convenient for you and the kids to watch it too."

In fact, Li Long knew that the TV was in his yard. Although his mother had the key and the children wanted to watch it, she would not turn it on.

Afraid of seeing it broken.

As for TV, we buy it to watch it. Wouldn’t it be a waste if we don’t watch it?

"Since Xiaolong said so, it's settled." Li Jianguo knew that Li Long had made a lot of money this month. Since Li Long had this plan, he would support it.

In fact, he was also thinking about whether to buy a TV, but now it seems that he should not buy it for the time being.

I have made a lot of money, but I still need to save it to do big things.

After all, a horse-drawn carriage is not as good as a tractor. (End of this chapter)