Rebirth of Bayi Fishing and Hunting in the Northwest

Li Long had a simple meal at Mr. Liu's place, and then bought all the seven pieces of material he had carved during this period.

I don't know if it's because Mr. Liu's skills have recovered or because business is better here, but two of the pieces of material that Mr. Liu got were quite large, weighing more than one kilogram, making them among the few large pieces here.

The materials include two types of raw stone skin, one is reddish brown and the other is golden yellow. Both are carved based on the skin. One is a New Year picture doll holding a red lantern, and the other is a boy named Shancai holding a golden carp. Both are very auspicious characters.

Although the other materials are not large in size, their texture is very good. They are basically above level one white and feel very oily in the hand, which makes Li Long love to put them down.

In addition to the materials used by Mr. Liu, Li Long also bought nine pieces of materials for apprentices. Although the carving was a bit dull, the materials were good. Mr. Liu tried to persuade him, but he didn't agree, so he just let him do it.

Li Long's bag couldn't hold all the materials, so Engineer Liu found him a plastic bag, wrapped the materials in newspaper and put them in the plastic bag.

After Li Long said goodbye to Mr. Liu with these things, he turned to the main road, waited for the bus, and took it back to the guesthouse.

I don’t know if I can see Yusup again.

This time, when purchasing jade materials, not only did he spend all the travel expenses given to him by the supply and marketing cooperative, he also put in a lot of money out of his own pocket.

But it's worth it. If you save more of these things, when their value rises, you can sell some of them and get back a lot of money.

This was Li Long’s most basic thought at the time.

Dinner was only served when he returned to the guesthouse.

Li Long put his things in the room and went to the cafeteria.

He believed that no one would touch the things inside. Anyone who dared to touch the things inside would probably be arrested within half an hour.

Dinner is mainly porridge and milk tea. The staple foods include naan, steamed buns, flower rolls, steamed cakes, various stir-fried dishes, as well as pickles, cream, honey, etc.

Li Long saw Aidaxi drinking milk tea, so he scooped a bowl of porridge, took two small steamed buns, served a plate of vegetables, and sat next to Aidaxi to eat together.

There were two kinds of rolls in the flower rolls, one with spicy oil and one with chopped green onions. Li Long took one of each and thought they were both delicious. After finishing the rolls, he felt he was still not full, so he went to get another one.

Aidaxi looked at Li Long eating with big mouthfuls and said with a smile:

"Young people have a good appetite. When we get older, we dare not eat too much at night for fear of not being able to sleep well."

Li Long smiled, swallowed the food in his mouth and said:

"It's still a while before bedtime, and I'll have almost digested it if I eat now. Brother Aidaxi, are the apples you grow selling well? Is there anyone to pick them?"

In later generations, the Aksu Sugar-Core Red Fuji apples, along with Yantai apples and Shaanxi apples, became famous throughout the country, especially those produced in Hongqipo. So many people wanted to eat them that many apple boxes were printed with "Aksu authentic Hongqipo Red Fuji", just like Wuchang rice.

But at this stage it is not that well-known. Even in northern Xinjiang, its reputation is not as good as that of Ili apples.

"It's not easy to sell." Aidaxi smiled bitterly, "There are very few people who come to buy it. We mainly take it to the fruit wholesale market, or find food factories to sell it to be processed into juice."

Li Long knew that the fruits used to process apple juice in the future were almost all defective, and the good fruits were taken out and sold wholesale in boxes. In his previous life, the year when he had the accident, there was a bumper harvest of fruits in southern and northern Xinjiang, and the fruits were also very delicious. For example, small white apricots, small red apricots, fragrant pears, dinosaur eggs, prunes and other high-quality special first-class fruits were directly contracted by merchants from the mainland. The fruits were picked in the early morning, packed with foam nets, and packed into boxes. They were directly shipped to the mainland by cold chain and sold at high prices.

The dried apricots that originally cost a few yuan per kilogram locally were grafted and packaged into small red apricots, and sold in the mainland for as much as 40 to 50 yuan per kilogram...

Far away.

Li Long thought about it and realized that there was no good way to help sell apples. After all, fruit was not a necessity these days. When everyone was trying to have enough food to eat, ordinary families didn't really care whether they had fruit or not.

"But even if we sell it to make juice, it's better than growing crops." Aidaxi finished his milk tea, wiped his mouth and said, "If the income is higher, everyone will be happy."

It is true. Whether now or in the future, ordinary people are actually quite content. As long as the income from the land can feed the whole family and cover normal expenses, that is enough.

If we encounter another year with better harvests and can earn a little more money, we can buy new clothes for our family or a bigger item for our home, and then the smile on our faces will basically never disappear at the end of the year.

After they finished eating, they returned to the room together. At that time, there was no TV installed in the room, so Aidaxi asked Li Long about the fruits in northern Xinjiang.

"There are very few fruits." Li Long answered truthfully. "Here, at least in Ma County where I live, there is no large-scale cultivation of fruits that can be stored for a long time, such as apples and pears. Peaches are grown in the summer, but they cannot be stored. The weather in Ma County and Shicheng is cold, so if you want to grow fruit, the fruit trees need to be buried in the winter, which is more troublesome."

"Do you think I can make money if I take a truckload of apples to your place to sell in the fall?" Aida asked with interest.

"It's hard to say. If the shipping cost is high, it won't be worth it. But if we really come here to sell fruits after the autumn harvest, there will be a lot of people who want to buy them." Li Long thought for a while and said, "There are not many people selling fruits in our market, and the prices are quite expensive."

Aida nodded and began to think about whether this was worth doing.

The two were in southern Xinjiang and northern Xinjiang, separated by the Tianshan Mountains. They were very interested in each other's situation. When Aidaxi knew that Li Long often went into the mountains to hunt, he said:
"When I was a kid, my dad took us hunting, and I saw tigers and snow leopards! But now you can't see tigers anymore. Occasionally, I hear herders say snow leopards still come down the mountain to eat sheep."

"A snow leopard skin costs more than a thousand yuan." Li Long was calculating the economic account. "If there is a tiger, a skin will cost at least two or three thousand yuan..."

"Is it so expensive?" Aidaxi didn't hunt, so he didn't know much about this. He said in surprise, "A piece of skin is worth so much? More than 3,000 yuan, I can buy a walk-behind tractor!"

A walk-behind tractor is a grasshopper-leg tractor that is cheaper than a small four-wheeler. There are relatively few such tractors in northern Xinjiang.

Li Long smiled and said:

"Since it's less, it's naturally more expensive."

"Some old hunters should have such skins at home." Aidaxi thought for a while and said, "I'll go back and ask them. If they do, I'll ask them to sell them, which will improve their lives. It's better to sell them if they keep them and let them grow worms. Life is still hard over there. Don't laugh at me. This is the first time I've had a meal like this."

"This is my first time too, so let's not laugh at each other." Li Long said with a smile.

The two chatted and exchanged a lot of information until very late.

The next morning, the meeting started at 11:00. Both of them got up early and walked around the yard. Li Long washed up and went to eat. Then a staff member gathered them together and explained the precautions for the meeting. The explanation was very detailed, including that they had to go to the toilet before the meeting.

Listening to a 23- or 24-year-old girl solemnly reminding them to go to the toilet later, Li Long felt quite ashamed, but he thought about it and it was part of the staff's job. If they didn't remind them properly, what if someone had to go to the toilet during the meeting? This possibility definitely existed. After all, it could be seen that everyone attending the meeting was quite excited, and not everyone could think of this matter.

After remembering the precautions, Li Long and his group dispersed, packed up their things, took their meeting supplies, and prepared to attend the meeting.

Li Long went to the toilet as requested and took his conference bag with him. He placed his shoulder bag and the bag of jade wrapped in newspaper in the bedside table.

Come out and gather, and then be led by staff to the auditorium for the meeting.

This was my first time attending an autonomous region-level commendation conference. It might only happen once in my life, so I would be lying if I said I wasn't excited. Li Long tried his best to keep a calm expression all the way to the conference hall.

In my two lifetimes, this is my first time attending such a large-scale conference as one of the protagonists. It is impossible not to be nervous and excited.

After entering the auditorium and seeing thousands of faces looking at him, he felt his blood boiling at that moment. Thunderous applause broke out. At that moment, Li Long even felt that this life would be worth it even if he died now.

Next, I followed the queue and sat down in a daze, waiting for the leader on the rostrum to arrive. The meeting began, everyone stood upright, music played, the presiding leader gave a speech, awards were presented, etc.

Each advanced individual received a certificate and a cash reward of 100 yuan. If converted based on salary, it would be equivalent to 10,000 yuan in later generations, which is a lot.

After commending the advanced units and individuals, the leader gave a speech. A vice chairman sat in the middle of the rostrum. When he was speaking, Li Long heard a sentence clearly:
"…National unity is very important, especially here. I think what a young comrade said is very vivid. Only when the people of all ethnic groups hold together like pomegranate seeds can we achieve national unity. We all ethnic groups live together on this land, just like brothers and sisters, we are equal..."

Well, the influence of this sentence has expanded again.

After the meeting, the advanced individuals and leaders took a group photo. After the photo was taken, the vice chairman found Li Long, shook his hand and said:
"Comrade Li Long, you have a high level of ideological awareness, and what you have done is worthy of learning for people of all ethnic groups. What you said is very good. I believe you can do better in this regard in the future. If you have any difficulties, you can raise them to the organization in time. The organization is your strong backing..."

Zhang Xinhua, who was not far away, took this photo and prepared to put it in tomorrow's newspaper.

After the leader finished talking to Li Long, he left the meeting. Li Long hurried over to Zhang Xinhua and said with a smile:

"Reporter Zhang, can you print a copy of the photo you just took for me?"

"Okay." Zhang Xinhua said with a smile, "When will you go back?"

"I'll be back today. If it can't be washed out in a short time, I'll get it from you when I come over?" Li Long asked.

"No, no. Your group photo will be sent to the company by then, and I can just send it to you together with the photo. Is one photo enough?"

"Then... two photos?" Li Long guessed that with Director Wei or Li Xiangqian's personalities, they would want a group photo, and they might also want this photo.

After the meeting, the staff led the representatives of advanced units and individuals out of the auditorium and back to the guesthouse, and then provided each of them with train tickets.

The protection is very good.

The staff also took the initiative to say that if we did not leave today, the guesthouse would still provide lunch and dinner, so we could continue to stay here for another night and leave tomorrow.

Li Long knew what that meant. He could stay one more night but had to leave tomorrow.

Seeing that it was almost noon, Li Long decided to have another lunch at the guesthouse and return to Ma County in the afternoon.

The lunch was still sumptuous. Aida was also there. While the two were chatting, he told Li Long that they would take a bus back to Aksu in the afternoon.

"Maybe I'll have a chance to go to your Ma County to sell apples in the future."

"Then I welcome you with open arms. I will treat you to our noodles." Li Long said jokingly, "I'm in the supply and marketing cooperative. You will be able to find me when the time comes."

"The supply and marketing cooperative is a good unit." Aidaxi's eyes lit up, "There are many purchasing tasks. Some of our high-quality apples will be bought by the supply and marketing cooperative, and they say they will be sent to Wucheng and the inland areas."

"Yes, the supply and marketing cooperative does have a lot of such tasks every year." Li Long nodded. He would not take on work for his own supply and marketing cooperative - firstly, he didn't know if it was needed, and secondly, the distance was too far and the travel expenses were difficult to calculate.

After dinner, Li Long did not rest. He took his things from the room, said goodbye to Aidaxi, and then went to say goodbye to the staff in charge. At the door of the guesthouse, Li Long saw reporter Zhang Xinhua again. She was holding a paper and a pen to interview a representative of an advanced unit.

Zhang Xinhua smiled when he saw Li Long. Li Long walked over, took out a fist-sized newspaper package from his bag, handed it over and said:
"Reporter Zhang, thank you. I'm going back now. This is the little thing I bought this time. I'm giving it to you as a small gift."

The things were casually wrapped in newspaper and didn't look valuable, so Li Long stuffed them directly into Zhang Xinhua's hand. Zhang Xinhua took it, but she was still in the middle of an interview and couldn't reply. Li Long waved his hand and left.

Li Long did not go directly to the Bayi Guest House to catch a bus, but went to the department store first. Since he was here, he had to buy some gifts for his family.

The weather has become hotter, and young girls wearing dresses can be seen on the streets. Li Long bought a floral dress for Gu Xiaoxia at the department store, and he thought his wife would like it.

I bought a wetsuit for my dad, the kind that reaches up to his chest, and a hat for my mom, the kind that old people wear.

My eldest brother and his wife were both wearing work clothes. Work cloth clothes that were similar to work clothes were sold here. Li Long bought two pieces so that they could wear them while working in the fields.

I bought a sun hat for my second sister-in-law, and toys for the four children, the kind that move with a clockwork spring like a tin frog. There are four different types of toys that can be played with in turn.

After the purchase, Li Long rushed to the Bayi Guesthouse carrying a bag of things.

There are more people taking the bus here than before. Li Long bought a ticket for an hour later. He estimated that it would be dark by the time he returned to Mayan County.

Nothing special happened along the way. Li Long sat in his seat and listened to the people around him talking, mainly about rising prices and speculation about this year's grain prices. Looking at the two sides of the road, the fields were mainly planted with corn, sunflowers and wheat. There were farmers working in the fields, but there were still relatively few tractors. There were more horse and donkey carts parked on the edge of the fields.

Occasionally, you can see a tractor rumbling along the road, then turning into a fork in the road, or being overtaken by a car and disappearing behind.

Li Long thought that this time, the follow-up events caused by the newspaper should be over, right? He would go back and report to the supply and marketing cooperative tomorrow, report the matter, and then he could get busy with his own affairs.

What Li Long didn't know was that Halimu came down the mountain today.

After almost a month in the mountains, Halimu was still worried about his family, so he told Yushanjiang about it and rode out from the summer pasture on horseback with his belongings.

Halimu first arrived at his winter home. Everything here was the same as before, nothing had changed. No one came to live here, which was quite good.

Halimu turned to Li Long's wooden house again. The door of the house was locked and there was no sign of life in the short term.

Then he rushed to the animal husbandry team's stay-at-home point. The mother and the child were staying at home, and although there should be someone to take care of them, after all, they were not his own family, so he was worried.

But when he arrived at the pastoral team and saw his house from afar, he could hardly believe his eyes.

Is that my house? It wasn't like this when I left!

Now the house is new, the yard is new, and the road leading to the outside of the yard has been paved.

Halimu rode his horse slowly to the gate of the yard and saw the well.

My mother was sitting on the doorstep, and other villagers who stayed behind from the animal husbandry team were queuing up to pump water from the well. A stream of clear water flowed out of the well and into the bucket.

Halimu licked his lips. The water was completely different from the water in the river dam outside.

It should be sweet, right?
When the old lady saw Halimu, she smiled happily and uttered a bunch of words.

Other people in the yard also saw Halimu and they all greeted him.

Halimu responded one by one, and after these people left, he asked his mother the reason for the changes in the family.

Finally I found out that it was Li Long.

The old lady said a lot to Halimu, and Halimu nodded repeatedly.

Halimu went to Yushanjiang's house. Yushanjiang asked him to bring back some things. He found that there had been big changes in Yushanjiang's home.

At the rear of the animal husbandry team, the two families had changed the most, just like new ones. At Yushanjiang's house, there were also people queuing up to use the well. Halimu heard someone say that the water in this well was really good.

In the afternoon, Nathan and Susken returned home from school, and Halim saw the new school bags the children were carrying.

At this moment, he was filled with mixed feelings. It was really good, really good to have such a brother. (End of this chapter)