With a week to prepare, Li Long was not in a hurry. After lunch, he sent Gu Xiaoxia to work. After returning to the big yard, Li Long continued to clean up.
The snow in the front yard has basically been taken care of. He doesn’t plan to make any major changes in the backyard. He just wants to clear out a few paths. Sweeping more will be of no use. The next step was to push the cart to the market, buy some coal, potatoes and other supplies, and prepare all the supplies in the big yard. At least if she is not around for a while, Gu Xiaoxia will have supplies in the big yard.
After all, when having lunch at Yang Xiulan’s place, you basically have to take care of yourself in the morning and evening.
The small-caliber rifle was also left with Gu Xiaoxia. In fact, it is quite safe here, after all, the police station is right next to it. The main thing is a guarantee. Gu Xiaoxia is also a female militia member, and she is not bad at shooting and other things. Just like what some Zhihu jokes say, a few years ago, the female militia guns could be processed and divided after they were shot. Who wouldn't want to? Isn't this much better than cutting wheat in the field?
I spent a whole day doing a good job in the yard. I repaired what needed to be repaired and bought what needed to be bought, especially some canned food, dried noodles and other supplies. I went directly to the department store to buy some goods. There was still some honey at home, so Li Long went to the supply and marketing cooperative to buy some more.
Gu Xiaoxia originally thought of becoming a teacher, which was a waste of her voice, but she didn't expect that she would be transferred to the Education Bureau now, but drinking this stuff only has benefits, so Li Long prepared some more.
After all, as long as it is stored properly, this thing is not bad.
After breakfast the next day, Gu Xiaoxia went to work. Li Long said to her and returned to the team.
The gun is still on his back, after all, he is a guy eating.
On the way back, Li Long found that there were more people than before. At this time in previous years, there were basically no people on the road. After all, households don’t have much food at the end of the year, and the more activities they do in winter, the more they consume. So a very important reason for cats in winter is that if they don’t move, they won’t eat so much.
But things are different starting this year. Household production quotas have been assigned to each household, and grain fields have been distributed to each family. Although wheat was not grown in the first season, at least corn noodles can be eaten openly.
When rations are enough, people are no longer content to stay at home. Go out for a walk, do some activities, communicate with others, and think about getting a job that makes money.
After all, everyone wants a good life.
No matter how bad it is to go out and pick up some excrement like Wang Caimi, it is better than staying at home.
Entering the gate of the horse barn, Li Long saw Old Uncle Luo feeding the animals, so he smiled and went over and said:
"Uncle Luo, I have to keep you busy again."
"It's good to be busy!" Old Uncle Luo said with a smile, "It's good to have something to do, but it would be uncomfortable for me to be idle!" Why didn’t you stay in the county for a few more days?”
“Come back and take a look, then leave.” Li Long said, “There is still work to do and we have to go into the mountains for a few days.”
“ Okay. Everyone has nothing to do in the winter. If you want to make money, you can do it. I see that Daqiang and the others have brought back a lot of meat. I heard that there are also skins. I said you killed a wolf pack by yourself. You are a man. !”
Uncle Luo’s compliment made Li Long blush slightly. He still knew what he was worth. He raised the bag in his hand and said with a smile:
"Uncle Luo, look, I've got this radio back. You can listen to it in the winter if you have nothing to do."
"Yeah." Old Uncle Luo was very happy, "They went to your elder brother's place, it seems to say Are you going back? Do you want to go and take a look?” "Husband and the others?"
"Yes!" Old Uncle Luo said as he put the grass into the circle, "I have made money during this period and I plan to go home after the New Year." After all, I have been here for a few months. Some people have wives and children at home, so why not?”
“That’s the truth,” Li Long said.
He looked at the pen again and saw that the doe and the fawn (actually not small) were in the same pen, and the two roe deer, a male and a female, were in the same pen. The male roe deer probably hadn't seen the same kind for a long time, and he kept sniffing behind the female roe deer's butt. The female roe deer seemed not very used to it, and would hide from time to time.
"Uncle Luo, are these two deer okay?"
"Okay. They didn't eat much grass yesterday, but they can eat it now. They're not too noisy. They look better. It turns out that the two deer are bigger." Uncle Luo said with a smile, "The female roe deer arrived just in time. Maybe she will be pregnant before the year. The male is in heat at this time, and the female just solves the problem."
Okay. Well, it's done to give warmth.
Li Long took a detour and returned to Li's house.
In the west room of the Li family, Li Jianguo, Li Anguo and Chen Xingbang were discussing going back.
"We plan to go back after New Year's Day." said the leader Chen Xing. "I have made a lot of money with my eldest brother and Xiaolong in the past few months. It turns out that we planned to work for half a year to earn some money and go back. , I have earned it in the past few months - it’s just like a dream. We don’t have to celebrate the New Year anymore. I will go back to celebrate the New Year, buy some things for my family, and come back after the New Year.”
Li Jianguo had no objection. After listening to Chen Xingbang’s words, he nodded and said:
“Well, it’s time to go home for the New Year. There’s not much to do here in this winter, so stay here. It’s better to go back. Then after the New Year, you all come over, some want to come over and some don’t want to come over?”
A few people looked at each other and Chen Xingbang said with a smile:
"I will definitely come here. There are few opportunities and many people in my hometown, so making money is not as convenient as here. Some people go to the south to make money. I think it is also hard there, so I feel more comfortable here."< br>
“I have to see my parents.” Li Anguo thought more, “It’s okay to make money, but We can’t stay for long. After all, mom and dad are still there..."
"Well, I'm thinking about this too," Li Jianguo said, "Anguo, you can ask mom and dad when you go back. You might as well let them. Come here and forget it. Although the winter here is colder than back home, there is a stove and a fire wall, so it doesn't take much to make a bed. It's so cold in my hometown. My parents are okay now. How can we bear it in ten or eight years? We are all in our seventies. How can we support ourselves here? I don't think we can survive until nine. Ten is not a problem.”
“Haha, that’s the truth.” Chen Xingbang smiled and said, “That winter in my hometown. It’s so hard to be naive. If my wife and kids weren’t all in my hometown, I wouldn’t want to go back. It’s so nice here. It’s so cold when it’s hot, and it’s cool under the trees. There’s plenty of land, and there’s plenty of ways to make money... ”
The main thing is that a few of them are saying that Li Junfeng and Li Junshan have no say.
"Bring more things when you go back." Liang Yuemei interjected, "There are some things here that are not available in my hometown. Bring some..."
"Then bring some bars." Chen Xingbang said with a smile, " The loose wine that dad brought back last time was so good to drink. When we came here, dad was still talking about sharing some among the families, but he didn’t have enough to drink, hahahaha..."
Li Jianguo nodded. Although it is easy to make money in Northern Xinjiang, supplies are actually still scarce compared to back home, and the specialties here are not very good. He thought he would bring some money back to his father.
While several people were talking, Li Long came back.
"Hey, Uncle Xiao Long, you have a good haircut!" Li Junfeng opened the door, and when he saw Li Long's image, he immediately started teasing him. There is not much age difference, and Li Long does not act like an elder, so it is normal for Li Junfeng to joke.
"That's two cents spent!" Li Long joked seriously, "Why don't you also go to repair it? You have to go home, so you can't show it to your wife and baby. In this northern Xinjiang, you can't do it. Not here to eat sand..."
"Hahahaha." After hearing this, everyone else laughed. After all, this was actually said by Li Junfeng and the others when they were having dinner. When they were planning to come over here to find a way to make money, someone in their hometown said they could just eat sand when they came over. There was no way to make money in this desolate place in the northwest. They also secretly said that the old man Li Qingxia was talking about You're lying, you're giving money to your son.
Actually, they were a little worried when they came over, especially the section from Gansu province to Hami. Both sides of the railway were really desolate.
It is not an exaggeration to eat sand.
Of course it seems like a joke now.
After the joke was finished, Li Jianguo asked Li Long what was going on in the mountains. Li Long spoke briefly and then said that he would go into the mountains in a few days.
As for leading others to hunt, Li Long, Li Jianguo, and Chen Xingbang did not think it was inappropriate. The main thing these days is to make money and live a good life. Just like later generations opening farmhouses and leading small groups of people on hiking tours to pick mushrooms on the alpine grasslands. There are ways to make money.
You provide the money and I provide the people, that’s all. No one is more noble than anyone else. What you pay is money, and what I pay is experience and skills.
And for a long time, in the dual society in China, urban hukou was more popular than rural hukou. Even when Li Long suffered a cerebral hemorrhage in his last life, although many city people were envious of the large courtyards in the countryside, 80% of them were still unwilling to let him live in the countryside every day. The social structure is like this. After all, it is still led by the working class and based on the alliance of workers and peasants. Although farmers are the majority, they are only the targets of the alliance.
"That's weird." Li Junfeng was quite envious. Ever since he followed Li Long on a hunting trip, he was really envious. Get two deer and one wolf at a time, not to mention the meat, just the leather with antlers and a deer whip, two hundred yuan upwards!
It takes ten days to earn so much selling fish!
Now go out and hunt for others, a wolf is only two hundred... This price, alas, I don’t have that ability!
"It's not easy to fight in the mountains, right?" Li Jianguo had lived in the mountains, so he naturally knew what happened in the mountains, and it wasn't as fun as he made it sound. The pain is really hard, the tiredness is really tiring, and the hard work is really hard.
"It's not bad." Li Long felt confident about himself, "It's better to hunt deer and wolves. If you can't catch them, take them to hunt wild boars. One day can't last two days. There are always places where wild boars can be ambush. If you really can’t fight, there’s nothing you can do.”
"Well, that's good if you have this idea. Your second brother and brother-in-law are going back. Look..."
"It's okay to go back. I've been tired for two or three months. Let's go back and have a good time during the New Year." Li Long is actually quite calm about this matter, "I guess my family also wants to My second brother just brought the money back to Dad for us. I guess Dad spent almost all of it in the past six months..."
"Hahahaha, that's true." Everyone actually knows that. The old man has big hands and spends money very quickly. And it’s the New Year, and there are so many seniors and juniors, so why don’t you give New Year’s money when you pay New Year’s greetings? Even if you give me just one or two cents, it will add up to a lot.
It’s settled by just saying hello when we go back. Chen Xingbang and the others chatted for a few more words and then went back. Li Long didn't leave, and Li Jianguo himself wanted to see him for something.
“Here is the money from selling the remaining fish.” After Li Jianguo and others left, he took the key from his waist and opened the chest of drawers. He took a black satchel and handed it to Li Long. The bag was bulging with money. Li Long opened the zipper and saw that it was filled with bills.
"So many." Li Long said with a smile, "How many thousands of these?"
"The fish sold faster as time went by." Li Jianguo said with some sigh, "Who would have thought that the fish in Shicheng There are quite a few people eating fish. Every day they bring a cart with more than 20 bags of fish, and they are all sold out by the afternoon."
Li Long knows the consumption power of fish in Shicheng. Many soldiers and educated youths there came from the Kouluishui River and ate fish for themselves. After arriving in Shicheng, we no longer have this condition, but I still hope to buy some fish when I have some spare money. The farmed fish are really not attractive to them, and they don't even like the big crucian carp that Li Long prefers.
Why? Because in fact, the two pieces of meat on the back of the annual crucian carp have no fine spines, so it is very satisfying to eat in one bite, and the crucian carp is very flavorful. Until the death of Li Long in his last life, people from Shicheng often drove to Xiaohaizi to fish, and even named Xiaohaizi "Reed Marsh" and "Shajiabin".
Unfortunately, in the future, after that generation leaves, there will be fewer people who like to eat fish here.
Li Long took out a wad of money, about one thousand, and handed it to Li Jianguo:
"Brother, keep this money. I don't care about sending money to dad. I have to add some things to my family later. Now, you can watch it by yourself. I will have to build a house next year.”
“Yes, it’s time to get married.” Li Jianguo sighed, then waved his hand. I won’t take the money. I’ve made a lot of money with you this year, and I still have money at home. You don’t have to take money from home. You can keep it for yourself. You will have more to buy later.”
Liang Yuemei also stopped and said:
"Yes. The family still has a lot of money, and it is not easy for you to make money."
"Brother and sister-in-law, it's relatively easy to make money." Li Long said with a smile, "You two will definitely farm my land in the future. I can't take care of that much. If you have any expenses, you can help with them. If you continue, I may not put any money at home in the future. You must keep this money."
After speaking, Li Long put the money on the table. As soon as he put it on, he zipped up the bag, stood up and went out. Before going out, he said to Li Jianguo:
"Brother, now that we have money, our family has to live a better life, and the things we need to buy are Buy more.”
After leaving the Li family, Li Long knew that he would have less and less time here in the future.
Quite sentimental. Although I was really indifferent in the past few years, eating, living and enjoying here without making any contribution to this place, the reality is that my life here is very fulfilling and very happy.
Life is getting better now, but I have to leave again.
But it is also necessary. People always grow up, and seeds always leave home.
Back at Laomahao, Uncle Luo and Li Junshan were cooking. Seeing Li Long come back, Li Junfeng asked with a smile:
"Uncle Xiaolong, when are you leaving?"< br>
"In two or three days." Li Long looked He looked at the yard and said with emotion: "I worked all day yesterday! If I had known, I wouldn't have let you leave that night. There is a lot of snow in that big yard, and there are a lot of piles. It's easy to sweep the snow with you here. It will be difficult to deal with the snow without you here.”
"Hey! Junshan said when we were halfway there, there was so much snow in the big yard, we should clear it before leaving. Even then, everyone was tired and didn't want to come back."
" Just kidding, the snow is clear." Li Long smiled, "Have you thought about what to buy when you go back?"
"I've decided not to buy anything." Li Junshan was in high spirits, "Just take the money back! Then get off the bus in the city and buy everything! Things are cheaper over there..."
"That's the truth." In this era , many things in my hometown are really cheaper than here in northern Xinjiang, except of course some specialties, such as the jade seed materials harvested by Li Long, such as leather.
But most things are still cheaper there, after all, the industrial level is different.
After lunch was ready, Li Junshan came out to call Li Long and Li Junfeng to eat.
Rice and stir-fry, Old Uncle Luo was serving the rice and said:
"Xiaolong, you are back, let's improve and make a good meal." On the table was fried dried beans. Meat, stewed wild boar bones and fried meat with sauerkraut.
Li Long can actually understand. Although there is a lot of meat stored here, it is impossible to eat it like this. If you eat it every day, the meat will be gone within a month.
Basically, it’s all about budgeting. When cooking, just add some oil and meat. It's normal to come back today and do something good.
After dinner, several people cleared the table together. Li Long went to look at the deer and roe deer, and Li Junshan followed them out to watch together.
"When Da Qiang and Yong Qiang came back, did you get them meat?" Li Long asked.
"Uncle An Guo asked me to take it." Li Junshan said, "He took a piece of meat back one by one."
"That's good." Li Long nodded, "You can do it when you return. Bring back some game meat. Although this meat Although it’s not as delicious as the meat raised at home, it’s game after all, and it sounds good to people.”
He also planned to take some of the wolf-tooth and wolf-bone stones back to his second brother and brother-in-law. It's always a good metaphor to put it on your children when you go back.
"Okay. Uncle Xiaolong, can you give me one of your wolf fangs?" Li Junshan was a little hesitant.
“Here, two are fine.” Although Li Long didn’t know why Li Junshan wanted it, he just gave it to him. I have plenty of them.
"We may go on a blind date when we get back. If I meet a suitable girl, I will give it to him." Li Junshan expressed his thoughts, "I think this is a good thing."
Okay, it’s a good idea to give the girl wolf fangs.
I don’t know if people are willing to accept it.
Li Long went to the house and took out the small bag containing the wolf fangs and divided them among everyone.
To be honest, this thing is really popular, and everyone is very happy to hold it. (End of this chapter)