Catch the Mountain 1985

Chapter 8

After Zhang Peng and Zhao Chunming had properly processed the furs, it was already evening, and the forestry workers were almost home from work. They happened to shoot six gray rats today, three for each family, and they just had an extra dish in the evening.

After greeting Zhao Chunming and going to his house after dinner in the evening, Zhang Peng returned to the house, put the three prepared chinchillas on the pot table, and said to Wang Xiufen who was busy preparing dinner on the pot table: "Mom , I’ll add another dish today.”

"Okay, we'll start dinner when your dad comes back." Wang Xiufen glanced at the chinchilla on the pot table and said with a smile.
Zhang Peng often fought back gray rats before, and Wang Xiufen was already familiar with how to do it. She first cut two gray dogs several times, then sprinkled them with salt and marinated them for a while, then put oil in the pot and waited. After the oil was hot, put the two greyhound eggs in the pot. Soon, the oil beads began to sizzle, the meat slowly turned golden, and began to have a rich and attractive burnt aroma.

This is the simplest way to eat it, and there is no need to add any seasonings. The original flavor of greyhound seeds replaces all the spices.

After a while, Zhang Tiejun also came home from get off work. As soon as he entered the house, he smelled the aroma of fried greyhound meat. He said with a smile: "Today's dish is good. The smell is greyhound meat."

After saying that, he walked into the east room with a smile, and then saw Zhang Peng wiping an old sleeve, and two girls gathered around asking questions.

His face suddenly darkened. When he saw Zhang Peng fiddling with it, he thought he had borrowed it from somewhere.

Although there are more and more guns these days, and they are very common, most people will not lend their guns to others, because after all, guns have always been weapons of mass destruction, and if one is not handled properly, it will cause big trouble.

"Second son, where did you get the gun?" Zhang Tiejun shouted sharply
Hearing the movement in the east room, Wang Xiufen hurriedly wiped her hands with her apron and ran in. When she saw Zhang Peng's gun, she said anxiously: "Second child, we don't want to play with this. Where did you get it?"

Zhang Peng didn't change his expression and said with a smile: "Mom and Dad, my uncle gave this to me. He said that he wouldn't need it at home anymore. He knew that I often go up the mountain and I don't have anyone to defend myself, so he gave it to me."

"How can that be done? It's too dangerous, and it's too expensive. Even if you buy it now, it would cost several hundred." Zhang Tiejun said nothing with a sullen face, while Wang Xiufen said beside him.

"Mom, this is for self-defense. A big guy will pop out of the forest at any time. Without this thing, it would be too dangerous," Zhang Peng said with a smile.
"Besides, I don't need this gun. When I get something good later, I should show more respect to my family. This kind of favor cannot be filled up," Zhang Peng added.
Before Wang Xiufen could say anything else, Zhang Tiejun just thought for a moment and figured it out, then took over and said: "Okay, mother, let's do it. The child is getting older. As he said, he will inevitably go to the woods in the future." , It’s safer to have a gun.”

"This kid has never been used before. How can he be so spoiled?" Wang Xiufen said dissatisfied.
"It's okay, this is how he got here. I was just 16 years old when I first shot a gun, and his grandpa taught me. I can just take him to practice with him when I find time," Zhang Tiejun said.
Hearing what Zhang Tiejun said, Wang Xiufen thought for a while and realized that it was the same reason. Even if she put the gun away now, she would have to use it again in the future. When she thought about the danger in the forest, she said to Zhang Peng: "Second son, just listen. Your dad, practice with the gun first, and then use it, be sure to pay attention to safety."

"Don't worry, Mom, I must pay attention to safety. When will dinner be served? I'm already hungry." Zhang Peng quickly changed the subject and said with a smile.
Wang Xiufen gouged out Zhang Peng with her eyes and said with a smile: "You brat, you only know how to eat. Hurry up and put the table down, wash your hands and eat."

Today's dinner is a large pot of beans and potatoes stewed in lard, followed by a fried chinchilla meat dish. The staple food is Erhe noodle steamed buns.

Zhang Peng gave the two thighs of the gray rat to his sisters Zhang Xiaoxia and Zhang Xiaolan. They couldn't bear it anymore and quickly took a bite and gave each of their parents a piece.

"Second brother, gray rat meat is so delicious." Zhang Xiaoxia and Zhang Xiaolan exclaimed happily after taking a bite of the meat.

Zhang Peng also gently tore off a piece of meat and put it into his mouth. The aroma of pine nuts filled his mouth. It was burnt on the outside and tender on the inside. It was not woody at all. This is a rare good thing in game. With such good things, The Zhang Peng family's dinner suddenly became delicious.After dinner, Zhang Peng got up and went out and climbed over the wall to Zhao Chunming's house. When he opened the door and walked in, he saw Zhao Chunming's family of three chatting on the kang. Seeing Zhang Peng come in, Zhao Chunming quickly got up and smiled. Said: "Cao Cao, Cao Cao will be here soon. I was talking about you to my dad just now."

"Uncle Zhao, is Aunt Zhao at home?" Zhang Peng first greeted Zhao Decai and Li Cuihua, then turned to Zhao Chunming and said, "What did you say about me?"

Before Zhao Chunming could speak, Zhao Decai smiled and said, "Second boy, I heard you got a gun?"

"Well, Uncle Zhao, my uncle had an old sleeve that he didn't use at home. Knowing that I often go up the mountain, he gave me the gun," Zhang Peng replied truthfully.

"Oh, that's it. Do your parents know about it?" Zhao Decai asked again.

"I know, they agreed to let me use it. My dad will take me out to practice shooting when he has time," Zhang Peng said.
"Oh, you can do it. If you don't play tricks, you can still convince your parents to agree." Zhao Decai nodded Zhang Peng with his hand and said with a smile.

Zhang Peng chuckled and scratched his head without saying anything.

"Okay, dad, don't ask anymore. My second brother came here just to ask where I can get bullets, or do you want to go to a state-owned store to buy them?" Zhao Chunming said.
"Oh, let me think about this." After saying this, Zhao Decai pondered for a while, and then said: "It's not easy to find these bullets. There are them in the village brigade headquarters. Most of the other guns are made of local guns." , and then just pout, let’s do this, I will go to the village headquarters later to find Cui Datou, who is in the joint defense, and get some from him.”

Cui Datou, whose real name is Cui Weixing, is the militia captain of the joint defense. His main job is to manage guns and ammunition. In this era, the village has its own armed forces, and he has a good relationship with Zhao Decai. As long as Zhao Decai comes forward, there will be no problem.

Zhang Peng was overjoyed after hearing this. He was also thinking about buying some. It would be great if he could get it for free. It just so happened that there was no income in the early stage and funds were tight, so he could save a lot of money.

"Thank you, Uncle Zhao," Zhang Peng said happily. After that, Zhao Decai put on his clothes and walked out.

After waiting for about half an hour, Zhao Decai walked in with a cloth bag, handed it to Zhang Peng and said: "Second son, here are 30 rounds of 7.92mm bullets. You can use them first. I won't wait for you." Tell your uncle again, I'll get some for you."

"Okay, thank you, uncle, these bullets should be enough," Zhang Peng said excitedly
After chatting for a while, and seeing that the time was almost up, Zhang Peng got up and prepared to go home. When he went out, he winked at Zhao Chunming. Zhao Chunming understood that he had something to say, and immediately got down from the kang to join Zhang Peng. After walking out, the two of them came to the yard. Zhao Chunming said, "Second brother, what's going on?"

"Let's go for a walk in the mountains tomorrow if we have nothing to do. We just have some bullets. Let's go out and practice our skills," Zhang Peng said.

"Okay, second brother, I've been wanting to get something big for a long time. It's boring to spend the whole day with greyhounds, pheasants, and hares." Zhao Chunming said excitedly when he heard that he was going up the mountain tomorrow.
"Well, let's get ready for tomorrow and let's set off early," Zhang Peng said softly.

Before, Zhang Peng and Zhao Chunming only dared to walk around the outskirts of the forest when they went up the mountain, because there was no chance of anyone taking advantage of them, and luckily they didn't encounter any big ones. However, they had heard too many stories about wild boars and blind bears hurting people, so it was just right. In his previous life, Zhang Peng knew that wild boars often appeared in a mountain col, so he happened to hunt them down to improve his living standards.

(End of this chapter)