Return to 1983 Hunting Xing'an Mountains

Chapter 374: You can't work in vain. Whatever you say makes sense.
Chang Xifeng stepped on the threshold with his left foot, held the door curtain with one hand, and handed the four bear paws tied with thin ropes to Li Feng.

After Li Feng received it, he followed Xu Ning to the outer room with dazed eyes, while Gao Yanhong, Zhang Yan and the Chang brothers sent Xu Ning to the gate of the courtyard together.

Looking at Xu Ning's back, Zhang Yan waved with a smile on her face: "Brother Xu, come often when you have time!"

Gao Yanhong grinned when she heard Xu Ning's response. It was not until Xu Ning and Li Feng walked more than 30 meters away and disappeared into the darkness that the four of them turned around and walked back into the house.

"Hey, if Xiao Xu can really help, then we can sell the bear meat for some money!"

Zhang Yan said, "It's not good. The temperature is warm now. Even if we keep it in the cellar for half a month, it will go bad. There are only a few people in our family. We can't even finish it in one meal."

After saying that, she seemed to think of Chang Beifeng's talkativeness in the house, and raised her hand and slapped Chang Beifeng on the back of the head.

"You asshole! You're everywhere. The big brother hasn't said anything, why the hell are you butting in?"

Chang Beifeng covered the back of his head, staggered forward two steps, pouted and howled: "Hit me, gah! Hit me, gah! If I hadn't said that, would Xu Er have given him an extra twenty yuan? That's twenty yuan!"

"You are so ignorant! You know nothing. Do you know what sister-in-law means? I'll beat you to death."

Two more slaps on the back of his neck made Chang Beifeng quickly flee into the house. Zhang Yan saw him running away and beat him more and more happily, chasing him into the house and kicking him twice.

After Gao Yanhong entered the house, she said to the Chang brothers, "If you two didn't have such a bad reputation in our village, would you be able to sell this little bit of bear meat? Look at you. You gave some bear meat to Lao Du before the New Year, but he didn't even let you in. He kicked you out directly."

Chang Xifeng lowered his head and rolled a cigarette, waving his hands: "Hey, why are you talking about those things! If it really doesn't work, just move away. There's no place you can't live."

"Moving? That sounds nice, but where are you moving to? Everyone in Qing'an knows that you two Chang's kids are ungrateful and ungrateful! My parents didn't agree to my marrying you, you know? If I hadn't seen you as a close relative of the Gu family, would I have followed you?"

Gao Yanhong rolled her eyes and said, "Don't go against Xu Erning in the future. Why don't you two think about it? How cunning are you two? Do you know why he gave 40 yuan? He doesn't want to owe you a favor!"

Zhang Yan muttered, "Xu Erning is not easy to get along with. He didn't respond to what my sister-in-law said just now. He even said: It's useless to talk about those things. He came here just to buy bear paws and didn't think about making friends with us at all."

Gao Yanhong said, "Why would you try to establish a relationship with him? What do we have? He started going to the mountains last winter. How many black bears has he killed so far? How much do the two workers in Old Xu's family earn in a year?"

Chang Xifeng was a little unconvinced, "Then I don't do anything for a year, just kill a black bear and that's enough! What, isn't bear gall bladder money?"

Gao Yanhong got angry when she heard that. She glared at him and said, "Can you fight forever? Ah! Do you know how many people are left in the mountains after running away this year? Why don't you think about how the orphans and widows at home survive?"

Chang Xifeng said nothing, and Chang Beifeng dared not say anything either.

Zhang Yan said: "It's no wonder my sister-in-law always scolds you two. You are looking too close. Why don't you look further ahead?"

After a while, Chang Xifeng threw away his cigarette butt and sighed, "How much does the bear meat cost?"

"It's good enough if you can sell it, otherwise you should just keep it and have offspring!"

Gao Yanhong continued, "I heard from Auntie Lao Bai a while ago that the roe deer meat Lao Jiang bought was quite cheap. I guess bear meat can't be too expensive."

Chang Beifeng looked up and said, "Sister-in-law, can you use the money from selling bear meat to buy me a gun?"

"What do you want the gun for? Shoot me!" Zhang Yan glared at him.

"No, why are you coming at me again? Last time in the old forest in the south, I bumped into an old leopard. If I had a gun in my hand, I would have shot it in the head, and the old leopard would have been ours! Why would I let Xu Er take him away?"

Chang Xifeng nodded: "Let's buy another gun, it will be more convenient for us to run in the mountains."

Gao Yanhong said, "Then buy one. Have you found one?"

"No, I thought of asking Li Feng to help me look for it."

"..."

The main road in Qing'an is quite wide. Xu Ning, who was walking towards home in the moonlight, was talking with Li Feng.

He told Li Feng about the twists and turns, and Li Feng was surprised and grateful, and told him about the pressure he was under recently.

Because he and Li San divided the family property, he only took away a few quilts, bowls, chopsticks and other daily necessities. Although after Old Dong left, he did not take away the water tanks and cabinets in the house.

But Li Feng lacked rice, flour, oil and seasonings. He had to support not only his wife and children, but also his sister-in-law Sun Cuiping and niece Li Tong. Should he rely on Li San? He might as well go begging in the mountains.

He still owed Du Shoucai 50 yuan, so the pressure was quite great.

Li San lives in an old house. He is sometimes crazy and sometimes stupid. Although he can cook his own meals sometimes, he still needs help from Li Feng, otherwise he will starve to death!

According to Li Feng, his father Li San was really crazy, and the villagers also said that Li San was possessed by a demon. But Xu Ning didn't quite believe it. He didn't believe that a selfish, sneaky, and shameless person would go crazy after the death of his eldest son Li Shan.

All we can say is that the living people of today have deceived the ghosts of the previous dynasty and are just pretending to be crazy and stupid. Their true colors will be revealed one day!

The two men stepped into the Xu family's courtyard. Li Feng straightened his collar, his heart pounding. Even the barking of dogs could not scare him. This was his first time entering the Xu family's door.

"Mom! Li Feng is here." Xu Ning pointed at Liu Lizhen, who was washing dishes in the outer room, and said.

Liu Lizhen pushed open the door and was startled to see Li Feng, but she smiled and said, "Li Feng is here, come in quickly."

Xu Ning turned around and took the bear paw from Li Feng, put it on the stove, and said, "I bought four bear paws from Chang Xifeng. Let's hang them next to the kitchen first."

"kindness."

Li Feng went into the house and greeted Liu Lizhen. What should he call her? He had to call her aunt, because they all lived in the same village, and the relatives in the village were related.

In the east room, Li Fuqiang and others had not left yet. Xu Laonian was drinking and lingering, and the table was cleared not long ago.

He lifted the door curtain and was stunned. He nodded to Li Feng and said with a smile: "Brother, what are you talking about? How much did it cost?"

"10 yuan each, 40 yuan in total."

"Ah, that's fine..."

This price was reasonable for Xu Ning, neither too much nor too little.

"Li Feng is here, come and have some tea."

Li Feng took the teacup from Xu Laonian with a bit of fear. Xu Ning glanced at him and felt that Li Feng seemed to have never seen the world. He was so terrified even towards Xu Laonian. If he met someone from the county compound, he would be trembling with fear.

"Li Feng, have a cigarette."

"Eh."

He sat on the edge of the kang and glanced awkwardly at the people in the room. Li Feng had seen them all before, but he didn't know what to say when he suddenly walked into the room.

Firstly, I felt ashamed when I thought about what Li San had done, and secondly, I felt that I was a little unworthy, after all, my family conditions were there.

His family was slightly better off than the poor, but not much better off. So when he came to Old Xu's family, which was better off, he naturally felt a little nervous.

Xu Ning leaned against the floor cabinet and told everyone what happened in Chang Xifeng's house. Everyone in the room looked at each other. Liu Daming looked at Xu Laonian as if he wanted to hear his opinion.

"Uncle, don't look at my dad. You have to discuss this matter with my uncle Jiang. What price did you agree with my uncle Jiang?"

Liu Daming took a puff of his cigarette and said, "1 yuan. If you buy more, it will be 8 yuan."

Xu Laonian asked: "If I buy bear meat from Chang Xifeng, wouldn't that make me a middleman? If I don't make money, what's the point of playing? If I make too much, how can I meet my fellow villagers when I go out?"

Wang Erli said, "Brother, this matter cannot be calculated that way. How much we can sell is up to us. Why doesn't Chang Xifeng sell it himself?"

Li Fuqiang said with a smile: "Second Uncle, what is the reputation of the Chang brothers in our village? Anyone who buys something from them will feel uncomfortable."

"Hahaha, there's nothing wrong with what Qiangzi said." After Xu Laonian finished laughing, he looked at Li Feng and said, "Li Feng, how much do you want to pay for the bear meat from your two uncles, and how much do you want to sell it for?"

Li Feng blinked and said, "I just talked to Xu Ning on the street. I think it will be fine to give him about 1 yuan, and then I will make cents and sell it."

After he finished speaking, everyone in the room looked at Xu Ning. Xu Laonian looked stern and asked, "What's the trick you gave me?"

"Yes, my uncle, Uncle Jiang, and my brother are all busy. Everyone should earn a little. How can they work in vain?"

Wang Erli nodded: "That's right, brother, there's nothing wrong with this."

"...Well, then go find Lao Jiang, and you two can figure out whether you can make this money. Daming, you can sell it in any way you want, but one thing is, don't let people talk about it behind your back, okay?"

"Know!"

Liu Daming stood up and looked at Xu Ning, saying, "Erning, aren't you going with us?"

Xu Ning said with a smile: "Why should I go with you guys? Just chat. If you really buy it, don't forget to give my brother's share first."

"Oh, I know. How could I forget Guoxing? If I buy meat, I'll have to ask him to go with me to Taiping to deliver it. So will you go up the mountain tomorrow?"

"Come on, come with me, Uncle Chang, for a walk in the mountains tomorrow."

"That's fine. Li Feng, let's go."

"Eh."

Li Feng stood up a little awkwardly, greeted Xu Laonian and others, and followed Liu Daming to the outer room.

"Let's go, Li Feng." Liu Lizhen asked.

"Hey, let's go, auntie."

"Come back when you have time."

"Hey, that's good."

In the east room, Xu Laonian squinted at Xu Ning and said, "Why are you doing this? It's a thankless task. If you don't figure it out, people will nag you for the rest of your life."

Xu Ning smiled and said, "Dad, you can't think like that. This is just a small business. The price was set before. It's up to them whether to buy or not.

Besides, isn't Liu Guangmin from the convenience store also a middleman? He buys goods on the street and sells them in the village. Isn't he also making a profit from the difference? Why doesn't anyone say anything about him?
What's so great about selling bear meat? My uncle and Liu Guangmin just need a store. So if we open a store in the future, we won't make any money and we'll give it all to the workers, right?"

Xu Laonian was very angry when he heard what he said, but when he thought about it carefully, it made a lot of sense.

I could only stare at him and angrily said, "You little bastard, whatever you say is right!"

"Hahaha……"

There was laughter in the house.

……

Jiang Qiuer was doing her homework at the desk that Lao Jiang had specially ordered from Meng Quezi, while Lao Jiang was sitting on a small stool, washing clothes in a wooden basin. Hearing the noise outside, he stood up and walked to the dim outer room, opened the door and asked, "Who is it?"

Outside the closed door, Liu Daming shouted, "Brother Jiang, it's me!"

"Ah, wait a minute!" Lao Jiang picked up the rag on the stove, rubbed his hands, and quickly walked out the door.

When he opened the gate, he saw Liu Daming and Li Feng. If Liu Daming came alone, Lao Jiang would invite him in, but he was not familiar with Li Feng, so he didn't say anything.

Liu Daming didn't argue. He stood at the door, handed the two men a cigarette, and then told them the whole story in general terms.

Lao Jiang nodded after hearing this: "What does Er Ning mean?"

"Well, my brother-in-law said that we buy and sell goods to make a profit, so we are middlemen, and we are afraid that the villagers will say something bad about us."

Old Jiang threw away his cigarette butt and said, "Brother, there is nothing wrong with what you said, but even if we killed this black bear ourselves, hasn't the price been set? If you and I don't say anything, and the Chang family doesn't say anything, who can complain?"

Liu Daming asked: "Then let's go and study it?"

"Okay, I'll go back to the house."

After Lao Jiang said something to Jiang Qiu'er, he put on his cotton jacket and went out. The temperature dropped at night. Although it was not as cold as deep winter, a gust of cold wind made people shiver.

The three of them arrived at the door of the Chang family, greeted them and went in. Chang Xifeng and others went out to greet them, then escorted them into the house.

"Have you finished skinning it? How much do you want to sell it for?"

As soon as I entered the door, Lao Jiang was standing in the outer room, looking at the black bear on the ground and asked.

Neither he nor Liu Daming had any intention of entering the house. After all, they came here to discuss serious matters and did not want to have too much communication with the Chang brothers.

Li Feng looked at Gao Yanhong and asked, "Sister-in-law, can you tell me a price? Then I'll talk to them about how much you want to sell it for."

Gao Yanhong said: "I am an old woman, how can I know what the price is? You guys talk."

Chang Xifeng looked at Li Feng and said, "Feng, you have to earn some money too. You can't work for nothing."

Seeing the men hesitating, Lao Jiang frowned and said, "Let me tell you straight away, we have a set price in the two villages, 1 yuan per catty, but you have to let us make some money."

"That's for sure. No one can work in vain!" Gao Yanhong said with a smile, "Boss, give me a price."

Chang Xifeng said, "How about 1 yuan? Give Feng 2 cents and you can earn 1 cents. Is that ok?"

Liu Daming smiled when he heard this and said, "Li Feng, if you agree, you will have to smash the meat in your hands."

Li Feng glanced at him and Lao Jiang, then turned and said, "Brother, please give us a little more space."

At this time, Lao Jiang made a prompt decision and said, "This is the last price. If you want to sell it, then sell it. If you don't want to sell it, forget it. I can give you one dollar for the bear meat I bought from Li Feng. If you want more, forget it."

"One dollar?" Chang Beifeng exclaimed. Just as he was about to continue speaking, Zhang Yan slapped him twice.

Chang Xifeng looked at Lao Jiang, then at Li Feng and Gao Yanhong. Seeing Gao Yanhong nod, he said, "One dollar is fine."

Liu Daming said with a smile: "Why don't you let Li Feng earn some money? You are my uncle and brother-in-law after all."

Gao Yanhong clapped her hands and said, "Then Feng must make some money. Feng, you can charge 9 cents for the meat. You can at least make more than ten yuan for so much meat."

"Okay! Thank you, sister-in-law."

"Why are you being so polite? We are all family."

In this way, Li Feng earned more than ten dollars without doing anything. It seems quite stupid, but Lao Jiang, Liu Daming and the Chang brothers must have a middleman to do business, otherwise there will be trouble later.

While weighing the bears, Chang Xifeng cut some bear meat and bear oil, threw one portion into an aluminum basin, and put the other portion into a cloth bag. This portion was for Li Feng, if not for his sake, then for the sake of his younger sister Chang Lihong.

Then, Chang Beifeng and Li Feng started to cut the black bear into pieces. What Lao Jiang mentioned just now was the price of pure meat without bones. If it was with bones, the price would be one cent lower.

The clean meat was put into a sack and weighed, and the final weight was 206 kilograms. This was the weight after removing the bear skin, head, paws, bones, and the weight of several pieces of bear meat and bear oil cut by Chang Xifeng.

This black bear is a mother and her son. After a whole winter of consumption, they still have so much meat. You can imagine how much it weighed last autumn. It must be no less than 450 kilograms, which is quite heavy for a female bear!

(End of this chapter)