Living in the mountains and forests as hunters

Chapter 21

An Dalang went home not long after noon, instead of carrying a big basket on his back, he carried the eldest two baskets on a shoulder pole, and walked on the mountain road with difficulty. It's so heavy, he can't do anything about it!At this time, how much money can people save? Most people rely on barter to get what they need. Usually, when they buy some necessary rice noodles, they usually bring their own homemade things to the town to sell first. I went to buy it, and now An Dalang delivered the goods to their door, which saved them a lot of travel, but the act of exchanging goods is no longer there, isn't it!Fortunately, An Dalang is not easy to be flexible. There are already precedents in broken rice and quilts.After An Dalang suggested that they could exchange things, each family immediately accepted it. Although Mrs. Zhao Qian was very shrewd to help propose that it would be [-]% less than the price on the market, but everyone should think about it. At first, no one can say whether the price of the goods in the market will be lower than usual, not to mention how long it will take to climb mountains and wading all the way, at least we should leave some walking money for An Dalang, right?

Of course, in this way, An Dalang received more things, and each family was quite satisfied. They didn’t have to travel far, and they could get what they wanted. Although in this way, what did An Dalang think? They all mean small businessmen.But An Dalang is satisfied in his heart, he is very smart now!These classes used to make up for the meat are all good things that can be sold for a lot of money at my daughter-in-law!The rattle, the bamboo hat, the coir raincoat, the basket, the sieve, and the fish basket are all handmade, and everything looks very meticulous. The craftsmanship of the people in the village is actually pretty good!It's the same as those bamboo stools and straw sandals!Although in this way, his family really received less copper coins, but now he really doesn't think it's bad, and the family doesn't wait for copper coins to buy rice, besides, anyway, if he really wants copper coins, he still has There are other ways, right?

With the satisfaction in his heart, An Dalang walked home quickly, and when he got home, he put those things in front of Zhao Yiyi with a smile, and the bag of copper coins, with a face begging for praise, Zhao Yiyi saw that Yiyi wanted to laugh out loud, rolled her eyes, turned around and ignored him, counted carefully, and there were more than 400 copper coins. Thinking about what was left at home last time, there were 3000 coins, and she felt at ease. To be clear, there is a period of time after the beginning of spring that the animals are in estrus. According to the rules in this mountain, hunting at this time is very taboo. Although there is no animal protection law here, everyone in the mountain knows that only animals that are given to reproduce If there is a gap, they will not have no prey to hunt in the future. This is the unspoken rule left by their ancestors for generations, not to kill pregnant animals, and not to attack prey during estrus.So in spring, if you want to eat meat, you can only buy some domestic chickens. Like Zhao Yiyi and the others, after autumn and winter, they often have meat, I'm afraid they can't help it. It cost a lot of money!It is for this reason that it is necessary for them to save money at this time.

There are also those handmade products. Zhao Yiyi is very happy to see them, and they send them to their grocery store. The rattle is 15 yuan each, and there are four in total, which is 60 yuan; the bamboo hats are available from 35 to 60. Different styles mean different prices, a total of twelve, worth 480 yuan, two sets of coir raincoats, a total of 200 yuan; four bamboo fish baskets, 80 yuan; three bamboo sieves, 45 yuan; 3 bamboo baskets, 90 yuan; Four bamboo steamers, 240 yuan, 1195 yuan in one go, really fast!In addition to the straw sandals I made today, the grocery store has assets of more than 2000 yuan, which is really fast!

"Dalang, these coir raincoats, bamboo hats, and steamers are all good prices! It would be great if we could charge more, and besides, we can use this steamer at home! I'm thinking about steaming it in a few days. Eating steamed buns! Think about it, where can I get some more."

Zhao Yiyi had an idea, she had to rely on her own man for what to do, and the five big and three rough ones couldn't be left alone, they were very useful!No, she just asked, and An Dalang said:
"I thought about it when I came back. When the snow stops, I will go to Dingshan Village, which is Wangjiagou. I can also go to Qinjiacun. Isn't the third aunt in Wangjiagou? This time I will go to your mother's house. My mother-in-law said, Third Aunt went there and looked at the broken rice, and felt that the quilt was good. Uncle Lin also said last time that some people in Dingshan Village also want this broken rice. It is the closest to Yezhu Ridge, and Xiong Xiazi is also afraid of them. The whole village is full of hunters. They are amazing. They are used to making bedding and clothes with leather. Uncle is more familiar with it, so let him change it for you. Aunt Lin is from Qinjia Village. By the way, Erwa said that the brothers from the Wu family on the mountain in the south asked him to tell him that they wanted to exchange three pieces of rabbit skins. For the price of one quilt, I also agreed to replace it with two quilts. In this way, we can get better replacements!"

While An Dalang was talking, he quickly helped Zhao Yiyi with the manual work, and took her half-made straw sandals, while Zhao Yiyi was listening and counting the price, for fear of losing money.

"The things made of bamboo outside now range from five to ten wen. Even the good steamer is only 20 wen for such a big one. If you really use broken rice to exchange it, it's really suitable, but this quilt It's not that I said, we lowered the price from the beginning. In my shop, it costs 50 yuan, and it only sells for 30 yuan. It's because we only wanted to help people at the beginning, and didn't say too much. It won’t be a loss if you exchange losses with the Wu family for the first time. The rabbit fur outside is only 10 yuan, but it’s 50 yuan in the shop. It’s just this one time. When people ask again in the future, they say that the price is gone, and people’s old things are not at any time. There are all of them! If there are too many, people should be suspicious of something tricky in their hearts. The fabric alone is more than this price! It’s not always available for half-sale and half-free, but this old cotton jacket, you just say you have some, and you can open it for 30 The price of Wen, this is also cheaper than outside. I heard that the old clothes of Spring and Autumn outside, still with small patches, cost twenty or thirty Wen! See if they want it. The quantity is also determined Excuse me, let’s say there are only about 20 pieces, and it’s fine if they’re sold out. By the way, there’s also flour, which is easy to say, just like broken rice, which is sifted from the fine flour of rich households, but it’s white flour, and the price is also high. A little, ten yuan is enough, but the fine ones on the outside cost twelve yuan! There is also cloth, let’s separate the ones in the shop, and get three feet, five feet, and sell them like this, and the outside is 20 yuan a foot, you can also Selling it for [-] yuan a foot is just to save others a foot of money, and others don't need to be jealous when they look at it!"

The more Zhao Yiyi talked, the more energetic she became, the more she thought that the more things she could actually operate, the more confident she would be in raising the grocery store to a higher level. Even An Dalang's eyes were shining a little, he wasn't thinking about the grocery store. Instead, he thought about how much his savings would be if this continued!As a hunter who relies on mountains and rivers all year round, it is really not easy to have a deposit. Don’t look at this prey, which seems to be quite valuable when sold, but you have to know that it may take three to five days for this prey to meet your needs. It's worth the money, and the others can be replaced with some rice grains to eat enough. A pheasant can be sold for [-] yuan, which is a big price. How many meals can you eat in your stomach?
If you add the bows and arrows, daggers, etc. that the prey needs, these expensive things, then the cost of money will be even greater. A set of bows and arrows is worth 8 taels of silver, which is 8000 Wen. Do you think it is worth it? ?As for the set that An Dalang is using now, it has been handed down from three generations. It took a lot of effort to buy it back then. For this, he still needs to buy some arrows every year, and spend money to go to the blacksmith shop to buy bows. Hyun needs to take a break or something, otherwise there is no way to continue to use it, who makes this iron easy to rust!The intangible consumption is very large, which is even more troublesome!

Not to mention, when hunters chase their prey with physical strength, not to mention eating more than ordinary people, there is a greater chance of being injured. If there is something wrong with the disease, it is a truth that has not been discovered for thousands of years. The cost of seeing a doctor is comparable to eating It's even more worrying. If you post wound medicine, don't think about it if you don't have one or two taels. The mountain people have no land. There is something wrong, or there is no prey for a period of time, just like the Lin family, with a broken leg or something , then even eating has become a big problem, this is the pitiful lack of security!

But now!An Dalang sees the hope of making money!There are so many things that can be sold, not only to satisfy my daughter-in-law, but the money in the shop is getting more and more abundant, and even my small money jar is getting fuller and fuller. Even when his father was here, there was no So rich!I remember that my father and the people from Dingshan Village went hunting bears together. Just once, a bear was sold for 300 taels, and my father got a whole 40 taels of silver. It cost more than 20 taels to see a doctor and take medicine, not to mention two whole months. The family couldn't hunt anything. In the end, the money was not only food and drink for the family, but also father's tonic. A hatchet, two quilts, and a new set of clothes for each person.

Look at how it is so easy to make money now!An Dalang was happy and confused at the same time!
"What are you thinking!"

"Huh? Ah, it's nothing. Got it. By the way, daughter-in-law, I'll go collect herbs tomorrow, and the money will be quick to collect herbs! You still need 3000 in your shop!"

"It's dangerous to collect herbs in this weather. Don't go there. If you are free, go to the bamboo forest to dig bamboo shoots. We can eat the winter bamboo shoots ourselves, and we can sell them for money! 10 yuan a catty, it's considered heavy." It’s worth the money. By the way, you chopped up the bones first, and I made soup in the morning. Let’s have bone soup noodles today, and I’ve made the pork liver. It must be delicious.”

An Dalang was very obedient. After listening to his wife's words, he immediately got up and went to work. Zhao Yiyi packed up his things, then rolled up his sleeves, and began to cut the noodles. Although it was rough flour, it was ground by a machine after all. The ones made by the stone mill are much better. It is said to be rough, but it is just that there are many fine wheat husks in it. The color looks a little bad, and it tastes a little harsh. But where is this, what is this? condition?This kind of flour is already very good here, after all, it is also white flour!An Dalang looked at the flour with salivating eyes, it was something he had never tasted before in his whole life!Whether it is making pancakes or making noodles, he likes it all.

Looking up again at the daughter-in-law who was cutting noodles on the table, An Dalang couldn't help grinning, the daughter-in-law is so nice!Whether the cooking is good or the food is good, how can I be so blessed!
(End of this chapter)