Chapter 23

By the stove, there were three deer antlers, all larger than the one he got yesterday.

Li Long just took a look, and then handed the things he bought to Halimu.

"This is tea leaves, this is salt, this is rock sugar." After taking them out one by one, he finally took out the fruit candy and handed it to the old woman, Halimu's mother, and said:

"A gift for you!"

The old woman couldn't speak Chinese, took the things, greeted Li Long and the others to sit down with a smile, then let Halimu's wife prepare milk tea, while she grabbed a handful of fruit candy and distributed it to her grandson.

After Li Long and the others took off their shoes and got on the wooden heated brick bed, Halimu also sat over and said:

"After you left yesterday, I went to find other people who herd sheep. Indeed, there were households that had sheep that froze to death, they didn't want money, they wanted tea leaves. I gave them tea leaves, and hauled back two sheep. By the way, also that."

He pointed to the deer antlers.

Li Long took the milk tea handed over by the woman, put down the tea bowl, took out the paper package from his pocket and handed it to Halimu:

"This is twenty bullets."

Halimu unwrapped the paper package and looked, he was overjoyed:

"Really too good! Wolves came last night, I didn't sleep well at all last night! With bullets, I can shoot the wolves! Brother Li Long, you really helped me a lot!"

Li Long drank a sip of milk tea and said with a smile:

"We are mutually beneficial. You helped me find frozen sheep, found deer antlers, I helped you find these things, it's all as it should be."

"Right, right, right, mutual... help!" Halimu's Chinese was a bit stiff, but he could express his meaning very well, "After winter passes and spring comes, if I can shoot wild boars or something, you come over to haul!"

At noon, Halimu showed Li Long how a Kazakh man slaughters a sheep within a few minutes.

Li Long had been refusing, trying to stop Halimu from slaughtering the sheep, but Halimu's family all thought that this sheep must be slaughtered, otherwise it would be unfair to Li Long, this intimate guest.

Halimu also said: "We don't have much fodder prepared. This year the snow is particularly heavy, cattle and sheep can't eat the grass under the snow, some sheep won't survive until the snow melts in spring, slaughtering them now still has some fat, otherwise when it's almost spring, they will also starve to death."

Li Long is clear about the harm of the snow disaster. He remembered that a few years after his previous life, the township also called on students to donate fodder to help herdsmen in the pastoral areas. At that time, it was a snow disaster and insect disaster, which led to insufficient fodder for herdsmen.

Perhaps what Halimu said was true, of course, it was more likely to cover up the fact that they specially slaughtered a sheep for Li Long.

At noon, they directly stewed mutton, only putting a little bit of salt, and melted snow water. Li Long could see that the two children were also staring at the meat in the pot.

Obviously, they also hadn't eaten meat like this for a long time.

Looking at the knuckle bones they piled in the corner, Li Long's heart moved, and he said to Nasen:

"Can you give me a few of your knuckle bones?"

Nasen didn't understand, but Halimu said a few words to Nasen.

Nasen looked at the knuckle bones, then looked at Li Long. Halimu said a few more words, Nasen looked at the fruit candy in his hand, and then pushed all those knuckle bones over.

Li Long said with a smile:

"Don't need so many. I have a nephew and niece, they like this, but don't have any, so I'm asking for a few for them."

Li Long took ten knuckle bones, there were about thirty or forty in that pile, ten wasn't many.

When the meat was cooked, everyone sat at the table and began to eat meat and gnaw bones.

Tao Daqiang couldn't let go, Li Long didn't stand on ceremony, since he came, and since it was cooked, then eat more. In the future when coming over, just bring more things here.

Halimu had bullets, shooting a few wolves would bring everything back.

After eating mutton, Li Long and the others drank mutton soup again, only then did they go out satisfied, put the two frozen sheep into the horse cart, and then he planned to get some pine wood to load on the cart. "I went to get some coal back yesterday." Halimu pointed behind the winter shelter, "But because I went by horse, I didn't bring much."

"Then you keep it to burn." Li Long knew that Halimu and the others also burned coal, so he didn't plan to haul this coal back.

"You load it up. We are close to that coal mine, can bring some back every few days. When you come next time, I can bring back more coal." Halimu was also very stubborn.

Li Long didn't refuse again, he and Tao Daqiang put the coal on the horse cart, loaded some pine wood, and finally the three deer antlers.

Li Long weighed them, these three deer antlers were about ten kilograms, according to the words of the person at the acquisition station, they could sell for thirty or forty yuan anyway.

He was about to have money in his pocket again!

"Li Long, whatever else you need, just tell me, when I have time I'll go find others, if I run into them I can trade for it."

With bullets, Halimu's courage was much stronger, and he could run to farther places. He felt he owed Li Long many favors, so naturally he hoped to be able to help Li Long.

"If you can shoot wild boars, it's best to save the wild boar's stomach." Li Long thought and said, "There are few things in winter, wait until summer, there are many medicinal materials, can also sell for money, and mushrooms..."

There are many good things in the mountains, but there are only a few in winter. There are brown bears in these mountains, which are larger than black bears, one weighs more than two or three hundred kilograms, if ordinary people run into them and want to provoke them, that's looking for death.

So Li Long wouldn't talk about these things, but wild boars, with a rifle in hand, Halimu also knew the severity, even if he couldn't shoot them dead, at least he could ensure his own safety.

But thinking that wild boars come down in groups at this time, he thought about bringing more bullets next time he comes.

!.

Bidding farewell to Halimu's family, Li Long and Tao Daqiang drove the horse cart down the mountain.

Arriving at the county town again, Li Long let Tao Daqiang wait outside, and he carried the three deer antlers into the acquisition station.

This time the person inside wasn't Chen Hongjun, but a middle-aged woman.

The woman looked at Li Long carrying the deer antlers, her heart was happy, but her face was still very calm, and she asked:

"You came to sell deer antlers?"

Seeing it wasn't Chen Hongjun, Li Long didn't answer directly, but asked:

"Let's look at the price first."

"These deer antlers..." The woman picked up the deer antlers Li Long put on the counter and looked at them carefully, saying:

"Looks not bad, but they've been frozen, and there are cracks, I'll give you two yuan per kilogram, this is already a high price, how about it?"

"Forget it." Li Long put away the deer antlers and prepared to leave. He remembered Chen Hongjun said he was here on Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays, so he would wait until Chen Hongjun came. Two yuan per kilogram, that would be selling for more than ten yuan less!

A small sheep was gone!

The woman didn't expect Li Long to be so straightforward, she immediately said:

"Then I'll raise it for you, two point five yuan, how about it?"

Li Long didn't even stop.

The woman also had tasks, helplessly watching Li Long already holding the deer antlers and walking to the door, only then said:

"Then three yuan, can't be higher!"

"Alright." Li Long turned around and put down the deer antlers.

This woman hated Li Long a bit, he really didn't see the rabbit and wouldn't let the eagle go. Not many people who came here to sell things would bargain. This allowed her to accept many good things at low prices.

Hitting a nail at Li Long's place made her feel very uncomfortable.

(End of chapter)