Chapter 738

Li Long skinned and gutted them, while Li Anguo and Chen Li Rong turned the intestines and washed the stomachs. By the time the skins of the two wolves and one red deer were all peeled off and the meat was unloaded, the intestines, stomachs, and such over there were also cleaned up.

"Second brother, my idea is for you to keep one wolf, and you also keep half of this red deer; I'll haul the rest back." Li Long pointed to the meat that had been unloaded and spread on the skins and said.

Li Anguo hurriedly waved his hand:

"We can't eat that much; we'll keep the meat of one wolf, that's enough. How could we eat so much..."

"Just set your mind at ease and keep it." Li Long smiled and said, "I expanded the Old Horse Pen and raised more than two hundred sheep in there, as well as a dozen cattle. If I run into anything on the way back, I can still hunt a bit; don't be polite with me."

Since he said so, Li Anguo didn't decline anymore. He knew this younger brother had great abilities and was a good hand at hunting; he didn't expect him to be raising sheep too.

Actually, after becoming a worker at the Construction and Installation Company, Li Anguo was a bit arrogant, feeling that he was a worker, while his elder brother and younger brother were both farmers.

But when he calmed down to think, he felt that his life as a worker was not as enjoyable as he had imagined.

At least in terms of making money, it was much less than when he worked with Li Long before.

Of course, this worker status not only has a fixed salary, but life in the city is different from that in the countryside. He, as a worker, basically doesn't have to do much work in winter, which is equivalent to a hidden benefit; after all, they still pay you even if you don't work, where else can you find that?

Of course, it's better than some but worse than others; among farmers, those like Li Long are a minority after all. Li Anguo actually felt a bit ashamed in his heart when accepting Li Long's "relief."

As an elder brother, one usually takes care of the younger brother, but when it comes to his house, it's the other way around; it's the younger brother relieving the elder brother.

Li Anguo was even getting used to it!

This is not good!

Li Long didn't know that his second brother had so much inner drama at this moment. He packed a portion of the meat he was prepared to take back, put the rest in another bag, and said:

"Second brother, I'm going to see Section Chief Ma and bring him a few pieces of meat. You work in the company, so you still have to maintain a good relationship with this section chief—shall we go together?"

Li Anguo wasn't good at this; he didn't really want to go. Chen Li Rong gave him a push, and only then did Li Anguo follow Li Long's footsteps somewhat reluctantly.

Chen Li Rong felt a bit powerless.

This husband of hers is good at everything and has ambition, but this ambition is limited to working hard. As for wanting him to build relationships with people above, that's truly harder than giving him a beating.

If he could be even thirty percent like Li Long, Li Anguo could have been a team leader by now.

Look at Li Long; even his elder brother Li Jianguo is better than Li Anguo in this regard.

However, although Chen Li Rong had some complaints in her heart, she wouldn't say them out loud. Didn't she marry Li Anguo back then because she saw that he was honest, steady, and not slippery?

Li Long drove the jeep and came to the front of Ma Aihong's courtyard with Li Anguo.

There were people walking on the road, and they were all a bit surprised to see the jeep coming.

The people living nearby were mostly from the Construction and Installation Company, and they also knew that this courtyard was Ma Aihong's. Now that this jeep, which only officials can ride in, has come here, what is this for?

Consequently, the fire of gossip burned fiercely all around; some people who were originally planning to go to the nearby dry toilet to squat were all holding back.

Li Long carried the bag and signaled for Li Anguo to knock on the door. Li Anguo didn't want to move, so Li Long stuffed the bag into his hand and knocked on the door himself.

Ma Aihong was at home listening to the radio. Hearing the knock, he looked at his wife who was wiping the table.

His wife rolled her eyes at him, signaling that she was wearing pajamas, so Ma Aihong had no choice but to stand up, drape his clothes over his shoulders, and go to open the door, shouting as he walked:

"Who is it?"

"Section Chief Ma, it's me, Little Li, Li Long." Li Long didn't stand on ceremony either, and as for whether Ma Aihong still knew who Li Long was, he didn't care.

Anyway, even if he forgot, mentioning Li Xiangqian would definitely make him remember.

Ma Aihong naturally knew who Li Long was. Once he heard it was him, he smiled and said:

"Little Li is here, wait a moment, I'll open the door."

Ma Aihong had an extremely good impression of Li Long. He opened the door and saw Li Long and Li Anguo together; only then did he remember that Li Anguo was Li Long's second brother, and he smiled and greeted the two of them to come in.

Seeing the things Li Anguo brought, Ma Aihong pretended to be angry and said:

"I say Little Li, we are our own people; I and your section chief are friends through life and death. Every time you come over and bring things, how distant that is!"

Of course, while he was speaking, his wife had already smiled and taken the things from Li Anguo's hand, weighing them; they were quite heavy.

She also remembered Li Long—to tell the truth, although he only came once or twice a year, every time he came, he brought solid, good things; how could she not remember?

"Section Chief, you already said you and our section chief are friends through life and death. Since I finally came here once, and the section chief asked me to come see you, how could I not bring things? My second brother also said that you often look after him in the company, so shouldn't we express our gratitude?"

Look at how well Li Long speaks. As for whether Ma Aihong looked after Li Anguo or not, that's hard to say, but since it was said this way, Ma Aihong would keep it in mind, and naturally, he would have an impression.

"This is red deer meat. Eating this deer meat in the middle of winter is quite nourishing; it's fine to stew it, braise it in soy sauce, or brine it." Li Long pointed to the bag and said, "Eat it first; if it's not enough later, I'll bring more over."

"It's enough, it's enough," Ma Aihong was not a very greedy person either. Since someone had the heart to send things, how could he dislike them or continue to ask for more?

He chatted with Li Long for a few sentences, asked about Li Xiangqian's situation, and also asked about Li Long's situation. Upon learning that Li Long's wife had given birth to twins, Ma Aihong was full of envy.

Even Ma Aihong's wife, after hearing that Li Long had twins, also said enviously:

"Little Li is blessed; to be able to have a pair, the two brothers will definitely be able to support each other in the future."

At this time, people feel that having more children is good; it's not necessarily that they are thinking about raising children to provide for old age or anything.

Most people's habitual thinking is still that having siblings means having mutual support, having relatives to visit, and not being lonely when old.

Although many people will be very difficult when they are old, more elderly people, after they are old, think about how not to leave a burden for their children, doing as much as they can by themselves.

Regarding this kind of envy, Li Long always accepted it with a natural smile. Although the reason for having twins was most likely that Gu Xiaoxia had the genetic predisposition for it, this also had his contribution, right?

Li Long didn't stay long either; after half an hour, he left with Li Anguo. When Ma Aihong saw the two brothers off, he even told Li Anguo at the door to come over and sit often when he had time.

Halfway out, Li Anguo suddenly said to Li Long:

"Little Long, it seems I really have to learn from you; Section Chief Ma is a good person, but before, when you weren't here, I didn't really interact with people..."

Li Long understood; his second brother, and even his elder brother, didn't really know how to curry favor with leaders.

Literally, this is not a derogatory term either; it's just that kind of normal human relationship. Actually, with Li Long as an intermediary, it was quite easy for Li Anguo to connect with Ma Aihong; it's just that he might have been worried about what others would say, or he didn't know how to interact with leaders, so this resource was shelved.

Now that Li Long brought him over again, if he still couldn't come to his senses, he would be too stupid.

Li Long smiled and didn't speak, driving back to the courtyard his second brother and the others were renting.

What surprised him a bit was that Li Junshan and Yang Yongqiang were both in the courtyard, and Li Xue Qin and Xueping had also finished school and were playing in the courtyard.

A scent of meat permeated the small courtyard, very enticing.

"Uncle Little Long." Li Junshan greeted Li Long, his smile a bit reserved, while Yang Yongqiang, after greeting Li Long, said with some complaint:

"Brother Long, if I had known you were coming back, I would have asked my family to bring some salted vegetables. The food here is too bland..."

"Haha, it's fine, I'll come again in a while." Li Long said with a smile, "If you have nothing to do, see if you want to go back with me today?"

"Then when can you come back again?" Yang Yongqiang was moved; how could he not want to go home?

"Maybe four or five days, maybe five or six days, or maybe a week." Li Long thought that there were indeed Mongolian gazelles passing through this uninhabited zone, just not as many as last year, so he should come over with Li Xiangqian first to scout. If he came over at normal times and kept watch, he could keep watch on herds of Mongolian gazelles, and then he could notify Section Chief Qian.

Actually, Li Long wasn't sure if Section Chief Qian would still have time to come over to hunt after having a new position.

Yang Yongqiang thought for a moment and said:

"That's good, I'll go ask for leave now. Brother Long, you wait for me."

After saying this, he didn't reminisce anymore; he turned around and ran to ask for leave.

Li Long remembered the toys in the jeep, took them out for Li Xue Qin and Xueping, and the two children happily took the toys to play, only saying thank you to Li Long under Chen Li Rong's reminder.

It's not that the two children were impolite; it's that they didn't have this habit. And they weren't very familiar with Li Long—seeing him once or twice a year, it would be strange if they were familiar.

"Junshan, how is it going with your partner? When are you getting married?" After entering the room, Li Long asked Li Junshan.

Li Junshan's expression wasn't very good; he lowered his head and didn't speak.

Li Anguo, while pouring water for Li Long on the side, said:

"Junshan and his partner are getting along quite well, and they are engaged. According to his partner's family's wishes, it should be held here. According to Junshan's father's wishes, it should be held back in the hometown.

According to me, why not hold one on each side? As a result, Junshan's father doesn't want to come over... He said that anyway, since it's held in the hometown, his in-laws won't go over, so why not just hold them separately, and the in-laws here aren't willing..."

Li Long had no way to mediate.

These kinds of family trivialities were not his strong suit; otherwise, he wouldn't have ended up like that in his previous life.

Li Junshan raised his head and looked at Li Long as if asking for help.

Li Long thought and said:

"Since your father isn't coming, then when it's held, we'll come over. My father and mother can go over; anyway, they are elders... Do you think that's okay?"

Li Junshan's eyes lit up; this would definitely work.

!

Actually, he had thought about letting Li Anguo and his wife act as elders, but these people knew Li Anguo's background too well, so it wasn't good for them to act as such.

Li Qing Xia was a proper elder; if he were present at the wedding, he would definitely be able to hold the fort.

"At that time, I'll call Section Chief Ma over. By the way, I'll see if I can invite Factory Director Du from the Agricultural Machinery Factory, and we'll all attend together; it'll count as giving the groom some face." Li Long planned and plotted, "Counting it this way, is that about enough?"

"That's too good!" Li Junshan's eyes lit up, "Can it really work?"

"Then I'll go back and tell my father; it shouldn't be a problem." Li Long felt that with Father Li Qing Xia's personality, he would quite like to join in the fun for such things.

In the Northern Frontier, the Li family had the highest seniority with him; if he didn't show his face, who would?

Li Junshan could be considered to have taken root in the Northern Frontier from now on; it was probably for this reason that his father didn't want to come over. After all, Li Junshan had settled down here, while he was still staying in the hometown; coming back and forth might be quite troublesome. Of course, there might be other factors.

Li Long was just guessing; the specific truth was impossible to verify. He was just thinking about talking to Li Qing Xia after going back, and after confirming this matter, he would talk about the follow-up.

"Then when do you plan to hold it?" Li Long asked, "Is there a set date?"

"No, isn't it because my father and mother aren't coming over, so it's stuck here." Knowing that Li Qing Xia could come over, Li Junshan had a smile on his face, "Tomorrow I'll go over and discuss it with her family—"

"Then you are getting married, what about the house?" Li Long asked.

It's unlikely that houses will be distributed directly; after all, Li Anguo and the others are all renting houses, and those who get married later like Li Junshan will definitely have to wait in line.

"I've saved some money, and I plan to borrow some more, and then buy a small courtyard." Li Junshan had now regained his enthusiasm for life, "At that time, the two of us will pay it back together."

"Fine, as long as you have an idea." Li Long nodded. Li Junshan worked here and didn't need to take care of a whole family like Li Anguo, so the money he saved might be a bit more.

In the mid-eighties, houses in the urban-rural fringe of Kuitun City were not expensive either. The Construction and Installation Company itself was located in a relatively remote area, so buying a courtyard nearby was not expensive.

The matter was basically settled like this.

After a while, Chen Li Rong served the boiled meat—mainly offal, as well as dipping sauce. The stomachs and intestines were cut into small pieces, and there was also some boiled meat—more ingredients were used when boiling the meat, so one could smell the meat fragrance and the ingredient fragrance, as well as a faint mutton smell, which was not very strong.

Li Anguo greeted Li Long and Li Junshan and the others to eat. The two children had already started eating in the kitchen.

Yang Yongqiang hurried over, carrying a black bag.

"Brother Long, I've asked for leave; when are we going back?"

"We'll go back after eating in a while." Li Long looked outside; it was still bright, and he felt there was no need to stay here.

Driving a car, that hundred-kilometer road would take at most two hours; it was still more convenient to go home.

"Why are you in such a hurry?" Li Anguo tried to keep him, "It's not easy to come here once..."

"It's fine, I'll have to come over again in a few days." Li Long said, "Wait until Junshan sets the date, and then Father and Mother will come over too."

As for whether his elder brother would come or not, he would see at that time.

Eating meat and drinking soup, life was quite comfortable. Xueping and Li Xue Qin were also quite happy; now they already knew that every time their little uncle came over, life would be a bit better, even better than during the New Year.

After eating the meat, Li Long said goodbye to his second brother's family, took Yang Yongqiang, and drove the jeep south—Kuitun City was north of the Wuyi Road; first, one had to drive onto the Wuyi Highway, and then heading east was the direction to Shicheng and Maxian.

When the jeep drove onto the Wuyi Highway, the sun had already set behind the mountains, the sky in the west was red, and in a while, a cold breath began to permeate.

Although it was quite cold when there was sun, as long as there was no wind, there was still a feeling of warmth when the sunlight shone.

Once the sun set, there was only cold left.

Yang Yongqiang was very excited, asking Li Long from time to time about the various situations in the village team. He worked at the Construction and Installation Company and might not be able to come back once in a month or two. Traffic was very inconvenient at this time; there were no cars from the county seat to the village. Although one could almost not see wolves now, it didn't mean it was safe.

Now that he could ride a jeep home, it would be strange if Yang Yongqiang wasn't excited.

The sky slowly darkened, but not to the point where one couldn't see. After Li Long drove past Anjihai and reached the uninhabited zone again, he suddenly saw a large black shadow in front of him quickly crossing the road and running south.

Li Long hurriedly stopped the car, and when he looked carefully, he discovered that it was actually a large group of red deer!

There must have been at least forty or fifty!

Li Long had just intended to take his gun down, but those red deer had already run far away. When he got out of the car and looked at those guys again, they had already darted into the low shrubbery to the south. Although with Li Long's eyesight he could still see those red deer, he discovered that those guys had stopped after crossing the road and running for a hundred or two hundred meters, and then they walked forward slowly, or even stopped.

It seems these red deer also know that this road is not safe!

Even the red deer have become smart. No wonder he didn't see Mongolian gazelles when he came over during the day.

However, Li Long was completely relieved now; he had been worried about not having prey. It turned out that wasn't the case; these animals had changed the time to run into the mountains.

The distance was too far, and it was a bit blurry, so Li Long didn't fire his gun and got back into the car.

Yang Yongqiang followed him into the car and asked:

"Brother Long, what was that?"

His eyesight wasn't as good as Li Long's, and he hadn't seen clearly what those things were.

"Mongolian gazelles." Li Long said, "A large group of Mongolian gazelles ran past to the south."

"Sigh, it's just nighttime; if it were daytime, we could have hunted a few, right?" Yang Yongqiang also wanted to hunt, but he didn't have a gun, so he could only think about it.

Li Long turned on the jeep's headlights and continued driving forward.

Occasionally, he could still see things running in the snow on the side of the road. Li Long didn't bother with them either; as long as he knew there were things there, he would make a detailed plan on how to handle it after going back.

He drove all the way past Shawan County, and when he was about to reach Wulanwusu, the jeep's lights happened to shine on a group of Mongolian gazelles running south. This time, Li Long didn't have any hesitation; he stepped on the brake, and before the car had even stopped steadily, he grabbed his gun and darted out of the car, ran to the side of the car, half-squatted, aimed at the Mongolian gazelles thirty or forty meters away, and fired "Bang, bang, bang!"

Yang Yongqiang, who was sitting in the passenger seat, hadn't come to his senses yet, but Li Long had already fired. He hurriedly opened the car door and jumped down, seeing the Mongolian gazelle herd exploding and fleeing in all directions in the distance, his mood became excited.

If only I had a gun at this time, how good would that be! (End of chapter)