Rebirth of Bayi Fishing and Hunting in the Northwest

In this life, Li Long has never participated in a live event, but he did in his previous life.

After the large-scale drip irrigation water-saving project of Team 4 in the previous life was completed, the county held an on-site meeting in the team.

The team itself didn't really know how to do this, but there were some capable people on the project team. They gave the team a simple and straightforward introduction, saying that this thing was just to demonstrate the benefits of drip irrigation in the fields, and then answer the questions from the people who came to visit the site.

So there are mainly two things: one is to visit the featured attractions, and the other is to answer questions.

Li Long knew this, but the two Yangs didn't know that Li Long knew it. So Professor Yang carefully explained the specific agenda of the meeting to Li Long, as well as what he needed to do.

"You mean I'll be the one to introduce the features of this drip irrigation experimental field?" Li Long smiled and said, "Shouldn't that be something you guys do? After all, I'm just one of the participants."

"You, whether you are professors, students, or teachers at the agricultural extension school, are all more suitable than me, aren't you?"

"This is an agricultural project, and having a farmer like yourself introduce it is more in line with the original intention of our experimental project," Professor Yang said.

"Ultimately, this experimental project needs to be implemented, and the target for its promotion is the vast rural areas, which is you. Therefore, it would be more in line with the significance of this project if you, or if you, as farmers, could introduce it."

Li Long thought to himself, "Why is a drip irrigation experiment project worth tens of thousands of yuan being made so high-end?"

However, when he thought about the follow-up projects Professor Yang mentioned, he felt that there was some truth to it.

"Alright, I'll do it. When is the event?"

He needs to know the exact time to set the tone for the presentation. After all, the content presented differs between the cotton seedling stage and the flowering stage.

“Late May,” Professor Yang said. “We originally planned to convert the ten acres of ordinary farmland we planted last year into drip irrigation fields.”

That won't work now. We need to do it the same way as last year: half experimental field and half regular field. That way, we can make comparisons during on-site meetings.

"Okay." With a specific timeframe in mind, Li Long knew the key points to focus on in his presentation.

“Now let’s go over what we’ll be introducing,” Professor Yang said. “Let’s identify a few specific points, and you can use your farmers’ language to introduce them.”

Li Long smiled and said:
"I think the main aspects are as follows: First, what are the initial construction aspects of this drip irrigation experimental field?"

This can be explained by comparing it to the actual site, such as drip irrigation tape, pump room, filter pool, etc., and you should also explain their main functions.

The second item is the current growth status of seedlings in the drip irrigation experimental field. This will be presented on-site in comparison with the seedlings in ordinary fields, which will be more intuitive.

The third point is cost. Currently, the biggest hurdle from experimentation to widespread adoption is the high cost. I will explain here that the main obstacle is the price of drip irrigation tape.

“Yes, yes, yes,” Professor Yang said, somewhat surprised and delighted. “You’re quite something, Li Long. These are the very aspects I was thinking about.”

"As long as I don't use your technical jargon, I have no problem giving these presentations."

Of course, we also need to see if you have any other requirements, such as what aspects to emphasize when answering questions, and whether complete objectivity is required.

“Although you have a good grasp of the situation, I think we still need a basic draft,” Professor Yang said. “We have one month left, can you finish it?”

If that's not feasible, I'll have my students figure it out, and then we'll discuss and improve it together. Once this is finalized, it needs to be reported to the department head; only after their approval can we finalize it.

"Then let your students handle it. I can talk, but as for writing, my education level isn't high enough, and I'm not good at that."

"I think you're not bad at it, you're just lazy," Principal Yang joked from the side.

"No, that's not true," Li Long explained earnestly. "I'm really not good at this."

“Alright, alright, you’re not good at this.” Professor Yang didn’t ask Li Long to write it. “We’ll write the materials, but we’ll definitely need to work together to finish the rest afterward.”

"Don't worry about that. I'll be there whenever you call," Li Long assured him.

The two Yangs went to find someone to write the report. They wanted Li Long to stay for dinner, but he declined and drove to the fourth team.

The cooperative was also preparing agricultural supplies in advance. When Li Long arrived, his older brother had just gotten off a high-powered tractor.

"Brother, are you going to plow the fields?"

“Yes, many plots of land in the team are ready for planting, and some people are even clearing wasteland at this time. I don’t know what they’re thinking,” Li Jianguo said.

The cab of the high-horsepower tractor is well-sealed, so every time I come back from plowing, I'm no longer covered in dust like I used to get off the Dongfanghong 75.

It was clean now, so Li Jianguo just went over and washed his hands.

Li Long followed his older brother over and whispered to him:
"Brother, I've got some good stuff, let me show you!"

"What good stuff?" Li Jianguo asked suspiciously. "Where did you get it?"

"It's from the mountains." Li Long had his older brother follow him to the Land Cruiser. He opened the trunk and said in a low voice, "Take a look."

He handed the well-preserved saber, still in its sheath, to his elder brother.

"Did you find another treasure cave in the mountains?" Li Jianguo asked, somewhat surprised, as he took the saber.

He drew the knife, felt its cold gleam, and nodded, saying:
"This knife is good; it can be used to cut people!"

“And this too.” Li Long then showed off the Mauser pistol.

"What did we do with this thing?" Li Jianguo wasn't bothered by the saber, but when he saw the Mauser pistol, he frowned and said, "This isn't anything good!"

"When I was a kid, I watched movies and thought the people in those movies looked so cool holding these things!"

"This is no good!" Li Jianguo sheathed his saber, shook his head, and said:
"Did you get this from the mountains? Let me tell you, carrying this will easily bring you trouble."

You have a long gun; that's registered and legal. This thing is different; it's illegal. If it gets out one day and someone finds out and sues you, you won't be able to handle it!

After his older brother said that, Li Long also felt that he should keep it a secret, and said, "Then I won't tell anyone else."

“It’s best not to take it; hand it over or destroy it,” Li Jianguo said. “Back in those ten years, I was also in an organization.”

Although they did not participate in the armed conflict, the basket they collected mainly contained black stars, which are May Fourth.

Some people were eyeing them and wanted to take one to play with. Anyway, I didn't take any and handed them all in.

Later, during the investigation, it was discovered that this thing was not like a rifle; the latter was of a different nature. They found out that he had secretly taken a Type 54 pistol.

He already had a job, but then he got fired. Let me tell you, Xiaolong, you'd better keep this yourself; it'll only bring trouble.

Li Long nodded, indicating that he understood.

Li Jianguo, holding the saber, emphasized to Li Long once again that he should be more cautious.

Li Long nodded again. However, he still hadn't figured out what to do with the pistols.

I'll hand it over. There's no particularly good reason. After all, I just handed over my saber and rifle. If I hand over my pistol now, it'll easily arouse suspicion.

It would be a shame to destroy it.

Even after having lunch at his elder brother's house and checking on Xie Yundong and his team's preparations at the cooperative's courtyard, Li Long still hadn't decided how to handle the pistols.

I decided to stop thinking about it. At worst, I could keep it for now and hand it over along with my rifle and pistol once the gun ban was officially issued in China.

Anyway, it won't be many years left.

Xie Yundong was very skilled at running the cooperative, so Li Long didn't get involved much. However, Xie Yundong told Li Long that several other families had recently wanted to join the cooperative, but he had turned them down.

But this isn't a long-term solution. As the cooperative becomes more and more successful, if they don't add more members, people will become envious.

"It's alright. After we distribute the profits at the end of this year, we'll ask those who want to join to prepare their money. If they want to invest, they'll have to take out their next year's expenses first."

Li Long had also considered this issue. The cooperative's goal was to grow bigger and stronger, not to remain stagnant. It could selectively accept some people, allowing the cooperative to acquire more land and making it easier to control its intensive and large-scale operations in the future.

The main reason for not joining in the first two years was to test and finalize the cooperative's development model. After all, this model integrates elements from over twenty years ago with some later developments.

Whether it's suitable for this era is still uncertain. But since it seems suitable now, let's expand and grow.

Of course, it can't be too big either. Li Long is basically certain that even if he wins the autonomous region's drip irrigation support project, the scale won't be too large.

It probably won't exceed two or three thousand acres. After all, funds are limited, and it seems like they're being scattered like pepper; they can't possibly allocate all of it to one place.

Hearing Li Long's words, Xie Yundong smiled and said, "That's good. I'm tired of having these people around me every day. Now that we have some definite news, these people should shut up."

"Make it clear to them that not just anyone can join, and our cooperative is not a dumping ground for garbage."

The land parcel must first be adjacent to our cooperative's land, forming a contiguous area.

The money must be payable in full, all at once, without delay.

Li Long established these matters as if they were three rules.

Xie Yundong naturally understood that everything Li Long said was beneficial to the cooperative.

This is in everyone's best interest, and he promises to make sure those people understand.

To avoid a situation where a bunch of people apply to join and then complain when they can't get in.

Xie Yundong said he knew and would explain it clearly.

After returning to the courtyard, Li Long immediately collected the two Mauser pistols and two revolvers, along with their ammunition, and hid them in the cellar where he kept his most precious possessions.

Li Long would take these things out from time to time to maintain them. He knew those gold medals were definitely good items, but he didn't know exactly what they were.

Looking at it, he realized that since he got his first gold nugget, he had accumulated more than a dozen gold nuggets of various sizes, as well as a lot of other miscellaneous items.

It would be worth a lot of money if sold now, but Li Long knows it will be worth even more if left for another twenty years.

Of course, he's not short of money, so he can just keep these things as collectibles.

Every day after that, Li Long would go to the mountains to check on the construction progress of the hot spring resort. Meng Hai and his team were working very quickly; the asphalt road was being built faster than the courtyard itself.

The day after the road was repaired, the courtyard wall was erected. The wall, over two meters high, could keep out even the most virtuous people. Those who make a living in the mountains generally wouldn't bother climbing over it.

After the road repairmen finished repairing the road, they went to dig a ditch to draw water from the hot water upstream into the yard.

After the ditch was dug, pipes were laid to bring the water in.

To Li Long's surprise, they had implemented a dual-pipe design: one pipe led to the open and closed hot springs in the courtyard, and the other pipe led to the radiators in the rooms.

Hot water drawn from upstream passes through the radiators in the house, and the house immediately warms up.

Furthermore, the water supply has a valve. If you feel hot in the summer, you can turn off the water.

Li Long was very interested in Meng Hai's addition of this design, thinking it was really good. It saved them from having to use a boiler in the dead of winter, and it was much more advanced than a boiler.

Meng Hai hadn't expected that his impromptu little design would make Li Long so happy, and he was quite pleased with himself.

The construction team worked quickly, and in less than ten days, the entire yard and house were finished. All that was left was the interior decoration and furniture.

Li Long also entrusted this task to Meng Hai, asking him to help with the arrangements while he himself would be responsible for the inspection.

On April 10th, some farmers from the fourth team couldn't wait to start planting, so Liu Gaolou led a long convoy of vehicles to the purchasing station.

"Hey, you've got another Kamaz this time!" Li Long was genuinely surprised to see the four Kamaz tanks leading the way. "Your second uncle is really something!"

The Kamaz heavy trucks were carrying their own spare parts, while the trucks following behind were not carrying leather and antelope horns, but were all carrying cars.

“I brought twenty-one trucks this time. Four Kamaz trucks and the seven trucks behind them are for you. The remaining ten trucks are for sugar and canned goods.”

Liu Gaolou's purpose in coming here was clear: of the seventeen cars he brought, there were five Mercedes-Benzes, three Land Cruisers, two Volga SUVs, and the rest were Volga vehicles.

“The people my second uncle sent told me that cars are very cheap there now, and they are selective in what they buy, almost all of them are brand new or have been driven for less than a year or two.”

Li Long himself could tell that these cars that had been brought over were really new, almost indistinguishable from brand new cars.

"It's in complete chaos. Even though I haven't been there, I can feel it right here at the border," Liu Gaolou said to Li Long as he sipped his tea and watched the workers unload the trucks.

"My second uncle is really capable. It was very timely for him to leave at this time. If he had stayed there, with his abilities, he might have been taken into custody."

“Well, let’s wait. In another year or two, the Soviet Union will be completely gone, and your second uncle might go back,” Li Long said. “Are you in a hurry this time?”

“No rush,” Liu Gaolou said. “They’re in a real hurry over there, the people are still waiting at the border, but I think we can take our time. My second uncle isn’t here, and the people who delivered the goods this time are a bit arrogant.”

"Alright, I've just built a hot spring resort. Would you like to go for a soak?" Li Long asked.

"Then forget it." Liu Gaolou hesitated for a moment, then waved his hand and said, "I'll rest in the county for two days, then I'll head back after loading the goods. To be honest, April and May here aren't as comfortable as in the valley; the wind is too strong."

Alright, Li Long didn't insist. After unloading the goods, he took Liu Gaolou and the driver to dinner, and then sent them to the hotel—nowadays it's called a hotel, not a guesthouse.

The number of cars in the backyard suddenly increased, which Li Long felt was quite good; this was more in line with his company's main business.

The cars that Liu Gaolou brought before the Lunar New Year have all been sold out, and the yard is empty. Several people came to buy cars during this period, but there were no cars available, which was quite embarrassing.

Now that he has all kinds of cars, and they are almost all brand new, Li Long has gained confidence.

After a day and a half, Li Long had prepared the goods for Liu Gaolou, and then he left with his convoy. According to Liu Gaolou, although there weren't many tall buildings and the economy wasn't developed in the valley, the environment was nice and it was a good place to stay.

Li Long guessed that he might have taken his wife and children with him, or perhaps he had started a new family there. Otherwise, why would he be in such a hurry to go back?

Of course, this is just speculation, and I'm just joking.

After Liu Gaolou left, before Li Long could go back into the mountains, Meng Hai had already led his men back from the mountains.

He went to the purchasing station and told Li Long that the hot spring resort in the mountains was ready, and the furniture and everything else was ready, just waiting for Li Long to come and inspect it.

That afternoon, Li Long went to the mountains with Meng Hai.

There's an asphalt road leading up to the hot spring resort.

The villa's courtyard had a large iron gate with a brick frame, and the walls were plastered with cement, with many shards of glass stuck in them.

"This way, at least we can keep people away," Meng Hai said. "With the courtyard wall over two meters high and those broken glass pieces on top, most people won't bother climbing over it because it's too much trouble."

That's true. People who make a living in the mountains usually find caves or dig dug shelters in areas with concentrated resources to live in.

There aren't many resources in Wenquangou. There are very few fritillaria bulbs in the nearby forest, and some codonopsis pilosula, but it's not the harvesting season for codonopsis pilosula at this time of year, so generally no one comes here.

Even if they came over, looking at the two-meter-high wall, plus the sharp shards of glass standing up on it, they wouldn't easily climb over.

Meng Hai used a key to open the large iron gate—the gate had a hidden lock, which was not easy to pry open and also kept some people away.

Inside, the ground was a cement floor. Meng Hai said he originally planned to use bricks, but he was worried that bricks would weather too easily, so he opted for a cement floor.

"Anyway, if there are any problems later, I'll send someone over to fix them."

The layout is somewhat similar to that of the Li family in the fourth team. The yard is divided into two parts. One part is a cement ground, which is then separated by a flower-patterned wall. The other part is land that can be used as a vegetable garden.

On the left side of the courtyard was a row of bungalows, and Meng Hai said that the indoor hot spring pool was inside.

To the south of these bungalows are two cement-lined pools, open-air, which now contain hot spring water.

“We tried several times when we were drawing water. We drew water about fifty meters south of the pool you mentioned, where the water was extremely hot. But when we drew water here, the temperature was just right,” Meng Hai explained.

"The water temperature in this pool is around 40 degrees Celsius. We tried it out, and it was a little hot at first, but it was just right after soaking for a while."

The heating system is still pumping water upwards; when it reaches the room, the temperature will be even higher, which is necessary to keep the house warm in winter.

Li Long tested the water temperature with his hand and felt that it was indeed about the same temperature as when he was soaking in the original pool.

“We’ve drilled a hand pump next to it. If you feel the water temperature is still a bit high, you can add some cool water,” Meng Hai said, pointing to the hand pump next to the pool.

"This well water can also be used to irrigate the vegetables planted over there. If you have time to plant vegetables here, the well water will be just right."

There was a pool and a tap inside the bungalow, but the water wasn't running. Meng Hai said that as long as you turned on the tap, the hot spring water would come in.

This faucet is much thicker than the ones used in homes, and it fills the water quickly. It not only has an inlet but also an outlet at the bottom, which is plugged in; you can simply remove it to let the water flow—very convenient.

Li Long's courtyard in the fourth team was already big enough, but this courtyard is even bigger.

For example, on a concrete floor, ten or so trucks can be parked side by side without any problem. If guests come, setting up seven or eight tables is also no problem.

According to Li Long's idea, the house had a gable roof covered with tiles, and the interior was made of wood. The interior was 20 to 30 centimeters higher than the exterior, and the wooden floor had a slightly springy feel when stepped on.

The furniture was all solid wood with a clear varnish finish. At this time, the furniture focused more on practicality, which Li Long liked.

After inspecting each room, Li Long was quite pleased. The house had six bedrooms, easily accommodating ten or so people. It also included a living room, a game room, a kitchen, and a dining room—everything one could need.

The toilet is outside; there's no other way, as drainage is inconvenient here, so we have to use a dry toilet.

"The passageway leading to the basement is under the bed in the master bedroom," Meng Hai said.
"Pull the bed out and pull up the cover, then you can get down. The only downside is that there's no electricity here, so I've provided some flashlights and candles."

There are ventilation holes in the basement, so I'm not worried about the air quality, it's just very dark.

After reading through everything, Li Longzhen was quite satisfied. He thought it would be a good idea to bring his family here for a hot spring bath on a holiday.

It's not necessary to live there, but at least it's relatively safe and private.

Seeing that Li Long was very satisfied, Meng Hai was also very pleased. After returning home, he planned to rest for two days before heading to town to take on road repair work.

That evening, during dinner, Li Long told his family about the hot spring resort.

“The 14th is Sunday. I’m thinking of going to a hot spring in the mountains that day, what do you think?” Li Long suggested.

"I'm not going to soak. I'm going back to the fourth team." Li Qingxia refused directly. "Soak what? You young people can have fun inside, but what am I supposed to do there?"

"How about we pick you and your mother up and take you to the mountains for a trip?" Li Long said half-jokingly. "Your mother has hardly ever been out and about."

“No, I want to go to a big city. What’s so great about going to the mountains?” Li Qingxia still refused.

Gu Xiaoxia seemed quite interested, and she even tried to persuade Sister Yang:
"Sister Yang, let's go together. Let's invite Han Fang too. She's been studying so hard over there, it'll be good for her to relax in a hot spring."

"Isn't that a bad idea?" Sister Yang hesitated. "Those mountains..."

“It’s perfectly safe,” Li Long said. “I’ll bring the water to the bungalow in the yard and soak in it inside.”

"The same goes for Huaqing Pool in Chang'an; everyone soaks in their own private pool inside buildings."

Upon hearing that it was inside a house, Sister Yang became somewhat tempted.

The cannery is now operating normally, producing 120 to 150 tons of canned goods per month. Liu Gaolou takes most of it away, and some is taken away by other distributors.

The workers are already very skilled at operating the equipment, and the team leader is also very dedicated. Her main role as factory manager is to supervise.

Sunday is a day for everyone to rest, so there's no need to keep an eye on things.

So Sister Yang agreed.

That evening, Gu Xiaoxia and Li Long discussed what they should prepare.

Li Long said he happened to have some free time, so he spent the last two days transporting things into the mountains, including towels, bath towels, slippers, rice, flour, oil, and the like. He figured he would be cooking there anyway, so he might as well use it as a drying room.

Gu Xiaoxia listened attentively while filling in any gaps in her knowledge, saying that we should bring seasonings, canned goods, and vegetables for cooking, since we couldn't just eat wild vegetables, etc.

Although Li Long planned to go hunting while soaking in the hot springs, he hadn't hunted in a long time and wasn't sure if he would be able to catch anything, so he felt it was only right to bring some meat.

There's a refrigerator at home, but Li Long plans to go to Old Ma's place to slaughter a sheep and bring it along, and also let his older brother and the others know if they want to come.

As expected, apart from Li Qiang, who had some ideas about going to the mountains to take a look, the rest of the eldest brother's family had no such thoughts.

The main reason is that we're already busy farming, and the eldest brother, Li Jianguo, thinks that going out to play now is a complete waste of time.

These three high-powered machines are at their most profitable; missing a day of work means losing thousands of dollars!
For several days in a row, Li Long delivered supplies to the hot spring resort. Then, early on the morning of the 14th, he slaughtered a sheep at Lao Ma Hao's place, picked up Li Qiang from his elder brother's house, and drove to the mountains.

Gu Xiaoxia had already driven Mingming, Haohao, Sister Yang, and Han Fang into the mountains.

Li Long drove fast and caught up with Gu Xiaoxia in Qingshuihe Township. His car led the way, and Gu Xiaoxia and the others followed behind.

"Uncle, are there many wild animals in these mountains now?" Li Qiang asked, noticing the semi-automatic rifle Li Long had left in the car.

"I don't know, there are probably more in the inner mountains, and they're not easy to see in the outer mountains," Li Long said. "Now that the snow has melted, the Siberian ibex and argali sheep have started migrating into the inner mountains, and wolves and snow leopards have followed them into the mountains as well."

Li Qiang was a little disappointed.

“I’m planning to go hunting later. If you’re interested, follow me and see if we can find anything,” Li Long said.

"Hey, that's great!" Li Qiang was overjoyed.

He naturally preferred hunting to soaking in hot springs.

When they arrived at the hot spring resort, Li Long opened the gate, drove the car inside, guided Gu Xiaoxia to drive her car in as well, and then closed the gate.

There was a small door on the large iron gate, through which people could enter and exit.

Li Long went to get a large basin, pumped out more than half a basin of water from the well, and soaked the shredded mutton in it.

The water is very cold, almost icy to the touch. Meat placed in it won't spoil for a while, and it won't attract flies.

“Those houses all have hot spring pools. Come on, let me tell you how to fill them with water. You can decide whether you want to get used to the environment first or take a bath right away.”

Li Long took Gu Xiaoxia and Sister Yang to see the hot spring house, and then filled the two rooms with water.

Gu Xiaoxia pushed Li Long out, saying that he didn't need to worry about the rest.

"I'll take Qiangqiang to see if we can hunt anything," Li Long said. "You keep an eye on Mingming and Haohao so they don't run around."

Mingming Haohao really wanted to go hunting, but Li Long didn't dare to take them because of the environment in the mountains. He said they should wait until they were older.

Mingming Haohao was quite obedient; knowing he couldn't go, he simply soaked in the pool outside.

The pool wasn't small, about ten square meters, and less than a meter deep; it was quite nice to play in the water.

Li Long carried a semi-automatic rifle, while Li Qiang slung Li Long's backpack over his shoulder, which contained bullets, plastic bags, and canned goods.

Li Qiang is now fifteen years old and has grown to 1.7 meters tall. Although he is a bit thin, he is quite strong.

The two left the villa and turned to walk up the mountain.

Li Long planned to see if he could hunt a wild boar or a deer. Animals like that are relatively easy to find near the mountains, but other species are really hard to spot.

When Li Long arrived at the hot spring pool where he used to soak, he looked around and saw that there were no animal hoof prints nearby. He wondered if the animals had abandoned the place or if they had been there before but the tracks had been washed away by the water.

"Going up will be a bit difficult, so be careful," Li Long reminded Li Qiang.

"Okay," Li Qiang replied, and simply followed.

After passing through the difficult forest and reaching the mountainside, Li Long could see wild goats leaping about on the distant mountaintop, but they soon disappeared.

There was no way he could catch up, but Li Long decided to head in that direction anyway.

As Li Long approached the rocky forest near the summit, he saw numerous traces left by animals—hair rubbed against the rocks, droppings on the ground, hoof prints, a few traces of blood, and bones.

Li Long once caught a bear in this area, hunted a wild boar, and even found a gold nugget at the end of the hot spring.

He felt this was his lucky place, so he decided to search around.

The cave where the bear was hunted is still there, but there's nothing there anymore. There's a musty smell in the cave, and it's unclear what kind of animal used it as a temporary shelter for the night.

The two of them climbed up to the spot where they had seen the wild goats, panting heavily, but found nothing there.

Those mountain spirits can stand on almost vertical rock faces, are very quick, and are quite timid, making them very difficult to find.

Li Long then turned west. He checked his watch and saw that forty minutes had passed.

If you haven't found anything in another half hour, then head back.

Li Qiang followed behind, exhausted. He was already covered in sweat, which was then dried by gusts of mountain wind, leaving white stains on his clothes from the salt residue.

He's quite tired, but he's still persevering.

Was my uncle always like this when he lived in the mountains? How old was he back then? Maybe three to five years older than me now?
It was winter then, and my uncle would be out for a whole day, or even two or three days at a time.

He can endure the suffering, and so can I!
It was this belief that kept Li Qiang following Li Long.

“That’s the hot spring,” Li Long said, pointing to the area where the mist was rising. “It’s the source of the hot spring.”

"The water there must be scalding hot, right?" Li Qiang asked. "The water down there is so hot."

"Yeah, it'll be open soon," Li Long said. "It can boil eggs, it's a pity we didn't bring any."

Li Qiang walked over quickly out of curiosity, wanting to see what the source of the hot spring looked like, but before he even got close, he was overwhelmed by the strong smell of sulfur.

"So it's true what the book said about hot springs mostly containing sulfur." ​​Li Qiang had a sudden realization, as if the knowledge he had learned from the book had been confirmed in reality.

Li Long followed behind, watching him walk step by step towards the end of the hot spring, looking at the hot spring water seeping out of the cracks in the rocks, and feeling the heat and stench that rushed towards him.

There were seepage cracks in the rocks, not just one, but several places. Li Qiang only glanced at them before Li Long told him to stay away, saying the smell was poisonous.

“We learned about it in chemistry; it is indeed poisonous.” Li Qiang readily agreed and followed Li Long away from the area.

"Are you hungry? Do you want to eat a can of food first?" Li Long asked Li Qiang behind him as they walked.

"I'm not hungry, I can keep going."

“Alright, let’s walk another kilometer or two. If we still haven’t caught any prey, we’ll head back.”

Li Long could tell that Li Qiang was quite tired, but he still insisted on following him forward. This tenacity was commendable; he was capable of great things.

He took the backpack off Li Qiang's back and carried it himself, slowing his pace as he walked forward.

Li Qiang felt much more relaxed and was now able to keep up with his uncle.

He felt a little ashamed; he had come along to hunt, but it seemed he really couldn't be of much help.

"Keep an eye out, there's movement!" Li Long suddenly stopped and pointed to a sparse grove of trees ahead. "Can you see it?"

The area was about 70 or 80 meters from the woods. Li Long saw a group of wild boars resting there, with a few baby boars running and playing.

"Are there wild boars?" Li Qiang's eyesight was also good, and he quickly spotted the target that Li Long was pointing to.

“Yes, I’ll go first and see if I can catch a small wild boar so we can take it back and cook it,” Li Long said. “You come after me, but don’t follow too closely.”

As he spoke, he took the gun down and held it in his hand, slowly releasing the safety while bending down and reaching forward.

"Uncle, would you like me to carry your backpack? It would be more convenient for you that way," Li Qiang asked in a low voice.

"No need, no need."

Li Long replied and continued to grope his way forward.

Li Qiang followed about seven or eight meters behind, also walking cautiously forward. He was afraid of stepping on something and making a noise that would startle the wild boar, so he moved very slowly and soon put a distance between himself and Li Long.

As Li Long approached the woods, he confirmed that the group of wild boars was small, only about ten. He spotted a medium-sized boar, which looked to be around thirty or forty kilograms.

Small ones are fine too, but they have too little meat.

When they got within 30 or 40 meters, the wild boars seemed to smell something and became alert.

At this distance, Li Long didn't dodge anymore. He stood up, raised his gun, and fired at the target he had aimed at.

He was very good at shooting semi-stationary targets. With a "bang," the wild boar swayed and fell down by the tree.

The other wild boars sprang up as if their nest had been disturbed, especially the smaller ones, which were incredibly fast and dashed off in the opposite direction from Li Long.

Li Long originally wanted to shoot another small wild boar, but after firing two shots, he missed the target and had to give up.

Hunting wild boars that are too big is pointless; their meat doesn't taste good.

He wanted to shoot the smaller targets, but they were too small, and he hadn't shot in a while, so his aim seemed to be declining. Therefore, he only had one target left.

As they approached the fallen wild boar, Li Qiang caught up. He exclaimed in admiration:
"Uncle, your marksmanship is amazing! That shot hit right in the head, killing him instantly!"

"So-so," Li Long said, not being modest. "I originally wanted to hunt a baby wild boar to take home and roast, but I didn't manage to catch one."

"This one is fine. That one is too small; you can't even see it in the grass."

The nearby tall grass was indeed taller than the wild boar cubs, so what Li Qiang said wasn't entirely wrong.

Seeing that Li Qiang was defending him, Li Long smiled and said, "Okay, here, you carry the backpack, I'll carry the wild boar, let's go to the hot springs to clean up."

This time, Li Qiang was quite happy as he carried his backpack and took out a plastic bag from it.

"No need for now. Let's wait until we get to the water. I'll skin the wild boar, clean out its belly and intestines, and then we can use it," Li Long said.

He picked up the wild boar, which weighed thirty or forty kilograms, and carried the gun in his other hand, and walked back.

Li Qiang quickly followed behind Li Long, walking all the way to the hot spring, but Li Long did not deal with it there.

Li Qiang asked a question with some doubt.

"The water in the courtyard we went to comes from here. If you skin someone here, the blood will flow into the courtyard. Go down a little further down."

Li Qiang suddenly realized what was going on and understood.

As Li Long walked, he observed the surroundings. When he saw signs of digging along the stream, he knew he had arrived at the right place. He continued walking until he reached a relatively flat area, where he put his gun aside, drew his knife, and began to deal with the wild boar.

Li Long was quite wasteful in doing this outside; he didn't want anything inside his stomach except for his own.

After skinning the animal, the head and hooves are discarded as they are more troublesome to handle. Instead, a crocodile carries the cleaned belly from the hot spring, wraps it in a plastic bag, and walks downstream.

"This wild boar meat isn't as tasty as domesticated meat, but it's good braised," Li Long explained to Li Qiang as they walked. "It's just good for the novelty."

At first, he went hunting with Halimu Yushanjiang, then with Tao Daqiang, and later he was basically hunting alone.

Occasionally, Director Qian and Li Xiangqian would be there.

But most of the time, I'm alone.

Now that he has a junior like Li Qiang under his wing, Li Long can't help but act as a teacher, telling him some common sense about hunting and even describing the smell of prey.

Li Qiang felt like his eyes had been opened.

This knowledge isn't in books, but it all seems to make a lot of sense.

So he listened with great interest, and before he knew it, he had arrived at the entrance of the hot spring resort.

“Hey, I smell something,” Li Long suddenly said. “Your aunt and the others are probably stewing meat, maybe they’ve already started grilling it. Come on, let’s go in and take a look.”

Pushing open the courtyard gate, they found that Gu Xiaoxia and the others had already set up a barbecue grill in the yard and were grilling meat on skewers.

Seeing Li Long carrying the meat, Gu Xiaoxia and the others knew he had made a good catch.

"A half-grown wild boar, it'll be barely edible," Li Long said.

"Alright, that's good enough," Sister Yang said with a smile. "You're really amazing that you can hit things so easily!"

Li Long found these words very agreeable.

"My uncle killed the wild boar with his first shot, he's really something!" Li Qiang said. "An old hunter!"

Gu Xiaoxia knew her husband liked hearing this, so she glanced at him with an expression that seemed to say: "Look at you, so capable!"

Li Long burst into laughter. (End of Chapter)