Rebirth of Bayi Fishing and Hunting in the Northwest

Chapter 1111 The capital city is nothing special and rich in resources

For dinner, we had naan bread and milk tea, but no side dishes, just jam, honey, and cream.

"My wife didn't know I was coming back, so the meal was a bit simple," Liu Shanmin explained. "Let's just make do with this. Tomorrow I'll get rid of all this sugar and then treat you to a meal."

Li Long didn't care that much, and neither did the others; they were all eager to finish eating and go to sleep.

“But you also need to be mentally prepared. Even if you’re having a big meal, it will definitely be different from what you’re eating back home. There’s a shortage of supplies here right now, and the food supply is already having problems,” Liu Shanmin added, which piqued Li Long’s curiosity.

Has the situation become that tense?

Liu Shanmin's wife is named Lisa. She is said to be twenty-three or twenty-four years old. She looks similar to Gu Xiaoxia, is quite pretty, and has a slightly plump figure. She is busy in the kitchen wearing an apron.

After exchanging a few words with Li Long, Liu Shanmin went to the kitchen to help.

Liu Gaolou said in a low voice:
"Mr. Li, it's all thanks to you, otherwise I really wouldn't have had the chance to come all this way. But to be honest, looking at it this way, the capital of this country isn't even as prosperous as our provincial capital, there are just more cars."

“We arrived at night, so maybe things will be different if we look at it during the day tomorrow,” Li Long said while eating. “Let’s see if we can go out for a stroll tomorrow during the day.”

While he was talking, he was also listening to Liu Shanmin and his wife talking in the kitchen.

"I need to get rid of those things tomorrow. I brought back some butter, so this afternoon you can take some sugar and butter to your parents' place. They're running out of food again, aren't they..."

"Well, although I'm a bit better off than others, I really don't have much food left. You know, my older brother's family lives with my parents, so food gets used up quickly... um..."

Inappropriate sounds for children could be heard coming over.

Li Long never expected Liu Shanmin to be so wild. He never knew it before, and now they're getting intimate in the kitchen.

I really didn't expect Lisa to speak Chinese so well.

After dinner, Lisa had already prepared rooms for Li Long and Liu Gaolou. Liu Shanmin's place was on the second floor, and it was said that there was also a basement level; it was a detached house and quite large.

When they came in, Li Long noticed two cars parked in the yard. He couldn't make out the license plates, but he guessed they were probably Volga or something similar.

Liu Shanmin is quite wealthy.

Li Long's room was quite large, in a Russian style with light blue wood decorations. However, it had been around for many years, and the paint on the window frames had peeled off, and there were also tiny cracks in the wood.

The house is heated; after all, it's the capital, and there's central heating here, so it doesn't feel cold.

Li Long was exhausted today. He had driven more than 300 kilometers in one day, and that was the road to the capital.

So after going inside and getting familiar with the place for a short while, he quickly fell asleep.

I woke up the next day. Although I'm almost thirty, I still feel full of energy, recover quickly, and the fatigue has disappeared.

Hearing the sound of cars, he looked out the window and saw that three trucks carrying sugar had been covered with tarpaulins and left the yard, heading east.

Li Long hurriedly put on his clothes and went downstairs. Liu Gaolou had just come out of his room. The two of them went downstairs together to go out, and then they ran into Lisa.

“The mountain man has gone to deal with the sugar,” Lisa explained to them. “He told me to tell you that after breakfast you should rest first, or you can take a walk around the neighborhood, but don’t go too far. He’ll be back in a little while and will arrange your next steps.”

Okay, let's get ready to eat.

Liu Gaolou called out "Auntie," and Lisa, feeling a little embarrassed, hurriedly went to the kitchen to bring out the food.

Milk tea, naan bread, sliced ​​horse sausage, butter, honey, and so on.

During the meal, Li Long asked Liu Gaolou if he wanted to go out for a walk later.

"Let's go out for a walk." Liu Gaolou had almost recovered. Lisa was packing her things in the house, and he felt it wasn't very convenient, so he said, "Since we're abroad, let's see the scenery here."

Actually, there wasn't much to see outside. It was late autumn, the distant mountains were covered in snow, and the trees were withered and yellow. But since we were abroad, we had to do some sightseeing since we were there.

Otherwise, what will you say when you go back and brag to others?
After the meal, Lisa cleared away the plates and bowls, not letting them touch them. Li Long and the others then followed local customs and went out together.

There are cars coming and going outside, and it's more lively during the day with more people coming and going.

The weather wasn't very good; it was a bit gloomy. People were hurrying by, their faces devoid of smiles, as if they were in debt.

Occasionally, children's laughter could be heard, but it would quickly disappear.

I feel very depressed.

"This reminds me of our county town ten years ago," Liu Gaolou and Li Long said as they walked. "Back then, it seemed like no one was smiling much."

The infrastructure is pretty good; there are occasional potholes on the road, but they look like they've been repaired.

There are long benches along the roadside, some of them old, and people are waiting at the bus stop. It's also rare to see pedestrians wearing brightly colored clothes.

"Look, Mr. Li, many of the clothes people here are wearing have patches on them," Liu Gaolou said in a low voice.

Li Long nodded. Overall, life here is really similar to life in China seven or eight years ago.

The rigid system failed to motivate people, coupled with insufficient resources and polarization.

That's how society has become.

There was a long queue ahead of people, and occasionally people would argue over cutting in line or where to stand, but the argument would quickly subside.

Li Long looked at the shop sign; he couldn't recognize the characters, but he knew what it was like just by looking at the items inside.

Bread—or rather, rye bread.

The staple foods here include naan and rye bread. Most people don't have a kiln to bake naan at home, so they have to buy it if they want to eat it.

Some families have ovens, so they can bake their own bread.

By the time Li Long and his group arrived, the bakery was closed.

The twenty-odd people in line behind them dispersed with blank expressions. Some were probably going home, while others walked quickly to other places, probably heading to other bakeries.

It seems life really isn't good.

I ran into a man carrying a bottle, swaying unsteadily. He had a stubble beard and looked very down on his luck.

A drunkard.

Li Long pulled Liu Gaolou, who was still looking at the people buying bread on the street, away from this little trouble.

The drunkard realized they weren't from his country, muttered something under his breath, and staggered after them.

Li Long and his companions walked quickly and soon moved away from the man who was drinking.

After going around in circles, there wasn't much to see. I felt like the good mood I had initially come out of was ruined by the expressions of these people.

Let's just go back.

Lisa watched them return and then said to them:

"I'm going out to deliver some things home. If you don't have anything else to do, just stay home. Liu Shanmin should be back soon."

The two agreed, and Lisa drove off.

She drove out in a Volga; there was also a five-seater jeep and a van in the yard.

Liu Shanmin owns quite a few cars. However, his minivan is covered in dust, indicating it's not driven often.

The two entered the house. Li Long looked around and saw the study with the door open. Inside were some foreign language books, and to his surprise, quite a few Chinese books as well. He randomly picked up a history book and started reading.

Liu Gaolou had gone back to his room, but after a while, he came out and found Li Long reading a book. So he picked up a book and started reading as well, chatting with Li Long as he read.

There was actually a TV in the room, but Li Long didn't turn it on. Anyway, even if there were channels, he wouldn't understand them.

Lisa was right. Sure enough, not long after, Liu Shanmin returned with Buick and Murat. Just the three of them; the three trucks and their drivers didn't come along.

"The sugar has been processed." Upon entering the courtyard and seeing Li Long and Liu Gaolou, Liu Shanmin said with a smile, "I've already arranged for the truck and driver to go back. We won't be transporting any more medicinal herbs for you on this trip. Li Long's place is already full anyway, so let's just have some fun."

"Looks like your trip went pretty smoothly too," Li Long said with a smile. "In a good mood?"

"The price of sugar has gone up again." Liu Shanmin went into the house with them, and after settling Bek and Murat to do their work, he whispered to Li Long and the others, "It's gone up by a quarter! I didn't quite believe it before, but now it seems like things might really get out of control—the black market price of sugar is almost ten times higher than in China!"

Scarcity drives up prices; things that are scarce naturally become expensive.

Li Long didn't respond. He'd already received his due dollars, and Liu Shanmin had even gifted him a very nice car. The money Liu Shanmin was earning was his due, and had nothing to do with him.

“My aunt said she went out to deliver some things.” Liu Gaolou was quite happy, but he hadn’t forgotten he had something to say. “Yes, she went to deliver them to her family. Her parents both work in a factory, and her older brother is also a worker, but the factory has been shut down for a long time, and things aren’t going well.” Liu Shanmin took off his coat and said, “We help her out every now and then. When she gets back, we’ll go out for a nice meal, a welcome-back dinner for you!”

"Okay," Liu Gaolou smiled.

Back in China, he was wealthy and ate quite well. The state-run canteens used high-quality ingredients, and although the dietary habits were different from those back home, they were largely the same.

He's been here for over a day, mainly eating naan and bread, and he's really not used to it yet.

Li Long didn't think much of it. Eating was secondary; his main concern was finding out what was lacking here and what local specialties he could bring back.

Thinking of this, he asked:

"Mr. Liu, what local specialties are easy to bring back home?"

"Specialty products?" Liu Shanmin thought for a moment, "Would Russian nesting dolls count?"

"Sure." Li Long nodded, "We can buy some for the children."

"Chocolate? There's plenty of that here, lots of different kinds, kids should like it. And vodka? The Soviet Union's national drink, whether it tastes good or not is another matter, but it's very famous."

Li Long immediately thought of the bottle in the hand of the drunkard he had encountered earlier, and after thinking about it, he thought, "That works too."

"If you're buying for women, we're famous for our shawls, as well as all kinds of candies and caviar. But you can't bring too much caviar, it's quite expensive."

Li Long naturally knew about this; he had tried it and didn't like the taste. It was originally supposed to be a high-end ingredient, but it was priced like dirt by similar domestic products, and then hardly anyone ate it anymore.

Just like foie gras, which was originally a famous French delicacy, but was reduced to a midnight snack for ordinary people in industrialized countries, and some people even dislike it.

Lisa returned quickly as well. Seeing Liu Shanmin, she smiled and showed him what she had brought back.

"These are homemade pickled cucumbers. My father asked me to bring them over for the guests to try."

"Good, good, very good." Liu Shanmin patted her hair and said with a smile.

The place we went to for lunch was indeed upscale, and there were quite a lot of people there.

The building has three floors. It looks very dignified from the outside and is decorated very luxuriously inside. The waiters are all in uniform, and the men are handsome and the women are beautiful.

Once inside, Li Long could clearly sense that there was much more laughter and joy inside than outside.

Well-dressed, pot-bellied, handsome men and beautiful women, sweet-talking but treacherous...

These are all idioms that I used to read in books, but here I can find specific corresponding examples for each one.

Liu Shanmin had booked a private room in advance. After entering and closing the door, he said as he took off his coat:

"This isn't very high-end, but it's fine. More high-end options wouldn't be very convenient. It's mainly because of our status; given the current situation, we need to keep a low profile."

Li Long understood this, so he nodded.

Lisa was in charge of ordering. To be honest, the food wasn't very plentiful: grilled pork chops, grilled chicken, a plate of fish, mixed with boiled vegetables and onions, layer upon layer, which looked quite impressive.

Borscht, aspic, salad, caviar, etc.

The taste was strange, but Li Long didn't seem to mind and just ate what he could.

Liu Gaolou genuinely couldn't get used to the food; he could only eat the grilled pork ribs and bread. Even the soup didn't taste right to him. Buick and Murati, on the other hand, weren't picky at all and ate whatever was available.

“That’s just how the food is here,” Liu Shanmin said with a laugh as he ate. “Just get through it. This is still considered good; you can buy it if you have the money. When we’re hunting in the grasslands and mountains, we’ll only be able to eat naan and cured fatty meat. That stuff—you experienced it yesterday, didn’t you? You’ll find it even harder to get used to.”

Liu Gaolou nodded subconsciously; he really couldn't get used to that stuff.

I don't know how the locals can eat it so easily.

During their meal, Li Long learned that Lisa was a middle school teacher, but she had taken the last two days off.

Liu Shanmin pulled some strings, making Lisa's job much easier. Also, things aren't going smoothly for students at school these days; with life like this, some people have lost interest in studying.

After the meal, they didn't linger there. It was just a welcome dinner for the two of them, so a small gesture was enough.

On his way downstairs, Liu Shanmin ran into someone he knew and exchanged a few words with him, but Li Long could tell that their relationship wasn't very good.

They had more people on their side, and Buick and Murat were clearly on guard, so the other side didn't make a move.

After driving back to the yard, Liu Shanmin said:

"The person I just ran into wanted to buy my sugar, but he offered too low a price, so I didn't sell it to him. He might cause trouble for me."

After entering the house, he said to Lisa, "Why don't we just ask you to take a few more days off? You don't rely on that salary to make a living anyway. Either you come with us to the mountains to hunt, or you go stay with your parents for a few days?"

"Then I'll go to my parents' place," Lisa said after thinking for a moment. "Are you going away for a few days?"

"Three or four days, I guess." Liu Shanmin didn't have many plans. Hunting is all about doing what you want. If you can catch something, you'll hunt as much as you can; if you can't, you'll come back.

"Okay, I'll ask for leave this afternoon and go to my parents' place tomorrow."

The matter was settled.

That evening, Li Long and his friends ate at Liu Shanmin's house. Going out to eat was too much trouble, and besides, they didn't get to eat anything particularly good.

There are still too few vegetables here. Dinner was prepared by Li Long and his friends: stir-fried potato shreds, cold spicy red bean curd salad, a plate of sliced ​​horse meat, and some wine.

There's nothing we can do about it; it's not that my cooking skills are bad.

After the meal, Liu Shanmin showed Li Long and the others his collection—guns!

The AK-47, SKS, and sniper rifles are the prototypes of the domestic Type 85 sniper rifle.

Of course, a double-barreled shotgun is indispensable for hunting.

"So many guns?" Li Long was also taken aback. It must be difficult to get guns here at this time of year, right? Guns are prohibited here, aren't they?
"How chaotic is it? There are things, but you can't just trade anything for them. At least some guns can be traded." Liu Shanmin smiled. "Some military institutions in some places are really just for money. They scrap some things and secretly take them out to sell."

No wonder I asked myself if I needed a gun last time; I actually did.

“Let’s pick one, and tomorrow we’ll go hunting in the grasslands and mountains,” Liu Shanmin said. “Beike and his relatives are over there, so we can go and have a good look around.”

Li Long had fought both the five-sixth charge and the five-sixth step rifle, and his eyes were now fixed on that sniper rifle.

He's never actually fought this before, let's give it a try!
"The recoil is huge," Liu Shanmin reminded him. "First-timers usually bruise their shoulders easily. And even with a scope, a slight bump can make it hard to hit anything."

He learned his lesson.

"Let's give it a try anyway," Li Long said with a smile.

Liu Gaolou selected five or six guns, held them in his hand and gestured with them, making a "putt-putt-putt" sound, which was a bit childish.

Buick and Murati weren't there; they were getting the car ready.

The next day, Lisa drove to her parents' place, while Li Long and the others drove their jeep away from the city, heading east.

Once you leave the city, you quickly enter the no-man's-land—this area is sparsely populated with many people, and the villages and towns are not very dense. The vast no-man's-land looks quite...environmentally friendly.

It's all grass and trees!

Li Long was genuinely envious, after all, compared to where he lived, the area west of Shicheng was all Gobi Desert!

If it were a place like this, wouldn't everyone be able to start farming?

What a waste of natural resources.

Unfortunately, we can only dream about it, since this is their territory—even though it used to be ours.

The jeep drove very fast, but even so, it was almost noon before they arrived at Buick's relatives' house.

This place is already close to our country's border.

“There are large herds of antelope and gazelles on the grassland, so of course we have to drive there to find them,” Liu Shanmin explained to them before even entering the yard:
"There are bears on the mountain; we can go and see them then."

Li Long's attention was drawn to something in the nearby stream.

Damn it, it was swarming with small dogfish—the kind of loach from the mountains. If we had a net, we could catch dozens of kilograms in one go!
The resources are so abundant!

P.S.: Thank you to reader "查无此人" for the generous donation!

(End of this chapter)