Rebirth of Bayi Fishing and Hunting in the Northwest

Chapter 1143 Using a mind from forty years in the future to make money in the present is certainly an easy way to make money.
When Wang Mingjun heard Li Long say that he could use leather to pay off the debt, he immediately thought of unloading the leather from the tractor to pay part of the debt first.

However, Old Chen blocked it.

"Company Commander, many of these leather trinkets belong to the workers. They're waiting for us to take the money back so they can share it for the New Year. Now that you've settled the debt, what are you going to give them?"
It's only February, we still have over a month to hunt. When we get back, we'll head to the sand dunes. I heard that several herds of gazelles didn't migrate south this year; they're still in the saxaul forest in the sand dunes. Let's have a good hunt, we should be able to catch some.”

Both of them have some savings. It's not about exchanging leather for everything. They can exchange a portion and then calculate the remaining amount. Wouldn't that be fine?
With 40,000 yuan, Wang Mingjun planned to get 200 whole hides, or 100 whole hides and 200 damaged hides, plus another 12,000 yuan, which would be about right.

Making more than 300 hides in a little over a month is a bit difficult, but not impossible.

At worst, I can just get a submachine gun and collect as many scraps as possible.

Old Chen shared the same idea. The Gurbantünggüt Desert to the north is not a shifting sand desert; the large and small tamarisk and saxaul forests in the sand dunes are hiding places for gazelles and red deer when the snow is not too heavy.

So as long as you're diligent and carry plenty of bullets, shooting a dozen or so a day isn't too difficult.

Of course, the prerequisites are having the right opportunity, the right ability, and the right power.

For ordinary company employees, being able to borrow a gun to go out and shoot for a day was considered a status symbol, but Wang Mingjun and Lao Chen happened to have that authority.

Even if they don't manage to pay that much, they still have enough money to cover the remaining balance.

Next, we'll unload the leather they brought today and start sorting it.

"The price of leather this year is pretty good," Old Chen said belatedly. "At this price, anyone with the skills can make a fortune in one winter."

"Our country has enacted a wildlife protection law, right?" Li Long explained while picking out whole hides. "It's already being implemented. We can't hunt wolves, gazelles, deer, and the like anymore."

"If we can't hunt these things anymore, the price of their hides will naturally go up. Right now it's in the border region, but in two years, we definitely won't be allowed to hunt them here either. Your corps might have to wait another two years, but then things will be even stricter over there. So just hunt them properly now; after that, forget about making money."

"Really?" Wang Mingjun was genuinely unaware of the situation and asked, "They really won't let us fight anymore?"

“Of course,” Li Long said. “You can find out by asking around at the reclamation area public security bureau.”

The protection of wild animals will henceforth be handled by the reclamation area public security bureau and forestry police station within the Xinjiang Production and Construction Corps, and they are naturally well aware of this.

Wang Mingjun and Lao Chen exchanged a glance, both understanding each other's meaning.

While we can still fight, let's fight it out. This place isn't Hoh Xil; back there, because Tibetan antelope wool is so expensive, poaching still occurred even when it cost two thousand.

Most people in northern Xinjiang are relatively law-abiding; if the authorities forbid fighting, most won't. Also, the checks are stricter there, unlike the uninhabited areas of Hoh Xil where it's easy to hide.

Therefore, after the region officially announced that hunting was prohibited and guns were confiscated, hunting became a luxury and an occasional activity, and it was impossible for it to occur on a large scale again.

Of course, this is also related to the unique geographical environment here. Because the population in northern Xinjiang is small and land resources are relatively abundant, it is easy to make a living by foraging in the fields. Even if they occasionally hunt, it is just to have a treat and eat some wild game.

But when people can earn enough to buy fresh farmed beef and mutton, the meat of wild animals becomes less popular, and most people who have tried it don't want to eat it a second time.

Therefore, hunting has become less and less common.

In the 1990s, the armed forces departments of various townships, especially those near forest areas, would organize militia to hunt wild boars, protect the mountains, forests, and autumn harvest. Later, when guns were confiscated, these activities also disappeared.

Now we can say that hunting was the last glorious chapter of its life, with guns and prey.

Once both are gone, hunting in the northern frontier will only be a rare and sporadic possibility.

“You’ve got quite a load on this truck, 226 whole hides and over 300 damaged hides,” Li Long said with a smile. “This tractor alone is worth 40,000 to 50,000 yuan, the price of a car.”

"Hey, if I had known the pelts were so expensive, I would have hunted more recently," Wang Mingjun said with some regret. "Several herds of gazelles came by before, but I was a bit lazy and didn't hunt them."

“There will be other opportunities later. The gazelles in the mountains will eventually head north when the snow starts to melt,” Li Long said. “You can intercept and hunt them then.”

Currently, the barbed wire along the borders between our country and several neighboring countries is not yet complete, or at least not in most areas. Therefore, gazelles migrate back and forth, coming in early winter and returning just before spring.

So let's fight it out. This is the same thing Liu Shanmin and his group encountered over there. If you don't fight it, someone else will.

After settling the bill for Wang Mingjun and his group, Wang Mingjun gave Li Long another 10,000 yuan, saying that he would pay Li Long 10,000 yuan first, and if the rest could be folded entirely with leather, then so be it; if not, then he would have to pay some more.

Li Long also had Liang Shuangcheng boil water and start the brand-new GAZ-69 truck, then had Wang Mingjun drive it around for a bit.

Wang Mingjun really knows how to drive. He drove around the yard once, but wasn't satisfied, so he drove it out.

He drove for a full half hour before coming back, and then he couldn't bear to let go of the car. If it weren't for Lao Chen insisting that he try it too, Wang Mingjun would have driven the car straight home!
"Hey, Xiaolong, this car is really nice!" Wang Mingjun said with a smile. "I won't drive it back, but you have to keep an eye on it for me. It can't be sold to anyone else."

"Okay, I won't sell any more," Li Long said with a smile. "Satisfied?"

"I'm satisfied, absolutely satisfied. I just want to go back hunting right now, save up enough money quickly, and then come back to drive the car away," Wang Mingjun said. "Compared to this car, that little four-wheeled tractor is better left unused!"

“That’s definitely different. Tractors can haul goods, and while this 69-wheeled cart can also haul, it certainly won’t be as much,” Li Long explained for the small four-wheeled tractor. “Each has its own use.”

Wang Mingjun didn't say anything more, his eyes were fixed on the No. 69 car.

Old Chen wasn't as arrogant as Wang Mingjun. His driving skills were average; he only drove around the yard twice before getting off.

Although he didn't say anything, his expression showed he was very satisfied.

Wang Mingjun personally drained the water from the car, then covered it with a tarpaulin, weighed it down with some bricks, and offered Liang Shuangcheng a cigarette, asking him to take good care of the car.

The two paid the bill and rushed back home without even having lunch.

According to Wang Mingjun, there is a group of gazelles to the north of the company. They saw them yesterday, and they haven't moved south yet. He can go back and hunt them down.

In the afternoon, Li Long took the restless Mingming and Haohao to his older brother's place again, and asked his brother how he was driving the GAZ-69.

"It's great, it's great." Li Jianguo really had no complaints about the car; he felt it was excellent. "I drove it to Juan's maternal grandfather's house twice to deliver some things. It blocks the wind in winter, and it's fast too. It's really great!"

As long as it's easy to drive.

Mingming Haohao had already been pestering Li Qiang to go out and play, talking about something about foreign guns and screws. Li Long found it strange, so he called the two kids over and asked them.

"Grandpa made this ox out of a big screw that came off a car," Mingming explained proudly, thinking Li Long wouldn't understand. "The screw makes the ox stable when it spins on the ice, and it can win when it bumps into other oxen!"

"Who told you that foreign guns have screws on them?" Li Long thought to himself, wondering which brat had said such vulgar things in front of the children, and now they've picked up those words.

“Mingwa,” Li Qiang, who was also at an age where he was still young and didn’t understand, said, “Mingwa means that the old cow that Minghaohao was fighting was a foreign gun with screws on it.”

"Don't say things like that again." Li Long didn't know how to explain to the child that his words were suggestive, so he could only advise, "Go play."

The children were confused, but seeing that Li Long didn't explain, they didn't dare to ask and went out.

Li Long himself didn't want to talk about it. He knew very well that Mingwa and his friends were probably going through puberty, which was why they would talk nonsense. These days, there's no proper education in that area, so kids only have a vague understanding. They know a little bit and then they'll say it, and they'll be quite proud of it.

But I won't let the adults know, because I'd feel ashamed.

Fortunately, by the time Mingming and Haohao were in junior high school, they probably already had a sex education class, so I didn't have to explain it to them as much.

After returning home, Li Long thought that Zheng Xiangyang would definitely find out about Wang Mingjun buying a car, and he wondered if the instructor would call him.

The next day, Zheng Xiangyang didn't call; instead, Zhao Zongming called.

"Mr. Li, I just found out you sell cars too," Zhao Zongming said politely. "To be honest, if it weren't for Company Commander Wang leading his men on a two-day hunt in the north yesterday and today, I wouldn't have known you had so many good things." "What, you want one too?" Li Long asked with a smile.

"I heard from Old Chen that you have some new-style jeeps? The kind that can carry both people and cargo?"

GAZ-69 vehicles are not commonly seen here. Although they exist in China, they are mostly used for border defense or special purposes. In Ma County, including Shicheng County, the jeeps seen by the military units are mostly the 212 and later 213 models; most people have never seen the GAZ-69.

Li Long gave a general description, but Zhao Zongming wasn't sure if he wanted to buy it. He said that his company also had some hides, and they would take them to the purchasing station in a couple of days to sell the hides and check out the vehicles at the same time.

Li Long has now come to his senses that the Corps actually has a huge customer base.

He didn't even think about those higher-ranking officers; those people had their own vehicles.

But those company commanders and political instructors were already relatively wealthy. Now, in the next few years, after the Corps companies start planting cotton on a large scale, they will become even wealthier.

Money always has its expenses, and buying a used Jeep is an excellent choice.

Since it's secondhand anyway, it's all the same whether you say it's worth a lot or a little. Some people might believe you if you said you bought it for a few thousand dollars.

Some of these people are very shrewd and know how to be discreet. They can pretend to be poor. If you want to develop business with them, the used cars they acquire are the best commodities.

Li Long was only thinking about it; how to implement it would depend on the subsequent impact.

This is essentially killing two birds with one stone; if we succeed, great, but if we fail, we won't be disappointed.

After all, the income from just the hides, antelope horns, and fritillaria alone is considerable each year; any more than that, and he fears he won't be able to manage it.

Zhao Zongming said he would come in a few days, but he actually drove over in his tractor the very next day.

He pulled relatively few skins and came alone. Although it wasn't snowing and the weather was actually sunny, there were still a few small snowflakes falling every morning, not quite a heavy snowfall, but not insignificant either.

So when Zhao Zongming arrived at the purchasing station, he was covered in snow, and there was frost on his eyebrows and beard.

Li Long was still sorting hides in the warehouse; it might take him a day or two to process so many hides.

So when Zhao Zongming came over, he quickly welcomed him to the warehouse to warm up first, and then went to his own yard to drive his GAZ truck over.

Since the new car had already been offered to Wang Mingjun, Li Long didn't plan to touch it. One should be trustworthy, and Wang Mingjun was a decent person. Besides, after Zhao Zongming's call, Li Long had tidied up his GAZ truck, so he could drive it over quickly.

Like Wang Mingjun, Zhao Zongming felt warm as soon as he saw the car and immediately wanted to get in and drive it around to take a look.

Li Long asked, "Old Zhao, will there be a meeting?"

"Yes, of course I can. We all know how many times the regimental commander's car goes to the company. I even have a license."

Then don't worry.

After Zhao Zongming got in the car, he sat for about a minute before starting to drive. At first, he drove very slowly, which made Li Long anxious.

But thinking about it, it makes sense. He's about the same age as Li Jianguo. As people get older, they become more mature. If the car gets hit or scratched, he'll have to pay for it.

Zhao Zongming didn't drive the car out. He circled the backyard a few times before stopping. Li Long felt that it was more like he was familiarizing himself with how to drive the car than test driving it.

"This car is nice," Zhao Zongming commented after getting out of the car. "Is this the kind of car you sell?"

“There are also cars, there are some in the front yard, you should be able to see them,” Li Long said with a smile. “Ladas, Volgas, they’re all Russian cars.”

"Forget about sedans," Zhao Zongming shook his head. "This kind of car will do; it's easier to drive where we live."

“Sure, if you want, we can ship both new and used ones.” Li Long was waiting for him to arrive. If Zhao Zongming could confirm, Li Long planned to call Liu Gaolou and ask him to ship a few more GAZ trucks next time.

I suppose Liu Gaolou should be arriving soon.

"Used, we can't afford new ones. I heard Wang Mingjun and Lao Chen say that a new car costs at least 50,000, right?" Zhao Zongming asked.

"Hmm." Li Long didn't expect Wang Mingjun and Lao Chen to offer extra money for the new car. He didn't explain and just nodded.

"Can we trade the secondhand ones for leather?" Zhao Zongming came mainly to ask this question. "I brought over three hundred hides this time, take a look."

"Are they all yours?" Li Long asked, looking at the leather hauled on the small four-wheeled tractor. "If they're all yours, then you could probably buy a used GAZ truck."

“Yes, they’re all mine.” Zhao Zongming nodded and then explained, “Actually, most of them were bought by the employees, but I collected them. Anyway, they’re not planning to come to the county to sell them anytime soon, and the middlemen are cheaper, so I just bought them.”

Hey, you have good taste!

Li Long had a close relationship with Wang Mingjun and Lao Chen, so the price he gave was somewhat of a "friendship price." He would have charged Zhao Zongming a higher price.

However, these three hundred-odd hides are enough.

Next, we'll discuss the hides. Zhao Zongming brought over 85 whole hides, worth 10,200 yuan, and 277 damaged hides, worth 22,160 yuan, for a total of 32,360 yuan.

According to Li Long, a used GAZ truck costs 25,000 yuan, and he still needs to give Zhao Zongming 7,360 yuan.

Li Long asked Zhao Zongming whether he wanted to take all the money first or leave the car payment behind.

"Leave the payment for the car and reserve it for me." Zhao Zongming had already thought it through. "That big mouth of Wang Mingjun, I bet most of the people in our regiment's dozen or so companies know about it now."

There are some wealthy people among these people; they might come to order a car in a couple of days. If I don't reserve it now, I won't have a chance when your car arrives. But we have an agreement: your car will be in comparable condition to yours.”

"Don't worry, it's definitely possible." Li Long nodded with a smile.

It seems that Wang Mingjun's advertising efforts were effective; the new car wasn't sold to him for nothing.

After Zhao Zongming left, Li Long called Liu Gaolou and asked him to tell Liu Shanmin to bring more GAZ-69 truckloads on this trip.

"How's it going? Sales are good?" Liu Gaolou asked. "How many units do you want?"

"The more the better," Li Long said. "Of course, they should be in better condition, but no, as long as they're not scrapped, we can get as many as we can."

Li Long guessed that not all company commanders and political instructors were like Wang Mingjun; some might just want a machine that could be driven, the more dilapidated the better, so they wouldn't stand out.

"Okay, I'll call my uncle in a bit. You called just in time; any later and I bet my uncle would have driven right over, and then we'd have to do it another time. By the way, what's up with you right now?"

"Cement, I've already prepared 100 tons of cement. You can bring more trucks over."

"Great, great, that's wonderful." Liu Gaolou said with a smile, "This stuff is in very short supply over there, having this gives me a lot of confidence."

"The New Year is almost here, aren't you going home?" Li Long vaguely remembered that Liu Gaolou had planned to go back to his hometown before the New Year.

"It's because of the special situation over there recently, my uncle asked me to stay a little longer. It just so happens that this batch of cement came along. With this stuff, my uncle means that he can replace what he needs, and he should be able to get home before the New Year."

"That's good. You've been busy all year, you should take a break." Li Long thought to himself that Liu Shanmin and his nephew Liu Gaolou had worked much harder than he had.

Of course, they earned quite a bit.

P.S.: Winners of the monthly pass prize and the top three winners of the September monthly pass, please join the group and contact the operations team with your address. This month's prize is dried fruit. The deadline is tomorrow, and the operations team is short on time. The group number is 1046071808.
(End of this chapter)