Rebirth of Bayi Fishing and Hunting in the Northwest

Li Long went through several companies under his command, and before he knew it, it was 1991.

School was closed for New Year's Day, and then it was time to prepare for exams. After breakfast that day, Li Long took Mingming and Haohao to play at Team Four, planning to also visit Old Ma's place to see which deer would be slaughtered this year.

After he finished looking at the deer, he had just arrived at his older brother's house when he received a call from the purchasing station—the station was closed for the day, but someone was on duty.

To Li Long's surprise, it was Liu Shanmin who called, which was quite unusual. Li Long hurriedly drove back to the county.

Then I saw Liu Shanmin, his Kazakh wife, and two children who looked quite different from each other.

The daughter looked exceptionally beautiful, like a porcelain doll, while the boy was a bit ugly, with a slightly flat nose.

So whether a child born to a mixed-race family is beautiful or not is still a matter of probability.

However, whether the children were pretty or not was none of Li Long's business. He smiled, shook hands with Liu Shanmin, then turned to his car, took out two small jade pendants, and handed them to the two children, saying with a smile:

"Old Liu, look at you, you didn't even tell me beforehand. I was caught off guard and didn't prepare anything. These two little Hetian jade trinkets are just a small gift for the two kids."

"Hey, I didn't say I didn't want you to do it in a big way. This time, you're definitely coming and going quietly." Liu Shanmin didn't take it seriously and introduced his wife, Lisa, to Li Long.

"We've met before," Li Long said with a smile. "You're studying medicine, right, sister-in-law?"

“Yes, Lao Liu said you might not remember me, but I said I definitely remember.” Lisa hadn’t said anything until now, when she saw Liu Shanmin and Li Long talking about her, she smiled and said, “Lao Liu just doesn’t believe me.”

Lisa speaks fluent Chinese, and despite being married to Lao Liu for several years, her figure hasn't changed. I don't know if it's because her eating habits have changed, or if Liu Shanmin is supervising her or something.

After all, in the eyes of most people, the idea that Uyghurs and Kazakhs gain weight after marriage has almost become a fixed mindset.

"Come on, let's go to the meeting room," Li Long said. "Are you planning to drive to the beach?"

A luxury Mercedes-Benz, which had clearly just been driven in, was parked in the parking lot. Li Long guessed that it must have been driven by Liu Shanmin.

"No, no, no, that's too tiring." Liu Shanmin followed Li Long into the reception room, while Lisa followed behind with the two children.

"And your car?"

"Drive to Wucheng, then find a place to drop us off, and take a plane from there," Liu Shanmin said as he sat down.

Before Li Long could even greet them, Liang Shuangcheng, who was on duty there, had already come over with a teapot.

Li Long took the teapot, picked up the teacups that were upside down on the tea tray on the table, and poured tea for them while saying, "How long do you plan to stay here? Shall we go to Tuanfenglou for dinner later, or eat at my place?"

"Eat at your place. I've brought my wife and kids along. We don't need to become family, but at least let my family meet them," Liu Shanmin said with a smile. "With our relationship, it shouldn't be a problem, right?"

“That’s definitely no problem,” Li Long said with a smile. “Let’s have some water, and then we’ll go to the courtyard.”

He went to the counter and made a phone call home. Gu Xiaoxia was packing her things at home when Li Long said that Liu Shanmin was coming home with his wife and children soon, and Gu Xiaoxia understood.

So when Li Long brought Liu Shanmin and his wife and children to the Li family home, the gate was open, and Gu Xiaoxia and Sister Yang were waiting for them in the yard.

"Welcome, welcome," Gu Xiaoxia said with a smile as she looked at the group of people walking over. "I've always heard my husband Li Long talk about Lao Liu, and today I've finally met him in person."

"Is this Lisa and the child? Come on, let's go inside... Oh, right, this is Sister Yang, our eldest sister."

"Welcome, welcome!" Sister Yang said with a smile.

Lisa speaks fluent Chinese. She already knew that Gu Xiaoxia was a teacher, so she started chatting with her.

Gu Xiaoxia didn't expect to run into a fellow professional. The two got along quite well. The two children didn't want to go inside, mainly because they saw goats, dogs, and roe deer that had already grown up in the yard.

“Let them play in the yard,” Liu Shanmin said. “They’ll know to come inside when it gets cold. Your yard is quite nice; I really didn’t expect to see such authentic Chinese architecture in the Northwest.”

Lisa spoke to the two children in Russian, essentially telling them not to touch anything in the yard.

Gu Xiaoxia looked at the girl, her eyes practically sparkling. She had two sons, both of whom were already at the mischievous age. Not having a daughter was a great regret for her, so she was truly envious of other girls who were as well-behaved as porcelain dolls.

Several women went into Sister Yang's room to chat, while Li Long and Liu Shanmin talked in the living room.

“After we met last time, I thought you were right when I got back. I originally planned to take my wife and child straight to the beach, but there were some formalities that needed to be completed.”

I also called them again; there are some things that need to be taken care of. I'm leaving now, and I won't be gone for at least a few months, so you still need to sort out your supply issues.”

"Hey, then I really have to thank you," Li Long said half-jokingly. "How's your two kids' Chinese? I don't think they speak much."

“It’s not good. This trip back is a good opportunity for them to get some proper training. After all, they are Han Chinese, and they can’t be completely unable to speak Chinese.”

Li Long didn't care at all about what Liu Shanmin said. These two children had inherited the genes from the woman's family, and to be honest, their Han Chinese characteristics were not obvious.

"So, are you planning to have another one?" Li Long asked with a hint of mischief.

"Let nature take its course," Liu Shanmin smiled. "They don't have plans over there; the more children the better."

Li Long understood this point. After all, such a large area had such a small population. During the Soviet era, heroic mothers were always praised, and the more children a woman gave birth to, the more glorious it was. That country truly implemented the idea that "many people make great things" very thoroughly, and even into the next century, it continued to call on Kazakhs around the world to return.

This topic clearly didn't fit Li Long's thinking; it was purely envy. So Li Long changed the subject: "So, are you planning to go back after things stabilize over there?"

"Pretty much. Kazakhstan issued its declaration of sovereignty last October, and many of the former Soviet republics have done the same. I estimate that it will probably fall apart this year."

As Liu Shanmin sipped his tea, he said, "Even Da Mao has quit, so how can the others possibly follow? Even if they wanted to, there has to be someone to lead the way, right? Unless," he said jokingly, looking at Li Long, "unless we can catch up with them."

"Forget it. We didn't go when he offered us to be his underlings, so there's no way we'd go now." Li Long waved his hand. "Besides, if we went, we'd definitely be the bosses. Why would we bother leading a bunch of poor guys? No way."

The two men were rambling on and on when the door opened, and Liu Shanmin's mischievous son came running in excitedly to show his father a wad of cotton wool in his arms.

"Hey, you guys managed to find this thing too?" Li Long knew something was wrong the moment he saw the cotton wadding, and hurriedly said, "Be careful, it'll prick your hands!"

"What?" Liu Shanmin knew his mischievous child's nature and immediately realized that he had probably gotten into trouble.

"It's nothing, just a hibernating hedgehog. Your son is quite something, managing to pull this thing out." Li Long chuckled. "But this isn't fun, it smells pretty bad, and it's sleeping. I wonder if it'll make a fuss if it gets woken up."

The child let go as soon as he heard this, and the wad of cotton was thrown on the ground, spreading out to reveal the little hedgehog inside.

Actually, it's not small. It's about the size of a domestic pig's bladder, weighing over two kilograms. It's edible.

Li Long subconsciously thought of this data.

"Hey, you little rascal!" Liu Shanmin laughed and scolded, pulling the child aside to wash his hands, asking him about his sister as he did so.

Li Long took the cotton wool and wrapped the hedgehog up. The hedgehog was awake, but a little dazed. Li Long figured since it had already been taken out, he might as well put it in the house.

What else can we do?

However, it couldn't be left in the main room; it would smell too bad. Li Long carried the bag out to the side room.

That's one of the advantages of having so many rooms. I found an empty room without heating and wrapped this thing up tightly in the corner.

The neighboring house had added heating, so the temperature inside was around five or six degrees Celsius. It would be a bit cold for an average person, but it was enough for the hedgehog who had been padded with cotton.

After putting away the cotton quilts and closing the door, Li Long went back to the main house. Liu Shanmin had already taken the child to the neighbor's house.

The two continued chatting, this time mainly about how to make money after that big empire collapsed.

"One whale falls and all things are born." Although the two of them couldn't say the words, they still understood the principle.

Heavy weapons and ammunition cannot be brought in, but at least some mechanical equipment can be purchased.

Liu Shanmin's father-in-law's family can buy land, so he plans to acquire more land there. Even if he doesn't cultivate it, the natural conditions there will produce excellent forage grass.

Li Long thought about Halim, and maybe they would be more likely to become large ranchers over there, since the grasslands there are bigger and easier to develop.

"I don't actually need much. Used cars are fine, I'll take any size. Oh, and machinery is okay too. To be honest, after they're all shut down over there, many factories definitely won't be able to develop. You might as well just dismantle those machines and sell them over here."

Li Long offered Liu Shanmin some wildly imaginative suggestions: "Not just Kazakhstan, but other countries too. Of course, collect cultural relics and gold and silver items while things are in disarray. These things are hard currency, and their prices are bound to rise in the future."

Forget about the official ones, there are still many such things in the folk. However, in those chaotic times, when people couldn't get enough to eat, nothing was more valuable than food.

Liu Shanmin will have a large amount of resources at that time, and there are many things he can exchange for.

Li Long vaguely heard that the Soviet Union implemented a classified management system, with each constituent republic having different responsibilities and tasks, meaning that each country had a different focus in its development.

Many countries bordering Kazakhstan have good relations, so this channel can be opened up to import goods from other countries into China via Kazakhstan, and then Li Long can resell them, thus confirming him as a middleman.

Ordinary people still can't cross the border now. But once Kazakhstan becomes a republic, ordinary citizens of both countries will be able to travel freely with their passports. At that time, it won't just be Li Long and his group doing this business.

So we need to hurry.

"Okay, when I get back, I'll get you a few heavy trucks." Liu Shanmin joked, "Don't complain about not having enough space or not being able to sell them."

"Don't worry, this isn't like when you first came over there. Back then, we could sell ten or eight heavy trucks here, let alone just a few," Li Long said confidently.

He was telling the truth. After all, the area did start to develop rapidly in the 1990s, and heavy trucks were needed for mining and other similar projects.

The technology in China is not yet up to par; most of them are imported, such as KamAZ, which is still very popular.

And it's ridiculously expensive.

Of course, secondhand items are much cheaper. In those countries, the economy has at least regressed significantly, if not completely shut down; secondhand items are unlikely to fetch even a fraction of their original price.

As the two chatted, they smelled the aroma of food; it turned out that Sister Yang and the others were already cooking.

Li Long went out to take a look and was somewhat surprised. Lisa was also helping out. The three women were busy in the kitchen, while the two children, unfazed by the cold, were playing in the yard.

That's good.

Liu Shanmin followed them out, and then belatedly asked, "Where is your child?"

“When you called, I took them to my older brother’s house. They didn’t know that any of their friends were coming. You didn’t explain it clearly. They stayed there and played with their brother.”

"His brother?" Liu Shanmin was a little surprised, then realized, "You mean their cousin?"

“Yes.” Li Long smiled. “They are my older brother’s children. My two kids have been playing with them since they were little, so we’re used to it.”

As we chatted, it was time to eat. There weren't many people, just enough to fill one table. The old man wasn't there, and since everyone was around the same age, we were able to chat easily.

During the meal, Sister Yang casually mentioned the preparations for the annual meeting to Gu Xiaoxia and the others, which caught Liu Shanmin's attention. He asked in detail what an annual meeting was, and then said that he could also organize an annual meeting for his subordinates when he got back.

"You can bring your team on a trip when you hold your annual party," Li Long said with a smile. "The situation over there isn't great, but our development here is pretty fast."

"We'll see," Liu Shanmin said noncommittally. "Our coastal development is indeed quite rapid, but in the northern border region, it's still a bit lacking."

Li Long realized that the development of northern Xinjiang at this time was not what it would be in later years; it was far inferior to Almaty.

After all, Almaty was the capital of the constituent republics of Kazakhstan, and at one time it was also the capital of Kazakhstan. However, because it was too close to China, the capital was changed.

In any case, these cities in northern Xinjiang cannot compare to Almaty for the time being.

Li Long's mindset hasn't changed yet.

At present, we are not the only industrial power in the world with a complete range of products. No matter how bad the neighboring country is, it still has the title of a superpower.

So he didn't say anything more. On the contrary, Liu Shanmin was really interested in the annual meeting that Li Long had proposed. He had been in business for a long time and knew that employee cohesion was very important, so he asked a lot of questions about the details of the annual meeting.

Li Long was just saying it casually; he'd heard quite a bit about it anyway. As for what Liu Shanmin would do, that was up to him.

The meal was enjoyed, and after it was over, the children went back to play. Liu Shanmin and Li Long continued chatting in the living room, while the women cleaned up the kitchen and then went off to chat.

It wasn't until the afternoon that Liu Shanmin took his leave. After he left, Gu Xiaoxia told Li Long in the room that Lisa had given her and Sister Yang a shawl that was very light and beautiful. Then she took it out and showed it to Li Long.

It is indeed very light, and the design is also exquisite.

“She said it’s quite popular internationally, and that it’s some kind of velvet…” Gu Xiaoxia said, “I feel like it’s hard to match with clothes.”

Li Long fell silent and put down the shawl. Well, if it was as he suspected, then it was indeed quite valuable.

Whether or not to wear it is up to Gu Xiaoxia herself.

In the evening, Li Qingxia, the father, brought Mingming and Haohao back home. They had to go to school tomorrow.

The next day, Liu Shanmin made a brief announcement at the acquisition site and then drove to Wucheng.

Li Long was just waiting for Mingming and Haohao to have their holiday.

Every day when Li Long went to the purchasing station, he saw the employees thinking during their breaks. He casually asked them a question and they told him they were thinking about how to put together a program.

There were singers and dancers—breakdancing, which involved pulling ropes, wiping windows, and moonwalking, was all the rage at the time, and young people with good coordination could do a few moves.

Even if you can't breakdance, you can still do a few disco moves.

This is what memories of a bygone era are like.

A few days later, Li Qiang, Mingming, and Haohao were given holidays one after another. As was his habit, Li Long drove Mingming and Haohao to the fourth team.

The Spring Festival in 1991 fell on February 15th, which was relatively late, similar to a certain year in later times. Therefore, the old customs had to be changed. After Li Long pulled Mingming and Haohao to the fourth team, he discussed the timing of this year's "winter slaughter" with his older brother.

After all, in previous years it would be placed in the twelfth lunar month, but this year it has to be done earlier.

After discussing it, we decided to hold it on January 8th. Since it was freezing cold and everyone was staying home to hibernate, we thought it would be better to slaughter some livestock at Old Ma's place early and have some fun.

After discussing it with his older brother, Li Long drove to Lao Ma Hao, but on the way they encountered a motorcyclist.

This is quite rare—although in Li Long's memory, the most popular mode of transportation in the countryside for the next few years was the motorcycle.

But having gotten used to driving a car, I forgot about it.

He was genuinely surprised to suddenly see someone riding a motorcycle.

He recognized the man in the cotton-padded coat riding the motorcycle as Siping, someone he used to play with. The motorcycle looked like a Jialing?
Li Long didn't care much about motorcycles. He had ridden one in his previous life, and for a long time. He once went to Dahai Lake to catch fish with nets. One time, he cast more than a dozen nets, and the catch was particularly good. He brought up more than 80 kilograms of fish with those dozen nets, and he almost had to pull the nets out of the water.

Of course, the harvest was also great. After catching the fish, we put them on the motorcycle, took them home to sort them out, and went to the county to sell them at dawn. We made nearly a thousand yuan, which was a rare big order.

Otherwise, it would be impossible to remember it so vividly.

While Li Long was in a daze, Huang Siping rode his motorcycle up to Li Long's Land Cruiser and stopped. Li Long also stopped his car and rolled down the window.

"Li Long, where are you going?" Huang Siping asked with a smile.

He pushed off the ground with one foot, leaning slightly to the side, looking rather dashing. Of course, it would have been even better if he had worn an air force or tank driver's leather jacket instead of a rather unfashionable yellow overcoat.

Of course that's impossible. Let alone having one, they've only ever seen that jacket in magazines. What's that guy's name? Hu Yajie? Was he wearing it for a cover shoot?
(This isn't the one; I couldn't find a proper photo, so please bear with this one.)

"Is this the motorcycle you bought?" Li Long asked. "How much did it cost?" "It's my relative's motorcycle from Beiting. It's secondhand. He drove it for two years and then sold it to me. These days, young people in Beiting, Wucheng, are all riding these." Huang Siping didn't hide anything and explained that it was a secondhand motorcycle.

It's clear that the original owner took good care of this car; it looks almost brand new.

Li Long got out of the car, looked at the model, and compared it with his memory. It was a Jialing 70 model, a popular car among the people. The new car, including the handling fees, cost only four thousand yuan.

If it's secondhand, it should cost around two or three thousand yuan.

“Not bad, it looks pretty good.” Li Long smiled. “You still have to be careful when driving it, as it’s easy to slip on the snow.”

Although he didn't buy a two-wheeled motorcycle, he had a sidecar motorcycle at home, which was worth as much as many of those motorcycles.

As for the current trend, that's not wrong. In the 1990s and the following years, motorcycles were very popular in northern Xinjiang. In the early 2000s, herders in Zhaosu used motorcycles to herd cattle and sheep.

It seems the era of motorcycles has arrived.

Of course, this doesn't work in Team Four. Team Four now has nearly ten cars, and ambitious young people are proud to own one.

Huang Siping was quite excited to have Li Long's approval and insisted that Li Long try it out, but Li Long refused.

Just kidding, this road is incredibly slippery, it's like it's covered with a thick layer of ice. If a motorcycle speeds up, a fall could be quite serious.

After chatting with Huang Siping for a while, Li Long said that he was going to slaughter sheep and cattle on the 8th and invited Huang Siping to come and eat meat. Huang Siping happily agreed.

After the two separated, Li Long drove towards Lao Ma Hao. When he was about to turn at Lao Ma Hao, he saw in the rearview mirror that Huang Siping seemed to have jumped into the ditch by the roadside.

He hurriedly stopped the car, got out and looked over there, and found that it really was true. However, Huang Siping quickly picked up the motorcycle, pushed it back onto the road, and rode away with a slight limp.

I should be fine if I slip and fall in the snow, right?
Thankfully it's not the larger displacement 125cc, otherwise it would have been really hard to lift it up.

Li Long looked down on the Jialing 70; if it had been the 125, he might have given it a try.

Li Long then got back into the car and drove into the Old Horse Hotel.

After discussing the slaughtering time with Uncle Luo and the others, we decided to slaughter five sheep, one cow, two deer, and two roe deer.

We'll use the same method: call the people from Yushanjiang over to help slaughter them and eat the meat together.

Next, Li Long informed Halimu and the others. Halimu brought the old lady and the two children to the Qingshuihe compound. The old lady had a bit of a cold these past two days, so Li Long didn't let Halimu come over.

Taking care of the elderly is more important.

There's nothing wrong on the Yushan River side. He sent five people over, with Talihar leading the team. Bek didn't come along; it seems his father had run into some trouble again and he went to deal with it.

Yushanjiang himself didn't come; he took a car to the valley to pick up a batch of cattle and sheep. The cannery needs a large number of cattle and sheep every day. Although Yushanjiang and Keyum have made a lot of money from this, to be honest, it's also very hard work, as they are out and about every day.

It's fair to say there are gains and losses.

Before New Year's Day, Keyum also bought three cars, two trucks, and a Land Cruiser from Li Long.

Keyum joked with Li Long, saying that all the money he had earned in the past two years had been given to Li Long.

Li Long asked for 100,000 for the two trucks and 200,000 for the Land Cruiser—mainly because the Land Cruiser was in pretty good condition.

The fact that Keyum could pull out 300,000 yuan at once shows that he has really made a lot of money in the past few years.

He also told Li Long the truth. He originally thought that Yushanjiang was a competitor, since Li Long's meat processing plant didn't need that much meat.

He just didn't expect that with the addition of the cannery, he and Yushanjiang would have to work together to supply the cannery with meat. So they lost their original competitive spirit and started to divide up the areas to deal with cattle and sheep separately.

The Yushan River area is located in the river valley and eastern Xinjiang, while Keyum is nearby, as well as the area around Tacheng and Altay.

The two don't bother each other, and occasionally help each other out when needed.

Li Long thought this was a good idea.

After all, if it's just pure competition, one side might resort to underhanded tactics, making a lose-lose situation more likely.

It's fine as it is now.

On January 8th, the shed at Old Ma's place was set up and the stove was lit. Liang Yuemei arrived early with Sister-in-law Lu and others to help.

Gu Xiaoxia also came over. Sister Yang didn't have time because she had to go to the cannery. Han Fang came along though because Li Juan was on vacation and Han Fang couldn't wait to chat with her about university life.

Besides the people Talihar brought, there were also Xie Yundong and others on the scene, plus Uncle Luo and his group, which meant Li Long didn't have much work to do.

However, others couldn't stand to see him idle. Huang Siping rode over on his motorcycle, with Huang Xinping riding on the back.

Huang Xinping is the head of another cooperative in the team. According to Xu Haijun, their cooperative did not make much money this year, and the shareholders were somewhat resentful.

Huang Xinping got off his motorcycle and went to find Li Long, while Huang Siping greeted Li Long and then went to help.

Since there wasn't much specific work to do, he picked up a basin and went to Xu Haijun's place to wash the waste together.

"Xiao Long, you're making a bigger show of things than you think," Huang Xinping greeted Li Long with a smile, then took out a pack of cigarettes, pulled one out, and handed it to Li Long.

"Ashima," Li Long glanced at the cigarette, took it, and said with a smile, "Good cigarette!"

"What's the big deal? Just smoke it as is." Huang Xinping is a little younger than Li Jianguo, but he's almost forty.

Seeing how polite he was now, Li Long knew that he must want something from him.

“Xiaolong,” Huang Xinping lit a cigarette and said, “I’ve tried to find you at your older brother’s place a few times, but I couldn’t find you, so I had to come here now.”

"What's up?" Li Long asked, puffing on his cigarette like a donkey burning incense.

Before Huang Xinping could speak, Wang Caimi arrived carrying his tools. He always came when the Li family needed something, and his attitude was always excellent. Li Long greeted him, but Wang Caimi didn't say much and went to work.

"You know my cooperative; it didn't make much money last year. We didn't lose money, but it wasn't well managed. So I wanted to ask you for some advice..."

"Then you shouldn't be asking me. The cooperative is managed by Lao Xie, I don't go there very often."

"I asked Yun Dong." Huang Xinping took two deep drags on his cigarette. Just as he was about to speak, he saw a young man riding over on a motorcycle.

These two were from another cooperative. After parking their motorcycles, they greeted Li Long first, and then went to find Li Jianguo to get work.

Looking at the increasingly lively scene, Huang Xinping couldn't help but feel a little envious.

The Li family's popularity is truly remarkable.

"Go ahead and ask me anything," Li Long said. "I do know a bit about technical matters."

Huang Xinping mainly asked about technology, but also some management aspects.

Li Long didn't keep anything to himself; he understood that even if he didn't tell them, the other party would gradually figure it out.

The two sides are not competitors. After the products are produced, they are sold to the country. The country needs this in large quantities, so the more produced, the better.

Huang Xinping not only asked about the current cotton situation, but also about Li Long's drip-irrigated fields.

However, after learning that the cost of the drip irrigation experimental field was too high, they stopped asking.

After finishing two cigarettes, Huang Xinping went to work with satisfaction.

After asking so many questions, it would be unreasonable not to do any work.

Li Long noticed something interesting. In just a short while, at least six or seven young men had arrived on motorcycles.

I don't know when it happened, but motorcycles have actually become a fashion trend among young people.

"What can we do?" Xu Haijun, who had finished his work and was about to take a break, leaned against the car next to Li Long and said:

“They’re young and can’t afford a car. Even if their families had enough money, they wouldn’t buy one. Right now, they’re all working at home. They’ll work for two years and earn little, so their families will have to give them something in return.”

Li Long then understood. Many of the young people in the team stayed at home to work after graduating from junior high school, since there weren't many privately owned factories at that time.

These people work hard at home, putting in a lot of toil throughout the year. So at the end of the year, besides buying clothes, there should be other attractive rewards.

So those families with better financial conditions bought motorcycles.

The aroma quickly filled the air above the old horse ship. Nearby dogs ran over, but didn't dare to approach, instead circling around the perimeter.

Li Qiang, along with Mingming and Haohao, were already able to help carry water. Li Juan and Han Fang chatted and helped out at the case site with Liang Yuemei.

Li Juan was picked up by Li Long at the bus station when she returned. She didn't have her family pick her up at the train station; she called specifically to explain the situation, saying that the bus station was right next to the train station and there was no need to drive there.

My family agreed.

After a semester at university, Li Juan has become much more composed. The childishness of her high school days has faded from her face, replaced by youthful confidence and the scholarly air of a university student.

When older women ask about her college life, Li Juan can answer with grace and confidence. Even when asked if she has found a partner, Li Juan will not blush, but will simply smile and shake her head.

Gu Xiaoxia whispered to Liang Yuemei, "University really helps you grow. Juan used to blush when talking to people, but look how confident she is now!"

"Hey, that's right." Liang Yuemei's face was full of pride; this was her own daughter. Unlike some mothers who would belittle their children when others praised their success, she was different.

Liang Yuemei is very satisfied with her daughter and son, so she is happy when someone praises them and will chime in with praise.

After all, both Li Juan and Li Qiang were outstanding in their studies, and the siblings had a good relationship. They were exemplary in the third generation of the Li family in the northern border region.

Privately, Li Qingxia often told Li Jianguo that with the two eldest sons leading the way, the younger ones would surely amount to something.

Some of the younger members of the team, like young roosters just coming of age, would occasionally wander around in front of Li Juan and Han Fang, and those who were on good terms with them before would come over and exchange a few words.

However, most of them would only chat for a couple of minutes before getting back to work, because they didn't know what to say. On the contrary, Li Juan and Han Fang had a lot in common.

After all, these are the last stages of learning before starting work, and interpersonal relationships at school are quite important.

Although there were many animals to slaughter, there were even more people to help and do the work. So by noon, all the work was finished, the meat was cooked, and the large steamed buns were already steamed. The children who were watching were already eating the meat-filled buns, and some were teasing the dogs around with bones.

Li Long has always been generous. In addition to food, each of the men who came to help received a piece of meat to take home.

If the man is also there, the woman who comes to help will receive a bowl of cooked meat and vegetables in addition to the piece of meat he took. If the man is not there, she will receive both.

Even if a child stays until the end, they will be given a meat-filled steamed bun to take home after they have finished eating.

Putting everything else aside, this one point alone earned the Li family genuine praise from the villagers for their winter slaughter.

At the end of the month, the annual meetings of the cannery and the purchasing station were finally held.

The annual meeting was held in a heated warehouse at the purchasing station.

The workers found some long tables and used them to set up a frame in the warehouse, just like a school's New Year's Day tea party. The tables were decorated with melon seeds, peanuts, candy, apples, oranges, and other treats.

Sister Yang originally wanted Li Long to host, but Li Long declined and asked Sister Yang to host instead, telling her to be casual.

He sat at the door, cracking sunflower seeds and watching everyone perform. There were fixed programs, as well as a game of musical chairs where whoever got the flower had to perform.

As the designer of the annual meeting, Li Long naturally took on the task of drumming—so he wouldn't have to perform.

Everyone was having a good time, laughing and joking. Whenever someone went on stage, the applause was constant, which boosted the confidence of those performing songs and breakdancing.

He participated in quite a few programs, such as musical chairs and balloon popping, which were all good at creating a lively atmosphere. Li Long was sure that he would definitely leave a deep impression on these employees.

When he wasn't playing the drums, he took a lot of photos with a point-and-shoot camera.

Li Long's idea is to develop the photos when he has some free time, and then set up a display board at the cannery and purchasing station to put the photos up, so that everyone will feel more involved.

Small gestures are often effective in winning people's hearts and minds.

The most exciting part was the final lucky draw.

Yes, Li Long put the lottery draw last. Once the draw was over and the prizes were distributed, it was considered finished.

As for digestion, let the employees handle it themselves.

Li Long didn't participate in the lottery, which seemed fairer. Sister Yang placed a red paper box with the words "Annual Meeting Lottery" pasted on it on the table, and then let the employees line up one by one to draw a prize.

Older brother Li Qingxia was the first one. Inside the lottery box were folded square slips of paper, each with a note on it. Since it was the first year of participation, Li Long changed his original plan to write "Thank you for participating" on the slips he didn't win to "A can of food".

Consider it a consolation prize.

After drawing his slip of paper, Li Qingxia took it and sat back down in his seat. He was old, but he loved excitement. He watched the whole show today, and when the game of passing the parcel came to him, he wasn't shy at all and sang a Henan opera song called "Who Says Women Are Inferior to Men?" This song is like the model operas, and almost every young person knows how to sing it.

The old man sang with particular charm, which drew a round of applause.

As Li Qingxia looked at her slip of paper, the others went up on stage one by one to draw theirs. Some opened theirs on the spot, while others secretly looked at them after leaving the stage.

Soon, the first and second prizes were announced. To Li Long's surprise, the first prize went to Zeng Xiangyang, a quiet, slightly stuttering veteran from the purchasing station.

The second prize went to Huang Yufeng, a female worker at the cannery, and Dong Lijun, a security guard.

Li Qingxia, the father, won the third prize; he was quite lucky.

Li Long and Sister Yang then presented the awards.

The employees looked on with envy at the winners of the first and second prizes, who had also received canned food, which was better than nothing.

After the annual meeting ended, the employees did not leave immediately. Instead, they worked together to clean up the venue, set up the tables and chairs, swept up the sunflower seeds, peanuts, and fruit shells on the ground, and sprinkled water before leaving.

With the annual meeting over, production and acquisition tasks have come to an end, and now it's time to prepare for the Chinese New Year.

The assigned staff arrived on duty today. They were the first to draw the prizes, but only one of them won a third prize.

Next comes the rest period. The cannery and the purchasing station will not resume work until after the Lantern Festival, so this holiday is relatively long, much better than that of state-owned enterprises.

To Li Long's surprise, a few days after the annual meeting, a reporter from the county television station came knocking on his door. It turned out that news of their annual meeting had spread, and since a friend of one of the employees was a reporter, he thought the approach was quite novel and wanted to interview Li Long.

These days, news is really scarce. When a reporter finally catches something that catches their eye, they naturally want to hold on tight.

Li Long didn't hold back and told the reporter everything, even showing him the developed photos.

The reporter borrowed the film, saying he needed to use it, and Li Long gave it to him.

Let's use it. It's a good opportunity to promote the factory—it's like free advertising, how great! (End of Chapter)