Rebirth of Bayi Fishing and Hunting in the Northwest

Li Long raised the mutton in his hand and said with a smile:

"Mr. Liu, these are the sheep my family raised. I slaughtered them and gave them to you for the New Year."

"Hey, Xiao Li, you are so polite..." Engineer Liu was very touched. He didn't care about the mutton, but mainly because Li Long often thought of coming to visit. Li Long was like a timely help to him.

If Li Long had not come to buy the jade carvings when he was in the most difficult time, he would probably have become discouraged and planned to retire early during that time.

Although I haven't been able to return to the workshop in the factory yet, I can still use my skills here, which can be regarded as making use of my remaining energy.

The older generation has been busy their entire lives. If you suddenly let them have some free time, they really don’t know what to do. In another 40 years, when they have some free time, they can at least use their phones. At that time, there will be fewer entertainment options, and TV can only be watched at night.

I feel really empty when I'm idle.

Li Long made Mr. Liu's life fulfilling again, and he was really grateful to Li Long.

"I'm not being polite. I found a lot of good stuff from you," Li Long handed the mutton to the young man and said, "My family members all praised me for my good taste."

He took a quick look and found that the jade material on the case that Engineer Liu had just worked on was much less than the last time he came, so he asked:

"Mr. Liu, have you been free recently?"

"No, I've been teaching Xiao Ma the basic techniques lately." Engineer Liu pointed to the jade material he was carving and said, "In winter, jade farmers are not very active, so the amount of material collected is small. Although the factory has a lot of inventory, it is mainly used by those who are working, so the supply here is small."

When this happened in the past, Mr. Liu would be a little unhappy, but now he has figured it out.

He himself has health problems, but he is still able to continue working here and teach apprentices, which is already very good. He has been an apprentice himself and knows that if he really has health problems, he will most likely retire and leave his position to others.

Competition is everywhere, and jade carving factories are no exception. At present, he can still work and continue to engage in his favorite carving career, which is already very good.

The most important thing is that the salary and bonus he received this year is actually much more than those masters in office. Liu Gong's apprentice Xiao Ma told him that someone has been asking about his income privately.

What does this mean? It means that this position, which has always been disliked, has now been targeted by someone.

Now we are transforming from a planned economy to a commodity economy, and what people value is not only face and position, but also income!

Mr. Liu didn't know how long he could stay in this position. The previous factory manager had made it clear that as long as he wanted to work, the position would be his.

But if the factory director is transferred, whether this statement will count or not depends on the attitude of the new factory director.

But Mr. Liu actually didn't care anymore. His emotions went through a lot of ups and downs, and he saw the world clearly. Now he can continue carving, although slowly, but the quality is still up to standard.

If it is adjusted, the worst that can happen is that you step back and collect the materials yourself.

The appearance of Li Long and the subsequent prosperity of this small jade carving shop made Mr. Liu see a possibility. At worst, he could just collect materials from southern Xinjiang and carve them himself.

Jade culture has been passed down in China for thousands of years, even earlier than gold, silver and bronze. Young people may not like some of these things, but in the eyes of the older generation, these things are good things.

So there is definitely a market, and he has a good reputation, so why worry about not having sales?
After thinking this through, Mr. Liu became open-minded. Of course, he still had to thank Li Long for helping him figure it out in the first place.

Li Long came here with no other intention than to send some meat to Engineer Liu. It seemed that the meat originally prepared for Professor Wu and Professor Luo would not be used.

He planned to visit Mr. Liu, deliver the meat, then go to the department store to buy some New Year goods, buy some things for his family, and then head to Beiting.

"Comrade Xiao Li, do you have anything else to do today?" Engineer Liu asked. "If not, let's have lunch here. I'll ask Xiao Ma to talk to my wife and ask her to cook two more dishes for lunch..."

"No, Mr. Liu. I have to go to Beiting soon. I have a lot of things to do today." Li Long said apologetically, "I also have to go to the department store to buy things. I won't have dinner. I can just chat with you for a while."

Although Mr. Liu was a little disappointed, he still said:

"That's fine. You have a car anyway. Come here often when you are free. I will keep all the good materials for you."

After saying that, he opened the drawer, took out a piece of seed material with a gold-sprinkled coating and said:

"Look at this material. It's really rare for the factory to give me such material. The leather on this material is naturally a picture of a person fishing. I didn't do anything with it. It has become a very good handle. Take it."

Li Long took the handle and looked at it carefully.

It weighs less than one kilogram, and fits perfectly in Li Long's big hand. The jade is very fine and warm. The whole jade is small at the top and big at the bottom, and feels a little like a drop of water.

One third of the jade material is covered with leather. As Mr. Liu said, when viewed from the front it looks exactly like a person fishing, with all the fine lines of a fishing rod, and leather-like ripples on the edge, with a fish head slightly raised above the ripples.

A sense of natural fun.

Li Long likes it very much.

"Thank you, Mr. Liu. How much is this material?" Li Long asked habitually.

"Don't talk about money. This is a gift for you." Engineer Liu waved his hand. "Don't refuse it. In my opinion, this material is not as good as the lamb leg you mentioned."

Li Long didn't say much, and said while playing with the jade:
"Well, I'm going to buy some more jade today, Xiao Ma, right? Can you help me introduce them?"

He thought that it was a give and take. The lamb leg he gave was only worth a little over ten yuan, and the jade material must be worth dozens of yuan.

In this case, he would try to make up for it in other ways. He was called Xiao Ma because he was afraid that the price Liu Gong gave him was too low and he would not make any money.

Mr. Liu saw through his thoughts and said with a smile:

"Okay, Xiao Li, don't worry. I will definitely make money from the things I sell to you. Come and have a look. There aren't many things, but the materials are pretty good."

He opened the drawer and showed Li Long his recently carved work, saying as he took it out:

"Don't buy those common sculptures in the future. I'm not bragging, it's just that those things don't look good when they're left alone."

After Li Long bought the four pieces of material for 110 yuan, he chatted for a while and drove away.

"Xiao Ma, go to the factory this afternoon to get some more materials. Seed materials are best. If seed materials are not acceptable, you need to use mountain materials of a higher grade. It doesn't matter if they are small, or larger scraps, but at least the grade must be high."

After watching Li Long leave, Mr. Liu said to his apprentice, "Record this money as 100 yuan. The remaining 10 yuan will be your subsidy for this month. Buy some meat before the New Year. I won't share this meat with you today."

Xiao Ma was very happy to hear this. He originally thought that he was being exiled, but who would have thought that he would receive a subsidy every month, which was not much less than the apprentice salary, and Engineer Liu also gave him careful guidance, which was much better than the situation in the factory where seven or eight apprentices were surrounded by one master.

Moreover, Mr. Liu is a true master carver. Any technique he possesses is enough for him to study for ten days or half a month.

This is a mouse falling into a rice jar.

Xiao Ma immediately went to implement Mr. Liu's decision. After deducting the cost from the money received, half of the remaining money would be given to Mr. Liu, which was why some people envied Mr. Liu and planned to seek this position.

Here, you can actually earn money, which is much higher than the bonuses in the factory.

Only Mr. Liu knew that this had the greatest relationship with Li Long.

After leaving the jade carving factory, Li Long first went to the department store and bought a variety of New Year goods, including a lot of firecrackers. Thinking back to the first time he left with a sack on his back, now he can drive a car to transport it.

The changes are really too fast.

When I came out of the department store, it was already past three o'clock. Although it was considered noon in northern Xinjiang, it was actually already afternoon.

He planned to deliver all the meat today and return home in the evening, so he hurried to the South Railway Station, scanned the area there, and when he didn't find Yusup, he drove towards Beiting.

When he arrived at the State Supply and Marketing Cooperative, Li Long drove his jeep directly into the gate this time.

The person at the gate asked Li Long for his work ID and then let him in.

People coming and going did not give the jeep much attention—there were still a few small cars in the state cooperative, and not many people paid attention to it.

Li Long drove the car directly to the small car team, and he saw Xiao Si.

Xiao Si was a little curious when he saw Li Long drive in directly. When Li Long got out of the car, he hurried over to say hello. "I'm doing winter slaughter, and I brought some beef and venison to Director Qian. Venison is very nutritious, I'll also bring you a piece, go back and cook it for your family, it's a winter tonic." Li Long explained his purpose, "Is the director here?"

"Yes, I haven't been busy lately," Xiao Si said with a smile, "Go ahead, give me the car keys, and I'll take care of it for you."

"Okay. Come, I'll put the meat in your car first." Li Long opened the trunk door and said, "This bag is Director Qian's, and these are yours. Don't complain about the small amount."

"Hey, how can you complain about it being too little? You wouldn't even think about this much meat normally, right?" Xiao Si really didn't complain about it being too little. He smiled and said, "Thank you."

Li Long handed the car keys to Xiao Si, then turned and went to the office building.

Director Qian was looking at documents in the office. When he heard a knock on the door, he looked up and saw that it was Li Long. He was a little surprised, then smiled and pointed at the sofa and said:
"Xiao Li is here, come, come, sit down."

Someone came in to pour water for Li Long, and left after pouring the water. Li Long then greeted him and explained his purpose.

"You raise red deer?" Director Qian was a little surprised. "Hey, I didn't expect you to do this."

"Well, my friends in the mountains gave me the red deer they caught in the spring, and I kept them in a pen. They're pretty good. The meat from farmed deer tastes better than wild ones. This time I slaughtered the meat of a young male deer. It's not smelly and tastes pretty good."

"Okay, okay, I have to try it." Director Qian naturally knew that the meat of domestic animals was different from that of wild animals because of the food they eat and their captive habits.

It’s fun to hunt wild ones, but if the meat is not properly prepared, it will definitely not be as delicious as domesticated ones.

Of course, it's not so bad that you can't eat it. The wild boar that Li Long brought back was cooked with heavy ingredients and wine to remove the fishy smell, so it tasted pretty good.

Director Qian only paid brief attention to this and then asked about Li Long's recent situation.

"You mean fattening sheep? Is there a future for it? How about the mutton?" Director Qian became interested when he heard Li Long say that he had recently engaged in fattening sheep and made quite a lot of money. "Is the meat quality good?"

"A sheep can gain more than ten kilograms of meat in two months, and it is very fat." Li Long said, "There is a piece of meat in the meat I brought to the director this time. You can take a look when we get back."

"Why go back? The meat is at Xiao Si's place, right? Let's go and take a look."

Li Long didn't expect that Director Qian was quite interested in this, so he stood up and walked out.

Xiao Si was helping Li Long clean up the car. After checking, he found that the car had been maintained and was in good condition in all aspects. He thought about filling it with gas. At this time, Director Qian and Li Long came down.

"Hey, this car, Xiao Li, you have taken good care of it." Director Qian was also very interested in the car. He could tell at a glance that this was the car he had "matched" for Li Long. He looked at it and said, "Not bad, not bad. You take good care of it."

Li Long secretly felt ashamed. If Xiaoxia hadn't suggested fixing the car, he would have driven here in a "broken car".

"The director said to look at the meat." Li Long whispered to Xiao Si.

Xiao Si hurriedly opened the trunk of his car, and Li Long stepped forward, untied the bag, and took out a leg of lamb.

"Hey, it's really fat!" Director Qian said as he looked at the lamb leg, "It's different from what I usually see."

"I chose the ones that are not too fat, mainly because I am worried that you might not like it if it is too fat." Li Long said honestly, "This beef is also fattened, and so is this venison."

After showing Director Qian the different kinds of meat, Director Qian nodded, then turned around and walked back with his hands behind his back, saying as he walked:

"Not bad, not bad, this is a good way."

Li Long and Xiao Si exchanged glances and hurriedly followed. Xiao Si put the meat back in the car, locked the door, and went to refuel Li Long's car.

He had a lot of gas coupons, so it was no problem for him to fill up the tank with gas.

Back in the office, Director Qian said:
"Xiao Li, it would have been better if you had come earlier. Our state cooperative purchases a large amount of beef and mutton every year, both as a benefit for employees and as reserve meat. I think the meat you brought is good. If you had come a month earlier, our state cooperative would have been able to purchase a batch as reserve meat."

"Will there be any next year?" Li Long asked curiously.

"Of course, every year."

"Then I'll wait until next year. I'll tidy up the pen in the spring and raise more." Li Long didn't regret it at all. The cattle and sheep he raised this time didn't enter the retail market at all. They were all bought by "people with connections", and he still made a lot of money.

So whether you contact the state cooperative or not, the cattle and sheep can be sold.

Seeing that Li Long didn't seem to regret it at all, Director Qian smiled, changed the subject, and asked about Li Long's family situation.

After chatting for a while, Li Long was about to say goodbye and leave. When Director Qian stood up to see him off, he said:

"Go back and tell Xiang Qian not to worry. What belongs to him can't be taken away by others. And what doesn't belong to him can't be taken away by others. It's useless for him to worry."

"Okay, okay, Director. I'll definitely convey this message." Li Long responded and left.

When Li Long went downstairs to the car team, he saw that the car was not there, so he waited here for a while.

The sun was setting, but Li Long was still planning to go to the saddle shop later, firstly to buy a saddle, and secondly to get the yellow sheepskin and ask if it could be processed here.

The main reason he came up with this idea was because he felt that the leather on the saddle made by the other party was very well made.

Soon, Xiao Si drove the jeep over and saw Li Long waiting. He got out of the car and said with a smile:

"I went to fill up your gas tank. You've taken good care of your car."

"It was maintained by our county transportation company." Li Long explained, "The gas money..."

"Hey, don't say that. I didn't pay you for the meat. If you need something, just go and do it. If it were summer, I would have kept you for dinner."

Li Long said goodbye to Xiao Si and drove to the saddle shop.

The door was closed but not locked. When Li Long knocked on the door and went in, the old man was still grinding wood inside. When he saw Li Long come in, he smiled.

Li Long asked the old man how many saddles he had left. The old man gestured to the number three, and Li Long said he would buy them all.

"Can you do something with this leather? It would be better if it becomes softer." Li Long showed the yellow sheepskin to the old man.

The old man took the leather, looked at it, nodded, and then stretched out his fingers to make the number five.

"Five dollars?" Li Long asked doubtfully.

"Five days, free of charge. You bought so much horse gear, I'll help you with this, free of charge."

The old man emphasized that he didn't want any money, then slowly stood up and helped Li Long pack up the horse gear.

Li Long was strong and quick, and he quickly moved the three sets of saddles onto the car and then paid the old man.

The old man counted the money slowly. After counting, he smiled at Li Long, pointed at the leather, and told Li Long to come and pick it up in five days.

Li Long turned around and got in the car. At this time, the sun was less than a pole's height away from setting.

The temperature outside has dropped. Walking west, the sun in the distance looks like an egg yolk without egg white, bright yellow and red, without any sense of warmth or heat.

Most of the tasks on this trip have been completed, and Li Long feels it's pretty good.

He planned to make a careful plan for the matter Director Qian mentioned. He would go back and find time to talk to Uncle Luo about it, and see if he could tidy up the pen in the spring and prepare to fatten another batch in the fall.

If the state cooperative can continue to purchase, this can be a sustainable industry.

When the car arrived at Letuyi, the sun was only half visible. Li Long sped up, hoping to get back to the yard before dark.

Pingyuan Forest Farm, Tasi River, Baojiadian, Tougong... They arrived at the county town. Although there were no street lights, the electric lights that had been turned on in the county households made Li Long feel warm for no reason.

After all, humans are social animals. After staying in a natural and empty place for a long time, they still want to return to the crowd. (End of this chapter)