Reborn in the 1980s: I made my fortune hunting wild game in Changbai Mountain

That evening, Yue Feng returned to his home in Beijing. It was already past nine o'clock. The lights were on. Jin Long had arranged for a temporary nanny to stay there and take care of Yue Feng's daily needs.

Yue Feng was even considering letting Jinlong stay at his house overnight, since Jinlong had drunk quite a bit and driving would be risky.

But Jinlong didn't stay. He said goodbye and drove off.

Watching Jinlong drive away, Yue Feng turned around and closed the gate of the courtyard house, then strolled straight to his master bedroom.

While Yue Feng was drinking, eating, and bragging with Jin Long and the others, the aunt who came to help had already made up Yue Feng's bed and everything else.

A stove was burning in the north room, so the room wasn't cold.

Upon hearing that Yue Feng had returned home, the aunt who was resting temporarily in the side room knocked on the door.

"Is Mr. Yue back? I'm the nanny that Young Master Jin arranged. You can call me Aunt Liu! During your stay in Beijing, I'll be in charge of cooking for you and doing housework!" Aunt Liu introduced herself gently.

"Okay, I'm all set here. I just need to prepare some breakfast this morning! Did Young Master Jin give you any money? For grocery shopping, cooking, and other daily expenses?"

"He gave you less money than he should, and said it's none of your business! If you have any dirty clothes that need washing, just put them in the laundry basket!"

"it is good!"

……

After a brief exchange, Aunt Liu went back to her room to sleep. Yue Feng sat by the stove in the room, rekindled the suppressed fire, and then added a few more pieces of coal.

The coal was put into the furnace and soon began to crackle and pop.

Yue Feng sat by the stove, warming himself by the fire, his mind wandering aimlessly.

This was the first time Yue Feng had spent the night in this courtyard. The thought of owning a complete courtyard house in Beijing made him feel like he was in another world.

In a short while, the kettle on the stove boiled. Yue Feng brewed a cup of tea with the boiling water, then held the teacup and drank it while staring blankly at the fire.

This trip to Beijing is relatively free, but I can't be completely without a plan.

Yue Feng immediately went over the schedule for the next few days.

I definitely need to visit my godfather. In addition, I'll find an opportunity to visit Director Xiao. Besides that, what interests Yue Feng is Uncle Liu's friend from Tianjin.

I wonder if the other party brought their pet rabbit and tiger with them when they came!

Although the rabbit-tiger is not as good as the gyrfalcon, the rabbit-tiger encirclement is considered a relatively elegant activity in the falconry circle. Judging from this point of view alone, Grandpa Liu's friend is not low in the circle.

Moreover, the opponent was playing a brand new limited edition Rabbit Swan Hunt, which made Yue Feng think even more highly of the opponent.

Lost in thought, Yue Feng yawned and rubbed his eyes after finishing his tea.

I was a bit tired from the train journey and hadn't rested during the day, but now I'm starting to feel better.

Yue Feng got up, put down his teacup, then placed several large charcoal blocks on the stove and covered it with another layer of charcoal powder.

After completing these two steps, pull the bottom damper all the way down, leaving only a tiny gap. This will ensure that the stove will not go out overnight.

After sealing the stove, Yue Feng washed his feet with the boiled water he had just used, and then returned to his bedroom.

Close the door, get on the kang (heated brick bed), and turn off the lights.

As darkness fell, all the chaotic thoughts calmed down.

Yue Feng slept soundly through the night without any dreams. The kang (heated brick bed) was very comfortable.

The next morning, Yue Feng's biological clock woke him up on time.

Aunt Liu got up early and cooked millet porridge in the kitchen. She also bought fried dough sticks and pickled vegetables from the street.

Yue Feng didn't stand on ceremony with her. After a quick wash, he had breakfast with Aunt Liu.

At 8:30 a.m., Jinlong drove over.

This guy's dark circles are noticeably heavier than yesterday.

"What happened? Didn't you sleep last night? Your eyes are so dark!" Yue Feng glanced at him and asked curiously.

Jinlong waved his hand: "Hehe, it's nothing. I'm just full of energy and got a little carried away! I'll be fine in a day!"

"Damn, take it easy, don't ruin your health!" Yue Feng was a little speechless. This guy really had a strong addiction to those kinds of things.

"Where are we going today? To Grandpa Liu's house again? Didn't he say a friend was coming over?"

"Since there's nothing else, let's go over there! I'm quite curious about his friend's game of 'Palace Rabbit Hunting'!" Yue Feng said truthfully.

"I'm curious too! Let's go!"

"go!"

……

The two brothers quickly reached an agreement, got out of the car, and headed straight for Grandpa Liu's house.

When we arrived at Grandpa Liu's house, it was just past nine o'clock.

Jinlong and Yuefeng thought they had enough time, but Grandpa Liu had already left. They learned from Grandma Liu that Grandpa Liu had walked to the train station to pick someone up early in the morning.

Yue Feng and Jin Long exchanged a glance, then decisively said goodbye, got back on the bus, and headed straight for the train station.

Waiting at the old man's house wasn't in the brothers' style. They would drive to pick him up, and even if they couldn't, it would just be a quick trip back.

However, if the other party hasn't gotten out of the car yet, or is on their way back, it's still easy to spot.

After all, in this era, early in the morning after the start of the workday, there were far fewer vehicles and pedestrians on the road than in later generations.

As expected, Yue Feng and Jin Long guessed correctly. When the car was less than a kilometer from the train station, Yue Feng spotted Grandpa Liu and his friend from Tianjin from a distance. The two were very recognizable as they were walking on foot on the road.

Why are they so recognizable? It's not that their clothes or appearance have any distinctive features, but rather that they are two people, each carrying a bag in one hand and holding an old rabbit-tiger whose plumage has completely turned white in the other.

At the same time, two very distinctive greyhounds were also following him.

"Hey! Xiaofeng, look, isn't that Grandpa Liu up ahead?" Jinlong spotted the man from a great distance.

Yue Feng exclaimed, "Yes! Old Liu's friend is quite something; he even shipped the eagle and the dog over! I asked about these things when I came; there's quarantine and shipping involved, it's such a hassle!"

"Let's go over there first!" Jinlong stepped on the gas and sped straight towards the other party.

As soon as the car pulled up and came to a complete stop, Jinlong leaned out of the window and said, "Grandpa, get in!" While the other man was still in a daze, Yue Feng quickly glanced at Grandpa Liu's friend through the car window.

He looked to be around fifty years old, quite thin, with a long, narrow face, small eyes, and wearing a rabbit fur hat; he looked very capable.

"What brings you two here? Old Li, this is Xiao Yue, whom I told you about, and Jinlong! They're both my friends!" Little Eagle Liu immediately introduced his friends.

"Hello, my name is Li Fulin! Just call me Lao Li!" Li Fulin greeted them neither humbly nor arrogantly, his gaze sweeping over Jinlong before quickly landing on Yue Feng.

"Hello Uncle Li! It's freezing cold outside. Get in the car, let's go back to my uncle's house first!" Jinlong got out of the car and opened the door to greet him.

"I'm carrying both an eagle and a dog, is it appropriate for me to get on the bus?" Li Fulin asked hesitantly.

After all, in this day and age, there aren't many private cars; most are vehicles owned by government agencies. As for eagles and dogs, they're both lacking in hygiene.

"It's alright, just get on! We've even transported wild boar and roe deer in this truck before!" Jinlong reassured him.

"Alright, Chasing Wind and Snow, get in the car!" Uncle Li called out, and the two greyhounds darted from the ground and jumped onto the back seat with remarkable speed and efficiency.

The two men, carrying the eagle, got into the back seat, closed the car door, and immediately felt much warmer.

"You're Yue Feng! You look even younger in real life than on TV! Amazing! Your documentary has really broadened our horizons!"

After getting on the bus, Lao Li looked Yue Feng up and down and started praising him.

"Hehe, Uncle Li, please don't praise me like that. I'm easily embarrassed! I still have a lot to learn from you!" Yue Feng replied politely.

"Did you bring your eagle? That black gyrfalcon on TV has us old guys drooling!" Li Fulin asked.

"I didn't bring it! It takes dozens of hours by train from my home to the capital, with all the baggage handling and quarantine procedures, it's too much of a hassle!" Yue Feng answered truthfully.

"I won't argue with you about this! I've only been in Tianjin for a short time, but those eagle and dog went through a lot of trouble to get on the train! What do you think of my two old rabbits and tigers?"

Yue Feng turned his head and carefully examined the old rabbit tiger that was sitting steadily on his hand for a long time.

"These two rabbit-tigers must be at least six or seven years old, right? The one on the left is a tadpole eagle! It's not very big, but its frame is quite sturdy, so it should be a fast eagle!"
The one my uncle is holding on the right is much more formidable! It's a dead leg!

Yue Feng said it casually.

"You can't even see the whole back of an eagle, yet you know my eagle has a dead leg? Old Liu, did you tell him that?"

Little Eagle Liu shook his head with a smile: "I never mentioned your eagle! Don't let Xiao Feng's young age fool you, he knows just as much as we old folks! It's a family tradition, he's been working with eagles since he was a kid!"

"Tell me, how did you figure that out?" Uncle Li continued to press Yue Feng on his previous questions after Old Liu denied it.

Yue Feng didn't keep them in suspense and explained with a smile, "Because this eagle is a hairy-legged sea eagle! And judging from its perch, it's almost certainly left-handed!"

People with short legs are prone to making bad footwork, and left-handed people are even more prone to it! These two factors combined are why I said that!

Seeing this, some people may be wondering, what does "Maojiaohai" mean?
Here's a bit of background information: for ordinary falcons, the exposed shafts of their talons don't usually have feathers. Only birds of prey like eagles have feathers on their exposed shafts.

However, there are exceptions.

In a very small number of saker falcons with special genes or mutations, feathers will grow on the shaft of their claws.

In the industry, this is called "hairy-footed sea".

Eagles with unusual phenomena must possess extraordinary abilities. This eagle born from the hairy-footed sea has a significantly greater speed and power in its swooping attacks than its ordinary counterparts.

As for "dead foot," the meaning is quite simple: it means that during a dive attack, it is easy to kill the target with a single blow.

To achieve this effect, the eagle's physical fitness, speed, strength, and talon precision must be greatly improved. It must be able to kick a rabbit to a vital spot with a single blow to achieve a fatal kick.

"You've also raised rabbits and tigers?" Li Fulin pressed on after hearing Yue Feng's calm reply.

Yue Feng nodded: "I guess so! The older generation had some experience with it! In our area, most places are forests and such, and there aren't many spacious areas, so they used large eagles to catch rabbits! Rarely did people hunt rabbits and tigers!"

"It's one thing if you can tell the difference with the hairy-footed sea eagle, but how did you manage to distinguish mine, this plain eagle? It's been through at least five feathers in my hands. Now that the eagle is old, many of its features are no longer discernible!"

Yue Feng grinned: "You can't tell from the color of the fur! It's all about intuition!"

"Feeling? What do you mean?"

"Yes, it's about the feeling, it's about looking at the whole picture!"
Plain-backed tiger rabbits are relatively rare, and they are generally smaller in size! This old tiger rabbit has a more compact frame and a high nose bridge, unlike the more common silver-headed, flower-tailed, pearl-backed tiger rabbits!

However, these eagles fly fast, making them useful for scouting!

Well, Yue Feng not only explained the logic of quality analysis, but also clearly explained the different roles of different eagles in actual combat.

"Amazing! Amazing! I'm impressed! You're not that old, but your understanding of eagles is far superior to that of us old folks!" Li Fulin gave Yue Feng a thumbs up.

"Haha, Uncle Li, you flatter me! I've just been interested in this stuff since I was a child, and I've just listened to some of the experience summarized by my elders! I heard from Grandpa Liu that you can also play the Imperial Rabbit Swan Hunting Game! That's real skill!" Yue Feng immediately gave the other party a round of mutual praise.

"That thing requires some miscellaneous preparations; it's good for showing off and playing around, but it's not practical!"

“Indeed, the ornamental value of the rabbit-and-swan trap is greater than its practicality! But these are the essence passed down from our ancestors! We can’t let them be lost!” Yue Feng nodded repeatedly.

"Are you interested?"

"Yeah, if I have the chance, I'll come and see for myself! If it's convenient, I'll come to Tianjin too!" Yue Feng agreed.

"Okay! Let's do it next year! Eagle and dog are ready, but training monkey and dog will take a bit too long!"

"No rush. If the documentary crew has any follow-up, I can recommend you to the director at CCTV! That's the top level of eagle training and handling!"

"I don't really care about that! The old man is not as good as you in this respect; he doesn't want to reveal all the skills he's inherited from his ancestors in public!"

"I understand! Then just demonstrate, don't teach!"

"Row!"

……

After a brief exchange, Yue Feng gained a preliminary understanding of Li Fulin.

This falconer has a rather traditional mindset and doesn't seem particularly passionate about promoting falconry culture; he's relatively conservative.

However, Yue Feng's love for eagles could not be hidden. During their conversation along the way, he turned around several times and saw the old man gently soothing his eagle with the back of his hand.

We chatted all the way home, and soon arrived. (End of Chapter)