American Landowners: Starting with Hunting in Alaska

Su Wei didn't respond.

He stepped forward, took the key from the side pocket of his backpack, and opened the door.

"Come in."

He stepped across the threshold first, then turned aside to make way for them.

The room wasn't much warmer than the outside, and because it hadn't been cleaned for a long time, a damp, musty smell wafted out.

His backpack was tossed onto the old sofa, and his Browning rifle was placed on the gun rack next to it.

Suwei ignored the old man who followed him in and went straight to the fireplace.

Several dry birch logs were set up, with some flammable materials placed underneath, and a magnesium rod sparked when struck.

The flames licked at the firewood, and the orange-red light shone brightly, dispelling the gloom in the room.

Old Jack stomped his foot heavily.

The suede boots left two puddles of dark mud on the floor.

The old man was not polite at all. He casually threw his leather hat, which was covered in ice crystals, on the table and plopped down in the only chair in the room.

The chair legs creaked.

"You're incredibly lucky to have survived this godforsaken place. The snow and wind have been raging these past few days."

Old Jack rubbed his frostbitten, red hands while his eyes scanned the room.

Finally, his gaze was fixed on the collar of Su Wei's down jacket.

It's bulging there.

A small tuft of white down had just shrunk back in.

Cotton Candy hated the old man in front of her and hid inside Su Wei's clothes.

"Stop looking, that's mine."

Su Wei poked at the fire with the iron hook in his hand, without turning his head.

Old Jack chuckled twice and pulled a stainless steel flat flask from his inner coat pocket.

I unscrewed it and took a big gulp.

The strong smell of alcohol immediately filled the room.

"Suwei, I never would have guessed before."

He wiped the alcohol stains from his beard, his cloudy eyes darting around. "Your deadbeat father was a good shot, but when it came to business, he wasn't very bright. You're the same; you used to be so quiet around strangers."

"People have to live on."

Suwei stood up and brushed the sawdust off his hands.

He had no interest in talking to this guy who was eyeing the marshmallow with ulterior motives.

"As you said, it's cold outside, and our time is very precious."

Su Wei walked to the table and unzipped his backpack.

He took the heavy piece of birch mushroom out and gently placed it on the table.

Old Jack's eyelids twitched at the sight of such a large clump of Inonotus obliquus.

"Let's do business, Jack."

Old Jack put down the flask, leaned forward, and his casual expression quickly transformed into professionalism.

His rough, large hand reached out, with black dirt still embedded in his fingernails.

He scratched at the surface of the mushroom block and then brought it closer to smell it.

"Hmm... I just got it down from the tree."

Old Jack muttered to himself and pulled out a folding knife.

He sliced ​​off a thin piece with the blade, put it in his mouth, and chewed it.

Su Wei stood aside, neither urging nor in a hurry.

He has great confidence in this thing.

The acquisition module was rated as: Excellent.

This shows that this product is in high demand in the market.

Pooh.

Old Jack spat out the crumbs in his mouth, a critical look on his face.

"It's too watery."

He shook his head and tapped the surface of the mushroom block with the tip of his knife: "It looks quite big, but it will shrink by at least half after drying. The patterns are also messy, so it can't be considered top-grade."

Old Jack sheathed his knife, leaned back in his chair, and held up eight fingers.

"eighty."

He stared at Suwei: "Eighty dollars a pound. I'm only giving you this high price because of your dead father. Anyone else would only pay sixty at most."

Su Wei showed no expression.

eighty?

That old guy is really ruthless.

If it were the original owner, she might have really been fooled by his price.

But now the Soviet Union has the system data at its disposal, so it is confident.

"Since this stuff is so bad, you should go find it somewhere else."

Suwei reached out to put the birch mushrooms back into his bag: "The herbal medicine shop in town is a bit far, but they don't treat people like fools."

Snapped.

Old Jack slammed his hand down on the mushroom block.

"Hey! What's the rush?"

He grinned, revealing his yellow teeth, and said in an unpleasant smile, "Business is all about negotiation. Think it's too little? Name your price."

Su Wei put his hands back in his pockets and looked coldly at the shrewd old man.

"It grows on the shady side of a birch tree, and the tree is quite old."

Su Wei's voice was flat, revealing no emotion: "This fungus has been growing for at least fifteen years."

Old Jack was stunned.

"It's oily, has a dense cut surface, and is free of insect damage. At current market prices, top-quality dried goods that have been properly processed cost at least $450 per pound."

When the numbers were announced, old Jack's hand holding the flask trembled slightly.

"I don't have time to process it right now, so I can only sell wet goods."

Su Wei's tone became a bit more serious: "But it's definitely not eighty, the price for collecting junk."

Old Jack opened his mouth, and the cigar he had just lit almost fell onto his trousers.

This kid... knows his stuff?

This professional knowledge and understanding of market conditions are nothing like that of a spineless coward who only knows how to hide behind his father.

Trying to snag a bargain at 20-30% off is hopeless.

"You little brat..."

Old Jack clicked his tongue and gave an awkward laugh: "Well, you didn't waste your time in the mountains; you've even learned the slang."

He re-examined the black lump on the table, his mind racing as he calculated the profits.

Even if Su Wei knew the price of dried goods, he was in a hurry for money and didn't have the equipment to dry them.

This is my advantage.

"ninety."

Old Jack gritted his teeth, his face full of heartache: "This is truly the highest price, Suwei. Transportation, cleaning, slicing, drying—these all cover the costs. And oil prices have gone up recently..."

Su Wei did not speak.

He simply pulled the piece of mushroom an inch closer to himself.

This is a silent rejection.

Old Jack's facial muscles twitched.

Why is this kid so stubborn?

"One hundred!" Old Jack's voice rose. "That's the highest I can go! Any higher and I'll have come all this way for nothing!"

Su Wei still didn't let up.

He even shook his head.

One hundred and one hundred.

Old Jack, though reluctant, continued to raise the price.

Su Wei finally spoke, her tone leaving no room for negotiation: "One hundred and twenty! If it's too much, I'll just keep it to boil and drink. Anyway, I'm weak, so it'll be good to replenish my energy."

As he spoke, he tightened his grip, as if he really wanted to take it back.

"Stop, stop, stop!"

Old Jack stood up in a panic.

It would be such a waste to ruin such a large and perfectly preserved piece of Inonotus obliquus.

With a little simple processing, this stuff can be sold to wealthy people and made several times the profit.

"One hundred and twenty!"

Old Jack practically roared, "One hundred and twenty dollars a pound! Suwei, you're trying to squeeze every last drop out of me!"

Su Wei stopped moving.

"make a deal."

The two words fell to the ground.

Old Jack slumped back into his chair and grabbed the flask, chugging down his liquor.

"Vampire, you're even more ruthless than those guys at the bank."

While complaining, he deftly pulled out a portable electronic scale.

Sixteen pounds and three ounces.

Round down the difference.

A stack of bright green US dollars was slapped on the table, and old Jack's fingers trembled as he counted the money.

"One thousand nine hundred and forty-five, here you go."

Su Wei grabbed the money and stuffed it directly into his pocket.

The transaction is complete.

But he still didn't relax.

Because old Jack hasn't left yet.

The old man not only didn't leave, but instead moved his body even closer to the front.

The heartache he had felt earlier had vanished from his cloudy eyes, replaced by a new scheming.

His eyes were filled with greed.

"The small business is done."

Old Jack licked his chapped lips and pointed to Suwei's collar, or rather, that patch of white hair.

"Let's talk about big business."

Su Wei immediately became alert.

They arrived as expected.

"That fox."

Old Jack lowered his voice, feigning mystery: "An albino red fox with blue eyes. I've been in Kodiak for so many years, and this is the first time I've ever seen one in the wild."

"Not for sale."

Su Wei answered very decisively.

Inside the collar, the marshmallow seemed to sense the malice, squirming uneasily and emitting soft whimpers.

Suwei gently pressed its little head against the fabric to comfort it.

"Don't refuse so quickly."

Old Jack waved his hand, a fake "I'm thinking of you" look on his face: "Suwei, face reality. You owe the bank 160,000, and you have to pay back 30,000 a month. Selling mushrooms? Dream on."

He held up a finger and waved it in front of Suwei's eyes.

"Ten thousand US dollars."

Old Jack stared intently at Su Wei's face, trying to find a hint of hesitation: "Give it to me, and the ten thousand dollars will be yours immediately. That'll cover a third of your minimum payment for the month!"

Ten thousand US dollars.

This number is indeed very attractive.

Su Wei learned that the bounty for the blue-eyed white fox was only eight thousand.

This unscrupulous merchant actually offered a premium of two thousand to buy it.

The profits behind this must be staggering.

"I said, I'm not selling."

Suwei's voice turned cold: "It is my partner."

"partner?"

Old Jack laughed exaggeratedly, his laughter grating: "Don't be silly, child! There are only two kinds of animals here!"

"Prey, or bait. You're talking about feelings with an animal? Can feelings help you pay off your debts? Can they save this dilapidated house?"

He stood up, braced his hands on the table, and leaned forward with a powerful presence.

"Suvi, be smart. That fox pet boss in Kodiak only pays eight thousand, I'm giving you ten thousand! And that's only because of your unlucky old man!"

Su Wei remained unmoved.

His hand was constantly stroking Cotton Candy's head, comforting the little guy.

The more anxious this old man is, the higher the value of this fox.

Moreover, with the [Beast Taming Module], Cotton Candy has become his only support in this icy and snowy world.

Selling family members for money?

He couldn't do something like that.

"Please go back, Jack."

Su Wei immediately dismissed him, pointing to the door: "I need to rest."

Old Jack's smile froze.

Not even tempted by ten thousand US dollars?

Only he knew that a while ago a wealthy man offered 50,000 yuan to buy a rare, wild fox of excellent quality!

And this blue-eyed albino red fox clearly fits the requirements!

Fifty thousand dollars!

You can make a net profit of 40,000 yuan by simply buying it for 10,000 yuan and reselling it!

This money was enough for him to live a life of luxury in Las Vegas for more than half a year.

They had hired several groups of hunters before, but they all returned empty-handed. Who would have thought that such a huge windfall would fall into the hands of a debtor!

"Suwei, think it over again."

Old Jack's tone was somewhat impatient: "If you refuse me, you'll regret it so much you'll want to slap yourself when the bank forecloses on the house!"

"That's my business."

Su Wei walked to the door and pulled it open.

call--!

A cold wind rushed in, instantly dissipating the last bit of warmth in the room.

"No need to see me out."

Two words, no room for argument.

Old Jack stared at Suwei's face, which left no room for negotiation, his back teeth grinding together.

This kid is determined.

If we continue to entangle ourselves and strain the relationship, it will become even more difficult to make a move.

"OK."

Old Jack grabbed his leather hat and slammed it down on his head: "You've got guts."

He strode towards the door.

He paused as he passed by Su Wei.

His greedy gaze swept over Suwei's collar one last time.

"You'll change your mind, Suvi."

Old Jack said menacingly, "In this godforsaken place, nobody turns down money. I hope you change your mind."

After saying that, he walked out the door without looking back.

Suwei watched as the bulky figure climbed into the black Raptor pickup truck.

The engine roared.

The huge off-road tires kicked up snow mist, and the pickup truck surged forward, disappearing into the vast white forest at the edge of the horizon.

Su Wei slammed the door shut only after the car lights were completely out of sight.

He leaned against the door and let out a long breath.

The marshmallow peeked its little head out from inside the collar.

Her icy blue eyes blinked, and her pink tongue licked Suwei's chin.

It was damp and warm.

Su Wei touched the more than 1,900 US dollars in his pocket and twitched his lips.

Old Jack thought he had gotten the better deal, but little did he know that Suwei saw things much more clearly than he did.

This little fox is priceless.

Moreover, if someone with a cheat-like ability is still crushed by debt, they might as well be dead.

Su Wei couldn't help but laugh at himself, then picked up the cotton candy and took a deep breath.

The marshmallow was startled by his sudden movement, felt a tickle, and squeaked.

"Alright, Marshmallow! Let's start a new life!"