Rebirth in 1972: Redemption in Changbai Mountain

"Alright. Now let's talk about the price."

Upon hearing Zhang Zhenbei mention money, the two immediately perked up their ears.

"I specifically inquired about the price in the city, and it's roughly the same. Those 80 years and older are around 5,000. Yours is 86 years old, so I'll give you 5,800. Is that acceptable?"

"Sure, sure, Director Zhang, whatever you say is fine," Gu Shaofeng replied immediately upon hearing the price.

Zhou Rui nodded in agreement.

"These two are both around forty years old. Wild ginseng that's thirty to fifty years old usually sells for around eight hundred. Can I make it up to one thousand for you?"

"Sure." Since he had already made a fortune, Zhou Rui didn't feel much about the extra hundred or two.

"But I don't have the money on hand this time, so I can only give you part of it first. I'll give you the rest next time. I'll give you an IOU." Zhang Zhenbei was a little embarrassed, feeling like the big bad wolf tricking a little rabbit.

"No way, there's no need for an IOU. We absolutely trust Uncle Zhang's character; otherwise, he wouldn't have taught us how to distinguish between a reed bowl and a ginseng vine. If you just tell us it's a ten- or twenty-year-old idiot, we wouldn't know either."

This truly won Zhang Zhenbei's heart. Zhang Zhenbei didn't consider himself a good person, otherwise he wouldn't have kept looking for ways to climb the social ladder. But he was a man of his word.

"You little rascal, alright. I won't stand on ceremony with you."

Zhang Zhenbei pointed at Zhou Rui, then took out a wad of cash from the drawer and counted out all the ten-yuan bills for Zhou Rui, totaling three thousand six hundred and sixty.

"I still owe you 4,140 yuan. I'll give it to you next time you come."

"Okay, Uncle Zhang. But could I ask you for a favor?"

"you say."

"Could you help me get a bicycle voucher? It's really inconvenient for me without a bike. I'll borrow the village chief's bike this time."

Zhang Zhenbei pondered for a moment: "I can only say that I tried my best. The main problem is that these bicycle tickets are in very high demand; many leaders are searching for them everywhere."

"Just do your best, just do your best. Uncle Zhang, we'll be going now. You should go to the cafeteria for lunch; they have venison today."

"Oh, right, here's some deer blood for you." Zhou Rui placed the kettle on the table, but Zhang Zhenbei didn't even glance at it. This everyday treasure seemed quite cheap in front of the old ginseng.

"I won't eat the venison. I need to take this club back first; it's not safe to leave it here." Zhang Zhenbei carefully rewrapped the package, afraid of breaking even a single whisker.

Seeing that Zhou Rui and the other person were about to leave, they quickly called out to him again.

"Ruiwa, it's snowing today. Tell the villagers in your village to come to the forest farm to register for temporary work. The forest will be dry soon. You and your master should also start hunting and send meat to our canteen every week."

"Alright then, Uncle Zhang, I'll be going now."

Gu Shaofeng lived close to the forest farm and returned home quickly after parting ways with Zhou Rui. He tossed a few deer antlers and a deer hide on the ground, took out about three thousand yuan from his pocket, handed it to his wife, and lay down on the bed. He was so tired that he didn't even want to eat; he just wanted to sleep.

Gu Shaofeng has a large family, so the processing of the hides will be handled by Gu Shaofeng. Zhou Rui will then share the profits from the sale. The deer antlers will also be handled by Gu Shaofeng.

Li Yumei was startled when she saw the thick stack of money and quickly pushed Gu Shaofeng.

"How come you have so much money? What have you been doing?" His voice trembled.

"I went to hunt deer with Ruiwa, didn't you know? But... but we saw some clubs on the way, and we carried three clubs."

"How much is this?"

"A little over two thousand nine hundred. But Director Zhang hasn't settled his debt for the club yet; he still owes us over four thousand yuan." Gu Shaofeng was too tired and spoke quickly, wanting to go to sleep early.

"Still owe more than four thousand? Didn't you make ten thousand today?" Li Yumei's suddenly raised voice startled even herself, and she quickly covered her mouth.

"Hmm, just over ten thousand. Okay, let's talk about it after I wake up. I spent all night digging for wild jujubes in the pit last night without sleeping. I also hunted over a thousand pounds of deer today, I'm exhausted."

Li Yumei felt heartbroken seeing Gu Shaofeng, who could barely open his eyes. How exhausted he must be, having not even eaten yet. She quickly helped him take off his coat and covered him with a blanket.

Seeing the mud stains on the chest of his coat, it was clear that his men had been lying in the mud all night. Li Yumei brought in the foot-washing water and washed Gu Shaofeng's feet, but she still couldn't wake him up.

Snow was falling as Zhou Rui slowly rode his bicycle back home. It was mainly because it was dark, and he had the largest sika deer, weighing over 200 pounds, on the back of his bike.

In other words, Zhou Rui's body became much stronger after the modification, otherwise he wouldn't have been able to withstand it.

Late at night, Zhou Rui knocked on Liu Kangri's door. Aunt Changchun opened the door and was heartbroken to see Zhou Rui looking dirty and with a whole sika deer on the back rack of his bicycle.

"Ruiwa, I know you must be exhausted from dealing with Yueyue's wedding. Come in and have some hot water."

"No, Auntie, I need to hurry to the village chief's house to return the bicycle and go home to sleep as soon as possible. I'm exhausted these past few days."

"Alright, then you should go home and get some sleep. I'll have my in-laws settle the payment for you tomorrow."

"Alright, Auntie. Just do as we agreed last time, one yuan a pound for any kind of meat." The person paying was Aunt Changchun's in-law, so Zhou Rui wasn't going to be polite. Even so, his income was down by two hundred yuan; the forest farm canteen was now offering two yuan a pound.

Back home, not wanting to disturb his family, Zhou Rui didn't even cook dinner. He grabbed some peach shortbread from the cupboard and ate it with some hot water. He then soaked a towel in hot water from the thermos and smeared it on his face.

The heated kang bed at home is still the most comfortable. There's no cold wind or danger, only a feeling of utter weariness.

Why is something moving in the blankets? While still asleep, Zhou Rui felt something wriggling in his arms.

Zhou Rui hugged the moving object tightly. "I should sleep a little longer," he thought. "Such beautiful weather, it would be a shame not to sleep."

But the dream was short-lived; a small hand slipped inside her clothes and began scratching her ticklish spot.

"What's wrong?" Zhou Rui asked helplessly, and had no choice but to open his eyes.

"Second Brother, it's snowing!" An An's bright, sparkling eyes seemed to hold a certain longing.

Zhou Rui pulled the blanket back up and wrapped it around An An: "I know, it started snowing yesterday."

"Does that mean I can wear pretty new clothes?"

Seeing An'an's adorable expression, Zhou Rui finally understood that An'an had been thinking about what he had said: that she could wear the Suen outfit he bought at the market when it snowed.

"Sure. You should wear more clothes to keep warm when it gets cold."

"Yay... I'm wearing pretty clothes, I'm wearing pretty clothes!" An'an suddenly stood up on the kang (a heated brick bed) and kept jumping around like a little rabbit.