Professor Wang looked at it and also felt that the consideration was not thorough enough.

"Alright," Professor Wang said. "Be careful on the road! Wear a scarf and a hat, don't catch a cold."

Just as He Tiantian was about to leave, Old Man Bai waved his hand and said, "Tiantian, if it's inconvenient for Secretary Qi to come over, please pass on a message to him. Tell him that we've caught a lot of things here. Right now, only a few people in our En Livestock Team know about it; the rest of the village doesn't know yet. Ask him how to handle it."

Yes, if there's not much food, everyone can just share it and eat it.

But with so many people involved, nobody wants to take the risk and has to report it.

After all, the village not only had Secretary Qi, but also some people who were opposed to him and were eyeing them with hostility, ready to cause trouble. If they weren't starving, they had to consider many other things.

After arriving in Qijia Village, these people lived a stable life, had enough to eat, and were respected and had dignity. Therefore, they were very grateful and did not want Secretary Qi to be ousted from office.

Instead, they hoped to help Secretary Qi establish his authority in the village. With Secretary Qi's support, their lives would continue to be peaceful.

If it were anyone else, given their tendency to cause trouble, these old geezers would have been tormented to death sooner or later.

They were scared and didn't want to go through that kind of ordeal again.

He Tiantian nodded and said, "Okay, when I go back, I'll go find Xiaoyan and talk to Secretary Qi about this!"

"Then I'll have to trouble you," Old Man Bai said, hoping this would secure a stable environment for them in Qijia Village. These items were obtained by Zuo Li and Xiang Rong, so Old Man Bai could make the decision.

The others felt disappointed upon hearing Old Man Bai's words, but there was nothing they could do.

They comforted themselves, saying that being able to eat their fill was already a blessing.

In other villages, due to inadequate rain protection during the autumn harvest, much of the rice was flooded and some even sprouted. Now, they can only eat two meals a day of thin porridge that barely covers their bodies. However, under the wise leadership of Secretary Qi, Qijia Village has taken proper rain protection measures and has not wasted a single grain of rice. Therefore, Qijia Village is having a very good winter!

They shouldn't be too demanding; things are already very good.

He Tiantian went back and told Grandma Qi about it, then went to Secretary Qi's house.

After distributing the grain, Secretary Qi had nothing else to do and stayed at home. When He Tiantian came over, he said directly, "Xiao Yan is inside!"

After learning from Professor Wang, Qi Xiaoyan would lock herself in her room and study diligently after returning home, aside from doing some housework. If it weren't for certain taboos, Qi Xiaoyan would have loved to practice her singing every day.

He Tiantian smiled and said, "Secretary Qi, I'm not here to see Xiao Yan. I'm here to deliver a message to the people who were sent down from the livestock team."

"What did you say?" Secretary Qi asked hurriedly, "What happened there?"

It's not busy now, everyone's staying indoors, so everything should be fine!

"Here's the thing, Secretary Qi, Uncle Zuo, and Uncle Xiang dug several traps in the back mountain and caught a lot of things: a dozen rabbits, two sika deer (one big and one small), a wild goat, and a wild boar. They don't know what to do with them and wanted to ask for your opinion," He Tiantian said. Secretary Qi is very shrewd; he'll surely find a way to satisfy everyone.

Secretary Qi was also taken aback and asked, "Sweetie, where did they find so many things?"

"The traps were dug by the stream after passing through the dense forest on the back mountain. I heard Grandpa Qi say that there are bears, tigers, leopards, and other wild animals there. But we looked and didn't find any trace of them. Comrade Zuo and Comrade Xiang also said that they didn't find any large wild animal footprints near the stream." He Tiantian recounted the conversation between Grandpa Qi, Zuo Li, and Xiang Rong. If they dug more traps, perhaps the village could catch more game.

The New Year is just around the corner, and everyone is short of money. These game animals could fetch a good price if sold to the commune's purchasing station!

This year, every household in Qijia Village received a share of grain. If they could also earn some money by hunting, that would be even better.

"Is what you're saying true?" Secretary Qi asked again, having already made up his mind, but he was always cautious and didn't dare to make a decision yet.

"This was all discovered by Comrade Zuo and Comrade Xiang through reconnaissance. I went up the mountain with them twice this morning, but we didn't find any large wild animals," He Tiantian said. "I've relayed the message, but as for what to do next, that's not something I can say. I have to go home for dinner, otherwise Grandma Qi will worry."

"Alright, you can go back now. Thank you for your hard work." Secretary Qi saw He Tiantian off, pondering what He Tiantian had said.

Qi Xiaoyan also came out to see them off, and complained that He Tiantian didn't stay for dinner.

When He Tiantian returned, Grandma Qi had already prepared dinner. The old woman and the young girl ate well, with meat at every meal. Although it was only a few pieces, the dishes made with those few slices of salted pork tasted much better!

In the afternoon, when He Tiantian went to the livestock team again, she saw Secretary Qi, Qi Ergou, and another old man in his fifties from the village named Qi Shulin.

Qi Shulin was a very skilled hunter in the village; his father, before his death, was also a renowned hunter in the area. He would occasionally hunt some wild game with his homemade bow and arrows to enjoy some meat, but like everyone else, he dared not sell it.

When they saw the string of wild rabbits hanging on the rope, the grunting, half-dead wild boar, two deer, one large and one small, and a sheep, they were astonished.

“Oh dear, ever since someone from Hujia Village was killed by a bear there the year before last, very few people have gone there,” Qi Shulin said. “No wonder there’s so much prey. Several villages around haven’t gone hunting in the mountains for two years. There are many small animals, but there should be quite a few large wild beasts too! Are you sure you haven’t seen any large predator tracks in that area?”

Zuo Li and Xiang Rong said, "Before we dug the trap, we searched the area within a five or six li radius of that stream and didn't find any large wild animals. The largest we found was a wild boar."

Qi Shulin frowned, utterly puzzled; this outcome defied all logic!

"Never mind, I'll go up with you and take a look," Qi Shulin said, believing that seeing is believing.

He wouldn't believe it unless he went there himself!

Qi Shulin loved hunting, but the thought of his family getting very little from the spoils he worked so hard to hunt, only to have them divided among everyone else, and the danger involved, meant that he hadn't ventured into the dense forest for the past two years, despite his family's objections. Therefore, he knew nothing about the area. Secretary Qi had asked him to come this time so they could go and check it out together, and once they confirmed there were no large predators, they would likely organize the able-bodied villagers to dig traps and catch game. (To be continued.)