Chapter 169: The Musk Deer in Ruts and the Wild Hog Badger About to Hibernate
"I know there is someone who definitely wants to buy your leopard whip." Li Baiquan said with a smile.
When Lin Heng heard this, he lost interest and asked casually, "Who wants to buy it? How much can you give?"
Even if the villagers wanted to buy it, they probably couldn't afford much money.
Li Baiquan explained: "It was Zhang Zhigen. He was not good in that aspect and had no son. He had been looking for folk remedies everywhere. He knew that you killed a leopard and he would definitely come to buy it.
Although his family is not wealthy, it is said that he has many antiques. You can ask him to trade them for antiques."
Hearing this, Lin Heng was shocked: "Antique?"
If it is really an antique, it can indeed be worth a lot of money, and exchanging it is a good deal.
Li Baiquan nodded: "Yes, it is said that Grandpa Zhang Zhigen went to the tomb with others and got a lot of porcelain antiques. Some were smashed at that time, and some were secretly hidden.
I tell you this to remind you not to refuse outright, lest you miss out on something good."
"Okay, I understand." Lin Heng nodded in agreement, but this kind of thing is not uncommon in Qinling Mountains, and there are still many tomb robbers in this era.
This land has experienced too many dynasties and there are countless tombs.
But Lin Heng was a little curious: "He has antiques at home, why doesn't he sell them?"
“He can’t read, his grandfather died early, and his family didn’t know who to sell him to.
It is said that some were sold a few years ago, but they were cheated." Li Baiquan said, spreading his hands.
"Okay." Lin Heng understood that there were indeed a lot of illiterate people in this era, and this situation was indeed very normal.
Li Shiwei patted Lin Heng on the shoulder and said, "Come on, let me see your leopard skin."
"Okay." Lin Heng took him to look at the leopard skin. It had been stretched straight on a wooden frame and dried in the sun at noon.
Li Shiwei touched it and said with emotion: "It feels really good. I can sell it for two or three hundred yuan. Leopard skin is very rare."
Lin Heng nodded: "About the same."
However, he didn't want to sell it for the time being, as this thing would be very valuable if he found the right seller.
He planned to tan it and then keep it for his own use, or sell it when he was short of money.
Two or three hundred dollars is not much for him now.
After looking at the leopard skin and chatting with Li Shiwei for a while, Lin Heng fed the livestock at home.
He walked to the chicken coop on the back mountain, opened the cage, and let out the chickens and ducks.
After being kept in cages for such a long time, these chickens will now go home on their own at night even if they are released, and they will lay eggs in the cages.
Releasing them out is to let them exercise and eat small insects, so that they will be chewier and more delicious when killed.
Also, they can find something to eat by themselves, so the cost of feeding them will be lower.
In the afternoon, Lin Heng went to Hongfeng Mountain to work for a while, and all the soil from digging the pond was dumped into the mixed woods outside the road.
Lin Heng estimated that after all the soil was poured in, a fairly large flat area could be built there.
Digging was too tiring, so he ran to the side to rest after working for two hours and boiled water for everyone.
He also tried to persuade his father and elder brother, but they insisted on helping to dig, thinking it was too unreasonable for no one in their family to do it.
After boiling the water in the teapot, Lin Heng walked around and picked up some jujubes from the ground to eat.
This thing looks strange in shape, with a kind of deformed beauty that doesn't belong on earth. It has many seeds on it, but it is still very sweet when it is ripe.
Picking the small black seeds, putting the whole thing into your mouth, chewing it, and drinking the sweet juice is a rare happiness.
He ate two and saw Caiyun coming over with a basket on her back. She had two ponytails and a smile on her face.
"Is it delicious, brother?" she asked with a smile.
Today is Saturday. After finishing her homework, she came to help her family pick jujubes. These things are used to make wine. Every year they wait for them to fall naturally before picking them up.
After this rain, there was heavy frost in the morning, and the jujubes became sweeter after being frozen.
"It's very sweet, try it." Lin Heng handed her one.
"They are indeed very sweet. Second brother, please help pick them up." Caiyun said with a smile.
Lin Heng nodded, and while helping her pick up the things, he asked about her recent situation: "How is school? Is there anything you don't understand?"
The teaching staff in the town’s high school is very poor. There are not many educated people in this era, and even fewer educated young people can come to the countryside.
Caiyun shook her head: "Except for English, I have done well in other subjects. I ranked second in the grade in the midterm exam. I am working hard to improve my English."
Lin Heng smiled and gave a thumbs up: "Great, you are really good at studying."
Caiyun was a good student to begin with. She had talent in this area and was hardworking. Even though the teachers were poor, she was still able to learn very well.
Caiyun smiled brightly: "Second brother, you spent money to support my studies, so I must study hard and not let you down."
"Just be happy. It doesn't cost much to me. Don't work too hard." Lin Heng waved his hand.
He planned to wait for Caiyun High School to send her to a good high school for proper training, as intellectuals were essential for a family to prosper.
"I know, second brother." Caiyun said with a smile. It was impossible not to work hard. The more she studied, the more obsessed she became with knowledge.
"By the way, who is the number one in your class?" Lin Heng asked curiously.
"It's Liu Ciwen. He learns English very quickly. I'm a little slower than him, but I'm sure I'll surpass him by the end of the semester." Caiyun was holding her breath and wanted to get first place at the end of the semester.
"Liu Ciwen is so capable, so you have to work hard." Lin Heng pretended to be surprised, but in fact he had expected this.
As the two chatted, they picked up all the jujubes and piled them together.
Lin Heng went to the construction site and got a backpack to help carry the things back. In the yard of the old house, Tian Yan was chatting with Xiulan and teasing Xiaoxia from time to time.
She just nodded to Lin Heng, but when she saw Caiyun, she was a little happy: "Caiyun, come and play."
Caiyun smiled and said, "Wait until I finish reciting the jujubes, Teacher Tian."
"It's okay, you go and have fun, I'll take care of the rest. You just need to help take care of the kids tomorrow." Lin Heng said with a smile.
"Okay, thank you, second brother." Caiyun didn't act pretentiously. After putting down the jujube, she went to chat with Tian Yan Xiulan.
Lin Heng went to bring Xiongba out to go to Hongfeng Mountain together. After this guy came out, he rubbed his legs and howled.
Lin Heng threw a wooden stick and asked it to pick it up. The man and the dog had a lot of fun playing.
After carrying all the jujubes back home, Lin's mother cooked in the evening. Before the meal was ready, Lin Heng took Xiaoxia for a walk in the village to satisfy her curiosity.
"Dad, what is this~" Winter was also new to him and he looked around with his big eyes.
"This is a ginkgo tree." Lin Heng answered with a smile. Xiaoxia didn't recognize the ginkgo tree without its leaves fallen.
She seemed unable to comprehend the changing of the seasons.
…
When we got home from the walk, Lin's mother had prepared dinner, which included stir-fried leopard meat and a large table of other dishes. Everyone had a delicious meal.
Li Shiwei said with emotion: "Hey, don't tell me, this thing is delicious."
Lin Heng's third father, Lin Xutao, also smiled and nodded: "Not only is it delicious, but it also has good effects. We all benefit from Lin Heng's help."
"That's right. Normally, we can hardly eat pork, let alone leopard meat. We are really lucky this year." Lin Hai agreed.
If we talk about luck, he is the luckiest one, because Lin Heng helped him find a partner like Tian Yan, who is both educated and beautiful.
"Stop bragging, we are really lucky to catch this leopard." Lin Heng said with a smile, picked up the wine glass and took a sip of wine.
After dinner, Lin Heng took his daughter back home. The wind was howling at night and it was still a little cold even with coats on.
"Let's give Xiaoxia a bath tonight." Xiulan said as she tightened her clothes. She also drank two glasses of wine tonight. Her cheeks were flushed and she was a little drunk.
Lin Heng nodded and agreed: "Okay."
After returning home, Lin Heng lit a fire in the fireplace room, boiling water and warming up the small room of six square meters to prevent Xiaoxia from catching a cold.
After giving Xiaoxia a bath, Lin Heng also took a bath himself. Xiulan didn't do any work and wasn't sweating, so she just washed her face and feet.
He coaxed Xiaoxia to sleep, and the two of them stayed together for a while before falling into a deep sleep.
The effect of leopard meat seems to be really good. Lin Heng slept until dawn and felt warm all over. Xiulan's hands and feet are prone to coldness, and the effect has also improved after eating leopard meat.
"Come on, I'll take you to pick mushrooms today and bring some back for hotpot." Lin Heng looked at the little face in his arms and said with a smile.
"Okay." Xiulan nodded and agreed softly.
I got up, dressed, washed my face and brushed my teeth. The weather was very cold in the morning. It seemed that winter had completely arrived since the last rain. The ground in the yard was covered with white frost, and only the pine, cypress and orchid grass still had a lush green color.
Lin Henghe and Xiulan did some exercise, then one went to make breakfast and the other went to feed the animals at home.
“Gugugugu!!”
Lin Heng took a basin, opened the chicken coop and duck coop and called out, and the chickens and ducks in the house ran out.
The chickens, ducks and catties at home are now at least 6 or 7 kilograms in weight, and can be fed with corn, but Lin Heng still insists on feeding them with the feed he prepares himself, mainly to ensure the egg-laying rate of the chickens at home.
“Ahhh~~”
In the front yard, the musk deer made a howling sound and banged its head against the railing.
"It looks like she's in heat. I'll see if I can find a companion for you in a few days." Lin Heng threw some grass in, saying helplessly.
Musk deer go into heat during this time period every year, and are pregnant for five months before giving birth in May or June of the next year.
The female musk deer at home had always been very quiet, but recently she started to call out, obviously she was in heat.
However, it is extremely difficult to capture another male musk deer alive. It is a great luck to get this female musk deer.
Without the fodder, the musk deer refused to eat properly and ran around in the pen.
Lin Heng shook his head helplessly, and then went to look at the badger. This badger was a male, and now weighed 30 kilograms, and was quite fat and strong.
But as the weather gets colder, its appetite also decreases significantly, showing signs of hibernation. Normal wild hog badgers hibernate. Although this animal has the word "pig" in its name, it is completely different from a pig.
"You'd better not sleep, otherwise I will have to kill you in advance." Lin Heng said helplessly.
Hibernation means getting thinner, so the only way to get them is to slaughter them and make bacon.
"Hmph~"
Lin Heng fed the fodder. The badger grunted, climbed up, ate two bites, paused for a while, and took another bite. It was unclear whether it thought the food was not tasty or because it felt sleepy.
It had no idea that the human outside had already developed murderous intentions and was ready to teach it a lesson.
“Ouch~~”
Xiongba was having fun beside him, hugging his legs from time to time, or putting Lin Heng's hand in his mouth, in short, trying to get Lin Heng's attention.
"Silly dog."
Lin Heng rubbed his head and went to open the gate of the yard. A gust of cold wind made him shiver.
But he still went to his parents' place. It was just seven o'clock, and his parents and others had just got up and were washing their faces.
"Mom and Dad, you haven't cooked yet, let's go to my house and eat chicken noodles." Lin Heng said with a smile.
Mother Lin shook her head and said, "You guys eat, we'll prepare some food and eat the leftovers from last night."
"Yes, you guys eat." Father Lin shook his head. He knew there weren't many chicken offal, and it would definitely not be enough for five people.
"Okay then, Caiyun, will you come?" Lin Heng didn't force it.
"Okay, I'll go eat chicken noodles." Caiyun nodded with a smile, and returned home with Lin Heng.
"Okay." Lin Heng nodded, went home and told Xiulan, asking her to cook more noodles.
The chicken offal had been fried long ago, and Lin Heng also pounded some garlic and chili. When the noodles were cooked, he poured the chicken offal over them, and then added some garlic and chili, and the aroma came out immediately.
Lin Heng was squatting under the eaves with a big bowl of noodles in his hand and eating. The noodles seemed to taste better when he squatted down.
This noodle is very sour and spicy, with the aroma and taste of chicken offal, and the addition of garlic and chili makes you want to swallow your tongue into your stomach.
Caiyun sat on the bench and praised while eating: "It's delicious!"
"Xiulan's cooking skills are amazing, it smells so good." Lin Heng also praised her. His body and mind have been conquered by this woman.
He ate two bowls, and Xiulan and Caiyun each ate one and a half bowls. The taste of this chicken offal noodle was indeed very special.
After dinner, Lin Heng went to the construction site with his father, older brother and others. There would be forty more people on the site today, so he had to take attendance and assign work.
After everyone arrived, he re-mixed the new forty people with the original sixty people. In addition to his own relatives, he promoted four people to be team leaders, and the team leaders would receive some extra bonuses when they received their final wages.
Since it was a combination of the old and the new, he didn't have to explain everything step by step. He just watched here for half an hour and then went home.
"I've prepared everything. Shall we set off right away?" Xiulan asked.
Lin Heng took the bow bag and hunting arrow quiver, threw them into the backpack, nodded and said, "Let's go."
"Okay." Xiulan nodded, and set off with Lin Heng. Xiongba followed behind them happily.
Caiyun studied at his home and took care of Xiaoxia at the same time.
The two men's target was Baishigou, an area where the target mushrooms were mainly wild enoki mushrooms, oyster mushrooms, and Hericium erinaceus.
"I don't know what we can harvest today. I think most of the Hericium erinaceus have been picked."
Xiulan said with some regret that they were a little late to go up the mountain, as yesterday was the best time.
"It's hard to say. It's impossible that they have all been picked. Besides, there are still other mountain products even if Hericium erinaceus is gone." Lin Heng said with a smile.
They hold ropes and hoes, and will not let go of other mountain products if they come across them. Going to the mountains depends on luck, and often the goals you have in mind cannot be achieved.
"This is the only way." Xiulan nodded and followed Lin Heng forward.
The two of them had just walked a short distance when they were stopped by someone from a distance: "Wait a minute, I have something to do with you."
Lin Heng looked back and immediately recognized the man. He thought he would not come.
This chapter is 4,000 words, but there will be another chapter in the evening.
(End of this chapter)
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