Chapter 197 Yellow Four Eyes
With such a huge treasure house like Qilian Mountain behind them, why didn't Guo Chenzi, Dong Kuan and others live a good life? The reason is simple. Qilian Mountain does contain huge treasures, but whether it is mushrooms, wild vegetables, herbs, or wild animals, they are all scattered. The total amount of treasures in Qilian Mountain is very high, and it is very limited if it is confined to a small area.
It is not an easy task for an ordinary person to find enough wealth in such a vast land. When they are grazing in the mountains, they may find some if they are lucky, but if they are unlucky, they may not find anything after going around for ten days or half a month.
Therefore, they will definitely not starve to death if they rely on the Qilian Mountains, but it is not easy to get enough or even eat well. Only experienced old herbal farmers and hunters can make a living from this.
If it were in the past, Xu Lingjun would not be very confident, but now it is different. He has drawn the ability of animal affinity, so he can tame animals to help him discover the treasures of Qilian Mountain.
The first thing Xu Lingjun thought of was dogs. Dogs have a sense of smell that is far superior to that of humans. Dogs can easily find mushrooms, herbs, and animals that humans cannot find with their sense of smell. In this way, if he raises a few dogs to help him search, he is confident that he can get rid of poverty in a short period of time and let himself and Xiuzhi live a good life.
While he was daydreaming, Dong Kuan had already picked all the mushrooms and put them into the cloth bag he carried with him. He said happily, "We are really lucky. Now is not the time to pick yellow mushrooms, but we happened to see them. We will eat half of these mushrooms ourselves and bring the other half back to you so that your wife can have a taste."
"Just leave a little, and let's eat the rest together." Xu Lingjun didn't want to take advantage of such a big advantage, so he quickly asked, "Uncle, has anyone's dog around here just given birth to puppies? I want to raise two, too."
"When I went to the meeting last time, I heard Shuanzhu from the third team say that his dog gave birth to a litter of dogs before the New Year. If you want one, I'll bring you two when I get back." Dong Kuan didn't think much about it. It was very normal for herders to have two dogs at home, which could be used for herding and hunting.
He was even quite pleased, "You are becoming more and more like a member of our ranch. Now that you have a wife, you can stay here with peace of mind."
"Yeah, that's what I thought." Xu Lingjun really had no plans to leave the ranch. Even if the policy changed in the future, he could still start a business and make a lot of money on the ranch.
Being interrupted like this, Dong Kuan forgot about distributing the mushrooms. He took Xu Lingjun to a ravine, found a piece of earth wall, drew a few circles on it as targets, and began to teach Xu Lingjun how to shoot.
The improved physique brought many benefits to Xu Lingjun. He had a good ability to resist the recoil of the rifle and learned the techniques quickly. It didn't take long for the bullets he shot to hit the target more stably.
Dong Kuan shook his head repeatedly, "I didn't expect you to have this ability. It's a pity that I just discovered it too late. If it was earlier, you would definitely be a good candidate to join the army."
"Uncle, you forgot that I am not qualified to be a soldier." Xu Lingjun shook his head, raised his rifle and aimed to shoot again. This time he hit the target again. If he continued to practice like this, it would not be long before he could participate in hunting.
"Yeah, that's true!" Dong Kuan sighed and stopped talking about this. "I'll tell the team later and get you a gun. You've been well behaved on the ranch for more than ten years and now you're married. I don't think they will stop you. But there's a limited amount of bullets. If you want to shoot more, you'll have to buy them yourself."
"If you can learn this skill, you can earn back the money you paid for the bullets just by hunting gazelles. You have a wife now and will have kids in the future, so you really need to think of some way to make money." Dong Kuan thought of a lot.
"Thank you, Uncle Dong. That's what I was planning too. I could get by alone before, but now that I have a family, the situation is different." Xu Lingjun thanked him sincerely. He had been at the ranch for so many years. If he hadn't met good people like Guo Chenzi and Dong Kuan, Xu Lingjun's life would have been even more difficult now.
Driving the herd of horses around the grasslands on the Qilian Mountains, Xu Lingjun kept paying attention to the conditions wherever he went, including where there were mushrooms, where herbs were grown in abundance, and where animals roamed, and he remembered all of this clearly.
It is only the beginning of spring, the mushrooms have not yet sprouted, the herbs have not yet matured, and even the animals have not come out to move around in large numbers, so they did not harvest much from this grazing trip.
But it doesn't matter. As long as I remember it, I can come back to look for it in summer or autumn. It will definitely not be a wasted trip. Besides, the dogs Xu Lingjun raised should have grown up by then, so it would be a good time to take them out for a walk.
After returning from herding, Li Xiuzhi saw that he was full of joy. "I was wondering why I heard the magpie calling this morning. I didn't expect you to come back so soon. Are you tired? I'll go cook for you right away!"
Xu Lingjun got off the horse and handed over a half-filled cloth bag. "I picked some mushrooms and wild vegetables. Unfortunately, I was unlucky this time and didn't see any yellow sheep. Otherwise, I could have let you taste the yellow sheep meat. It's much more delicious than the sheep on our ranch."
"It's better for you to come back safely. I'll go get some water. You can soak your feet to relieve your fatigue. The meal will be ready soon." Li Xiuzhi took the cloth bag and hurried to pour water for Xu Lingjun.
At night, the two of them lay on the kang. Xu Lingjun talked about what happened in the Qilian Mountains these days. Li Xiuzhi blinked her big eyes, her heart full of curiosity. "I don't have these in my hometown. I really want to go and see them with you."
"In our ranch, except for those families who have been herdsmen for generations, there are not many women from other families who go to graze with us. But it doesn't matter. If you want, I will take you, but you have to learn to ride a horse first." Xu Lingjun thought that it would be nice for the two of them to go up the mountain to graze together. Isn't this Qiao Feng's dream? He has no chance, but we have plenty of time.
"Then teach me tomorrow." The two had just gotten married and were in love with each other. Xu Lingjun was away these days and Li Xiuzhi missed him every day. If she could learn to ride a horse, they wouldn't have to be apart for so long.
After staying at the ranch for only two days, Dong Kuan came over happily holding two puppies in his arms. "Hey, you're really lucky. Shuanzhu's dog gave birth to two yellow four-eyed puppies. I brought them all to you."
"Huang Siyan!" Xu Lingjun's eyes lit up and he hurried over to check.
The two puppies were about three months old, with short and thick muzzles, black and yellow almond-shaped eyes, and thick black and yellow hair. The most notable feature was the two yellow round spots above their eyes, making them look like they had another pair of eyes.
This is the Yellow Four-Eyed Dog, a top-quality local precious dog breed, the Hequ Tibetan Mastiff.
(End of this chapter)
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