pjbooks Chapter 9 The Thief is Caught
Chapter 9 The Thief is Caught
In the Li family's house, in the middle room, on the heated kang (a traditional Chinese bed-stove).
As Wang Guiying was counting a large stack of small bills, she suddenly felt a pang of emotion, as if the days she was living were somewhat unreal.
Just two days ago, Li Xiangyang, the son who was lazy and gluttonous, hanging out with Donkey Egg and his gang of hooligans,
How did you suddenly become so diligent and capable?
She turned to Li Zhenshan, who was smoking, and said:
"Old man, have you noticed that Xiangyang seems like a completely different person these past two days?"
"Um……?"
Li Zhenshan frowned and gave her a strange sidelong glance.
"I'm not blind. I can tell that Xiangyang's wife has been married for more than two years and should be grown up by now."
"That's true. As long as he can live a good life with Xiulan from now on, it doesn't matter whether our ranch can succeed or not."
"Don't say that too soon. Let's observe for a few more days before making a decision..."
Li Zhenshan said with some concern.
He initially planned to build a ranch.
A big reason for this is that Li Xiangyang is a lazy and irresponsible person. He thought that before the two brothers separated their family property, he would ask Li Xiangdong to help Li Xiangyang build up some of the family business.
It's not that bad. After a few years, when the two brothers divide the family property, Li Xiangyang's branch of the family will collapse.
If Li Xiangyang can take responsibility, then it really doesn't matter whether we continue with the ranch or not.
As long as he's willing to work, as his second uncle said, he can make a living by leasing a few acres of poor land to cultivate.
The love of the parents is far-reaching.
Parents in rural areas may be uneducated and not understand grand principles, but they still love their children silently in the simplest way.
…………
Around 11 a.m., snowflakes began to fall from the sky. This year, the snow has been particularly frequent, with one or two snowfalls almost every day.
Upon reaching a small patch of dead trees, Li Xiangyang suddenly stopped.
Not far away, on a fallen birch trunk, several small clusters of striking yellowish-brown fungi were layered on the bark.
It is Sanghuang.
Sanghuang, also known locally as monkey's eye, is a medicinal fungus.
It can be sliced and boiled in water to make tea, or used in soups or infused in alcohol. It has a slightly bitter taste with a sweet aftertaste and a light mushroom aroma. It is said to have liver-protecting and health-preserving effects, such as boosting immunity and protecting the liver.
In later generations, wild Sanghuang could even sell for 300 yuan per kilogram.
It's a rare treasure; it can be exchanged for money or kept to improve one's health.
Li Xiangyang strode over, brushed away the thin layer of snow on it, took out a short knife, carefully pried off pieces of Sanghuang, and put them into his pocket.
at this time,
He suddenly glanced at a furtive figure not far away, and when he saw him turn around, he quickly lay down in the snow.
It's... a donkey's testicle?!
"That stupid hillbilly, why isn't he home in this snow and instead's following us around? He's like a persistent ghost."
Li Xiangyang cursed inwardly.
Since that donkey chose to follow them, it must have had ill intentions!
On a whim, he decided that he was going to give Donkey Egg a good beating today.
He quickly caught up with Li Xiangdong, handed the Sanghuang to Li Xiangdong to hide, whispered something in Li Xiangdong's ear, and then parted ways with Li Xiangdong.
Li Xiangyang told Li Xiangdong to pull the sled first, while he pretended to be going to do something shady, looking around for a while before heading down another side road.
Seeing Li Xiangyang's nervous appearance from afar, Donkey Egg concluded that Li Xiangyang must be up to something, and without thinking, he followed Li Xiangyang.
The two were about 60 meters apart. Li Xiangyang turned around every 200 meters, pretending to check if anyone was behind him.
Actually, they were afraid that Donkey Egg would run off with Li Xiangdong.
Donkey Egg was also very clever; every time he sensed that Li Xiangyang was about to turn around, he would immediately hide in the snow or haystacks nearby.
After following for more than half an hour, Li Xiangyang was seen quietly climbing into a herdsman's sheep pen.
Donkey Egg waited outside for more than ten minutes, but Li Xiangyang didn't come out. The more he thought about it, the more he felt something was wrong.
"That idiot Li Ersha must be doing something shady inside."
He looked around to make sure no one was there, then quickly climbed into the sheep pen.
"Help! A thief has broken into the sheepfold and stolen sheep!"
Seeing that Donkey Egg, that hillbilly, had actually climbed into the sheepfold, Li Xiangyang shouted at the top of his lungs.
Donkey Egg, on the other hand, hadn't reacted yet, and was still scoffing in his heart: "What kind of hillbilly is this? Daring to steal sheep in broad daylight."
But the next second,
He was then pinned to the ground by the rancher, Old Zhang, and his family, who had rushed over.
Only then did it dawn on him that he was that hillbilly:
"Damn it, Li Xiangyang set us up!?"
Hearing the pitiful cries of Donkey Egg coming from the sheepfold behind him, Li Xiangyang was in a great mood, and his steps on the snow became much lighter.
We took turns scooping out the two ice holes today, which made the process much faster.
In less than an hour, more than 90 kilograms of fish were caught, and this time the fish caught included not only carp and crucian carp.
There were also four small fish weighing about 10 kilograms each.
The pike, also known as the river dog, is sometimes called the duck fish because its mouth resembles a duck's bill. It feeds on fish and shrimp, is very fast-moving, has few bones, tastes delicious, and has firm and chewy flesh.
Based on the current market conditions, I estimate that a ten-pound fish can sell for 3 yuan.
These four small fish alone can sell for 12 yuan, and there are also more than 30 jin of carp and more than 20 jin of crucian carp. I expect to earn 23 yuan from this trip.
This one day's wages are equivalent to a month and a half's wages for others. No wonder Lei Jun later said that if you stand at the right place at the right time, even a pig can fly.
This must be the benefit of our times!
They brought several extra sacks today, and before the fish froze solid, they divided them all into bags and happily dragged their sleds home.
As Li Xiangyang passed a small hill, he suddenly remembered something and quickly climbed up it.
"Hmm, not yet?"
The small mound was covered with snow nearly half a meter high, and several other small mounds rose up around it, forming an irregular circle with a central depression that provided some shelter from the wind.
He remembered a herdsman's child in his previous life who went out to collect branches because his family didn't have enough wood for the winter. He accidentally climbed up here and found several deer sheltering from the wind and frost at the foot of the earthen slope.
He immediately ran back to tell his father.
But by the time his father arrived with his hunting rifle, it was too late. The deer herd had already vanished as soon as they noticed someone.
"No, next time you come, you have to bring your hunting rifle from home with you."
Li Xiangyang secretly made a mental note of this.
Right now, they need to go to the old secretary of the commune's house. After the incident with Donkey Egg, Li Xiangyang had a premonition that their fishing trip in the lake would be discovered soon.
The attitude of the commune cadres will be crucial at that time. You can't count on your second uncle; they'd rather your family make a big mistake so they can take the opportunity to annex your family's ranch.
Therefore,
After much thought, I realized I could only approach the old Party Secretary. He's a fair and just person, and wholeheartedly dedicated to the village's development. If we reason with him about their methods of increasing herders' income and improving their lives, he shouldn't object.
"Brother, get me a small fish."
But when Li Xiangdong heard that he wanted to give the little fish as a favor, he was a little reluctant, mainly because he felt sorry for it.
"Brother, why don't you go over with a carp instead? This carp is big and beautiful, while these little fish are worth 3 yuan each!"
"Brother, if the commune finds out, they won't let us fish here anymore. Which do you think is a bigger loss?"
Li Xiangyang patiently explained to Li Xiangdong.
Many people who remain poor their entire lives are not poor because they are not hardworking enough, but because they do not have a long-term vision and are always held back by petty gains.
of course,
Often it's out of necessity; they can't afford the costs of long-term investments, but now that they can afford it, they have to invest.
Slowly find a powerful backer for the Li family!
"Yes, brother, you're right. As long as the commune doesn't stop us from fishing, we can just come back to fish after the fish are sent out. Anyway, we can't do any other work in the middle of winter."
Li Xiangdong may appear simple and honest, but he is actually quite quick-witted and soon figured things out.
He specially selected a large small fish, strung it on a reed, and handed it to Li Xiangyang.
Li Xiangyang took the small fish, gave it some instructions, and then headed to the old Party Secretary's house.
Knock knock,
dong dong dong...
Li Xiangyang knocked on the old Party Secretary's courtyard gate.
The old Party Secretary's original name was Chen Guodong. He was not very old at this time, at most 45 years old. He retired in the previous life when the commune was changed to a village committee after the reform and opening up.
Unable to stay idle, she went to work as an accountant at the ranch where Li Xiangyang worked, and that's how the two gradually became acquainted.
The fact that his second uncle, Li Zhenhai, opposed delaying the payment of ranch contract fees for their family by one year was something he had mentioned to Li Xiangyang.
This indirectly proves that he and his second uncle are not in cahoots.
Therefore, he wanted to find a powerful patron in the commune, and choosing him was definitely the right choice.
"Is Uncle Guodong here?"
"Who is it? What do you want?"
The voice that responded to him was a woman's voice, presumably Chen Guodong's wife, Zhou Chunmei.
"It's me, Li Xiangyang, Li Zhenshan's youngest son."