Traveling back to 1977

Chapter 495 Hunting
Upon arriving at the front yard, under the covered walkway, two dogs were playing with Banjin, who had come with the Jiang sisters. As soon as they saw Jiang Lili, they rushed over and wagged their tails incessantly at her.

Compared to the big boss who whips them at the drop of a hat, this young lady is the true love who raised them from childhood. It's been a long time, and I really miss them.

Jiang Lili was in such a hurry to find Chen Fan that she didn't pay attention to them until now, when she finally rushed over laughing, "Duoduo and Qiuqiu, did you miss me?"

Jiang Tiantian was surprised when she saw her younger sister's expression. "She seems happier here than at home?"

Chen Fan pondered for a moment, "Hmm, probably because there's no one else around."

She had never acted like this before when she was here. It must be because Huang Ying and the others weren't here today, and she felt less burdened, that she was able to completely unleash her true nature.

Jiang Tiantian was just saying it casually. She looked up and looked around. There was a rustic covered corridor, a row of restaurants, kitchens and bathrooms that were even bigger than her old house in the cotton mill dormitory area. Even the panda garden was a desirable house in Yunhu City.

Not to mention this ordinary-looking two-story building with blue bricks, white walls, and ceramic brick floors inside.

Following Chen Fan through the gate, a wave of warmth washed over her. When she saw the interior decorations, she couldn't help but exclaim in amazement, "What a beautiful house!"

Not only is it large, but the furniture and decorations inside are also very stylish. Although they are not made of expensive wood, the style is simple and antique, and the placement is also very particular. It is clear that it is a wealthy family with cultural heritage.

Right.

Her gaze swept over Chen Fan, her eyes filled with smiles and admiration. This was a nationally renowned writer, of course he was knowledgeable and had good taste!

But I must say, with such good conditions, it's no wonder they don't want to live in Yunhu City permanently. The accommodation here is better, and they have a good network of friends. It's definitely more comfortable than in the city.

Since they were already so familiar with each other, Chen Fan didn't bother to entertain them. He raised his hand and drew a circle, saying, "Lili knows this place better than I do. Nothing has changed since she left. Let her show you around tea and rest. There's some coffee on the tea table that I brought back from the provincial capital last time. It tastes pretty good. You can try it."

No rush to eat. We finished most of the dishes yesterday. Most of them can be served after a quick reheat. We'll pan-fry some tofu, stew a fish, and prepare some meat later.

"Don't rush off after you finish eating. When it's almost time, I'll take you back by boat. It only takes about half an hour by speedboat, and it won't take more than an hour to get you home."

(Shanghai brand coffee from the 1970s: instant coffee cost 3.7 yuan a can, I don't know how much the coffee beans cost.)
Before Jiang Tiantian could speak, Jiang Lili rushed in excitedly, smiling as she said, "Xiao Fan, can you teach your sister to ride a horse? She was very interested when I told her about your hunting."

Chen Fan laughed and said, "Sure, I'll go to the brigade headquarters and borrow two horses later. After we finish eating, I'll take you hunting."

Jiang Tiantian held her hands to her chest, laughing so hard she couldn't speak.

Chen Fan then gestured, "You guys rest first, I'll go pick up the pork and bring it back."

After saying that, he walked out.

After his figure disappeared through the doorway, Jiang Lili took her sister's hand and said, "Sister, let me show you around."

As he spoke, he took her hand and led her away. "This is the first floor. There are two living rooms and three rooms. The largest room even has a kang (heated brick bed), the kind with a wood-burning fire in the books from the north. It's so comfortable to sleep on when it's cold. It's a pity I haven't slept on one yet. The bathroom is downstairs. Isn't it luxurious? Hehe..."

There's also the second floor. Xiao Fan doesn't allow anyone else to go up there except for a few of us, because there are lots of books up there, and he's afraid people will mess them up. Of course, you're an exception; Xiao Fan definitely won't mind…”

Hearing the occasional laughter drifting from inside the house, Chen Fan smiled knowingly. Through the window, he could see the two sisters' figures appearing and disappearing. When they saw Chen Fan, they waved to him through the window.

Carrying large baskets, Chen Fan carried all the pork up in two batches. He had already set up a long wooden board in the restaurant as a counter, and now he simply laid the meat out on it, to be processed later when he had time.

The raccoon dog, Ba Liang, who had disappeared somewhere, suddenly jumped out and started drooling over the pork.

When it saw Chen Fan looking over, it immediately stood up straight and sat properly, even raising its paw and waving, "Meow."

Chen Fan walked over, picked it up, took it to the bathroom, put it in a basin, then filled another basin with hot water, mixed it, and poured a ladle of water over it.

Ba Liang couldn't help but tremble. It thought of the scene of watching its master slaughter the pig while it was hiding in the tree branch. Could it be...?
But held down by its owner, it dared not move and could only cry out pitifully, "Meow meow... (I don't taste good!)!"

Chen Fan rubbed its fur, picked up the soap and started scrubbing. "You're too dirty. I'll give you a bath, and then I'll take you to meet your new owner."

Hearing this, Ba Liang finally breathed a sigh of relief and obediently sat in the basin, letting himself be rubbed, but his body remained stiff and motionless.

It wasn't until we changed the water, washed it clean, dried it with a cotton cloth, and wrapped it in the cloth before taking it outside that it truly relaxed.

That was close! I was almost scared to death.

When I was carried into the house, I saw two pretty young ladies by the fireplace and an adorable little cat on the table. I couldn't take my eyes off them.

Chen Fan walked up to her, and Jiang Tiantian had already stood up. Her eyes lit up as she looked at the raccoon in his hand. "Is this the Eight Liang?"

"Yes, it's Ba Liang, also a female cat. But we just gave her a bath, so she's still wet. We need to dry her off before we can hold her."

As he spoke, he casually tossed Ba Liang in front of the fireplace, and a few seconds later, Ba Liang began to emit heat from its entire body.

Duoduo and Qiuqiu lay not far away, their eyes looking at it with some hostility.

Cough cough, I've gotten used to it, and sometimes I can't help myself.

Ba Liang ignored the two good-for-nothings and lay down at Jiang Tiantian's feet, meowing obediently at her.

Half-pound cat, which was originally lying on the table, had already stretched its neck. Seeing that this new cat dared to compete for attention, it couldn't help but show its fangs and sharp claws.

But before it could utter a defiant cry, it felt a cold gaze.

Looking in that direction, Banjin quickly adjusted his expression, meowed obediently at the big boss, and then lightly jumped to Jiang Lili's feet, greeting his new companion in a gentle voice, "Meow."

The two sisters looked at the two raccoon dogs at their feet, which were about the same size, and their eyes turned into hearts.

So cute!

Seeing their expressions, Chen Fan knew what they were thinking without even guessing, and couldn't help but twitch his lips slightly.

Tanuki are indeed very cute when they are well-behaved, but once they enter a fighting state, especially when they go berserk, they can fight even tigers and wolves to a standstill, and sometimes even gain the upper hand. They are not harmless pets at all.

Not to mention that after his special training, the two raccoons' fighting power has increased many times over. They are skilled in jumping, pouncing, scratching, biting, and gouging out eyes. Once these two cats develop a tacit understanding and work together seamlessly, it is feared that they will have few rivals in the wild.

Chen Fan suddenly realized that it seemed he had assigned two high-level bodyguards to the two sisters.
Looking at the time, it was not yet 10 o'clock. Seeing the two sisters holding coffee and playing with the cat, she smiled slightly and turned to go to the bathroom.

In the kitchen, besides a clay stove with two pots, there was also a "manual boiler" next to the adjacent bathroom, specifically used for heating bath water.

It's basically a large water tank with a wood-burning stove underneath. There's a tap on top of the tank to let water in, and a water pipe runs from the bottom of the tank through the wall to the top of the bathtub. Once the water is heated, you can just let it out.

There's hot water in the pot that I boiled this morning when I made breakfast. I used some residual heat to keep it warm, so it's still hot.

I drained the water, took off my clothes, and soaked in an artificial hot spring.

After taking a bath and getting dressed, he went to the back of the livestock shed to fetch a mare and rode it to the brigade headquarters.

Before long, they brought back two docile mares, and then found two spare saddles that were made later to mount them, which became their temporary riding horses.

The production team in Jiangnan did not have horses specifically for riding. Regardless of their previous bloodline, they were all used as cart-pulling horses. So, although the breed was good and their height was not much shorter than Chen Fan's mare, they were not good at running and could not run fast when ridden. However, they were perfect for the two sisters to ride for hunting.

Meanwhile, in the kitchen, the two sisters were already busy preparing lunch.

Jiang Tiantian assisted, Jiang Lili was the head chef... because she was so familiar with this place, she was even more at ease cooking than at home.

While busy, Jiang Tiantian saw three horses on the field outside the window and couldn't help but speed up, "Hurry up, hurry up, it's getting late and we won't be able to ride for much longer."

Jiang Lili laughed at her, "Sister, you're overthinking it. You've never ridden a horse before. The first time you ride, you can't ride for very long because if you ride for too long, the skin on your inner thighs will get chafed and it will hurt a lot."

Jiang Tiantian was a little curious, "How long did it take you to ride the first time?" Her sister had only told her that Xiao Fan taught her to ride a horse, but hadn't gone into details.

Upon hearing this, Jiang Lili's fair face flushed instantly, and she quickly lowered her head, saying, "It hasn't been long, less than half an hour."

Thinking back to the scene when Xiao Fan taught her to ride a horse, she felt both ashamed and angry, but mostly amused.

At the time, I didn't realize it or think too much about it. But when I thought about it later, I realized that the little mare's sudden movements were clearly Xiao Fan's doing.

Given his abilities, the mare had always been obedient, so why did she suddenly become so agitated and almost throw him off? It must have been on purpose.

How bad!

Jiang Tiantian was busy adding firewood and didn't notice her younger sister's expression. She was still imagining how dashing it would be to ride horses and hunt later!
Then I almost burned the pot.

Lunch was quite simple. I steamed the meatballs I prepared yesterday again, fried them again, heated up the stewed chicken, and made a few fresh dishes.

The dining area has been moved to the living room coffee table, where there is a fireplace, making it warmer.

Although there were only 3 people, there were 12 dishes on the table.

In the center was a clay pot of stewed potatoes and chicken pieces, next to which were three bowls of steamed dishes, three plates of fried dishes, a plate of tofu, a plate of braised carp, a plate of twice-cooked pork, a bowl of braised pork, and finally a pot of crucian carp and tofu soup.

The most important thing about Chinese New Year is a feast.

Jiang Lili held the wine pot, poured a bowl of yellow wine, and Jiang Tiantian immediately presented it to Chen Fan.

Just as Chen Fan mentioned the honey water on the table, Jiang Tiantian said with a smile, "Let's drink some wine today too."

"what?"

Chen Fan looked at the two of them and said, "Have you ever drunk alcohol before? It's easy to get drunk the first time you drink alcohol if you've never drunk alcohol before."

The first time he drank alcohol after starting work, he was able to pass out after just one bottle of beer. Later, however, he could down more than half a jin of 50-proof Erguotou (a type of Chinese liquor). You really have to practice your alcohol tolerance.

Jiang Lili laughed and said, "Have you forgotten that you gave us rice wine when I was here?"

She glanced at her sister as she spoke, her face growing even redder, "We've had a little bit of a drink at home these past few days."

As for why she dragged her sister to drink at home to practice her drinking capacity, she dared not say.

Chen Fan glanced at the two of them and chuckled. "Alright, since you've already had a drink, drink less. We'll be hunting later, and it's dangerous to be drunk on horseback."

The two sisters nodded in unison.

After they had poured their own drinks, Chen Fan raised his wine bowl and said, "Happy Chinese New Year."

The two sisters raised their wine bowls together and clinked them against his, saying, "Happy Chinese New Year."

Because they were eager to go horseback riding and hunting, the family reunion dinner didn't last long and ended before 11:30.

The two sisters then cleared away the dishes, while Chen Fan went upstairs to the second floor and came down a short while later carrying two pieces of clothing and two hunting rifles.

When they came out of the kitchen, Chen Fan handed them the clothes first, saying, "It's windy riding a horse, and it's snowing today, so wear these."

The two of them each took one of the items, unfolded it, and saw that it was a cloak with sleeves.

Inside is soft, furry rabbit fur, the light gray rabbit fur is understated yet stylish, and the outside is a layer of high-grade cotton-silk blend fabric, which feels very smooth to the touch.

The rabbit skins were naturally produced in Lujiawan. Although there hadn't been large-scale slaughtering before, there had been a small number of rabbits being slaughtered, so there was no shortage of rabbit skins. The fabric was purchased from the cotton mill's retail store.

The two sisters looked at each other and put on the cloaks at the same time. Hey, they fit perfectly.

Chen Fan coughed lightly, "It looks just right. Don't take it off later, just put it back on."

Jiang Lili wrapped the cloak tighter around herself, looked at him and smiled, "So, is this a New Year's gift?"

Chen Fan grinned broadly, "Yes, a New Year's gift."

He then handed over two hunting rifles, which the two sisters immediately took.

Don't ask questions like whether you'll shoot.

These days, there may be people who don't know how to fire a gun, but they are basically "idle people" in the city without proper jobs. As long as they have a work unit, including members of production teams, they have almost all received militia training.

When Jiang Lili received militia training in Lujiawan, her instructor was Yang Xingxiu, who has also been the main person in charge of the female soldiers in Lujiawan in recent years. It can be said that she and Zhang Wenliang are "not from the same family, but from the same door".

Jiang Tiantian learned to shoot when she was in vocational school. Later, at Yunhu Supply and Marketing Cooperative, she also needed to receive training every year. Shooting this kind of hunting rifle was no different from playing with a toy.

Horse riding, however, was a challenge for her.

First, she slung the hunting rifle over her shoulder, then, with her sister's help, mounted the horse. Jiang Lili gripped the reins tightly and led her around once before letting her try riding on her own.

Once she had gotten a little more familiar with the horse, Chen Fan mounted it.

Jiang Lili also mounted her horse, looked at him, and asked, "Are you carrying a pistol?"

Chen Fan smiled slightly and patted the bow sack hanging on the saddle. "I'll use this."

It was only then that the two sisters noticed the bow.

Jiang Tiantian looked on in surprise, "You can shoot arrows?"

Chen Fan laughed and didn't say anything. He put his finger in his mouth and whistled. Immediately, the sound of a falcon calling came from the sky, and two dogs came running out barking and wagging their tails excitedly.

At this moment, Chen Fan pulled on the reins, "Let's go."

The mare immediately trotted away, leaving a trail of hoofprints in the snow.

Jiang Lili glanced at her sister, and the two sisters simultaneously shook the reins and trotted behind her.

The three horses reached the embankment. Before the two sisters could gallop away, Chen Fan had already run forward a distance, took out his longbow, drew an arrow from his quiver, and shot it into the sky.

With a whistle, a wild goose plummeted from its orderly formation, scattering snowflakes across the ground.

The two dogs rushed out quickly, but Duoduo got there first, snatched the goose, and ran back.

Qiuqiu barked twice, looking somewhat disappointed, when then it heard a bow call, and another goose fell in front of it. It immediately grabbed it excitedly and ran away.

Chen Fan bent down and grabbed the two geese that had been shot. He first pulled out the arrows, then turned his horse around, just as the two sisters rode over.

He handed them over one in each hand, laughing heartily, "Here's the first batch of spoils for you."

The two men didn't stand on ceremony; they reached out and took the goose, placing it in the cloth bag hanging on the saddle, their faces flushed with excitement.

When they saw Chen Fan ride forward again, the two of them realized at the same time, "Sending wild geese? Are you serious?"

(End of this chapter)