Reborn in 80: Starting with hunting in the mountains to get rich

Along the way, the more Chen, the production team leader, thought about the attack on the pig farm, the angrier he became. His inexplicable anger made him curse Hei Xiazi's ancestors for eighteen generations.

"Damn it! It killed more than a dozen pigs in the team and let dozens more escape. There were only a little over a hundred pigs in the team, and now they're all gone! That despicable sheep-lover, I'll make sure that beast is killed!"

As soon as Captain Chen arrived at the entrance of the clinic, he saw three hunter-like men surrounded by a group of production team members. In the center of the crowd, on a sled, was the black bear.

Li Ju'an was chatting with the production team members when he pointed to a part of the bear's body and said...

“Dried bear noses ground into powder and mixed with rice wine can cure epilepsy.”

"And this piece, the bear's kneecap, can cure rheumatism, rheumatoid arthritis, and arthritis. It's called 'false tiger bone' along with lynx bone."

"This is the bear paw. It's delicious whether braised or used in soup. There's also bear fat and bear skin. The whole bear is a treasure."

Lu Zhiqiang has already woken up, and Li Ju'an is planning to quickly take Hei Xiazi's body down the mountain. He's waiting to find a merchant from the south to sell Hei Xiazi's entire body for a good price. If the merchant leaves, he'll have to go to the supply and marketing cooperative's purchasing point or a pharmacy to exchange it for money.

There were too many people surrounding Hei Xiazi, so he could only say a few words to appease them before making an excuse to run away. As luck would have it, the production brigade's captain, Chen, arrived at that moment.

When Captain Chen saw the body of the bear, his eyes turned bloodshot, and he immediately launched into a series of warm greetings.

"That shameless bastard! What a bunch of bastards, and he made it so big!"

When he looked up and saw Li Guaizi, Li Ju'an, and Song Desheng, he immediately suppressed his anger and put on an approachable smile, saying to Li Guaizi, "Li Pao, thank you so much this time! You've really helped our production team a lot!"

Li Guaizi didn't respond, but nodded his chin at Li Ju'an beside him.

Song Desheng said with a smile, "Captain Chen, Uncle Li isn't the gunner, Brother Li is."

When Captain Chen saw Li Ju'an, he was still somewhat incredulous. He had seen gunners from all around, but he had never seen one so young. Upon closer inspection, he saw that Li Ju'an was tall and strong, with firm and resolute eyes that shone brightly. The Qingchuan dog following at his feet was equally imposing, and his face was full of confidence and pride.

Both the man and the dog exuded confidence and decisiveness; he had only ever seen such an aura in the head dog and the leader dog.

He quickly pulled Li Ju'an aside and began to discuss the matter amicably. He wanted to buy the meat of the black bear, though he was initially a little embarrassed about the price he was asking. The black bear was very large, and hunting it would be difficult. If he were to specifically ask the forestry station for help to hunt it, aside from the favor, the entire brigade would also have to pay for it.

The price of bear meat in the county market is between 30 and 35 cents per pound. Now, Captain Chen wants to skin and butcher the bear and buy it whole, paying 36 cents per pound. He gives each of the production team workers a piece, and the rest of the bear meat is taken to the canteen to be stewed into a large pot for the single workers to enjoy.

Li Ju'an, Li Guaizi, and Song Desheng exchanged glances, both seeing the surprise in each other's eyes.

This is even more expensive than the market price. Besides, bear meat isn't very tasty, far inferior to pheasant meat. There's a saying, "I'd rather eat four ounces of fowl than half a pound of beast." And such a large bear, after skinning and deboning, still has to have its fat removed, yielding a considerable amount of meat. Even if he took it to the market, he might not be able to sell it all in several days.

Now the production team leader has spoken up, wanting to take all the bear meat, and at a price one cent higher than the market price, which makes him overjoyed.

The production team's funds were used to buy the bear meat, and Li Ju'an received 96 yuan. This was a huge sum of money. In an era when the average official employee of the production team only received 37.5 yuan, he felt a burning heat in his pocket as he carried 96 yuan, afraid of losing it. He quickly divided the money with Li Guaizi and Song Desheng.

Li Ju'an received 5 shares, Li Guaizi received 2 shares, and Song Desheng, who didn't fire, received 1 share. Li Ju'an gave 13.8 yuan to Song Desheng and 27.5 yuan to Li Guaizi, keeping all the change. He ended up with 54.7 yuan.

The meat of a bear can fetch 54.7 yuan, equivalent to a family's income for a month and a half. He was even more excited about the potential profits from the bear bile, considering that the most valuable part of the bear was its gallbladder.

That evening, the production brigade canteen was bustling with activity.

More than 100 employees each received a piece of black bear meat and could also enjoy delicious braised black bear meat in the canteen.

Li Ju'an, Li Guaizi, and Song Desheng, as heroes of the bear hunt, were invited by Captain Chen of the production team to sit down and eat together in the canteen.

I must say, the canteen chef's meat was really good. The tough, gamey black bear meat was stewed until it was tender and mushy. The aroma of the braising sauce and spices masked the original gamey smell of the black bear meat, and every bite was incredibly delicious. Paired with a big bite of the production team's cornbread, it was so good you could swallow your whole tongue.

Captain Chen toasted Xiao Li Pao in gratitude. After a few rounds of drinks, Song Desheng and Deputy Captain Zhang, who were also drinking and eating at the same table, were starting to feel the effects of the alcohol, their speech becoming slurred and incoherent. Li Guaizi was also getting a little tipsy. In his previous life, Li Ju'an had traveled south and drinking with everyone he met was commonplace; he was well-versed in drinking culture. After a few drinks, he and Captain Chen, emboldened by the alcohol, started chatting.

He wanted to use the bear-hunting incident to help his mother realize the opportunity she had missed back then, and to join the hand-weaving group organized by the production brigade for women.

He remembered that in his previous life, the production brigade's hand-weaving group grew larger and better each year. They specialized in weaving baskets and carpets using corn husks treated with sulfur. The finished products were sold by the commune. They were first transported to a large coastal city, then shipped by ship to Dalian for export.

This income, deposited into the brigade's account, was quite substantial, and was recorded as work points for each individual. As long as one was willing to work, the final reward was based on labor output, with more work resulting in more pay. This was a significant source of income for the women.

Her mother sacrificed a lot to take care of her bedridden father and younger sister. She watched as her sisters, including Qian Dingxiang, joined the production brigade's hand-weaving group. Once each sister became skilled, a proficient worker could earn 27.5 yuan a month, which was 8 yuan more than a temporary worker.

Li Ju'an mentioned it to Captain Chen.

Captain Chen immediately said generously, "This is no big deal! That black bear is a scoundrel, I've wanted to kill it for a long time. Li Pao, don't worry, you've helped the production team today, leave this little thing to me, Chen."

That's how it was decided that my mother, Song Lanhua, would be able to join the production brigade's hand-weaving group.

Li Ju'an was overjoyed and couldn't wait to fly back to the Li family and tell his mother the good news.