Reborn in 1981, starting by smashing my iron rice bowl.

The first measure Liu Weidong arranged was to put up many warning signs along the edge of the woods. The warning signs were painted with white primer and then the words "Contracted woodland, no entry" were written in red, making them particularly eye-catching.

In addition to warning signs, Liu Weidong also hired young people from the village to cut down a lot of bamboo to build a fence around the forest. Although it seemed somewhat rudimentary compared to the barbed wire fences of later generations, it was considered a significant undertaking in the early 1980s.

In those days when most people were still quite simple and honest, such a fence, along with warning signs, was enough to prevent the vast majority of people from entering the woods.

Meanwhile, the village loudspeaker was broadcasting, urging every household to remind their children not to go into Liu Weidong's woods. It also promised that if the children behaved and didn't go into the woods, they would receive White Rabbit milk candy every month!

For children at this age, good food is far more important than fun. Besides, there are plenty of fun places in the village, and the child already had little interest in that grove of trees, so naturally, he's even less likely to go there now.

In addition to these measures, Liu Weidong also plans to recruit several elderly people in the village, giving each of them thirty yuan a month to form an elderly forest ranger team. They will wear red armbands and patrol the woods whenever they feel like it, which will also serve as a deterrent.

In those days, even regular workers in state-owned factories only earned a little over forty yuan a month. These old men and women could earn so much money just by going for a walk in the woods; in the eyes of the villagers, it was practically free money.

Every elderly person who could still walk was eager to try, and they flocked to Liu Weidong's place to sign up, almost wearing down his doorstep.

Liu Weidong couldn't be bothered with such matters and simply passed the buck to the village committee, letting them decide who to invite.

Fortunately, after Hao Qiang became the village chief, his main principle was fairness. He quickly reached an agreement with the village committee and invited five elderly people to help Liu Weidong patrol.

These five people are either elderly people living alone in the village, or their families are notoriously poor; in short, they are people who need care. Giving them this job is a new benefit for the village.

So no one objected to the village's arrangements, and Liu Weidong was freed from this troublesome matter.

The elderly men and women who got the job were all very enthusiastic. They would stroll around the woods every day wearing red armbands, and some even built thatched huts by the woods, looking like they were setting up camp there.

This left Liu Weidong somewhat amused and exasperated, and he even had to advise the elderly not to go to such lengths. He said that simply visiting the woods when they had time was enough; living right next to the forest was far too extravagant.

Although Liu Weidong's arrangements represented top-tier security in rural areas in the early 1980s, some people, including Hao Qiang and his son Hao Jianjun, were not optimistic about them.

The father and son came to find Liu Weidong together. Hao Qiang said to him first, "Weidong, although you have spent a lot of money to protect the forest, I think... we still can't let our guard down!"

Hao Jianjun nodded and said, "My dad is right. If Sun Libing really is trying to steal matsutake mushrooms from the woods as Brother Wang said, then these measures will be useless!"

Wang Shujuan was a naive girl who initially thought that Liu Weidong's efforts would ensure the safety of the forest. However, after hearing Hao Qiang and his son's words, she realized that they were far from being able to rest easy, and she immediately became anxious again.

Liu Weidong smiled confidently and said, "Uncle Qiang, I understand what you're saying. These measures are only effective against honest people. If someone really wants to steal matsutake mushrooms, they won't work at all."

Hao Jianjun said anxiously, "Brother Weidong, since you already know this, why are you wasting so much money?"

"This money won't be wasted." Liu Weidong said seriously, "The purpose of taking so many measures is to prevent unsuspecting people and those naughty children in the village from accidentally wandering into the woods and causing accidental injuries!"

Hao Qiang frowned and asked, "Accidental injury?"

“Yes, although everyone knows the woods are mine now, and it’s not my problem if someone gets hurt while trespassing, we’re all neighbors after all. I’d feel bad if I accidentally hurt someone.” Liu Weidong nodded and said, “I’m going to such lengths to avoid this situation, so I don’t lose face.”

Hao Qiang nodded and said, "You're right. We've already gone this far. If anyone gets injured after entering the woods on their own, it really can't be blamed on you."

Hao Jianjun asked, puzzled, "Brother Weidong, why did you specifically mention accidental injury? Could it be intentional injury?"

Liu Weidong said with a half-smile, "If someone accidentally enters the woods, it's an accidental injury. But if they deliberately go in to steal something and get injured, then they can't blame anyone else, can they?"

"Ha, that makes perfect sense!" Hao Jianjun slapped his thigh and said, "So that's what you were thinking all along! You're so cunning!"

Liu Weidong frowned and said, "How can you talk like that? Is this cunning? This is strategy!"

Hao Qiang asked Liu Weidong, "But how do you catch the thief? You can't really stay in the woods all day long, can you? There's no such thing as being able to guard against thieves a thousand days a year!"

Liu Weidong laughed and said, "Uncle Qiang, I had already thought of this. I was just planning to ask you to come with me to find Old Song, who lives at the back of the village, and ask him for help."

Hao Qiang immediately stood up and said, "Then what are we waiting for? Let's go!"

Old Song, who lived at the back of the village, used to be a well-known hunter. In his youth, he was an excellent marksman, catching many wild animals with his rifle. Besides his marksmanship, Old Song also had many animal traps, which were also powerful hunting tools. These traps ranged in size from small enough to catch foxes and rabbits to large enough to trap even wild boars.

However, as he got older and the wild animals on the mountain became fewer and fewer, Old Song gradually stopped going up the mountain. A couple of years ago, when the county police confiscated firearms, he handed over his hunting rifle as well, but he still kept the animal traps.

Liu Weidong had his eye on Old Song's animal traps, so he and Hao Qiang came specifically to find him.

Old Song was a straightforward man, and one of the five elderly forest rangers, so after hearing Liu Weidong's purpose, he simply said to him, "Anyway, these things are useless to me, so feel free to take them! Oh, and I also have two extra-large bear traps here, take those too!"

Of course, Liu Weidong wouldn't take Old Song's things for nothing. He picked out more than ten animal traps and gave him two hundred yuan.

The old man was overjoyed that these seemingly useless items sold for so much money. He diligently taught Liu Weidong how to use the animal traps and even went to the woods to set them up for him; his after-sales service was quite thorough.

After setting up these animal traps, the forest was considered relatively safe. However, even Liu Weidong himself did not expect that there would be activity just a few days after the traps were set.