Chapter 282: Forest Frogs and Ao Hua Fish
However, this old Oroqen man was left stunned by Wang An.
Then, the old man smiled and took the cigarette.
Wang An wanted to leave, but felt it would be impolite to just walk away, so he started chatting with the old man.
The old and the young got along quite well.
Through their conversation, Wang An learned that the old man was a veteran gunner—a gunner who had actually hunted the "Big Claws."
Furthermore, the old man was a craftsman who knew how to make many things.
Now that he was older, he had settled down near the county seat.
In truth, the Oroqen people had originally survived by hunting; they were the true masters of the deep mountains.
The reason they had previously been nomadic, drifting through the mountains and fighting wolves, leopards, and tigers, was not actually by their own choice.
During the Qing Dynasty, those two bastards of emperors, Kangxi and Qianlong, specifically issued decrees forbidding them from settling down.
Because the Oroqen were natural warriors and had been the primary source of elite combat power for the Great Qing.
They had the worst food, the worst clothes, and the worst weapons, yet they were the ruthless men who struck terror into the hearts of their enemies.
However, under the Qing government's continuous conscription, their population plummeted, nearly wiping out the entire ethnic group.
This forced the remaining clansmen to flee deeper into the mountains.
A significant number of them crossed the border and became Russians.
The old man was very hospitable and insisted on inviting Wang An to his home for drinks, but how could Wang An possibly go?
So, Wang An made an excuse and drove his sledge further into the market.
As Wang An left, the old man gave him his address, telling him that whenever he had time, he must come for a drink. Wang An naturally agreed readily.
Wang An felt that if he had the chance in the future, he should visit this old Oroqen man.
As Wang An drove his sledge and looked around, he discovered someone selling *hashima*.
*Hashima* were forest frogs, also known as snow frogs.
These things were incredibly delicious.
Although Wang An had little interest in ordinary fish and didn't even think about eating them, he was very fond of forest frogs and many of the fish categorized under "Three Flowers, Five Nets, and Eighteen Sons."
Even though they were technically fish, the taste was completely different.
During the New Year, Wang Dazhu had caught a sturgeon weighing nearly twenty pounds, a salmon weighing seven or eight pounds, and many forest frogs.
Those two types of fish and the forest frogs were truly satisfying for Wang An to eat; they were genuinely delicious.
Moreover, they didn't require complex cooking methods. After washing them clean, you just threw them in a pot with water and a bit of salt and simmered them.
When taking them out of the pot, you just added some chopped green onions and dried cilantro, and it was done.
The method for forest frogs was the same, and they only needed a quick wash—there was no need to gut them.
Because forest frogs in this season were hibernating, their bellies were empty and could be considered perfectly clean.
Even in this era, the price of forest frogs was not cheap at all.
Of course, male forest frogs weren't expensive—two cents per jin, cheaper than wild boar meat.
But female forest frogs were more delicious because of the "frog oil," reaching a price of one yuan per jin.
That was roughly the daily wage of a formal employee.
Frog oil was actually the oviduct of the female frog, which had been used as a medicinal ingredient since ancient times.
Furthermore, because the amount of frog oil from each female frog was very small after drying, the procurement price at the supply and marketing cooperatives was quite expensive.
There were actually several types of forest frogs; at the very least, the frogs in Heilongjiang province were different from those in the other two Northeastern provinces.
The most prominent characteristic was that Heilongjiang frogs were smaller, had rougher skin, and had red spots on their bellies.
The frogs from the other two provinces were larger, had smoother skin, and felt better to the touch.
When eating forest frogs, the female was naturally the first choice, mainly because they were just too damn delicious!
After boiling them in salt water, you put the whole frog in your mouth and then pulled out the entire bone.
With a gentle chew, that wonderful little flavor would surge up instantly.
Without hesitation, Wang An bought the half-basket of female forest frogs that had frozen into popsicles.
Distinguishing between male and female forest frogs was very easy for locals; they could tell accurately with a single glance.
Female frogs were slightly larger than males, though saying it that way was a bit too general and sounded like nonsense.
The simplest method was that female frogs had long, thin front limbs, while males had short, thick front limbs, and the male's front paws had a large grayish-black bump.
If one still couldn't tell them apart but still wanted to eat forest frogs, they'd just have to take whatever they got.
The sister selling the frogs was quite happy, but looking at the other basket of male frogs, she suddenly called out to Wang An.
The sister said, "Little brother, I see you're not short on money. Why don't you take these male *hashima* as well?"
Wang An knew that this "take" didn't mean "for free," but rather "buy them with money."
Because the sister was round—a rarity among the plump people of this era—Wang An joked
"Sister, you're so kind to give me so many *hashima* for free?"
Wang An's words left the round sister speechless; she just stared blankly as Wang An picked up the basket.
However, as Wang An turned to leave, the sister snapped out of it and shouted urgently
"Little brother, you haven't paid yet!"
Wang An pretended to be confused and said, "Didn't you tell me to take them? What money?"
Their voices were loud, which made the brother selling fish nearby burst out laughing.
Northeasterners are very concerned with "face," regardless of gender, so hearing the fishmonger's laughter made the sister feel embarrassed.
The round sister pursed her lips, stamped her foot, and said, "Just take them! I don't want any money!"
Wang An could no longer hold back his laughter. He smiled and said to the sister
"I see this basket of yours is quite nice. I can't take the *hashima* for free and then take the basket too. How about I give you two yuan?"
As he spoke, Wang An pulled two yuan from his pocket and handed it over.
Since Wang An was carrying the frogs, he felt they weighed less than ten pounds, and looking at the count, it didn't seem like they would reach ten pounds.
Normally, Heilongjiang forest frogs averaged about five to six per jin; usually, six frogs equaled one jin.
The sister was once again thrown off by Wang An's sudden reversal; her hand reached out halfway and then shrank back.
The fishmonger nearby laughed and said, "Little sister, just take it! This brother is clearly a man of principle, hahaha."
Wang An pushed the money forward again, and the sister took it with a smile, saying
"Little brother, you're a good man. Do you have a partner? Sister can introduce someone to you!"
Hearing this, Wang An was momentarily stunned.
In all his life, including his previous life before becoming wealthy, this sister was the first stranger to offer to introduce a partner to him.
It really wasn't easy at all!
However, Wang An still smiled and said, "I'm about to have children soon. Thank you for your kindness, sister, haha."
With a sack of female frogs in his left hand and the basket of male frogs in his right, Wang An turned back to his sledge.
He had to admit, having someone offer to introduce a partner made him feel quite pleased inside!
Wang An looked at the fishmonger and bought four Ao Hua fish from the "Three Flowers, Five Nets" variety, then headed out of the market.
Once outside, he checked his watch; it was almost noon. Wang An drove the sledge toward his house in the county seat.
That's right, Wang An was thinking of Fang Xiu'e—to be precise, Wang An was thinking of a woman.
A twenty-year-old youth in the prime of his life had immense combat power; when his energy was too overflowing every day, it was truly an unusual kind of torture.
When Wang An arrived at the house, it was a bit early, and the front door was still locked.
So, feeling both helpless and bored, Wang An waited for a long while.
Just as Wang An finished his third cigarette, the figure of Fang Xiu'e appeared on her bicycle.
At this moment, Wang An's mind was completely consumed by desire; he couldn't think of anything else.
Therefore, this time, Wang An proactively bolted the front door and braced it with the door beam.
Then, Wang An scooped up Fang Xiu'e, who was just opening the room door, and carried her straight inside.