Chapter 23: This Is What a Friend Is Like

By the fireplace lay three antlers, each larger than the one he had obtained yesterday.

Li Long merely glanced at them before handing the purchased goods to Halimmu.

"This is tea, this is salt, and this is sugar cubes." After taking them out one by one, he finally handed the fruit candies to the elderly woman. Halimmu's mother said

"A gift for you!"

The elderly woman could not speak Mandarin. She took the items, smiled, and gestured for Li Long and the others to sit down. She then had Halimmu's wife prepare milk tea, while she herself grabbed a handful of fruit candies to distribute to her grandson.

After Li Long and the others had removed their shoes and climbed onto the wooden kang, Halimmu sat down as well and said

"After you left yesterday, I went to look for the other shepherds. It turns out some people did have sheep that died from the frost. They didn't want money; they wanted tea. I gave them tea and brought back two sheep. Oh, and this, too."

He pointed to the antlers.

Li Long took the milk tea handed to him by the woman. After setting down his bowl, he pulled a paper packet from his pocket and handed it to Halimmu

"These are twenty bullets."

Halimmu unwrapped the packet and looked inside, overjoyed

"This is wonderful! Wolves came by last night, and I barely slept a wink! With these bullets, I can drive the wolves away! Brother Li Long, you have truly done me a massive favor!"

Li Long took a sip of milk tea and said with a smile

"It's a mutual benefit. You helped me find the frozen sheep and the antlers; it's only right that I help you find these things."

"Yes, yes, yes, mutual... help!" Halimmu's Mandarin was a bit stiff, but he expressed himself well. "When winter passes and spring comes, if I can hunt wild boar or something, come back and collect it!"

At noon, Halimmu demonstrated to Li Long how a Kazakh man could slaughter a sheep in just a few minutes.

Li Long kept refusing, trying to stop Halimmu from slaughtering the sheep, but Halimmu's entire family believed the sheep had to be slaughtered; otherwise, they would be failing Li Long as an intimate guest.

Halimmu also added, "We don't have much fodder left. The snow was particularly heavy this year. The cattle and sheep can't graze through the snow. Some sheep won't make it until the spring thaw; if we slaughter them now, they still have some fat on them. Otherwise, they'll starve to death by the time spring arrives."

Li Long was well aware of the dangers of snow disasters. He remembered that in his previous life, a few years later, the township had called upon students to donate fodder to aid the herders during a period of snow and pestilence that had left them with insufficient feed.

Perhaps what Halimmu said was true, though it was more likely a cover for the fact that they were slaughtering the sheep specifically for Li Long.

The mutton was stewed directly at noon, using only a little salt and melted snow water. Li Long could see the two children staring intently at the meat in the pot.

Clearly, it had been a long time since they had eaten meat like this.

Seeing the *bishi* (leg stones/knuckle bones) piled in the corner, a thought struck Li Long. He said to Nason

"Can you give me a few of your *bishi*?"

Nason didn't understand, but Halimmu spoke a few words to him.

Nason looked at the *bishi*, then at Li Long. After Halimmu spoke again, Nason looked at the fruit candy in his hand and then pushed the pile of *bishi* toward him.

Li Long said with a smile

"I don't need that many. I have nephews and nieces who like these, but I don't have any, so I'm asking for a few for them."

Li Long took ten pieces; the pile contained about thirty or forty, so ten was not a large amount.

Once the meat was cooked, everyone sat at the table and began eating the meat and gnawing on the bones.

Tao Daqiang was too shy to dig in, but Li Long was not one to be polite. Since they were here and the food was cooked, he might as well eat his fill. He could simply bring more things when he visited in the future.

With bullets in hand, Halimmu would be able to drive off a few wolves and make himself whole again.

After eating the mutton, Li Long and the others drank the mutton soup before leaving feeling satisfied. They loaded the two frozen sheep into the horse carriage, and then he planned to load some pine wood as well.

"I went and got some coal yesterday," Halimmu said, pointing behind the winter shelter. "But since I went by horse, I couldn't bring much."

"Then you keep it for your own heating." Li Long knew they used coal, so he didn't intend to take it back.

"Take it. We are close to the coal mine; we can bring some back every few days. By the time you come next, I'll be able to bring even more," Halimmu insisted stubbornly.

Li Long stopped refusing. He and Tao Daqiang loaded the coal onto the carriage, followed by some pine wood, and finally the three antlers.

Li Long weighed them in his mind; the three antlers weighed about ten kilograms. According to the man at the procurement station, they should sell for at least thirty or forty yuan.

He was going to have money in his pocket again!

"Li Long, if you need anything else, just tell me. When I have time, I'll look for others and see if I can trade for it."

With bullets, Halimmu's courage had increased significantly, allowing him to travel further. Feeling he owed Li Long a great deal, he naturally wanted to be of help.

"If you can hunt wild boar, it would be best to leave the bellies," Li Long suggested. "Food is still scarce in winter. In the summer, there will be more medicinal herbs that can be sold, and mushrooms as well..."

The mountains held many treasures, but only a few during the winter. There were "mountain bears"—brown bears—in these mountains, which were even larger than black bears, weighing over two or three hundred kilograms. If an ordinary person tried to provoke one, it would be suicide.

So, Li Long wouldn't ask for those. As for wild boar, with a rifle in hand, Halimmu knew the risks; even if he couldn't kill them, he could at least ensure his own safety.

However, thinking about how wild boars moved in herds during this season, he decided to bring more bullets the next time he visited.

After bidding farewell to Halimmu's family, Li Long and Tao Daqiang drove the carriage down the mountain.

Upon arriving at the county town again, Li Long told Tao Daqiang to wait outside while he carried the three antlers into the procurement station.

This time, the person inside was not Chen Hongjun, but a middle-aged woman.

Seeing Li Long carrying the antlers, the woman felt a surge of joy, though she kept her expression calm as she asked

"Are you here to sell antlers?"

Seeing it wasn't Chen Hongjun, Li Long didn't answer directly but instead asked

"Let's see the price first."

"These antlers..." The woman picked up the antlers Li Long placed on the counter and examined them closely. "They look decent, but they've been frozen and have some cracks. I'll give you two yuan per kilogram. That's already a high price. How about it?"

"Forget it." Li Long picked up the antlers and prepared to leave. He remembered Chen Hongjun saying he was in on Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays; he would wait until Chen arrived. Two yuan per kilogram meant he would be losing over ten yuan!

That was a whole lamb gone!

The woman hadn't expected Li Long to be so decisive. She immediately said

"Then I'll raise it a bit. How about two-fifty?"

Li Long didn't even pause.

The woman had a quota to meet. Seeing that Li Long was already walking toward the door with the antlers, she finally called out

"Then three yuan! I can't go any higher!"

"Deal." Li Long turned back and set the antlers down.

The woman felt a bit of resentment toward Li Long; he truly wouldn't budge until he saw the profit. Very few people who came here to sell things knew how to haggle, which allowed her to acquire many good items at low prices.

Hitting a wall with Li Long left her feeling quite unsatisfied.

(End of Chapter)