Arriving at the storefront, Long Zhanjun stared in astonishment at the two trucks, which were completely covered with tarps.
“Director Zhu, these two trucks aren’t all for me, are they?”
“Comrade Long Zhanjun, you don’t actually not know what’s in those trucks, do you?” Director Zhu asked, looking just as surprised.
“Um… I really don’t know. My brother-in-law just said it was a wedding gift for me and my wife, but I have no idea what exactly it is!”
Hearing this, Director Zhu, standing nearby, was completely dumbfounded!
Good grief, all this stuff in the cars is a wedding gift? How is that even possible?
Who gives such expensive gifts for a wedding? The person giving these must be incredibly wealthy.
Seeing the man in front of him suddenly go blank, Long Zhanjun hurriedly said, “Director Zhu… Director Zhu…”
Director Zhu quickly snapped out of it and said apologetically, “I’m really sorry, I was just spacing out for a moment!”
“No problem. By the way, Director Zhu, what exactly is in the car?” Long Zhanjun asked curiously.
“It’s… Never mind, you’d better see for yourself!”
With that, Director Zhu had someone lift the tarp covering the truck, revealing its contents.
When he saw the truck packed to the brim with wooden crates, Long Zhanjun was completely baffled. They were wrapped so tightly—how could he possibly tell what was inside!
At that moment, Director Zhu took a document out of his briefcase and said, “Comrade Long Zhanjun, let’s go over the types and quantities of these items together!”
“Alright!”
“Two cameras, one Panasonic automatic washing machine, one motorcycle, one piano, two watches… one Mercedes-Benz sedan…”
Upon hearing this string of gifts, Long Zhanjun was completely dumbfounded. He stood there in shock, unable to react for a long time!
He had assumed that the so-called gifts would be small packages, nothing too valuable.
But he never imagined that these gifts would not only fill two entire truckloads, but that every single item would be so valuable.
“Comrade Long Zhanjun, please check the list to see if everything is correct…”
Hearing Director Zhu’s voice, Long Zhanjun finally snapped out of it.
He immediately asked, “Director Zhu, are you sure all these items are meant for me?”
“This has all been verified by the relevant departments, so there’s no mistake. Besides, our plant manager instructed that if you have any questions, you can contact Comrade Li Yi—he should know!” Director Zhu replied.
“Right, right, right… I’ll contact him right away!”
Saying this, Long Zhanjun hurried back into the store and picked up the phone!
But just as he was about to dial, he paused. After a moment’s hesitation, he decided to contact his wife instead.
With that in mind, Long Zhanjun dialed the Dong’an Market branch directly!
“Ring, ring!”
After a few rings, Li Na’s familiar voice came through the phone: “Grassland Beef and Lamb Grill…”
“Nana, it’s me!”
“Huh, why are you calling at a time like this? We’re about to start serving customers!” Li Na asked, sounding a bit puzzled.
“Nana, the gifts Xiao Yi mentioned have come back. There’s quite a lot of stuff, and they’re pretty valuable. Why don’t you come take a look and see how we should handle them?” Long Zhanjun said.
“What exactly is in there? Do I really need to come over to handle it?” Li Na asked curiously.
“Cameras, washing machines, a piano, watches, and even a car—I think it’s a Mercedes!”
Li Na was completely stunned. Although she knew her younger brother Li Yi’s friends weren’t ordinary people and that the gifts they sent wouldn’t be cheap, she hadn’t expected them to be this valuable.
Just as Li Na was lost in thought, Long Zhanjun’s voice came through the receiver again: “Nana… what do you think we should do with all this stuff?”
“Well… I don’t know what to do with them either. What do you think?” Li Na asked.
“I think it’s best to let Yi handle it!”
“Why?”
“First of all, these items were given to us specifically because of Xiao Yi. We shouldn’t accept a gift for which we haven’t earned anything—it wouldn’t be right!”
Long Zhanjun continued, “Secondly, gift-giving is all about reciprocity. They’ve given us such valuable gifts. When they have a celebration of their own, we can’t exactly give them something more expensive than what they gave us—but we certainly can’t give them something much less valuable either. The problem is, we simply can’t afford to give such expensive gifts in return!”
“But after all, this is a wedding gift they gave us. Returning it wouldn’t be right—it would make them lose face. So it’s best to let Xiao Yi handle it!”
Li Na nodded immediately and said, “You’re right. It really wouldn’t be appropriate for us to accept such an expensive gift. Why don’t you get in touch with Xiao Yi and see what he thinks?”
“Alright!”
Then Long Zhanjun asked again, “So, are you coming over?”
“I won’t be able to make it. We’ve already got staff on the floor, and things are about to get busy!” Li Na replied.
“Alright, then I’ll pick you up at the shop tonight, and we’ll go home together!”
“Okay…”
………..
Nianzishan Village!
Li Yi and Jiang Xue spent the entire morning at the pig farm, watching everyone slaughter the pigs and divide up the meat.
Around noon, Chen Wuge, the village butcher, slaughtered a huge, fat pig weighing two hundred and seventy or eighty pounds—the heaviest pig slaughtered in the village this year.
Shortly after, at the suggestion of Feng Kai and Zhang Tongfu, the pig was allocated to the Li family.
Li Yi didn’t hesitate; he immediately sent for a cart and had the huge pig hauled back home.
The Li family spent the entire afternoon butchering the pig.
Li Yi first stripped the meat from the bones, then singed off the remaining bristles from the head and hooves, and proceeded to prepare the meat—curing what needed to be cured and salting what needed to be salted.
It took them the entire afternoon just to barely get the fat pig mostly processed.
However, just as Li Yi was about to take a break, Xiao Gouwawa’s voice suddenly rang out from outside the front gate: “Banbanhaobang!”
Li Yi immediately stepped out of the house and called out, “Xiaogouwa, what’s up? Come inside and tell me!”
“Brother Yi, Yongzi and I are heading up the mountain to set traps. Are you coming?”
“Sure, just give me a minute!”
Naturally, Li Yi wouldn’t turn down an invitation like this, so he gladly agreed.
After that, Li Yi put on some warm clothes, called his bandit buddies, and left home.
At the front gate, Yongzi and Xiaogouwa were already waiting for them.
They were fully equipped, wearing thick cotton jackets, dog-skin hats, and their legs were wrapped up tightly.
They were also carrying a hunting rifle, a large bundle of barbed wire and large iron nails, and a sheep’s-horn hammer. The rifle was for self-defense, while the wire and nails were for setting traps.
Villagers going into the mountains to set rabbit snares usually carry several hundred wire snares.
They usually set out around three or four in the afternoon, searching for traces of wild rabbits and pheasants to set their snares. By the time all the snares were in place, it was nearly midnight.
They would then wait on the mountain for an hour or two before returning the way they came, checking along the way to see if they had caught anything; if not, they would retrieve the wire snares.
So, every time they go up the mountain, they not only have to bring all the necessary tools but also take precautions against the cold and frostbite.
The group chatted as they walked, and before long they reached the foot of the mountain behind the village.
They then split up to search for signs of wild rabbits and pheasants.
Since it had just snowed, the animals’ tracks were very clear, and they soon discovered two hare trails.
Yongzi immediately took down two wire snares, shaped them into circles by hand, tied them to large iron nails, and hammered the nails into the path the hares were bound to take.
As long as the hares continued to use this path, they would be doomed.
Soon, the two snares were set.
After briefly camouflaging the traps, Yongzi led Li Yi and the others deeper into the mountains!
But what they didn’t know was that on the other side of the mountain, several shadowy figures had also appeared at the edge of the woods…
……..