Free Web NovelChapter 273: Chapter 234: Visitors
On the way there, Zhang Yuanmin had explained some of the rules for hunting in the mountains. Because he’d been betrayed by Minister Li and Li Erchen in the past, the first rule he taught them was that men must be of one mind, like a matched team of horses. Especially when hunting a Black Bear, you must never abandon your companions.
When Zhang Yuanmin yelled at them now, Ma Xiaoguang and the others were stunned. They all lowered their heads in embarrassment.
When they heard Zhang Yuanmin say he would give them a third of the Bear Gall, the four men weren’t disappointed in the slightest; on the contrary, they were thrilled.
After all, a third of a Bear Gall was no small amount, especially since they hadn’t done a thing to help.
Zhang Yuanmin was only being so generous because of the unwritten rule of the hunt: Mountain Wealth cannot be kept by one person alone.
Seeing that none of the four men objected, Zhang Yuanmin tossed the Bear’s Paws onto the snow and said to Ma Xiaoguang and the others, "You three, drag the Black Bear back to the Logging Camp. And take these Bear’s Paws with you."
"Yes, sir!" Li Yuan hurried forward, bent down, picked up the paws by their rope, and slung them over his shoulder. "We can’t let Brother Zhang be doing this kind of chore."
After giving orders to the trio, Zhang Yuanmin turned to Jiang Jinyou. "Let’s head back to the Logging Camp," he said, climbing onto the sled.
Jiang Jinyou drove the sled, carrying Zhang Yuanmin and the logs back to the Logging Camp. Li Yuan, Li Wei, and Ma Xiaoguang watched his receding figure and couldn’t help but sigh in admiration. "That Brother Zhang is truly incredible."
"Wait a minute." Li Yuan suddenly realized something. He turned to the other two and said, "But didn’t he tell us to run?"
"He’s right!" It dawned on Ma Xiaoguang and Li Wei. Zhang Yuanmin was giving them a hard time for not helping, but he was the one who’d told them to run in the first place.
...
Back at the Logging Camp, Jiang Jinyou went to drop the logs at the Log Pile Yard. Zhang Yuanmin returned to the bunkhouse alone. He lit the stove, added some firewood, and boiled a kettle of water. He carefully dipped the Black Bear Gall in the hot water, then hung it from a roof beam for the time being.
When Jiang Jinyou got back, he saw Zhang Yuanmin lying on the kang, staring up at the Bear Gall. "Elder Zhang," he said, "come on, it’s time to get our food."
Unlike in the mornings, when all the loggers were in the bunkhouse together, they returned from their various work sites at different times for lunch. This meant they had to eat separately.
Whoever got back first would take their mess tin to the cook’s shack, pick up their meal, and bring it back to eat.
Hearing this, Zhang Yuanmin shook his head. He pointed to the Bear Gall hanging from the beam. "If we both go get food, what happens to this?"
Jiang Jinyou understood at once. More than twenty men lived in this bunkhouse. Some he knew, but some were complete strangers. He certainly wouldn’t feel safe just leaving the Bear Gall in the room.
Still, Jiang Jinyou had to ask, "But Elder Zhang, we can’t just stand guard over it every day, can we?"
"What are you worried about?" Zhang Yuanmin said. "Go now and bring my food back, too. After we eat, you can take me home on the sled."
"That works," Jiang Jinyou said. He was about to grab the aluminum mess tins when Zhang Yuanmin caught his arm.
Zhang Yuanmin glanced toward the door. Seeing that no one was coming, he whispered to Jiang Jinyou, "Elder Jiang, you and I are partners, and we’re both like older brothers to our brother Zhao Jun. There’s no need for secrets between us. I’m telling you this, but don’t let it get out. Before, I said I’d give the four of you a third of the Bear Gall. But once it’s sold and we have the cash, I’ll make sure to give you an extra cut."
"No, no, you don’t have to," Jiang Jinyou said quickly when he heard this.
But Zhang Yuanmin just waved a hand dismissively. "Don’t argue. Go get the food so we can eat."
At that, Jiang Jinyou stopped protesting and went to get food with the two mess tins.
It was now noon, and the loggers were trickling back in. The moment any of them stepped into the bunkhouse, their eyes were drawn to the Black Bear Gall hanging from the rafters.
That wasn’t just a Bear Gall.
That was money!
Staring at the Bear Gall, the men’s eyes burned with envy. Their hearts churned with a mixture of shock and elation. They were shocked that Zhang Yuanmin was actually capable enough to take down a Black Bear’s Den in a single morning. They were elated because if he really had this kind of skill—if he really meant it when he said he’d clear out every den he found—then they were all in for a windfall.
In an instant, the bunkhouse was filled with fawning calls of "Brother Zhang." Everyone was tripping over themselves, worried he might be thirsty or hungry.
While the men were heaping praise on Zhang Yuanmin, Ma Xiaoguang and the other two had already dragged the Black Bear back to the Logging Camp.
After hibernating all winter, the Black Bear had burned through most of its fat reserves. It was so thin it hardly looked like a bear anymore, its fur hanging loosely off its frame.
Plus, after being cooped up in its den all winter, it reeked terribly.
Even so, the Black Bear’s arrival caused a commotion in the Logging Camp. All the loggers and Gui Ling workers crowded around. Even the Leader, Du Chunjiang, brought Du Chunlin over to see what all the fuss was about.
The Gui Ling workers, who had no idea what a momentous event had occurred in the loggers’ bunkhouse the night before, could hardly believe their eyes.
In their eyes, they were all just laborers, earning their keep through back-breaking work. They never imagined that the little No. 77 Logging Camp could produce such a remarkable man.
Instantly, throughout the entire No. 77 Logging Camp, not a single person dared to call him "Big Pants" again. It didn’t matter who it was; even Du Chunlin addressed him respectfully as "Brother Zhang" whenever he saw him.
After all, Du Chunlin was just an ordinary worker. Even though his older brother was the Leader, the two had long ago established separate households. The fact that Du Chunjiang let him eat and sleep in the leader’s bunkhouse was already a sign of great favor.
As for Du Chunjiang, his eyes also burned with a bit of envy as he looked at the Bear Gall. A single Black Bear Gall could fetch over a thousand yuan. That was a true windfall.
And from the chatter among the workers, he gathered that this Zhang Yuanmin was no ordinary man. He’d heard that Zhang Yuanmin had once taken out three Black Bear’s Dens in a single winter.
"Elder Zhang," Du Chunjiang said, walking up to Zhang Yuanmin and clapping him on the shoulder. "Sell this bear to me. I’ll have Elder Bai render some of the Black Bear fat, and we can all have fried flatbreads tonight."
"Leader, you can pay whatever you think is fair," Zhang Yuanmin said. "But you have to leave the Bear’s Paws for me."
"Deal."
The bear probably weighed around three hundred pounds when it was alive. But after a winter in its tree den, it had burned off all its fat and was now down to about two hundred pounds.
Once the paws were removed and it was skinned, it would probably yield a hundred and fifty or sixty pounds of meat, most of it lean.
For all of that, Du Chunjiang gave Zhang Yuanmin forty-five yuan.
That was considered a generous offer.
From that money, Zhang Yuanmin took out twenty yuan and split it evenly among Jiang Jinyou and the other three men. Each one received five yuan.
This scene once again made the onlookers’ eyes burn with envy. One had to understand that these workers toiled from dawn till dusk every single day and earned just under twenty yuan a month.
After the money was divided, Zhang Yuanmin called Jiang Jinyou back to the bunkhouse. He took down the Bear Gall, shouldered the Bear’s Paws, grabbed his horsewhip, and had Jiang Jinyou drive the sled to take him home.
On the way back to Yong’an Village, Jiang Jinyou asked Zhang Yuanmin, "Elder Zhang, where’s your house? I should at least see where you live."
"Not my place first," Zhang Yuanmin said. "Let’s go to our brother Zhao Jun’s house."
"Why’s that?"
Zhang Yuanmin explained, "It’s just my wife and kids at home. If I leave the Bear Gall there, I’m afraid it’ll attract thieves."
"But at our brother Zhao Jun’s place..."
"Brother Zhao Jun has a big family and all those dogs. It’ll be safe at his house."
"Elder Zhang," Jiang Jinyou said, shaking his head in admiration. "No wonder everyone says you’re clever. You’ve really got a good head on your shoulders."
"Of course."
Following Zhang Yuanmin’s directions, Jiang Jinyou drove the sled toward Zhao Jun’s house. When they were still about fifty feet away, they saw three figures walking slowly toward the very same house.
