sbdcsierra Chapter 1776 Two Times a Year at the King's Gathering: Black Tiger Kills Old Hen
Chapter 1776 Two Times a Year at the King's Gathering: Black Tiger Kills Old Hen
Chapter 1776 Two King's Gatherings a Year: Black Tiger Kills Old Hen
While Han Shengli was daydreaming at home, Zhao Jun was still waiting for a phone call.
By this time, Wang Qiang and the others had arrived. They were all quite worried because they hadn't found Black Tiger yesterday. Searching for a dog in the mountains is like searching for a person; the longer it takes, the less hope there is.
The Zhao family didn't care how much money Black Tiger could bring them; they had feelings for him. Black Tiger's disappearance was due to his rescue of Wang Meilan.
Such a loyal dog, who could bear to just leave it in the mountains?
The waiting process is long, and waiting with worries in your heart makes it even longer.
It wasn't until after 7:50 that the phone rang in the west hut. Shao Tianpeng's voice came from the other end: "Is this Zhao Junbu?"
"It's me, Master Shao." Although Zhao Jun was annoyed, he still had to maintain proper politeness. He patiently greeted Shao Tianpeng, "How are you doing, sir? How's the old man?"
"Okay, we're both doing well." Shao Tianpeng laughed. "I called yesterday and you weren't home. I was talking to your mom and I was wondering if you wanted to go to the Ginseng King Conference in Shuangdianzi on the 1st of next month?"
"Shuangdianzi..." Upon hearing this name, Zhao Jun's face immediately showed understanding.
In his previous life, when he was doing business, he spent most of his time in Jilin Province. He not only went to Fusong County when he attended the Ginseng King Conference, but also sometimes went to that so-called hometown of ginseng.
Once, when he was in Fusong, he was chatting with an old man and the old man told him that the name Fusong originated from the Qing Dynasty and was originally called Fusong Prefecture.
Later, when the prefecture was abolished and replaced by a county, it was renamed Shuangdian County because its seat was located in Shuangdianzi. However, less than a year later, it was renamed Fusong County.
However, some older people refer to this place as Shuangdianzi.
"I'll go, Mr. Shao." Zhao Jun readily agreed. Anyway, he had to go to Old Shao's house at the end of the month to drive away the tiger and carry the stone dragon, so he could take the opportunity to go to Fusong, meet some clients, and broaden his horizons.
“Okay, then I’ll sign you up.” Shao Tianpeng said, “You can come over at the end of the month, and after we’re done with our work, we can go together.”
When Zhao Jun heard that Shao Tianpeng's idea was the same as his own, he immediately replied, "Okay, Mr. Shao, but if you help me register, I still need to take a few people with me."
"That's alright," Shao Tianpeng laughed. "Aren't you the leader? I'll just give you my name."
After saying this, Shao Tianpeng paused slightly before continuing, "Zhao Jun, I have to tell you first. This conference wasn't organized by the government; it was instigated by a few veterans in the industry."
They say competitors are enemies; when these people get together, conflicts are inevitable. And who knows, they might even come to blows.
Having worked in this industry in his previous life, Zhao Jun knew how murky it was, and immediately laughed, "Master Shao, if I go, won't I be able to get to know a few big buyers?"
“Yes, haha…” Shao Tianpeng smiled upon hearing this and said, “You’re a smart kid.”
"Thank you, Mr. Shao." Zhao Jun said with a smile, "I'm really grateful that you remembered me when this happened."
Zhao Jun said this as a test, as he had dealt with the Shao family before. The Shao family had never wronged him, but Zhao Jun also felt that the family, especially the two old men, were quite shrewd and belonged to the type who wouldn't do anything without a profit.
Therefore, Zhao Jun wanted to find out why Shao Tianpeng had invited him to the King's Assembly.
Faced with Zhao Jun's probing, Shao Tianpeng laughed and asked, "Zhao Jun, which day have you decided you can't come?"
“I… around the 25th,” Zhao Jun said. Shao Tianpeng said, “Isn’t that a bit late? Now that we know where the stone dragon is, you should come earlier so we can get it out before the 1st of next month. We need to hurry up and sell it, or someone else might snatch it up first.”
After saying this, Shao Tianpeng paused for a moment before continuing, "You should know that we're not the only two companies in the industry who know this news."
Hearing Shao Tianpeng's words, Zhao Jun thought that the old man probably wanted him to go early, so he used the Ginseng King Conference to lure him.
The big meeting is on June 1st, so we should arrive at least a day early.
May has 31 days. If we arrive on the 31st, we have to leave from the Shao family on the 30th.
In that case, the stone dragon will have to be brought out on the 29th. That means the tiger will have to leave Daqinggang on the 28th.
If Zhao Jun goes on the 25th and rests at Shao's house for a day, and then goes up the mountain to survey the terrain on the 26th, then Zhao Jun will only have two days, the 27th and 28th, to drive away the tiger.
After considering all this, Zhao Jun wasn't confident either. After all, it was a Siberian tiger, not as easy to deal with as other animals, and the key was that he couldn't use force to resolve the situation.
Thinking of this, Zhao Jun flipped through the calendar next to him.
But before the date was even set, Zhao Jun asked Shao Tianpeng, "Master Shao, we haven't even arrived in Yacao City yet, why are we having such a big meeting?"
Zhao Jun remembered that the Ginseng King Competition in his previous life was held in September, when the ginseng was already harvested and the mountain herders would bring their ginseng directly to the competition.
And at this time of year, the ginseng buds haven't even sprouted yet, so why would they go to the competition empty-handed? Is that really meaningful?
“That’s how it is, Zhao Jun.” Shao Tianpeng explained to Zhao Jun, “In Shuangdianzi, there’s a saying in the county annals: ‘In April, people go to the mountain to buy grass, and in May, people go to the market to buy green grass.’”
In the fourth month of the lunar calendar, the old herders go into the mountains.
At this point, Shao Tianpeng paused slightly before continuing, "From the beginning of summer to the frost, to Tieliaozi City, it's all the time that the old foreman gives us mountain herders to make our fortune."
Every year, normally around October 10th, we hold the Ginseng King Conference, where these ginseng leaders bring down the best ginseng from the mountains. After that, if they find a suitable buyer, they sell the ginseng directly, saving themselves the trouble of finding other buyers.
However, some people can't come in the autumn. Especially these buyers, many of them come from all over the country and have other commitments that prevent them from coming.
So, starting the year before last, we've been gathering twice a year. June 1st is for these slightly influential guild leaders, as well as buyers from all over the country, to get together.
Hearing Shao Tianpeng's explanation, Zhao Jun understood. In those days, travel was slow, unlike twenty or thirty years later when airplanes and high-speed trains made it convenient to go anywhere.
These days, it's really not an easy thing to travel from all over the country to a small county in Jilin Province.
At this point, Shao Tianpeng added, "Let's get together, have a drink, a smoke, chat, exchange names and contact information."
If the buyer has any special needs, someone can contact them with a suitable offer, and they can come over. Otherwise, they won't bother making the trip.
Especially in the last two years, some middlemen have also come. Because not all big buyers are willing to show up in person, many ask others to come and look at the goods.
The person entrusted with the task can't make the decision, but the person who entrusted him must be wealthy. It wouldn't hurt for us to get to know someone like that.
After hearing Shao Tianpeng's words, Zhao Jun had no more doubts and immediately replied, "Okay, Mr. Shao, um..."
At this point, Zhao Jun was in a dilemma again. Today is the 18th; if he goes early, which day should he go?
Moreover, Black Tiger hasn't returned yet, and Zhao Jun still has to look for him at home.
Thinking of this, Zhao Jun sighed and said to Shao Tianpeng, "Master Shao, I have some things to take care of at home these past two days, so I can't give you a definite answer."
If it's convenient for you, could you call me again around this time in the morning the day after tomorrow, which is the 20th, and then we can finalize the arrangements? Is that alright with you?
Zhao Jun didn't call Shao Tianpeng directly, but instead had Shao Tianpeng call him. It wasn't that he was putting on airs, but rather that if he wanted to call Qiaotou Village, he would have to call the village headquarters, and the people in the village would have to go to Shao Tianpeng to answer the phone. It would take half an hour for them to go back and forth.
Moreover, Shao Tianpeng is not always at home.
Zhao Jun had it convenient to answer the phone, so he had Shao Tianpeng call him.
“Okay.” Shao Tianpeng readily agreed, saying, “Then I’ll call you again around this time the day after tomorrow.”
Zhao Jun responded with a couple of polite words and then hung up the phone.
As soon as he hung up the phone, Zhao Jun noticed that Li Baoyu and the others sitting around him were looking at him, so he told them what had happened on the phone.
“Son.” After Zhao Jun finished speaking, the first person to speak was Zhao Youcai. He said to Zhao Jun, “If you can’t find Black Tiger by finding Number 20, then you should go and do your thing. I’ll stay home and look for him.”
"Dad, we're not home, how are you going to find it yourself?" Zhao Jun asked this because he needed his own people with him this time, whether it was driving away the tiger, carrying the stone dragon, or selling the stone dragon.
He wanted to take all of Zhao's gang members with him, so that he could leave Zhao Youcai at home and let him go into the mountains to find the dog by himself.
At this moment, Zhao Youcai blinked his small eyes and said, "Yesterday, today, and tomorrow we'll search for another day. If we still can't find it..."
At this point, Zhao Youcai shook his head and said, "It's pointless for us to keep looking."
“Then let’s not look for him?” Wang Meilan, who was standing at the door, immediately retorted to Zhao Youcai, saying, “We can’t just not look for him. We have to find Hu Zi for me! If we can’t, I’ll go up the mountain to look for him.”
"What are you looking for?" Zhao Youcai winked at Wang Meilan and said, "Those forest rangers and all the surrounding villages are helping us look. Isn't that better than us looking ourselves?"
Indeed, many hands make light work. How many people are there in the Zhao family, young and old? Searching for the dog in the mountains is like looking for a needle in a haystack.
After saying that, Zhao Youcai turned to Zhao Jun and said, "If we still can't find him in three to five days, then Tiger has most likely been picked up by someone else."
Upon hearing Zhao Youcai's words, Zhao Jun nodded in agreement.
Dogs are domestic animals, and they are like family to us. If a hunting dog is left in the mountains, it won't even last three to five days; after a day or two, it won't be able to stand it.
If a dog encounters a person at this time, it will be friendly and affectionate as long as the person doesn't attack it. If a person leads it on a leash, it will follow them without hesitation.
Based on Zhao Jun's understanding of the black tiger, apart from Siberian tigers, Amur leopards, lynxes, or jackals, other wild animals in the mountains should pose little threat to it.
The bear and the cannonball may be stronger than the black tiger, but the problem is that they can't catch up with the black tiger.
Since those three major felines and jackals are hard to find, Zhao Jun believed that Black Tiger would be fine, and was more likely to be picked up by someone.
Thinking of this, Zhao Jun felt a little relieved. He slung his bag over his shoulder, picked up his gun, and left home with Wang Qiang and the others, taking a car into the mountains to continue searching for the dog.
But no matter how hard he searched, he was destined not to find it.
……
And so the next day arrived, May 19, 1988.
At just three o'clock in the morning, before dawn, the door to Han Shengli's room in Yonglitun was pushed open from the inside, and a large black dog darted out of the door.
Black Tiger tried to pull himself out by the rope, but Han Shengli held him tightly.
Black Tiger not only eats and drinks, but it also needs to relieve itself. Domestic dogs don't urinate or defecate indoors. Like the injured dogs in the Zhao family's house, when they are too injured to move, they can't eat or drink. Once they can eat and drink again, they can move around, and even then, the injured dogs won't urinate or defecate indoors; they have to go outside.
Black Tiger is the same; he holds in his poop and pee. These past two days, Han Shengli has been taking Black Tiger out for a walk around 3 a.m., before dawn, before the villagers who are going to work in the fields have gotten up, so that Black Tiger can relieve himself.
Han Shengli is making such a fuss because he's afraid others will see Black Tiger.
Black Tiger was led around the yard by Han Shengli for nearly half an hour.
To be honest, Han Shengli was quite patient in order to subdue Black Tiger.
Feeling that it was about time, Han Shengli led Black Tiger back into the house. When they reached the door, Han Shengli opened it and held the door open to let Black Tiger go in first.
After entering the house, as Han Shengli turned to close the door, Black Tiger suddenly straightened the rope.
Since they were indoors, Han Shengli didn't pay any attention. But at that moment, Black Tiger went straight to the henhouse in front of the dish rack.
The chicken coop was made by Li Meijuan herself from straw, twisted from handfuls of straw. In Northeast China, this kind of chicken coop is called a chicken coop.
The chicken wheel is round, so to prevent it from rolling, Li Meijuan braided two legs on the side that was touching the ground with hemp rope, so that it could stay still.
The mother hen and her chicks are all in the chicken coop. Chickens have poor eyesight and can't see anything when it's dark.
It was only 3:30, and it was still dark outside. The old hen couldn't see anything, but Black Tiger had excellent eyesight.
In her dazed state, the old hen was bitten on the neck by a dog's mouth that had reached into the nest.
The hen, its head in the dog's mouth, didn't even have time to cluck before the black tiger bit off its neck.
The old hen died instantly. Han Shengli turned around, shone his flashlight, and was immediately dumbfounded.
It must be said that Han Shengli was quite lenient with Hei Hu. Afraid that his wife would make a fuss, he dragged Hei Hu towards the west room. Once inside the west room, Han Shengli had to exert a great deal of effort to snatch the dead chicken from Hei Hu's mouth.
"What the hell do we do now?" Han Shengli took the dead chicken out of the house, thought for a moment, and then boiled water to prepare to pluck the chicken feathers.
Around four o'clock, Li Meijuan got up from the kang (a heated brick bed) and found that Han Shengli was not there.
"Where did this guy go?" Li Meijuan knew that Han Shengli got up early to walk the dog, but after walking the dog, Han Shengli would go back to sleep.
Li Meijuan put on her clothes and went out of the house, where she saw Han Shengli placing a white-feathered chicken on a large enamel plate.
"You're up?" Han Shengli smiled at Li Meijuan and said, "I was groping in the dark this morning and I stepped on this chicken and killed it."
Upon hearing this, Li Meijuan subconsciously turned her head to look at Jigulu, then turned back and cursed, "Go to hell, are you trying to be my idiot?"
As she spoke, Li Meijuan pointed to the west room door and said, "Was it that dead dog that my chicken killed?"
"What dead dog?" Han Shengli comforted Li Meijuan, "That dog is great. After we kill a bear and sell its courage, eight hundred chicks will come out."
"Go to hell!" Li Meijuan had a short temper, and she picked up a broom and ran to the west room.
Han Shengli, who was wiping his hands with a rag after picking the chicken feathers, couldn't stop Li Meijuan from rushing into the west room.
When Li Meijuan entered the room, Hei Hu was lying on the kang (a heated brick bed). Hei Hu thought dinner was ready when Li Meijuan suddenly came in.
But then, a broom came crashing down on his head.
The black tiger, having been beaten, suddenly leaped up and roared at the top of its lungs, "Awooo... Awooo... Awooo..."
The black tiger's roar reached outside. Zhang Jimin, who was off work and had gotten up early to work in the fields, heard the roar and immediately stopped outside the fence.
This chapter makes up for yesterday's missed chapter; there will be an extra chapter tomorrow.
(End of this chapter)