Reborn in 80: Starting with hunting in the mountains to get rich

Chapter 165 The Great Deer Antlers, So Magnificent

Li Ju'an laughed and said, "Where can you find deer antlers in the dead of winter? They can only grow back after the deer shed their antlers in the spring."

Deer antlers are the new antlers that grow after a male deer sheds its antlers. In traditional Chinese medicine, deer antlers are considered a tonic for yang energy. They are the unossified, densely hairy young antlers of male sika deer or red deer.

They say you're obligated to someone who feeds you. Having received favors from Li Ju'an, they also got his help in hunting wolves. Old Zhou boldly declared, "Next June or July, we'll go into the mountains with Zhao Pao, and we'll share a pair of deer antlers with you."

Li Ju'an sat by the fire, turning the embers and rubbing his blood-stained hands with snow. He laughed, "Don't mention it. I should thank Zhao Pao and Uncle Zhou. Otherwise, how would we have hauled all these deer back? Each of us would have been exhausted, like a turtle on a sled."

Old Zhou and the falconers burst into laughter, grinning broadly.

Zhao Pao stared at the stag's crotch and suddenly said, "Let's discuss something."

Li Ju'an said, "Why are Zhao Pao and I being so polite? We're like brothers when we fight wolves. Neither of us benefited from the past, so let's call it even. Let's get down to business."

Hearing that he was so young and spoke so frankly, Zhao Pao felt a bit more favorably disposed towards him. He hesitated for a moment, exhaled a smoke ring, and said, "It's not my business, it's a friend of mine. He's gotten a bit older and isn't as vigorous as he used to be, and his wife complains about him. He asked me to ask if there's any way to get this stuff."

Upon hearing this, Li Ju'an and Lu Zhiqiang laughed; it turned out they wanted deer antler velvet.

The two knew exactly what was going on, exchanged a knowing smile, and didn't expose it. Li Ju'an slapped his thigh and exclaimed, "Oh, it's not a big deal. Just cut it off and take it."

Zhao Pao showed no sign of distress, his face didn't even turn red, he remained calm and composed, and without even looking up at them, he used his knife to cut off the deer penis, put it in a cloth bag, and took it back.

Li Ju'an cut the male deer into several pieces and threw them onto the sled to take it back.

This male deer is huge; its head alone is several times larger than the female deer next to it. The fur on its back and belly is thick and dense, and its antlers on its big head are very large with four forks, making it look very beautiful.

Although large deer antlers are not as valuable as deer velvet in terms of medicinal properties, deer antler powder is still purchased by pharmacies.

While helping to unload the venison, Lu Zhiqiang laughed and said, "Give me these antlers, they're quite pretty as decorations. If my old man sees such beautiful antlers and hangs them in our house, he'll definitely get me a few good guns and leave him dumbfounded."

The hunters in the village used to hunt in the mountains, and every household had some mountain produce hanging on their walls. Every family had hides and antlers displayed. After Old Master Lu retired from hunting, he sent all the antlers and hides to the county town to sell, keeping none for himself. Now, Lu Zhiqiang has returned to his old ways, eager to show the whole village his catch.

He also planned to ask Li Ju'an for a tiger skin to hang on the wall. If anyone came into the Lu family and saw it, they would be shocked and envious. He would also be proud and the old man would give him a thumbs up.

After listening, Li Ju'an said, "Absolutely. When we get back to Uncle Tang's duty room, we'll divide the money and split the shares. Just ask for whatever you need, no need to be so polite and pretentious."

Several men threw their prey onto the sleds, and Zhao Pao and the others also carried the carcasses out of the snowdrifts near the fallen trees.

Several falcon hunters looked at the old farm manager's corpse and sighed.

"What a pity. I met Old Director Huang when I was young. He was a really nice guy."

The old farm manager had a son in the county town, but he didn't want to live with his son and daughter-in-law, fearing that he would be disliked when he got old. So he moved into the mountains alone to raise wolves and hunt tigers, but the ending was unexpected and heartbreaking.

Zhao Pao said, "Let's go back and inform the ranch. Captain Wang will then inform the Huang family."

The Huang family will set up a mourning hall for the old man. Given the generosity of Captain Wang of the ranch and their past relationship, he will also help the Huang family with the funeral arrangements. That's how relationships work in the village; the old ranch leader was kind-hearted and befriended everyone, so the ranch was willing to help with the arrangements, doing everything they could.

A group of people planned to drag their sleds for more than four miles back to the forest ranger's duty room.

Chen Xiangqian had just been in the ditch, where Zhao Pao had arranged for him to hide in a dugout to avoid the wolves. Now, he was following the main group, dragging a sled back with him, his eyes fixed on Li Ju'an with nothing but admiration.

Chen Xiangqian's mouth never stopped the whole way.

"Brother Li, you really took down four wolves? That's amazing! Your marksmanship is incredible."

"Brother Li, your dog looks really imposing. Can you lead it for me for a while?"

"Brother Li, you're incredibly strong. You don't even get out of breath while pulling a sled."

Li Ju'an laughed and said, "You have to praise someone louder. Who can hear you with your voice like that?"

Chen Xiangqian laughed and shouted even louder. He even took the sled that Li Ju'an was pulling and hung it on his own body, pulling it with him: "Brother Li, take me into the mountains next time, and I'll pull your sled again."

Li Ju'an said, "Forget it, how could I dare ask the division commander's son to do the hard work for us? You can rest."

"No way! Brother Li, we're like family, why are you being so polite with me? It's too formal."

His adoring gaze was unbearable for the group of hunters, especially Zhao Pao. Zhao Pao had contributed greatly to the wolf hunt, but all he got to do was listen to the division commander's son praising Li Ju'an.

Zhao Pao walked very fast, running directly to the front of the group with large strides.

Chen Xiangqian couldn't keep up and shouted, "Uncle Zhao, why are you going alone? It'll be so dangerous if you run into a pack of wolves again. Wait for Brother Li, he can help you out."

Zhao Pao walked even faster, his face stern and silent.

Chen Xiangqian scratched the back of his head, touched his big cotton hat, and asked in surprise, "Why isn't Uncle Zhao paying attention to me?"

……

The group walked briskly for more than four miles before crossing the Great Slow Ridge, then slowed their pace and continued forward. By the time they returned to the forest ranger's cabin, it was already noon.

Old Tang, the forest ranger, and Old Zhang, the veterinarian, rushed to greet them as soon as they saw them return. Song Desheng and the others, dragging four tiger skins, stood up, drinking steaming hot pine needle tea.

Zhao Pao glanced at the four fresh tiger skins that had been peeled off.

The bright tiger skin, with its golden yellow color and blackish-brown stripes, is gorgeous and beautiful, exuding a domineering and eye-catching aura.

His eyes lit up, and a mix of indescribable emotions welled up inside him.

Chen Xiangqian, quick to speak, excitedly exclaimed, "Brother Li has really struck gold! Come on, Uncle Zhou has made deer blood wine, let's all have some to warm up."