The Entire Mountain Is My Hunting Ground

Hearing someone speak, Zhao Jun knew they had a visitor. He immediately got off the kang and went out to see.

"Brother Tie." Recognizing the visitor, Zhao Jun greeted him.

"Zhao Jun, you’re home too," the man responded. His name was Wei Tie, and he was the cousin of Wei Jin, who hunted with Wang Dalong.

"Tie, come inside," Wang Meilan called to Wei Tie, reaching for the kettle as she spoke.

"Yes, Brother Tie, get up on the kang." Zhao Jun ushered Wei Tie inside, inviting him to sit.

Wei Tie seemed a bit reserved, perching on the very edge of the kang, his hands clasped together.

Just then, Wang Meilan came in with a mug and placed it on the small kang table, close to Wei Tie.

"Tie, have some hot water to warm up."

"Ah, thank you, Auntie," Wei Tie said politely.

Wang Meilan and Zhao Jun sat on the other side of the kang table. The mother and son knew Wei Tie must have come for a reason. As the elder, Wang Meilan spoke first, "Tie, how come you’re so free today?"

This was a common pleasantry in the Northeast, which really meant, "What did you come for?"

Wei Tie’s face was red from the cold walk over, but now he could feel it growing hot. He only managed to say, "Auntie, I..."

After that single word, "I," Wei Tie fell silent, as if he found it very difficult to continue.

"Brother Tie," Zhao Jun spoke up from the side. "We’re all neighbors in the same village. If something’s wrong, just say it. If my mother and I can help, we definitely won’t let you leave empty-handed."

At Zhao Jun’s words, Wei Tie’s expression relaxed slightly. "Auntie, Zhao Jun, alright, I’ll say it."

"Yes, Tie, if you have something to say, just say it." Wang Meilan, seeing his unease, gave him an encouraging reply.

Wei Tie said, "Auntie, you know my wife has been sick for several years. I’ve tried so many folk remedies, but nothing has worked."

Although his words were roundabout, anyone who understood the situation knew what he was getting at immediately.

Wang Meilan and Zhao Jun now understood. But it wasn’t their place to jump ahead, so the mother and son shared a tacit understanding and remained silent, just watching Wei Tie and waiting for him to continue.

Then Wei Tie continued, "The old folks all say a Black Bear nose can cure epilepsy. I heard Zhao Jun has gotten quite a few Black Bears this winter. I was wondering... could you sell me a Black Bear nose?"

Wei Tie’s wife, Pang Li, had epilepsy and had been suffering from seizures for seven or eight years.

Wei Tie was a good man. For all these years, he had never abandoned her, searching everywhere for folk remedies to treat Pang Li’s illness.

Last year, he got a folk remedy from somewhere that involved killing a newborn puppy, steaming its bloody carcass in a pot, and supposedly using it to treat epilepsy.

But after his wife ate it, not only did she not get better, her condition actually worsened.

As for the Black Bear nose, it was said that if you dried it on a roof tile, ground it into a powder, and took it with yellow wine, it could cure epilepsy.

This was a remedy passed down through generations of old-timers.

Wei Tie had tried this remedy for Pang Li before, but it hadn’t seemed to be of much use.

Just last night, Pang Li had another seizure, and it lasted the entire night.

Today, Wei Tie had spent the whole morning thinking. At his wit’s end, he decided to try the old remedy one more time, hoping for a miracle.

The last Black Bear nose he’d used came from a Black Bear that Wei Jin and Wang Dalong had hunted. Because of his connection to Wei Jin, he had been given that Black Bear nose for free.

But recently, Wang Dalong and his group hadn’t managed to hunt any Black Bears. With the Wang Family’s Dog Gang now disbanded, getting a Black Bear in the future was even more unlikely.

That’s why, after thinking it over and over, Wei Tie had finally come to the Zhao Family’s door.

"Ah, about that..." Wang Meilan began to say after hearing Wei Tie’s request, but he cut her off.

Wringing his hands, Wei Tie said, "Auntie, you know that any money I’ve earned these years has gone to my wife’s medical treatments. Right now, I’ve only got a little over three yuan in total.

"This Black Bear nose... I’ll have to buy it from you on credit. Put me down for ten yuan, and as soon as I sell my Yellow Leaves, I’ll bring you the money."

That Wei Tie would say this showed what an honest man he was.

If he hadn’t stopped Wang Meilan, she surely would have said something like, "We’re all neighbors, don’t worry about money."

But Wei Tie didn’t do that. He deliberately cut Wang Meilan off to honestly admit he had no money and needed to buy it on credit.

He was handling the matter with great integrity.

"Sigh." Wang Meilan sighed, got up, and went to the outer room. She took down a yellow paper package from a cabinet against the wall and walked back into the room, stopping in front of Wei Tie.

Wei Tie quickly scrambled off the kang.

Wang Meilan held out the yellow paper package and said, "Tie, don’t talk about money. Treating Pang Li is what’s important. Take this back with you. I’m giving it to you."

"I can’t accept that." Wei Tie waved his hand and took a step back.

"Why not?" Wang Meilan pushed the yellow paper package into Wei Tie’s hand. "I’ve already dried it. You can just go home and use it directly."

"Thank you, Auntie." Wei Tie clutched the yellow paper package and looked up. "I’ll definitely bring you the money later."

"Sigh!" Wang Meilan heaved another heavy sigh and said to Wei Tie, "Tie, I don’t know if I should say this or not..."

Wei Tie was taken aback, not knowing what Wang Meilan wanted to say to him, but he replied, "Auntie, please, go ahead."

Wang Meilan lifted the lid from the mug in front of Wei Tie, and steam rose from the hot water inside. 𝑓𝘳𝘦𝑒𝑤𝑒𝘣𝘯ℴ𝘷𝘦𝓁.𝑐𝑜𝑚

She handed the mug to Wei Tie before saying, "Tie, back when Zhao Jun’s grandfather was alive, he told me something: hunting Yellow Leaves won’t make you rich."

"Ah!" Wei Tie hadn’t expected Wang Meilan to say this to him, and his expression changed at her words.

Yellow Leaves were Weasel pelts, and there were too many legends about this animal in the Northeast.

But some people made a living hunting for Yellow Leaves, and they earned quite a bit. A single "round pelt," which is the pelt of a male Weasel, could fetch over thirty yuan these days.

The pelt of a female Weasel could also sell for nearly thirty.

The key was that these animals were numerous, found all over the mountains and fields. They were also easy to hunt, not like the effort of trapping for Gall.

Take Wei Tie, for example. In one winter, he could scrape together over fifty Yellow Leaves, which amounted to nearly two thousand yuan.

But in the end, he couldn’t save a single cent. The money was either spent here on some necessity or there on medicine for his wife’s illness.

Thinking about what Wang Meilan had said, Wei Tie lost his mood for drinking water. He set the mug down and said to her, "Auntie, I’ve heard people say that too, but if I don’t trap these, what else can I do?"

"You can do anything!" Wang Meilan advised. "Get yourself a sled and do hauling work for the Forest Farm. In the spring and autumn, you can roam the mountains for wild goods. You won’t earn as much as you do now, but you won’t have to spend so much either."

"Well..." Wei Tie didn’t know what to say.

’If I listen to Wang Meilan,’ he thought, ’my source of income is gone. If I go do hauling for the Forest Farm, I won’t even make two hundred yuan in a whole winter. How could that compare to the money from hunting Yellow Leaves?’

’But if I don’t listen to her... she just gave me a Black Bear nose and was kind enough to give me this advice. How can I possibly refuse?’

Just then, Zhao Jun, who had been sitting quietly to the side without speaking for a long time, finally spoke up. "Brother Tie, isn’t my sister-in-law waiting at home for you to prepare the medicine?"

"Oh, oh, you’re right." Wei Tie stood up and said to Wang Meilan, "Auntie, I have to hurry back. Pang Li is still at home waiting for me.

"I’ll take this Black Bear nose for now. I’ll definitely bring the money over in a little while."

With that, Wei Tie started to leave. Wang Meilan and Zhao Jun got up to see him to the door.

Wei Tie said quickly, "Auntie, don’t come out. It’s cold outside. I’ll be heading back now."

Watching Wei Tie leave, Wang Meilan turned and glared at Zhao Jun.