Chapter 326 - 265: Going Home
Technically, it should have been "Tiger-Capturing Hero," but that didn’t sound as good, so Yu Xuewen made the executive decision to change it to "Tiger-Fighting Hero."
With this one change, the title’s impact was completely different. It had all the prestige of the Liangshan Hero, Wu Erlang!
The moment Yu Xuewen finished speaking, the audience erupted in thunderous applause. Li Baoyu, lost in the crowd, clapped his hands with particular fervor.
’A Tiger-Fighting Hero!’
’This is such an honor!’
Amid the applause, Zhao Jun stood up and walked over to face Yu Xuewen.
Yu Xuewen then took the award certificate from Tao Dabao and handed it to Zhao Jun.
Zhao Jun took it and looked. The certificate was simple. The first line bore three large words: Tiger-Fighting Hero.
The characters were handwritten with excellent calligraphy, likely penned by Yu Xuewen himself.
Below that, on a new line and aligned to the right, was "Yongxing Brigade," and further down were the date and a bright red official seal.
When Zhao Jun saw Yu Xuewen gesture toward the audience, he immediately understood. He turned around, holding the certificate by both edges to show everyone below the stage.
Of course, this was just for show. From that far away, who could possibly make out what was written on it?
Besides, no one was taking pictures back then—there was only the thunderous applause.
When the applause died down, Zhao Jun returned to his seat.
The celebration continued as Yu Xuewen presented awards to two other men. According to Yu Xuewen, these two were the Yongxing Brigade’s most outstanding hunters in this spring’s hunt. One had taken down a brown bear, four black bears, and seventeen wild boars. The other was no less impressive, having bagged two brown bears, two black bears, and fourteen wild boars.
And this was just their take from the large-scale hunt. Listening to Yu Xuewen rattle on, the two had also brought in numerous roe deer, wild rabbits, pheasants, and other deer on top of that.
This was presumably the result of hunting as a team.
However, at this celebration, Yu Xuewen didn’t hand out any cash rewards publicly, only the certificates.
But when the two of them went up to receive their certificates, the applause was much weaker—or to be precise, much weaker than the applause for Zhao Jun.
Many people in the audience were from the Hunter Team and the Civilian Militia Squad, and many of them weren’t on the same team as those two.
You have to understand, hunters, regardless of their skill, all have an air about them as if they’re second only to God himself.
If they didn’t bag as much game as someone else, it wasn’t because they were no good; it was because the Mountain God, the Elder Leader, hadn’t opened the gates for them.
And as for why the Mountain God hadn’t opened the gates? Well, hadn’t he just been captured by someone?
So, another reason was that Zhao Jun’s act of capturing the tiger had earned their genuine respect. Everyone knew that killing a tiger was one thing, but capturing one alive was the real challenge. The fact that Zhao Jun could scheme to capture a tiger was enough to fill them with admiration.
As dusk began to fall, Yu Xuewen gave the order, announcing the successful conclusion of the meeting. Then, Tao Dabao stood up and told the Civilian Militia Squad to drag over the game hunted that day to distribute portions, large and small, to everyone.
"Zhao Jun," Tao Dabao suddenly called out, just as Zhao Jun was about to step off the stage.
"Uncle Tao." Zhao Jun quickly walked over to meet him.
Tao Dabao came close to Zhao Jun and said in a low voice, "You head home first. I’ll bring your prize money over in a little while."
"Alright, I’ll head out then, Uncle Tao." After speaking, Zhao Jun left the stage to meet up with Li Baoyu and the others and return to Tao Xiaobao’s house together.
When they got back and opened the door, the aroma of food wafted out. Li Yunxiang and Jiang Lan were busy at the stove.
Zhao Jun and Li Baoyu were leaving the next day, so the Tao Family had spared no expense for this meal.
Stewed rooster, braised roe deer ribs, canned luncheon meat, scrambled eggs with scallions, fried peanuts, forest frogs stewed in bean paste, pork and vermicelli stew, and a variety of fried river fish.
The eight dishes covered the heated-bed table. Li Yunxiang and Jiang Lan took Little Tao Shan to eat in the room where Tao Fulun and Tao Fei stayed, leaving the four Tao men in this room to accompany Zhao Jun and Li Baoyu.
As soon as Tao Dabao had entered the house, he had pulled a wad of ten-yuan banknotes from his pocket and handed it to Zhao Jun. It was, he said, the reward for capturing the tiger.
This tiger had brought great honor to the Yongxing Brigade in both the township and the town. Moreover, Tao Dabao was partial to Zhao Jun, so after discussing it with Yu Xuewen, they decided on a hefty reward and gave him a full two hundred yuan.
Since it was from the brigade, Zhao Jun didn’t refuse. After thanking Tao Dabao, he took the money and stuffed it into his pocket.
Then everyone began to eat. After a few rounds of drinks, Tao Dabao said to Zhao Jun, "I talked to them today about arranging a vehicle for you tomorrow. But Li the Fifth said that since your dogs are injured, a sled would be better than a car. So, I’ll get up early tomorrow and arrange two sleds for you. You can leave whenever you want."
Hearing this, Zhao Jun first glanced at Li Baoyu before saying to Tao Dabao, "Uncle Tao, we should probably leave right after breakfast tomorrow. We need to get home early to get our things in order. We still have to work tomorrow, after all."
"That works. Can’t let you be late for work." Tao Dabao raised his cup as he spoke. Since Zhao Jun didn’t drink, he invited Li Baoyu to drink with him. After downing half a cup of liquor, Tao Dabao added, "Spring is just around the corner. Once your winter transport work is finished, you should come back and visit."
Having been invited, whether they would actually come or not, Zhao Jun and Li Baoyu could only happily agree for the time being.
After the meal, Tao Dabao and his family left. Zhao Jun helped a half-drunk Li Baoyu back to their room to sleep.
The next morning, Zhao Jun and Li Baoyu packed their things, preparing to go home.
Just then, the sound of a chicken squawking came from the outer room.
Just as Zhao Jun and Li Baoyu were about to lead Little Bear and the other dogs out, Tao Fulun walked in with his hands behind his back.
"Zhao Jun."
"Yes, Elder."
Tao Fulun smiled. "All packed up? Don’t leave anything behind."
"Nothing much left." Zhao Jun slung his satchel over his shoulder. The bags belonging to him and Li Baoyu were filled with the two hundred semi-automatic rifle rounds that Tao Dabao had given him.
"What do you mean, nothing?" Tao Fulun chuckled, bringing his right hand forward from behind his back. A Bear Gall, not yet fully air-dried, appeared before Zhao Jun’s eyes.
Tao Fulun said, "Can’t leave this behind."
"It would’ve been fine even if I had," Zhao Jun said with a smile, taking the Bear Gall from Tao Fulun’s hand. He then asked, "How come I don’t see Xiaofei?"
"Oh, he went with his dad to take care of something."
Zhao Jun nodded at his words. "Elder, according to the rules of us mountain folk and hunters, Xiaofei gets a share of this Bear Gall. And by the rules of my Zhao family, this Bear Gall should be split equally between me, Baoyu, and Xiaofei."
"Good!" Contrary to what Zhao Jun might have expected, Tao Fulun agreed the moment the words left his mouth.
Tao Fulun continued, "You’re a good kid. This old man wasn’t wrong about you."
As he spoke, Tao Fulun waved at Li Baoyu, telling him not to rush to take the dogs out yet. Then he had both of them sit down with him on the edge of the heated brick bed.
After they sat down, Tao Fulun said very seriously, "I heard my father say, ’Brothers don’t dig for ginseng together.’ It means that for mountain folk, the sight of wealth can make them forget their brotherhood. You, kid, are truly righteous."
"That’s for sure!" Li Baoyu, who had gotten along well with Tao Fulun these past few days, immediately gave a thumbs-up. "No one who goes into the mountains with my big brother ever gets short-changed."
Li Baoyu had every right to say that. If it weren’t for Zhao Jun, anyone else who took him into the mountains would never have split their catch with him equally.
Li Baoyu knew he wasn’t much help to Zhao Jun, but he later heard from Li Dayong that this was exactly how Li Dayong himself had tagged along with Zhao Youcai back in the day. Li Dayong then told Li Baoyu, "From now on, whatever Zhao Jun says, you do."
Before Li Baoyu could even nod, Jin Xiaomei had chimed in from the side, "Except for hiding money, that is!"
"Grandpa!" Before Tao Fulun could reply, Tao Fei came rushing in from the outer room, calling for him from the doorway.
Tao Fulun, sitting on the edge of the bed, turned and asked, "Did you get them?"
"Yep." Tao Fei nodded, then walked toward Zhao Jun and Li Baoyu. "Brother Zhao, Brother Li, when can I come visit you guys?"
"Anytime," Zhao Jun said with a smile. "When you get to Yong’an Village, just ask around for us. Someone will definitely point you in the right direction."
With that, Zhao Jun stood up, took the semi-automatic rifle down from the wall, slung it over his shoulder, and said to Tao Fulun and Tao Fei, "Elder, Xiaofei, we’ll be heading out now."
Hearing this, Li Baoyu also got up from the heated bed.
"Let’s go." Tao Fulun also stood up. "I’ll see you off."
Three of the dogs were injured, but thankfully not seriously. They followed Zhao Jun out of the house.
When they got outside, they saw two horse-drawn sleds waiting outside the courtyard. The drivers were Zhao Jun’s old acquaintance, Li the Fifth, and another man in a black cotton-padded jacket.
Tao Xiaobao and Li Yunxiang were there talking to them, each holding two chickens.
Seeing Zhao Jun and the others come out, Li the Fifth said to Tao Xiaobao, "Here they come." Tao Xiaobao and Li Yunxiang turned around, and Tao Xiaobao said, "Zhao Jun, since you’re leaving, your uncle here doesn’t have much to give you. We got a few chickens for you and Baoyu, two for each of you."
There were four live chickens, one rooster and three hens, with their feet and wings tied. Tao Xiaobao and Li Yunxiang held them upside down by the legs as they squawked, "BWAK! BWAK!"
"Oh, Uncle, what’s all this?"
"Just a small token from us," Li Yunxiang said from the side. "It’s one rooster and three hens. Take them back, feed them a bit, and they’ll start laying eggs. Then you can either collect the eggs to eat or let them hatch."
One rooster for three hens was a perfect ratio. With spring coming and the weather warming up, the hens would start laying.
And just as Li Yunxiang had said, if they wanted to eat eggs, they could collect them. "Letting them hatch" simply meant incubating chicks.
Although the temperature in the Northeast was still low in April and May, the houses had heated brick beds, so the fertile eggs could be brought inside to incubate on them.
It was only then that Zhao Jun realized Tao Fei and Tao Xiaobao had gone out early in the morning specifically to get these four chickens.
It was a kind gesture, so Zhao Jun didn’t refuse again. But seeing his four dogs staring covetously at the four chickens, he had to wonder for a moment how he was going to arrange them all.
Just then, Li Baoyu came out of the house, carrying Black Tiger.
Black Tiger was the black dog they had found in the mountains a few days ago. Zhao Jun had named him Black Tiger because of his sturdy, tiger-like appearance.
When Black Tiger saw the four chickens, his eyes practically turned green with desire.
Fortunately, Tao Xiaobao brought out a burlap sack, laid it flat on one of the sleds, and stuffed the chickens inside one by one. When tying the mouth of the sack, he was careful not to tie it too tightly, leaving a gap so the chickens wouldn’t suffocate.
Zhao Jun rode on one sled with Black Tiger and the sack of chickens. Xiaohua, who wasn’t injured, could run alongside.
Meanwhile, Li Baoyu got on the other sled with Little Bear, Da Huang, and White Dragon.
After bidding farewell to the four members of the Tao family, Zhao Jun and Li Baoyu set off on their journey home.
They left Tao Xiaobao’s house at eight in the morning and were nearing home a little after nine. As the sleds moved forward, Li Baoyu, on the sled ahead, turned back, pointed forward, and shouted to Zhao Jun, "Look! Who’s that?"
Zhao Jun craned his neck to look and saw a short man with a rifle slung over his back walking toward them.
He didn’t even need to see the man’s face; he recognized him just from the way he walked. A jolt went through Zhao Jun’s heart, and he thought to himself, ’Where did he get a gun?’