Ma Jinbao was still tending his sheep. Li Long looked up at him, shook his head, and said:
"Not for now." He pointed at the two big ones and said:
"Daqiang and I get one of these each."
"Aren't there still two more?" Ma Jinbao really was asking for one.
Had it been anyone else, whether Tao Daqiang or Yang Yongqiang, someone thin-skinned would have found it hard to refuse. After all, Ma Jinbao was older, a generation above them. How could they refuse when an elder asked? It would have been too embarrassing.
Li Long was different. First, what he had accomplished outstripped even those elders, and plenty of older people in the team had benefited from his help. Second, having lived two lives, he did not put that much stock in saving face.
So when Ma Jinbao said that, although neither Tao Daqiang nor Yang Yongqiang wanted to give him one, neither could bring himself to refuse. Both looked at Li Long.
Li Long waved a hand and said:
"Yongqiang found the burrow. He put in the time and effort, so of course he deserves a bigger share. These two small ones are his. Yongqiang, your little sister's in junior high already, right? Look at her, she's about as skinny as Li Juan, even though she's two years older!
"That won't do. Take these two badgers home, render the fat and store it, and give your family the meat to build them up. There are four of you, so these two badgers should last you two or three days. That's not bad. Skin them when you get home. If you don't know how, come back with me in a bit and I'll do it for you. You should be able to sell the pelts for a bit of