Chapter Summaries

Li Long cleaned his rifles, then went with Tao Daqiang to Little Haizi to catch water rats while preparing to set fishing nets later. They caught five rats, and Li Long skinned them before returning to his household chores.

• Li Long cleaned the Small-Caliber Rifle and Type 56, then agreed with Tao Daqiang to set fishing nets that afternoon and collect fish the next morning.
• Li Long and Tao Daqiang searched Little Haizi, dug into a water rat burrow, and caught five water rats as they tried to escape.
• Tao Daqiang proposed selling some of the next day's fish at the free market, while Li Long told him that he had already repaid his debt.
• Ma Jinbao confronted them about digging near Little Haizi and offered to sell Li Long a sheep, but Tao Daqiang distracted him when a goat fell into the water.
• Li Long skinned the water rats, found musk glands in two, and let Tao Daqiang take the meat before salting and hanging up the pelts.

Li Long and Tao Daqiang caught fish with casting and set nets, shared their catch with neighbors, and cooked a fish supper with Li Long’s family. The next morning, Tao Daqiang hauled in the nets at Little Haizi, where a huge fish struck him and knocked him into the water.

• Li Long practiced casting his net at Little Haizi and taught Tao Daqiang how to throw it.
• Li Long shared fish with Tao Daqiang and the Gu family, then cooked fish with Li Juan and Li Qiang.
• Tao Daqiang arrived early the next morning and helped Li Long haul in the nets.
• Tao Daqiang spotted a big fish and reached into the water, but it burst out and struck him, knocking him into Little Haizi.

Li Long rescued Tao Daqiang from a net tangled around him and helped him haul in a huge common carp and the rest of their catch. After selling his own fish successfully in Stone City, Li Long returned to find Tao Daqiang’s first attempt at selling fish in the County Seat had gone badly, and he spotted two people watching them.

• Li Long swam out to free Tao Daqiang from the fishing net, then pulled a large common carp out of the water and helped bring in the remaining nets.
• Li Long and Tao Daqiang carried the catch home, where Li Long decided the family would keep and eat the huge carp while Tao Daqiang took some fish to sell in the County Seat.
• Li Long rode with Li Juan to Stone City and sold more than sixty kilograms of fish for fifty-two yuan.
• Tao Daqiang tried selling fish by the basin in the County Seat, but a crowd tampered with the fish, leaving him with only six yuan and many dead fish.
• Li Long returned to find Tao Daqiang discouraged, noticed two people watching them, and resolved not to let them get their way.

Li Long protected Tao Daqiang from people who had deliberately killed his fish, then bought scarce green peppers and cooked a new fish dish that delighted his family. The next morning, he and Tao Daqiang checked their nets in a new channel and found many large crucian carp caught in them.

• Li Long took the dead fish home and warned Tao Daqiang that two people had likely killed them so they could collect the fish for free.
• Tao Daqiang sold the remaining fish for two yuan but decided he would stop selling and stick to catching fish and other physical work.
• Li Long bought six kilograms of scarce green peppers, left a bag for Gu Xiaoxia, and shared fish and peppers with Tao Daqiang and Gu Boyuan.
• Li Long cooked fish stir-fried with green peppers and fish head soup, and his family enjoyed the unfamiliar meal.
• Li Long and Tao Daqiang set eight nets in a different channel, then found many large crucian carp in them the next morning.

Li Long sold a large catch in Stone City, where a local threatened him, and planned to bring a gun next time. Xu Jianjun tried to dig up water rats after learning they might be valuable, while Li Long and Tao Daqiang returned to Little Haizi and found their burrow had already been disturbed.

• Li Long and Tao Daqiang brought in a large catch, shared some fish with family and friends, and Li Long rode alone to sell the rest in Stone City.
• Li Long sold his fish despite a pickpocket scare and a short man’s threat, then took shelter at a milk tea shop before cycling out by a different route.
• Xu Jianjun learned about the water rat burrows from Ma Jinbao and dug for one himself, but found the burrow empty and returned home without anything to sell.
• Li Long discussed moving his parents into a room at the old Stable and planned to have more furniture made.
• Li Long and Tao Daqiang returned to Little Haizi to dig for water rats and set their nets, but found fresh signs that someone had already dug at the burrow.
• Tao Daqiang anxiously denied digging the burrow himself, and Li Long smiled at his alarm.

Li Long and Tao Daqiang caught four water rats at Little Haizi, set nets, and prepared the pelts. After visiting Uncle Lao Luo, Li Long planned to move into a room at the old stable, while Tao Daqiang learned that Xu Jianjun had gone water-rat digging too.

• Li Long told Tao Daqiang that the dug-up burrow did not prove anyone had stolen his catch, and guessed Ma Jinbao had told others about their water-rat digging.
• Tao Daqiang found another burrow, and Li Long and Tao Daqiang caught four water rats, though one or two escaped.
• Li Long set eight nets at Little Haizi while Tao Daqiang practiced casting, then they returned to skin the water rats.
• Li Long salted the pelts and brought fish to Uncle Lao Luo, who told him the fawns had been listless.
• Li Long suggested letting the fawns run around, chose a room at the old stable, and told Uncle Lao Luo he planned to marry Gu Xiaoxia in a year or two.
• Tao Jianshe told Tao Daqiang that Ma Jinbao had said Xu Jianjun went water-rat digging, and Tao Daqiang reacted with surprise.

Tao Daqiang learned that Xu Jianjun had dug up the Water Rat burrow and ambushed him with a sack, beating him before fleeing. After returning home, Tao Daqiang regretted his actions but still felt Xu Jianjun deserved it.

• Tao Daqiang brought fish to Tao Dayong's family and borrowed an old urea sack.
• At the General Store, Tao Daqiang overheard Ma Jinbao reveal that Xu Jianjun had dug at the Water Rat burrow.
• Tao Daqiang followed Xu Jianjun and pulled the sack over his head, then beat him and ran away.
• Wang the Miser found Xu Jianjun trapped in the sack and freed him.
• Tao Daqiang returned home, regretted the assault, and concluded that he had acted foolishly, though he smiled at Xu Jianjun's misfortune.

Li Long sold his fish in Stone City, where he spotted a suspicious man watching him with the short thief who had threatened him earlier. On his way back, Li Long used his Type 56 Semi-Automatic Rifle to subdue their gang and handed the men over to public security officers.

• Li Long and Tao Daqiang hauled in and sorted nearly eighty kilograms of fish from Little Haizi.
• Li Long rode to Stone City with fish to sell and warned customers to watch for thieves as he guarded his stall.
• A man tried to inspect the gun case on Li Long’s bicycle, and Li Long drove him off with help from the crowd.
• Li Long saw the suspicious man standing with the short thief near Old Street, then left town after selling all his fish.
• Five men blocked Li Long near Ma River Bridge, but he drew his Type 56 Semi-Automatic Rifle, forced them to kneel, and knocked the short thief unconscious.
• Li Long learned the short thief was a suspected murderer who led a thieves’ gang, then delivered the five men to public security officers at the checkpoint.

Li Long returned the stolen wallets to the police, sold his dried fritillaria, bought ration coupons and sunflower seeds, and checked on his completed furniture. He planned another trip with Tao Daqiang to search for muskrats, while his family prepared to collect the furniture and went about their daily life.

• Li Long returned five wallets containing 516 yuan, five jiao, and one fen to the police, who praised his honesty and planned to report his actions.
• Li Long sold 11.4 kilograms of dried fritillaria to Chen Hongjun for 444 yuan and learned the prices for muskrat pelts and musk sacs.
• Li Long bought a stack of ration coupons from Cao Liu, purchased sunflower seeds, and paid Qu the Carpenter the remaining ten yuan for the finished furniture.
• Li Long left cooking oil and sunflower seeds for Gu Xiaoxia, then agreed with Tao Daqiang to search for more muskrats that afternoon.
• Li Long told Li Jianguo he would clear a room and bring home some furniture, while Li Qiang returned muddy from catching ditch fish and Liang Yuemei sent him to change.

Li Long and Tao Daqiang caught five water rats, earning Tao Daqiang a substantial share, then began preparing a room and yard at the Stable for Li Long to live in. The chapter ended with Li Long agreeing to pay Uncle Luo wages and dreaming that the Stable room had become a two-story newlywed home for him and Gu Xiaoxia.

• Li Long paid Tao Daqiang five yuan, then set six fishing nets before searching the south bank of Little Haizi for water rats.
• Li Long blocked the burrow’s underwater exit while Tao Daqiang dug, and they caught five water rats as Ma Jinbao watched.
• Ma Jinbao told Li Long that Xu Jianjun had been beaten and covered in chicken shit the previous night, and Li Long realized Tao Daqiang was responsible.
• Li Long estimated that Tao Daqiang’s share from the water rat pelts and musk would be at least forty yuan, then skinned the five rats and found musk in two.
• Li Long, Tao Daqiang, and Li Qiang cleaned a room at the Stable and began building a wall across its yard.
• Li Long offered Uncle Luo twenty yuan a month to care for the animals, then took Li Qiang home and dreamed of living with Gu Xiaoxia in a two-story house.

Li Long sold fish and animal products in the County Town, then learned his actions in Stone City had earned him official praise and a chance at a permanent post. He refused the established position but gained temporary-worker benefits, extra tires, and a promising route toward becoming a part-time forest ranger, while Li Xiangqian asked about the red deer Li Long had encountered.

• Li Long and Tao Daqiang retrieved six nets from Little Haizi, bringing back forty or fifty kilograms of fish.
• Li Long sold nearly all his fish at the Free Market, then sold nine water rat pelts and three musk pouches at the Purchasing Station.
• Uncle Li told Li Long that Stone City's Public Security Bureau had called to thank him for helping catch criminals, and Li Xiangqian praised him for the murder-case arrest.
• Li Xiangqian offered Li Long an established post, but Li Long turned it down because he wanted to remain free of fixed duties.
• Li Xiangqian arranged temporary-worker benefits, promised Li Long old tires, and said he would seek approval for Li Long's part-time forest ranger position.
• Li Xiangqian asked whether Li Long had seen male red deer in the mountains, and Li Long described the wapiti he had shot at and missed.

Li Long accepted Li Xiangqian’s request to look for a red deer penis and used a cooperative truck to move furniture to his mountain cabin. After settling in with Tao Daqiang, he explored the nearby gullies for game and medicinal plants, ending as he dug up an unusually large codonopsis root.

• Li Xiangqian asked Li Long to find a red deer penis for a friend and offered to pay, while Li Long said he could bring two roe deer penises if he found no red deer.
• Li Xiangqian assigned Li Long a truck and extra ammunition, and Li Long bought cigarettes for driver Master Luo before collecting furniture from Master Qu’s carpentry yard.
• Li Long and Tao Daqiang unloaded furniture at the Stable and the Li home, then carried the remaining pieces across a gully to Li Long’s Winter Camp Cabin.
• Li Long paid Tao Daqiang his share of the money from their water rat pelts and scent sac, and Tao Daqiang chose to stay in the mountains with him.
• Li Long and Tao Daqiang explored the gullies, gathered young mushrooms, spotted a hare, and found fritillaria but no deer.
• Li Long dug into a patch of codonopsis after growing thirsty and uncovered a root that appeared as thick as an arm.

Li Long and Tao Daqiang found large Codonopsis roots, then hunted a wild boar and prepared its meat at the Wooden Cabin. Afterward, they searched deeper in the mountains for deer, and Li Long spotted several roe deer grazing.

• Li Long and Tao Daqiang dug up large Codonopsis roots, ate a little, and both got nosebleeds.
• Li Long and Tao Daqiang prepared a simple meal, then went out before dawn to search for wild boars.
• Li Long shot a half-grown wild boar, while a velvet-antlered red deer fled over a ridge.
• Tao Daqiang carried the boar back to the Winter Camp, where he helped Li Long butcher it and prepare its offal.
• Li Long smoked the meat and searched southwest with Tao Daqiang, then spotted several roe deer grazing beneath pine trees.

Li Long and Tao Daqiang hunted a roe deer, but Tao Daqiang accidentally fired too early and wounded one as the herd fled. After Li Long left Tao Daqiang at the mountain cabin and took the deer back toward the village, he delivered food to Gu Xiaoxia and Uncle Lao Luo, prepared fish for Li Qiang, and headed back toward the mountains.

• Li Long and Tao Daqiang approached the roe deer, but Tao Daqiang accidentally fired before they were ready, startling the herd while Li Long shot at a buck.
• Li Long and Tao Daqiang pursued the herd and caught the wounded buck alive; Tao Daqiang admitted his mistake, and they carried the deer back to the cabin.
• Li Long and Tao Daqiang roasted smoked meat and gathered mushrooms, then Li Long left Tao Daqiang at the cabin to dig codonopsis and took the deer and mushrooms downhill.
• Li Long gave Gu Xiaoxia mushrooms and smoked boar meat, accepted the Dacron shirt she had bought him, and told her he planned to repair the old Stable and later build a house.
• Li Long left the wounded deer with Uncle Lao Luo, then went home and helped Li Qiang prepare fish to roast before setting out again.

Li Long returned to the Winter Camp with Tao Daqiang, who had dug up several codonopsis roots, and discussed how they could earn money and improve their homes. That night, Li Long shot an old wolf that had come to the camp and worked with Tao Daqiang to skin and prepare its meat before they went back to sleep.

• Li Long delivered smoked boar meat, wild mushrooms, and a large codonopsis root to Tao Jianshe, then told Li Juan where to find the fish Tao Daqiang had caught.
• Li Long returned to the Winter Camp and found Tao Daqiang carrying several codonopsis roots, which they washed and set out to dry.
• Li Long and Tao Daqiang discussed earning money together and improving Tao Daqiang's home, then prepared to sleep while staying alert for wolves.
• A howling old wolf appeared beside the stove, and Li Long shot it with his Type 56 after seeing it guard two wild boar bones.
• Li Long and Tao Daqiang skinned the wolf and cut up its meat and bones, then put them in basins to keep cool and went to bed.

Li Long processed the wolf, prepared shovel handles, and searched the mountains with Tao Daqiang while hoping to find a red deer. After spotting four hinds and a young deer, they waited for a stag, and a deer call sounded from the hillside.

• Li Long and Tao Daqiang salted and hung the wolf meat, prepared its hide, and set aside the fangs and ankle bones.
• Li Long cut willow branches into shovel handles while Tao Daqiang gathered mushrooms, and Li Long found hoofprints near a stream where deer might drink.
• Li Long and Tao Daqiang steamed rice, ate lunch, cleaned their guns, and searched the mountains, where Li Long found two shed deer antlers but no deer.
• The next morning, Li Long and Tao Daqiang followed the antlers’ location and found three adult red deer and a youngster grazing in a gully.
• Li Long and Tao Daqiang waited for a stag as the deer grazed, and a clear call sounded from the hillside.

Li Long and Tao Daqiang hunted a stag, butchered it at the Wooden Cabin, and traded with a mountain gatherer who sold fritillaria. After Tao Daqiang agreed to guard the remaining supplies, Li Long delivered the venison and deer parts to the County Seat, where Li Xiangqian offered to arrange a vehicle to haul the rest home.

• Li Long shot a stag while Tao Daqiang missed the fleeing does, and they brought the deer back to the Wooden Cabin to butcher it.
• Li Long and Tao Daqiang salted and sorted the venison, antlers, hide, and organs, then prepared a meal.
• A mountain gatherer sold Li Long a sack of fritillaria for fifty yuan and received a piece of wild boar meat.
• Tao Daqiang agreed to stay at the Wooden Cabin and guard the remaining supplies while Li Long rode back to the County Seat.
• Li Long delivered the venison, antlers, fritillaria, and fresh deer parts to Li Xiangqian, who offered to arrange a vehicle to haul the remaining goods.

Li Long and Tao Daqiang brought their supplies back from the Wooden Cabin, and Li Long prepared meat and recruited help to repair the Stable. After Li Jianguo suggested reusing adobe blocks from the Old Brigade Headquarters, Li Long asked Xu Chengjun for permission and got approval.

• Li Long and Tao Daqiang packed meat, hides, and jade at the Wooden Cabin, then returned to County Town and the Stable by truck.
• Li Long shared meat with Gu Xiaoxia and the driver, stored supplies at the Stable, and took extra meat home while Tao Daqiang prepared food for the next day's work.
• Li Long checked the live animals at the Stable, then went home and cooked steamed buns and deer offal for his family.
• After dinner, Li Long asked six young men, including Tian Siping and Xie Yundong, to help repair the Stable, and they all agreed.
• Li Jianguo told Li Long to reuse adobe blocks from the Old Brigade Headquarters, and Li Long went to Xu Chengjun to ask before taking them.
• Xu Chengjun approved Li Long's plan to use the blocks from the Old Brigade Headquarters.

Li Long organized a full renovation of the old Stable, dividing it into animal pens and improving its buildings with help from local young men. After feeding the workers venison, he finished the work and left planning to ask his elder brother when their parents would return.

• Li Long assigned Wei Aihua and the other workers to build new pens, while he, Xie Yundong, and Zhao Cheng Gang dismantled a wall at the Old Brigade Headquarters for adobe blocks.
• Li Long uncovered sparrow nests while dismantling the wall, warned the children nearby to keep away, and invited Li Qiang to eat meat at the Stable.
• The workers ate venison and cornmeal cakes, and Li Long explained to Tian Siping that collecting fritillaria without authorization risked a fine.
• After resting, the workers completed the pens, built a dividing wall, repaired the Stable, and coated the living quarters' roof.
• Li Long served the workers another meal and let them take venison or broth home; afterward, he and Tao Daqiang cleaned up and headed home.

Li Long arranged for his parents to travel to Wu City, restocked supplies, and went fishing and water-rat hunting with Tao Daqiang. Back home, he made Li Juan a skipping rope and Li Qiang a slingshot, then scolded the boy for running with a reed stalk in his mouth before learning he had brought Li Long honey.

• Li Long and Li Jianguo agreed to send for their parents, and Li Long wired two hundred yuan home and asked them to send a telegram after buying tickets.
• Li Long checked the drying goods at his courtyard, bought two sacks of feed, and agreed to set nets with Tao Daqiang at Little Haizi.
• Li Long and Tao Daqiang dug open a water-rat den, caught three water rats, and skinned them at the courtyard.
• Li Juan told Li Long that other girls would not let her join their skipping game, so he cut her a rope from a damaged inner tube and made Li Qiang a slingshot.
• Li Long slapped Li Qiang after the boy ran toward him with a reed stalk in his mouth, and Sister-in-Law Lu agreed the danger warranted the scolding.
• Li Qiang revealed that he had brought Li Long reeds containing honey, then cheered when Li Long gave him the slingshot.