Chapter Summaries

Li Long arranged with Factory Director Du to develop and manufacture his Spraying Machine, then decided to retrieve the large piece of jade he had found because jade hunters were entering the mountains. While scouting the Pastoral Road, he found a river crossing that could halt construction and spotted a jade hunter searching beside a stream.

• Li Long persuaded Factory Director Du that the Spraying Machine had a promising market and discussed cotton cultivation and saline-alkali land with Li Jianguo.
• Li Long learned that people were heading into the mountains to search for jade, so he arranged with Meng Hai to use the Tractor and trusted workers to haul out his jade.
• Li Long inspected the Pastoral Road and found a deep river crossing that would require a bridge or another solution.
• Li Long left the road to look for game and saw a jade hunter turning over stones beside a stream.

Li Long questioned a retired teacher searching for jade, then went to Wu City to consult experts about a bridge and floodgate and arrange for twenty paintings to be mounted. He visited Engineer Liu before leaving with several jade carvings and raw stones.

• Li Long questioned a retired teacher from Ma County, learned that seven friends were searching for jade, and let him go without discovering the bluish stone in his pocket.
• Li Long discussed the road bridge and Little Haizi floodgate with Meng Hai, then decided to consult experts in Wu City.
• Li Long visited Professor Luo, gave him dried meat, and left sketches and measurements so he could find specialists to advise on the bridge and floodgate.
• Li Long arranged for a shopkeeper to mount his twenty calligraphy and paintings and paid a twenty-yuan deposit.
• Li Long visited Engineer Liu, heard how Jia Tianlong had been worshipping a jade carving, and bought several jade pieces and raw materials.

Li Long returned home after visiting Engineer Liu and organized villagers to retrieve the enormous jade boulder he had found in the river. After hauling it onto the riverbank, he saw its full shape for the first time.

• Engineer Liu told Li Long that a huge piece of jade could be valuable even if its quality was average, and Li Long drove home from Beiting after dark.
• Li Long told Gu Xiaoxia about the jade and said he planned to bring it home with help in a few days.
• Li Long advised Uncle Lao Luo on handling fighting roe deer and considered using captive-raised wild animals as holiday gifts.
• Li Long took Meng Hai and ten villagers into the mountains, promised each of them a hundred yuan, and asked them to keep the jade secret.
• Meng Hai directed the villagers to dam the river, uncover the jade, and dig around its base while they waited for the crawler tractor.
• Li Long stopped the first pulling attempt, had the villagers dig a slope, and watched as the tractor dragged the jade boulder onto the riverbank.

Li Long and Meng Hai's villagers hauled a huge jade stone to Li Long's courtyard, where they set it upright and agreed to keep it secret. The next morning, Li Long received a telegram from his hometown and a message about his second older brother's phone call, leaving him bewildered.

• Li Long and Meng Hai's villagers pulled the jade onto the tractor trailer, and Li Long paid each worker one hundred yuan.
• Li Long's group brought the jade to his courtyard, where Meng Hai and the villagers unloaded it, braced it beside the wall, and promised not to reveal what they had done.
• Li Long inspected the jade and covered it, then showed it to Gu Xiaoxia, who admired its size and quality.
• Gu Xiaoxia's colleagues teased her about her fresh appearance the next morning, and Director Wang interrupted to rescue her.
• Li Long reached the Fourth Team and read a telegram from his eldest older brother and a message about his second older brother's phone call, leaving him bewildered.

Li Long dealt with relatives who wanted to come to Xinjiang for farm work, then negotiated a profit-sharing contract with Factory Director Du for his cotton pesticide tank design. Afterward, he visited Second Older Brother and brought supplies to his household.

• Li Jianguo told Li Long that Li Junfeng and Li Junxian had bought tickets to come to Xinjiang, and that Second Older Brother’s brother-in-law might come as well.
• Li Long agreed to find work for relatives who could handle farm labor, but refused to place them in his Purchasing Station or dried-meat workshop; he considered planting cotton and other cash crops to employ them.
• Li Long discussed his pesticide tank design with Factory Director Du, who assured him the factory’s status and leadership would remain stable.
• Li Long signed a profit-sharing contract with the factory and explained the pesticide tank’s design details to its technicians.
• Li Long collected supplies and visited Second Older Brother, Li Anguo, before driving alongside him to his workplace.

Li Long prepared to host Li Junfeng and the others while helping Lü Dehai buy a tractor and harvester. When Junfeng asked to work with Li Long in the county seat so his pregnant wife could avoid birth-control rules, Li Long refused and planned to send him to work with Li Jianguo instead.

• Li Long discussed hiring farmhands and possible cotton planting with Qin Hongyan, then took Mingming and Haohao to visit his parents and eat fish with the family.
• Li Jianguo told Li Long that Li Junfeng and his companions would arrive soon, and the family prepared the east room for them.
• Li Long took Lü Dehai to buy a tractor and collect a harvester, then taught him how to use the machine before sending him home.
• Li Long returned to the Big Courtyard and found Li Junfeng, his pregnant wife Dong Xiaojuan, Li Junxian, and Chen Qianjin waiting outside.
• Li Junfeng asked Li Long to help him work in the county seat so his pregnant wife could avoid birth-control rules, but Li Long refused and decided he could work at Li Jianguo's place.

Li Long welcomed Li Junfeng and his relatives to the Fourth Team, arranged their lodging and work, and made clear that anyone seeking a steady place with the family had to work rather than chase easy money. A trip to Little Haizi showed Li Junfeng that fish were no longer plentiful, while Li Long’s talk of growing cotton next year began attracting interest from the team.

• Li Long and Li Jianguo welcomed Li Junfeng, Dong Xiaojuan, Li Junxian, and Chen Qianjin, settled them into lodging, and discussed their work assignments.
• Li Jianguo told Li Junfeng to give up his plans for easy earnings and work steadily if he wanted a guaranteed payment after the autumn harvest.
• Li Qingxia took Li Junfeng and the others to Little Haizi, where his catches confirmed that the fish had become scarce.
• Li Junxian and Chen Qianjin tried casting nets and enjoyed catching fish, while Li Junfeng accepted that the old abundance was gone.
• Li Long discussed cotton cultivation and watermelon seed prices with Li Weigang, and news of the family's plan to grow cotton next year began spreading through the team.

Li Long oversaw the Fourth Team’s new workers, kept up with purchasing and painting-mounting business, and arranged a field test for the Farm Machinery Factory’s new spraying machine. After confronting Li Anguo about sending Chen Qianjin without warning, Li Long hauled the machine to Wang Mingjun’s Company, where he learned cotton growers urgently needed help with red spider mites.

• Li Junfeng told Dong Xiaojuan he would stay and work for Li Jianguo, and the new workers gradually learned the Fourth Team’s farm tasks under Li Jianguo’s guidance.
• Li Long discussed the slow purchasing season with Chen Hongjun and delivered another twenty paintings to be mounted in Wu City.
• Factory Director Du demonstrated the completed spraying tank, and Li Long arranged to test it in a cotton field and report the results.
• Li Long told Li Anguo that sending Chen Qianjin without consulting Li Jianguo was wrong, while Li Anguo acknowledged his mistake and agreed to communicate before making further arrangements.
• Li Long brought the spraying machine to Wang Mingjun’s Company, where Big Old Chen said cotton growers were struggling with red spider mites and the Company Commander had gone to the fields to spray by hand.

Li Long brought his new tractor-pulled Heavenly Mountain Spraying Machine to Wang Mingjun’s cotton fields, where red spider mites threatened the crop. After the machine successfully sprayed the infested fields, other workers wanted to use it, and Zheng Xiangyang warmly thanked Li Long for his timely help.

• Li Long and Big Old Chen arrived at the cotton fields and found Wang Mingjun scolding a worker for reporting a red spider mite infestation late.
• Li Long showed Wang Mingjun and the gathered workers how the tractor-pulled spraying machine could cover several cotton beds at once.
• The infested field’s owner agreed to test the machine, and Li Long drove it through the cotton while the owner checked how well the pesticide reached the leaves.
• Pleased with the coverage, the owner and most of the other households chose to use Li Long’s machine instead of their own backpack sprayers.
• Wang Mingjun took over driving and praised how much faster and easier the machine made spraying the company’s cotton fields.
• Big Old Chen and Zheng Xiangyang arranged food for Li Long, and Zheng Xiangyang thanked him when he returned from the fields with Wang Mingjun.

Li Long tested his spraying machine in Wang Mingjun’s company, where Wang bought the prototype and arranged paid spraying for Zhao Zongming’s cotton fields. Back at the Fourth Team, Li Long discussed growing cotton on saline-alkali land with his family and reported the test results to Factory Director Du, who agreed to begin production.

• Wang Mingjun described the labor required to grow cotton, and Li Long agreed to sell him the spraying machine for five hundred yuan after its performance was confirmed.
• Zhao Zongming asked to test the machine against red spider mites in his company’s cotton fields, and Wang Mingjun agreed to spray them for thirty fen per mu.
• Li Long returned to the Fourth Team, where Li Junfeng and the others were working hard, and he discussed clearing saline-alkali land to grow cotton with his family.
• Li Long drafted a report on the spraying machine’s test results and discussed cotton’s prospects with Gu Boyuan and Gu Xiaoxia.
• Li Long called Factory Director Du the next morning, and Du said he would assign a crew to begin producing the spraying machines.

Wang Mingjun’s spraying-machine venture had quickly repaid its cost, and he and Zheng Xiangyang planned to publicize Li Long’s invention in Corps Daily. As wheat harvesting continued, Jiang Zhiyu sought Li Long out to interview him about mechanized spraying.

• Wang Mingjun told Zheng Xiangyang he had earned back the spraying machine’s cost by charging other companies to spray their fields, and he declined to hunt Mongolian gazelles without authorization.
• Wang Mingjun urged Zheng Xiangyang to write about Li Long’s spraying machine for Corps Daily, hoping the recognition would repay Li Long for helping them.
• Li Long collected a second spraying machine in Stone City, left it at the Big Courtyard, and visited Jade Mountain River’s and Harimu’s families with mutton and supplies.
• Li Long brought watermelons to the threshing ground, where he saw his relatives working hard during the wheat harvest and learned they were settling in well.
• Jiang Zhiyu found a Corps Daily report about the spraying machine and rode out to interview Li Long, who began explaining the efficiency of machine spraying compared with backpack sprayers.

Li Long discussed the future of cotton farming with Jiang Zhiyu, then showed her the planned floodgate at Little Haizi and arranged professional advice for its construction. He also suggested that Liang Wenyu’s Team explore growing vegetables, leaving several plans for the region’s farming and water projects in motion.

• Li Long told Jiang Zhiyu that rising grain yields and the state’s guaranteed cotton purchases could make cotton a profitable crop, and explained that he planned to plant dozens of mu next year.
• Li Long called Professor Luo, who referred him to Yang Bo at the county Water Conservancy Bureau for help with the Little Haizi floodgate and a mountain bridge.
• Li Long took Jiang Zhiyu to Little Haizi, explained the floodgate plan, and agreed to take her along on a future trip to the mountains; she photographed the site and took notes on his ideas for cotton farming.
• Li Long met Yang Bo, who agreed to inspect the floodgate and bridge sites and prepare plans and construction guidance.
• Liang Wenyu brought watermelons to the Li family and asked Li Long what his Team could grow; Li Long advised him to assess demand for vegetables in the County Town after the corn harvest.

Li Long took Yang Bo and Jiang Zhiyu to inspect a floodgate and mountain bridge site, where Yang Bo advised them on construction and promised to draw up plans. On the drive back, Li Long shot two wild boars; after sharing the meat, he led Jiang Zhiyu into a ravine to pick mushrooms while Yang Bo searched the river for jade.

• Yang Bo inspected the Little Haizi dam and advised Li Long to build a floodgate, seal its sides securely, and reinforce them with sandbags.
• Yang Bo examined the mountain river crossing, marked out a bridge with two openings and a central pier, and promised to prepare construction plans.
• Yang Bo told Li Long that the county needed capable private construction teams for irrigation projects but required experience and qualifications.
• Li Long spotted a herd of wild boars and shot two as Yang Bo and Jiang Zhiyu watched.
• Li Long dressed the boars and gave a leg to Yang Bo and Jiang Zhiyu, then offered to take Jiang Zhiyu mushroom-picking while Yang Bo looked for jade.

Jiang Zhiyu got two articles about Li Long published in the Xinjiang Autonomous Region Daily, while Li Long collected water-conservancy plans, consulted professors, and went to Wu City. At the railway station, he unexpectedly saw Liu Shanmin, the injured man he had once found hiding in a mountain cabin.

• Jiang Zhiyu mailed three articles, answered the newspaper editor’s questions, and learned that two would be published in the Xinjiang Autonomous Region Daily.
• Ma Xiaoyan called to congratulate Jiang Zhiyu, then tried to find Li Long, but learned he had gone to Wu City.
• Yang Bo gave Li Long the floodgate and bridge drawings, refused his money, and accepted a piece of jade instead.
• Li Long visited Professors Fang Yanan, Wu, and Luo, discussing his construction plans and local crop production.
• Li Long met Yusufu at the Wu City railway station and recognized Liu Shanmin, the man he had once found injured in a mountain cabin.

Li Long met Liu Shanmin, who proposed a legitimate medicinal-herb trade based on his connections in Kazakhstan, but Li Long stayed wary of getting involved. After buying jade and returning to Ma County, Li Long sold Huang Lei a large load of dried mushrooms and meat, arranged floodgate construction, and settled into a quiet routine until Liu Shanmin came to find him in mid-August.

• Li Long and Liu Shanmin discussed Liu Shanmin’s trade with Kazakhstan, and Liu Shanmin offered to bring him astragalus and licorice through legitimate channels; Li Long remained cautious and advised him about importing animal offal.
• Li Long bought more than twenty small river jade pieces from Yusufu, returned to Ma County, and delivered raisins and jujubes to his family and Old Ma’s Place.
• Huang Lei bought over three tonnes of dried wild mushrooms and more than three hundred kilograms of dried meat from Li Long, who paid Gu Boyuan and gave Sun Jiaqiang and Liang Shuangcheng bonuses.
• Li Long entrusted the floodgate project to Meng Hai, and in mid-August Li Jianguo used a tractor to push earth into Little Haizi so construction could take place on dry ground.
• Li Long spent a quiet stretch cooking and caring for the children until Liu Shanmin came to Ma County to find him in mid-August.

Li Long agreed to buy legal medicinal herbs from Liu Shanmin’s nephew, Liu Gaolou, as part of Liu Shanmin’s risky cross-border trade, then saw Liu Shanmin and Liu Gaolou off. Harimu and the other pastoralists arrived with goods from the mountains and welcomed Li Long’s road-building progress, and Li Long prepared supplies to take to their camp.

• Liu Shanmin explained his government-backed cross-border work and proposed that Liu Gaolou deliver medicinal herbs to Li Long, who agreed to buy them if their paperwork was legal and their prices reasonable.
• Liu Shanmin and Liu Gaolou met county leaders over lunch, then left the next day after exchanging gifts with Li Long.
• Harimu, Jade Mountain River, and the other pastoralists came to collect their tractors and praised Li Long for extending the road to the river.
• Harimu’s group gave Li Long two bear gallbladders and said they had gathered goods from the mountains to help fund the road.
• Li Long planned a trip to the mountains and bought provisions and supplies for the pastoralists’ camp.

Li Long traded supplies with Harimu’s group, brought back hides, jade, and a valuable green jade piece, and handled family and purchasing-station duties. The chapter ended with Liu Gaolou delivering two truckloads of licorice and astragalus for Li Long to inspect and buy.

• Li Long brought supplies to Harimu Winter Camp, received hides and other goods, and joined the herders as they prepared to cut hay.
• Jade Mountain River gave Li Long a rough gemstone, and Harimu gave him a gold nugget; Li Long later unloaded the hides and stored the valuables.
• Li Long returned to the mountains the next day and found an exceptionally high-quality piece of jade among the goods Harimu had loaded into his Jeep.
• Meng Hai delivered his grain levy along with apples and eggs, then shared a meal with Li Long before heading home.
• Liu Gaolou brought two truckloads of licorice and astragalus to the purchasing station, and Li Long inspected them and agreed to buy the herbs for over three thousand yuan.

Li Juan began boarding at County No. 1 Middle School after earning an impressive place in the county’s high school admissions, while Li Long helped her settle in and encouraged her family to let her try living independently. On her first weekend home, Li Juan described her classmates’ hardships and came to appreciate how well her family lived.

• Liu Gaolou gave Li Long saiga antelope horns from Liu Shanmin, and Li Long planned to stockpile more while they remained easy to obtain.
• Gu Xiaoxia reported that Li Juan had ranked first at her rural middle school and seventeenth among students admitted across the county, and the Li family celebrated her admission.
• Li Long and Li Jianguo took Li Juan to County No. 1 Middle School, helped her move into the dormitory, and left her to begin boarding and attending classes.
• Li Juan settled in with her roommates, befriended classmates, and chose to remain at school for evening study despite disliking the canteen food.
• Li Long took Li Juan home for the weekend, listened as she described her classmates’ meager meals and demanding routines, and told her that Li Jianguo and Liang Yuemei could have provided well for their children even without him.

Li Long bought a shipment of two thousand pairs of antelope horns from Liu Gaolou and stored them at the Big Courtyard. Liu Shanmin arranged another shipment and asked Li Long to procure sugar, while Li Long also requested hides and dried meat from Kazakhstan.

• Li Long asked Jia Tianlong about antelope horn prices and learned that the horns might rise in value.
• Liu Gaolou arrived with three trucks carrying licorice, astragalus, and two thousand pairs of antelope horns, which Li Long bought for a total exceeding sixty-six thousand yuan.
• Li Long moved the valuable horns and herbs into a side room at the Big Courtyard after Gu Boyuan urged him to store them securely.
• Liu Shanmin told Liu Gaolou to bring another shipment of horns and herbs and ask Li Long to obtain three truckloads of white granulated sugar.
• Liu Gaolou returned with three thousand pairs of antelope horns, and Li Long asked Liu Gaolou to source animal hides and dried meat as well.
• Li Long considered how to obtain the sugar Liu Shanmin wanted.

Li Long arranged to buy twelve tons of white sugar from the Stone City Sugar Factory for trade with the Soviet Union, negotiating payment partly in US dollars. After Liu Gaolou relayed Liu Shanmin’s terms, Li Long agreed to the exchange rate and prepared to load the sugar.

• Li Long asked Section Chief Hu for off-plan sugar, and the factory leadership approved a twelve-ton export deal with a deposit and contract.
• Li Long told Liu Gaolou that the sugar factory required half the payment in foreign exchange, and Liu Gaolou agreed to ask Liu Shanmin.
• Li Long learned that Li Qiang’s school would send students to pick cotton at Wang Mingjun’s company and decided to visit there.
• Li Long’s children, Mingming and Haohao, described their new kindergarten duties as class monitors.
• Liu Gaolou told Li Long that Liu Shanmin accepted payment in US dollars at a rate of one to four, capped at five thousand dollars per transaction, and Li Long agreed to load the sugar.