Chapter 7: Improving the Diet for All the Folks in the Village

On winter mornings in the Guandong Mountains, dawn arrives especially late, heralded only by a few calls of cuckoos. After a simple wash, Zhang Tiejun glanced at the cured meat hanging on the cave wall. After a whole night of smoking, the moisture in the roe deer meat had long since evaporated, and the shriveled smoked meat had lost nearly half its weight.

Satisfied, Zhang Tiejun extinguished the campfire and stuffed dry twigs and leaves into the cave entrance. This served two purposes: to prevent wolves and bears from discovering the cave, and to keep the scent of the smoked meat from spreading.

Cutting off a small piece of smoked meat as rations, Zhang Tiejun continued toward the mountain ridge. As the elevation rose, the temperature dropped significantly, and the lush green forest gave way to snow-covered peaks.

Zhang Tiejun had come here because he had seen a migration route for moose on an old leather map. The moose, commonly called elk, was the largest source of meat in the entire Guandong Mountains.

However, the migration route of these moose was elusive and difficult to track, even with the guidance of the leather map. As expected, after circling the ridge several times with no luck, Zhang Tiejun was about to return empty-handed when a melodious call suddenly echoed through the air.

Reindeer!

His spirits lifted, Zhang Tiejun hurried closer. Like roe deer, reindeer were herd animals, and the moment he squeezed the trigger, a reindeer fell to the ground.

Though not as massive as the moose, the reindeer still met Zhang Tiejun’s expectations.

The next challenge was how to transport the several hundred-pound reindeer. Carrying it by hand was impractical, and his backpack basket could not bear such weight.

Scanning the surroundings, he spotted withered pine trees nearby that could be repurposed as a hauling tool. He chopped the pine into uniform pieces, tied them with rope, and dragged the carcass down the mountain.

By nightfall, when Zhang Tiejun returned home, his mother and daughter, who were preparing to sleep, immediately became excited.

Zhang Xiaohua ran around the wooden platform, cheering, “Mother! Mother! We have meat to eat again!”

Zhang Tiejun sat down beside the bed, collapsing onto the earthen pit. Despite the wooden platform’s assistance, the long trek had greatly drained his strength.

His mother stared dumbfounded at the reindeer. Zhang Tiejun! You actually did it! Father must be watching over you from above. Where did you learn so many hunting skills?

Though puzzled, his mother said nothing more. Like years ago with his father, she and Zhang Xiaohua began inspecting the prey, skillfully instructing Zhang Xiaohua to bind the four hooves together.

“Brother, we’ll eat this tomorrow!” Zhang Xiaohua exclaimed eagerly.

Unexpectedly, Zhang Tiejun shook his head. “No, we’ll take it to the brigade tomorrow.”

“Why?” Zhang Xiaohua asked in disbelief. “Why should we?”

Seeing Zhang Tiejun remain silent, his mother interceded gently, “Xiaohua, listen to your brother.”

Just as Zhang Xiaohua pouted, Zhang Tiejun pulled out a large piece of smoked roe deer meat from his backpack. “I can’t tell you now. You won’t get to eat the reindeer meat, but you can decide how to eat this roe deer meat.”

Children are children. The smoked meat quickly dispelled Zhang Xiaohua’s doubts.

“You must be tired. Let me boil some hot water for you to wash up,” his mother said shakily as she tried to get up but was stopped by Zhang Tiejun.

“Mother, your leg is still swollen and red. Let me take care of you.”

Looking at her son who seemed to have grown overnight, Zhang’s mother was momentarily speechless. Her eyes wandered until they settled on the roe deer hide inside the backpack.

“Mother, it’s getting late. You should rest,” Zhang Tiejun said, yawning.

His mother shook her head. “I took a nap this afternoon. You should sleep first.”

Under the dim light of a kerosene lamp, Zhang Tiejun vaguely saw his mother rummaging through a box and pulling out some needles and thread.

Before returning home, Zhang Tiejun had already smoked, scraped, and soaked the roe deer hide to remove the blood.

Now, his mother was going to sew a roe deer leather vest for him.

Though Zhang Tiejun wore a cotton jacket, it was still too thin for hunting in the mountains. She did not want him to suffer any harm.

The Qiao family store was nestled deep in the mountains, shielded by trees from the cold wind, and warmed by a stove inside, so it was not too cold. However, Zhang Tiejun needed to dress warmly for hunting.

The small roe deer was not large enough to make a full coat, but making a vest as an inner layer was feasible.

When Zhang Tiejun woke, the vest had taken shape. He had to admit, his mother’s skill at tanning and sewing leather was truly exceptional.

“Mother, I’m going to the brigade,” Zhang Tiejun said with a slight smile.

“Go ahead,” his mother replied, understanding his intent but concerned. “Son, I won’t stop you, but please be careful.”

“Don’t worry, mother.”

Zhang Tiejun put on his hat, dragged the now frozen reindeer carcass, and set off toward the Qiao family store brigade office.

The enormous reindeer left deep tracks in the snow, drawing the attention of many villagers.

This famine had lasted too long; many villagers, long deprived of meat, instinctively followed behind Zhang Tiejun.

“Zhang Tiejun, what are you doing?” Qiao Dafang burst out of a nearby alley with several young men.

“Went up the mountain and brought back some meat for everyone,” Zhang Tiejun said loudly.

A dense crowd soon gathered at the brigade office entrance, their noise attracting the notice of several elders.

“What’s all this commotion?” a dignified middle-aged man’s voice boomed.

His commanding presence parted the crowd, forming a passage.

“Secretary.”

“Clan chief.”

Voices rose on both sides of the passage, all showing respect.

The man was Qiao Kangzhan, fifty-five years old, born in 1905. Originally named Qiao Sanyong, he joined the volunteer army but was scattered in battle and returned to Qiao family store, changing his name to Qiao Kangzhan. He was now the secretary of the Qiao family brigade and the clan chief.

Seeing Zhang Tiejun and the reindeer, Qiao Kangzhan’s tone softened. “Tiejun, what are you doing?”

Zhang Tiejun patted the reindeer’s head and looked around before saying, “Nothing much. I went up the mountain a few days ago, thinking to bring some meat to improve the food for everyone in the clan.”