Chapter 174 Open the skylight and speak frankly

What a joke! Although Yue Feng has an open and positive attitude towards the social relationships he can get in touch with, there is a limit to his efforts.

Yue Feng is not waiting for someone to save his life, or relying on Minister Zhang to help him get promoted and make money. He would not sacrifice his own baby just to give gifts to the leader and flatter him.

Not to mention the big black eagle, even the iron-backed red eagle and the young eagle at home, Yue Feng didn’t plan to give them to Zhang Hongbin as gifts.

These good eagles fell into the hands of outsiders, but the time period for which they could be controlled was too short. Most of them would be abandoned after a period of time. It would be better if they escaped and returned to the mountains. It would be a sin if they were killed like the Zhou family did. Yue Feng felt distressed.

“What you said does make sense! The last time the big eagle caught rabbits was just like what you said. It was fine when we first brought it back, but after we kept it for a while, it stopped working properly! What’s going on? Do you understand what’s going on?” Zhang Hongbin continued to ask.

Yue Feng explained with a smile: “Eagles are flat-haired beasts. They eat red meat and poop white shit. They will turn their backs on you and not recognize you! Whoever feeds you is your mother. Once your wings are strong, you must fly!
If you want to make it obedient, you have to wear down its will by keeping it awake, reduce its physical reserves by pinching its food to make it lose weight, and keep it in a state of dependence on humans for a long time, then it will work obediently!
The situation you are talking about is that we treat the eagle too well, making sure it is well fed at every meal. This will soon fatten the eagle up. The eagle, which is well fed and full of energy, will no longer rely on humans and will naturally become disobedient. It will think of escaping when it gets a chance!”

“What about the other one?” Zhang Hongbin nodded slightly after listening and continued to ask about the follow-up.

“The second reason is that people don’t put enough effort into the eagle.

If you want the eagle to be your friend, in addition to feeding it, you also need to keep it in a cage for enough time every day so that it can get used to human presence and won’t be scared by the slightest disturbance!
If a trained eagle is not properly managed and maintained on a daily basis, it will soon become afraid of life and stop working! “

“That’s right too! I heard from my old leader that when the eagle was given to him, he also said something similar. The last eagle he lost was when he stayed at a comrade’s house in another city for a few days. When he came back, the eagle became disobedient and he went out to let it go!”

Yue Feng’s experience in training and releasing hawks is definitely that of a senior expert.

This allows him to get a bird’s-eye view and hit the key core when talking about professional business without having to ask for specific details.

After hearing these few words, Zhang Hongbin knew that he was definitely a master at falcon training, not one of those half-baked people out there.

“So I’m telling you, the live eagle at home, after you’ve trained it, is the perfect gift for you! That eagle can catch pheasants and rabbits, and it has a much better temper. If you give it to your boss, you’ll need less time to manage and maintain it every day!
I’ll give you some exclusive secret stuff, and you can ask the old leader to follow my instructions, and the eagle will be able to work and be obedient!” Yue Feng said confidently, patting his chest.

“Okay! I’ll listen to you! Is the eagle at your house now? I’ll go take a look tomorrow. If there are no other problems, you can start making arrangements!
Actually, I won’t hide it from you guys, this matter is very important to me!

I heard a little rumor, and I just happened to catch an opportunity. If my old leader can help me, maybe I can still have a chance to make a move! “

After drinking, Zhang Hongbin spoke more slowly. After getting Yue Feng’s promise, he mentioned all his demands and motives.

“Uncle Zhang, don’t worry! Leave this matter to me, I will make sure it is done beautifully for you!!”

After hearing this, Yue Feng had a better idea in his mind, and he patted his chest and agreed to train the eagle and give it as a gift.

“Okay then, uncle will leave this matter to you! Come, let me toast you! Let’s drink alone!” Zhang Hongbin picked up the glass.

“It’s not appropriate to toast to me, I’m toasting to you!” Yue Feng held the wine glass in a very respectful manner, pressed down the rim of the glass to clink glasses, and drank the more than two and a half liang of wine in one gulp.

“You can drink a lot! It’s great!!!”

A person’s character can be seen from his drinking habits. Seeing how efficient Yue Feng was, Zhang Hongbin’s impression of him improved.

Now that the main business was settled, the drinking party in the second half became more unrestrained. From everyone playing together in the beginning, to fighting in pairs in the end, the feelings between them deepened one by one. The four of them drank six kilograms of white wine before the fight ended.

From beginning to end, Yue Feng kept his mind absolutely clear. Whenever he felt a little drunk, he would go to the toilet and come back full of energy again.

By the time they had eaten and drunk their fill, it was already past nine o’clock in the evening. Xiao Guo couldn’t drink much so he simply stayed in the security department dormitory that night. Yue Feng helped Xiao Guo settle down and stuffed a military satchel containing a pack of yellow-box ginseng cigarettes under Xiao Guo’s pillow.

Yue Feng and Wang Jianguo were both good at drinking, so after settling Xiao Guo down, they said hello to Zhang Hongbin and rode their bikes home together.

Yue Feng sent Wang Jianguo to his doorstep, said hello and was about to leave, but was stopped by Wang Jianguo.

“Don’t rush back, come with me into the house, there is some good tea at home, you can drink some tea with me to sober up!!”

“Uh, okay!”

Yue Feng knew that Wang Jianguo had something to remind him of, so he nodded despite his drunkenness and pushed his bicycle into Wang Jianguo’s yard.

In the east room, Zhang Cuilian and her youngest son Wang Mingyu had already gone to bed early. Only the light in Wang Xiaona’s room in the west room was still on.

The incandescent bulb, which was at most 10 watts, looked dim orange through the window glass, but this was already a rare light in the village. Only the village office had electricity, and other families used kerosene lamps. Wang Jianguo took Yue Feng to the empty room where the village office was held, and then brought two tin kettles and an iron tea box.

In those days, drinking tea was not as particular as it is now. You just had to rinse the enamel cup, put in some tea leaves, pour boiling water, and the rich aroma of jasmine tea would immediately fill the room.

The father and son each had a teacup, simple and rough.

“Xiao Feng, do you understand what you are drinking tonight?” Wang Jianguo started the conversation first.

Yue Feng pursed his lips and smiled: “Not bad, I can taste a little bit of it!”

“Zhang Dayantong has a good reputation. He is not as heartless as Zhou Jianchun!” Wang Jianguo blew on the rim of the teacup and took a sip of tea.

“Yes, I know that! Minister Zhang has done a lot of practical things for the villagers. He is a down-to-earth and good official! It is precisely because he is such a person that I am willing to help him train an eagle as a gift for him!”

“In fact, he is attracted by the big Black Hawk in your hand! You also heard it, but you won’t give him any concessions! Even if you pay according to the market price, you won’t accept it?”

After Wang Jianguo finished speaking, Yue Feng finally understood what was going on. His uncle still wasn’t giving up and wanted to fight for Zhang Dayuntong’s favor.

Since the other party has already poked the bubble, Yue Feng might as well speak frankly.

“Uncle, do you know what kind of aircraft this big Black Hawk of mine is?”

“What kind? Even if it’s a rare species, isn’t it still a falcon? Now we have guns and dogs, how much work can this falcon do? Damn it, your falcon can really kill bears and tigers?”

Wang Jianguo knew the situation of Yue Feng’s family quite well. He thought that the function of this eagle was similar to that of the iron-backed red eagle at home. At most, it could catch rabbits and pheasants.

“The net that this eagle casts weighs four pounds and one ounce, and it is a spear that flew from the extremely cold north.

I’m talking about a gyrfalcon, so you may not know what it is. In ancient times, it had another name, called Saker Falcon!

If you have committed a capital crime, you can save your life by offering a Saker Falcon to the emperor!

Also, ordinary gyrfals are white or gray, but my eagle is a pure black mutant that is rarely seen in a century!
In my hands, it is not just for catching rabbits and pheasants. With one eagle, I can go into the mountains to catch roe deer. A roe deer weighing 70 or 80 kilograms can be swooped down from the sky by the eagle and kicked half to death with one kick. It can basically be killed with two kicks.

If I could only catch a roe deer or fawn, I would not hold it as something more precious than my own eyes.

It recognizes guns and can report news. It is also the leader of my four-dog gang. When we deliver the food, we always give it to it first. Only after it is full can the other dogs get their share of the food.

Take the blind bear that was causing trouble for people that we hunted in the mountains today. The leading black wolf was scratched on the face by the bear. The big black eagle fought with the blind bear for a long time. The whole face of the bear was almost scratched by the eagle. The bear was forced into a cave by the eagle and waited for us to arrive.

How much do you think this eagle is worth according to the market price?”

After listening to Yue Feng’s completely objective and even conservative science popularization, Wang Jianguo felt for the first time that he was wrong, and very wrong.

What was most lethal to him was not the eagle’s ability or how rare it was, but the fact that in ancient times, if this eagle was offered to the emperor, he could pardon his crime and save a life!
How much is a human life worth? Or to put it another way, how much money would you be willing to give up your life for?
Different people have different answers, but its value is far from being as simple as asking a price and giving a market price.

Seeing that Wang Jianguo was silent and thoughtful, Yue Feng sipped his jasmine tea and continued, “Let’s not say that I don’t plan to sell it. Even if I do, even if I give a fair price according to the market, do you think Zhang Hongbin will pay for it if I say the price?”

“The answer is that I can’t afford it! Even if Zhang Hongbin is a local leader, he can’t afford to buy the Black Hawk that I own!

Now, you still think I’m not being forthright enough, and don’t you know how to hold on to the favors that are already in your hands?”

After hearing Yue Feng’s unhurried words, Wang Jianguo nodded thoughtfully: “I took it for granted! I didn’t expect your big black eagle is so rare!”

“You don’t have to worry. When Zhang Hongbin comes tomorrow, my eagle won’t be able to deliver the job! I can convince Chen Pao from Fang’an Village. Zhang Hongbin can’t catch up with me in terms of vision!
Don’t worry, I will make sure that Zhang Hongbin will firmly and honestly repay the favor between us two!”

Having said this, Wang Jianguo completely understood.

It’s not that my nephew is confused at the critical moment and doesn’t understand the meaning of things, but that when people give answers, they have already thought it over carefully and have enough confidence in themselves to ensure that they get the job done.

(End of this chapter)