The morning sun had barely cleared the ridge when Teacher Wang arrived at the base of the West Slope. He was not alone. A young servant boy followed him, leading a white goat on a rope.
The goat looked miserable. Its head hung low, and a large, golf-ball-sized lump distorted the line of its throat. It made a rasping, wheezing sound with every breath, a noise that spoke of blocked airways and pain.
Li Wei was waiting by the gate. He had scrubbed his hands with lye soap and donned a clean apron. He carried the wooden box containing the Basic Veterinary Kit.
"Teacher," Li Wei bowed. "Let's bring her into the shade."
Teacher Wang nodded, looking worried. "She hasn't eaten in two days, Li Wei. If she dies… well, she's an old goat, but she's family. My wife is quite attached."
"I understand," Li Wei said calmly. He led them to a cleared area near the tool shed where a wooden stanchion (a head-lock) had been set up.
They maneuvered the goat's head into the lock. The animal struggled feebly, lacking the strength to fight hard.
Li Wei opened his kit. He pulled out the wooden stethoscope. He placed the chest piece against the goat's throat, listening intently while closing his eyes.
**[System Diagnosis Scanning...]**
**[Target: White Goat.]**
**[Condition: Abscess (Caseous Lymphadenitis).]**
**[Location: Submandibular Lymph Node.]**
**[Status: Mature, ready for drainage. Compressing trachea.]**
**[Risk: Rupture internally if not lanced.]**
"It's not a tumor," Li Wei said, opening his eyes. He looked at Teacher Wang. "It's a pocket of pus. An abscess. It's grown so large it's pressing on her windpipe. That's why she wheezes."
Teacher Wang paled. "Pus? Can you pop it?"
"It requires a lance," Li Wei said, pulling out the small, sharp iron trocar from the kit. "But it must be done carefully. If the pus enters the lungs or the bloodstream, she dies of blood poisoning. And… the smell will be terrible. You might want to stand back."
Teacher Wang and the servant boy retreated a few steps.
Li Wei sterilized the blade with the herbal tincture from the kit. He felt the lump with his fingers—soft, fluctuating, hot to the touch.
"Hold her head steady, Da Niu," Li Wei commanded.
Da Niu gripped the goat's horns.
Li Wei took a deep breath. He positioned the blade at the lowest point of the swelling, where gravity would help the drainage.
"Don't flinch," he whispered.
With a quick, decisive motion, he made a two-inch incision.
The goat jerked, but Da Niu held firm.
Immediately, a thick, greenish-yellow paste oozed out. The smell was instant and overpowering—rotten cheese and infection.
Teacher Wang covered his nose with his sleeve, gagging slightly.
Li Wei didn't flinch. He squeezed the sides of the abscess gently but firmly, milking the pus out. It was a gruesome job, but necessary. The pressure on the goat's trachea released instantly. The wheezing stopped, replaced by clear, though heavy, breathing.
"Rinse," Li Wei ordered.
Da Niu handed him a pot of saline water (salt water boiled and cooled). Li Wei flushed the cavity until the water ran clear.
He then packed the wound with a strip of clean cloth soaked in the antiseptic tincture.
"That's it," Li Wei said, wiping his hands on a rag. "She needs antibiotics, but we don't have those. She needs penicillin. But we have the next best thing."
He pulled out a pouch of goldenseal powder he had bought in town.
"Mix this powder with her water for three days. Keep the wound open so it drains from the bottom. If it closes up too soon, it will fill again. Clean it twice a day."
He released the goat. She shook her head, took a deep, clear breath, and immediately lowered her head to nip at a tuft of grass.
Teacher Wang stared at the goat, then at Li Wei. The relief on his face was profound.
"She's eating," Wang whispered. "She's eating!"
"She will be fine," Li Wei said. "The lump will shrink, though it might leave a scar."
Teacher Wang composed himself. He straightened his robe. "Li Wei, I underestimated you. This is not peasant work. This is… craftsmanship. I will waive the fees as promised. And I will write a letter of recommendation for your brother when he goes to the county seat. He has a bright mind, but he needs patrons."
"Thank you, Teacher," Li Wei bowed deeply. "That is worth more than the goat."
As the teacher left, Li Wei turned back to the slope. One hurdle cleared. Now, the real work began.
***
**The Rhythm of the Ranch**
The next three days were a blur of sweat, noise, and copper coins.
The "Breeding Alliance" was in full swing. Li Wei had turned the West Slope into a revolving door of bovine patients.
Every morning, villagers lined up at the gate, leading their cows. The air was filled with the lowing of cattle, the barking of Ranger, and the shouted instructions of Li Wei.
"You! Uncle Zhang! Don't let her eat that! She's here for a checkup, not a buffet!"
"Da Niu! Move the black heifer to the waiting pen! Keep the bulls separate!"
The efficiency of the operation had to be seen to be believed. Li Wei had set up a flow chart using chalk on a slate board.
1. **Reception:** Da Niu took the cow's name and owner.
2. **Triage:** Li Wei performed the 2-minute physical. Teeth check. Eyes check. Lymph nodes check.
3. **The Verdict:**
* *Green Tag:* Healthy. Ready for breeding. Go to Pen A.
* *Red Tag:* Underweight or sick. Go to Pen B (Rejection/Treatment).
The "Red Tag" was initially a source of conflict.
"My cow is fine!" a burly farmer shouted on the second day, his face red with anger. "You just want to sell me that expensive feed!"
Li Wei didn't argue. He pointed to the cow's flank. "Look at her spine. You can count every vertebra. Her coat is dull like straw. She is eating for two now—the cow and the calf. If she breeds now, the calf pulls the nutrition from her bones. She will collapse by winter. Do you want a calf, or do you want a dead cow?"
The farmer hesitated. He looked at the cow. He looked at Hei Feng, who stood in the distance looking like a tank made of flesh.
"Fine," the farmer grunted. "One bag of feed mix. But if she doesn't get better in a week, I want my money back."
"Deal," Li Wei said.
By the end of the third day, the feed mix—mostly cheap bran and weeds Li Wei had scavenged, boosted by the System's mineral additives—was outselling the breeding service itself.
It was a revelation for Li Wei. He had thought the bull was the product. But the *bull* was just the hook. The real product was the *solution*.
**[Ranch Revenue Update:]**
* *Breeding Fees:* 240 Coins.
* *Feed Mix Sales:* 150 Coins.
* *Total Funds:* 640 Coins.
They were nearly a third of the way to the exam fee in just three days. But the cost was showing.
Li Wei sat on the porch of the bunkhouse, his hands trembling slightly from fatigue. His tunic was stained with mud and chalk dust. He smelled like a barnyard.
Qin Hu limped over and handed him a bowl of tea.
"You're pushing too hard," the soldier observed. "You look like you've fought a war."
"I am fighting a war," Li Wei said, sipping the hot tea. "A war against poverty. And against stupidity."
He looked out at the pasture. The Gen II Ryegrass had reached a height of nearly thirty centimeters. It was a sea of green.
"The grass is ready for the next step," Li Wei said. "We need to intensify the rotation. If we let the cows graze it down too low, it kills the roots. If we let it grow too tall, it gets tough."
He stood up. "Tomorrow, we move the fence."
***
**The Electric Fence (The Poor Man's Version)**
Li Wei didn't have electric fence chargers or polywire. He had wood, rope, and ingenuity.
He gathered the team at dawn.
"We're going to divide the pasture into four quadrants," Li Wei explained, drawing lines in the dirt. "The cows stay in one quadrant for three days, then we move them to the next. This gives the grass time to recover. It's called rotational grazing."
"We have to move the fence every three days?" Li Jun groaned. "That's so much work."
"It increases the grass yield by thirty percent," Li Wei countered. "It breaks the parasite cycle. The worms in the manure die before the cows come back to that spot. It means healthier cows, less medicine, more money."
They spent the morning setting up lightweight wooden hurdles—frames of branches woven with vines. They were movable gates.
At noon, they executed the first move.
"Open the gate to Quadrant Two!" Li Wei shouted.
Hei Feng and An were in Quadrant One, where the grass had been grazed down to a neat stubble. The fresh gate opened to Quadrant Two, where the Gen II grass stood tall, swaying invitingly.
Hei Feng didn't need to be told twice. He pushed through the opening, bellowing with joy as he plunged into the fresh salad bar.
"Look at that," Li Wei pointed to the hooves churning the earth. "They trample some grass into the mud. That feeds the soil. They poop. That feeds the soil. They eat. That feeds us."
It was a closed loop. A perfect circle of energy.
As he watched the cattle graze, Li Wei noticed a figure walking up the path.
It wasn't a villager. The clothes were too fine—a blue silk robe with silver embroidery. A servant followed behind, carrying a sedan chair.
Li Wei froze. Silk robes meant one thing: *Official or Merchant.* Neither group usually visited the West Slope unless there was trouble.
The man stopped at the gate. He looked about forty, with a neatly trimmed beard and calculating eyes. He held a folding fan.
"Is this the Cloud Hill Ranch?" the man asked. His voice was smooth, like oil on water.
"It is," Li Wei said, stepping forward. He wiped his hands on his apron and bowed. "I am Li Wei. Can I help you, Sir?"
The man fanned himself, looking around the pasture with a discerning eye. He saw the clean water troughs. He saw the movable fences. He saw the lush, unnatural green of the grass.
"I am Steward Chen," the man introduced himself. "I manage the estates for the Zhang family in town. You know Master Zhang? The landlord of Willow Village?"
Li Wei's heart tightened. The landlord.
"I know the name," Li Wei said carefully. "We pay our rent to his collectors."
"Indeed," Steward Chen smiled, but it didn't reach his eyes. "My master heard a rumor. A rumor that a peasant boy in Willow Village is raising cattle that look like tigers, and grass that looks like jade. And that this boy is paying his rent on time, and buying up all the bran in the market."
He snapped his fan shut.
"I came to see if the rumors were true. Or if you were stealing from the master's land."
Li Wei stood straight. He knew the smell of a shakedown. But this time, he wasn't helpless.
"I steal nothing, Steward Chen. I reclaim wasteland that no one wanted. I turn weeds into feed. I heal sick cows."
He pointed to Hei Feng, who was currently tearing up a patch of ryegrass with enthusiastic force.
"Hei Feng!" Li Wei whistled.
The bull lifted his head, mouth full of green, and looked at Li Wei.
"Come here!"
To the Steward's shock, the massive bull trotted over to the fence, docile as a dog.
Li Wei grabbed a handful of the Gen II grass. "Taste this, Steward. It is sweet."
The Steward hesitated, then took a blade. He chewed it. His eyes widened. It *was* sweet. Like sugar cane shoots.
"My master likes beef," Steward Chen said slowly, his demeanor shifting from predatory to interested. "He likes strong cattle. If your methods are real… perhaps we can do business."
"What kind of business?"
"Supply," Chen said. "The Master's estate needs pork and chicken. But he has a taste for beef, which is rare. If you can raise a steer to this quality… the Master would buy it. For a good price."
Li Wei's mind raced. A direct line to a wealthy buyer? It bypassed the market taxes and the haggling with butchers.
"I can do that," Li Wei said. "But I need time. And I need to keep my land."
"Keep your land?" Chen laughed. "That depends on the rent. And the rent is due in autumn."
He turned to leave.
"Keep impressing me, Li Wei. And perhaps we can discuss a long-term contract. Fail… and the Master might decide this hill would look better as his private garden."
The Steward walked away, his servant trailing behind.
Li Wei let out a breath he didn't know he was holding.
A challenge. And a promise. The stakes had just been raised.
**[New Quest: The Landlord's Contract.]**
**[Objective: Raise one high-quality steer (or bull) for Master Zhang by Winter.]**
**[Reward: 5-Year Lease Extension + 5000 Coins.]**
Li Wei looked at Hei Feng.
"We have work to do, big guy," he whispered. "We're feeding the landlord now."