The "Dog Days" of summer had arrived with a vengeance. The air shimmered over the fields, and the ground cracked in places where the shade didn't reach. For the farmers of Willow Village, this was a time of anxiety. The spring crops were harvested, and the autumn crops were just seedlings, vulnerable to the scorching sun.
For Li Wei, the heat wasn't just a discomfort; it was a production bottleneck.
He stood by the water trough in the lower pasture. Hei Feng and An were crowded around it, drinking heavily. Iron Head, the new steer, stood apart, his black coat absorbing the sun's rays like a sponge. He was panting, his tongue lolling out.
"Cattle don't sweat like humans," Li Wei explained to Li Jun, who was wiping sweat from his own brow. "They pant. If they get too hot, they stop eating. If they stop eating, they stop growing. And Iron Head needs to grow."
"Do we build a shelter?" Jun asked, looking at the sparse trees on the hill. "We could cut some branches."
"Shade helps, but it's not enough," Li Wei shook his head. He looked up at the check-dam they had repaired during the storm. The reservoir behind it was full, thanks to the heavy rains. Gravity was a free resource. "We need active cooling."
"Active what?"
"Come on," Li Wei grinned. "We're going to do some plumbing."
***
**The Bamboo Aqueduct**
Li Wei had spent the morning scavenging the thickest bamboo stalks he could find from the grove near the river.
Using a heated iron rod, he poked tiny holes along one side of a long length of bamboo. He then capped one end and carved a funnel shape into the other.
"Da Niu, haul this up to the ridge above the pasture," Li Wei ordered.
They lashed the bamboo to two sturdy posts driven into the ground, high above the cattle pen. Li Wei ran a channel from the reservoir to the bamboo pipe.
"Turn the valve," Li Wei shouted.
Da Niu pulled the wooden plug.
Water rushed into the bamboo tube. Because the end was capped, the pressure built up instantly. The water had nowhere to go but out.
*Fsssshhhh!*
A fine, misting spray erupted from the tiny holes, arcing gracefully over the pasture below. It caught the sunlight, creating a miniature rainbow in the air before falling like cool rain onto the dusty ground.
The effect was immediate.
Hei Feng lifted his head. He snorted, shaking his mane. Then, almost like a child, he walked under the mist. He stood there, eyes half-closed in bliss as the cool water rained down on his back.
An joined him. Even Iron Head, usually skittish, stepped tentatively into the spray. Within minutes, the herd was gathered under the artificial rain, their panting subsiding, their body temperatures dropping.
"It's a shower," Li Jun laughed, running his hand through the mist. "You made a shower for cows."
"It's temperature control," Li Wei corrected, though he was smiling. "Happy cows eat more. Now, let's check the grass underneath."
The area under the spray was turning into a lush, muddy patch of green. The Gen II Ryegrass loved the moisture.
"System, calculate efficiency," Li Wei thought.
**[Cooling System Active.]**
**[Effect: Core body temperature reduced. Feed intake increased by 15%.]**
**[Projected weight gain: +0.5 kg per day for Iron Head.]**
Half a kilogram a day. It didn't sound like much, but over three months, that was forty-five kilograms of extra meat. It was profit falling from the sky.
***
**The Crisis in the South Field**
Just as they were enjoying the cooling mist, a shout came from the bottom of the hill.
"Li Wei! Li Wei! Come quick!"
It was Uncle Zhang. The same farmer who had argued about the Red Tag and the feed mix. He was running up the path, his face twisted in panic.
"It's the cow! The one you cleared for breeding! She's bloating! She's going to explode!"
Li Wei's expression snapped to serious mode. He grabbed his medical kit from the bunkhouse.
"Bloating?" Li Wei asked, sprinting down to meet him. "What did you feed her?"
"Nothing! Just grass! We put her in the clover field to celebrate her getting the Green Tag… and suddenly her stomach swelled up like a drum! She can't breathe!"
Li Wei cursed internally. Clover. Wet, lush clover in the heat. It was a recipe for frothy bloat. The cow was producing gas faster than she could burp it out. If the diaphragm was compressed too long, she would suffocate or her stomach would rupture.
"Run!" Li Wei ordered.
***
**The Trocar**
They reached Uncle Zhang's field. The cow was lying on her side, groaning. Her left flank was distended, tight as a drum skin. Her eyes were bulging, her tongue blue.
"She's dying!" Zhang's wife wailed.
The villagers stood around, helpless. Some were burning incense. Others were chanting prayers.
Li Wei pushed through them.
"Don't just stand there! Get me a stick! A smooth one, thick as my wrist!"
He knelt by the cow's head. She was choking.
"She needs to burp, but her esophagus is blocked by foam," Li Wei explained rapidly. He pulled the Trocar—a sharp, hollow metal spike—from his kit.
"Hold her head! Pull her tongue out to open the airway!"
Da Niu, who had followed Li Wei, grabbed the cow's horns and wrestled her head straight.
Li Wei located the rumen—the large fermentation vat of the stomach—in the hollow of the left flank. It was the highest point of the swelling.
"I have to puncture it," Li Wei said, looking at Uncle Zhang. "It's dangerous, but she's dead in five minutes if I don't. Do I have permission?"
"Yes! Save her!" Zhang cried.
Li Wei didn't hesitate. He disinfected the area with a splash of strong liquor from his kit. He positioned the trocar.
*Thunk.*
He drove it through the skin and into the rumen with a swift, controlled strike.
*Hisssssssssss!*
A jet of foul-smelling gas and foam shot out of the cannula, spraying Li Wei's tunic.
The crowd gasped, stepping back from the smell.
Li Wei didn't flinch. He kept the cannula open, using a small stick to keep the wound from closing and allowing the gas to escape. The bloating began to subside. The tight skin loosened.
The cow took a deep, shuddering breath. Her tongue retracted. The blue tint faded from her gums.
"She's breathing," Da Niu said, relieved.
Li Wei wiped the foam from his face. "She's not out of the woods yet. She has a toxicity buildup. Da Niu, go back to the ranch. Bring a bottle of the 'Ranch Tonic'—the one with the ginger and baking soda. Mix it with warm water."
He turned to Uncle Zhang. "Don't let her eat any clover for three days. Only dry hay. Her stomach is sore."
Uncle Zhang fell to his knees in the dirt, grabbing Li Wei's muddy hand. "You saved her. You saved my livelihood. The vet in town said he wouldn't come for two days. You did it in two minutes."
Li Wei pulled him up, embarrassed by the kneeling. "Stand up, Uncle. It's just science. Gas takes up space. We let it out."
But the villagers didn't see science. They saw magic. They saw a boy who could command water to fall from the sky and puncture a stomach to save a life.
***
**The Golden Earth**
That evening, Li Wei sat by the manure pile behind the bunkhouse. He was tired, smelling of cow gas and sweat, but the adrenaline had faded into a satisfied calm.
He looked at the pile of manure they had been accumulating. It was mixed with the soiled bedding from the cows and the chicken coop waste. To a normal person, it was trash.
To Li Wei, it was the next revenue stream.
**[System Quest: The Perfect Compost.]**
**[Objective: Create a High-Temperature Fermentation Heap.]**
**[Materials Needed: Manure, Straw, Soil, Water.]**
**[Reward: Unlock 'Biodynamic Fertilizer I' (Increases crop yield by 20%).]**
The summer heat was perfect for composting.
"Jun, bring the straw," Li Wei called out.
They built a layered pile: manure at the bottom, then straw, then a layer of soil, then more manure. They watered it until it was damp like a squeezed sponge.
"We need to turn it every three days," Li Wei instructed. "The heat inside will kill the parasites and weed seeds. In a month, this will turn into black gold."
"Black gold?" Jun asked, squinting at the pile of dung.
"Fertilizer," Li Wei corrected. "The farmers in the village are struggling with their soil. It's exhausted. They use raw manure which burns the roots. We sell them this—processed, safe, and rich. 'Cloud Hill Super Soil'. One bag for ten coins."
"Ten coins for poop?" Jun laughed. "You really are a genius, Third Brother."
"It's not poop," Li Wei said, patting the pile. "It's nutrients. We take the waste of the cattle, feed the soil, feed the crops, and feed the people. It's the cycle. And we profit at every turn."
***
**Night: The Ledger**
Li Wei returned to the house. He washed thoroughly, scrubbing the smell of the farm from his skin.
He sat down at the table and pulled out the ledger.
* **Funds:** 680 coins (minus 50 for the tonic sold to Zhang).
* **Upcoming:** Breeding fees (to be collected next week) - 240 coins.
* **Projected:** Compost sales, Egg sales.
He looked at the target: 2000 coins.
He was getting closer.
Li Chen walked in, looking exhausted but triumphant. He held a piece of paper.
"Third Brother," Chen said. "I finished the practice exam. The one about river management."
"And?"
"I think I solved the problem using your irrigation idea. The gradient method."
Li Wei smiled. "Good. Keep studying."
He looked out the window. The moon was bright over the West Slope. He could hear the faint sound of the bamboo shower still running in the pasture, a soft, rhythmic hissing.
Water. Grass. Cattle. Soil.
Every piece was moving. Every day, the wheel turned faster.
He closed the ledger.
"Tomorrow," he whispered. "Tomorrow we start selling the compost."
**[Ranch Status Update.]**
**[Livestock: 1 Bull, 1 Cow (Pregnant), 1 Steer, 35 Chickens.]**
**[Reputation: Healer / Innovator.]**
**[Crisis Averted: Bloat Emergency.]**
The foundation was solid. Now it was time to build the walls.