Chapter 809: 799. Open-minded

Boss Chang was brimming with confidence, secure in the belief that victory was in his grasp. In front of Niuniu, his pride was negligible.

Qiaoqiao, who had just finished lunch, was waiting by Riverside Beach and now watched with wide eyes as the vehicle approached, wishing she could sprint toward it:

“We have cows now! So many cows!”

However, her companion Dahuang was nibbling on the youngest, tenderest grass leaves by the water’s edge, utterly indifferent to whether there were any other cows around.

With age comes a carefree spirit!

Niu Ben, who had just alighted from the car, greeted Song Tan with a bright smile: “Sorry about that, little sister. There was a hold-up earlier.”

The delay of several days wasn’t just due to quarantine issues; it was because just before departure, there were some problems with the two young water buffaloes that were part of the deal as gifts.

Even though Song Tan kept saying she didn’t mind and was sure she could take good care of them… Boss Niu, filled with a sense of responsibility, was still worried about potential issues on the road and thus insisted on observing them for a few more days.

Who could have anticipated that this observation period would coincide with persistent rain? To be safe, it was decided to delay the trip for a few more days.

…

Being a few days early or late made no real difference to Song Tan. She was just excited to see the little calves, a bit sluggish from their ride, dismount from the truck, satisfaction gleaming in her eyes.

She wasn’t particularly experienced in judging cows.

To look at them professionally, one would analyze their teeth, body shape, hooves, eyes, and so on… She knew none of that.

Yet observing the vitality of a cow was nothing but a simple task for her.

In Song Tan’s eyes, apart from the five weak and sickly calves that had been half-gifted and half-sold, every other cow was brimming with life, exceptionally vigorous.

Even after a long and arduous journey, they didn’t seem to show any…

Oh, that’s not quite right, there was something.

The two cows in the farthest corner had yet to come down. Niu Ben went to check on them and then, somewhat embarrassedly, turned around:

“I hadn’t expected them to get this severely carsick…”

Cows getting carsick? Song Tan found it rather peculiar.

Niu Ben, on the other hand, didn’t find it strange at all. He now went about re-locking the pen’s gate:

“What’s so odd about that? Pigs, cows, sheep–all can get carsick. Some cows just get lethargic, while others go crazy and run wild. These two probably need to settle down for a bit. Let’s open the gate for them later.”

Song Tan nodded and then directed Qiaoqiao:

“Qiaoqiao, the two calves up there are feeling a bit unwell and probably don’t have much appetite. Go cut down a couple of fresh Imperata Cylindrica and pass them through the fence to them, to perk them up a little.”

“Okay!”

Qiaoqiao understood; this was similar to what his mom often said, “If you’re carsick, eat something to ease it.”

He didn’t know this method was actually useless and could cause one to vomit more. He just thought it was the right approach, so he chopped the Imperata Cylindrica very nimbly.

Niu Ben glanced at him twice, then smiled again: “It’s fine, let them settle down, they probably can’t eat anything right now anyway.”

But Song Tan was smiling warmly: “It’s okay, children just want to get close to them–come on, Niu Shixiong (Senior Brother Niu), could you help check if our cow pen is alright?”

While speaking, she gave a knowing look to Wu Lei, who stood there dumbfounded:

“Brother Wu Lei, if you can’t remember things in your head, at least keep the voice recorder on and then organize it into notes later– ‘A pen is better than the best memory.’ This is all experience!”

Wu Lei’s expression stiffened, and it was then that he sluggishly took out his phone.

Song Tan sighed, “If you keep slacking off, I’m going to have to talk to your aunt.”

Wu Lei really wasn’t slacking off!

He’s just not that meticulous!

And he has been working at Riverside Beach for several days now. Yan Ran and the others are so obsessed with collecting data, they wish they could start even earlier than him!

Compared with them, he doesn’t even have the time to slack off, busy with disinfection and spreading quicklime every day, and even doing the cleaning… where is there any resistance?

He grumbled, “Tattletale.”

Song Tan couldn’t help but sigh: How should I put it? Having been in society for years, yet returning still as a naive sweetheart.

Oh well, what can you do when such a person is related to you by blood?!

Still need to teach him patiently!

Meanwhile, Niu Ben first led Song Tan to separate a few sick and weak calves, then he looked around the environment with satisfaction, with no more comments on Professor Song’s guidance!

But when he turned around, he saw Qiaoqiao sticking two 1-meter-long stalks of Imperata Cylindrica into the fence, and the two calves that had seemed listless before now acted as if they have tasted Immortal Pill!

With their big mouths wide open, they crunched away, as if they couldn’t wait to pull the forage right out of Qiaoqiao’s hands.

Niu Ben instantly widened his eyes in amazement and then endlessly praised, “They’ve recovered so well! Such strong constitutions! It seems the cattle from my pasture are really getting famous! I need to try this when I get back…”

Song Tan smiled without a word: Good for you, being confident.

Niu Ben’s confidence was soon broken, because he found that the cattle that had entered the Riverside Beach were unusually well-behaved, just focusing on chowing down and showing no sign of discomfort.

But when he looked at what they were eating–weren’t these the wild grasses that often grew on Riverside Beach?

It was clear that Song Tan had not yet had the chance to sow grass seeds specifically, and apart from the large field of forage grass in the distance, the rest were common wild grasses.

In terms of taste, they are definitely not as good as the formula forage grass with high nutrition and protein he has.

After studying for a while, Niu Ben squatted down, plucked a grass leaf, chewed it in his mouth, and after a while, he sighed, “I thought my breeding techniques had improved.”

“How does that not count as improvement?”

Song Tan began to smile.

“The calves that rushed all the way here still have so much spirit, full of life and vigor. In other cattle farms, just the trouble of picking out such calves would cause plenty of stress, let alone losing hair over it, right?”

But with Niu Ben, they just learned a bit of knowledge, briefly stated their requests, and yet the cattle delivered today were the cream of the crop.

Nowadays, the economic benefits of cattle breeding are quite good. Without Professor Song’s connections, those seventy or so cattle wouldn’t have sold for the previous half a million.

But now, it was all worth it.

Niu Ben chewed on the grass leaf in his mouth, and now he also started to laugh, “Yes, yes, yes, I do think I have a knack for raising cattle, and even more so for doing business.”

“But Song Tan, this Riverside Beach of yours is really great; the grass here tastes especially good.”

To be honest, though he chewed, he couldn’t really taste it. After all, wild grass is just wild grass, and ordinary people like him genuinely couldn’t handle it.

But leaving the taste aside for now, the feeling of chewing was indeed very different.

Just for that, his trip here today was not in vain!

Without hesitation, Niu Ben decided:

“Song Tan, can I take a couple of bundles of this forage grass when I leave? I think it must be especially delicious! If the cattle also think it’s good, could you teach me the planting method?”

Song Tan laughed heartily–how sharp!

But…

“It’s not that I intend to keep it a secret, but this is related to our family’s business and I really can’t say. However, Brother Niu, come next year, I can keep some more grass root blocks and seeds for you.”