The morning broke with a biting frost that rimed the windows of the Li household in delicate patterns of ice. Li Wei was already up, pulling on his boots in the dark. He didn't wake the others. Today was a test.
He stepped out into the yard, the air sharp enough to make his lungs ache. He grabbed a rusty sickle from the tool rack and headed up the hill.
The Barren Slope was quiet, the rock walls standing sentinel against the pale dawn. The shed was a dark hump against the skyline.
Li Wei walked straight to the lean-to shelter he had built over the Brachiaria patch. He lifted the pine branches acting as a door.
Inside, the air was humid, trapped by the makeshift walls and the layer of straw insulation. The smell was distinct—rich, earthy, and vibrantly alive.
He knelt down. Under the dim light filtering through the cracks, the grass was a carpet of emerald. It wasn't just surviving; it was thriving. The leaves were broad and soft, glistening with moisture.
**[System Notification: Task "The First Mow" Ready.]**
**[Yield Estimate: 5kg High-Quality Forage.]**
**[Nutritional Value: Protein 18%, Digestibility 85%.]**
"Time to harvest," Li Wei whispered.
He began to cut. The sickle whispered through the stems, a satisfying *snip-snip* sound. He didn't cut it to the ground—he left the lower nodes, knowing that the grass would regenerate faster if he did. This was the art of rotational grazing, applied to a winter nursery.
He gathered the cut grass into a bundle. It was heavy, dripping with sap.
**[Task Completed: The First Mow.]**
**[Reward Unlocked: Tool Blueprint - Western Stock Saddle (Modified for Local Anatomy).]**
**[Blueprint stored in System Archive.]**
Li Wei's eyes flashed with excitement. A saddle. Not the clumsy, blanket-and-rope setup the locals used, which chafed the horses and offered no security. A real saddle would allow for long days of riding, herding, and chasing down stray cattle. It was a force multiplier.
But he needed a horse first. And horses cost money.
He carried the bundle of green grass to the shed. He dumped it into the trough.
The reaction was instantaneous.
The King, usually slow to rise in the cold, scrambled to his feet. He shoved his nose into the trough, inhaling the scent. He took a bite. His eyes widened. He didn't just chew; he devoured.
The old cow and the calf "One" pushed forward, trying to get a share. The King swung his massive head, a low grunt in his throat, protecting his prize.
"Hey!" Li Wei smacked the wooden fence with the flat of his hand. "Share. Or you get none."
The King paused. He looked at Li Wei, then at the grass. He didn't want to share, but he didn't want the food to stop. He moved slightly to the side, allowing the calf a small corner of the trough.
Li Wei smiled. "Good boy."
He stepped out of the shed. The sun was cresting the hill, casting long shadows.
He saw movement at the bottom of the slope.
"Boss!" Zhao Feng's voice called out. He was jogging up the hill, a bundle of tools on his back. "I brought the stuff. The iron you asked for."
Li Wei had sent Zhao Feng to the village blacksmith the night before to buy scrap metal—broken hoe heads, rusty nails, anything that could be repurposed.
"Good," Li Wei said. "We have a saddle to build."
***
By mid-morning, the Barren Slope sounded like a forge.
They had set up a workspace near the shed. Zhao Feng, surprisingly, had some skill with metal. He heated the scrap iron in a small brazier and hammered it flat on a rock anvil.
"The Village Head was asking questions," Zhao Feng said, between strikes of the hammer. *Clang.* "He heard the bull last night. He wanted to know if we had lost our minds buying a man-eater."
"What did you tell him?" Li Wei asked. He was carving a piece of dense oak he had found in the forest, shaping the *pommel* and *cantle* of the saddle tree. The blueprint in his mind was clear: a high fork for stability, a deep seat for comfort.
"I told him the bull eats Village Heads for breakfast," Zhao Feng grinned, showing teeth.
"Good," Li Wei chuckled. "Keep him scared. Fear is cheaper than bribes."
Just then, the sound of voices drifted up the hill.
Li Wei looked up. A group of three men was climbing the slope. Leading them was Headman Wang, dressed in a thick padded blue robe, looking like a peacock among sparrows. Behind him were two of his lackeys, carrying papers.
Li Wei stood up, wiping wood shavings from his hands. "Trouble."
Zhao Feng dropped the hammer and picked up the heavy cleaver, resting it on his shoulder.
Headman Wang stopped a few feet away from the fence line. He looked at the half-built saddle, the pile of scrap metal, and the rock walls. He sneered.
"Li Wei," Headman Wang said, his voice dripping with false concern. "I heard you brought a beast up here. The village is worried. Safety, you understand. We can't have a wild animal breaking loose and hurting the children."
"The bull is secured," Li Wei said calmly. "Is that all you came for?"
"Not quite," Headman Wang stepped closer, his eyes gleaming. "I also came to remind you of the 'Livestock Safety Tax'. The county mandates that any dangerous animal kept near the village must pay a tax for the patrol's extra diligence. One tael of silver. Due today."
Li Wei's jaw tightened. "One tael? I've never heard of such a tax."
"It's a new regulation," Headman Wang said smoothly, waving a hand. "Just enacted. If you can't pay, I'm afraid we'll have to confiscate the animal... for public safety, of course."
It was extortion. Plain and simple. The Headman knew the Li family had spent their last coin on the bull. He wanted the animal for himself.
Zhao Feng took a step forward, his knuckles white on the cleaver. "You want to take the bull? Come and take it."
"Now, now," Headman Wang stepped back, his lackeys looking nervous. "No need for violence. It's the law."
Li Wei placed a hand on Zhao Feng's chest, pushing him back.
"Headman," Li Wei said, his voice cool. "You say it's the law? Show me the official seal on that paper. If the Magistrate signed it, I will pay."
Headman Wang hesitated. The paper in his lackey's hand was blank. "The Magistrate is... busy. I have verbal authority."
"Then I'll pay," Li Wei said.
Headman Wang blinked, surprised. "You have the money?"
"I have something better," Li Wei said. He walked over to the lean-to. He gathered another armful of the bright green Brachiaria grass.
He walked back and threw the grass at the Headman's feet. It landed on the dirty snow, vibrant and shocking against the white.
"I pay in 'Green Gold'," Li Wei announced.
Headman Wang looked down at the grass, confused. "What is this? Weeds? You think you can pay taxes with weeds?"
"This is the future of this village," Li Wei said, his voice rising. "And as for the bull... come see."
Li Wei walked to the shed. He unlocked the gate.
"Come here, King," Li Wei called out.
The bull stepped out into the sunlight. He had been grooming himself; his black coat gleamed. He looked healthy, powerful, and terrifyingly massive.
Headman Wang and his men gasped, stepping back quickly.
Li Wei grabbed the lead rope. He guided the bull to the patch of grass he had thrown on the ground.
"Eat," Li Wei commanded.
The King lowered his head and began to eat the grass with voracious appetite.
"You see this animal?" Li Wei shouted, pointing at the bull. "He is worth fifty of your tax. He is the start of the Li Family Ranch. If you want him, bring an army. Because I guarantee you, Zhao Feng and I will be the last thing you see before you die."
He looked Headman Wang dead in the eye. "Get off my land."
The silence stretched, heavy and tense. Headman Wang looked at the bull, then at the murderous look in Zhao Feng's eyes, and finally at the strange, confident boy who stood before him.
The Headman realized he had miscalculated. This wasn't a desperate farmer. This was a man holding a fortress.
"We... we will discuss this later," Headman Wang stammered. "When your father is present."
He turned and scurried down the hill, his lackeys stumbling after him.
Li Wei watched them go. He let out a breath, his hand shaking slightly. He turned to Zhao Feng.
"That bought us a few days," Li Wei said. "But he'll be back. Probably with the Magistrate's guard."
"Let them come," Zhao Feng spat. "We have a bull."
"We need more than a bull," Li Wei said, looking at the saddle they were building. "We need a horse. And we need to sell this grass."
He looked down at the ground where the bull had eaten.
"Sell the grass?" Zhao Feng asked. "Who buys grass?"
"Horse traders," Li Wei said, an idea sparking in his mind. "The county stable master. If this grass can make a bull grow, imagine what it does for a racehorse."
Li Wei patted the bull's neck. "Rest up, King. Tomorrow, we go back to the city. Not to buy. To sell."