My 1995 Small Farm.

Chapter 44 Shy
Chen Ling found it amusing, thinking to himself that this was all very strange, even involving ghosts and monsters.

He said to the two of them, "Whether you buy it or not, let's go take a look first."

"Okay, if you want to see it, then let's go take a look."

Old Buffett and Guo Baolai had no objections. After all, they were already there, so why not just take a look if they weren't going to buy anything?

The three men walked over, and they heard the man tending the ox say to the owner, "Your ox is no good, it's too timid. You should kill it and sell it for meat as soon as possible."

The owner was a burly, dark-skinned man with a full beard, like a black whirlwind. Upon hearing this, he said, "I'll wait a bit longer. Even if it doesn't sell, it'll take another six months to grow. If we kill it now, we'll only get a few pounds of meat."

Listening to the conversation between the two, Chen Ling walked up to the little white calf. Sure enough, as soon as the stranger approached, it hid behind a tree, hiding half of its head behind it, and blinking its big, dark eyes to peek at Chen Ling.

She's like a shy young girl.

Chen Ling tried to touch it, and it immediately dodged to the side.

However, if you are gentle, the baby buffalo will not moo; it will just hide and not let you get close.

Chen Ling immediately understood: "This little water buffalo isn't afraid of people, it's clearly just shy..."

Every animal has its own personality.

For example, the most common dogs are lively and mischievous. Once people are not at home, they turn the world upside down. But some dogs are honest and steady, know how to guard the house and protect their owners.

The same principle applies to cows.

The little water buffalo in front of me is the kind that's afraid of people, but it's not cowardly; it's just shy and has thin skin, like some introverted children.

This kind of ox cannot be beaten. Only when you whip it will it truly become timid and afraid of people.

So Chen Ling asked, "Brother, has your calf ever been beaten?"

'Black Whirlwind' was taken aback at first, then said, "No, my cow is very well-behaved at home. It's not afraid of me, nor is it afraid of my children. It's not even afraid of the children from the neighboring houses. It plays very well with the children."

"But it just can't stand strangers, especially unfamiliar adults. You can tell by how it is now. It's so scared. It won't even let me touch it. It only becomes well-behaved again after everyone around it leaves..."

Chen Ling nodded, indicating that he understood.

"How much do you want for this cow?"

"Black Whirlwind" exclaimed first, surprised that Chen Ling was actually willing to buy, and hurriedly said, "One thousand yuan! Give me one thousand yuan and I'll sell it to you!"

Old Ba snorted and laughed: "You really dare to ask for a price. A half-grown cow is only worth seven or eight hundred at most. Don't tell me your cow is so timid. It won't do anything with you after you buy it. You'll just have to kill it and eat it."

“If you send it to the slaughterhouse, they won’t even give you five hundred yuan.”

After hearing Old Ba's words, 'Black Whirlwind' asked, "Who are you? I'm negotiating a price with this young man, what's it to you?"

Before Lao Ba could speak, the people around him started to chime in.

"You've been to the village market several times, how come you don't even know Old Ba? No wonder you can't sell your cow."

"Let me put it this way, Old Ba said your cow is worth five hundred yuan, that's the most it can be."

Some people in the crowd started laughing at the man.

"Yeah, even Old Man Ba ​​doesn't know, and you're still selling cattle?"

"Black Whirlwind" immediately retorted angrily, "I can sell my cow if I want, or take it back if I don't."

"I am the cattle manager hired by this young man."

Old Ba tapped his pipe. "It doesn't matter if you don't recognize me, I won't cheat you. This cow of yours is worth at most six hundred yuan. If you raise it for half a year until it grows into a big cow, you'd only get a thousand yuan for the meat..."

"Growing into a giant ox and selling it for a thousand dollars? You must be dreaming, I don't believe it."

"Black Whirlwind" said unhappily, "In my village, you can sell an old yellow ox for more than 1,600 yuan. This is a water buffalo. If I raise it, it will be worth more than yellow beef. It can sell for at least 1,800 yuan!"

Old Ba shook his head and smiled: "Your cow is white, which attracts flies, mosquitoes and horseflies the most. Its hide is also thinner than that of ordinary cows. It's good enough if it doesn't get sick. Don't even think about it growing big. I'll say it again: even if you raise it to be a big cow and sell it for meat, the best you can get is a thousand yuan."

A chorus of approval immediately erupted from the crowd.

Black Whirlwind panicked a bit because he felt that Old Ba was right.

But selling a half-grown cow for six hundred yuan was really too little, so he argued, "My cow is worth more than six hundred yuan, at least eight hundred!" Old Ba said, "Then go ahead and sell it for eight hundred! I'll give you an extra fifty yuan, six hundred and fifty yuan, take it or leave it!"

After saying that, Old Ba grabbed Chen Ling's arm and walked out of the crowd.

Chen Ling quite liked the white water buffalo. Its personality was like that of a young unmarried woman. He thought that buying it and raising it in the cave would definitely be better than letting it follow the 'Black Whirlwind'.

Just then, Old Ba suddenly grabbed his arm hard and gave him a look.

Chen Ling understood immediately and followed.

Seeing that Old Ba was about to leave with the young man, the 'Black Whirlwind' looked conflicted. He knew his ox's nature; it had no other use than selling meat.

Even if you keep it to plow your own land, it won't work. It gets scared of strangers and just quits. There's nothing anyone can do about it.

If we don't sell it now, and take it home to raise for half a year, we'll only get a thousand yuan.

"Six hundred and fifty it is, I'll sell it to you."

As Chen Ling and the other two were about to walk away, 'Black Whirlwind' immediately shouted loudly.

Chen Ling and the other two then stopped and turned back.

After paying the money and handing over the buffalo, "Black Whirlwind" dispersed the crowd, blindfolded the calf with a strip of cloth, and led it out of the livestock market.

"Young man, I'll help you lead the cow to the road outside the village. Just don't make a sound on your way home."

Chen Ling immediately smiled: "No need, just lead it to the archway for me."

He then handed Old Ba twenty dollars, saying, "I'm sorry to trouble you this time, Brother Ba."

"You don't need that many, one will do."

Old Ba took out a ten-yuan note and said, "If you buy this cow, it won't be able to do anything. Next time you come to the market to buy livestock for farm work, come back and I'll help you pick one out."

"Row."

Chen Ling nodded and handed over the remaining pack of Hademen cigarettes, saying, "Then you can take these."

This time, Old Ba didn't refuse.

Then Chen Ling pushed his bicycle, and "Black Whirlwind" led the cow as he and Guo Baolai walked through the market and arrived at the archway.

"Brother Baolai, bring me a cucumber from your stall."

Guo Baolai was taken aback, then asked in surprise, "Are you going to feed this to the cow?"

Chen Ling smiled and said, "Well, you'll see when you get it."

Guo Baolai handed him a cucumber, which Chen Ling took and walked to the little water buffalo, waving it in front of its nose.

"Moo..."

The little buffalo immediately let out a bellow. Although it was blindfolded, it could smell something delicious in front of it, so it twitched its nose and bit into the cucumber.

Chen Ling immediately took the cucumber and retreated, but the cucumber, smelling its fragrance, followed. Chen Ling retreated again, and the cucumber followed again.

Once Chen Ling saw that he had succeeded, he pushed his bicycle with one hand and used the cucumber in the other to lure the little water buffalo outside.

'Black Whirlwind' was stunned. He quickly let go of the rope holding the buffalo and watched helplessly as Chen Ling lured the little buffalo to a distance of two hundred meters.

"This cucumber, this cucumber can be used for this..."

Guo Baolai was also greatly surprised and stood there dumbfounded, not knowing what to say.

"Brother Baolai, see you next time."

It wasn't until Chen Ling called out that he snapped out of his daze and hurriedly replied with a farewell.

After leaving Changle Township, Chen Ling walked for a while and, seeing that there was no one around, silently said "Let's go" and led the little water buffalo into the cave.

(End of this chapter)