Three Kingdoms: A Million Soldiers Grown from the Fields

Chapter 34 Old Ox (Please continue reading)
early morning.

A delicate fragrance wafted from Zhang Xian's courtyard.

Five chickens were gutted and put into a pot to steam, with salt, ginger and garlic added.

There were a total of six earthenware pots, three of which were used to simmer chicken soup.

Zhang Xian was also steaming buns for the remaining two people.

With proper nutrition, immunity can be greatly improved, and none of his more than twenty friends can be missing.

He slept lightly for three or four hours last night, and got up early this morning to check on everyone's condition. Perhaps because they were still in the incubation period, all of them had good physical signs.

"Brother Xian, you're here early today."

Zhao Yun rubbed his eyes and came out of the inner room. He was always very alert, so he woke up almost as soon as there was any noise in the courtyard.

"Make some chicken soup for the brothers to nourish them, why are you up too?"

He bent over to pour water into the last earthenware pot, put the lid on, and then straightened up.

Fortunately, there is a stream about ten meters in front of the door, so water is relatively convenient.

"I'm having trouble sleeping," Zhao Yun said absentmindedly, rubbing his hands together and exhaling a breath.

"Why?"

Zhang Xian glanced at him, then scooped water from the water vat and washed his hands.

“My master often says that if you have a weapon, the urge to kill will arise, but last night, killing someone didn’t feel good.”

"."

"You stumped me. Shouldn't I be the one thinking this way, and you be the one comforting me? Why is it that I don't feel anything is wrong, but you seem to be the one who's upset?"

Zhang Xian was stunned for a moment. If Zhao Yun hadn't brought it up, he would have almost forgotten that he had killed ten people by himself last night.

"Brother Xian, don't you feel anything?"

Zhao Yun was puzzled. In his opinion, Xian Ge, who was usually humble and gentle, was so decisive when he killed people.

Zhang Xian shook his head: "I didn't feel much."

Even he himself felt confused. He often saw people who vomited and felt nauseous after killing someone, but last night, after making up his mind in front of the enemy, he was decisive when he raised his knife. Even after it was over, he didn't have much of a psychological reaction.

After thinking for a moment, he said, "Maybe it's because when I think about what I would suffer if I lost, all those other random thoughts disappear."

Zhao Yun nodded thoughtfully.

Zhang Xian then said nothing more, leaving some insights for him to figure out on his own.

The rooster crows at dawn, and the sky brightens.

The earthenware pot bubbled and emitted a fragrant aroma, dragging a group of teenagers out of their sleep.

"It smells so good, so delicious."

"hey-hey."

"Thank you so much for your trouble, Brother Xian!"

"Thank you, Brother Xian!"

Each person ate a large bowl of chicken soup with bones and meat, and several steamed buns tasted especially delicious.

The dog was still lying in bed when Zhang Xian brought over a bowl of soup with a chicken leg and some steamed buns.

The daytime training cannot continue, and it probably won't be possible for the next few days; the only option is to isolate the individual.

He instructed Zhou Cui to oversee the spring planting and land reclamation for the refugee farmers, and then continued his own skills training.

Nothing can be seen during the incubation period, so this is the only arrangement we can make.

These four thatched houses with courtyards have become a forbidden area. The guards are divided into seven houses on average, and no one is allowed to come out or approach without Zhang Xian's permission.

Even he himself has to be covered in lime before going in and out. Epidemic prevention is no joke.

He could only reduce the number of times he went in and out, leaving most of the work to them.

The next day, Huwa and the others were all in good condition, the dog's wounds were normal, and the infected old cow showed no signs of infection.

On the third day, everything was normal, and the refugee farmers roughly cultivated a hundred acres of land.

On the fourth day, everything was normal. All the standard acreage of wasteland had been roughly cultivated and was waiting to be plowed.

Day 5.
Day 6.
Taming Level: 2 (2/5000)

Skill Sub-item: Homestead Farming Level 2: You will have six breeding slots, and in each slot you can select nine of the same animals to raise, which is a game-specific feature.

On the sixth day, his beast taming skill was upgraded to level 2, and he gained two skill points. As usual, he first added one point to his homestead farming and animal husbandry to increase the output of his homestead farming and animal husbandry.

As for the other point, Zhang Xian glanced at the newly emerged skill.

[Superior Breeds: The livestock you raise are more likely to inherit good genes.]

[Spiritual Companion: Opens a pet slot (allows you to bind a creature weighing no more than 10 kg with an intelligence at least equal to that of a single-celled organism as a pet.) (Special Note: A Spiritual Companion only has a spiritual connotation in its name; it does not increase the intelligence of the bound pet, and you cannot directly control the pet. However, as its owner, you will have a very close relationship with it.)]

Of the two skills, Zhang Xian's first choice was Superior Seeds, which, like the Homestead Farm, was a skill that increased output.

He almost added some superior breeds as well.

However, he stopped adding more points when he thought about what happened last night.

The second skill description is lengthy, but it essentially says that the bound pet will not receive any enhancements, only a closer relationship.

But intimacy also has its uses, namely, it increases obedience from the beginning. So, could training also help?

The 10-kilogram weight limit almost entirely excludes large creatures, such as birds.
Warning chicken?
Nomadic tribes on the grasslands often have eagle hunters who can help them hunt or locate enemies. So why can't my skill be similar to that of an eagle hunter?
If this skill had been available before last night, the time to spot the bandits would have been earlier, allowing for a more composed response.

After much deliberation, he finally selected "Spiritual Companion".

I felt a moment of dizziness, but then I returned to normal in an instant, just like usual.

Zhang Xian shook his head, but received no clues. Helpless, he could only continue to focus on observing the infected old cow.

The infection was created by opening up pieces of flesh from smallpox blisters; currently, only one of the three old cows has developed herpes.

He was trying to determine whether the bumps were from smallpox or bites from other insects.

Fortunately or unfortunately, what Lao Niu had was indeed smallpox.

However, since the herpes has just appeared, Zhang Xian plans to let it rest for two more days until it scabs over before collecting the sample.

The smallpox virus, after being diluted in bovine tissue, is already much weaker. In addition, the toxicity of the scabs collected after the smallpox virus has formed is even weaker. In a few days, not only will the nurses be infected, but even if they are not infected, he will manually infect them.

Although smallpox vaccination was not 100% safe, compared to the 30% mortality rate of smallpox itself, the mortality rate of smallpox vaccination was reduced to 5%, which was already within the range of safety.

In other words, there wasn't enough time. If these cow scabs were properly preserved for one or two years, their safety would be better when used.

“Old Niu, hang in there a little longer. Once you’ve healed, we’ll add eggs to your grass every day.”

Patting the ox that looked like it had nothing to do, Zhang Xian, who had been tense for several days, relaxed a lot.

As for why eggs are not being added to the feed now, it's because Zhang Xian is afraid that the old ox will heal too quickly and he won't be able to collect enough scabs.

Once the cowpox vaccine is successfully developed, as long as no one in the village has naturally contracted smallpox, everyone will be fine. They won't even be afraid of rolling around in smallpox pus later on.

"but."

Zhang Xian glanced westward with some worry in his eyes.

Did the bandits cause any infections during this period?

"I need to go to Zhending."

(End of this chapter)