Chapter 76
In November, the prairie wind was bitter and cold. Eagles swept across the vast sky, perching on dead branches with their heads cocked, staring curiously at the lush green forage ahead.
It was clearly the season when plants should be drifting into dormancy—yet the vegetation on this pasture was strangely bursting with life.
Two thousand mu of alfalfa.
On a prairie this enormous, that much land was nothing more than a drop in the ocean. And yet, right now, this tiny patch had become a lifeline in the eyes of animals.
As winter hurried closer, animals from all around began drifting in.
Many rarely seen creatures moved in as if they were fighting for territory, “staking their claim” on this alfalfa field like kings.
And the “colorful cotton candy” the robots had reported was a species that had appeared on the pasture in the past few days.
At first, when they said “cotton candy,” Xie Xingchen immediately thought of sheep.
But the sheep in his memory weren’t colorful—they were white. So he froze for a moment. It wasn’t until he saw the video that he realized the “colorful cotton candy” really was sheep.
Only… unlike the pure white sheep he remembered, these sheep had colored wool—and the colors were ridiculously vivid.
There were two kinds of “colored sheep.” One kind was individually colorful: a single sheep’s fleece carried rainbow tones—messy but harmonious, like a master painter mixed the palette. But there were very few of these; supposedly a flock only had three to five. The other “color” described the flock as a whole: aside from those three to five rainbow sheep, the rest were solid-colored—just with lots of different colors. When they gathered together, the flock became a moving rainbow.
“Where’s the flock?” Xie Xingchen rushed straight to the sheep the moment he arrived.
No way was he going to search by himself. The pasture was at least 2,000 mu—if he tried, he’d be looking until his legs snapped.
Hearing his owner’s question, the planting robot stationed at the cabin opened a communicator.
Not long after, it received a message from another planting robot.
“Reporting to the boss: a robot spotted the colorful cotton candy at coordinates (0321, 6985).”
Xie Xingchen didn’t understand coordinates at all, so that told him nothing about where it was.
He made a “please” gesture and smiled. “Alright—whoever can, take me there.”
Long-Life stepped back. The stationed robot stepped forward.
Xie Xingchen nodded and followed it out.
But he hadn’t gone even a hundred meters when the long-missed horse herd came thundering in.
From far away, Xie Xingchen saw dust billowing up—like dust was the herd’s companion. Whenever the herd appeared, the dust followed.
The leader was still the same horse king Xie Xingchen knew. Only, after some time apart, the horse king looked even more handsome. His coat was glossy and sleek—one look told you he’d been eating very well lately.
And the two gorgeous little horses—only about a meter tall when Xie Xingchen left—had grown a lot too. When they got close, they bumped him happily, circling him like they were trying to wrap him up in their affection.
So long without seeing him, and they not only hadn’t forgotten him—they were this enthusiastic?
Xie Xingchen felt absurdly flattered.
He reflexively pulled out candy from his space button and fed the two little horses… then suddenly realized something.
Wait—did he just fall for their “cute hypnosis”?
Otherwise why would he immediately hand over so much candy?
He turned his head—and when he met their innocent, watery eyes…
Xie Xingchen: Yeah, I’m probably overthinking it.
It’s just two little horses. They’re not even as tall as a person. How could they be that clever?
Thinking that, Xie Xingchen shook off the inappropriate thought and happily gave them a good petting.
“Little Tayan, Little White Gloves—long time no see. You two have really grown!” he said with feeling.
They used to be such adorable little cuties.
It hadn’t been that long, and they’d already gained a hint of heroic presence. Still gorgeous, but… definitely not as cute as before.
“Are you full? If you’re full, I’m heading out,” Xie Xingchen said, rubbing them.
But the moment he said it, he spat twice—“ptui ptui”—and corrected “heading out” to “setting off,” as if that would ward off bad luck.
After finishing their treats, the two little horses backed off a bit instead of continuing to crowd him, which finally let him leave.
However, the instant Xie Xingchen got on his hoverboard, the herd followed behind.
At first he was touched that the herd seemed so attached to him—until he reached the pasture and realized it wasn’t that they were attached.
They were living on his pasture now.
Because he’d buried a lot of processed energy stones under the field.
Those processed stones continuously emitted heat, and the temperature wasn’t hot enough to scorch plants.
Thanks to them, Xie Xingchen’s pasture stayed vibrant and green even in this season.
Xie Xingchen: Jealous? I paid for it!
Once inside the pasture, the herd scattered in all directions.
Only Little White Gloves and Little Tayan—those two affectionate little horses—trotted after him with da-da-da steps.
Since the sheep probably lived here too, Xie Xingchen didn’t stop them from following.
He lowered the hoverboard so it was level with the little horses and set off again at an easy pace that matched their speed.
Along the way, the alfalfa was thriving.
There were plenty of small animals hidden in the grass. Up in the sky, Xie Xingchen even saw eagles circling and hunting.
After traveling about half the pasture, Xie Xingchen finally saw the “colorful cotton candy” from afar.
The hoverboard came to an abrupt stop. His eyes held an indescribable shock.
Rose red. Creamy orange. Lemon yellow. Mint green…
Sheep with all kinds of fresh, adorable colors formed a moving rainbow in the grass.
Xie Xingchen couldn’t close his jaw for a long time. This was the first time he truly felt how much Earth species had mutated.
Sheep could become colorful?!
Then could cotton plants grow colored cotton too?!
Xie Xingchen: suddenly energized.jpg
If that was real, it would be insane.
Because that would be naturally colored wool and cotton—no dye.
Stuff like that would get snapped up anywhere!
And especially after the Tongxin “black-heart cotton” incident, people would be even more cautious when buying.
If he entered the market now with naturally clean, unpolluted cotton and wool, wouldn’t he—
Xie Xingchen’s imagination ran wild… but then—
Winter was here.
Who the hell shears sheep in winter?
Even the earliest would be spring—warm spring.
“Long-Life, what do you think about building a livestock factory here?” Xie Xingchen stroked his chin, thinking. After a long pause, he spoke.
Long-Life looked horrified and answered hesitantly, “Maybe… don’t?”
Xie Xingchen blinked. “Why not?”
Winter was coming. He wanted wool, but he didn’t want the sheep to freeze. So wouldn’t he need to use technology—build a livestock facility and artificially raise the temperature?
Long-Life said awkwardly, “But even if you build it, you won’t be able to use it. With Bai Xi’s standards… do you really think you’ll get what you want?”
In other words: Bai Xi would probably turn his nose up at these sheep.
It was obvious Long-Life had been tormented plenty during that time, or he wouldn’t say something like that.
Xie Xingchen laughed and denied it. “Who said I’m building the kind of factory Bai Xi manages? I want a normal factory!”
Money aside, Xie Xingchen had figured it out by now: that ultra-high-standard livestock factory Bai Xi managed wasn’t meant to produce ordinary meat—it was meant to cultivate elite breeding stock.
Xie Xingchen no longer hoped it would raise lots of delicious meat. He only hoped the workshop could produce better animal offspring, and supply superior bloodlines to regular livestock operations.
Long-Life thought along with him. After a while, he said, “That… does seem doable.”
Xie Xingchen slammed the decision down. “Not ‘seems.’ It’s definitely doable!”
Once he decided to open a normal livestock factory, the way he looked at the sheep changed—like he was looking at his own treasures.
But building a factory wasn’t something you could do overnight. It had to be done step by step, and there was no rushing it.
The urgent thing was to find out how many colorful sheep there actually were—because that determined how big his factory could be, and how big it should be.
These colorful sheep were very gentle—so gentle that they didn’t even hide when they saw people.
Even when guided to another spot, as long as they could still see the rest of the flock, they didn’t struggle. They just stood there blankly while being led away, which made counting much easier.
After herding the scattered sheep into a manageable area, Xie Xingchen turned on a camera. The connected light-brain quickly calculated an approximate number.
108 sheep.
Not bad—more than he expected.
And among them, mint green and lemon yellow were the most common. The rainbow-pattern sheep were the rarest.
At a rough glance, there were only 6 rainbow ones—not even a full “fraction” of the flock. But mint green and lemon yellow together were at least fifty or sixty, more than half the flock.
And Xie Xingchen didn’t mind at all!
Because the mint-green and lemon-yellow wool colors were so pure and “correct.”
If their wool didn’t contain dark matter residue, both men and women would go crazy for it!
And kids could wear those colors too. For merchants, those were extremely marketable shades.
After counting, Xie Xingchen asked, “Long-Life, besides these, are there other sheep on the pasture?”
Long-Life nodded from memory. “There should be a few more groups, but they’ll gather later and return to the meeting place together.”
Xie Xingchen: ?
He was confused.
Because he understood the “sheep flock effect.”
Sure, it was an economics term—but it came from how sheep actually behave.
Basically: once a lead sheep appears, the rest follow blindly. They don’t care if what’s ahead is good or bad—they just go with the crowd and follow the leader.
His pasture was only 2,000 mu. In a place that size, at most you’d expect two flocks. But now there were several—and it looked like they were part of the same group.
And this one group separated in different directions in the morning to graze, then reunited at night to go home?
The more he thought about it, the weirder it seemed.
After Xie Xingchen laid out the strange part in detail, Long-Life—who didn’t know the reason—didn’t comment.
But the stationed robot, which did know, caught the words “weird” and “unusual” and suddenly remembered something.
“Boss, these sheep seem to live with dogs.”
The moment it said that, the flock stirred.
The sheep that had been spread out suddenly ran toward one direction. Following the movement, Xie Xingchen only caught a glimpse of something flashing along the outer edge of the flock.
It was small, hidden by the grass, but fast—like lightning.
“What was that?” Xie Xingchen jumped.
Then a soft, babyish “woof” sounded.
Xie Xingchen’s eyes lit up.
A dog bark!
That was a dog!
Xie Xingchen had always loved cats and dogs. He was thrilled.
He waved forward and told Long-Life, the stationed robot, and the two little horses, “Quick—let’s follow!”
Then he stepped onto the hoverboard.
As the hoverboard moved, the two little horses trotted after it.
The puppy was too small; the alfalfa alone could hide it completely. And there was a huge flock of sheep here too—those fluffy fleeces blocked anyone above from seeing what was happening.
Xie Xingchen changed angles several times and still couldn’t spot the dog.
Left with no choice, he raised the hoverboard and focused intensely on the outer edge of the flock.
One minute, two minutes, three minutes… ten minutes!
A tiny figure finally appeared on the outer edge—where trampled grass had removed its cover.
A herding dog!
And it was even a Shetland Sheepdog—Xie Xingchen’s favorite!
Among herding dogs, they were some of the prettiest—and also among the most human-friendly and gentle-tempered breeds!
Long fur, milky coffee coloring… when it ran, its fur fluttered in the wind. So lively and airy that it made your heart tremble.
This working herding dog was very small. Its little short legs ran huff-huff, and it had to rest after a bit, then run again, then rest again.
Xie Xingchen guessed it was barely a little over one year old.
Herding dogs were highly alert. Even though it was still young, once it noticed Xie Xingchen’s heated gaze, it began backing away with the sheep.
Only after it backed off some distance—and saw the two little horses by Xie Xingchen, plus the stationed robot sharing his hoverboard—did it relax.
Clearly, this herding dog recognized the stationed robot.
Or maybe it recognized all robots with the same characteristics. It knew they were the makers of this pasture, so it felt no instinctive hostility toward them.
The little herding dog tilted its head at Xie Xingchen. After confirming he wasn’t dangerous, it wagged its fluffy tail at him, then went right back to work.
Xie Xingchen didn’t disturb it.
He stared with starry eyes at the working puppy, his face practically melting from the cuteness.
Once the little dog drove the flock to a designated area, the other sheep groups the stationed robot mentioned were also herded over by other dogs.
In addition to the flock brought by this tiny dog, three more flocks arrived.
The smallest flock had only twenty-something colorful sheep, driven by a half-grown puppy with even prettier coloring.
The other two flocks totaled around sixty-something sheep, driven by two large adult herding dogs.
After the four flocks merged, the family of herding dogs worked together, driving all of them into the pasture area they’d claimed as their territory.
When every sheep was safely inside the “territory,” the herding dog family finally relaxed. They rubbed affectionately against each other, then rolled on the grass and played, light and happy.
Xie Xingchen: !
His heart was wobbling from the cuteness. His smile wouldn’t come down.
Even when Little White Gloves and Little Tayan trotted in circles trying to steal attention, Xie Xingchen still locked his gaze on the herding dog family.
Seriously—this dog family was unbelievably lovable.
Clean milky-coffee fur mixed with beautiful white, silky long coats, round watery eyes… and they even had cute little paw pads!
Just that alone was enough to make Xie Xingchen dizzy with fondness.
But that wasn’t even their cutest part.
The cutest part was the way this family of four interacted.
The two short-legged puppies kept pawing at their parents and acting spoiled. But their parents were work-addicted—whenever the sheep looked like they might run, the parents sprang up. The two puppies would tumble over, legs splayed out, dazed and flat on the ground. That ridiculous little moment made you want to burst out laughing.
Cute. Just… unbearably cute.
Ahhh, who needs little horses—puppies are more fun!
“Neigh, neigh…”
The two little horses kept trying to pull his attention.
When they saw Xie Xingchen staring at the dogs, they mischievously charged into the sheep flock, scattering the sheep in chaos.
Xie Xingchen: Are you two even human?!
Those little brats were asking for it!
The dogs finally finished working and were about to rest—what was wrong with you two? Why be so handsy?
Xie Xingchen felt bad for the herding dog family.
But the herding dogs didn’t have time to feel wronged.
As soon as the sheep scattered, the family of four split into four directions, quickly driving the fleeing sheep back.
For the few that ran far and got separated, they were smart enough to first bring the main flock back, then send the big adult dog to chase the stragglers.
Xie Xingchen: What insanely smart herding dogs!
He watched their herding in awe.
When they finished, he couldn’t help standing up and applauding.
Amazing!
These were absolutely the kind of employees capitalists dreamed of.
Unreal—wild animals, unpaid, and they still found themselves a job.
Not only did they work, their efficiency was high and their attitude meticulous.
Born top-tier workers!
Xie Xingchen’s heart stirred. Xie Xingchen wanted to go for it.
He lowered his hoverboard and sneaked closer to the herding dogs, who were panting with tongues out, exhausted.
When he was still some distance away, he stopped and let the four alert dogs stand up and sniff him, confirming he was harmless.
After a while, the dogs lay back down.
Xie Xingchen wanted to move closer—but the two little horses came over to join the fun. The commotion startled the dog family again.
Xie Xingchen stiffly turned his head and vigorously rubbed the two little horses.
Seriously. Thank you so much, you two.
Even though the little horses were small, to a herding dog family even smaller, they were an enormous threat.
Xie Xingchen knew that with the two horses here, the puppies wouldn’t drop their guard anytime soon, so he placed a bowl of meaty bones far away and decisively left with the two little horses.
What Xie Xingchen didn’t know was: after he left, the four dogs didn’t rush up to eat the bones.
The adult dog forced a colorful sheep to eat first. Only after the sheep finished and was still hopping around alive did the family of four finally gather to eat the bones.
If Xie Xingchen had seen that, he would’ve sighed that these dogs were practically spirits.
The next morning, Xie Xingchen left the cabin before the horse herd arrived.
He calmly rode his hoverboard to the territory of that tiny herding dog from yesterday.
This time, he didn’t hover in midair. He took out another bowl of the same meaty bones and stood beside the tiny herding dog holding it.
This was the smallest dog in the family. Yesterday, its goofy, adorable behavior had made Xie Xingchen laugh nonstop.
So today, it was his first target!
The puppy herded obediently.
During work, it didn’t even glance at Xie Xingchen.
Only when the sheep lowered their heads to graze—when it felt the job was temporarily done—did the little dog start chasing bugs in the grass to play.
If it didn’t occasionally look back at the meaty bones in Xie Xingchen’s hands, Xie Xingchen might’ve thought his plan wasn’t working.
But… if the puppy wanted bones, that was easy.
Xie Xingchen sat down right in the grass, not even caring about getting dirty. Then he pulled out a tiny energy heater and, all sneaky-like, warmed the bowl of bones.
Once heated, the aroma got even stronger, drifting on the cold wind.
The puppy’s sensitive nose got absolutely tortured. It started barking “woof woof” in hunger.
It turned around—saw the strange human wasn’t looking at it—and used the sheep as cover to creep toward Xie Xingchen.
Closer, closer, closer…
All the way to about a meter away.
Seeing that the strange two-legged creature—who’d given them bones yesterday and brought tasty bones again today—showed no signs of harming it, the puppy finally couldn’t resist.
It wagged its fluffy tail at Xie Xingchen and let out a bright, crisp “woof!”
That babyish sound was so cute Xie Xingchen wanted to grab it and rua it to pieces.
Xie Xingchen immediately pulled out a cute big plate from his space button, picked the smallest piece from the now-fragrant bones, set it on the plate, and slid it over.
Not that he didn’t want to give the biggest piece—this puppy was just too small. Xie Xingchen didn’t dare give it a big bone in case it couldn’t chew it.
With the bone in front of it, the puppy’s tail went into turbo mode.
It crept closer, sneakily peeked at the human, and after confirming he wasn’t moving, it started eating with determined little nom-nom effort.
After it finished, Xie Xingchen promptly slid over a bowl of water.
The puppy drank without thinking.
When it finished, the puppy ran off.
It went back to catching bugs in the grass. If the sheep wandered too far, it would even run over and herd them back to graze.
Even though the puppy didn’t keep approaching, Xie Xingchen sharply noticed: the “safe distance” between them had shortened!
Before, if Xie Xingchen got within two meters, the puppy would tense up and retreat. Now he could get within one meter—and when the puppy got playful, he could even pet its fur!
Two more hours passed. The patient “hunter” successfully got close enough that he even hand-fed the puppy a bottle of milk.
Yes—he gave the puppy milk.
That milk was originally meant for the lambs and calves at the livestock factory. But after searching everywhere, Xie Xingchen found multiple milk sources—and picky Bai Xi only barely accepted the best batch. The rest couldn’t be returned, so Xie Xingchen had stuffed them into his space button, planning to deal with them later.
He didn’t expect they’d come in handy today!
Thank you, Bai Xi’s pickiness—Xie Xingchen had gained a winning weapon!
After a bottle of milk, Xie Xingchen officially became the puppy’s temporary “milk dad.” The puppy even gave him affectionate little kisses, and before leaving, barked twice at him as if telling him to follow.
Xie Xingchen was so moved he followed immediately!
Of course he had to follow—otherwise how would he win over the other herding dogs?
These were the working dogs he’d set his sights on!
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