Returning to the Frontier to Start a Ranch - Chapter 2

Shi Wen cleaned the house thoroughly, both inside and out, and then stored away his grandfather’s belongings.

When handling the inheritance procedures, he had arranged for water, electricity and internet to be connected in advance, so with a bit of tidying up, the place was ready to be lived in.

However, to make it truly comfortable, he would need to renovate it gradually over time.

The living space was easy to deal with. Although the front and back yards were still overgrown, they didn’t affect daily activities and could be handled later.

The livestock sheds, however, were more troublesome.

The ranch had several large sheds for cattle and sheep, as well as a feed storage area.

Due to the cold winters in this area, livestock couldn’t stay outside during the season.

The sheds were spacious, but it was filled with dried manure and old hay, along with chewed-up wooden troughs and aging pipes.

If he wanted to put them back into use, he would need to do a full cleaning and restoration.

Shi Wen rode his motorcycle into the small town.

This small town, under N City’s jurisdiction, was a ranching hub. The main street was lined with storefronts mostly related to animal husbandry, interspersed with a few supermarkets.

Shi Wen had visited the supermarkets several times before and had become somewhat familiar with the small town.

He parked his motorcycle in front of a relatively large veterinary supply store and stepped inside.

The weather was neither gloomy nor sunny today, and the store’s interior felt dim. The shopkeeper, sitting lazily behind the counter, was watching short videos on his phone.

Seeing Shi Wen enter, the shopkeeper took a second glance in his direction and greeted him in slightly accented Mandarin, “What are you looking for?”

Shi Wen pulled out his phone to check the notes he had made the night before.

“I need some disinfectant for my livestock sheds. What kind of chlorine-based disinfectants do you have?”

The shopkeeper pointed to a row of shelves, “They’re all here. Take a look and see which one you need. Quicklime¹ is on the bottom shelf.”

Shi Wen glanced at the shopkeeper, then at the shelves.

The store’s selection of disinfectants wasn’t extensive, but it covered the main categories—peroxides, aldehydes, phenols, and chlorine-based disinfectants.

Standing in front of the shelves, Shi Wen found himself momentarily overwhelmed by the choices.

After staring at the plethora of disinfectants, he consulted his notes and compared the prices. Finally, he picked two buckets of Xiao Te Ling, a brand of sodium dichloroisocyanurate disinfectant, with relatively recent production dates, along with two bags of quicklime.

The shopkeeper totaled up the cost, “Hey, you’re from out of town, aren’t you?”

Shi Wen smiled, “You can tell? Are there a lot of outsiders coming in lately?”

“With a face like yours, I’d definitely remember if I’d seen you before. So yeah, it has to be your first time here.” The shopkeeper said, then answered the second question. “Not a huge number of outsiders, but not too few either. You young folks keep talking about ‘returning home to herd sheep.’ You’re one of them, right?”

Shi Wen replied, “Something like that.”

The shopkeeper locked his phone, “What do you mean ‘something like that’? You definitely are. Which farm are you from?”

Shi Wen remarked, “I’m from the Shi’s Family Ranch just outside the town.”

“I think I remember that place. No one has been there for a long time—I thought they had moved away.”

“No, I’m back now.”

Shi Wen quickly finished his purchase, tied the supplies securely to the back of his motorcycle, and then headed to the supermarket to buy groceries.

The fridge at home was still functioning, and going to town every day for groceries was too much of a hassle. He usually bought a week’s worth at a time, focusing on long-lasting vegetables like cabbage, tomatoes, potatoes and carrots.

Shi Wen spent over an hour shopping in town, eating a bowl of lamb noodles for lunch before finally driving back home.

Once back at home, he put the groceries in the fridge and started cleaning the livestock sheds.

Early that morning, he had already cleaned the sheds once—sweeping out manure and debris, and giving the floor a wash.

Now that the floors had dried, he began applying the lime water.

Slaked lime² was the most commonly used disinfectant here. It was cheap and effective, making wastage less of a concern.

Shi Wen put on old clothes suitable for manual labour, a mask, safety glasses and a hat, then efficiently mixed the slaked lime in a designated bucket.

According to the internet, slaked lime had to be measured precisely—1kg of quicklime to 350ml of water. If the ratio was off, the disinfecting effect wouldn’t be good, making all the work pointless.

Once the lime solution was ready, Shi Wen disinfected the floors and walls of the livestock sheds and livestock activity areas. Then, he used Xiao Te Ling to sanitise the feeding troughs and water basins, as lime application in those areas was impractical.

The ranch was huge, and he was the only one working. By the time he finished, the sky was nearly dark.

Being the only person on the ranch, he didn’t have much motivation to cook. He quickly cooked up some noodles, scarfed it down, and then lay in bed reading a book.

The next morning, Shi Wen grabbed a hammer, nails and other tools. He planned to repair parts of the livestock shed and the worn-down areas outside the house, and also replace some pipes.

Halfway through, his phone rang—it was his neighbor, the village chief Fu Meng, whom he had met before.

Shi Wen answered, and Fu Meng’s voice came through, “Hey Shi Wen, didn’t you say you wanted some lambs? There’s a livestock market today, do you want to go? I’m heading there, so I can give you a ride if you do.”

“I want to go!” Shi Wen responded immediately. “Thanks, Fu-ge! When will you get here?”

Fu Meng said, “I’m about to set off. Just wait at home—I’ll be there in ten minutes.”

Shi Wen quickly put away his tools, took off his work gloves, and went inside to change into his normal clothes.

Just as he finished getting ready, he heard the sound of a vehicle outside.

Opening the door, he saw Fu Meng arriving in a three-wheeler, pulling up outside the ranch.

Shi Wen quickly jogged from the house to the entrance of the ranch.

Fu Meng grinned, “I was just about to call you, but you’re already out. The back is a bit dirty—do you want to sit up front with me?”

The back of the three-wheeler was covered in dirt, hay and trampled dry manure—clearly used for transporting cattle and sheep. It was definitely unsuitable for a person to sit on.

Shi Wen hopped onto the seat beside Fu Meng, grabbing onto the frame of the vehicle. “Thanks, Fu-ge.”

Fu Meng replied, “No need to be so polite—it’s on the way.”

With a sputtering sound, the three-wheeler rumbled toward the town.

The livestock market was also in town, but a bit further down, away from the main street.

Previously, Shi Wen had only explored the main street and had never been to the livestock market before.

As they got closer to the market, more and more three-wheelers and small trucks filled the road, making it increasingly congested and noisy.

Livestock like cattle and sheep became a common sight—some were being transported in vehicles, others were being herded along the road. The air grew thick with the distinct smell of livestock.

Before long, Shi Wen noticed people selling adult sheep along the roadside.

Adult sheep and lambs were kept in separate areas, and since he was here to buy lambs, he needed to head further inside.

Fu Meng parked the three-wheeler at a designated parking area and walked with Shi Wen into the livestock market. “Shi Wen, have you had breakfast yet? Do you want to grab a bite?”

Outside the market, food stalls lined the streets, offering all sorts of local delicacies—lamb offal soup, beef noodles, sheep fat buns, hot milk tea, yogurt bowls and more.

Shi Wen inhaled the mix of delicious aromas, “Let’s eat something first then. Fu-ge, is there anything you want to eat?”

Fu Meng suggested, “How about rice-flour noodles with mutton? I’ll take you to an established shop.”

The two headed to a restaurant known for its lamb rice noodles.

The lamb, which was freshly slaughtered, was of a species native to the region. It had no gamey smell. On the contrary, it carried a hint of milky sweetness. It was incredibly tender and paired perfectly with chili oil and pickled radish, making for an appetising meal.
Shi Wen ate until beads of sweat formed on his nose.

After finishing breakfast, they finally made their way to the lamb market.

The lambs were kept in wooden pens, all under three months old, and mostly local fat-tailed sheep.

There are several breeds of fat-tailed sheep in the country, such as the Altay fat-tailed sheep, the Inner Mongolian fat-tailed sheep and the Shan Dong fat-tailed sheep. When people buy lambs, they usually choose breeds that have been locally bred.

Local breeds are better suited to the local soil, water and climate, making them less prone to diseases. Their meat also retains the distinctive local flavor.

Fat-tailed sheep are a type of domesticated sheep.

Goats are relatively uncommon in this area.

Since sheep mainly feed on grass, whereas goats prefer leaves, roots and stems—raising sheep is more suitable here due to the abundance of grasslands and the lack of mountainous terrain.

Starting from the first wooden pen, Shi Wen carefully examined the lambs, mimicking the way others were inspecting them—checking their teeth, limbs, coat patterns, and even pinching their backs. He looked like he knew what he was doing.

Fu Meng, watching from the side, was surprised, “Do you have experience in raising sheep?”

Shi Wen looked up, “I’ve read books about it.”

Fu Meng couldn’t hold back his chuckle, “What’s in books isn’t quite the same as reality.”

Shi Wen replied, “Then I’ll just combine what I’ve learnt from books with my own judgment. Once I’m done, Fu-ge, I’d love to have your opinion on my picks.”

By now, Shi Wen had realised that Fu Meng had specifically come to the market to accompany him in picking lambs, though he hadn’t explicitly stated it.

Fu Meng readily agreed, “Sure.”

As they spoke, Shi Wen noticed that the lamb under his hand felt slightly different from the others.

This difference wasn’t based on any specific criteria—he just had a subtle feeling that this lamb stood out from the rest.

He lowered his head to take a closer look.

It was a ewe.

It couldn’t have been more than three months old, with a white face, small hooves, small ears, and a full fluffy coat. Its fur was strikingly white and incredibly cute, with excellent wool quality.

Shi Wen reached out to touch its back, gently pinching its muscles. He found that the fat on its back was about a finger thick—it was quite plump.

The little lamb let out a clear, adorable bleat, lifting its head and staring at him with wide eyes after being pinched.

Shi Wen then ran his fingers through its wool. The fleece was also quite dense and fluffy.

He examined its legs—they were straight, without signs of bowlegs, splayed legs or any other deformities.

With all these aspects checked, Shi Wen was already about 80% satisfied. He gently pried open the lamb’s mouth.

Its lower jaw had neatly arranged, pearly white baby teeth, indicating excellent dental health.

Sheep only have lower teeth; the upper jaw consists of a dense, hard, fibrous pad. As long as the lower teeth were in good shape, the lamb passed.

Shi Wen rubbed its back again, then turned to the auntie selling the lambs and asked, “ Ma’am, how much for this one?”

The auntie straightened up and enthusiastically introduced the lamb, “This little one is a fine one. It’s the best we have. If you take it home as a breeding ewe, I guarantee you’ll raise a whole flock of good sheep. If you’re serious about buying, I’ll let it go for 600 yuan.”

Before Shi Wen could respond, Fu Meng widened his eyes and exclaimed, “Auntie, is your sheep made of gold? Other people are selling equally good sheep for no more than 300!”

The auntie stood her ground, “If you can find sheep this good for 300, I’ll sell you as many as you want!”

Fu Meng countered, “Even so, 600 is too much. There are plenty of good sheep in the market, and yours is great, but others aren’t bad either. The most I would say is 320.”

The auntie shook her head, “320 is too low. If you’re really interested, I’ll give you a discount—550.”

Shi Wen joined in, “350.”

The auntie waved her hand repeatedly, “350 won’t do. If you truly want it, I’ll give it to you for 530.”

Shi Wen’s target price was under 500. As Fu Meng said, the lamb was indeed good, but it wasn’t a one-of-a-kind specimen. If the price exceeded 500, it wasn’t worth it.

After a few minutes of haggling, they finally settled on 420.

With the sale made, the auntie handed Shi Wen a spray can of marking paint, letting him mark the lamb himself.

Shi Wen sprayed a ‘1’ on the lamb’s rump, signifying that it was his first purchase. Once he was done buying all the sheep, Fu Meng would drive the tricycle to the market entrance, and the vendors would help herd the purchased sheep onto the vehicle. Otherwise, it would be difficult to transport them.

This was the usual way people bought sheep here.

As they left the stall, Fu Meng whispered, “You’re full of surprises; you really know how to pick sheep.”

Shi Wen replied, “I just learn from reading books. Thanks for helping me with the haggling, Fu-ge.”

Fu Meng laughed, “I was just casually throwing out numbers. You’re the one who has a knack for haggling.”

Shi Wen smiled. As a salaryman, his negotiation skills were pretty good.

The two continued browsing the stalls.

Shi Wen went from stall to stall, carefully selecting sheep. Some stalls had good picks, while others didn’t.

Not every sheep he bought was the obvious best choice. Some were rather unremarkable, but they gave him a good feeling. Since they were reasonably priced, he bought them as well.

After picking out more than a dozen sheep, Shi Wen noticed a small group of young men trailing behind him.

He glanced at them. They were unfamiliar, likely not from his village.

Catching Shi Wen’s gaze, one of them spoke up, “Hey brother, which village are you from? Did you just move back? You’re really good at picking sheep!”

Shi Wen stopped and replied, “Qing Feng Village. You guys moved back to raise sheep too?”

One of them said, “We’ve been raising sheep in the village for a long while, but we’ve never seen you before. Let’s add each other on WeChat?”

Since they were all from the same area, there would probably be plenty of opportunities to interact in the future.

Shi Wen readily exchanged WeChat contacts with them.

The young men invited him to join them for horseback riding, herding and drinking when he was available.

Shi Wen replied, “If I get the chance, I definitely will.”

The encounter with the young men was just a small interlude. After parting ways with them, he continued shopping for sheep.

He was decisive in his purchases, not pushing too hard on prices—just a few rounds of bargaining, and he was usually able to close the deal.

After browsing the market all morning, Shi Wen managed to purchase 37 lambs—32 ewes and 5 castrated young rams.

Rams tend to be more docile after castration, allowing them to graze alongside the ewes, and would eventually be sold as meat sheep.

Once the purchases were complete, Fu Meng met up with Shi Wen again and drove the three-wheeled truck over.

The vendors helped herd the lambs onto the vehicle, completely filling it up.

As they settled into the truck, Fu Meng asked, “Do you need anything else? How about some concentrated feed³? The lambs are still young; giving them extra nutrition at night will make them easier to raise.”

Shi Wen asked, “Do you know a good feed store?”

“I’ll take you to Old Sun’s shop,” Fu Meng replied. “His feed is high quality—what you pay for is what you get. He doesn’t cut corners or cheat on weight.”

Shi Wen agreed, “Sure, let’s go have a look.”

The store wasn’t far—just a short ride along the main road and a turn into a side street.

Before long, Fu Meng pulled up in front of a slightly worn-looking storefront and called out, “Old Sun! Got a new customer for you!”

A burly middle-aged man stepped out, “Fu Meng! You brat! Haven’t had a drink together in ages. What will you be buying today?”

“I’m not the one buying,” Fu Meng replied. “My friend Shi Wen here needs some concentrated feed. What do you have in stock?”

Old Sun turned to Shi Wen, who nodded in confirmation.

The shopkeeper was straightforward, “I’ve got everything; it really depends on which kind you want—corn, barley, wheat, mixed grains, bean dregs, bran, rapeseed cake… The rapeseed cake just came in—this year’s batch smells great. Two dollars and thirty cents per kilo. If you’re feeding lambs, I’d recommend this.”

As he spoke, he led them inside the store.

Old Sun pulled out a large sack from the shelf, untied the nylon cord sealing it, and grabbed a handful of the flaky rapeseed cake. “This is the real deal—straight from the source, no additives or fillers.”

As soon as the rapeseed cake was pulled out of the sack, a fragrant aroma filled the air. Shi Wen took a quick glance and immediately knew that this was a high-quality product, “I’ll take fifty kilograms.”

Old Sun remarked, “Nice! Are you picking it up yourself, or should I arrange for a delivery?”

Shi Wen asked, “Do you offer delivery?”

“Of course! Why wouldn’t I?” Old Sun replied. “Here, add me on WeChat. You can just tell me what feed you need, and I’ll deliver it right to you.”

Shi Wen added Old Sun on WeChat and glanced over at Fu Meng.

Fu Meng asked, “Could you handle the delivery this time? We’ve got a truckload of sheep, and there’s no place to store them.”

Old Sun replied, “Sure, I’ll come with you and drop it off, and also get to know the location.”

Old Sun then called his wife out to watch the store, quickly grabbed two bags of rapeseed cake, tied them to his motorcycle, and followed Shi Wen and Fu Meng.

When they arrived at Shi Wen’s place, Old Sun unloaded the rapeseed cake under the eaves of the house and helped herd the sheep into the pen.

Shi Wen had thoroughly cleaned and disinfected the sheep pen in the past couple of days. It was neat, dry and smelled fresh, with no hint of odour.

Old Sun entered the pen and said, “Wow, someone’s got high standards! In a couple of years, we’ll have another skilled sheep farmer around here.”

Fu Meng laughed, “You sure know how to flatter someone.”

Old Sun chuckled, “Just speaking the truth. You can tell from the way the pens were cleaned and disinfected. And looking at these sheep—Shi Wen picked these, am I right? Old Fu, you wouldn’t have the eye for this.”

Fu Meng asked, “How do you know?”

“Having known each other for so many years, do you think I don’t know what kind of sheep you prefer? This one was definitely picked by Shi Wen,” Old Sun said, turning to Shi Wen. “You have a good eye for picking and settling sheep, and you put in the effort. The sheep you raise will surely be of good quality.”

Shi Wen smiled, “I hope so too.”

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Footnote:

1. Quicklime (calcium oxide) is a disinfectant that can kill pathogens. It’s a strong base that’s inexpensive and can be used around livestock.
2. When quicklime is added to water, it yields slaked lime.
3. Concentrated feed, also known as concentrates, are animal feeds that are rich in energy and/or protein but low in fiber, used to supplement the diet of livestock.

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