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Shi Wen walked from the main gate toward the cluster of buildings. He could vaguely make out the paths left across the pasture, as well as the dried cow dung lining both sides.

After walking for a while, Shi Wen arrived in front of the buildings.

Ahead was a large courtyard, somewhat like the courtyards in northeastern China. Behind it stood a row of—livestock sheds?

The courtyard gate was also made of wooden fencing fastened with wire mesh. Shi Wen reached out, pushed it aside, opened the gate, and walked in.

The front yard had remnants of vegetable plots on both sides, but they were badly overgrown now. The yellowed grass reached halfway up his calves.

Shi Wen stood before a glass window, wiped away the dust on the outside, and peered into the house.

Through the window, he immediately spotted a familiar large enamel mug on the table, with a lighter beside it.

It instantly reminded him of the days when he had lived with the old man as a child. He could not help smiling, only for an endless bitterness to well up inside him afterward.

"Ah—"

Just as Shi Wen was looking inside through the window, someone called out to him. "Where did you come from? This is a private ranch. You can't come in."

Shi Wen turned around and saw a dark-skinned young man in a leather jacket and rain boots riding a motorcycle toward him. The man stopped at the entrance to the front yard.

Shi Wen said, "Hello, I'm Shi Jingbo's grandson, Shi Wen."

The young man propped up his motorcycle with one leg and froze for a moment. "Old Master Shi's grandson?"

As he spoke, the young man stared at Shi Wen and muttered to himself, "The chin does look a little similar."

Shi Wen smiled in response.

The young man said, "My name is Fu Meng. I live in the neighboring village. Are you planning to come back?"

Shi Wen answered vaguely, "More or less."

Fu Meng said, "Coming back is good. Back then, the old man had only just started raising sheep when he had an accident back home. I was the one who helped handle the sheep afterward. What a pity."

After chatting for a while, Fu Meng invited him, "You haven't had dinner yet, have you? Come eat at my place. If you move back, our families will be neighbors."

Shi Wen was not used to this kind of warmth. Smiling, he said, "Thank you. I bought a plane ticket for tonight and need to hurry back. I'm afraid I won't make it in time."

Fu Meng asked, "What time is your flight? Did you drive here?"

"No. I'll call a taxi later."

"It's not easy to get a taxi here. I'll take you to town later. It'll be easier to find one there."

Fu Meng was quite friendly and familiar. Not only did he agree to take Shi Wen into town, but he also introduced him to the ranch.

Where the livestock sheds were, where the farmland was, where the drainage ditches were... Fu Meng knew everything clearly.

Only through their conversation did Shi Wen learn that Fu Meng was the village chief of this settlement village.

The old man's ranch was also considered part of the village. No wonder Fu Meng had rushed over not long after Shi Wen arrived.

Following the thread of their conversation, Fu Meng said, "Spring's already here. If you want to raise cattle or sheep this year, you'd better hurry. The ranch needs serious repairs, and the ditches need dredging too. The spring lambs are growing up fast. If you wait much longer, it might be hard to buy lambs."

Shi Wen quickly nodded. "All right. Thank you, Brother Fu."

Fu Meng said, "Why be so polite? We're neighbors. If you move here, this place will be a little livelier too."

After taking a lap around the ranch, Fu Meng drove Shi Wen into town on his motorcycle to buy a ticket to N City.

Shi Wen was going to N City to catch a flight home.

With Fu Meng's help, Shi Wen's trip to the ranch went far more smoothly than he had imagined.

He also found himself liking the ranch more than he had expected.

On Monday, Shi Wen went to the office again.

He had an appointment with the same clerk as before.

When the clerk saw the documents he handed over, they swiftly processed his inheritance procedures.

Afterward, the clerk handed him the documents and a separately printed list of precautions, reminding him, "Mr. Shi, try not to leave the ranch abandoned after inheriting it. If you don't engage in the related industry, your bloodline can easily deteriorate. The bloodline needs a major inspection every three years. Ranches that fail the inspection will be repossessed. Do your best."

Shi Wen could understand that. After all, it was a benefit, so it was normal for there to be many restrictions. Besides, the basis for him receiving this benefit was his bloodline. If his bloodline deteriorated, then naturally he would lose everything.

Shi Wen was somewhat excited. He looked up and smiled. "I understand. Thank you."

"You're welcome." The clerk smiled back. "Congratulations. I look forward to hearing good news from your ranch."

After confirming that all the ranch-related procedures were complete, Shi Wen resigned from his company, arranged to end his lease with his landlord, and gradually shipped his belongings to the small town near the ranch.

The town's courier service did not deliver to people's doors. All packages were sent together to a pickup point, where recipients collected them themselves.

Half a month later, Shi Wen appeared at the ranch again.

Only this time, instead of slipping through the fence, he took the key from a staff member of the J Province Anomaly Management Office and entered through the main gate.

After half a month apart, the grass on the ranch had turned greener, and the soil had become more moist.

He crossed the long path, entered the front yard, and unlocked the door with his key.

The moment the door opened, the smell of mold and dust rushed out to meet him.

Shi Wen looked at the old furniture before him and the various household items the old man had left behind.

From now on, this would be his home.

Chapter 2

Shi Wen thoroughly cleaned the house inside and out, then packed away the old man's belongings.

When he had handled the inheritance procedures, he had arranged for the water, electricity, and internet to be connected in advance. After a little tidying, the place was livable.

As for making it comfortable, that would require gradual renovations over a long period of time.

The living quarters were easy enough to handle. Although the front and back yards were still overgrown, it did not affect daily life, so there was no rush.

The livestock sheds were more troublesome.

There were several large livestock sheds on the ranch, including cattle sheds and sheep sheds, as well as a feed storage building.

Perhaps because the winters here were relatively cold, livestock could not endure the season well outdoors.

The sheds were large. Inside were plenty of dried manure and feed, as well as chewed-up wooden troughs, aging pipes, and more.

If he wanted to put them back into use, he would have to repair and clean them up again.

Shi Wen rode his motorcycle into town.

This town was a livestock-raising town under N City's jurisdiction. Along the main street stood a row of storefronts, most of them related to animal husbandry, interspersed with a few supermarkets.