In front of Li Long and the tractor lay a cow.
Its owner was Sultan, a man in his fifties, who was crouching beside it with a worried face.
"This cow fell down the mountain. Sultan had planned to move pastures today," Bolati said quietly. "During the night, the pen was pushed open, and all the cattle and sheep ran out. He spent the whole morning looking and found most of them. But something startled this one, and it fell down the mountain and died."
It was not quite dead yet. Li Long saw it twitch occasionally, but it was not far from death.
According to their ethnic customs, livestock that died in accidents like this could not be eaten. But a cow was not a sheep. Such a large animal was worth far more, so the old man's distress at losing it was inevitable.
That was why people said, "Even if your household is worth a fortune, anything that breathes-or has fur-doesn't count." Too many accidents could happen, and once the animals died, they were worth nothing.
"Could I buy this cow, then?" Li Long asked after some thought. "I can pay cash or trade grain." He had brought several sacks of rice and flour on his tractor, along with other supplies the herders regularly used and often lacked. Once they entered Summer Pasture deep in the mountains, replenishing those supplies was practically impossible.
Bolati had actually called Li Long over so he could get a free bargain. Sultan certainly would not keep the cow. If Li Long waited until Sultan left and hauled it away, that would be that.
But Li Long could not bring himself to do that, especially seeing how upset Sultan was. Since the cow was dying anyway and its meat was usable, he thought