Chapter 6 (continued)

When Shi Wen ran into the front yard, he saw Fu Meng standing outside the ranch's wire fence with another man.

Seeing Shi Wen come out, Fu Meng called, "I was just about to call you. This is Dr. Sikewell, a veterinarian with the livestock office. He's here to vaccinate and ear-tag the village's cattle and sheep."

"I saw the message in the group chat," Shi Wen said quickly. "Come in through the wooden gate. Just undo the latch. Heiwa, they're guests. Don't bark."

When Shi Wen had moved here, he had joined the village group chat, where everyone shared news. That was where the vaccinations had been mentioned.

It was Shi Wen's first time meeting Sikewell. He hurried over and reached out to shake his hand, only to realize his own hand was covered in dirt. A little embarrassed, he wiped it on his clothes. "I was just clearing some land. My hands are a bit dirty."

Sikewell smiled and held out his hand. "I was just handling cattle and sheep. My hands might not be any cleaner than yours."

Shi Wen smiled, shook his hand, and led them into the pasture.

It was already early May, and the grass in the pasture had begun to grow. Fresh green stretched as far as the eye could see.

All sorts of little wildflowers dotted the green, but none stood out, and the pasture was still a sea of fresh green overall.

Fu Meng looked around. "Your pasture is really nice. There are so many dandelions and wild onions. They're ready to dig up."

"There are quite a lot," Shi Wen said. "I dug up a good few while I was clearing the land. Unfortunately, they're a little bitter. I don't like eating them, so I gave them all to the sheep."

"Giving them to the sheep isn't bad either," Fu Meng said. "Once sheep eat enough of them, their meat becomes especially tender and flavorful."

As they walked through the pasture, they soon spotted the flock of sheep.

Sikewell surveyed the flock. "It might be hard to do this out here. How about driving them back to the livestock shed?"

"Sure," Shi Wen said at once. "You two rest for a moment. I'll drive them back now."

"Let's do it together. It'll be faster," Fu Meng said. "I'll take the left, Sikewell the right. Shi Wen, drive them from behind."

The three walked toward the flock and slowly began herding the sheep.

The puppy stood where he was, tilting his head as he watched for a while. He seemed to understand what they were doing and ran forward, barking. Darting left and right, he drove the flock at a trot toward the livestock shed all by himself.

Fu Meng hadn't expected a dog so young to be able to herd sheep. "Last time, I said I'd help you look for a sheepdog. I didn't expect you to find such a good dog so quickly."

Sikewell added, "Your dog is really good. He's agile, has great stamina, and is remarkably clever too. If his frame grows a little more, you could consider using him as a stud."

"He is a good dog," Shi Wen said with a smile. "As for using him as a stud, we'll have to see later. He's still too young."

With the puppy helping herd the sheep, they could head straight to the livestock shed, which saved them a lot of trouble.

The pasture didn't look big, but it was actually quite large. They walked across the grassland for six or seven minutes before reaching the livestock shed, and everyone had worked up a light sweat.

Stepping abruptly from the sunlit grassland into the cool, shady shed, Shi Wen felt his vision darken. He couldn't quite make out what was in front of him and had to pause briefly before his eyes adjusted.

The puppy, however, showed no reaction. He pattered over to Shi Wen's feet and sat down, proudly puffing out his chest as he waited for praise.

Shi Wen bent down and patted his head. "Heiwa, good job."

As he spoke, he pulled a handful of meat morsels from his trouser pocket and fed them to him.

Every dog had his own personality. Heiwa particularly needed positive feedback, and receiving it made him more eager to work.

While Shi Wen fed the dog, Fu Meng and Sikewell looked around.

Shi Wen kept only a small number of sheep, and the livestock shed had been built to proper standards. He cleaned it every day and disinfected it every few days.

As a result, although it was a livestock shed, it was still very clean. There was barely any smell of manure, only a faint scent of disinfectant.

"No wonder your sheep are so white and plump," Fu Meng said. "You really put a lot of care into this."

"It's mainly because I don't keep many. If I had more, I might not be able to take such meticulous care of them. Doctor, how do we do this?"

"Just a moment. I'll prepare the medicine first," Sikewell said. "Then you two just need to hold the sheep's heads for me."

Sikewell opened the medical case he had brought and took out a syringe and a vial. He explained to Shi Wen, "This is a four-in-one, three-inactivated vaccine for sheep. It prevents lamb dysentery, braxy, black disease, and enterotoxemia."

Shi Wen nodded repeatedly to show he understood.

"I'll give the shots first, then put in the vaccination ear tags," Sikewell said. "The government pays for both, so there's no charge. Once we're done, I just need to register them."

Shi Wen had no objections. Livestock farming was bound to be regulated for the sake of public safety; he had known that before coming to the ranch.

After giving a brief explanation and seeing that Shi Wen understood everything, Sikewell took his medical case into the sheep pen.

Shi Wen and Fu Meng went in with him.

Shi Wen and Fu Meng caught the nearest sheep, each grabbing one horn.

Sikewell held the sheep between his legs, pinched the muscle in its neck with his left hand, and held the syringe in his right, injecting the medicine at an angle into the neck muscle.

The sheep let out a loud "Baa-!" startling the other sheep in the shed into a commotion.

Sikewell's movements were quick and steady. After giving the sheep its shot, he took out the ear-tag applicator, swiftly punched a hole in its ear, then took out a tag and fitted it.

The whole process took only half a minute.

Once released, the sheep darted back into the flock.

Shi Wen reached out and caught a second sheep, and Fu Meng helped him hold it still.

Sikewell quickly changed the needle and drew up more medicine, ready to vaccinate the next sheep.

In less than half an hour, all thirty-seven sheep had been vaccinated and fitted with ear tags.

"That's it?" Shi Wen asked.

"I still need to register them," Sikewell said. "You also need to keep an eye on these ear tags. Sometimes, when a sheep gets close to the wire fence, its tag can catch on the wire. If it struggles, it can easily tear its ear. If an ear gets injured, remember to treat it promptly, or it could become inflamed and get maggots."