Chapter 92: Fierce Dog

“You’re coming back the day after tomorrow?” Cao Shujie repeated.

Cao Huifang responded with a soft “Mm,” then added, “Brother, besides me, three of my classmates are coming along too. They want to see how the fruit saplings we planted during Labor Day are doing.”

“The same classmates who came with you last time?” Cao Shujie asked.

“Yep, the same ones,” Cao Huifang replied.

“All right then. When you get to the long-distance bus station in town, give me a call and I’ll come pick you up,” said Cao Shujie, already making mental notes.

Hearing that, Cao Huifang cheered, “Thanks, bro!”

“Save it. Just don’t stir up trouble when you get back,” Cao Shujie grumbled.

He hung up right after saying that, shoved his phone into his pocket, and got ready to dial the number Song Zhichao had given him.

On the other end, Cao Huifang stared blankly at her phone for a moment before it clicked. She immediately started cursing into the screen. After venting, she felt much better.

Back in the orchard, Cao Shujie called the number Song Zhichao had given him. As soon as the call connected, he introduced himself and stated his purpose.

“So you’re Boss Cao! Old Song called me the night before last and mentioned you. Said you were looking to buy some calves. I was wondering why you hadn’t called yet—figured Old Song probably forgot again, that unreliable guy,” said Cui Jingguo over the phone.

Thanks to the connection through Song Zhichao, the conversation between Cao Shujie and Cui Jingguo flowed easily.

After some small talk, they got down to business. Cui Jingguo said, “If you’ve got time in the next couple of days, Boss Cao, you should come check out my livestock farm. I guarantee the quality of my calves is second to none!”

Cao Shujie had long since developed a resistance to these kinds of sales pitches. Everyone selling something says the same thing, and you always have to take it with a grain of salt.

“Are you free today, Boss Cui?” he asked.

Cui Jingguo chuckled. “If you’re coming, I’ll make time.”

That was all Cao Shujie needed to hear. “Send me the address, I’ll head over right now.”

As it happened, Cui Jingguo also lived in Pingyuan County, but not in Qingshi Town. He was in Jinniu Town, down in the southern part of the county. Cao Shujie immediately knew the place.

After hanging up, he grabbed his things and headed home. He didn’t even bother with breakfast—just told his wife he was going to Jinniu Town to check out some calves at Cui Jingguo’s place, then jumped in the car and left.

Qingshi Town and Jinniu Town were on opposite ends of Pingyuan County—northeast and due south, respectively.

To make matters worse, a one-kilometer stretch of road near Jinniu Town was under construction, leaving only a narrow two-way single lane. Traffic moved at a crawl, and Cao Shujie had to drive even slower.

After finally making it through that bottleneck and arriving in Jinniu Town, he called Cui Jingguo again to confirm the exact location, then drove straight there.

Twenty minutes later, he spotted a short, middle-aged man waiting by the roadside. His skin was dark and weathered from years of sun exposure.

When he saw Cao Shujie’s car with Beijing plates, he looked puzzled—something didn’t add up.

Cao Shujie pulled up nearby and asked, “Hello, are you Boss Cui?”

“That’s me. You must be Boss Cao,” Cui Jingguo replied, catching on.

He glanced down at the license plate again and asked, “Boss Cao, did you come all the way from Beijing?”

The thought gave Cui Jingguo pause. Was this guy really from Beijing, coming all the way out here to lease land and raise cattle in the countryside?

“Could it be that the cattle market is on the rise again?” he wondered, still trying to make sense of it.

But he did know one thing—beef prices had been climbing steadily in recent years.

Cao Shujie stepped out of the car and shook hands with Cui Jingguo. Up close, he caught a strong whiff of that distinct cattle-farm smell clinging to the man.

“Boss Cao, come inside and have a seat first,” said Cui Jingguo.

“No need to stand on ceremony,” Cao Shujie replied. “Hop in, I’ll give you a ride.”

“No need for that. My place is just around the corner. The farm is on the next street over—not far at all. We can walk,” Cui Jingguo said.

Cao Shujie nodded, locked his car, and followed him on foot.

They arrived at Cui Jingguo’s house not long after. One glance told Cao Shujie the place had been renovated—it stood out sharply from the neighboring homes.

Clearly, Cui Jingguo had some money.

As soon as they stepped through the gate, a large black-and-yellow dog chained to an iron ring on the southern wall of the courtyard came into view.

When it saw Cui Jingguo, it reared up on its powerful hind legs and pawed the air with its front legs, as if trying to get close to him.

At that moment, it looked a bit on the chubby side.

But the instant it laid eyes on Cao Shujie behind him, its demeanor changed completely.

“Woof! Woof! Woof… woof, woof!”

Its bark was deep and guttural, almost like a growl. Hearing it for the first time, you’d think a wild beast had appeared.

The big dog barked furiously, dashing back and forth across the yard. The iron chain clanked loudly as it strained against it, clearly trying to break free and take a bite out of Cao Shujie.

“Xiao Hei, what are you doing? He’s a guest!” Cui Jingguo shouted at the dog.

Surprisingly, the dog was smart enough to obey. As soon as it heard Cui Jingguo’s voice, it stopped barking and lay down obediently, keeping its eyes fixed on both men.

From the moment he saw it, Cao Shujie felt a jolt in his chest.

This dog was fierce—exactly the kind of guard dog he’d been looking for.

Without even thinking whether it was rude, he blurted out, “Boss Cui, what kind of dog is that?”

“German Shepherds are fierce, but obedient too!” Cui Jingguo said with a proud laugh.

“I’ve had mine for four years now. Whenever I’m away, it always stays home to guard the place.”

From the way he spoke, Cao Shujie could tell how much Cui Jingguo loved that dog.

That only made Cao Shujie itch even more—he was seriously thinking about getting one himself, but didn’t know how to bring it up.

Cui Jingguo noticed the look on his face and chuckled, “Something on your mind, Boss Cao?”

“Boss Cui, is your dog male or female?” Cao Shujie asked, a little embarrassed.

At that, Cui Jingguo immediately understood what he was getting at and burst out laughing. “Ah, so that’s what this is about! Boss Cao, you want a little German Shepherd, don’t you? No problem at all. I’ve got a few pups over at my livestock farm. When we head over to check out the calves later, take a look—if you see one you like, just take it.”

Hearing that, Cao Shujie was overjoyed, though he felt a bit awkward about it. “Boss Cui, name your price. I can’t just take one for free.”

He really did like the breed. In his mind, he was already picturing himself patrolling the mountains with a big German Shepherd by his side.

Damn, that’d be badass!

“Come on, it’s just a dog. If you like it, Boss Cao, take it,” Cui Jingguo said generously.

“Then I’ll thank you in advance, Boss Cui,” Cao Shujie replied.

The two of them sat for a bit at Cui Jingguo’s place before heading to the livestock farm on the back street.

The place looked huge—square-shaped from the outside, though it was hard to estimate the exact size.

Even before they got close, the smell of manure hit them. It was the same earthy scent that clung to Cui Jingguo, though not overpowering.

“I’ve been raising cattle for over twenty years,” Cui Jingguo explained. “Most folks in town call me the Cattle King.”

He gave a good-natured smile as he said it.

As they chatted, they reached the main gate. Cui Jingguo pushed open the iron doors, and the two of them walked in.

Right as they stepped inside, a few barks rang out.

Not far from the entrance, Cao Shujie spotted another German Shepherd tied up. This one looked even more imposing than the one at Cui Jingguo’s house.

Its bark was deeper too—so deep it reminded Cao Shujie of a Tibetan Mastiff’s growl. The sound made his hair stand on end, a chill creeping up from the soles of his feet.

“Boss Cui, that dog’s a beast!” Cao Shujie exclaimed, genuinely impressed.

Cui Jingguo chuckled and pointed at the barking German Shepherd. “That one’s a male. The one at home is a female. There’s a good twenty pounds difference between them.”

“What a fine dog!” Cao Shujie was so taken with it, he nearly forgot they were here to look at calves. He truly loved the breed.

Compared to this, the two Huskies he had at home didn’t even feel like real dogs anymore.

Still, business came first. He pushed down his excitement and followed Cui Jingguo to the cattle pen in the back.

When he saw the calves, he had to admit—Cui Jingguo hadn’t been exaggerating. The quality really was top-notch.

“How much are you selling them for, Boss Cui?” Cao Shujie asked straight up.

Cui Jingguo was straightforward too. “For calves under 300 jin, I’ll deliver them to your door at 950 yuan each. If you’re buying in bulk, I can give you a discount.”

“How many counts as bulk?” Cao Shujie asked curiously.

Cui Jingguo replied, “If you take 50 or more, I can knock off 20 yuan per head. For 100 or more, I’ll take off 50 yuan each. I’ll still cover the delivery cost, but I can’t go lower than that.”

Cao Shujie did the math in his head. Based on that, the lowest price would be 900 yuan per calf under 300 jin.

From what he’d heard in the market, Cui Jingguo’s prices weren’t the cheapest, but they weren’t high either—and the quality was definitely there.

After weighing his options, Cao Shujie decided to go for 50. That was already a sizable number, and he didn’t want to bite off more than he could chew.

Once they settled the deal, Cui Jingguo totaled it up. “Boss Cao, that comes to 46,500 yuan.”

He didn’t offer to waive the 500 yuan difference—out in the countryside, that kind of money wasn’t pocket change.

Cao Shujie figured he was already getting a dog out of this, so he didn’t push for a discount.

“When would be a good time to deliver?” Cui Jingguo asked.

“Today or tomorrow is fine,” Cao Shujie replied.

“Alright,” Cui Jingguo nodded. “I’ll feed them in the morning and arrange a truck to bring them over.”

“Great. Boss Cui, come along too—I’ll treat you to a meal,” Cao Shujie said with a hearty laugh.

“Let’s worry about tomorrow when it comes,” Cui Jingguo grinned. “But Boss Cao, you’ve got to have a drink with me at lunch today. Otherwise, I’m not coming tomorrow.”

But Cao Shujie had his mind on the German Shepherds, and since he was driving, he stayed for lunch but didn’t drink.

Before leaving, he carefully picked out two of the German Shepherd pups and took them with him.

Cui Jingguo wasn’t the least bit annoyed. In fact, he laughed and asked Cao Shujie to help find good homes for the rest of the pups too.

“You’re giving them all away?” Cao Shujie asked, surprised.

Cui Jingguo let out a long sigh. “Boss Cao, you know why I keep the male and female separate?”

Cao Shujie shook his head.

“Because these things breed like crazy. Two litters a year, six or seven pups each time. I can’t keep up with them all.”

“Holy crap!” Cao Shujie looked at the little German Shepherd, then at the majestic beast not far away. He never imagined its mate could be so… productive!

“Oh, oh, oh…”

Hearing the howls coming from the back seat, Cao Shujie was a bit dazed. Why did that sound so much like Daha and Erha?

No wonder—they all looked like wolves. Maybe they really were distant relatives from ancient times?

As his imagination ran wild, he recalled all the tips Cui Jingguo had given him about bonding with German Shepherds and what kind of food to feed them. Everything had been explained in detail.

Cao Shujie couldn’t wait to get home and try it all out.

By the time they returned from Jinniu County to Cao Family Village, it was still light out.

Cheng Xiaolin heard the commotion and came out of the house.

Standing at the gate, she watched her husband park the car and get out. She asked, “Why are you back so late?”

“Boss Cui was just too hospitable. We hit it off right away, and he insisted I stay for lunch,” Cao Shujie rattled off smoothly. Cheng Xiaolin wasn’t buying a word of it and rolled her eyes at his nonsense.

Just then, the two little German Shepherds in the back seat let out a chorus of “oh-oh” howls. Cheng Xiaolin, standing outside, was momentarily stunned. Then it hit her: “Shujie, did you bring home two more dogs?”

“Yeah, babe, listen—these dogs, once they grow up, they’ll be way better than Daha and Erha.” Cao Shujie started describing the big German Shepherd he saw at Cui Jingguo’s place, already imagining how impressive his two would look once they matured.

“Honey, it’s not that I’m against it, but you better keep a close eye on them. I’m just worried Daha and Erha might lead them astray,” Cheng Xiaolin said, her tone dripping with playful sarcasm.

“Daha and Erha?” Hearing his wife say that, Cao Shujie suddenly felt uneasy. Come to think of it, those two goofballs just might be capable of that.

(End of Chapter)