Chapter 95: Lu Qingshan Acts Again! Cattle and Sheep Fill the Village!

The bustling land at the mountain's foot, where wildness and vitality intertwine, with deer bleating, pigs grunting, chickens crowing, dogs barking, has already become a distinctive sight of Shanwan Village.

Lu Qingshan's grand undertaking does not stop here.

After the Spotted Deer, elk, and Wild Boar piglets were settled, he began to contemplate another matter.

Once the breeding scale expands, feed becomes a major cost; relying solely on cutting grass in the mountains or buying grain from the county is not a long-term solution.

Moreover, Shanwan Village has many hills and little arable land; aside from the plots he newly reclaimed, most villagers still survive on a few acres of thin fields.

He calculated that if this special breeding and herbal medicine planting can truly take off, he will inevitably need to hire more labor later.

Giving a man a fish is less useful than teaching him to fish; he must find ways for the villagers to have multiple livelihoods.

That day, he specifically sought out Zhang Jianguo.

Nowadays, Zhang Jianguo, thanks to the exotic game and novel ingredients supplied by Lu Qingshan, has a booming restaurant business, and his standing at his workplace has also risen, giving his words much more weight.

"Brother Qing Shan, you're a rare guest!"

When Zhang Jianguo saw Lu Qingshan, he immediately greeted him with a beaming smile, personally brewed fine tea, and said, "What wind blew you here today, great Buddha?"

Lu Qingshan didn't bother with pleasantries, getting straight to the point: "Brother Jianguo, I have something I'd like you to inquire about."

"Hey, between us brothers, just say it straight! Whatever you need, go ahead!" Zhang Jianguo pounded his chest.

"I want to obtain a batch of quality small‑tailed cold sheep and local yellow cattle calves from the county's state‑run breeding farm."

Lu Qingshan pondered, "Ideally at internal price. As for quantity, start with twenty ewes and two rams of the sheep, and six calves of the cattle."

Upon hearing that, Zhang Jianguo's eyes flickered, and he laughed, "You kid, this deal is getting bigger! Fine, I'll take care of it. I have a bit of a connection with the breeding farm's director; I'll put my old face on the line for you, the internal price won't be a problem."

He then lowered his voice: "But brother Qing Shan, the county's not peaceful lately; you need to be careful when hunting in the mountains. I heard… Captain Chen and his men are swamped."

Lu Qingshan's mind stirred: "Captain Chen? What happened?"

Zhang Jianguo sighed, "What else? A group of murderers fled from a neighboring province not long ago, extremely ferocious, and reportedly armed. The provincial government issued a death‑order, dispatching police, criminal investigators, and armed police from every city and county, conducting round‑the‑clock net searches. Captain Chen's team likely can't even return home."

Fleeing murderers?

Lu Qingshan's brows furrowed slightly.

Although overall security has improved these days, such malignant cases, once they occur, have a huge impact.

In his past life, several major robbery‑murder cases occurred consecutively in the Northeast, leaving a vague impression; this wave of bandits likely came from Shen City.

Moreover, the Ganfanpen Mountains stretch in rolling folds, with complex terrain and forests as deep as seas, truly a good place to hide.

"Brother Jianguo, thanks for the warning, I'll be careful," Lu Qingshan said calmly, keeping the matter in mind.

Now his family and business are large, with wife, children, and elders all in the village; safety cannot be ignored.

As Zhang Jianguo predicted, a few days later he called Lu Qingshan and sent a message to the village: the breeding farm side had already been arranged.

Lu Qingshan immediately set off for the county seat, accompanied by Liu Fugui and Zhao Tiezhu, hurrying with a mule‑cart borrowed from the village, in high spirits.

Twenty plump, robust, glossy‑coated small‑tailed cold sheep, two majestic rams with spiraling horns, and six locally bred yellow cattle calves with endearing clumsiness yet a stubborn glint in their eyes were herded back to Shanwan Village by the three of them over the course of a whole day.

This spectacle was even more eye‑catching than the last time they transported Spotted Deer.

"My god, Lu Qingshan is turning our Shanwan Village into a livestock market!"

"How much will this cost! Both sheep and cattle!"

The villagers debated, their eyes full of astonishment and envy.

These newly arrived 'treasures' were placed by Lu Qingshan in his own breeding area, on the other side of the special breeding zone, each occupying five acres.

He went straight to Zhao Laonian's courtyard at the village entrance.

Zhao Laonian is a five‑guarantee household; he attended a private school in his youth, and his legs are somewhat impaired from injuries sustained when he went up the mountain years ago.

He usually works as the village accountant and answers calls, living alone, making a living by weaving baskets and doing occasional carpentry.

He is very silent, but everyone in the village knows Uncle Laonian is kind‑hearted; whenever a family is in trouble and he can help, he never refuses.

At this moment, Zhao Laonian sat at the doorway of his low earthen house, squinting at the sun, leisurely polishing a piece of wood in his hand.

"Uncle Laonian!" Lu Qingshan said with a smile as he walked forward.

Zhao Laonian lifted his head, a hint of surprise flashing in his cloudy eyes as he looked at the herd of cattle and sheep behind Lu Qingshan, somewhat bewildered.

"Uncle Laonian, I bought some cattle and sheep and would like to ask you to help look after them."

Lu Qingshan crouched down, his tone very sincere, "Don't worry, I'll provide all the feed and fodder. In addition, I'll give you a hundred yuan each year as a hardship allowance, and you'll also get meat during festivals."

One hundred yuan! And meat!

Zhao Laonian's weathered hands trembled slightly, his lips moved a few times as if to speak, but he said nothing.

He had never in his life seen so much money, let alone a steady supply of meat.

"Qing Shan… this… this is too much…"

After a while, he rasped, "I'm an old man, I can't do heavy work…"

"Uncle Laonian, with your abundant experience raising cattle and sheep for landlords, looking after these animals will surely be fine."

Lu Qingshan smiled, "It's just daily feeding and making sure they don't wander off. Besides, living alone is lonely; the village accountant has little work, and having these cattle and sheep as companions makes things lively."

Zhao Laonian's cloudy eyes became slightly moist.

He silently watched Lu Qingshan, the young man, truly different from the former reckless kid.

He nodded, his voice still hoarse yet with a faint tremor: "Alright… I… I'll watch over them for you."

Thus, on Shanwan Village's map, another important 'industrial base' appeared.

At the western end, Lu Qingshan's new house is a stable home.

West of the new house lies the herbal medicine trial field painstakingly tended by Zhao Tiezhu, now sprouting many seedlings, a verdant expanse full of vitality.

At the western foot of the back mountain, Liu Fugui oversees the special breeding area, where Spotted Deer, elk, and Roe Deer stroll leisurely in the enclosure, occasionally bleating; the wild boar piglets are gradually adapting to captivity—still wild‑hearted but no longer smashing the fence. Fruit seedlings have also been planted, and chicks happily peck beneath the trees.

At the eastern foot of the back mountain, Uncle Zhao Laonian's cattle and sheep breeding area has become a new playground for the village children, with frequent sounds of their laughter as they tease the livestock.

In a short time, Lu Qingshan's business map in Shanwan Village expanded rapidly: herbal medicine planting, poultry farming, deer and roe deer taming, cattle and sheep breeding—all taking shape with clear division of labor and orderly progress. The whole village pulsed with unprecedented vitality thanks to Lu Qingshan.

Zhao Tiezhu has poured his lifelong heart into those few acres of herbal medicine trial fields.

Every day he gets up before dawn, carries a water bucket to the river to draw water, and carefully waters each medicinal seedling.

Weeding, loosening the soil, and observing growth take more care than tending his own son.

When he saw the first batch of ginseng seeds sprout tender shoots, the two tiny, fuzzy cotyledons stubbornly pushing up the soil, sparkling with crystal‑clear dew in the morning light, this simple‑hearted man, a robust laborer in his twenties, was so moved that he squatted on the ground, his eyes reddened, almost to tears.

Now he walks with a breeze in his stride, his back as straight as a ruler.

In the past, villagers called him "Tiezhu" or "Hanzi," but now many politely shout "Brother Tiezhu," and some even joke and call him "Herb Head."

He occasionally carries a hoe and passes by the breeding area overseen by Liu Fugui.

Watching the Spotted Deer and Roe Deer leisurely grazing in the enclosure, or alertly perking their ears to scan the surroundings, Zhao Tiezhu can't help but smack his lips, his Adam's apple bobbing, drooling with hunger.

"Fugui," he leans in, lowers his voice, and asks mysteriously, "Tell me… what do deer meat and roe deer meat taste like? I've lived over twenty years, have hunted but never eaten, never even smelled them."

Liu Fugui was directing a few half‑grown boys to add feed for the deer; hearing this, he shot Zhao Tiezhu a scornful glance and said, "I say, Brother Tiezhu, can you have any ambition? These are all Brother Lu Qingshan's precious offspring, hoping they'll breed and spread their branches. Yet you, always dreaming of eating them!"

"I'm… I'm just curious!"

Zhao Tiezhu chuckled, scratched his head, and said, "When we raise more later, Brother Lu Qingshan will surely let us have a taste of the fresh meat."

"That's natural!"

Liu Fugui puffed out his chest, his face radiant with pride, and said, "Follow Brother Lu Qingshan, the good days are still ahead!"

The two men both entrusted with important tasks by Lu Qingshan—one simple‑hearted and persistent, the other clever and diligent—have now become Lu Qingshan's indispensable right‑hand men in his endeavors.

Their interaction, tinged with a bit of envy and teasing, has become a distinctive sight in Shanwan Village.

The villagers see it with their eyes and rejoice in their hearts.

Lu Qingshan is like a stabilizing pillar; not only has he secured a good life for himself, but he has also led the whole Shanwan Village toward unprecedented prosperity.

Everyone looks to the future with unprecedented anticipation and longing.

Only, Lu Qingshan stands in the courtyard of his new house, gazing at the distant rolling, dusk‑deepening Dry Rice Basin Mountains, and feels a faint unease in his heart.

The news Zhang Jianguo brought, like a drop of ink falling into clear water, though tiny, spreads silently.

The fugitive murderer…

This Guandong Mountain, which he depends on for survival and is determined to turn into a Treasure Basin, also seems to hide unknown dangers.

A mountain storm looms, wind filling the building. Lu Qingshan squints, his fingers instinctively rubbing the hilt of the hunting knife at his waist, his gaze deepening.

He knows that beneath the tranquil days, hidden currents may be quietly flowing.