HLM -Chapter 805 Little Wang Cuts the Line

In the end, Mayor Wang still didn’t pay. McKesson had only been joking — he was a stubborn old man, and since he’d already promised to give everyone gifts for free, he refused to accept a single cent.

As he went out to get in the car, Fan Dong asked, “How much did you spend?”

Wang Bo shot him a sideways glance. “What, Captain Fan, you planning to reimburse me?”

“Of course — how could we let you spend so much?” Fan Dong replied. “We’re splitting everything evenly, remember? So, how much exactly?”

Wang Bo pointed to the ivory-handled saber in Fan Dong’s hand. “That one cost five thousand. Let’s start by splitting that, shall we?”

“Five thousand yuan?”

“Who said yuan? We’re in New Zealand. That’s five thousand New Zealand dollars!”

Fan Dong immediately shook his head. “Is this thing made of gold? If you’re going to scam us, at least make it believable. You think we’ve never seen the world? Five thousand NZD — that’s over twenty thousand RMB!”

Wang Bo said, “If you don’t believe me, you can ask around when we get back. That knife’s been around for half a century. Later, when we reach the ranch, ask the other cowboys — it’s a model based on the Australian cavalry sabers made after World War II. The handle’s ivory — more expensive than Zhang Rui’s jade one.”

Fan Dong stared, dumbfounded. “Ivory handles are pricier than jade?”

Wang Bo searched online and showed him a few articles. “I’m not bluffing. Ivory’s super expensive here because it’s banned from import now — all the ivory here was brought in ages ago. Jade’s pricey too, sure, but since New Zealand produces it locally, the price doesn’t skyrocket.”

Fan Dong awkwardly patted his wallet. “Damn, I’d have to work a whole year just to afford one knife?”

He was a low-level civil servant back in town, with a decent position but little actual take-home pay. As for embezzlement? He wasn’t nearly high enough up the ladder for that — getting free meals and drinks was already his biggest perk.

Wang Bo chuckled as he started the engine, turning the wheel. “So yeah, if we really go Dutch, just this little shopping trip alone would bankrupt half of you.”

“New Zealand’s really that expensive?” someone muttered.

“Wait till winter when you’re buying fruits and vegetables,” Wang Bo said. “Then you’ll know what ‘expensive’ truly means!”

Today, they were heading to the ranch. Everyone had already changed into casual clothes and proper boots. Driving north along the New Zealand highway, they soon reached a vast stretch of grassland.

The town now had two ranches — one controlled by a Level-3 Pasture Heart, which was the main ranch raising cattle, sheep, and deer; and another run by a Level-1 Pasture Heart, mainly for poultry like chickens, ducks, and geese.

The Level-1 ranch came first, but the Level-3 one was the first visible from the road.

Across the even, lush green plains, countless white, yellow, and black cattle, sheep, and deer were scattered about. As the white flocks and herds of yaks moved, they looked like drifting clouds on a green sky.

It was Saturday, and Eva was free — she was waiting for them on horseback.

She was riding a black stallion, trotting leisurely around the ranch, followed by a few Rottweilers barking enthusiastically. Seeing this, Song Jiashu said, “Now this feels like a Western movie.”

Zhang Rui, who came from the northwest of China where people also raised cattle and sheep, was most surprised by how clean the livestock looked. “These cows and sheep are spotless. Don’t tell me they get bathed often?”

Wang Bo laughed. “Of course not. It’s probably because the pasture and the air are clean.”

The grass on the ranch grew incredibly fast — even with thousands of grazing animals, there were no bare patches at all. The land was a rich, soothing green — a sight that delighted the eyes.

When they arrived, Eva rode over and smiled. “Anyone want to ride with me and herd some sheep?”

“I do!” Hou Haibo eagerly raised his hand.

His girlfriend shot him a look. “Do you even know how to ride a horse?”

“I do at night, not during the day,” he said honestly.

Eva didn’t understand and frowned slightly at Wang Bo. The others couldn’t help but snicker.

Zhao Xiaohui gave Hou Haibo a shove. “Stop making dirty jokes, especially in front of Eva.”

Wang Bo waved his hand. “It’s fine — I know what kind of guy he is.”

Eva could roughly understand some Chinese. When she realized what they were laughing about, she covered her mouth with her riding whip and giggled. “Oh my, Chinese really is a profound language. Thank goodness Wang’s a simple man.”

“How’s he simple?” Fan Dong teased, glancing slyly at Old Wang.

Wang Bo just whistled — a sharp, clear sound that echoed across the fields. A moment later, a huge shadow broke away from the herd, roaring as it came running.

“Rooaaar!”

It was Little Wang.

The ligertiger’s appearance was downright intimidating — but somehow, it always found itself in ridiculous situations. This time, it had wandered into the yak herd. Its sudden roar startled the cattle, which bolted in all directions.

Little Wang, caught near the edge, turned to see a stampede of white yaks charging toward him. Terrified, he tucked his tail and took off running after them.

Eva sighed helplessly. “Run the other way, you silly thing! Why are you running with them?”

She shook her head and said to the others, “This child’s got a big head, but… how do you say it in Chinese… ah, yes, he’s ‘missing a few strings’ up there. Always doing silly things.”

“Missing a few screws — ha! This ligertiger’s so dumb it’s cute,” Zhu Fang said, laughing as she watched Little Wang running frantically with a blank look on his face.

The poor creature was giving it his all. Despite his massive size, he was a coward at heart — whether in town, at the ranch, or in the animal yard, his philosophy was always: Don’t mess with people, and if they mess with you, run fast.

Now that he’d gotten swept into a stampeding herd, he didn’t know what was going on, but he did know that if he slowed down, he’d be trampled. So he ran like his life depended on it.

Most ligertigers were clumsy — their bodies grew too fast, their organs couldn’t keep up, and neither could their brains.

But Little Wang was different. He had a Soul Heart and a Nest Heart nurturing him — he was strong, muscular, and massive.

So unlike others of his kind, he could run fast — really fast. With his huge frame and brute strength, any yak that blocked his way got shoved or knocked aside. Before long, he was leading the charge.

“This guy’s just like us in high school, cutting the lunch line after class,” Fan Dong said in amazement.

Little Wang kept running until the field opened up. Suddenly realizing he was in the clear, he looked back and started jumping around excitedly.

Then the herd caught up again, and he let out a terrified screech and bolted once more, claws flailing.

Seeing that the dumb beast didn’t even realize he was already free, Wang Bo had no choice but to ride closer and shout.

Hundreds of hooves thundered against the ground, the whole pasture trembling slightly. His voice was barely audible — but ligertigers had sharp hearing.

Little Wang heard him, spotted the direction, shoved aside a few cattle, and dashed toward him.

Wang Bo, seeing the big beast charging straight for him, wisely tried to dodge —

But Little Wang slammed on the brakes too late. His oversized head and body didn’t quite agree on timing, and he tumbled forward, rolling several times with a thud-thud-thud…