One person and one cow braved the night wind on their way back.

Before they even got close, lights were already on inside the house.

When they were nearly at the bottom of the stairs, Xu Guozi’s voice rang out from the balcony:

“Look up here!”

“Why did you sneak out like this?”

“Just suddenly felt like going out for a walk,” Chen Niu said, tilting his head to look at Lin Nanyin beside Xu Guozi.

She had a jacket draped over her shoulders and was looking at him with a faint trace of worry in her eyes.

Chen Niu smiled at her, signaling that everything was fine.

Xu Guozi suggested, “Shouldn’t you bring Nanyin along? Want to go again?”

Chen Niu answered sincerely, “Maybe tomorrow.”

He was afraid Lin Nanyin and Xu Guozi might get startled otherwise.

Shi Qian caught the deeper meaning in his words, ignored everyone, and headed back inside to enjoy a long, dream-filled sleep during the golden hours of the night.

Once they returned, with nothing amiss, they all slept soundly through the night.

Early the next morning, the village became lively.

Looking at the younger generation, the students who had been admitted to university were all impressive. Among them, the standouts were undoubtedly Chen Niu and Lin Nanyin.

Chen Niu had quite a few “works” that had spread back to their hometown, and thanks to his influence, the village could receive a slightly larger share of resources.

As for Lin Nanyin, people usually described her—who studied medicines that could save lives—as being just as impressive as Chen Niu. Later, since the two were together, everyone naturally assumed both husband and wife were exceptionally capable.

While the villagers chatted, Shi Qian wandered off toward the cowshed.

The once-packed cowshed was nearly empty now, with only a few cows tied inside.

Since the household contract responsibility system had been implemented, production brigades had rapidly disappeared nationwide, and the collective cowsheds lost their original purpose. Today, this cowshed belonged solely to Xu Aigang, and inside were only his cows.

Among the herd, there was only one old cow, and it looked very aged.

When it saw Shi Qian approaching, the old cow lifted its eyelids, glanced at him, and made a sound: “Moo—”

It was probably a sign of slight recognition.

Shi Qian responded: “Moo moo.”

Little Cow Brother?

Shi Qian vaguely remembered having once tricked a young cow who was just learning to plow. At the time, Little Cow Brother had a stubborn streak and didn’t want to work, but Shi Qian had inadvertently caused him some trouble.

Upon closer inspection, the physical traits matched. Only the old cow now had more marks on its body, and its skin had developed folds.

“Moo—”

“Moo moo.”

Inside and outside the pen, the two cows called out to each other, drawing Xu Aigang out.

The old man hurried out, holding a small child in his arms.

“Qian Niuhua?” Xu Aigang immediately recognized him by the distinctive back and horns.

“Moo moo.”

It’s me.

Shi Qian turned and left Little Cow Brother behind to go to Xu Aigang.

The child in Xu Aigang’s arms froze at first, then excitedly kicked and squirmed: “Cow! Big cow! So big, so big!”

“Don’t squirm, don’t squirm!” Xu Aigang hugged the fussy little one tightly and complained to Shi Qian, “Taking care of a child is harder than raising cows.”

Shi Qian didn’t believe him: “Moo moo.”

Then why did you have kids?

He shook his head toward the child, enticing him to come onto his back to play.

Once the child took the bait, Shi Qian carried him on his back and headed toward Xu Aigang’s house.

Child: “Cow, cow, don’t go in the house!”

Xu Aigang explained: “Qian Niuhua is fine; this big cow is very smart and won’t make a mess in the house.”

After repeating it several times, the child reluctantly understood, while Shi Qian had already greeted the parents.

He had politely greeted them, Xu Aigang let his cow out, and Shi Qian went along to stretch his legs.

Xu Aigang chatted with him as before: “Qian Niuhua, what has Chen Niu been feeding you? You’re really well cared for—hardly a sign of your age.”

Shi Qian answered seriously: “Moo moo moo.”

Maybe it’s because I haven’t worked much? And I’ve been cheating a little.

Xu Aigang, of course, didn’t understand, but he answered himself: “Seems like he hasn’t done much work; when you left, you were young and hadn’t done as much, hadn’t suffered as much.”

Humans are the same. City people always look young and fair-skinned, unlike them, sun and wind make their skin rough and dark, sometimes cracking in winter—obviously older. Same age, but seemingly in different years.

Shi Qian’s youthful appearance, however, was so extreme that Xu Aigang kept remarking on it.

Shi Qian followed along. In the afternoon, when returning, he saw Chen Niu and the others heading toward the burial hill, so he parted ways with Xu Aigang to go up the mountain for the memorial.

At the gravesite, Chen Niu lit the yellow paper money.

Shi Qian stood nearby and complained: “Moo moo.”

Grandma, you’re hopeless.

Yesterday I even pulled weeds at the grave, but didn’t come to see me at night.

The later erected tombstone had a photo of the elderly woman smiling happily, as if mocking Shi Qian’s childishness.

Lin Nanyin was not unfamiliar either; in previous years, she had also followed Chen Niu back to pay respects during her free time.

After getting to know Chen Niu better, she respected the elder even more.

The couple hadn’t decided on having children yet, so they drew some confidence from the old lady.

Originally, Zhang Peiyue hadn’t planned to marry off her son; she was saving money for their retirement. Who would’ve thought the not-so-bright fool would also have springtime?

If an old-fashioned elder could think this way, why shouldn’t they follow the thoughtful wishes of the two?

After burning the paper money, they lit incense.

The distinctive scent drifted through the air. Chen Niu carried a sickle and busied himself around the graves.

Shi Qian was the root-pulling specialist, clearing the weeds in front.

Lin Nanyin shook off the weeds Shi Qian pulled, tied them up, and tossed them onto a borrowed cart.

Once finished, Chen Niu pushed everything down together.

After the memorial, with nothing else to do, the little family wandered like village kids.

After playing in the village, they went to nearby hills.

Passing through a cornfield, memories of old times surfaced.

Chen Niu led Lin Nanyin and Shi Qian to the hills where he had picked pears, then further into the valleys where he used to hunt.

Lin Nanyin recalled the days of trekking mountains for firewood and fodder.

The benefit of going uphill—there was always something edible to find.

Shi Qian was quite pleased.

Even together, Chen Niu and Lin Nanyin couldn’t eat as much as him; most ended up in his belly.

After finishing the hills, it was time to go down to the river.

They bypassed the fish-ponds where fish were caught and divided, walked a stretch, then followed the canal to see the old stone bridge.

Shi Qian followed the narrow path to the river, intending to dip his hooves lightly, but Chen Niu forcibly dragged him in before he could.

“The water’s cold, ancestor.”

Shi Qian: “Moo moo.”

It’s not that cold.

Chen Niu pulled him, and Lin Nanyin helped coax him; Shi Qian’s foot-dipping plan was ruined.

They wandered around the village and nearby areas, looking at hills and water. Though the scenery wasn’t remarkable, Chen Niu and Lin Nanyin stayed almost a month.

Some places are like that: when you’re used to them, you don’t notice; after leaving, every inch of land feels beautiful.

During this time, they visited Chen Niu’s former second aunt, Du Chun, who had divorced and formed a new family.

As for Chen Erjun, he was mentally unstable, wandering somewhere, or possibly dead—nobody had seen him for years.

When they were ready to leave, something new happened.

Some leaders invited Chen Niu and Lin Nanyin to a meal and consulted about suitable local development directions.

Compared to coastal areas, their region was central and lacked appeal; it seemed there were no obvious advantages to help the local people live better lives.

This kind of problem was obviously not something that could be solved all at once. The two of them only promised—they would make an effort to study it and conduct some local experiments, but they couldn’t guarantee any results.

After finishing this last matter, they drove back to the city.

The days of leisure had been too idle. The three of them spent every day together, and there were often moments when Shi Qian found it tiresome. So, the two of them decided to get a teaching job at a university for a while.

After returning to the city, they first bought two apartments. One was near Nannong University, and the other near the Medical College.

Because of Shi Qian, they could only buy single-family detached houses, otherwise they worried the floorboards wouldn’t support Shi Qian’s weight.

It was still summer vacation, and school hadn’t started yet. Shi Qian adapted more easily near Nannong, so they temporarily stayed in the apartment near the university.

Two months passed in a flash, and the home was fully arranged and in order.

Shi Qian nudged the two of them out the door, urging them to get to work.

Staying home all day and always wanting to play with him—it was exhausting!

After sending them off, Shi Qian lay down for half a day, then spent the rest of the afternoon wandering outside, planning to go to Wang Sian’s place to nibble on some grass.

Passing by the school gate, he noticed the security office inside was in the middle of discussing a big plan.

“This year we’re recruiting—”

Shi Qian’s eyes lit up. He strode forward, pressed himself against the window, and said, “Moo!”

Friends, hire me!

His long-delayed career as a security guard was finally about to begin.