Chapter 37 of 100

Chapter 37

16 min read3,895 words

A week of ranch life was very busy. Only by experiencing it firsthand did Liu Yunxuan realize how hard the cowboys had to work for their money.

Every morning, he had to get up very early to groom the horses and prepare hay for the cattle. After letting the cattle out to graze, he had to clean the manure from the cowshed.

This was very important because cow manure was very suitable for fly breeding. If not cleaned in time, a large number of flies could breed, causing significant losses to the ranch. Flies can spread many diseases, the most important for animals being foot-and-mouth disease and E. coli. Moreover, if there were a large number of flies in the herd, it could lead to restlessness, even mutual rubbing and biting, reducing the meat quality. In such a mental state, the cattle would grow very slowly.

After all this was done, he had to go to the pasture to watch over the herd, making sure none had wandered off or that someone else's cattle had wandered in.

Liu Yunxuan always worked with his two subordinates. He learned quickly, and Garcia said that in a few more days, once he mastered horseback riding, he would be a qualified cowboy.

The new herd of cattle, which Liu Yunxuan fed with space water every day, were very healthy and had already adapted to life on the ranch. In recent days, he had branded the cattle on their hindquarters with a Chinese character "田" (field). This way, if any of the cattle wandered off, others would know they belonged to him.

Flame had also recovered well, with a bright red coat and a strong, majestic appearance, almost unrecognizable from when Liu Yunxuan first met him. However, Flame required personal attention from Liu Yunxuan.

Now, Flame had his own large stable. If it was too small, he would cause trouble. Every morning, after Liu Yunxuan groomed him, Flame would go out to play in the pasture, returning whenever he was hungry. He was the most leisurely one on the entire ranch.

The weather was gradually warming up, and Liu Yunxuan picked up his old trade. What old trade? Of course, it was growing watermelons and vegetables.

The American public took food safety very seriously. In the United States, you couldn't just sell vegetables you grew. Without the relevant inspection documents from the U.S. Department of Agriculture, no supermarket or market would stock them. Moreover, a new brand, even if stocked, would not have high sales.

Especially since Liu Yunxuan still planned to target the high-end market in China, it was even more difficult.

Later, after listening to the boss's complaints, Garcia suggested that he must get organic vegetable certification from the U.S. Department of Agriculture. Although it was difficult, once certified, the American public would accept it more quickly. As for how to do it, Garcia didn't know.

With no choice, Liu Yunxuan called Charlie for advice.

"Charlie, I need your professional advice," Liu Yunxuan said.

"Hey, Liu, what's the problem? By the way, how's Flame doing?" Charlie asked. When Charlie left, he encouraged Liu Yunxuan to buy more horses so he could come over and ride them. In fact, Liu Yunxuan also wanted to buy more, but he didn't have enough money, and it was troublesome to transfer money from China, so he had to wait.

"Flame is doing great. You'll be surprised when you see him again," Liu Yunxuan said happily. "I'm calling you mainly to ask about the process for organic vegetable certification."

"Wow, Liu, are you serious? Why are you doing this? Isn't it good enough to raise cattle on your ranch? You should know that organic vegetable certification is very complicated and has high requirements," Charlie was puzzled. Why would a good ranch start growing vegetables?

"I just saw that there was some idle land on the ranch, and I don't plan to grow corn. Besides, I have some experience with organic vegetables from back home," Liu Yunxuan explained.

"Alright, I'll help you with the contacts. But you need to be prepared; it's not easy to get through. Their certification is very strict. First, they will check if your land meets the standards, and they will inspect whether you use harmful substances during the planting process and whether the seeds you use are genetically modified," Charlie said a lot in one breath.

Finally, he reminded Liu Yunxuan that the Department of Agriculture would send a team of at least ten people to evaluate the organic vegetables he planted. When these people come, don't try to bribe them with gifts; the consequences would be very serious. If discovered, you would be sued, and the certification would definitely fail.

After hanging up the phone, Liu Yunxuan was relieved. Old Hudson's ranch was really good. No chemical fertilizers or pesticides had been used when growing corn. The Department of Agriculture's first requirement for soil was that no chemical substances had been used for at least three years.

Moreover, the ranch did a good job of fly control, using only physical methods and no chemical agents.

Charlie acted quickly. Three days after the call, a team of evaluators from the Department of Agriculture arrived at the ranch.

Liu Yunxuan had Garcia lead a few people to check the surrounding environment and take soil and water samples. He himself presented the prepared documents, introducing the ranch's status over the past few years. These people didn't stay long, took the samples, and left with the documents. Liu Yunxuan saw that they had taken at least dozens of samples for testing.

"Garcia, what vegetables are in high demand in the U.S.?" Liu Yunxuan asked.

"Cabbage, broccoli, cauliflower, and carrots should sell well," Garcia said.

Liu Yunxuan had been in the U.S. for some time and knew that the cabbage Garcia mentioned was actually green cabbage, broccoli was cauliflower, and cauliflower was broccoli. Since the main use of vegetables in the U.S. was for making salads, the market demand was quite substantial.

Without waiting for the Department of Agriculture's test results, Liu Yunxuan bought seeds from an organic seed store and started planting. He was confident in the land and had even sprayed the vegetable plot with space water before the test. The main vegetables he chose to plant were green cabbage, broccoli, and carrots. Of course, he also planted some potatoes, cucumbers, and tomatoes for his own consumption.

The fertilizer, of course, was the manure from his own ranch. Liu Yunxuan also learned how to operate a rotary tiller from Garcia. The one left by Old Hudson was a tracked model with no steering wheel, only control levers. It was actually quite simple; as long as you understood the specific controls, Liu Yunxuan tilled the last 10 acres of land himself.

Life in the U.S. was all good, except for the food, which he found hard to get used to. He had no choice but to go to Chinatown for groceries. The local supermarkets didn't sell woks. Now, Garcia and Rodriguez were responsible for breakfast and dinner. Their cooking skills were average, but you couldn't expect every cowboy to be a good cook.

These days, Liu Yunxuan often watched Flame, planning when to take him for a ride.

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