Everyone who goes herding has a horse.
Feng Tingxuan and his companions are no exception.
This is a must-learn skill for shepherds.
With such a large flock of sheep, it’s impossible to keep up with them on foot alone.
Feng Tingxuan couldn’t ride a horse at first, but now he’s quite skilled.
“Can you ride a horse?”
Lin Zhen, without a doubt, knows how to ride. In fact, his riding posture is very dashing.
He learned it in the cavalry camp.
Song Wei couldn’t ride, but after watching Lin Zhen mount the horse, she managed to get on too, though she still couldn’t ride properly.
Not wanting to delay the herders, Lin Zhen let them go ahead while he stayed to teach Song Wei.
“You’ll have to hurry. The grassland is vast, and it’s easy to get lost. If you do, you won’t be able to find us.”
Lin Zhen assured them, “If she can’t learn within an hour, I’ll bring her over.”
The flocks of sheep and cattle set off, while Lin Zhen took Song Wei to an open area to learn horseback riding.
The most important thing about learning to ride a horse is having courage.
In this regard, Song Wei has never fallen short.
As a result, things progressed much faster than expected. Within half an hour, Song Wei was already brave enough to gallop on the horse.
Her riding style was wild, even wilder than that of the local herders.
Lin Zhen was worried she might fall off, but he also knew that even if she did, she’d be perfectly fine.
Song Wei loved the feeling of running against the wind on horseback.
“Lin Zhen, let’s go!”
Her voice carried on the wind to Lin Zhen’s ears.
The man spurred his horse and chased after her: “Alright!”
Two large brown horses ran side by side, their riders looking heroic.
Little Boss, hanging in a cloth pouch on Lin Zhen’s chest, wasn’t the least bit scared of the horse’s speed. Instead, it let out excited barks.
If it weren’t for its short legs, which couldn’t keep up with the horse’s pace, it would have been running excitedly on the ground.
The grassland is a hearding dog’s domain, and it loved it here.
The flock of sheep didn’t move too fast, so Lin Zhen and Song Wei quickly caught up.
Seeing Lin Zhen and Song Wei riding towards them, everyone was surprised for a moment.
Yu Wei gave them a thumbs-up: “You guys are amazing.”
Despite Song Wei’s delicate appearance, her horseback riding was as bold and handsome as the local women.
This earned her a lot of goodwill from the herders.
After exchanging greetings, they drove the cattle and sheep to a lush pasture, slowing down even more.
Now, all they had to do was control the direction of the grazing animals and make sure none of them strayed.
Lin Zhen let Little Boss, who had been struggling to get down, out of the pouch.
As soon as the little pup hit the ground, it started running across the grassland.
It instinctively followed the flock, barking at any sheep that went the wrong way, wagging its tail as it tried to herd the much larger sheep back.
The sheep weren’t afraid of it.
But Little Boss didn’t give up. It circled the sheep, and perhaps out of annoyance, the sheep eventually returned to the flock.
Some sheep, however, grew impatient and kicked their hooves, lowering their heads to charge at Little Boss.
Despite its chubby appearance, Little Boss’s short legs were nimble, easily dodging the attacks and fearlessly continuing its mission.
“Little Boss, there’s a lamb lagging behind over there.”
Song Wei, riding high on her horse, pointed to a little lamb that had fallen behind while grazing.
Little Boss followed her direction and immediately scurried over on its short legs.
“Woof woof woof!”
The lamb was easier to herd, as it wasn’t much bigger than the pup.
Yu Wei, who had heard Lin Zhen and Song Wei talk about herding dog before, observed carefully today and realized the little pup was indeed suited for this job.
Watching the chubby little thing tirelessly searching for stray sheep to herd, he felt a itch in his heart.
“That little pup is really something.”
“Right? Squad Leader, if you like it, you can take one of Little Boss’s pups when it grows up and has its own litter.”
Yu Wei laughed heartily: “That sounds great. I’ll be waiting for Little Boss’s offspring.”
Little Boss’s performance was also noticed by the other herders, but few of them spoke standard Mandarin, so they couldn’t communicate with Lin Zhen and the others.
When Yu Wei approached, they bombarded him with questions.
Yu Wei proudly said, “That’s a hearding dog my comrade brought me, specifically for herding.”
If he had said this before, the herders might not have believed him, but after seeing Little Boss in action, they were starting to come around.
The little pup, despite its small size, already knew how to herd stray sheep. When it grew up, it might really be able to help with herding.
But they weren’t too impressed, as their own dogs were also quite capable. Some of their dogs could herd sheep and even alert them to dangers on the grassland.
As they moved on, the flock was divided for management.
As usual, Feng Tingxuan was assigned to take some of the cattle and sheep to graze further away.
Having the flock spread out allowed the sheep to eat more and made them easier to manage.
Song Wei and Lin Zhen, with Little Boss and a camera hanging around their necks, naturally followed Feng Tingxuan.
As they left, they shouted to Yu Wei, “Uncle Yu, we’re following this comrade over there. The scenery looks great.”
Everyone knew why they were here, so no one questioned them.
The grassland was vast, and once they were far enough, they couldn’t see or hear the others anymore.
The three horses rode side by side, and Feng Tingxuan visibly relaxed.
“Uncle, Little Boss is a hearding dog we brought for you. If you train it well, it’ll become your best helper. So from now on, you should call it and interact with it.”
Song Wei tossed him a bag of jerky.
“This is a snack we made for Little Boss. Use it as a reward when you interact with it.”
Little Boss was still very young and hadn’t spent much time with them, so it would be easier for someone else to take over its care.
Feng Tingxuan was genuinely touched. He hadn’t expected his niece to consider so much for him.
“Alright, thank you.”
He didn’t know what else to say but to express his gratitude.
Song Wei smiled. “No need to thank me. We’re family.”
With three people watching over a flock of sheep, things were much easier.
Although Lin Zhen and Song Wei were herding for the first time, their observational skills and riding speed were impressive.
Feng Tingxuan followed Song Wei’s advice and started bonding with Little Boss.
With the snacks for Little Boss hanging from his waist, he dismounted and watched the flock with the pup.
Whenever Little Boss herded a stray sheep, Feng Tingxuan would reward it with a piece of jerky and pat its head.
“Good job, Little Boss.”
Little Boss tilted its head to look at the man. It had caught his scent yesterday and didn’t find him unpleasant.
“Little Boss, come here.”
“Little Boss.”
Little Boss gradually grew familiar with his voice and, after successfully completing a task, would receive a treat. Slowly, it began to work in sync with Feng Tingxuan.
However, it was still very young and soon grew tired from all the running.
Feng Tingxuan picked up the exhausted pup, which was lying on the ground panting.
“Take a break.”
He gently poured water into an earthen bowl for it to drink.
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