With this question in mind, Xu Yun followed Little Niu out of William's cottage.
After lunch, Woolsop was a bit livelier than during the day, and since Little Niu took Xu Yun along the main road of the town, they inevitably encountered a few passersby.
Among them was an old man pushing a cart, in his forties or fifties, short and thin, with a face full of wrinkles.
When the old man saw another passerby not far away, he smiled amicably, but the moment he saw Little Niu, his face turned sour.
There was also a raggedly dressed shepherd boy, his exposed ankles red with cold, yet he still waved a dogtail grass nonchalantly.
When he glanced at Little Niu, he pursed his lips and gave a babyish humph.
And as the number of passersby increased, this wasn't just an isolated incident.
It was obvious.
Over time, Little Niu had demonstrated his talent for cursing.
With words that could cover the heavens, his toxic tongue unparalleled, spraying insults across the town without rival.
Indeed, besides being a school bully, Little Niu was also a blusterer—the kind who gets nastier with age.
If it weren't for William's backing, Little Niu would likely have ended up as a country loafer this time.
And this wasn't all, at Trinity College, because a couple often chirped outside his dorm window (though they were actually forty to fifty meters away according to the college's layout map), he even took a pot of water and sprayed for hours outside the boys' dormitory.
When thirsty, he drank a glass of water and continued spraying, forcing the couple to break up in tears...
As for his later verbal battle with Hook, it was so notable that it left a mark in history.
In 1715, Old Niu once wrote a sentence himself, saying 'The only one who can point at my nose and scold me as guilty is the priest,' which could also be considered a summary of his character.
Many locals use 'half angel, half demon' to describe Theshy, but this phrase is equally apt for describing Old Niu's scholarship and conduct.
However, Old Niu, who spent his life unmatched in taunts, also attracted a lot of the internet's backlash in the digital age, which in a way is rather karmic.
Of course.
While the passersby sneered at Little Niu, their glances at Xu Yun were varied:
Some hated him due to their animosity toward Little Niu, some were surprised, some were fearful, and others were curious.
After all, in a small place like Woolsop, not everyone understood the concept of Eastern People.
There was awareness of black hair, but it actually referred to Italians and Iberians, Portuguese, and the like, who are Latino.
Although Latinos have nearly black hair, if you look closely, it's actually a deep brown under strong light and is also curly, which is quite different from Xu Yun's situation—if you truly talk about black straight hair, the only person in Europe who fits is a Hungarian.
What, you ask why Monica Bellucci has black straight hair?
Have you heard of dyeing and straightening?
Couple that with Xu Yun's distinctly yellow skin, black eyes, and attire, it indeed sparked quite a few discussions along the way.
No surprise there.
It's estimated that by early tomorrow morning, the entrance to Wolseop village will become lively—fortunately, this isn't 13th century Europe, or else you might have some middle-aged Hero showing up to defeat him thinking he's the boss.
Xu Yun followed Little Niu for a while, then suddenly felt something seemed off:
"Mr. Newton, isn't this the road home?"
Little Niu lifted his eyelids to glance at him and said:
"Of course not, we're going to cut grass first."
"Cut grass?"
"That's right, cut grass."
Whether it was because he thought of the living expenses Xu Yun promised or those words about 'this boy,' Little Niu rarely explained further:
"I can lend you the bedding for sleeping, but you don't plan on lying directly on the ground, right? If you freeze to death, no one will pay me."
Xu Yun scratched his head, only then realizing he still needed to make a bed on the floor for the night.
Little Niu's garden room was completely wooden, certainly less insulated than William's red brick house, and it's not surprising for drafts to come in at night.
Added to that, the floor of Little Niu's bedroom was covered with dust from comings and goings, so having something to pad it would better not be skipped.
Sheepskin or something is out of the question, Little Niu himself only has hose pants, so they could only find some warmer materials to make a pad.
Afterward, under Little Niu's lead, the two arrived at a pond with plenty of reeds.
Seeing this patch of reeds, Xu Yun's eyes lit up:
It seems Little Niu's experience is quite sufficient, they could finally have a good 'mattress' tonight.
People who've stayed in rural areas or often camp should know that reeds are a very high-quality material for grass pads.
Reed grass pads are insulating in summer and cold-proof in winter, while also moisture-absorbing, offering great comfort when lying on them.
Besides artificial mattresses or animal fur, reeds should be one of the most suitable natural materials for making a mattress.
Obviously.
A long-term experience of living alone has honed many of Little Niu's life skills.
Upon arriving at the reed pond, Little Niu handed the Axe used for chopping trees earlier to Xu Yun:
"Fat Fish, you chop that side, I'll chop this side, once one batch is done, we'll set them aside to dry.
The sun sets early in winter, so we need to dry the reeds within four and a half hours."
Xu Yun took the Axe, nodded gently, without feeling surprised or out of place that the word 'Hour' slipped from Little Niu's mouth.
In ancient local civilizations, a day was divided into twelve Hours, while Europe had mechanical water clocks based on a 24-hour day as early as 100 BC in Athens, and by 1510, clockwork pocket watches appeared in Nuremberg, Germany.