Seven days passed in a blur of feathers, feed, and sweat.
For Li Wei, the week had been a crash course in animal husbandry without the safety net of modern veterinary care. Every morning began before dawn, checking the droppings boards for signs of illness, adjusting the ventilation in the coop based on the wind direction, and meticulously mixing the feed ratios.
The System had been true to its word.
**[Quest Complete: Tend to the Flock (7/7 Days).]**
**[Reward Unlocked: Junior Feed Formula.]**
The new formula was more complex than just grain and scraps. It required specific proportions of crushed oyster shells (for calcium and eggshell strength), dried insects (for protein), and a fermented mash made from vegetable peelings. It wasn't "magical" food, but the efficiency was undeniable.
The results spoke for themselves.
In the dim light of the storage room, Li Wei stared into the basket on the table. It wasn't full, but it wasn't empty either.
Twelve eggs.
In seven days, his six hens had produced twelve eggs. It was an average of nearly two a day, a miraculous yield for local village chickens that usually laid one every two days due to poor diet and stress.
"Twelve," Li Hua whispered, peering over his shoulder. She was practically vibrating with excitement. "That's enough to buy a new shirt! Or a pound of pork!"
"Don't get ahead of yourself," Li Wei said, though a smile tugged at the corner of his mouth. He picked up an egg, feeling the weight. The shells were hard, not brittle. The color was a rich, nutritious brown. "We're not buying pork. We're buying more feed and paying off a debt. Grab your shoes. We're going to town."
"Me too?" Li Chen asked, poking his head out from the curtain. He had his ink stick clutched in his hand, looking hopeful.
"Not this time, Chen'er," Li Wei said gently. "You need to study. Next time, I promise."
The boy looked disappointed but nodded obediently. He knew the value of every trip to town.
Li Wei turned to the basket. He needed a cover. "Hua, bring the blue cloth Mother uses for festivals. We need to make these look like a gift, not just farm scraps."
***
**The Walk to Qing Shui Town**
The road to town was busier than the last time. It was market day, which meant peasants from all the surrounding villages were hauling their goods—bundles of firewood, cages of skinny chickens, baskets of wild herbs.
Li Wei and Li Hua walked with purpose. Li Hua carried the basket on her arm, her sharp eyes scanning the crowd.
"Third Brother," she said quietly, nudging him. "Look at the people selling eggs by the roadside."
Li Wei looked. An old man was sitting on a rock, a small basket of eggs in front of him.
"Eggs! Fresh eggs! Five coins each!" the old man rasped.
"Five coins," Li Wei mused. That was the standard market price. "If we sell to the passersby, we might get five coins, but we'd be sitting here all day. And we might get stuck with unsold stock."
"We shouldn't sell to the random people," Li Hua said, her voice dropping to a conspiratorial whisper. "Random people haggle. They pinch the goods. We should go to a restaurant or a big household. They buy in bulk. They don't have time to argue over one copper coin."
Li Wei looked at his sister with renewed respect. She had a natural business instinct.
"You're right," he said. "We're going to the 'Fragrant Pavilion'. It's the biggest restaurant on East Street. They serve the merchants and the low-level officials."
"The Fragrant Pavilion?" Li Hua swallowed. "Third Brother, that place is expensive. They might chase us out."
"Not if we have what they need," Li Wei said confidently. "Remember what I taught you about the yolk color?"
"'The brighter the yolk, the better the taste, the richer the food,'" she recited dutifully.
"Exactly. Let's go."
***
**The Fragrant Pavilion**
The restaurant was a two-story wooden building, painted red and gold, with large lanterns hanging from the eaves. The smell of frying oil, garlic, and roasted meat wafted out onto the street, making Li Wei's stomach growl violently. He hadn't eaten meat in weeks.
Steeling himself, he walked up the steps, Li Hua close behind.
A waiter in a blue apron immediately stepped in their path, blocking the entrance. His eyes swept over their patched clothes and the simple basket.
"Hey, hey," the waiter waved his hand dismissively. "This isn't a charity hall. If you're looking for scraps, go around back to the kitchen door. Don't block the entrance for the guests."
Li Wei didn't flinch. He had dealt with gatekeepers in his corporate life. The key was confidence.
"We're not here for scraps," Li Wei said, his voice calm and clear. "We're here to sell. Take me to your Head Chef or the Manager."
The waiter scoffed. "Sell? What do you have? Wild vegetables? We have plenty of suppliers. Beat it."
"Five coins an egg," Li Hua suddenly blurted out, stepping forward. Her chin was raised, her eyes challenging the waiter. "And worth every copper."
The waiter paused, blinking at her audacity. "Five coins? You think your eggs are made of gold? Get out before I call the guard."
"Wait."
A deep voice came from inside the restaurant. A large man with a ruddy face and a white apron stained with grease stepped out. He wiped his hands on a cloth. This was clearly the Head Chef.
"What's the noise, Xiao Liu?" the Chef asked.
"Boss, just some village kids trying to sell eggs at a premium. I'm sending them away."
The Chef looked at Li Wei, then at the basket. He had been a chef for twenty years. He knew quality ingredients were rare. Most village eggs were small, pale, and tasteless.
"Let me see," the Chef said, holding out a hand.
Li Wei opened the cloth. The Chef peered in. He picked up an egg, feeling the weight. He tapped it gently against the table—a solid sound, not the hollow thud of a thin shell.
"Heavy," the Chef muttered. He cracked the egg open on a nearby prep table.
The yolk that spilled out was a deep, vibrant orange, sitting high and round in a thick, clear white. It didn't spread out thin and watery like ordinary eggs. It stood up like a jewel.
The Chef's eyes widened slightly. He looked at Li Wei.
"Orange yolk. Thick white. How are your village chickens laying this? Did you feed them dye?"
"Clean water, clean feed, and space to roam," Li Wei lied smoothly, omitting the oyster shells and fermentation process. "These eggs are fresh today. If you cook them, you'll find the texture is firm, not watery. The flavor is rich."
The Chef picked up a chopstick and poked the yolk. It didn't break easily. It was elastic.
"Good," the Chef admitted, wiping his finger. "Better than the stuff the usual suppliers bring. But five coins is the market price for *premium* eggs, and I usually pay four for bulk."
"Market price for premium is five," Li Hua interjected quickly. "But ours are *better* than premium. Look at that yolk. You can make a custard with this that needs less seasoning because the flavor is already there. You'll save on oil and spices, Boss."
The Chef stared at the young girl. A slow smile spread across his face.
"You have a sharp tongue, little sister. But business is business. I'll give you four and a half coins each. And I'll take the whole basket. Cash now."
Li Wei did the math instantly. Twelve eggs at 4.5 coins = 54 copper coins.
It was a fair price for a bulk sale, avoiding the risk of sitting on the street. It was a win.
"Done," Li Wei nodded. "But I have a condition."
The waiter scoffed again. "You have conditions?"
"Quiet," the Chef silenced the waiter. "What condition?"
"I will bring eggs every three days," Li Wei said, locking eyes with the Chef. "Same quality. Maybe more. I need a guarantee that you will buy them. In return, you pay four and a half now. If the quality stays this good, next month, we discuss five coins."
The Chef looked at this young man. He didn't look like a desperate peasant. He looked like a merchant in peasant's clothes.
"You're confident," the Chef noted. "Fine. I agree. Xiao Liu, pay them."
The waiter grumbled but pulled out a string of coins from his belt. He counted out fifty-four coins and slapped them into Li Wei's hand.
"Count it yourself," the waiter sneered.
Li Wei counted them slowly in front of the waiter. "One, two, three… fifty-four."
He pocketed the coins. The weight of the copper in his pocket was the heaviest thing he had ever felt.
"Thank you, Boss," Li Wei bowed. "We will be back in three days."
He turned and walked out, Li Hua practically skipping beside him.
***
**The Encounter in the Alley**
Once they were away from the restaurant, Li Hua let out a squeal.
"Fifty-four coins! We did it, Third Brother! We actually did it!"
"Shh!" Li Wei laughed, covering her mouth. "Don't broadcast it. In this town, showing money is asking for trouble."
They needed to buy supplies. They needed grain husks, maybe some cheap vegetables, and definitely more oyster shells if they could find them at the dock.
They took a shortcut through a narrow alley behind the rice shops to get to the wholesale area.
The alley was dark and smelled of rotting waste.
Li Wei stopped.
Ahead of them, two men were blocking the path. They looked like local thugs—unwashed hair, loose clothing, hands hidden in their sleeves.
"Well, well," one of the thugs said, stepping forward. He had a jagged scar on his lip. "A boy and a girl. Coming out of the Fragrant Pavilion with heavy pockets. Hand over the coppers, and maybe we'll let the pretty sister go."
Li Wei's heart hammered. He looked around. The alley walls were high. No way out but through or back.
He pushed Li Hua behind him. "Run back to the main street. Scream."
"I'm not leaving you!" Li Hua hissed, grabbing a broken piece of brick from the ground.
"Oh, a hero," the scarred thug laughed, pulling out a rusty knife. "Foolish. We just want the money. Don't make it hard."
Li Wei cursed his lack of martial arts. In his past life, he had done some boxing for fitness, but that was against padded opponents, not desperate criminals with knives. He calculated his odds. They were low.
Suddenly, a shadow shifted behind the thugs.
There was a pile of straw and discarded sacks in the corner. A hand shot out from beneath the sacks—large, calloused, and incredibly fast.
It grabbed the scarred thug's ankle.
*Yank!*
The thug lost his balance and crashed to the ground with a heavy thud, his knife skittering across the stones.
The second thug spun around, startled. "Who's there?!"
From the pile of refuse, a man stood up. He was tall, broad-shouldered, wearing a tattered military vest. He held a wooden crutch under one arm, his left leg seemingly injured. But his eyes were sharp, like a hawk's.
"Bullying children?" the man rasped, his voice like grinding gravel. "Pathetic."
The scarred thug scrambled up, face red with rage. "You old cripple! You're dead!"
The thug lunged. The man didn't retreat. He swung his crutch with devastating precision.
*Crack!*
The wooden crutch struck the thug's wrist, shattering the grip. Before the thug could scream, the man shifted his weight, driving a fist into the man's solar plexus.
The thug folded like a wet sack, gasping for air.
The second thug, seeing his partner drop in seconds, turned and ran, scrambling over the wall like a frightened monkey.
The scarred thug lay on the ground, wheezing, clutching his stomach. He looked up at the tall man with terror and scrambled away, limping.
Silence returned to the alley.
Li Wei stared at the man. The man turned to look at them. Up close, Li Wei saw the lines of fatigue on his face, the old scar running down his neck, and the way he favored his left leg heavily.
"Go," the man said flatly, turning to pick up his meager belongings from the straw pile. "Town isn't safe for kids with money."
Li Wei didn't leave. He stepped forward.
"Wait."
The man paused.
"Thank you," Li Wei said sincerely. "You saved us."
"I didn't do it for thanks," the man grunted, adjusting his crutch. "They were making too much noise. I was trying to sleep."
He moved to leave, but his stomach let out a loud, undeniable growl.
Li Wei looked at the man's tattered clothes. He looked at the injured leg. This was a fallen soldier. A man who had served the empire, now discarded like the straw he slept in.
An idea sparked in Li Wei's mind. He needed protection. He needed strength. He couldn't do this alone.
"Sir," Li Wei called out again.
The man stopped, his back stiffening. "I said go away."
"Are you hungry?" Li Wei asked.
The man turned his head slightly.
"I have money," Li Wei continued. "Not much. But enough for a meal. And I have a job. It doesn't pay much yet, but it comes with a roof. Even if it's just a shack."
The man turned fully, his eyes narrowing. "What kind of job?"
Li Wei pointed to the distance, towards the hills beyond the town.
"I'm building a ranch. I need someone to watch the flock. And I need someone to teach me how to protect it."
The man stared at him for a long moment. He looked at Li Wei's clean, honest face, and then at Li Hua peeking out from behind her brother.
"A ranch," the man scoffed, looking down at his lame leg. "You see this? I can't walk far. I can't run. What use am I to a ranch?"
"A watchdog doesn't need to run marathons," Li Wei said calmly. "It just needs to bite hard when it matters. You did that just now."
The man was silent.
"My name is Li Wei. This is my sister, Li Hua. We live in Willow Village. If you want a meal… come with us."
Li Wei didn't wait for an answer. He knew pride when he saw it. He turned and began walking towards the grain shop.
Li Hua looked at the man, then at her brother, and hurried after Li Wei.
After a few steps, the sound of a crutch hitting the pavement echoed behind them.
*Tap. Tap. Tap.*
Li Wei smiled internally.
**[System Notification: Potential Employee Detected.]**
**[Analysis: Combat capability – High. Loyalty potential – High.]**
**[Recommendation: Hire immediately.]**
The ranch now had its first guard.