aircannonsinc Chapter 1242 The Ranch Gets Back on Track
Chapter 1242 The Ranch Gets Back on Track
A week later, at Nata, Shao Yun's ranch.
With the Shao family's honeymoon over and their household registration settled, it was time to start their ranch life.
Shao Yun also retrieved the Merino sheep, dairy cows, and laying hens from the system.
Every morning after getting up, before having breakfast, I would take Yuan Shang to milk the cows. Then Yuan Shang would pour the raw milk into the machine made by Sinon, sterilize it, and then seal and bottle it.
As for where the jar came from… Xinoning said, "Don't say anything, I want to be left alone…"
As for how to sterilize the jars... Shao Yun: Should I use the power of the "Plague" from the Apocalypse Horse to sterilize them, or should I let Yuan Shang figure it out himself?
Yuan Shang's idle life as a steward has come to an end. Every day after Shao Yun goes to herd cattle and sheep, he has to take cleaning tools and clean the livestock sheds to prevent the livestock manure from emitting a foul odor that affects daily life.
As for the chicken coop, Yuan Shang cleaned up the micro-business, but Ning Guang was in charge of feeding the chickens and taking out the eggs laid by the hens.
Of course, Ningguang didn't take all the eggs at once, but left one or two "entice eggs" to prevent the hen from laying eggs and from losing weight.
After Shao Yun started herding cattle and sheep, Ying and Paimeng would take Xiaolong out to take on commissions to pass the time.
Shen He, on the other hand, is wholeheartedly taking care of her baby. Now the baby is almost seven months old, and in addition to taking care of the child every day, she has also started to research baby food.
For the past few days, Celeste has been staying at Shao Yun's house, avoiding the merchant "Monluson" who came from Fontaine.
Sylvia was having a wonderful time at Shao Yun's house, with endless light novels to read every day, and the reflection of Fontaine.
Sometimes, when Shen He and Ning Guang are cooking, they ask her to help take care of the baby, Xi.
Xi has already learned to sit on the sofa for short periods of time. When Shen He prepares baby food, the little baby sometimes sits on the living room sofa with Cecilia.
Cecilia also really liked the baby in Shao Yun's family, and she was quite happy to take care of him for a short period of time.
But if she were to keep bringing him along... of course, she wouldn't have that opportunity; Shen He wouldn't agree to it!
……
It was another ordinary morning. Sunlight streamed through the windows of the dining room, gently illuminating the dining table covered with a light wood tablecloth.
The table was already laden with a sumptuous breakfast: golden and crispy fried eggs, fried bacon emitting a rich meaty aroma, and steaming white steamed buns bursting with wheat fragrance when broken open.
The fragrant meat congee steams in the bowl, while a refreshing vegetable salad sits in a glass bowl, making it look incredibly appetizing.
Seth Lari sat at the table, thoroughly enjoying her meal.
This life is so much better than her previous lonely existence.
"Hmm, I've had a really great time staying at your place these past few days," Sitrali said contentedly, swallowing the food in her mouth.
"There's delicious food, fine wine, and light novels and Fontaine Films to keep you entertained. It's like being on vacation."
As she spoke, she handed her empty cup to Ningguang across from her, a playful smile on her face, and requested, "Um, Miss Ningguang, could I have another cup of milk with 'bitter water' added?"
Ningguang put down her chopsticks upon hearing this and naturally took the cup from Sitale.
"Okay... hot cocoa milk, right? Please wait a moment."
She got up and walked towards the kitchen, the maid's skirt swaying gently with her steps, leaving behind an elegant silhouette that didn't belong to a servant.
As Sitale watched Ningguang's retreating figure, images from the past few days flashed through her mind.
Ningguang not only manages the house perfectly and cooks delicious meals, but she also handles the ranch's chores with ease. How could such a perfect woman be in Shao Yun's house?
“Speaking of which, I’ve always wanted to ask,” Setrali turned to look at Shao Yun, who was munching on a steamed bun, and asked curiously.
"Where did you find such a good maid? She seems so professional. Whether it's cooking or doing housework, she's impeccable."
"Moreover, in terms of temperament, she feels a bit like a noble woman in a novel who has fallen on hard times. Although she is covered in dust, you can still see her former elegance and nobility."
Shao Yun, still chewing on a steamed bun, had been wondering when Shen He would make bread for her to try. When Cetalli asked her this, she vaguely raised her eyes and gave a perfunctory reply:
"Isn't this lavish breakfast enough to shut you up? Why ask so many questions?"
He had no intention of explaining Ningguang's true identity to Sylvanas. After all, there was no point in explaining the Seven Stars of Liyue to Sylvanas, the Nata High Shaman.
Seeing that Shao Yun didn't want to say more, Sitaley wasn't angry. She just stuck out her tongue and teased, "Just ask, can't I be curious? You don't think Ningguang was kidnapped by you, do you?"
At this moment, Paimon held a large glass of pure milk from his own ranch and gulped down more than half of it, not caring about the milk stains on the corners of his mouth.
As she put down the cup, she suddenly remembered something, swayed slightly, and looked at Sitlarie.
"Speaking of which, Celeste, why does that Fontaine merchant you mentioned, named 'Monluson,' seem so familiar? It's like I've heard that name somewhere before."
Hearing this, Ying also stopped eating, scratched her head lightly, and looked puzzled.
"I've felt that the name sounds familiar to me these past few days, very familiar, but I just can't remember where I've seen or heard it before."
She tried to search her memory for anything about "Montluçon"—the streets of Fontaine, the salons, her interactions with Funina… Fragmented images flashed by, but she could never piece them together completely.
Listening to their conversation, Shao Yun took out his diary.
The pages turned gently, the paper making a soft rustling sound, and my eyes wandered over the words.
"Let me see... Maybe I can find some clues in there."
The people around the table fell silent, their eyes fixed on the diary in Shao Yun's hand.
Not long after, Shao Yun's finger stopped on a certain page.
"Oh, I found it. When we were 'vacationing' in Fontaine, didn't Funina take us to a salon gathering?"
"She introduced us to two people at the time: one was the Fontaine printer 'Monluson' who was on the verge of bankruptcy, and the other was the dwarf photographer 'Manifico'."
Shao Yun didn't stop turning the pages, continuing to flip through dozens more until he reached the page that recorded Shao Yun's journey to Nata with Ying and Paimon after killing the Wind God, which also mentioned these two special people.
"Moreover, on the way I brought Ying to settle in Nata, I think I also encountered these two people, but the situation was a bit chaotic at the time."
“Ying and Paimon, you two suddenly disappeared. When you came back, you brought back the little dragon we’re raising now, ‘Potato Pancake,’ so I didn’t pay much attention to those two at the time.”
Sellarie's hand holding the fruit fork suddenly stopped. She hadn't even had time to chew the strawberries from the vegetable salad she had just put in her mouth when she heard Shao Yun say that Meng Lusong was a printer in Fontaine.
She immediately put down her fork, leaned forward slightly, and asked indistinctly:
"Wait a minute, a printer on the verge of bankruptcy? But I heard from Ollen that he was a bookseller in Fontaine?"
Immediately afterwards, Sitaleie subconsciously explained:
“I’ve been hiding here these past few days, so I asked Euron to find out about Monluson. He came back and told me that the man was just a bookseller in Fontainebleau. How did he become a printer here?”
Even though booksellers and printers are both related to "books," one resells finished products while the other is the source of production; they are not the same thing at all.
Shao Yungang closed the diary and stuffed it back into his backpack, saying casually:
“My diary is infallible. After all, Funina introduced it to us personally, so she had no reason to lie to us.”
He paused, recalling the contents of the diary, and added, "Furina also specifically mentioned that Montluson's printing business was about to go out of business and was on the verge of bankruptcy. Maybe he later switched to being a bookseller?"
“Changing careers?” Seth Lari repeated the two words softly, but the more she thought about it, the more something seemed off.
The guy Orlan was talking about was just a bookseller, he'd never done any other job! And he even said it was a family heirloom!
"Wait a minute, if he really changed careers, there's no need to hide his previous profession, right? Why would he want others to think he's always been a bookseller?"
Seeing Cecilia's furrowed brows and doubtful eyes, Shao Yun leaned back in his chair and crossed his arms in front of him.
"What's there to be afraid of? The Fools won't rebel against Heaven. Anyway, you'll be perfectly safe staying at my house for the time being, so don't overthink it."
Shao Yun picked up the last piece of steamed bun on the plate, stuffed it into his mouth and chewed it hard. Then he picked up the cup with the remaining milk, tilted his head back and drank it all in one gulp.
As he put down the cup, he wiped his mouth with the back of his hand and stood up to stretch his shoulders.
"Alright, I'm full. I'll go back to my room to change into some comfortable clothes, and then I'll go drive the cattle and sheep to the pasture."
Seeing that he was about to leave, Ying looked up and reminded him, "Be careful on the road. Don't get so engrossed in the scenery that you lose the sheep."
Upon hearing this, Shao Yun couldn't help but laugh and reached out to ruffle Ying's hair.
"I should be the one saying that to you. Today you're going out with Paimon and Xiaolong to take on a job, so make sure you keep a close eye on Xiaolong and don't lose him."
Ying blushed slightly at his teasing, stuck out her tongue, and made a face at Shao Yun.
"A little bit!"
Shao Yun smiled and waved his hand, then turned and walked towards the bedroom.
Paimon, standing to the side, let out a big yawn, his belly bulging.
"I'm full too! Ying, can we go to the Adventurers' Guild to accept a quest now?"
Setrali put down her fork, looked up at the kitchen, and said with a smile:
"I've almost finished eating, but the milk that Ningguang made for me with 'bitter water' hasn't arrived yet. I can't let her work for nothing, so I have to wait until I get it before I leave."
"Once I get the milk, I'll go to the study to continue reading. You have so many light novels; I haven't even finished half of them yet."
……