"Next, we welcome the bull that ranked fifteenth yesterday. This bull, along with the tenth bull that will appear next, is from the same place, our neighboring province. Now, let's welcome Robbins from Tainlong Manor, Winthrop, Massachusetts... No. 1!" After the staff explained the situation, the host on stage shouted loudly.
As his voice faded, two young men were seen leading a cow slowly out from backstage. When the cow appeared, many in the audience below couldn't help but gasp.
Many of them had seen Jiang Hai's cows yesterday. After all, Selena Gomez's performance was still quite impressive.
Originally, they only voted for Jiang Hai because Selena had voted for him. In the eyes of most, Jiang Hai's fifteen nearly identical cows had no special features. Just like what Paul Kaye thought, one bull king is easy to raise, two bull kings rely on collision, and three bull kings are almost impossible. With fifteen identical cows, it seemed clear that Jiang Hai's cows were just ordinary.
But today, when Jiang Hai's cows were brought on stage, the audience was a bit confused.
Whether they were good or not depended mostly on comparison. As for Jiang Hai's Robbins No. 1, well, this was also Robbins-Garcia's idea.
Originally, when the staff called yesterday to ask for a name, the first name Jiang Hai thought of was Big Cow and Second Cow, which in bird language were translated as Wanbulu and Tubulu. They were a bit silly. Later, he considered naming them Copper Cow and Iron Cow.
However, that name was quickly rejected. In the end, Robbins decided that the cows were raised by him, much like his children. He didn't want to use the Garcia surname out of respect for his ancestors, but he would use Robbins. So, the cows were named Robbins No. 1 and Robbins No. 2... Anyway, back to the main topic.
The first cow to appear before Jiang Hai's was the one that ranked 16th yesterday, a Hereford cow.
This cow was still very impressive, weighing about 1,150 kilograms. It's one of the oldest cattle breeds in the world, with a wide body, a well-developed chest, plump muscles, and a short head. It had a broad forehead, a thick neck, and reddish-brown fur, looking quite striking.
The white markings on its face did resemble a skull, which lowered its ranking.
To be honest, it was still a fine cow. If sold as a whole, it could fetch between 12,000 and 15,000 US dollars as a breeding cow.
The judges had given this cow a high score of 8.74, which could likely impact the top eight rankings.
But when Jiang Hai's cow came on stage, everyone immediately felt that the previous cow's score was too high...
"This is an Angus cow, six months old, which is a good age for slaughter and breeding. It stands at 145.8 cm and weighs 805 kg. While it may not be as heavy as the earlier super baby, this is still a rare large Angus cow, and it seems to have more developed muscles than the previous one." The host had experience hosting such events and was familiar with cows. As he read off the cow's details, he also observed it carefully.
I have to admit, Jiang Hai's cow was slightly thinner than the Hereford, but the streamlined muscles on Jiang Hai's cow were incredibly impressive. More importantly, the presence of Jiang Hai's cow was completely different from that of ordinary cows.
While the other cows were simply cows, Jiang Hai's cow exuded a wildness that made it seem like it could be a predator.
It stood still, but when its intelligent eyes swept the room, many people felt a sense of unease, as if being stared at by a wild beast. This was the true strength of Jiang Hai's cow.
"After not seeing it for a night, this cow seems even stronger." Among the crowd, Pra-Walton was sitting nearby, accompanied by her men. She watched the cow on stage with a gleam in her eyes.
She felt she had made the right bet. Jiang Hai's cow was definitely not ordinary.
"Dad, this cow... is amazing." On the other side, Zhang Dehai's family of four was seated together. His eldest son adjusted his glasses and whispered to his father. Although he knew of Jiang Hai, he hadn't expected any real connection between them. He had simply thought Jiang Hai was a close friend of his father.
But now, it seemed that this person could be a huge asset to their family business.
"Of course I know him, my little friend. Is he really that simple?" After hearing his son's words and watching Jiang Hai with the cow, Zhang Dehai narrowed his eyes. He remembered Jiang Hai still had 20,000 of these cows.
"This cow is so beautiful..."
"It's so wild. I feel like if it weren't for the two men holding it back, it would have charged."
"Those eyes are incredible... If this cow isn't the king of cows, then what is? How could it have only ranked 15th yesterday?" Many shared similar thoughts to Zhang Dehai and Pra-Walton.
However, most professionals kept their thoughts to themselves, knowing that behind them, Western restaurants and supermarkets were already considering whether to discuss purchasing quotas with Jiang Hai.
The conversations now were mostly from tourists. To them, Jiang Hai's cows were extraordinary.
"Now that the basic introduction is over, please give your scores, judges!" The host touched Jiang Hai's Robbins No. 1 with some reluctance. He had been hosting events for so long that he'd seen many situations, some unpleasant—like a bull suddenly going crazy, refusing to cooperate, or even urinating and defecating on stage. He had dealt with all of these, but what he couldn't stand the most was the overpowering stench of some bulls.
As a host, he couldn't remain silent like the judges; he had to speak, and the smell made it difficult for him.
But Jiang Hai's bull solved that problem. It had a smell, but it was more of a fresh grassy scent, not the usual stench of a bull. This natural fragrance lingered.
The host wasn't eager for Jiang Hai's cow to leave the stage, knowing that the next bull would bring back that unbearable stench.
However, he was a professional, so he continued with his duties.
"Before we proceed with the scoring, I have one question for this young man. Where are you from?" Just as the host was about to prompt the judges for their scores, an elderly man in the audience slowly stood up and addressed Jiang Hai.
"I am from China. I came to the U.S. to invest in a ranch, now based in Winthrop." Jiang Hai stood up to answer the elderly man.
"Did you raise these cows?" The old man adjusted his glasses and asked excitedly.
"Well, I can't claim to have raised them personally, but they were produced on my farm, and the real credit belongs to my cowboys." Jiang Hai thought carefully, not revealing any secrets, not even to those closest to him. Shifting the credit to the cowboys was a win-win.
Bell-Lester, standing next to Jiang Hai, couldn't hide his excitement.
"I wonder if there are many cows like this on your farm?" The old man seemed surprised that Jiang Hai had deflected the credit. In American culture, a person like Jiang Hai, under 30, might be expected to boast about his success, but Jiang Hai remained humble.
"It's okay." Jiang Hai kept things vague when the old man inquired further.
"Let me introduce myself. My name is Babbitt Hill, and I am an animal protection scholar. I see that your cows not only show intelligence but also a hint of wildness. In China, we might call this 'spirituality.' Many of the animals we're conserving are bred in captivity, and after being released into the wild, they lack this sense of intelligence, which makes survival difficult. After the conference, I wonder if we could conduct some research at your manor." The old man spoke directly, causing murmurs among the crowd.
Babbitt Hill was well-known in the U.S., particularly in environmental circles. His endorsement could significantly raise the profile of Jiang Hai's manor, possibly making it a conservation area and increasing its land value by tenfold.
Backstage, people clenched their fists nervously, envious and jealous. It seemed Jiang Hai was unaware of Hill's significance, or if he was familiar with him, he might still be reluctant to let him conduct research.