Of course, before this most arduous flight began, the captain whipped out his phone and displayed impressive speed, successfully typing out a last will and testament in under ten seconds. It was unclear if it would still be relevant if the worst came to pass, but it felt like something that needed to be done. With an absolute spirit of fearlessness, the captain then commenced his battle against fate.
As the saying goes, difficulties are like springs; the weaker you are, the stronger they become. The very instant the captain decided to resist the forces of heaven and earth, fate capitulated…
Whether it was wind and snow or dark clouds, all vanished from the sky. The entire expanse above Snowland City became clear and bright once more. The warm sun shone on the faces of everyone inside the plane, leaving them momentarily stunned.
“Wow, do the weather conditions in the interior change this quickly?” asked the cute flight attendant from earlier, tilting her head. The chief flight attendant shook her head, “I don’t know, but it’s a good thing, at least we’re safe, right?”
The plane landed smoothly at Snowland City Airport. In the cockpit, the captain looked at his phone with an expression of sheer luck. He hadn't even managed to save the last will and testament he'd typed out. If the weather hadn't suddenly improved, he would have lost even that last shred of intent.
Meanwhile, Shen Yu, after enduring all sorts of chaotic twists and turns, finally arrived in Snowland City. Carrying her backpack, she left the airport. Her first priority was to find a place to rest.
Shen Yu was not from this area. After leaving the airport, she looked around and then found a taxi-goat driver, asking, “Which hotel around here has better facilities?”
The taxi-goat driver stroked the horn of his mount, a mountain goat. “You’re not from around here, are you? Let me tell you, if you’re looking for a place to stay, you should go to that one.”
Shen Yu followed the direction of his finger. A small, four-story building stood out amidst the surrounding skyscrapers near the airport. It was difficult to believe it was a hotel.
Shen Yu looked at the sign that read “Yangyang” and scratched her head. “Are you sure this is a hotel?”
The driver nodded with certainty. “Of course. You can’t be fooled by superficial appearances. Locals all know, this is the hotel with the best value for money.”
Shen Yu nodded. “Is that so? Then thank you.”
Carrying her backpack, she arrived at the entrance of the building called Yangyang and looked inside. Although the interior decoration wasn't opulent, it had a unique charm. What surprised her most was a photo frame on the counter. Unfortunately, due to the distance, it was impossible to see clearly if the photo in the frame was what she suspected.
To uncover the truth of the photo, Shen Yu pushed open the door of Yangyang and stepped inside. She walked to the counter and looked closely. The photo frame contained a picture of two people. A man was holding two skewers of lamb kebabs, and beside him was a boy, also holding two lamb skewers. They had their arms around each other, appearing to be in good spirits.
As she was looking, the owner of the establishment walked over. “This photo was taken a few years ago.”
Shen Yu turned her head. A man was holding a teacup, looking exactly like the person in the photo. Shen Yu pointed to the boy in the photo. “You, do you know Xia Huanao?”
The owner sat down on a chair behind the counter. “I know him, but not very well. We only have the friendship of two lamb skewers. This was taken when he was leaving Snowland City. He also gave me the idea, which is why I was able to turn a lamb skewer stall into this shop in just over a year.”
Shen Yu understood. She hadn't expected Xia Huanao to have such a story. “Is that so? Then I’ll stay here.”
After a simple night’s stay and tasting the lamb skewers that Xia Huanao had once enjoyed, Shen Yu couldn’t help but feel grateful to the taxi-goat driver outside. If not for him, Shen Yu really wouldn’t have found such a place.
…
The next morning at eight o’clock, Shen Yu came out of her room. As she passed the counter, she asked the owner, “Boss, do you know of any fun places in Snowland City?”
The owner looked up. “Yes, you can go out and take a taxi-goat to this ranch in the suburbs. It’s not far.”
As he spoke, the owner handed Shen Yu a slip of paper. Shen Yu took it and read the words “Yangyang Ranch” written on it. Shen Yu smiled. “Yangyang Ranch? What is your relationship with this ranch, boss?”
The owner did not hide anything. “This Yangyang Ranch is also my property, but it’s currently managed by my son and daughter.”
Shen Yu looked at the owner. “Boss, I admire you for having such a large enterprise.”
The owner was quite proud of his enterprise. “Of course. If you don’t have your own source of lamb, how can you make reliable lamb skewers? Enough said, you’ll understand when you go see it.”
Shen Yu thought for a moment, thanked the owner, and left Yangyang Inn, heading out to the main street. After just a few steps, a taxi-goat stopped in front of her. “How about it, want to go see Yangyang Ranch?”
Shen Yu was taken aback by the taxi-goat driver’s question, then replied, “Yes, what’s the price?”
She paid the fare cheerfully and got on. Sitting on the back of the mountain goat, Shen Yu looked at the surrounding scenery and asked the driver, “How did you know I was going to Yangyang Ranch?”
The driver, controlling the mount, chuckled. “We have a professional supply chain. Most of the taxi-goats you see in Snowland City are from Yangyang Ranch. Most of us drivers recommend staying at Yangyang Inn, and guests coming out of Yangyang Inn are generally recommended to go to Yangyang Ranch. You understand, right?”
Shen Yu couldn’t help but click her tongue in amazement. “This marketing strategy is quite something. But is it okay for you to say it like this?”
The driver replied, “It’s fine. This is very transparent. It’s on record with the Pokémon League in Snowland City. Otherwise, do you think such a large number of mount-goats could be running on the roads?”
Shen Yu looked around and indeed saw many people riding mount-goats on the streets of Snowland City.
Not long after, the taxi-goat slowly stopped outside Yangyang Ranch. Shen Yu dismounted and entered the ranch. As expected of the largest ranch near Snowland City, on the vast grasslands, various sheep-type Pokémon were lazily moving about. Miltanks and Skiddo were sunbathing leisurely on the grassland. 138reading.com
After walking a few steps, a girl approached her. “Are you here to visit Yangyang Ranch? I’m the ranch owner.”
Shen Yu pointed at the sheep in the pasture. “Are all these sheep yours?”
“Of course. Although it’s called Yangyang Ranch, we also have cow and horse-type Pokémon here.”
As soon as she finished speaking, a herd of Tauros galloped past them, kicking up dust, heading resolutely into the distance.
“Hmm, Tauros. They are usually like this. The other Pokémon at our ranch are quite well-behaved, see.”
The ranch owner was about to point something out to Shen Yu when she gestured towards a direction where a group of rabbits was riding on a group of sheep, roaming around.
Shen Yu asked, “Do you also raise rabbits on this ranch?”
The ranch owner shook her head. “No, generally ranches don’t raise rabbit-type Pokémon. These Pokémon damage the pasture even more than fire-types. It seems I can’t accompany you today; I need to go catch these rabbits.”
Shen Yu took out a Poké Ball. “I’ll help you. This can also be considered a special tourist activity.”
The ranch owner agreed. “Alright, let’s go, Hayato!”
As she spoke, the ranch owner whistled, and a Hayato ran over from a distance, following the ranch owner’s footsteps to capture the rabbits that were riding on sheep and wandering around the field. Shen Yu followed closely, bringing along her Delphox and Zoroark.
Seeing that the leading rabbit had already started playing on a Miltank’s back, the ranch owner waved her hand. “Hayato, use Thunder Wave!”
Thunder Wave accurately hit the Diglett, causing it to fall headfirst to the ground with its ears drooping. Hayato quickly stepped forward and picked up the Diglett. The ranch owner sighed. “It’s him again. He’s always causing trouble here.”
“Then why don’t you capture him?”
“I’m not particularly fond of this type of Pokémon. If it were a Chingling, I might consider it.”
Shen Yu shrugged. “Then there’s nothing we can do. I’m not very interested in this type of Pokémon either.”
The two of them couldn’t think of a solution. They couldn’t exactly set up an iron pot and stew the rabbit, could they? That would be too much.
“How about, let’s recruit him as a Western Lamb?”
“Lamb? I’ve only heard of cowboys. What’s this lamb thing?”
“Lamb, just like a cowboy. Since this is Yangyang Ranch, it makes sense.”
The ranch owner found Shen Yu’s suggestion quite reasonable, so she dragged the Diglett to a small house nearby to discuss the employment. However, it was evident that the negotiation wasn’t very smooth, as Shen Yu could occasionally hear commands like Thunder Wave and Thunder Fang emanating from inside the house…
After a while, Shen Yu saw the ranch owner emerge from the house humming a tune, without the Diglett in sight. Shen Yu asked curiously. The ranch owner casually pointed towards the inside of the house. Shen Yu followed her gaze and saw the Diglett lying on the floor with a look of utter despair, bruised and battered. Its ears were even tied into a bow. It was no wonder it succumbed to the ranch owner’s might and became a lamb. Shen Yu gave a thumbs-up. “Good, good skills!”
After dealing with the matter, the ranch owner continued to walk with Shen Yu around the ranch, saying as they walked, “Our ranch usually has many tourists, but yesterday’s severe weather scared all the guests away. Even those with reservations aren’t coming anymore.”
As she spoke, the ranch owner looked up at the overcast sky. “See, it’s snowing again. Generally, it doesn’t snow much here. When it does snow, it’s usually only in the vicinity of the Ice and Snow Sacred Mountain, rarely covering this area.”
Seeing that the snow seemed to be getting heavier, the ranch owner pointed to a nearby house. “Let’s take shelter. This snow looks like it won’t stop anytime soon.”