Link understood how he felt.

The first case of cattle theft in two years happened to him, and Rice would of course be depressed. He lost at least fifteen hundred dollars. If he were to raise it and sell it, he would lose nearly $3,000. That may not seem like much, but it's equivalent to two weeks' worth of his income. Of course, the most frustrating thing for him is probably the loss.

Link comforted him a few words and talked about the drought of the past two years.

Rice is also frustrated by the drought: "Even though our small farms work together to drill wells, we only have enough water for livestock and people. There was little rain in Snake Valley. Since the start of the drought, there has been no rain for thirteen consecutive months. Almost all pastures are now reducing the number of cattle. "Because there isn't that much grass in the pastures for the cattle to eat. He laughed as he spoke. "Except, of course, your Hank farm. I was on the phone with Hank the other day, and he repeatedly said he regretted selling the farm. Of course, maybe the owner of that Oskoola will regret wanting to kill himself. ”

Baker Farms drilled artesian wells, and Oskeola drilled super wells that had been self-blowing for nearly two years. If it were him, he might have regretted being hit by a cow and wanted to die.

Link laughed and said, "He shouldn't regret it. The Hank family had owned Hank Valley for decades, but they had never thought of drilling wells there. ”

"That's what I thought, too. No one would have thought of drilling a well in the mountains. Rice smiled too. "Aquifers are usually large. Who would have thought that it would only be found up and down the mountain. And it's only a handful of places. ”

Link talked to him about drought, certainly not to sell water to this rancher. Even if they had the money to buy water, they couldn't afford to install an irrigation system. For a long time, farmers here have been grazing their cattle in this way. Previously, the cattle at Hank Farms had to be towed in water tankers to feed the cattle from pasture to state pasture for winter.

This is the desert. The way of grazing in the desert has not changed much for a long time. The entire Snake Valley, also known as Hank's Farm, has cultivated land, which shows that it is difficult to drill enough groundwater without sufficient capital.

But he has enough water that he can turn the entire Baker Farm into the most fertile oasis in the desert.

"If you want to keep the cattle in number," he laughs, "maybe you can buy some pasture from Baker Farms." It doesn't matter if it's fresh grass or hay. I can sell it to you at a lower price than the market. I remember that your ranch had more than 5,000 acres, and if there was enough forage, you should be able to raise more than 2,000 head of cattle instead of less than 500 now. ”

"You're not kidding?" Rice was moved by his words. "I'm going to be serious. ”

Link laughs, "I remember that there are very few pastures nowadays where only cattle eat pasture. ”

"Before, the pastures in Snake Valley were basically the same. However, after Han Farm began to grow corn, it began to use corn to feed cattle. Other farmers have followed suit. It's just that the cattle that feed the corn are said to be bad, and the cost is not necessarily low. There are now no more than ten ranches in Snake Valley, including Utah farms, that are still using corn to feed their cattle. But now they're also considering giving up on feeding corn. If there is not enough pasture, we would rather reduce the number of cattle. ”

Link nodded: "I think you've also noticed that the corn nowadays is genetically modified. There is considerable concern in the market about cattle using genetically modified corn. ”

That's the main reason why the farms are going to give up on feeding their cattle with corn. ”

"I don't know if you've heard of the new Pollution-Free Food Association in Texas?"

"Pollution-free food? When was this food standard established? I haven't heard of it?"

Link said with a smile: "Pollution-free food refers to food produced without using breeding methods that may endanger public health or seriously harm the natural environment. What are the varieties that have the potential to be harmful to public health? And not something that has not yet been proven harmful to humans. The association, the nation's first pollution-free food association, was founded a week ago in Amalialo, Texas. They want to develop pollution-free standard manufacturing practices for a wide range of food products. ”

"You're going to set up an association like that in Snake Valley?"

Link certainly wouldn't have thought of forming an association like that. He didn't need to think about controlling such an association at all.

He laughed and said, "I just wanted to talk to you about the news." If you're interested in doing that. My farm can probably sell pasture to you. ”

Rice secretly thought about it for a while in his heart and said, "I don't understand the pollution-free standard. I do want to breed more cattle though. "It doesn't matter how much a cow can make in the end, but one more cow will make more profit. The amount of forage produced by his pasture is basically fixed, no matter how many cattle he raises, there is so much pasture, and the number of cattle that can be raised is basically fixed. If he can buy enough grass to raise more cattle at a relatively low price, it will not only protect his pasture, but also increase his income.

"I'm planning to build my own slaughterhouse. If it is a pollution-free cattle, of course I am willing to buy it. If most of the cattle here are raised to pollution-free standards, I can also set up a special cattle buying station near Snake Valley. ”

Rice looked him in the eye and said. "You're trying to convince me to convince the others?"

"Rice, I know you have prestige in the Snake Valley. ”

"I need to think about it. "It's not easy to get a new standard of farming that is accepted by relatively conservative farmers like Snake Valley.

"If I plan to raise cattle to a pollution-free standard, I can provide pasture for nearby pastures. ”

As they spoke, Waite came. He walked in and kept greeting and laughing with the cowboys. But he quickly came to Rice's table and sat down: "Sorry to disturb you. He said to Rice. "I found the ruts of the pickup truck outside your cattle fence. There are also the footprints of two people. ”

Hearing that he had found a clue to a bull thief, Rice asked urgently, "Does it help solve the case?"

"Rice, you know. Until the suspect is caught, that evidence is just a clue. ”

Rice was a little disappointed and said, "I wish all those cattle thieves were dead!"

"I'll note the firemark administrators in other jurisdictions, and if we find your firemark, we'll be able to find more clues. But now, I can only check in my own jurisdiction. ”

"I see. Thank you, Waite. Rice was disappointed, but he knew he couldn't blame Waite.

Waite stood up and his voice was amplified a bit, which was to say to everyone in the restaurant: "I just received the news that the federal police are chasing two very dangerous suspects. They kidnapped a wealthy farmer in Rhode Island for ransom, but after receiving the ransom they tore up the ticket. I expect that today's news will cover the news. If you see a suspicious person, please notify me as soon as possible on the premise of self-protection. ”

"Waite, you mean they're coming to our Snake Valley?" said a cowboy exclaimed. "I think they'll regret coming here. Our children have been playing with guns since they were young, and they grew up fighting rabbits. If they come, they will find themselves transformed into two big rabbits. ”

There is little entertainment in Snake Valley, and children start playing with guns at a very young age. They would hunt hares in the mountains or in the pastures as a pastime.

Everyone else laughed in unison. Waite laughed too. "I mean, they could be anywhere in the United States," he said. We in Snake Valley are certainly no exception. They have guns, so I don't want them to flee to Snake Valley, because someone might get hurt from it. Of course, if they come. We had to let them get hurt. ”

His words were applauded by the cowboys.

Before leaving, Waite said to Link, "Link, I guess those two suspects are specifically targeting rich people. So you have to pay special attention wherever you are. Of course, it's best to have bodyguards by your side when you travel. ”

"Thank you for the reminder, I'll pay attention. ”

The kidnappers usually target those who are easy to get their hands on. And he always had bodyguards by his side. And he doesn't like to wander outside very much, and there aren't many opportunities for kidnappers. And it's not easy. When there are at least two kidnappers, don't rush to attack someone who is protected by several bodyguards.

Link didn't think the kidnappers would target him, though. But it also reminded him. Although his family now has eight bodyguards, if they are all at home, it should not be a problem. But when he and Jessica travel, they usually only take two to four out of the house. If you encounter a large number of kidnappers, this bodyguard will not ensure safety.

And Hannah also needs protection when she goes to school. Now there are eight bodyguards, and the manpower seems to be a little tight. Although it was not certain that anyone would try to kidnap them, he could not take precautions if it was unlikely.

So his gratitude to Waite is very sincere.

"Then I'll go first. Rice, I'll go back and compare those two footprints that might have been left by a cattle thief. See if they leave a criminal record. ”

He had planned the topic just now, and Link was not easy to bring up. And he said everything he had to say. After a few more words with Rice, he got up and sat down at his table.

He was about to talk to Carrick, but he noticed that the other party's hand was on the handle of the wine glass, and his eyes seemed to lose focus. He knew what this guy was deducing in his head.

But this time he didn't have to wait long, only two minutes later, Carrick suddenly lowered his voice and said, "Do you think those two cattle thieves and the two kidnappers are connected?"

Link was stunned for a moment, but immediately understood what he meant: "Carrick. The only thing they have in common is that they are both two people. I think if those two people knew they were being hunted, the most likely thing would be to find a place to hide instead of going out and causing trouble. ”

"Normal is like that. But, you see, even if I reminded you, you don't believe that they stole the cow. ”

Link didn't debate the topic with him, but just smiled and said, "Why are you suddenly interested in this?" ”

"It's just that I heard the officer say that he wanted to go back and compare the footprints, which gave me an inspiration. Maybe I can make up a program that will help the police solve crimes. ”