"Tomorrow is the finals. Are you nervous?" With Jiang Hai's head resting on her waist, Pra Walton pressed on his shoulders and asked softly.
Jiang Hai had been quite busy over the past few days. Not physically, but mentally. Every day, countless people came to ask if he would sell his cattle or share his technology.
It was driving him crazy. But since he was still participating in the competition, he couldn't lose his temper. All he could do was repeatedly respond, "Not for sale. Not for sale." The reactions he received varied.
Some were courteous and left immediately upon hearing his refusal. Others, however, weren't so polite.
No matter the country, there are always some self-important jerks. Some people tried to threaten him, saying they represented such-and-such company and that he'd better "shine some light" on their son. Others played the pity card, begging for a share, claiming they'd be fired otherwise.
For the threats, Jiang Hai had security throw them out. The pitiful ones? Also gone. He ignored them all.
He had only one goal here: to win the prize. Selling cows wasn't part of the plan, and he didn't care if he offended a few people along the way.
After all, the ones he was offending were low-level businessmen, and he'd never intended to work with them anyway.
"I'm not nervous," Jiang Hai replied, turning his head to rub gently against Pra Walton's softness. "But I am a little excited. I just want to finish this and get back home for a few days of rest."
Her hair tickled him, and he couldn't help but chuckle as she lightly slapped him, glancing at him in mock annoyance. Jiang Hai grinned, but suddenly took a sharp breath.
"Did I hurt you?" asked Cheryl Lee, who was between his legs, looking up with concern after pausing her... efforts. She spat something out and looked at him worriedly.
"It's okay. Feels great," Jiang Hai replied with a grin.
"Good." Satisfied, Cheryl Lee lowered her head again and resumed her work.
"Time really flies," Pra Walton sighed, holding Jiang Hai close. "Tomorrow is the final. Then we're heading back the day after. Once we return, it's back to the grind at the company. Just two more days left with you."
She had been with Jiang Hai for a long time now. To be honest, she wasn't even sure what her feelings for him were anymore.
She also didn't know how Jiang Hai felt about her, but the desire to stay by his side was growing stronger each day.
Still, whenever that thought came up, she would suppress it. Because she knew deep down—it was impossible.
"As long as you want to, you can stay at my villa anytime. Your room's always there," Jiang Hai said, gazing at her.
He didn't fully understand his feelings either. But if she wanted to stay, she was always welcome.
"Forget it. I don't want to be tied down. You know I've got a big family to take care of." She chuckled. "Besides, your girlfriends would murder me. Just managing Qi Li was tough enough. I'd better slip away again before trouble brews. Anyway, let's not talk about sad things. Let's enjoy the last two days!"
Smiling, Pra Walton kissed Jiang Hai upside down on the lips, reigniting the fire between them. And just like that, another silent, passionate night passed.
The next morning, Jiang Hai and his friends took the three finalist cows to the slaughterhouse.
Beef cattle competitions aren't like bullfighting or dog shows—they're far more brutal. It's all about meat quality. And you can't judge that without slaughtering the animal.
So, like all beef cattle competitions, Jiang Hai's cows had to be butchered for the final judgment. Fortunately, he had mentally prepared himself and wasn't too emotional about it.
At around five in the morning, Jiang Hai and his team brought the three cows to the designated slaughterhouse. There, they watched them get killed, skinned, and gutted. The meat removal would happen later at the booth—this wasn't Jiang Hai's first time; he'd gone through it once before at the New York Beef Show.
During skinning, the butchers couldn't help but praise the cows' hide quality. The steward came over and offered to buy the hides for $3,000. Jiang Hai agreed—it wasn't like he had any use for them.
With the sale complete, the steward instructed the butchers to be extra careful. Before 8 AM, all three cows had been skinned and cleaned, then transported whole to the exhibition site.
The venue had already transformed into a platform for displaying each slaughtered cow. According to the order, the eighth-place cow went first. It was from Hall Livestock Company in Montana—one of the better, though not top-tier, ranches in the region.
Montana and Texas are traditional rivals in the cattle industry. Montana cowboys look down on Texas cowboys, and vice versa. So even in national competitions, the top-tier companies from both states often don't show up. But Montana still managed to get two companies into the top eight, which was impressive.
"Montana is definitely a livestock powerhouse," said Robbins Garcia, standing beside Jiang Hai. "But this cow... I don't think it'll do very well."
"It looks fine," Jiang Hai replied, "but something feels off."
"It's a Charolais," Robbins said. "Textbook, really. Thick bones, strong limbs, small but wide head, round horns, deep chest... the works. But the thing is, Charolais are naturally lean. That means the meat quality won't be bad, but premium-grade beef will be hard to come by."
As he spoke, the host echoed his description on the mic, although without the blunt ending—after all, no spoilers were allowed before the judging.
Soon, a team of professional butchers arrived and expertly dismantled the Charolais cow.
After about 30 minutes, the appraisers inspected the meat, and the results were in: the Charolais weighed 1,200 kg, with a meat yield of 816 kg—a 68% slaughter rate. Premium beef totaled 16 kg (2%), selected beef 220 kg (27%), preferred 351 kg (43%), standard 130.5 kg (16%), commercial 41 kg (5%). The rest were lower-grade cuts not counted.
Jiang Hai did the math. The total value came out to around $100,000—not bad at all. For most ranches, this would be a prize-winning animal. But compared to elite ranches, it still fell short.
Then came Jiang Hai's turn.
"Here we go," said Robbins, helping to push the cow onto the stage.
Tenglong No. 3 was visibly smaller than the previous Charolais.
"This is Tenglong No. 3 from Tainlong Manor in Winthrop," the host announced. "A surprising contender this year. With just one manor, they've entered three cattle—clearly taking home at least two awards."
Traditionally, the showdowns were Texas vs. Montana. But now it felt more like Jiang Hai vs. everyone.
"This Angus weighs 760 kg," the host continued. "A heavyweight for its breed. Let's see what it's made of."
The moment the butcher made the first cut, pink meat with perfectly distributed marbling was revealed. The audience gasped.
"Premium grade on the first cut?!" someone exclaimed.
Greedy stares filled the venue. The butcher, slightly stunned himself, got to work. With every slice, the crowd grew louder in amazement.
Though Jiang Hai and his team had seen this before, the admiration still made them beam with pride.
Within 20 minutes, the butchering was complete. The appraisers stepped up, visibly shocked.
"I've hosted this event for years," the host said breathlessly, "and I've never seen a cow like this."
The results were astonishing: 760 kg net weight, 512 kg meat yield, 67% slaughter rate.
Premium grade beef: 118 kg (15%)
Selected grade beef: 312 kg (61%)
Preferred grade beef: 51 kg (10%)
Standard beef: 11 kg (2%)
Commercial beef: 5 kg (1%)
Others: 3% (not counted)
Just the top two grades amounted to 84% of the total—a staggering figure.
At $700/kg for premium and $250/kg for selected, this one cow was worth over $160,000. Jiang Hai nodded in satisfaction.
Not every cow in his herd reached this level, but even his average cows could fetch over $140,000 now. And with the fame he gained, Pra Walton estimated his beef could sell for $860/kg.
That's the power of a brand.
In the audience, envy filled the eyes of ranchers and businessmen. They had always known this beef was valuable—just not this valuable.
To be continued...