Chapter 31: Dad, Quickly Put Away the Frozen Hairtail
The department head was completely dumbfounded, utterly baffled by what Rong Ziyin was saying. Wasn’t this supposed to be about participating in a TV show? How did it suddenly turn into geese?
After waiting for his response for a long while, Rong Ziyin sighed. “If it’s inconvenient for me to take care of them myself at school, that’s fine. I can just build a goose pen next to the veterinary department’s farmland.”
The department head remained silent for a moment. “Well… that should be possible. Any other issues?”
Rong Ziyin: “What about my work at the animal husbandry station?”
The department head replied, “We’ll assign another intern to oversee things for you initially.”
Rong Ziyin considered it. “Alright, I’ll prepare for the handover.”
The department head exhaled in relief. “Is there anything you’d like to know in advance about the competition? The department can see what we can do to help.”
Rong Ziyin asked, “Oh, is the prize money substantial?”
The department head paused. “…Substantial.”
Rong Ziyin, satisfied: “Alright then, I’ll head back this afternoon.”
After hanging up, Rong Ziyin added the department head on WeChat as requested. Then he began packing his things.
Meanwhile, the Agricultural University department head, out of curiosity, opened Rong Ziyin’s WeChat Moments to see what kind of vibe this eccentric academic prodigy from their department usually gave off.
He was immediately hit with a wave of micro-business vibes.
Rong Ziyin’s recent WeChat Moments ads had changed again, now promoting salted fish group buys.
Shredded salted fish strips, fried until crispy, sprinkled with chili powder in a small dish, accompanied by a bowl of sweet, sticky congee simmered to perfection.
Above it, bold text declared: “Craving fish again?”
But that wasn’t all. Beside the porridge sat a salty fish emoji—a dead-eyed fish raising both fins to cup its face. 【You have no idea how adorable salty fish can be】
Department Head: …What the hell is this?!
[Speechless x1000]
Receiving the system message, Rong Ziyin was puzzled: But he was pretty talkative just now, wasn’t he?
System, sounding mournful: Exactly! That’s why he ran out of things to say after chatting with you!
But clearly, the system’s phrasing was too subtle for Rong Ziyin to grasp its meaning.
Plus, the department head wasn’t exactly a sensitive soul—nothing like those emotional little lambs. So Rong Ziyin let it slide with a casual shrug.
Morning was nearly over. With the schedule already set, Rong Ziyin still needed to visit the village chief to explain the situation.
Inside the village committee office, the chief listened with regret but made no attempt to stop him.
After all, when Rong Ziyin had previously approached him about the salted duck eggs, the village chief had already anticipated Rong Ziyin wouldn’t stay long in the village. This was merely an earlier farewell.
Patting Rong Ziyin on the shoulder, the village chief couldn’t help but smile. “What time are you leaving at noon? I’ll gather the villagers to see you off!”
Rong Ziyin shook his head. “No need. I’ll be back from time to time!”
“True enough!” The village chief nodded. “Then, on behalf of the villagers, I wish you victory in your upcoming competition!”
“Thank you.” Rong Ziyin bid farewell to the village chief and returned to the livestock station to pack his things.
Rong Ziyin knew deep down that this trip back to Beijing would likely mean fewer visits in the future.
Regardless of the two or three months for the competition, once the subsequent events concluded, his thesis should be ready too. Rong Ziyin hadn’t miscalculated—if he could win the competition and add a paper in a core journal, these achievements would be more than enough stepping stones to open the next door.
So, this was a real farewell.
Standing at the station entrance, Rong Ziyin exhaled deeply.
The System whispered, “Host, are you afraid? After all, your future in Yanjing is uncertain.”
Rong Ziyin paused before replying, “Even if things get worse, could they be worse than when I first arrived here?”
System: “Certainly not.”
Rong Ziyin: “Exactly. So what’s there to fear?”
“Things will only get better.” This was a phrase his mother often whispered while holding him as a child. Now, as an adult, those words had become the courage sustaining him through hardship, driving him forward without despair.
Pushing open the station door, Rong Ziyin entered to pack his belongings for the return journey.
He hadn’t brought much when he arrived—just some books and documents. This time, he was taking an extra basket of nearly-hatched goose eggs.
But now a serious problem arose: the incubator needed electricity. Even if he took it with him, there was no way to maintain the temperature during the journey. Yet the eggs were already nearing 28 days—the critical stage for the goslings’ birth. What should he do?
Rong Ziyin pondered whether to build a simple incubator. Just then, he suddenly recalled the duck Wang Dazhuang had used to frame him. After Rong Ziyin had healed it, the duck had stayed by his side ever since. Having eaten his fill for so long, it was time for it to contribute.
After consulting the village chief and confirming he could take it, Rong Ziyin grabbed the duck by the neck and shoved it into the makeshift incubator.
Muscovy Duck: I’m a proper, real man!
Too busy to argue, Rong Ziyin silently retrieved a long-forgotten frozen hairtail fish from his storage box.
Muscovy Duck: Dad, put that away! Dad! If you’re going to hatch eggs, just hatch eggs! Why bring out the big guns?!
The trip back to town went much smoother. The village chief specially arranged for someone to drive Rong Ziyin to the town center in a tractor, then helped him find transportation there.
Fortunately, Rong Ziyin didn’t have much luggage and was soon loaded onto the bus.
Most passengers heading from the village to the city were laden with bags and bundles, but few, if any, were carrying live ducks like Rong Ziyin.
The passenger seated next to Rong Ziyin eyed him several times before cautiously asking, “Bro, your duck won’t peck people, will it?”
Before Rong Ziyin could answer, the Muscovy duck, sensing attention, stretched its neck proudly and honked. A mental caption appeared: “I’m the best in the world.”
Rong Ziyin gave it a faint glance. The duck instantly tucked its head under its wing, and the caption changed: “Wrong, wrong! My dad’s the best in the world!”
Seeing the duck’s reaction, the passenger finally relaxed. Still, he couldn’t resist striking up a conversation with Rong Ziyin. “How did you train this duck? It’s so obedient and looks pretty too!”
Rong Ziyin thought for a moment before replying, “Just beat it with frozen hairtail fish a few times, and it’ll learn to behave.”
【Passenger’s Confusion Level: 999】
Passenger: …Bro, you’re hilarious.
And so they rode the bus into town. Rong Ziyin had felt sleepy since boarding, and the guy beside him grew bored too, eventually launching into a game of Honor of Kings.
He hadn’t brought headphones, so he’d turned the volume down low. Rong Ziyin could faintly make out the dialogue.
Just then, the guy’s phone beeped: “Please enable voice chat.”
A few seconds later, he activated it.
A torrent of curses erupted from the phone: “You fucking goad in the jungle! ‘I won’t get caught this wave’? I’m gonna crack up seeing your 0/10 score!”
“Holy shit!” The volume was too loud, causing everyone around to turn and stare. The guy frantically tried to turn off the voice chat, but the more he panicked, the harder it was to find the button. Finally, Rong Ziyin opened his eyes and casually turned it off for him.
“Thanks, thanks, seriously, thank you so much!” Wiping the sweat from his forehead, the guy hurriedly thanked Rong Ziyin.
Rong Ziyin shook his head, leaned against the window, closed his eyes, and went back to sleep. After all that commotion, the guy lost interest in gaming.
But the ride was genuinely boring, and he couldn’t sit still. Eventually, his gaze drifted back to Rong Ziyin.
Rong Ziyin’s bag contained quite a few books. The one on top was Veterinary Pathology, and its worn cover clearly showed it had been read countless times. Add to that the fact that Rong Ziyin was carrying a duck in his arms—was this guy studying veterinary medicine too?
That thought made him feel a bit itchy inside. He’d lost face earlier with all that commotion and was desperate to redeem himself. If it had been just anyone sitting beside him, it wouldn’t have mattered, but this was someone from his own department.
Veterinary medicine sounded like a niche field, and some people thought treating animals was a dead-end career. But he was different. He’d worked hard in school and landed a respectable job after graduation, which he’d proudly flaunted to relatives and friends.
Now he couldn’t resist bragging to Rong Ziyin again, hoping to redeem his earlier embarrassment. But Rong Ziyin had fallen asleep, so he couldn’t press the issue. He had to grit his teeth and wait for him to wake up.
Another hour passed before the bus finally entered Yanjing. Rong Ziyin reluctantly opened his eyes. The Muscovy duck in his arms was the first to complain.
Muscovy Duck: Daddy! That creep next to you has been staring at you for three hours.
Rong Ziyin was still groggy when someone handed him a bottle of water. He turned his head to see his buddy beside him.
“What’s up?”
“Just… just chatting, you know~” This guy was a chatterbox who’d been dying to talk the whole trip. Finally, with Rong Ziyin awake, he jumped at the chance to chat.
“Seems like you’re studying veterinary medicine too?” He pointed at Rong Ziyin’s books.
“Yeah. You too?”
“Yeah, yeah, yeah. But I majored in epidemic prevention. Remember when customs was hiring? I got the job! I’ve got relatives here, so I came to share the good news.” His low-key bragging mode kicked in instantly, eager to make up for his embarrassing gaming loss earlier. “Where are you from? Looks like you got on the bus from the village too.”
“Agricultural University.”
“We’re practically family then! I’m from the Forestry College!”
“Hmm.” Rong Ziyin nodded.
The guy opened up even more, chatting about how promising the veterinary program was these days, then sharing amusing stories from his time at customs. Finally, he sighed, “This line of work is like that—if you want to be a top student, you have to grind it out. Spent all four years buried in the lab, never had a chance at romance, missed out on youth entirely. That’s why I suck so bad at gaming!”
Rong Ziyin considered it. “Yeah, you’re pretty terrible. Bronze tier in ranked matches?”
The other guy: …
【Confused Level 800】
The conversation stalled for the day. After another moment of silence, the guy couldn’t help but ask Rong Ziyin, “Hey, what year are you in now?”
“Senior year.”
“Got a girlfriend?”
“Nope.”
“You’re this handsome and still single?!” The guy stared in disbelief at Rong Ziyin’s face—clearly idol material—then sighed regretfully. “Well, you must be a killer gamer then!”
The system couldn’t help but mutter: This guy’s conversation flow is seriously off.
Rong Ziyin didn’t answer right away. Instead, he motioned for the guy to move aside. Standing up, he retrieved his luggage from the overhead rack. They were almost at their stop; the bus would pull over soon.
The guy snapped out of it and scrambled to gather his own belongings.
Five minutes later, the bus pulled over. Rong Ziyin got off carrying his things, while the other guy trailed behind with a large suitcase, asking, “Where’re you working, bro? Maybe we can hang out sometime.”
Rong Ziyin paused and replied, “Sorry, I’m not that great at gaming.”
“That’s just how our field is. If you want to be a top student, you have to grind it out. I spent all four years of college buried in the lab. Didn’t date anyone. Didn’t get to enjoy my youth. So I couldn’t help it.”
The guy sensed something familiar about that line. Just then, he saw a few people coming out of the Agricultural University gate. The one leading them looked like a professor—they were actually here to pick up Rong Ziyin.
Rong Ziyin nodded to him, then turned and walked inside with his luggage and several professors.
Still confused about not getting contact info, the guy couldn’t help but grab a nearby Nongda student and ask, “What did that guy who just went in do? Why are the professors escorting him?”
The student shot him a speechless look. “Do you even know how to talk? What do you mean ‘got into trouble’? He’s our university’s top scholar! Remember that wild boar incident that trended recently? He was the one who solved it.”
“That Rong…”
“Rong Ziyin! He was invited back by the university this time because that TV channel’s genius talent show came knocking for him!”
“!!!” The man froze in shock. He’d watched that academic talent show too—knew it featured only genuine geniuses. So Rong Ziyin was actually that impressive?
Recalling how he’d pretended to know Rong Ziyin earlier in the car, he suddenly felt deeply embarrassed.
[Embarrassment Level: 2000]
Rong Ziyin received a system notification and suddenly felt a pang of regret. If he’d known the smooth-talking player beside him was such a promising prospect, he really should have asked for his contact info.
Meanwhile, the department head had already begun discussing competition-related matters with Rong Ziyin.
Rong Ziyin listened attentively at first, but as he heard more, he suddenly sensed something was off about the basket of goose eggs at his feet. A sound seemed to emerge from beneath the Muscovy duck’s belly.
Tender, yet melodious and crisp.
The department head heard it too, instinctively pausing his speech.
The duck hopped out of the nest, allowing them to examine closely. There, at the top of the egg in the center, a tiny hole had been pecked open. A newborn gosling was struggling to break free from its shell.
After about ten minutes, the first gosling emerged successfully.
Shaking off the damp fluff still clinging to its body, the little gosling opened its wide, bewildered black eyes to survey its surroundings.
The instant its gaze landed on the department head’s face, it quickly turned its head away, simultaneously stretching its neck to rub against the hand Rong Ziyin offered. A barrage of comments flooded the screen: “Scared the goose to death! I knew my dad couldn’t be this ugly!”