Daddy Academy

Chapter 3206 Water Buffalo and Swallow

The rain came quickly and left even faster; the rain stopped and the sky cleared up in no time.

Sunlight pierced through the clouds, shining brightly on the damp cobblestone path, and the air was filled with the fresh scent of rapeseed flowers and earth.

A beautiful rainbow appeared on the horizon, and everyone quickly left the hotel to take photos in front of it.

Only after the rainbow disappeared did everyone continue walking along the alley deeper into Xiaoqi Ancient Village. Occasionally, a few drops of residual rain would splash up underfoot, feeling cool and comfortable.

Just as they reached the pond at the village entrance, a deep "moo" sound came from the pond, attracting everyone's attention.

Following the sound, one could see an old water buffalo lying leisurely in the middle of the pond, half of its body submerged in the clear water, with only its round back and curved horns showing.

Its body is covered with short, gray-black fur that clings to its skin when wet from the rain. Occasionally, it flicks its long, thick tail, making a "plop" sound as it slaps the water's surface, splashing up tiny droplets that just chase away the flies circling around it.

First, Dudu went over and stared at the water buffalo in the pond, then Liuliu, Xier...

Soon, everyone gathered around and stood by the pond, watching with great interest.

"It looks so relaxed! It must be so refreshing in the water," Xi'er said.

Dudu asked curiously, "Do you think water buffaloes stand in the water or float in it?"

Robin asked, "Wow, what a huge buffalo! Can buffalo swim?"

Xiao Bai's left lip was swollen, but he still spoke clearly: "It should be standing in the water. You can see its back is flat. If it were floating, it would wobble. Besides, the name 'water buffalo' contains the word 'water,' so it must be able to swim."

Liuliu said exaggeratedly, "Wow, Xiaobai, you seem to know a lot. You're not talking nonsense, are you? Hahaha, I'm just kidding. Don't look so serious. The most important thing when we're out having fun is to be happy. I'm just joking with you. Have you ever herded cattle?"

Xiaobai was just about to make a move when Liuliu shamefully withdrew. She really hoped that Liuliu could stick to her guns, so that she wouldn't feel guilty about taking action.

"Of course I herd cattle!"

When Xiaobai was a child, he watched cattle in Baijia Village. Baiguagua's family had a big water buffalo, and Dunzi's family had an old yellow ox.

Liuliu then exaggeratedly asked, "Xiaobai, what did the cow do to you that you should let it go? Did it do something bad?"

Xiao Bai stared at her with deathly eyes: "You little brat, don't be so blinded by greed. Do you believe that if I start a fight, I can make you forget that your surname is Liu?"

Liuliu quickly slipped away, retreating to Dudu's side while trying to explain, "I was just joking, trying to make everyone happy, why are you so serious?"

Zhang Tan stopped Xiao Bai, who was about to explode, and said to everyone, "Water buffaloes have big hooves that allow them to stand firmly in the mud. They soak in water to cool down, and in the hot summer, they can stay in the water all day. Moreover, they can indeed swim and can even carry people across the river."

"Wow! That's amazing! I want it to carry me across the river! Call it over here!" Robin shouted excitedly. Actually, she had seen Bai Guagua sitting on the back of his family's water buffalo in Baijia Village. She had also applied for the job, but she could only look on with envy, as no one around her would allow it.

Suddenly, the buffalo raised its head and mooed loudly at the sky. The sound startled Robin, but he didn't flinch. Instead, he became even more curious, his eyes shining.

After the water buffalo finished mooing, it slowly lowered its head, took a sip of water from the pond, and then continued to lie in the water, its tail swishing even more leisurely.

"It seems to be saying hello to us!" Xi'er said with a smile, waving at the water buffalo, "Hello, water buffalo!"

Hello, water buffalo!

The others followed suit and greeted them as well.

Everyone gathered around the pond, discussing the water buffalo, from its horns to its tail, from why it was in the water to whether it could sleep. One curious question after another was asked until Zhang Tan and Tan Jin'er urged them to leave, at which point they reluctantly departed.

In the afternoon, they strolled around the ancient village. While visiting an old house, Dudu was the first to discover a swallow's nest under the eaves, with several swallows flying in and out.

"Look! It's a swallow!" Dudu exclaimed excitedly.

Robin asked, "What's in their mouths?"

Xiaomi said, "It looks like it's carrying mud and grass in its mouth."

Liuliu tiptoed, trying to see if there were any baby swallows in the nest, but the eaves were too high, and she couldn't see them at all.

"I have a solution!" Little White's eyes lit up, and he ran over and dragged a small ladder over.

"Let's climb up and take a look!"

Xi'er quickly stopped her: "Danger! The ladder is unstable!"

But Xiaobai had already climbed two steps impatiently, and Dudu and Xiaomi quickly helped Xiaobai hold the ladder.

Just as Xiaobai was about to reach the top, a swallow suddenly flew over and, with a "plop," a white clump of swallow droppings landed precisely on her.

"Ah!" Little White screamed and jumped down from the ladder, reaching out to touch his shoulder, where his hand was covered in a wet blob of swallow droppings.

"How disgusting! A swallow pooped on my head!"

Everyone burst into laughter. Xi'er took out a wet wipe and helped Xiaobai wipe the poop off his shoulder.

The others also gathered around, chattering and helping Xiaobai clean the swallow's droppings.

"Little White, don't go up there. It seems like Mother Swallow doesn't welcome us," Xiaomi said.

Xiaobai nodded; she had also noticed that the mother swallow had clearly been protecting the swallow's nest.

Chengcheng looked up at the swallow's nest and suddenly said, "It looks like the swallows are building a nest. I heard that their nests are made of swallows' saliva! Swallows use their saliva to stick mud and grass together to make a nest."

Dudu exclaimed in shock, "Ah~ so bird's nest is made from swallows' saliva! My mom eats bird's nest every day now! Has she been scammed?!"

Liuliu immediately said seriously, "Be careful when buying supplements now, a lot of them are fake and just to fool people. Dudu, you don't need to eat your bird's nest anymore. You can throw it away, but give it to me and I'll check it for you."

Dudu asked, "What if you get sick from eating this?"

Liuliu said confidently, "No, I've always been healthy since I was a child, and I can eat anything without getting sick."

Xiao Bai chimed in, "Dudu, don't believe Liuliu. She's lying to you. We'll ask our tour guide to tell us the truth."

The tour guide, who accompanied them throughout the trip, explained: "Bird's nest generally refers to the saliva of swiftlets, and not all swallow nests are bird's nests. Only nests made by specific species of swallows are edible. The swallows above us are not edible, and the bird's nests sold are not from them, so you don't need to worry."

Then everyone asked where they could find swiftlets, and the tour guide answered them one by one. Robin listened with fascination, but she was more concerned about whether there were baby swallows in the bird's nest above her head.

She held the tour guide's hand and asked, "How long does it take for the mother swallow to finish building her nest? Will there be baby swallows in the nest?"

The tour guide smiled and said, "It takes swallows more than ten days to build their nests. Once the nests are finished, the mother swallow will lay her eggs inside, and then the baby swallows will hatch. When you come back then, you might even see the baby swallows opening their mouths for food."

"Wow! I can't wait! I really want to see the swallow! The swallow, wearing a flowery dress, comes here every spring..."

Little White started singing.