Niu Family Village.
The moon shone brightly, stars sparse, as Jin Tong, carrying a basket of grass, trudged his way unevenly back to a farmhouse.
"Late again today, no supper for you!"
From inside the house came the griping voice of Sister-in-law Ma, "Remember to feed the ox... or else I'll skin you alive tomorrow!"
"Okay!"
Jin Tong's stomach growled with hunger, but he didn't dare talk back to his sister-in-law and could only go to the cowshed to feed the ox.
In ancient times, horses and oxen were precious, feeding an ox was as important as feeding a horse, with the saying, "A horse without night grass won't grow fat."
Sometimes the horse feed was even better than human food, and many a stableman would secretly skimp on the horse's ration to feed themselves.
Jin Tong arrived at the cowshed and saw a thin-backed old ox, sobbing his woes while feeding it grass.
