Chapter 25: Yan Qing: This Young Master Has Plenty of Money!
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Yet after following the road all the way to its end, Cai Fu and the others had seen neither a qilin beast nor even a single horse capable of traveling a thousand li in a day.
Some of the horses looked plainly malnourished. Others appeared tall, mighty, and imposing, but were all show and no substance.
Cai Fu merely pressed a hand against one horse’s back, and the beast promptly dropped onto its rump...
So, after looking here and there, the three of them arrived at Zengtou City’s own horse market. A clerk came up to greet them.
“Gentlemen, are you buying a horse or betting on one?”
It had to be said that Zengtou City conducted its business with real force. Even its clerks had faces covered in hard-packed flesh and spoke only when absolutely necessary.
Cai Qing asked curiously, “How does one buy? And how does one bet?”
The clerk introduced the rules impatiently. “For buying, horses are divided into three grades: substance, appearance, and champion. Each has its own price.
“For betting, one hundred taels of silver per round.
“Whether you end up with a nag or a prized steed depends entirely on your eyesight and your luck.”
Champion?
Cai Fu asked with a strange look, “What sort of horse is a champion?”
The clerk replied, “Champion carries the meaning of victory. It refers to a horse that can travel a thousand li in a day!”
Cai Fu said, “Let’s have a look.”
The clerk led them to one side of the market, where each horse occupied its own small enclosure.
It had to be admitted that the thousand-li horses here were extraordinary. Every one of them was tall, powerfully built, and radiated a fearsome majesty.
Yan Qing saw at a glance that there was no qilin beast, so he put on an affected air and asked the price.
“How much for a thousand-li horse?”
“Starting at five hundred taels of gold.”
Good heavens!
That was roughly ten million yuan!
Cai Fu was dumbfounded. “Five hundred taels of gold? Do your thousand-li horses lay golden eggs?”
The clerk smiled. “Our thousand-li horses are the darlings of every great general under Heaven. On the battlefield, when life and death hang in the balance, they are invaluable!
“They can carry you forward to break the enemy, and carry you back to save your life!
“If the gentleman has no need to march off to war, perhaps you would care to look at our appearance-grade horses.
“They are tall, mighty, and even more imposing than the thousand-li horses!”
Cai Fu blinked. “We want a thousand-li horse, but we don’t want to pay five hundred taels of gold...
“Could you give us a discount?”
The clerk gestured invitingly.
“Then perhaps the gentleman would care to try his luck at the betting grounds!
“If your eyesight is sharp—or your luck is good—you may well win a thousand-li horse for a mere hundred taels of silver!”
The onlookers around them burst out laughing. One especially large man, standing more than ten feet tall, laughed louder than all the rest.
Yan Qing glanced around. As though he could not bear to lose face, his little cheeks flushed red.
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“Your young master isn’t short of money. I simply enjoy a bit of sport!
“Big Strong, Second Strong, let’s go bet on some horses!”
Cai Fu’s tiger eyes opened wide. He swept a fierce glance over the surrounding spectators, especially the towering brute.
Yan Qing was already urging Cai Qing to hurry along. He followed the clerk to the betting grounds on the opposite side of the market.
The betting grounds were far livelier.
Many martial wanderers crowded around, pointing at the herd as though choosing lottery tickets, pontificating grandly and pronouncing judgment on the world.
Every horse in the betting grounds was newly captured from the wild. Their manes had not been trimmed, their hooves had not been shod, and many had not even been bathed.
Naturally, they had received neither training nor proper feeding. Every one of them was in its raw, untamed state.
With their wild nature undiminished and their spirits fiercely rebellious, the horses leaped and bounded about the grounds, brimming with energy.
The martial men often watched for a long while before placing their bets, only to discover afterward that the horses were not at all what they had seemed.
Inside the grounds, a wild horse might race about without resting for even a moment, yet the instant someone climbed onto its back, it would go sprawling with a thud.
Some refused to let anyone mount them at all. And when a rider finally managed to get aboard, they would throw him off and kick him mercilessly...
But now and then a lucky fellow would subdue a wild horse, ride it around the grounds, and return delirious with joy.
“Ah! It worked! I won!”
A sour-faced expert nearby would invariably remark, “It can travel only seven hundred li in a day. At best, it counts as half a prized steed.”
Yan Qing’s eyes shone as he watched. He urged Cai Fu to pay, and Cai Fu opened his bundle and took out a gold ingot.
Cai Fu knew better than to flaunt his wealth, so he moved with great discretion. Even so, the sharp-eyed spotted the gleam of gold inside the bundle.
Cai Fu handed a ten-tael gold ingot to the clerk. By then, Yan Qing had already chosen a wild horse and ordered it brought out.
Disgusted by the filth on the animal, Yan Qing pinched his nose and told Cai Fu to mount it. Cai Fu climbed onto the wild horse.
As expected, the beast was fiercely untamed. It bucked and thrashed with all its might, trying to fling Cai Fu into the air.
Cai Fu struck the horse squarely on the head with his fist.
With a heavy thud, the wild horse pitched forward and crashed to the ground. It snorted and foamed at the mouth, and even after being lashed with a whip, it could not get back up...
The sharp-eyed spectators were all startled. When they looked at Cai Fu again, their eyes had become wary and timid.
The towering man from earlier was mingling among the onlookers. He, too, regarded Cai Fu anew, with a measure of apprehension.
Yan Qing selected several more wild horses in succession. Gold flowed away like water, yet he failed to win a single prized steed.
His temper finally flared. Yan Qing snapped his whip and cursed.
“What rotten luck! Big Strong, Second Strong, we’re leaving!”
Thus Cai Fu cleared a path in front, while Cai Qing led Yan Qing’s horse. The three of them slunk miserably out through the crowd.
The clerk gave a cold laugh but said nothing.
Although Zengtou City was dark and crooked, it was still quite proper when it came to business.
The towering man made a gesture, and one of the spectators—a bald, scab-headed fellow—slipped away.
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Cai Fu merely kept his head down and walked ahead. Cai Qing led the horse while Yan Qing cursed steadily and lashed out with his whip.
Suddenly, the scab-headed man caught up with them and asked in a furtive voice, “Are the gentlemen looking to buy a thousand-li horse?”
Cai Fu glanced back. “And what if we are?”
“I happen to know a horse dealer who has just acquired a thousand-li horse and is seeking a sincere buyer!”
The scab-headed man grinned ingratiatingly.
“The fellow’s horse was obtained through improper channels, but it is truly a priceless steed, worth a fortune!
“He is eager to sell, so the price is negotiable.
“If the gentleman is interested, I can take you to have a look.”
Cai Fu turned to Yan Qing. Yan Qing, his spirits thoroughly dampened, said, “Let’s go see it.”
And so the three of them followed the scab-headed man into a narrow alley.
The horse dealers with stalls along the roadside saw them and exchanged strange looks before shaking their heads.
At the end of the alley stood a small courtyard. Before Cai Fu and the others even entered, a particularly loud neigh rang out from within.
“Neighhhhh!”
Cai Fu, Cai Qing, and Yan Qing instinctively exchanged glances. From that single cry, they recognized the qilin beast.
Strangely, however, no one knew what had happened. The qilin beast soon fell silent and stopped making a commotion.
The scab-headed man pushed open the door. Cai Fu looked closely and saw the towering brute embracing the qilin beast.
The giant whispered into the animal’s ear while gently stroking its neck.
The qilin beast’s mane had originally stood wildly on end, but after the giant used the same method, the creature actually quieted down.
So this was Yu Bao-si, the “Dangerous Path Deity”?
Cai Fu narrowed his eyes and studied him.
In truth, Cai Fu had noticed Yu Bao-si mingling among the crowd earlier. A man of Yu Bao-si’s size could hardly avoid attracting attention. That was precisely why Lu Junyi had not come.
“Fourth Brother, I’ve brought a buyer!”
The scab-headed man introduced Yan Qing like a middleman closing a deal.
“This Fourth Brother’s horses all come from the north!
“He handles only major transactions. Every last one is a thousand-li steed!”
Yan Qing’s eyes lit up when he saw the qilin beast. He was just about to speak when Cai Fu stopped him.
Cai Fu said irritably, “Anyone can see that this horse was raised by someone else!
“If its owner comes looking and the matter reaches the authorities, I’m not taking responsibility for that lawsuit!”