Chapter 716
Taming the Akhal-Teke Horse
The Akhal-Teke horse felt someone sitting on its back. Already frightened by the sudden change in scenery, it was even more startled and displeased. Its proud nature made it want to throw the person off its back.
Xu Bo'an felt the BMW beneath him suddenly raise its long neck, its powerful body bursting with astonishing strength. Its forelegs neighed and stood upright in the air, its curved neck drawing a perfect arc. It relied only on its hind hooves to firmly plant itself on the ground, almost standing upright, trying to shake Xu Bo'an off.
If this were an ordinary person, they would most likely be caught off guard by such a sudden and shocking change, and might actually be left behind.
However, Xu Bo'an was no ordinary man. Faced with the sudden resistance of the Akhal-Teke horse, Xu Bo'an smiled without saying a word, used his legs to clamp himself tightly on the horse's back to fix his body, and used his upper body to shift his center of gravity forward.
Even though Xu Bo'an's body was at a ninety-degree angle to the nearly upright horse, he remained as steady as a mountain, without the slightest sign of being thrown off.
Upon seeing this, the Akhal-Teke horse immediately put down its front hooves and then ran wildly. After running for thirty or fifty meters, it suddenly stopped and slammed its hind hooves into the ground like heavy bronze hammers. Using its front hooves as support, it suddenly raised its hind body, trying to use inertia to throw Xu Bo'an in front.
However, Xu Bo'an's expression remained unchanged. He had already stabilized his body the moment the Akhal-Teke horse made a move. As soon as the horse started to move, Xu Bo'an discerned the movement curve of the horse beneath him. Following the Akhal-Teke horse's movements, he moved up and down, like a barnacle tightly attached to a tortoise's back, almost becoming one with the horse. He didn't even need the help of the reins, and this test was easily passed.
Seeing that neither of his two usual tricks could shake the rider off, the Akhal-Teke horse panicked.
In the past, as long as he used these two skills, any guy who dared to ride on his back would be like a lone boat in a stormy sea, unable to stand on his own, being tossed up or thrown off by his wild swings.
Or they would cling tightly to your neck, using shameless tactics to occasionally pull on the reins to restrain themselves, dragging out the time until they were exhausted, only then did they finally gain your approval.
But right now, the guy on his horse hadn't even used the reins to so easily steal his "ultimate move" from his prime, which made this usually arrogant Akhal-Teke horse feel a little unbelievable.
However, gaining the approval of the proud Akhal-Teke horse is not so easy.
After all, it concerns my future freedom, and as long as I have a little strength left, I will not easily submit!
The proud Akhal-Teke horse suddenly exerted its strength again, instantly accelerating and sprinting forward. Its smooth muscle groups did not slack off at all, supporting it to burst out with powerful acceleration in an instant, and it galloped wildly through the valley like lightning.
Accelerate, accelerate, and accelerate again. With continuous acceleration, the Akhal-Teke horse's speed has soared to an unimaginable high speed. If there were a speed measuring device nearby, it could probably read 8 or 90 miles per hour.
Then, it suddenly lurched forward on its front hooves and knelt down, its entire body forming a sloping shape with the front lower than the back. Under the powerful impact of inertia, even if the rider on the horse was holding tightly to the horse's neck, he would most likely be thrown off at this moment. After all, this was a sudden stop at a speed of 80 or 90 miles per hour. If an ordinary person riding a motorcycle at that speed and then suddenly braked, the rider would most likely be thrown off.
But its plan failed. Xu Bo'an on horseback was not only not thrown off, but did not even lean forward in the slightest.
Xu Bo'an locked the horse's belly with his legs like iron clamps. The moment the horse leaned forward, his upper body shifted its center of gravity and leaned backward in the opposite direction, his body perpendicular to the ground. He was completely unaffected by the horse's movements, making the Akhal-Teke horse seem somewhat incompetent.
The Akhal-Teke horse stood up, and Xu Bo'an sat up straight again, like a stubborn roly-poly toy in a storm, never defeated.
The Akhal-Teke horse was exhausted from running for so long. Xu Bo'an could clearly see that its back was damp, and its fiery red coat was shimmering with tiny specks of light. Upon closer inspection, he could see that it was covered in beads of sweat from its fatigue.
Under the sunlight, these beads of sweat gleamed with a bright, blood-red sheen, blending with the fiery red fur, as if the red sweat had dyed the fur, or as if the red fur had been soaked in transparent sweat.
Just as Xu Bo'an was quietly watching the movements of his steed, preparing for its next test, he suddenly heard two muffled snorts come out of the horse's nose.
Then, the Akhal-Teke horse suddenly stopped as if it were a statue, its legs slightly bent as it leaped up, raised its head to the sky, and let out a long neigh.
With its front hooves on the ground, the Akhal-Teke horse lowered its head to graze on the grass, seemingly no longer caring about the rider.
Xu Bo'an was secretly pleased. This spirited horse had finally acknowledged his existence and accepted its new master.
Xu Bo'an happily rode his Akhal-Teke horse slowly around the valley, but a new problem arose.
If this Akhal-Teke horse wanted to appear in the real world, it wouldn't be able to travel back and forth between the bonsai world and the real world so frequently.
After all, if the Akhal-Teke horse is kept in a bonsai, its food and water will be a problem. If the people in Kaoshan Village were to raise it, it would become a burden for them. At that time, those little guys would probably have to try their best to please the horse, since it is the mount of the Mountain God.
But if I leave the Akhal-Teke horse in the real world, I don't have time to ride it here. Besides, it's not convenient to carry the Akhal-Teke horse around all the time in today's society. I can't really ride it around!
Even if everyone doesn't care about the inappropriateness of its urination and defecation in the city, this thing needs to eat feed and hay. In daily life, there are only gas stations, not places to replenish hay for horses.
Unfortunately, although he really liked this Akhal-Teke horse, realistically speaking, Xu Bo'an had no choice but to entrust it to a professional horse breeding facility, and he could only ride it a couple of times when he had free time.
Thinking of this, Xu Bo'an thought of Zhang Kai, who ran a racecourse business in Jiangdu. Let the professionals handle the professional matters.
I only know this one professional, and I've heard Zhang Kai mention before that his racecourse has many horses boarded up by others. Sending this Akhal-Teke horse there will be a better place for it to live.
Having sorted things out, Xu Bo'an wasn't in a hurry to dismount. He continued riding leisurely while taking out his phone to call Zhang Kai. However, the number was busy.
However, Xu Bo'an soon received a reply from Zhang Kai.
"I'm so sorry, Mr. Xu, I was just on the phone." Zhang Kai greeted him with impeccable politeness.
After all, Xu Bo'an was a guest of honor of the eldest young master of the Qu family, so Zhang Kai naturally put himself in a very proper position. In this day and age, if you don't even have this much awareness, you can never be a businessman.
Xu Bo'an smiled and said, "Mr. Zhang, you're too kind. It's nothing. I called you because I have something I wanted to ask you for a favor."
Zhang Kai hurriedly replied, "Mr. Xu, just give the order."
Xu Bo'an then explained, "It's like this, I have a Akhal-Teke horse, and you know how precious these things are. I'm not a professional, so taking good care of it is a big problem for me. I thought I should leave professional matters to professionals, so I thought of you, Mr. Zhang. How about it? You take care of it for me, and you decide how to maintain it. Money is not a problem."
Hearing Xu Bo'an's words, Zhang Kai didn't take it too seriously. Although the name "Akhal-Teke" is indeed impressive, purebred Akhal-Teke horses are very rare these days. Many people who talk about Akhal-Teke horses are actually just hybrid horses bred through technological means, worth tens of thousands to hundreds of thousands of yuan. Even if there are some purebred Akhal-Teke horses, they are all bred, and their value is only a few million yuan.
It was expensive, but the racetrack already had two horses, so they weren't particularly rare. Therefore, I didn't find it very challenging and immediately agreed in my mind.
"Oh my, you truly are worthy of being called Mr. Xu! A horse like the Akhal-Teke is not something an ordinary person can obtain. Rest assured, since you approve of me so much, I will do everything in my power to take care of your horse and ensure it remains healthy and strong. You can come and see it anytime." Although he wasn't that surprised, his words were full of affection.
Upon hearing this, Xu Bo'an chuckled and said, "Then I'll have to trouble you, Mr. Zhang. I'll be relieved if you agree."
Zhang Kai said with a smile, "You're too kind, you're taking good care of me. Mr. Xu, where is our horse now? Do you need me to arrange for someone to bring it over?"
Xu Bo'an pondered for a moment and said, "It's like this, the horse isn't in my hands right now. Let's set a time, how about tomorrow? Let's meet at the back mountain of your old village."
Xu Bo'an is currently still in Dongjiang, and it would be too troublesome to have Zhang Kai and the others transport the horse here. Moreover, pulling such a horse all the way from Dongjiang to Jiangcheng would attract a lot of attention. With the short video industry so developed right now, Xu Bo'an wants to keep a low profile as much as possible.
It would be better to keep the Akhal-Teke horse in a bonsai tree for now, and then make a trip to Jiangcheng later to hand it over to Zhang Kai and the others under the cover of night. That way, it would be more low-key.
Zhang Kai replied with regret, "Tomorrow is fine too. Would the morning or afternoon be more convenient for you? If it's the morning, I can come earlier to see you. The afternoon, however, is a bit inconvenient for me personally."
I'm going to a horse trade fair out of town tomorrow afternoon, so I won't be in Jiangzhou anymore. This was arranged beforehand, and I can't back out now. And to be honest, this is a great learning opportunity for me.
So if it's the afternoon, I'm afraid I'll have to regretfully arrange for someone else to handle this with you. But Mr. Xu, rest assured, I will make sure everything is settled before I leave, and I absolutely will not let you down.”
Xu Bo'an appreciated Zhang Kai's frankness, so he wasn't annoyed. Moreover, Xu Bo'an didn't care whether Zhang Kai was there or not, since he was only thinking about finding a place to board the horse, and who would handle things with him was secondary.
However, Xu Bo'an was quite interested when he heard that Zhang Kai was going to attend some kind of horse exhibition.
Yan Shouyi and his group in the Bonsai World were in dire need of horses for their uprising. Although he had provided them with some warhorses, which had enhanced their fighting strength, horses were always a welcome addition, as they were undoubtedly top-tier fighting forces in the context of the Great Jing Dynasty.
So Xu Bo'an hurriedly asked, "No problem, this isn't urgent. We can't delay your important business. What horse exhibition did you mention earlier? Judging from the name... is it a place for trading horses?"
Zhang Kai explained, "That's roughly the idea, but that place has developed a lot of related businesses around horses now, such as saddles and stirrups, and trading in horse meat and hair. It's quite a large-scale operation. From what you've said, Mr. Xu, you seem interested?"
Zhang Kai's adept conversation skills were very pleasing to Xu Bo'an. He was just dozing off when someone handed him a pillow and blanket. Who wouldn't be happy?
If this kind of person doesn't get rich in business, who will?
Xu Bo'an chimed in, "Haha, I'm actually quite interested. Would it be convenient for me to come along?"
Zhang Kai immediately agreed, saying, "Of course, no problem. Actually, I should thank Mr. Xu for this."
Zhang Kai's words confused Xu Bo'an, who immediately asked with some curiosity, "Oh? What do you mean by that, Mr. Zhang?"
Zhang Kai then explained in detail: "This horse show is one of the largest horse shows in the world. The qualifications to participate are not easily obtained by just anyone; the entry requirements are quite high."
"Given my past abilities, I definitely wouldn't have had the opportunity to participate. But didn't you order several hundred horses through me the other day? Thanks to that, I've become a big client in the eyes of many, which is why I'm fortunate enough to be eligible to participate in this horse show. So, ultimately, this is all thanks to you."
Xu Bo'an then understood the meaning of Zhang Kai's earlier words. He smiled and said, "Mr. Zhang, you're too kind. You've helped me so much; this is just a mutually beneficial arrangement. By the way, where is this trade fair you mentioned being held? Is it far away? How do we get there? By car, plane, or high-speed rail?" (End of Chapter)