The next morning, Kitano got up as usual.
There were no Matoba situations like being unable to sleep at night due to being too excited, or oversleeping.
Having said that, I still inevitably feel tired after getting up.
Both mentally and physically.
Before leaving home, I took out a can of coffee from the refrigerator.
It's great that it's still in stock.
Outside, the sky is a light lake blue, like the clear color of paint dissolved in water.
The weather has changed from hot to refreshing, so I opened the window while starting the pickup truck.
There were only a few vehicles on the asphalt road, and it didn't take long to reach Monbetsu.
Of course, the so-called not taking long is only based on the standards of a rural place like Hokkaido.
In Tokyo, a one-hour drive can never be called "it doesn't take long."
We parked the car and smoothly entered the interior of the racecourse through the special channel for related parties.
Approaching Tanaka Stable, Kitano was slightly surprised by the view of Matoba in front of his eyes.
The open space outside Stables is filled with flower baskets of various styles.
It looks like it just opened.
By the way, when he first took over the clinic, the number of flower baskets he received was roughly the size of the clinic.
"Mr. Kitano!"
Tanaka inside Stables greeted him and came over.
"These are all just sent by people with connections in the industry."
He pointed to the flower basket and said with a smile.
Send a flower basket to the winner--
Although this kind of behavior has not become a custom or routine, it is indeed quite common among horse owners who know each other well.
Especially among the older generation of horse owners.
The Kobayashi stable attendant on the side looked at the name on the side of the flower basket and whispered something to the Lakshmi stable attendant in broken English.
The latter kept nodding his head and exclaimed "That's awesome" once or twice from time to time.
Even Tanaka was a little surprised when he first saw the flower basket.
Although it was anticipated, the influence of this title was still underestimated.
The ones closest to Kitano's eyes were the flower baskets sent by Nishiken and New Life Ranch.
Already very familiar.
Attached to the bottom of the flower basket are blessing words handwritten by Ogawa Joe and Kimura, representatives of the two Nishiken Farms.
As the representative of the manufacturer, Kimura solemnly thanked everyone in the camp.
Then, there is the flower basket from Symbol Ranch.
Once upon a time, Symbol Ranch and Mejiro Farm had the same relationship as "allies".
However, after the death of Kitano's great-grandfather Toyokichi, this relationship gradually became estranged.
This was something he accidentally learned while studying Racehorse Pedigree Knowledge.
Unlike Mejiro Farm, which has been completely bankrupt and disbanded, the glory of the symbol continues into the 21st century.
However, it seems that it has reached the point where it is just barely surviving.
"Next time the Symbol Ranch horse wins, I will send them a flower basket as well."
After coming back from his thoughts, Kitano turned his head and looked at the next one.
[Nishiyama Ranch]
[Nishiyama Shigeyuki representative]
The image of a certain old man immediately came to mind.
In fact, through a previous communication on a social platform, he had already met this famous horse owner and producer.
Even after winning the game last night, Mr. Nishiyama sent early congratulations through social software.
"Nishiyama Ranch, don't forget this."
Although I have not yet become a JRA horse owner, necessary interpersonal contacts are indispensable.
The so-called "from the Zhongyuan Dynasty to the end of the year" is exactly this.
Then, there is a very delicate-looking rattan flower basket composed of white roses and green chrysanthemums.
[Yokoyama Norihiro's]
I do have some vague memories about this name.
That was almost ten years ago.
I vaguely remember that it was a funeral.
Then, he looked at the last flower basket in front of Stables.
His eyes froze slightly.
"Well, this should be sent back, right?"
Kitano pointed to the position of the flower basket and said.
"Mr. Kitano?"
Tanaka on the side seemed a little stunned.
He seemed to want to say something, but still didn't speak.
"Lakshmi."
Waved to India stable attendant, Tanaka whispered a few words.
Lakshmi nodded and picked up the flower basket he pointed at.
As I walked on the road, I looked at the words on the flower basket with some curiosity.
[Iwasaki Nobumichi's]
For his current level of Japanese, this level of Chinese characters is still too complicated.
Lakshmi shook his head.
"Does Mr. Kitano know Sirius Symbol?"
Watching Lakshmi leave holding the flower basket, Tanaka suddenly spoke.
"Ah, it's that Derby horse."
Kitano quickly recalled the relevant information.
The sire is Mogami and the dam is Derby horse by Pasollon.
It seems that he did not leave any famous descendants.
"Mr. Kitano It would be great if you knew."
Tanaka's tone was a little slow. "Sirius Symbol... is really a very potential Racehorse."
He stared into Kitano's eyes and continued.
Then, it quickly returned to its usual appearance.
"Thank you Teacher Tanaka for the reminder."
Kitano smiled.
As a Derby horse, Sirius Symbol indeed carries the expectations of many people.
However, in the conflict between the horse owner Wada Tomohiro and Trainer Nihonyanagi Toshio, Sirius Symbol unfortunately became the victim.
In this roundabout way, Tanaka reminded me tactfully.
After all, it is indeed very bad behavior.
But as early as when he was ready to become a horse owner, Kitano had already made plans to completely break up with the Iwasaki family.
The relationship between water and oil is the best portrayal of the two parties.
As for why this is so.
It's nothing more than confidants colluding with outsiders and subjugating superiors. This has been quite common throughout the ages.
Kitano doesn't have much bad feelings towards Iwasaki Nobumichi himself.
Even without the other party's push, Mejiro Trading at that time had reached an unsustainable point.
At best, what he did was speed up the sinking of the old giant ship "Mejiro".
However, this does not mean that Kitano will forget easily.
In order to earn enough for tuition, I once had the experience of wearing a doll costume on the streets of Shibuya in the summer and holding up the GG sign for several hours.
Even if it is for those sweaty days, it is impossible to let the past grudges flow away like water.
Of course, he is not a fool who is blinded by hatred.
If Iwasaki suddenly became a big shot after taking over the original Nishiken Farm, he would have to hold his nose and deal with it no matter how reluctant he was.
However, that's not how things went.
Although there has been some improvement, Nishiken Farm is still in "almost the same" condition after changing ownership.
In this way, there is no need to make excuses.