Hibiscus Cup I

December 31, 2023, the Sunday of the final week of December, Tianfu City, Sichuan-Shu Province.

Zhang Jun stepped out of the taxi, and the damp, freezing air hit him head-on, making him shiver.

A fine drizzle drifted down from the sky, cold against his face.

It was cold here too, but unlike the damp chill of Min Province, the cold here seemed to seep into his bones.

Zhang Jun pulled his down jacket tighter and hurried toward the racecourse's owners' entrance.

It was already 4:36 p.m. The plane and taxi had both been faster than Zhang Jun had expected, so he had arrived early. Cloudstream Flying Shadow should not have entered the parade ring yet.

Tianfu Central Racecourse lay in a valley on the outskirts of the city, surrounded by mountains and shrouded in mist.

By now, the grandstands were already packed. Because the seating area was covered by rain shelters, no one held umbrellas, but the racing fans who had come had spontaneously divided themselves into eighteen camps according to the horses they supported.

Zhang Jun hurried through the passage beneath the stands, heading for the local passage below the parade ring.

Cloudstream Flying Shadow had been moved here from the training center stables yesterday. She was staying in one of the inner stalls, waiting for the staff to call her onto the track.

Before he even drew close, Zhang Jun heard a familiar neigh. Cloudstream Flying Shadow had picked out his footsteps from the jumble of sounds. She poked her head out of the stall, ears pricked straight up and bright eyes fixed on him.

"Good girl, did you miss me?"

Zhang Jun walked over with a smile and stroked her forehead and ears. Her coat looked far better than when she had first come to Sichuan-Shu Province