Lin Zhi's Stable Decision

Perhaps because Chinese people were naturally hardworking, the training centers under the racecourses were all in fairly good condition, though each had its own shortcomings.

Mindu Racecourse was, after all, located in Min Province's capital. It also hosted the Eight-Min Dirt Derby, the most important leg of the Min Province Triple Crown and one leg of the East China Triple Crown, so the racing atmosphere was exceptionally lively.

But when Zhang Jun inspected the training center under the racecourse, he found the stables extremely crowded. Though relatively clean, the equipment showed rust in places, and the ventilation was inadequate.

Perhaps Mindu Racecourse had been established first as a pioneer and was already quite old. On top of that, several trainers Zhang Jun had contacted were unwilling to renovate the facilities just to benefit those who came after them.

Xinghua Racetrack had the best environment of the three racecourses. Its stalls were clean, tidy, and well ventilated.

However, its stalls were also the smallest of the three. They barely met the minimum space required for racehorses, making the horses there more irritable or numb than those at the other two racecourses, with rougher coats as well.

Qingyuan Racetrack's training center had clean, tidy stalls with ample space and good ventilation.

But after watching races at Qingyuan, Zhang Jun noticed that, perhaps due to the locals' fiery temperament, collisions often occurred during races. This made him somewhat worried about Shadow Hunter's safety on the track.

Back at his hotel in Qingyuan, Zhang Jun followed the order on the list and called the remaining trainers at Jian'an Racetrack one by one.

After half an hour of calls, Zhang Jun crossed five names off the list, took out his phone to buy a ticket back to Jian'an, checked out, and headed home.

Of the six trainers at Jian'an Racetrack who worked with Jianzhou Ranch, five already had full stables. Only the last trainer accepted Zhang Jun's request for a visit—Lin Zhi, who had consistently ranked between fifteenth and twentieth among Jian'an's seventy-one trainers.

"If Jian'an doesn't work out either."

Zhang Jun looked out the window. "Then I'll stay at Mindu. The environment isn't the best and the equipment is somewhat poor, but at least there's enough space, and the races are safer."

The night before, after receiving Zhang Jun's call, Lin Zhi had readily agreed to his request for a visit. But the moment he hung up, he contacted Luo Fei.

"All right, all right..." As he spoke with Luo Fei, he jotted notes down in a notebook.

"He currently has a two-year-old colt. It's a descendant of Jianzhou Swift Cavalier, the stallion Jianzhou Ranch highly values and promotes. The ranch's assessment says it has the potential to win Graded Stakes races, even a Grade One Race..."

"And he wants to establish his own ranch later on, which means he'll definitely be buying more horses in the future. If we serve him well this time, there's a strong chance of working together again..."

Among the stallions in Min Province, Shadow Hunter's damsire, Jianzhou Senior General, and sire, Jianzhou Swift Cavalier, were both outstanding dirt stallions.

Jianzhou Senior General had been a stallion for ten years. Six of his offspring had won Grade One Races, and three had gone on to become stallions themselves. Two of those were at Jianzhou Ranch and were among the ranch's main bloodlines.

Jianzhou Swift Cavalier had been specifically bred to mares in other provinces by Jianzhou Ranch. His bloodline was at least four generations removed from the ranch's own horses and more than half the horses in Min Province, making him the ranch's future flagship stallion.

The current group of two-year-olds, including Shadow Hunter, were Jianzhou Swift Cavalier's first crop, and the ranch placed great importance on their results.

In particular, a horse like Shadow Hunter, who had performed exceptionally during development, could completely determine the auction prices of Jianzhou Swift Cavalier's offspring over the next few years.

Lin Zhi was fifty-four this year and had been a trainer for twenty-four years. He had won plenty of Graded Stakes races, but had never won a Grade One Race—neither an internationally recognized G1 nor a local Grade One Race rated internationally as a Listed Race, such as CN1.

That was why he took Luo Fei's words so seriously, especially the assessment that Shadow Hunter had the potential to win a Grade One Race and the fact that Zhang Jun intended to open a ranch.

It meant that if they could establish a partnership, he would not only gain another regular client but also have hope of winning the first Grade One Race of his career. It would also benefit his descendants if they pursued careers as trainers.

Therefore, when Zhang Jun arrived at Jian'an Racetrack the next day, Lin Zhi was already waiting at the entrance.

His face was full and he looked somewhat plump, with bronzed skin. The moment he saw Zhang Jun, he approached with a broad smile.

"Welcome, Mr. Zhang. I'm Lin Zhi, the trainer you contacted earlier. I've been waiting for you."

Zhang Jun exchanged a few pleasantries with Lin Zhi using the phrasing Luo Fei had taught him. Lin Zhi then turned and led him toward the training center attached to the racecourse.

"Please come this way and have a look at my stables. I won't boast about anything else, but when it comes to the stable environment, staff, and horse management, I absolutely won't disappoint you."

Zhang Jun nodded and replied politely, "I'm looking forward to it."

When Zhang Jun and Lin Zhi reached Lin Zhi's stable area, Zhang Jun first took a sniff.

The air was fresh. Though it still carried the scent of horses, it was very faint, indicating good ventilation.

After entering one of the stalls, Zhang Jun examined its environment and equipment.

Every stall had a brand-new exhaust fan installed, and a large fan stood every few stalls.

The bedding in the stalls was thick, while the feed buckets contained hay, oats, beans, and corn.

"The ventilation system was just upgraded this year." Seeing Zhang Jun notice the new equipment and feed, Lin Zhi explained with pride.

"When temperatures exceed thirty degrees for most of July and August, we'll add ice as well to make sure the stalls don't become stuffy and hot."

He pointed toward the stalls. "The bedding is changed every day, and we clean the stalls three times daily—morning, noon, and evening—to ensure they stay clean and sanitary."

He then led Zhang Jun to the room where feed was stored and took some out for him to inspect.

"I specifically consulted several senior trainers who rank near the top nationally and revised the feed formula many times. The current version has received very positive responses from the racehorses in our stable."

Zhang Jun nodded, a smile appearing at the corner of his mouth.

Along the way, Zhang Jun could see that Lin Zhi's management skills were excellent. The stable environment and equipment were all very clean, while the staff worked skillfully, calmly, and in perfect order.

The horses' coats were glossy as well, showing that they were happy in this stable.

Zhang Jun had made his decision.

After the two finished touring the stable and returned to the entrance, Lin Zhi's eyes were full of anticipation, and his hands unconsciously gripped the corners of his clothes.

Zhang Jun turned and held out his hand to Lin Zhi. "Trainer Lin Zhi, I'm very satisfied with your stable. Please contact Jianzhou Ranch and the association as soon as possible regarding Shadow Hunter's stable entry and trainer registration."

Lin Zhi's eyes shone with excitement. He bowed, clasped Zhang Jun's hand in both of his, and pumped it up and down, his voice booming.

"Don't worry, Owner Zhang! I'll give it everything I've got!"

After leaving Lin Zhi's stable, Zhang Jun finally had Shadow Hunter's destination settled, and the weight in his heart lifted.

He rode his little electric scooter home, washed up, played games with Luo Heng for a while, and told him the good news that he had found a trainer.

Finally, as he lay in bed, he could not help imagining Shadow Hunter's future racing career of victory after victory, and then the many outstanding offspring he would produce after retirement—helping Zhang Jun become an unprecedented, unsurpassable genius breeder. With those fantasies in mind, he gradually fell asleep.