What a Waste for Lü Bu to Give Up Sex (Please Vote)

Lü Bu's coat wasn't particularly striking. It wasn't solid black or white.

Some patches were white, and others were black.

He looked like a cow.

"Lü Bu was the mightiest warrior of the Three Kingdoms. Shouldn't that name go to a particularly fine-looking horse?"

As Shen Qi spoke, he offered the horse some fodder.

Following Shi Feng's instructions, he first established some basic rapport with the horse.

Whether it would help was hard to say.

But at the very least, going through these steps made it easier for the club to charge its customers.

"We drew lots for the name. They have a breeding farm, and foals are born there every day. What, don't you like this one?"

Shi Feng laughed.

Was Shen Qi feeling sorry for the name?

"No, it's just a shame Lü Bu had to give up sex."

Shen Qi patted the horse's head.

A gelding had no right to say that wine and women had worn him down.

After a few handfuls of fodder, Lü Bu was noticeably less resistant to Shen Qi approaching him.

Shen Qi took the opportunity to brush his coat.

Finally, he led him toward the riding track.

When they reached the grounds, quite a few students were already galloping around.

"Here, put on your protective gear. Then get on and see how it feels."

Shi Feng taught Shen Qi to ride personally.

He was actually an excellent rider and even held a professional coaching certificate.

More importantly, the club's instructors were all busy. It would be hard to assign a top-notch coach to a bit-part actor like Shen Qi.

Besides, Shi Feng felt that spending more time with Shen Qi would help him flesh out his novel.

Maybe he would be the next Xue Hong or Xiao Ding.

Shen Qi wouldn't dream of going without protective gear.

Many athletes retired because of injuries.

He had studied sports, so he understood the importance of safety better than most.

"How about you demonstrate first, Brother Feng? I'll take some notes..."

Shen Qi put on his protective gear but made no move to mount.

The horse named Lü Bu clearly wasn't easy to handle.

"Take notes?"

Shi Feng didn't see what there was to write down, but he didn't refuse.

He started by explaining how to check the equipment—whether the protective gear was secure, whether the saddle sat correctly, how to adjust the stirrups...

Then he covered how to observe the horse and make sure he was in good condition before attempting to mount.

Once mounted, there was how to sit securely, keep his balance, and give commands through the reins and his legs...

Shen Qi bent over his notebook, scribbling furiously.

He had never learned to ride and knew next to nothing about it.

That made getting a successful record difficult.

Fortunately, Shi Feng was teaching the basics, and Shen Qi had reached Sequence 8.

Before long, he had filled two pages.

Still, the sight of him clutching a notebook and solemnly taking notes while facing a horse looked utterly out of place at the riding grounds.

He looked like... a lunatic!

"Well? Do you get it now? Look over there. Even that girl, who's only sixteen or seventeen, is brave enough to get on and ride."

Shi Feng had explained everything three times already.

Riding was ultimately a physical skill. Talking alone wouldn't teach it.

"Is that Liu Yifei?"

Shen Qi turned to look, but he could only see her profile.

"Yeah, that's her. The one you have scenes with..."

There was admiration in Shi Feng's voice.

When he had worked on the set of Demi-Gods and Semi-Devils, he had seen the fifteen- or sixteen-year-old girl hold her own among a crowd of adults.

"Scenes with her, my ass..."

Shen Qi didn't even know what to say.

Calling it "having scenes together" had never been more of a stretch.

"Well? Want to go say hello?"

Shi Feng looked eager.

If he wrote a novel called Sleeping with the Entire Entertainment Industry, he certainly couldn't leave out a pretty, dedicated girl like Liu Yifei.

"No thanks. What am I supposed to say? 'Hello, Little Dragon Maiden, I'm Yin Zhiping'? Does that sound like a good idea to you?"

Shen Qi refused without hesitation.

The gap in their standing was far too big.

Liu Yifei had debuted at fifteen, starting out as the second female lead in The Story of a Noble Family.

Although she was young and inexperienced, her portrayal of the villainous second female lead had won her plenty of fans after the show aired.

She had then played Wang Yuyan in Demi-Gods and Semi-Devils.

Her age, bearing, and beauty had all been just right for the role.

Even her rookie awkwardness had made her a better fit for Wang Yuyan, a flower raised in a greenhouse.

He couldn't categorically say her Wang Yuyan was better than Carman Lee's or Idy Chan's.

But to deliver a performance like that at fifteen or sixteen...

Shen Qi couldn't even imagine it.

Only after entering the industry himself had he understood how impressive that performance really was.

She was now the undisputed female lead.

And Shen Qi...

Even to land a second male lead role, he needed multiple advantages stacked in his favor, like "Migrant Workers drama" and "rural background."

Going over to say hello would only be asking for humiliation.

"Liu Yifei isn't as aloof as you think. She's a pretty fun girl."

Shi Feng sounded disappointed.

When he saw Liu Yifei looking their way, he waved at her. The girl smiled and waved back.

"Look at this patch on his rump... Doesn't it look like the character 'Lü'?"

Shen Qi was touching the horse's rump.

He was ready to mount Lü Bu.

"It really does..." Shi Feng held the reins for him and went on. "Lü Bu's actually a good horse. He's just a bit hot-tempered. Since he was gelded, his temper's improved a lot..."

"I get it. Back in our village, we castrated pigs and sheep. I can do it myself, and I'm pretty quick with my hands."

"Thanks... I don't think I'll need that."

"Ahem. Sorry. I talk too much when I'm nervous."

Shen Qi eyed Lü Bu's height and figured mounting him wouldn't be too difficult.

Unfortunately, his legs felt weak. Unpleasant childhood memories had begun tormenting him again.

Getting kicked by a donkey, butted by a sheep, nearly trampled by a cow...

What if the horse suddenly bolted once he was on? Or started bucking as he ran? How could he avoid getting hurt?

After working up his nerve, Shen Qi decisively put a foot in the stirrup and mounted.

Lü Bu snorted beneath him and took a few impatient steps in place.

Fortunately, Shi Feng was a professional and quickly calmed him down.

"Shen Qi!"

Just as Shen Qi was about to urge the horse forward a few steps, someone called his name.

He turned and found another familiar face.

Well, he had spent four years in the capital and worked odd jobs all over the place. It was only natural that he knew a lot of people.

Riding, swimming, shooting... they were all sports.

The young woman before him, dressed in black riding clothes with neatly cropped hair, was Xiao Xue, an older schoolmate he had met while working at the online variety show studio's gym.

"Xiao Xue! Long time no see. What are you doing here?" Shen Qi greeted her at once.

"I'm an instructor here. What are you doing?"

Xiao Xue cast a critical eye over his posture and immediately pegged him as a complete novice.

"I'm in a TV series. The production sent me here to learn to ride."

Shen Qi shifted uncomfortably in the saddle. Lü Bu grew impatient again, and he hurriedly steadied himself, not daring to move.

Damn it. One of these days, I'll slaughter you and eat you.

He had heard that the donkey-meat sandwiches sold in shops were actually made with horse meat.

Then again, the horse belonged to the club.

He had no right to slaughter him for meat.

Just as his landlord would never let him sell the apartment and wander the world with a sword.

"Oh, The Return of the Condor Heroes? The student I'm teaching is with your production too. Who do you play?"

Sure enough, the moment she heard he was acting, she asked about his role.

Before Shen Qi could say the production had asked him to keep it secret, Shi Feng grinned and answered for him:

"He plays Yin Zhiping!"

Not bad, not bad. Just what I'd expect from the model for my novel's protagonist.

A dashing female riding instructor like her was definitely someone the protagonist had to win over.

Art came from life!

Shi Feng visited this club often, so of course he knew Xiao Xue.

How had he never thought to make a female riding instructor one of his heroines before?

Heroine number one hundred and one!

"Ugh..." Xiao Xue looked disgusted and took two steps back. "My lord, you're actually playing him?"

"I'm an actor. There's nothing strange about playing a villain."

Shen Qi grabbed a handful of Lü Bu's mane.

Damn it, move already. What, you see a pretty woman and your legs stop working?

Xiao Xue wasn't the only one there. Liu Yifei, the student she was coaching, had ridden over too.

Her instructor had run into someone she knew, and Liu Yifei knew Shi Feng as well. She guessed the others were with The Return of the Condor Heroes production too. It would have seemed rude not to come over.

Of course, she was the female lead.

She was entitled to ignore both Shen Qi and Shi Feng. Even if she had, no one would have said a thing.