A Single Reins, a Hundred Riders Bow Their Heads, the Trait "Waist-Horse Unity," Seeking "Martial Arts"!

A day later, early morning.

The sky was barely light, and dewdrops hung from the mulberry trees at the Lin Residence.

Yao Shi yawned, suppressing his shivers as he cleared out yesterday's horse dung. He was about to deliver it to the fields farmed by vegetable growers and tenant farmers, his face miserable.

In the past, Old Yao, the groom, had always ordered other servants to handle such chores.

Yesterday, Yao Shi had been unlucky enough to offer up a roll of tobacco to curry favor, only to run straight into the gun barrel.

Thinking back on it now, he truly wanted to cry but had no tears.

"But it's fine. The old man said this Ji Xiu is only getting a little favor because of the Second Miss. He looks about my age, so he probably doesn't know the first thing about Masterful Horsemanship."

"As long as I hold out for a day or two, he definitely won't be able to bear the work in this stable. Then the old man will have a way to deal with him."

Feeding horses, raising horses, and exercising horses were not things one could manage by merely flapping one's lips.

Let him endure one night. Today, so long as there was the slightest flaw in his methods, his master would jump out to pick at it, then report everything to the masters of the inner residence.

Even the Second Miss was nothing before the true master of the Lin Residence, Master Lin.

Besides, why would anyone spare a second glance for a servant who knew nothing about Masterful Horsemanship?

With that thought in mind, Yao Shi unwillingly prepared to deal with the horse dung. Yet when he arrived before the East Stable, its tiled roof covered in thatch, he discovered—

The more than twenty fine horses that should have been tied peacefully before their troughs were nowhere to be seen!

Clatter!

The filthy wooden bucket in his hand fell straight to the ground. His soul nearly fled in fright.

"Where did that man take the horses?!"

The words had barely left his mouth.

Clip-clop, clip-clop.

Orderly hoofbeats, not the least bit chaotic, slowly drifted over from the horse-exercising ground specially marked off to one side.

Yao Shi's face stiffened as he forced himself to turn and look.

Only to discover—

The sturdy steeds so carefully selected by Master Lin were as docile as sheep before a youth wearing nothing but a thin brown coat in the freezing cold!

Within that small gravel yard, they circled round and round, neither neighing nor making a fuss!

Even though he had merely casually grasped a single set of reins.

Yet in Yao Shi's eyes—

At that moment, it was as though a shepherd had seized the scepter in his hand.

As though he had tightly clenched every rein around the necks of all those fierce horses in his palm!

Not one of the dozens of horses ran wild or bolted about. It could only be called—

As easy to command as one's own arm!

"What the... is this a ghost?"

Yao Shi rubbed his eyes, thinking he had not woken up yet. But when he opened them again, he found that Ji Xiu in the distance had even nodded at him in friendly greeting.

"Master, Master, come out here!"

That alone frightened him into running back. Before long, Old Yao, cursing all the while with his goatee in utter disarray, was pushed and dragged out by him.

"What nonsense are you spouting, you little brat? Horses as gentle as sheep, all driven in perfect order by one rein, without a single one running off?"

"I've trained horses for over forty years, and even now, I still honestly lead them one by one, exercise them one by one in circles."

"Even then, those horses still rebel from time to time."

"If someone could train dozens or even hundreds of horses at once, I'd kneel on the spot, offer him tea, and beg him to teach me the true essence of horsemanship! What kind of nonsense is this? Did your master flick you too lightly yesterday?"

Old Yao was not wearing the thin padded coat from yesterday. He staggered from the cold, snot and tears running together, his calves trembling. One look showed that his old cold-leg ailment had flared up.

The moment he stepped out of the wooden shed beside the stable, he saw Ji Xiu crack his horsewhip once, and every horse of the East Stable obediently returned to its trough.

At the front, spirited and proud, was none other than Thousand Mile Snow, the Second Miss Lin Ruyue's horse!

"No way."

"It's so cold that this old man has frozen himself into hallucinating?"

Old Yao was dumbfounded too.

Then—

He watched Ji Xiu take dried fodder, polished rice, and fine flour from the feed baskets, mix them together in an orderly fashion, neither too much nor too little, and pour them into each trough in turn.

The twenty-some fine horses ate with tremendous gusto. They not only looked livelier than yesterday, but even sturdier!

Led the horses and untied their reins, releasing their nature. Exercised them for a quarter of an hour. Horse training successful!

Masterful Horsemanship: 51/1000!

Fed dried fodder, rice flour, and eggs, making the fine horses snort with delight!

Masterful Horsemanship: 52/1000!

Watching his Masterful Horsemanship improve bit by bit, and realizing that even after advancing it on credit, he could still make solid progress while repaying that debt—

The feeling left Ji Xiu, who had risen before dawn, brimming with energy.

Even though his stomach was empty and his clothes were thin.

The feeling of seeing hope made his heart incomparably steady!

"You... you..."

Seeing him return to the stable, Old Yao trembled so badly that he could not even speak clearly.

"Don't be anxious, old sir. If you want to learn, I can teach you."

"But there's no need to kneel and offer tea."

Ji Xiu smiled as he spoke, leaving Old Yao red-faced and speechless.

At that moment—

Only one thought remained in his mind.

How could this kid possess such a skilled foundation in Masterful Horsemanship?!

"Old man, every time you feed them, you mix in too much dried fodder and beans. If the horses eat too much, their bellies will bloat. And you're old—you only exercise them once a day. In the long run, that won't do."

"I'll help you exercise them for a few more rounds. Next time, remember to add more fine rice and flour, and mix in fewer beans."

Ji Xiu still wore his brown coat and remained thin, though there was now a slight trace of color in his face.

Beside him followed a goateed old man in a thin black padded coat, rubbing his hands together with a chuckle.

"Ah, this old man is getting on in years. I can't run circles anymore. But isn't little brother Ji here? With someone as diligent as you, rising before dawn every day, what difference does it make what these horses eat?"

After the past few days, Old Yao had thoroughly come to terms with it.

In horsemanship, he was no match for Ji Xiu.

In health, he would be one foot in the grave in a few years.

In standing, no matter what he said, he was still only a servant who did not see the master more than a few times a year.

But this boy might have the Second Miss protecting him!

Twenty years earlier—

To preserve his own position, Old Yao would have done everything in his power to press this boy down and keep him there, lest he threaten his standing.

But now—

He already had one foot in the grave, had long saved enough for his coffin, and all that remained was losing a few benefits. He could let it go.

Besides, with this boy around, he had truly been taking it easy these past few days!

Up before dawn in the morning, working until curfew at night—truly like a horse or an ox, nothing less than an Ox-Horse Body!

He worked like this even when Master Lin was not here.

If Master Lin were here—

Wouldn't these old bones of his be compared straight into the dust?

Old Yao sighed inwardly. At the same time, he stole a few glances at Ji Xiu and could not help shaking his head.

Looking at that frail body, as though one gust of wind might scatter it apart.

He truly feared that little Ji would work himself to death tomorrow.

If that happened, where would he find such an easy life again?

As for Yao Shi and the other apprentices, he feared that once he taught them the real skills, he would have no one left to care for him in his declining years.

In any case, he did not expect this boy to support him in his old age, nor did the boy need his horsemanship skills to make a living.

So he glanced around, and seeing that Yao Shi and the other apprentices were absent, Old Yao stealthily shoved several eggs over to him.

"Kid, seeing how hard you've worked these past few days, this old man will teach you a few truths."

"Those horses... why do they need to eat so well?"

"Fine rice and flour at every meal, even meat like eggs. Those beasts eat better than people!"

"Now that you've sold yourself into Slave Status, you'll be here for the rest of your life anyway. You might as well treat yourself better and build up your body. Maybe then the Second Miss can..."

Old Yao waggled his eyebrows as he spoke, forcibly stuffing the eggs into Ji Xiu's pocket.

After a while—

He could not help feeling a little regretful, so he sighed to himself.

"This kid really does work hard. If he could become an Entering the Ranks martial man, perhaps..."

"But then again, he's already a servant. This is all his life will ever be."

"Heh."

"What's the point of working so hard and wearing himself out?"

But—

In a corner beyond Old Yao's peripheral vision—

Horse training successful. Attempts +1!

Masterful Horsemanship: 754/1000!

Masterful Horsemanship: Mastery achieved!

Current trait acquired: Waist-Horse Unity!

When riding a horse, the mount beneath your crotch becomes like an extension of your legs, as easy to command as your own arm!

While assuming a horse stance or practicing Pile Stance, you can twist your strength into a single cord and surpass... the limits of the human body!

Masterful Horsemanship!

Mastery achieved!

All those days of effort had truly not been in vain.

Looking at the skill he had advanced on credit in the Primordial Dao Talisman, Ji Xiu wiped away his sweat and finally revealed a brilliant smile.

He stared steadily at Old Yao for a long while.

Until he made the old man's scalp prickle, and Old Yao could not help thinking, This kid isn't going to be so rigid and impartial that he reports this old man, is he?

Only then did Ji Xiu quietly look away.

Then he touched the bulge beneath his clothes over his left breast.

There lay several taels of Fine Silver.

It was the reward he had received a few days ago for saving the Second Miss, Lin Ruyue, when he first entered the residence.

Because a noble person had personally inspected the matter, no one had dared to skim any off it.

A full five taels!

He had heard that Master Lin had originally planned to reward him with a hundred or so copper coins and casually send him on his way.

As for the rest, it was Lin Ruyue herself who felt that was too little and made up the difference.

She was quite a kind-hearted mistress.

Though she had lost control of her horse, he had already seen through the chain of cause and effect a few days ago and realized someone had set it up. Thus, he did not blame Lin Ruyue.

Ji Xiu silently committed the matter to heart and clenched his fist.

A kindness as small as a drop of water would be engraved upon his heart.

But for now—

There was something more important.

Just yesterday—

He had arranged to meet Qin Biao, a guard of the Lin Residence.

After training the horses today, he intended to ask him how he could find an opportunity to practice martial arts!

Whether it was a martial hall, a gang, or private instruction—

So long as there was a path—

Even if it was the lowest-grade street-stall trash, common goods found everywhere, he was confident he could rise above the rest!

Since coming to this world—

Ji Xiu had never been as excited as he was today.

Now he had money, and the Dao Talisman's advance would soon be fully repaid—

The first signs of turning his life around had already emerged!

Therefore, he did not linger.

Ji Xiu strode as though riding the wind, wolfed down the eggs whole, and impatiently—

Set off in great strides!

The golden dawn spilled across his retreating figure.

It illuminated Ji Xiu as though he were the rising sun, rich vitality beginning here!