Outside Jingzhou City, the willows were lush and the green grass soft and tender.
On the grass, a young master in white was practicing riding. Beside him stood a young woman in blue, her figure trim and vigorous.
Wang Yang sat astride a tall yellow-gray horse, concentrating hard as he held the reins and guided it around in small circles.
The horse seemed deeply unwilling. It walked awkwardly, tossing its mane from time to time in protest.
This was a purebred Jingzhou Horse that Wang Yang had bought at the horse market for the hefty price of eighteen thousand. With the accompanying tack and feed, the total came to nearly twenty thousand.
Although it was no prized steed capable of traveling a thousand li, it was still a fine horse. At least it had passed Chen Qing Shan's "professional certification."
The horse might have been good, but riding was no easy skill to learn. Chen Qing Shan said that someone with talent could perform "Riding the Waves" within half an hour.
"Riding the Waves" meant rising and falling with a running mount without the rider's body leaving the saddle.
Wang Yang had practiced with single-minded concentration all morning, until all four limbs ached. Never mind Riding the Waves-even getting the horse to go a little faster was difficult!
"Don't lean forward. Lower your feet. Not like that... yes! Just like that! Let them hang naturally. Your legs should follow the horse's movements completely, especially the movement of its ribs."
"Open your knees, release the tension in your legs, and imagine you're standing on the ground..."
"Press outward against the stirrups... don't squeeze the horse's belly hard. Relax. A gentle nudge will do. If once doesn't work, try twice; if twice doesn't work, try three times. Horses aren't stupid.