The Double-Chapter 523 - 159: Green Hat

"Not much, five hundred taels of silver."

"Miss Jiang the Second, you can’t be joking," said Lu Jiu. If all precious horses could be bought for just five hundred taels of silver, then every street and alley would be filled with such fine horses.

"Indeed, it’s true. I bought it from a horse trader in the East Market," Jiang Li said. ƒгeeweɓn૦vel.com

Speaking of the East Market, everyone immediately understood what kind of place it was. It was a must-visit for any trader. Whether one made a profit or a loss depended on one’s eye for quality. Since Jiang Li said so, she must have found the horse trader who mistook the foal for a common one, while she recognized its extraordinary qualities and bought it.

"Then, Miss Jiang the Second, where is this horse trader? Are there any other horses?" Kong Liu asked eagerly. The thought of buying a precious horse for five hundred taels of silver was too tempting for anyone to resist.

"Yes, indeed, are there any other horses left?" Wen Renyao also chimed in excitedly.

"There are many other horses, but when I was there, there was only this one Sweat-Blood Precious Horse," Jiang Li said with a smile. "If you really want to go, you can certainly try. Maybe the owner has recently acquired new precious steeds." Although she said this, the implication was not very promising. Everyone listened and knew that such luck didn’t come every day.

The one who encountered this foal was lucky but lacked judgment, while those with good judgment were unlucky, unable to find that horse trader. Only Jiang Li had both luck and discernment; she just happened to enter the East Market that day and recognized this one among a group of foals.

"Miss Jiang the Second truly has extensive knowledge," Lu Jiu stroked his beard. "You even understand the art of equine appraisal."

"It’s only a rudimentary understanding, based on what’s written in books," laughed Jiang Li. "I owe more to luck."

"Enough small talk. The horse hasn’t been named yet, right? Let’s pick a name," Old General Jih said, "Chilong? Peerless Shadow? Swift Herd?"

"Old master, just in our cavalry alone, there are three named Chilong, five named Peerless Shadow, and seven named Swift Herd," Kong Liu reminded him.

Such names were commonly used, and having horses with the same name in one cavalry was not unusual. Wen Renyao asked curiously, "With so many horses sharing the same name, how do you distinguish them?"

"That’s easy. Just add the owner’s surname," Kong Liu explained matter-of-factly. "Li Chilong, Wang Chilong, Zhang Chilong. If the surname is also the same, then add a given name. Li Sanjueying, Li Sijueying, Li Wujueying. There’s always a way to identify them."

Wen Renyao: "...."

"Ah Heng, you name it," said the old general.

No sooner had he finished his words than a voice came from above, shouting, "Good horse! Good horse!" It was the myna Xiao Hong, raised by Jih Heng, that flew over. It swooped down like an arrow released from the string onto the foal’s head and plucked the cloth flower that Bai Xue had pinned on the little horse’s ear that morning.

Xiao Hong’s noisy voice was unclear in intent—mockery or admiration—but it even managed to say a complete sentence, "Good flowers match good horses, good horses match good flowers!"

Jiang Li: "..." She really wanted to silence the embarrassing myna, and she also couldn’t help but wonder. When Xiao Hong was at the Shen family’s place, it wasn’t as noisy as it was now, and could even be considered quiet. No one taught it to spout such nonsense; at most, it could mimic calling people.

Could it be that the Duke Residence had awakened some inherent trait in the myna?

"Is it a male or a female?" Wen Renyao asked.

"It’s a boy," Kong Liu had already determined.

Jih Heng glanced at the myna and suddenly said, "Since it’s a boy, let’s call it Xiao Lan."

Everyone: "..."

Kong Liu said, "I suddenly feel that the earlier names, Chilong, Peerless Shadow, Swift Herd, were all quite good."

Jih Heng ignored Kong Liu’s comment. She placed her fan against the foal’s forehead and smiled, "Your name will be Xiao Lan."

Xiao Lan, with its mismatched name, was clearly unhappy and seemed about to protest, but Jih Heng just looked at it with a smile and stroked its mane. The male foal couldn’t help but shiver and didn’t dare move, meekly letting Jih Heng touch him.

Such horses were believed to possess intelligence, and intelligent animals were the best at understanding who was truly dangerous. Looking at Xiao Hong, strutting proudly under the eaves, and Xiao Lan, the foal with a sullen demeanor among the crowd, Jiang Li, for a moment, was at a loss for words.

She couldn’t find anything appropriate to say.

The excitement over Xiao Lan finally dissipated after a while. Old General Jih had someone lead Xiao Lan away, repeatedly cautioning that nobody should let the foal near the flower garden of the Duke Residence. Everyone headed towards the hall, and upon reaching it, they found that Situ Jiuyue had also arrived early. Hai Tang was following close behind, seemingly getting along quite well with Situ Jiuyue.