After tidying up and straightening his clothes, Zhao Yi’an finally stepped out through the courtyard.
Along the way, the disciples of the horse gang were all busy with their own tasks—some moving cargo, some brushing down horses, some repairing wagon wheels.
No one had the time to spare him a second glance. Zhao Yi’an was quite happy with the peace and quiet, keeping his head down and walking briskly. In no time, he arrived at the stables.
This horse gang in Xiang’an town was more like a decent-sized horse ranch than a proper escort bureau.
Most of the gang’s efforts were spent on feeding, training, and caring for the horses. The actual escort jobs they took on throughout the year were few and far between.
It was actually quite amusing. The reason this escort bureau had so little escort business could be blamed on the previous old sect leader.
That old master, in his youth, had traveled far and wide and learned a few crude martial arts moves from some Jianghu folk. Upon returning, with a grand wave of his hand, he hung out his shingle and opened this escort bureau.
Unfortunately, his martial arts weren’t learned deeply enough, and he hadn’t built up many connections either.
After over a decade of operation, the bureau had handled few proper jobs. Instead, it had ventured further and further down the path of horse breeding.
Nowadays, eight out of ten disciples in the gang dealt with horses. The remaining two were responsible for taking care of people and taking care of horses.
Of course, both of those two were Zhao Yi’an.
The stable walls were originally whitewashed, but now, stained by cooking smoke and soaked with horse urine, they had turned a mottled grayish-white.
In many places, the plaster had curled and peeled away, revealing the yellowish rammed earth beneath.
These marks, worn by the passage of time, were proof of how seriously the horse gang took the business of raising these animals.
Zhao Yi’an, familiar with the routine, went to the tool storage area, picked up a wooden bucket containing brushes and cloths, and headed into the stables.
‘It’s midday now. The job of feeding dry fodder should already be done by the others.’
‘I’ll go brush down those “lords,” give them a good wipe.’
Muttering to himself, Zhao Yi’an carried the bucket.
Normally, his duties involved feeding the horses, topping up their water, then leading each one out for a walk. When the weather was hot, he’d brush and wipe down these hard-to-please masters.
As for dirty work like mucking out stalls and cleaning, that was rotated among all the horse gang disciples.
In the past, Zhao Yi’an would also tidy up the tack at night. But ever since he performed his long-practiced culinary skills in front of the brothers once, his evening chores were basically taken over by the others.
As he walked, he suddenly heard shouts coming from a corner of the courtyard.
Zhao Yi’an looked over. It was a few of the gang’s younger members, around his age, practicing.
There were no flashy techniques—just short staff strikes and sweeps, simple saber slashes, or close-quarters wrist locks and shoulder presses for grappling.
As the youths repeated their drills for another round, the young man realized he had been watching, somewhat entranced.
Tsk—
Why can’t I learn alongside them…
He withdrew his gaze, which held a hint of envy, and continued preparing for the work he was responsible for.
He understood it himself. It wasn’t that the gang members didn’t want to include him in practicing martial arts.
It was that he used to, every single time, end up delaying the others because of his own issues, causing each practice session to end hastily.
Over time, he himself grew tired of disturbing the others and simply withdrew on his own initiative, never again asking to learn martial arts with them.
However, the current Zhao Yi’an wasn’t like before, swallowing his envy alone.
Because he knew he was no longer the leftover that nobody picked. Someone had chosen him too.
Hmph!
Just wait until I learn martial arts and inner power from Master and gain more experience. I’ll make you all envious too!
Hiss, thinking about it gets me a little excited!
Thinking this, Zhao Yi’an suddenly felt incredibly motivated. He felt like he was walking with a gust of wind.
“Little horse, little horse, you must grow up quickly.”
“Don’t be insecure, don’t be afraid. You will surely become a fine steed.”
Humming, Zhao Yi’an skillfully brushed the little horse’s coat with the brush in his hand.
The young foal couldn’t possibly understand human language, but it seemed somewhat influenced nonetheless, humming along with the casual little tune.
Time flew by like the melody, and the sun hanging high in the sky began to show signs of weariness.
Zhao Yi’an worked all afternoon, shaking his head and swaying as he did.
Just as he finished putting away and arranging the tools in hand and was about to head off to make dinner—a rare treat now—a deep, somewhat hoarse voice tinged with teasing reached his ears.
“Hey, Brother Zhao! Why so happy today? Missin’ your old brother, are ya?”
Hearing this familiar teasing tone, Zhao Yi’an turned around. He immediately saw Ma Debiao’s signature bushy beard and the clothes he often showed off in front of the horse gang brothers—handmade by Ma Sao.
Ma Debiao was leaning against the wall by the stable entrance, arms crossed, a gourd of wine hanging from one hand.
“Big brother Ma?” Zhao Yi’an was taken aback. “When did you get back? Is Leader Li’s business all finished?”
“Finished? What’s to finish?”
Hearing Zhao Yi’an’s words, Ma Debiao curled his lip and waved a dismissive hand.
“It was just delivering congratulatory gifts for the boss.”
“Ah, forget about that!”
He paused, waving his hand again.
“But you, kid, I could hear you humming and mumbling from far away while you worked. What were you singing?”
“It was… just random humming.” Zhao Yi’an scratched the back of his head, somewhat embarrassed.
“Random humming for a whole afternoon?” Ma Debiao leaned in closer, looking him up and down, a mischievous glint in his eyes.
“Brother Zhao, something’s off with you. Are you hiding some good news from your Brother Ma?”
“N-no, not at all… You’re overthinking it.”
Zhao Yi’an shifted his gaze to the side and started whistling.
Ma Debiao narrowed his eyes, staring at the obviously guilty young man before him.
“Really nothing?”
“Nothing.”
Zhao Yi’an realized his current demeanor was a clear sign of a guilty conscience, so he quickly put on a serious expression.
But Ma Debiao clearly wasn’t buying it. A smirk played on his lips as he reached out, hooked an arm around Zhao Yi’an’s neck, and whispered in his ear:
“You think you can underestimate my intelligence network, huh?”
“Wh-what?”
“I know, you know… You’ve been secretly meeting with Lady Yao outside these past few days, haven’t you?”
Hearing this, Zhao Yi’an’s face flushed bright red.
“No! Big brother Ma, don’t talk nonsense!”
“If she herself heard, she’d get angry!”
“Hahaha!” Ma Debiao was greatly amused by the young man’s reaction, laughing heartily and slapping him on the back.
“Your face is red as a beet, and you still say no? Last time, after Lady Yao took you out to the medical clinic, you came back a whole hour later than usual. The brothers in the gang were clamoring because they couldn’t eat your cooking. I still remember it!”
Hearing Ma Debiao’s words, Zhao Yi’an remembered too.
The so-called “secret meeting” was actually the day Zhao Yi’an became Liu Yao’s disciple by the river. Afterwards, he was so happy he took several more big gulps, getting himself thoroughly drunk. It was Liu Yao who had to carry him back.
‘How can they twist that into a secret meeting? How can these old fellows be so gossipy…’ Zhao Yi’an twitched the corner of his mouth, grumbling internally.
“Ahem, big brother Ma, you’re the one openly waving a wine gourd around. Aren’t you afraid Sister-in-law Ma will twist your ear?”
Seeing that Ma Debiao looked ready to continue questioning him, Zhao Yi’an hurriedly steered the topic elsewhere.
Hearing Zhao Yi’an’s words, Ma Debiao raised an eyebrow.
“Ho, I’m not afraid! I’ll have you know, this is a secret recipe medicinal wine I got from old man Huang. If your Sister-in-law Ma finds out, she’ll be delighted!”
“Ah? Why’s that?”
“Come on, come on! Let’s walk and talk!”
Seeing Zhao Yi’an’s utterly confused expression, Ma Debiao immediately broke into a mischievous grin, hooking his arm and dragging him towards the kitchen.
Zhao Yi’an could only be pulled along, repeatedly saying things like “slow down, slow down.”
The two figures gradually disappeared from the stables as the sun quietly began to set.
Another ordinary day.