"Hey kid, what are you looking at? This kind of cart-pulling nag can't be a warhorse for people to ride."

  "Ah? See Lord Senkei!"

  Zhang Xiao, who was intently observing the horses, suddenly heard someone speaking to him. He looked up and was shocked to see Qian Hu Zhuo Neng, and hastily paid his respects.

  "Alright, alright, people in the army don't have to be so formal all the time, you and I are only two ranks apart, no need to be so stiff." Zhu Neng smiled and waved his hand, he had come specifically to talk to Zhang Feng this time. Since the battle of defending Gaozhou City, Zhang Feng's actions in turning the tide of the war with his own strength had left a deep impression on Zhu Neng. This time, it just so happened that Zhang Feng was also involved in transporting grain, so he naturally wanted to get to know him better.

  "Wasn't it just now that you got addicted to riding Xu Xiaowei's big yellow horse?"

  "To be honest, it's true that I've never seen a horse before when I was in the mountains. Listening to my seniors' explanations couldn't help me understand its subtlety. After coming down from the mountain and entering the military camp, I saw war horses a few times, but I didn't have the chance to try riding one. It wasn't until this time when Commander Xu lent me his horse to ride that I truly experienced the thrill of galloping on horseback. Riding a horse with a sword in hand is what a real man should do! Unfortunately, Commander Xu was too stingy and only let me ride for two laps before not letting me ride again, saying that the horse was already old. But I think the horse still looks very robust..."

  Zhang Feng's expression gradually revealed his yearning, especially when he saw Zhu Neng's black horse, which made him extremely envious. This was because when he was a child, in the mountains, at one of his uncle's place, he had seen an old book "Famous Generals' Records" without any origin, from which he learned about famous generals and brave warriors of various dynasties, thus cultivating Zhang Feng's curiosity towards all kinds of weapons and warhorses.

  Although Zhang Feng had already seen many types of ordinary weapons in the military camp, his curiosity was temporarily satisfied due to the large variety.

  But as for riding, Zhang Feng had never touched it before. Every time he saw the horses coming in and out of the camp, he couldn't help but want to go forward and take a look. The last time in Gaozhou City, he finally got close to the war horse at Meng Ran's place, but those horses were not his, and he had no right to ride them. He had been eyeing them until today when he borrowed Da Huang Ma from Xu Sheng to satisfy his craving, only to be chased down by Xu Sheng just now.

  Zhu couldn't help but burst out laughing at Zhang Feng's impatient look: "You're wrongly accusing Old Xu, it really isn't that he's stingy. That big yellow horse of his may look spirited, but deep down it's already no good. It's said that even the Duke of Wei took a liking to that horse back in the day, but didn't have the heart to take something someone else loved."

  "Is there such a thing? Why would an old horse be so spirited?" After hearing Zhu Neng's words, Zhang Feng realized that he had wrongly blamed Xu Sheng and couldn't help but feel a little ashamed. But why was Xu Sheng's horse different from other old horses?

  "Xu Xiao Wei's horse is from the Western Regions, and it's different from the horses in our Central Plains grasslands. If it hadn't been castrated early on, the people at Tai Pu Temple would have taken it away to breed by force. This big yellow horse has a majestic appearance, although it's not very suitable for battle, but as a ceremonial horse for the imperial family, it's more than enough." Zhu Neng explained to Zhang Feng in detail.

  "But even though it's not suitable, Xu Wei has been riding for so many years, the feelings are naturally very deep. You're a newcomer who doesn't know how to take care of your mount, can you bear to let Xu Wei worry? He letting you run two laps is already being very magnanimous."

  Zhang Feng scratched his head in embarrassment, and Zhu Neng's words made him blush. It turned out that the problem was with his horse riding technique earlier. Indeed, when riding a horse for the first time, one should listen to others' experiences. Not only had he wrongly blamed someone else, but he had also harmed their horse using the wrong method. He would go find Xu Xiao Wei later and apologize to him... after all, it was his own fault.

  Suddenly, Zhang Feng thought of a question "Why castrate war horses? A good horse was made into a eunuch by others, isn't that somewhat not too good."

  "Hahaha! You don't understand this, do you? These warhorses have to undergo strict training from a young age, including saddling, carrying people, courage, and even responding correctly to the rider's commands. All of these require specialized trainers, which is why the imperial stables can only produce so few warhorses each year - good horse breeders are hard to find! Take that groom who was with Captain Xu, for example - he's an expert at training horses. And castrating them is crucial, or else when your stallion sees a mare in the enemy camp and gets excited, what will you do? You'll lose control and become a prisoner of war along with your horse! What a joke that would be!"

  Zhu covered his stomach and laughed uncontrollably. It was the first time he had ever heard someone say that castrating war horses wasn't a good idea. From Zhang Feng's tone, it seemed like they should ask the war horse itself if it was willing or not?

  Seeing Zhu like this, Zhang Feng also knew that he might have asked a stupid question just now, his face turned red in an instant, and he hurriedly changed the subject: "Then... what's with these pulling carts of inferior horses..."

  “Cough... cough...” Zhu Neng couldn't help but burst into a fit of coughing, and after calming down, he explained to Zhang Feng: “This kind of horse is specifically for doing hard labor. They have short legs and a low stature, making them unsuitable as war horses. However, if you're talking about the most hardworking horses, it's got to be these ones. Their endurance and physical strength make them the top choice for labor work. The horses used to transport military rations are all of this breed.”

  He looked at the small and sturdy horse in front of him, then looked at the tall and majestic horse under Zhu Neng's crotch. Zhang Feng was lost in thought. Whether it was a nag or a warhorse, they all had their own strengths. If used in the right place, they would be able to exert their energy. Just like some people can be soldiers and some people can be officials, there are long and short sides to everything. It wasn't until now that Zhang Feng finally understood this principle...

  "Alright, don't think too much about it. Even if you've seen all these horses, they won't be yours. When you reach the position of a hundred households, you will naturally be given warhorses. Until then, just focus on making achievements and forget about owning your own horse, just like Xu's big yellow horse."

  Xiang Feng nodded thoughtfully, but was slapped hard on the back of his head by Zhu Neng. "What are you still sitting here for? Hurry up and get back to your team!"

  Zhang Feng was so scared that he quickly jumped off the horse carriage to find his brothers, Zhu Neng smiled and watched Zhang Feng leave. The current Zhang Feng is still very immature, with abilities but not mature thinking, wanting to cultivate him into a true general will take time and also need to be tempered, this northern expedition is just the beginning of Zhang Feng's journey towards the future...

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