Chapter 356: A Pain in the Chest

Chapter 356: Chapter 356: A Pain in the Chest

The horse clearly looked feeble, but with some unknown, freakish strength, it struggled frantically a few times and managed to rip the wooden post it was tied to right out of the ground. It then charged straight toward where Guan Shan and his companion were standing.

The horse’s owner was a tan-faced old farmer. Having waited half the day without a single customer, he was squatting and smoking his pipe, completely unprepared for his horse to suddenly go berserk and charge into the crowd.

It would be a disaster if it actually hit someone.

The old farmer shouted a few times, but by the time he moved to give chase, it was already too late.

The surrounding crowd screamed and scattered. Seeing the horse making a beeline for a tall man, the old farmer’s heart sank. ’It’s over, it’s over,’ he thought grimly. ’This time I’ll have to sell everything I own... Huh?’

In the next instant, the old farmer’s eyes widened in astonishment.

’How did it stop?’

The horse came to a halt right in front of Guan Shan. It let out a NEIGH, a sound that was neither high-pitched nor clear, but carried an indescribable quality.

Guan Shan, who had already composed himself, looked at the horse before him. After a moment, he reached out his hand.

The horse, surprisingly nimble, nuzzled the side of its face against his palm.

The old farmer, having caught up, was both shocked and delighted.

"Sir, it... it didn’t startle you, did it? You see, my horse... it seems to have a connection with you. H-how about..."

The old farmer was clearly an honest man. He knew what his horse was really like and couldn’t come up with any flowery sales pitch, so his words came out in a stutter.

Guan Shan cut him off. "Where did you get this horse?"

The old farmer grew flustered. ’How does he know the horse isn’t mine?’

He quickly waved his hands. "The horse isn’t mine, it’s true, but I didn’t steal it! I found it a few months ago when I was in the mountains gathering firewood. It looked like it had been bitten by something and was on its last breath. I was the one who took it home and treated it with herbs... It was like this when I found it. It’s not that I’ve been mistreating it. Its wounds are clearly healed, but when I feed it hay, it only takes a few bites and then refuses to eat..."

’I was thrilled to have found a horse at first, but it turned out to be a sickly creature. If it won’t eat, it can’t put on weight, which means it can’t work. And I still have to prepare feed for it every day.’

’And now, after a few months of this, my family’s had enough and they’re forcing me to sell it.’

’But how could it be easy to sell? Anyone with eyes can tell this horse is a lost cause. I’ve been squatting here at the Horse Market for nearly half a month without a single inquiry.’

’I never expected that today the horse would show some spirit and pick a master for itself.’

’I just don’t know if this man will actually buy it...’

Guan Shan looked at Ji Huan. Though he said nothing, his meaning was perfectly clear: ’Buy it.’

Ji Huan looked at him, then at the emaciated, filthy horse. She was at a loss for words.

’We’ve walked through nearly the entire Horse Market, and not a single horse caught his eye. Now that he’s finally found one he likes, he’s completely ignoring things like temperament, age, health, and even its basic conformation.’

’Forget its looks, it doesn’t even have a shred of energy...’

’The horse is pitiful, sure, but I can’t spend dozens of taels of Silver to buy a sick, old horse just to let it live out its days in retirement, can I?’

’I’m really not that wealthy. I still need money to open my shop later...’

Ji Huan pulled Guan Shan aside, intending to have a serious talk with him. But to her surprise, the horse followed them.

It glanced first at Guan Shan, then, as if it understood who was really in charge, it turned its head toward Ji Huan.

Ji Huan turned her head stiffly, trying her best to ignore its huge, bell-like eyes.

"I know there’s something to be said for the connection between an animal and a person, but we also have to consider our own circumstances, right? This is an old horse. If we buy it, I’m afraid it won’t last..."

"It’s ten."

’What?’ Ji Huan froze.

Guan Shan repeated, "It’s ten years old. That’s not old."

Ji Huan was speechless.

Perhaps it was the earnestness in Guan Shan’s eyes, or perhaps it was the horse’s unwavering gaze.

Ji Huan sighed and walked over to the old farmer.

"We’ll buy the horse. Name your price."

The old farmer was overjoyed. He hesitated again and again before finally holding up three fingers.

"Thir-thirty taels, how does that..."

Ji Huan couldn’t believe her ears. "Thirty taels?!"

’He dares to ask for thirty for a horse he found off the street, one in questionable health.’

’I saw another one earlier—a strong, chestnut horse in its prime with a glossy coat—and the owner was only asking for thirty-five taels.’

’And I thought *that* was expensive.’

’But the owner had refused to budge on the price, saying that if he sold the horse in the Southern regions, it would fetch at least seventy or eighty taels. On top of that, Guan Shan had told her that some horses look tall and strong but are clumsy and difficult to handle... That’s why they didn’t make the deal in the end.’

The old farmer’s face flushed red. He fiddled nervously with his pipe, clearly aware that he had named an outrageous price.

But his son used to work at a stable and told him the horse had a good bone structure. If it were healthy, it might be worth more than a few hundred taels.

Before he came, his son had instructed him to start at thirty taels and then lower the price bit by bit if that didn’t work.

"Young lady, take a closer look. This horse has an outstanding frame. I know it looks a little... right now, but maybe you could nurse it back to health? Then you’d have gotten a real bargain."

Ji Huan laughed. "Sir, you can’t look at it that way. Whether it would even be worth thirty taels if it gets better is a whole other question. What if we try to nurse it and it dies? Will you give us a refund?"

"W-well..."

Ji Huan turned, took Guan Shan by the arm, and made a show of walking away.

The old farmer grew anxious and scurried a few steps to block her path.

"Hah! To be honest with you, I don’t want to make a dishonest profit. It’s just... since I brought it home, it’s been a lot of trouble for my family. These old bones of mine have not only had to feed and water it, but I’ve also had to go up the mountain every day to dig up herbs for its wounds... Ah, forget it. If you’re really serious about buying, just name a price."

’My son said that if I really can’t fool anyone, I should just sell it for three or five taels. Any lower than that, and we’d be better off taking it home to slaughter for meat.’

The old farmer felt the horse had a certain spirit to it and didn’t want to see it slaughtered. Selling it was the best outcome, so he didn’t dare ask for much.

’The man is actually quite kind-hearted. Whatever his initial motives were, he did save this horse and put in the effort to care for it.’

Ji Huan was quite touched. But ’touched’ was one thing and ’practical’ was another. She couldn’t just throw money away.

’Five... no, ten taels.’

’While that’s a very low price for a horse, that’s for a *healthy* horse.’

’Strictly speaking, the old farmer wouldn’t be losing much. Ten taels would be pure profit for him.’

Just as she was about to speak, Guan Shan took her hand.

"Twenty taels," he said to the old farmer.

The old farmer was clearly surprised. He had thought he’d be lucky to get even a few taels.

He snapped out of it and hurriedly thrust the reins into Guan Shan’s hands. "The horse is yours."

Guan Shan nodded, then looked down at Ji Huan. The unspoken message was clear: pay the man.

Ji Huan asked through gritted teeth, "Are you serious?"

Guan Shan gave her hand a gentle squeeze. "I’ll earn it back for you later," he said softly.

’Earn it back?’ she thought. ’You’ll be gone in half a year at most. How are you going to earn it back?’

’But then again, who was to blame but me? I was the one who promised to meet all his conditions as long as he acted as my husband.’

Resisting the urge to throw up blood, Ji Huan took two ten-tael silver ingots from her satchel and handed them to the old farmer.

The old farmer had never seen so much money in his entire life. Saving that horse was definitely worth it!

Once he had walked away overjoyed, Ji Huan hefted her now much-lighter satchel, and her heart ached.

She pulled her hand from Guan Shan’s grasp and said irritably, "Lead your precious treasure, and let’s go, Mister."