Chapter 141: Greed

"Brother, who do you think will win?"

Shen Yue'e could not help asking. She could not quite make sense of the situation, as both sides were so brimming with confidence.

She was naturally beautiful, blessed with bright eyes, a clear gaze, and delicate features like a blooming flower. Her oval face was breathtakingly lovely, and her long eyelashes framed water-like eyes that resembled ripples of autumn pools. A string of tiny pearls hung from the brim of her hat, their translucent brilliance casting a glow upon her flower-like countenance.

Seized atop a horse, she possessed even more of the spirited martial grace that the Song Dynasty so often lacked.

Half of the men present were secretly glancing in her direction, including Zhao Zongjing.

"This Young Master Tang's horsemanship is exceptionally good; I have heard tales of it myself. As for him..." Shen Ancai frowned slightly. He truly could not perceive any equestrian skill in Zhao Qing. To speak bluntly, Zhao Qing's horsemanship was inferior even to that of his own sister.

Yet this Zhao Qing kept spouting wild boasts. In Shen Ancai's eyes, someone who behaved this way must surely have something reliable to lean upon.

"Hmph! He probably has some influential figure backing his household." Such was Shen Ancai's assessment.

The reasoning was simple: commoners do not contend with officials. To dare contest with the son of a Minister of State inherently spoke of extraordinary status.

"Why on earth is our cousin associating with the likes of him?"

Truth be told, he disliked Zhao Qing, yet Shen Shi insisted on keeping company with him. This was bad—very bad.

"Young Master Tang has already readied himself. Esteemed patron, where is your mount?"

The equerry officials not only cared for the horses, but also doubled as temporary referees. Among those who came here to play, some simply loved horses, while quite a few engaged in racing and competitive riding.

Tang Renxian had long since discarded his scholarly outer garments, changing into a form-fitting martial outfit, and was currently warming up his body to ensure optimal performance later. In stark contrast, that patron Zhao had not even changed his clothes, remaining clad in his bulky patron's robes.

"What a novice who clearly cannot ride. Wearing such loose, bulky clothes—staying atop a horse will not be easy for him."

The equerry official shook his head inwardly, though he refrained from pointing it out.

Having finished his warm-up, Tang Renxian rode over while easing his horse. "Are you going to stay like this? Are you deliberately trying to lose to me?"

"Lose? I am certain to win," Zhao Qing declared with absolute confidence.

Initially, he had harbored some anxiety regarding his equestrian skills—what if he tumbled off the saddle? But now, possessing the jade pendant, he felt not a shred of worry.

"Very well! You have ambition, but..." Tang Renxian glanced toward Shen Shi's group.

Hiss—those truly were fine horses.

Earlier, his attention had been entirely captured by the famous fiery steed beneath Zhao Qing, and it was only now that he noticed Zhao Qing was not the only one mounted on an exceptional creature. That youth and his two guards were all riding magnificent beasts.

Now that he was closer, the restless agitation of the mounts beneath them further confirmed their superior breeding.

Fine horses—he wanted them.

To be precise, they were meant as a "gift." To present gifts to the Prince of Runan's Manor meant he could hardly send just a single horse. Initially, he had been pondering where to procure a matching set. Now, looking at them, weren't the opponent's horses even better?

"Since you are so confident, let us raise the stakes. If I win, you must give me all your horses." As he spoke, he eagerly pointed toward the horses behind Zhao Qing.

Zhao Qing frowned.

"Impudent!" Chen Lin rebuked.

This time, Zhao Qing did not stop him, for his opponent was simply too greedy. By this point, Zhao Qing was also reflecting on whether his horsemanship truly wasn't all that impressive. If it weren't, where on earth did he get such blind confidence?

"Well? Do you dare wager or not?" Tang Renxian pressed.

Chen Lin looked at Zhao Qing, refraining from making the decision for him. Zhao Qing frowned and said, "These horses do not entirely belong to my household; three of them belong to Young Master Shen." With that, he pointed toward the three horses on Shen Shi's side.

Had it been a wager involving just a single horse, Zhao Qing might not have realized the flaw in his horsemanship.

When people constantly praise your riding skills, anyone would eventually be fooled.

Though the Son of Heaven of the Great Song was perhaps a trifle easy to bamboozle. For instance, whenever someone claimed the Emperor possessed the entire realm, the Great Song would launch a Northern Expedition. Whenever someone claimed the Great Song could defeat the Khitans, Western Xia, and later the Jurchens, the Song Emperor would stubbornly meet them head-on.

Naturally, the outcome was simply being ground into the dust by others.

To put it plainly, these matters stemmed from the complete lack of true expertise throughout the Great Song. Military men were unvalued, and from top to bottom, the imperial court understood nothing of their own military strength. The officials of the Great Song all performed the work of strategists: "I devise the plan, and as for whether the plan actually works? That is none of my concern. If we win, it is because my strategy was brilliant. If we lose, it is because the generals are incompetent."

Yet today, Zhao Qing was at least clear on one fact: these horses were not his to gamble with.

In other words, being deceived required the premise of knowing neither the enemy nor oneself. At present, he at least knew the horses did not belong to him.

"Young Master of the Shen family, what do you say?" Hearing that the horses belonged to Shen Shi, Tang Renxian felt a brief surge of surprise, but he paid it little mind. His sole concern was whether he could get his hands on the beasts.

"Young Master Tang, if my horses are added to the stakes, your collateral will fall short," Shen Shi said.

Tang Renxian's expression shifted. To be honest, even under the current terms of the wager, his own stake was inferior.

Although his horse was quite good, it was not a true steed that could travel a thousand li a day. He had merely been taking advantage of Zhao Qing's ignorance of horses.

Yet now, wagering one horse against four was a math problem anyone could understand.

"Then I will add another thousand liang," Tang Renxian declared.

"Not enough!" Shen Shi shook his head.

"I am speaking of a thousand liang of gold," Tang Renxian emphasized each word, unable to suppress his pride.

"My side's stake is still not enough." Shen Shi likewise enunciated each word clearly. "One buys the bones of a thousand-li horse with a thousand pieces of gold. Here, we are offering four true thousand-li horses."

"What? Those are thousand-li steeds?"

A commotion rippled through the crowd, particularly among Shen Ancai and his companions. They had seen Shen Shi bring a batch of horses to the capital. They had appeared to be fine mounts, but it had never crossed their minds to associate them with legendary thousand-li steeds.

If they truly were thousand-li horses, then a thousand liang of gold indeed fell short. All eyes turned toward Tang Renxian.

With his petty scheme failing to go as planned, Tang Renxian found himself the focus of everyone's attention and grew somewhat agitated.

"Then what do you propose?"

"Me? I am simply asking you to produce a matching stake," Shen Shi said with a smile that was neither a smile.

"You!"

Shen Shi's smile was deeply aggravating, or at least Tang Renxian thought so.

Yet, as the blood rushed to his head, a solution suddenly flashed through his mind.

"What do you think of this racecourse?" he abruptly asked.

"Racecourse?" Shen Shi paused for a moment before asking, "Does this racecourse belong to your family?"

"Not quite, but close enough," Tang Renxian boasted with satisfaction.

His smugness stemmed from the fact that the stake he offered did not belong to his family at all. This was the Imperial Equestrian Field; how could it possibly belong to his household?

"Master!"

"Do not rush. Listen to what he has to say."

Chen Lin was extremely anxious, but Zhao Qing remained unhurried. He wanted to hear how this Minister's son intended to spin gold out of thin air. How could Zhao Qing possibly not know whose property this place was?

"This place..."

Hearing him put it this way, Shen Shi examined the grounds carefully. The location was indeed splendid—lush with green grass and clear waters, and more importantly, vast.

With an expanse this large, acquiring land even in the outskirts of the capital was no easy feat. Since someone was serving it up on a silver platter, how could Shen Shi possibly refuse?

"Very well!" Shen Shi nodded in agreement. Tang Renxian was overjoyed, but then Shen Shi added, "Shen San, go fetch some brush, ink, paper, and an inkstone."