Chapter 241: The Assembled Riders, Galloping Happily, and the Horse Issue

These bankrupt farmers opened their mouths one after another to catch the diluted mixed potion that Jier poured into their mouths with a spoon. Because Jier was tall and wore metal combat boots, he could easily feed water to the farmers, who were not very tall, while he stood.

This was the same even when both sides were standing.

Not to mention the women and children, who also easily opened their mouths and drank at least two large mouthfuls of the potion each. Some of the women were afraid of Jier—no, more accurately, they were terrified that such a young Knight as Jier would loathe them because of their scent and appearance. The children were much better off; they were not yet old enough to understand society. After approaching Jier, although they were still afraid of the huge shouting Jier had done earlier, the slightly glowing sword at Jier's waist and the beautiful, attractive red gemstone dagger made them feel curious. The boldest children even wanted to reach out and touch them.

But they were quickly grabbed by the wrist by their parents nearby and fiercely spanked twice on the buttocks.

"Haha, it's nothing, children; curiosity is normal."

Jier looked at the last bit of potion in the water jar and saw there was still some left, so he first asked Mr. Zuojigela to help look after these farmers, then carried the water jar himself and walked toward the direction of Tianxuecao.

Recently, Jier had been intentionally feeding his warhorse some monster meat. It wasn't much, all mixed into regular food, and it was chewed up by the warhorse along with the beans. And let me tell you, the effects had already appeared recently.

The amount of food Tianxuecao ate gradually slowed down, from at least five times a day to three, and in the last two days, it had decreased to two! But eating less did not mean Tianxuecao's stamina couldn't keep up; on the contrary, this young and sturdy prairie horse had bright eyes, and its stamina seemed inexhaustible every day. Even though every day was a hot summer, its stamina never seemed to drop after running all day, and it remained very active after dark.

Unlike other draft horses, which were listless after running all day and had to rely on extra evening feedings to maintain a healthy state.

"Come, haha, let's give our friend something good!"

Jier tossed the wooden spoon aside, held the water jar with both hands, and brought it right up to Tianxuecao's mouth.

The warhorse, having had its bit removed, refused nothing. Although it had just been fed clean, cool water by other handlers, it sniffed and knew that the contents of the jar were good things.

After all, the smile on Jier's face looked strange no matter how you looked at it, didn't it? Even a horse could tell.

The remaining diluted mixed potion was quickly drunk by the warhorse, and whatever was left was licked clean by Tianxuecao extending its tongue.

Jier put the bit back on the warhorse—which he had removed while feeding it water—placed the water jar casually on the carriage nearby, and stood with his hands on his hips, looking at his warhorse.

Before long, the effect of the potion kicked in. Although it was a potion intended for humans, it was clear that the monster materials and the herbs used as additives could also be used by other mammals similar to humans.

He saw Tianxuecao's breathing gradually become rapid, its eyes even slowing their blinking interval, and its four hooves stamping on the spot incessantly. Seeing Jier standing to the side without reacting, the warhorse twisted its neck, signaling Jier to mount it.

"Want to go for a run?" Jier asked.

The warhorse nodded impatiently, leaned its body over, and used its massive horse head to nudge Jier toward its side, signaling him to hurry up and mount.

Jier didn't stand on ceremony; with a push from one leg, he jumped right onto the horse's back, slipped his feet into the stirrups, grabbed the reins with his palms, and with a tug, guided the warhorse from the roadside onto the road.

"You guys wait a moment, I'm going to ride Tianxuecao for a lap around the lake to the north! Wait for me to return before we set off—"

After Jier shouted, he kicked the horse's belly with both legs, and the warhorse accelerated into a run, its speed flying!

"Woo—hoo—"

A young voice shouted happily. The warhorse's four hooves kicked up flying, dry dust. After running along the road for a short while, it soon turned off the road onto a fork heading north. The small path to the north here was narrower; it was just a simple path between fields. Never mind the caravan's carriages, even Jier's small carriage couldn't easily pass through these loose dirt roads.

But horses could; most flat roads that a person could walk on, a horse could easily run on.

The scorching air slid past Jier. The ground, baked dry by the blazing sun, had faintly distorted, swelling air, making it difficult for people in the distance to see Jier's figure clearly.

"What did the Lord go do?" someone asked.

"Don't know, in this hot weather."

"But after the horses start running, even though the wind is hot, it's still much more comfortable than just being baked by the sun. You wouldn't know if you didn't ride a horse. It's just that while horses are fine for normal travel, if you gallop like the Lord, our horses won't last long," said a Warrior who was riding a horse captured from the caravan, patting the horse beside him.

Weier stood on tiptoe and watched Jier the Knight, who had run to the distant lake shore, riding happily. The pride in his own heart was also stirred. He turned his head and shouted to Aoni, who was also looking over: "Aoni, before, we could only watch Lord Jier fight on horseback alone, or ride alone at the front and back of the team. But now we have horses too! Although they are just ordinary caravan pack horses, they are horses nonetheless."

Aoni raised his eyebrows and looked at Weier: "What are you trying to say?"

Weier quickly installed the saddle and other horse gear he had removed not long ago onto his horse, then stepped into a stirrup with one foot and jumped with force, flipping his whole body onto the horse's back: "Do you want to go run along the lake shore with Lord Jier?"

"Not..."

Before Aoni could object, Weier had already rushed out, his shouting coming from far away: "Don't forget the purpose of the Lord equipping everyone with horses—"

Aoni immediately guessed what Weier meant, but he didn't dare to boldly call on all the Warriors in the team equipped with horses to go with him, so he could only look helplessly at Xueya Site, who was drinking water while hiding in the shade of Jier's carriage not far away.

Xueya Site had of course seen the scene with Weier just now. What could he say? He could only shrug at Aoni and wave his hand.

Thinking that Xueya Site agreed and encouraged them to do so, Aoni didn't say another word and immediately called up the Human Warriors in the team who were equipped with horses. Eleven or twelve riders formed a line with a rumble and followed the small path northward, running toward the lake shore in the north.

"Ha! You guys came too! Came at the right time! Everyone, slowly form a cavalry formation like an arrowhead."

Jier, followed by Weier, saw Aoni bringing all the Warriors equipped with horses to the lake shore and immediately shouted excitedly.

He intentionally slowed the horse's speed to let his horse merge with the others, which obviously made Tianxuecao, who hadn't had its fill of running, quite unhappy. But soon, as the horse troop formed, Tianxuecao, the only one equipped with horse armor, was running at the very front of all the horses, which made Tianxuecao happy and immediately forget the unhappiness from just a moment ago.

It neighed incessantly while running, guiding the other horses, which had originally been afraid to get close, to come nearer.

The Warriors' horsemanship was still relatively average; everyone was very nervous and careful in controlling the horses beneath them, fearing that a collision would occur during the medium-speed run, thereby causing chaos.

But firstly, horses naturally had the ability to run in herds in their blood; they didn't need much repeated control from the riders to naturally adjust their safe distance from other horses around them.

Secondly, following the neighing and leading of Tianxuecao as the arrowhead, the other horses automatically gathered behind Tianxuecao without the riders' clumsy control, forming a loose herd.

This lake, whose name Jier did not know, was quite large; one couldn't see the other end of the lake at a glance. The lake shore also had a spacious, solid shore covered with scattered Suishi. The herd kicked up stones as they ran, but there was no problem at all.

Every horse in the team had found time to have horseshoes installed in the towns they passed through, so even when galloping on the shore covered with Suishi, the horses had no problems.

At the same time, unlike the hot road in the distance, the lake shore was much cooler. One could feel the cool water vapor of the lake filling one's whole body with every breath, making one feel as if they were galloping in a spring drizzle.

This obviously allowed the horses' rapid gallop to be extended.

"Hahaha, isn't it spectacular!"

More than a dozen horses running in a fast cluster made an astonishing sound; there was a rumbling sound all around, and others were also shouting happily, but it was all drowned out by the noise made by the horses. Only Jier the Knight's huge voice could still hold its own, letting everyone hear clearly what he said.

Weier only then realized one thing: why the cavalry units of the family were always led by Knights. It turned out that when the cavalry charged in a cluster, only a Knight could effectively issue commands to everyone.

If there were no Knights to lead, a cavalry unit of a certain size could only precisely control the cavalry unit through horns or other means that could make a huge sound.

But unfortunately, their family's main cavalry unit was not defeated on a frontal battlefield, but was controlled by someone in the barracks through some despicable means.

This was all something he had heard people say in a tavern when he was fleeing at the time. The Knight Captain of the family cavalry unit seemed to have failed to escape from the family castle and successfully merge with the cavalry unit. If they had successfully merged at that time, perhaps his family would still have had a chance to fight, and the other two hostile families would not have been able to suppress his family's two cities so easily.

These fragmented thoughts flashed through Weier's mind, and he himself, following the cluster acceleration and charge of the horses, was stirred by the rising momentum and shouted loudly.

"Oooooh—"

The sound of one person shouting was easily drowned out by the sound of the horses galloping at high speed, but the sound of more than a dozen people shouting together resounded across this lake shore.

The happy gallop could not be maintained for long. After one more cluster charge, the Warriors' horses soon ran out of stamina. The team gradually became disconnected according to the horses' physical fitness. Some people watched with regret as others continued to run forward, while the horses beneath them could only gradually slow down and then trot panting, following far behind.

Even so, when it was time to turn around again, only Jier's Tianxuecao was still running at high speed as if it had infinite stamina.

"Hahahaha, don't be discouraged, everyone. Although your horses aren't great, I see they still have the potential for improvement!"

Jier gradually slowed down and raised his right fist high, signaling everyone to gather around: "After all, they were raised haphazardly for quite a while by those bandits who lacked knowledge and skills; the condition of everyone's horses is not very good."

The Knight's words made the Warriors lift their heads again, their gazes burning as they looked over.

"It should only take three points to bring everyone's horses' physical fitness level up a notch."

"My Lord, please tell us quickly, don't keep us in suspense. Ha, only today have we finally understood why you always feel so refreshed and happy whenever you ride."

"That's right, I suffered quite a bit when I was asked by you, My Lord, to learn how to ride a few days ago. At the time, I felt overwhelmed just thinking about riding, but until just now, I completely fell in love with the act of riding! It's so great! It's so thrilling!"

"Exactly, it's just as satisfying as fighting an enemy!" Even the quiet Sipulu shouted out excitedly.

"It's much more satisfying than that. It's too hard to find an opponent of similar level who can fight to the death, but just by riding fast, I feel like I'm flying!"

The Warriors began to discuss all at once, and Jier had to press his hand down to get their attention back; otherwise, if he let them chat freely about their feelings, it would probably waste quite a few words.

Jier took the lead riding Tianxuecao, with the others following behind in turn. As the horses trotted back toward the caravan, Jier's voice rang out clearly to the back: "Three points! First, you must feed and groom your horses properly. Besides taking turns letting others in the team learn to ride, you must take care of your horses one-on-one. Water them, feed them, groom their coats, clean the debris from their hooves, and check their condition. If you find something wrong, go find Mr. Zuojigela in the team. Although he is a Herbalist, I imagine it won't be a problem for him to prescribe some common medicine to treat the mounts."

"Secondly, you must take them out to ride and run every day while ensuring their diet and rest, to exercise the horses' various skills and build trust between the mount and the rider."

"Finally, you yourselves must also practice your riding skills. Your body must adjust to the rise and fall on the horse's back as the horse's running speed changes. Know when to accelerate and when to decelerate, master the horse's physical state, and do not force them when they cannot hold on. I won't even mention things like not suddenly slapping the horse's rump or hind legs from behind; these are basics."

"By the way, there is one more point that might quickly improve the horses."

Hearing Knight Jier say this, everyone pricked up their ears to listen carefully.

"Xueya Site has a prairie horse bought from the Western Province. It was originally kept for him to ride, but later he helped me drive the carriage, so that horse has been ridden by Priest Luoza·Bataer. Now that the prairie horse is always pulling the carriage, it is somewhat of a pity. Whoever among you wants a horse of a higher level can take some money and go to Xueya Site; I think he is willing to trade for some money. Although that prairie horse is far inferior to my Tianxuecao, its stamina and speed are far stronger than these mountain horses from the Southern Province or the pack horses raised by the Merchant Guild."

Weier's eyes lit up as soon as he heard this, and he couldn't help but look around, discovering that many people in the team had the same thought as him.

Everyone glared at each other, none willing to give way.

"By the way, there are also two northern horses in the team that I brought back from the north. Although they also seem to have been pulling carriages before, they are much taller and larger than these horses from the Southern Province. While their speed might not be stronger, their stamina is better, though their endurance for pulling carriages is not as good as the southern horses. They have been with me for a while; if you want to swap horses, you can go directly to those drivers and trade for them."

Jier hadn't paid much attention to this before, but only after the horses gathered together to run did he realize that, just like people, the levels of horses also vary, and the gap between them is not small at all.

After finishing his words, they returned from the small path to the east-west road and reunited with the caravan that had been resting for a while.

The caravan immediately prepared to depart, while the Warriors immediately sought out certain people in the caravan. Xueya Site's prairie horse, which had recently been pulling the carriage, was immediately recognized. Weier, Aoni, and Sipulu all took their money bags and approached Xueya Site to purchase this sturdy prairie horse.

Learning it was Jier's suggestion, Xueya Site, who didn't ride much and had been driving the carriage in the caravan, smiled and looked at the three of them, telling them to choose one person among themselves to trade with him. Xueya Site was still an honest man and didn't suggest any bidding, fearing it would cause a rift among the Warriors.

In the end, Weier paid two extra Gold Coins to Aoni and Sipulu as compensation before he spent the money to buy the ownership of this prairie horse from Xueya Site.

He immediately swapped his own horse with the prairie horse that was pulling the carriage and then rode it with great interest.

The other two northern horses belonging to Jier were also fiercely contested. Although the northern horses were not as good as the southern horses they were currently riding in terms of endurance, the northern horses were taller and larger, and riding them felt more imposing. Everyone didn't need to pay money to compete for them, as almost all the horses in the caravan were the property of Knight Jier; they were competing for the right to use the horses.

But when the Warriors were arguing, Aoni and Sipulu, who hadn't managed to grab the prairie horse, rushed over and took down these two tall northern horses in a few moves.

The Warriors were naturally unhappy. Aoni said a lot of nice things, while Sipulu was much simpler: he leaned his Changdao on the ground and told the Warriors who wanted the horses to duel him; if they could win, the horses would naturally be offered.

Considering themselves no match for Sipulu in close-quarters combat, the Warriors retreated with regret.

The caravan soon continued to head east. The huge lake was soon no longer in sight, and in the distance ahead, a border checkpoint could be seen from afar.

?? I was scolded by a reader two days ago, so I haven't updated for a few days. Sorry.