The instructors shook their heads, indicating that they did not understand. Thus, someone became interested in the candidate named Ning Que and took out his two test papers from the course of etiquette and the course of calligraphy. The instructor was curious to see if the candidate could enter Grade A again, but unexpectedly, he saw two big, beautiful, but empty test papers. He could not help but slap the table heavily in annoyance and pass the test papers to everyone to see. He sighed regretfully and said,
"Over the years, who has ever seen such a beautiful and neat test paper and such perfect Hairpin-style Small Regular Script? But who has ever seen such an ignorant and incompetent candidate! He must be ranked at the bottom of Grade D! I'm so angry! "
One of the instructors shook his head in appreciation and said with a smile, "Although what he wrote is nonsense, this Hairpin-style Small Regular Script is really pleasing to the eye. Just based on this handwriting, he should be promoted to'D 'grade."
"No way!" The instructor, who was the first to feel pity for Ning Que, said angrily, "A male candidate wrote such beautiful Hairpin-style Small Regular Script. His intention is obvious! What does he want to do? He wants to insult the IQs of the Academy instructors and challenge the dignity of the Academy! "
A simple examination technique was elevated to the height of IQ and dignity. Naturally, the two test papers were treated as garbage and placed at the bottom of Grade D.
At this time, Ning Que did not know that he had been sentenced to death for Calligraphy and Etiquette, but he was very clear that he could not get a good score in these two subjects. Now that he had given up on Music, whether he could pass the Academy Entrance Examination and become an official student of the Academy, it all depended on whether he could get a high score in Archery and Driving, and it had to be the highest.
Occasionally, horses neighed on the lawn of the Academy. Candidates entered the examination room one by one with their number plates and were randomly matched with military horses. The Tang Empire was a country of martial arts. Unsurprisingly, most of the candidates chose to ride horses instead of driving.
The examinees who didn't get their turn stood outside the fence and watched attentively. They watched some examinees gallop elegantly, some examinees fall awkwardly on the grass, splashing mud all over their bodies, and some military horses neighing and jumping. If it weren't for the military captains hurriedly intercepting them, the examinees would probably be kicked and injured. The examinees roughly understood that there was still some element of luck in the Driving Course exam. If you could randomly pick a docile and healthy warhorse, your chances of passing would naturally be higher. But if you picked a stubborn and bad-tempered warhorse, you'd be lucky if you didn't fall off.
Since they were going to be used as mounts for the Academy's entrance exam, the Military Ministry had done some sorting in advance. Most of the horses looked strong and disciplined. They stood quietly at the side, looking at the green grass under their feet and the peaches and apricots outside the fence. They did not make any inappropriate movements.
There was a black stallion on the lawn that attracted the gazes of all the examinees — vigilant, uneasy, and even frightened gazes. Three examinees had already been thrown off by that violent wild horse. After a female examinee wearing a red outfit was thrown off the lawn, the wild horse actually tried to use its hooves to trample on her. At that time, the scene could be said to be full of danger.
The expressions of the candidates who had yet to enter the arena darkened when they saw the tearful female candidate in red being supported outside the barrier. They prayed silently to Haotian, and even asked Buddha to pray that they would not encounter that wild horse.
When the results of the random drawing came out, the candidates who were waiting to enter the field finally breathed a sigh of relief. Then, they all cast sincere looks of sympathy on the poor guy. There would always be someone unlucky, and the unlucky one would always be the hero. This was probably the principle of how one could not see the rainbow without experiencing the wind and rain.
Under the sympathetic gaze, Ning Que slowly walked into the lawn surrounded by wooden fences. His expression was very calm, but he was silently cursing in his heart. With the skills he had honed on the grassland, it was naturally easy for him to teach a stubborn wild horse a lesson. However, he was worried that he would not have enough time to train the horse since he wanted to get a high score in the Driving Course.
All the horses on the lawn were equipped with bit, and the black stallion was no exception. But surprisingly, the black stallion leaned against the railing and refused to move no matter how hard the captain pulled it. It stretched its head to the peach tree outside the railing, and with a roll of its tongue, it swallowed a few peaches and chewed them, completely ignoring the inconvenience of having the bit in its mouth.
The black horse chewed on the pink peaches and shook its head and tail from time to time. It looked extremely happy, as if it deserved a beating.
The captain in charge of looking after the horse wiped the sweat from his forehead and helplessly spread out his hands. He said to Ning Que with sympathy, "No one knows what's wrong with this horse today. It seems to be a bit infatuated with love. Be careful yourself."
After the captain stepped out of the fence, Ning Que walked to the side of the black horse's neck and reached out his hand to pat its thick neck. The black horse squinted at him impatiently, its eyes full of contempt and dissatisfaction.
Ning Que had hundreds of good methods on how to train a horse, but he had to fight for time. So he pretended not to see the black horse's provocative eyes and said with a smile, "Big black horse, be nice to me."
The lad smiled with dimples and looked very innocent. He said in a very innocent tone, "Or I'll kill you."
The black horse suddenly became fearful and uneasy. It did not know why a casual threat from the youth next to it had turned it into a pathetic wooden horse. It only felt a very real cold killing intent. The long mane on its neck was ruffled by the wind, its four hooves suddenly became stiff, and the pinkish peach blossoms fell from its slightly opened mouth.
Warhorses could not understand human language, but they could understand human nature. Especially warhorses that had been on the battlefield for a long time, they could feel the real killing intent and the real danger.
Ning Que killed people at the age of four, five, six, and sixteen. He killed people from Chang 'an to Min Mountain, the City of Wei, the grassland, Shubi Lake, and back to Chang' an. No one knew how much blood had been spilled and how many heads had flown under his knife. The wood-chopper of Shubi Lake had run amok on the grassland. Even the most powerful wild horse leader had to surrender to him.
Humans might not be able to feel the danger from Ning Que, but horses could, especially when he said he would kill you.
There was a burst of exclamation outside the fence. Whether it was the examinees who were ready to go on the field or the captains who were vigilant to ensure the examinees' safety, they all looked at a corner of the lawn, their eyes full of shock and disbelief.
On the other side of the lawn, Ning Que was leading the Big Black Horse to the starting line. The Big Black Horse, which had been unusually naughty and violent before, was now quiet and obedient like a well-trained handmaiden.
Standing on the grassland in the distance, Sangsang put the big black umbrella under her buttocks and yawned with her hand covering her mouth. Her little face was full of boredom. She was probably the only person in the world who never worried about her young master's life.
…
You've already exceeded your reading limit for today. If you want to read more, please log in.
Login
Select text and click 'Report' to let us know about any bad translation.
