游蹤

Chapter One

After a four hour drive from Zhangye, they arrived at Shandan Horse Ranch.

Maxiao woke up and rubbed his eyes, as the boundless meadow came into his view. In early winter,the golden meadows and snowy mountains looks perfect together. There is not too much sunlight, and the meadow is covered in a thin fog. Groups of cattle,sheep and horses are roaming around, as if they could spend a thousand years doing this.

Shandan Horse Ranch is the largest horse farm in the world, located in the middle of Hexi Corridor,spanning Gansu and Qinghai Province. The whole area covers more than 180 hectares. Because of the fl at terrain and rich grassland, it has become the ideal place for horses to reproduce. For this reason,it has been the breeding base of royal army horses for over a thousand years.

Even though the farm is not as lively during winter as it is during summer, Maxiao became very excited at the fi rst sight of these horses. The horses here have strong spirit, as opposed to the horses in clubs and zoos. Maxiao takes a look at these horses: medium height, strong build, fl exible ears and a shiny coat.You can see their spirit in their eyes. They are tender but proud, deliberate but vigilant.

quot;No wonder, quot;he thought quietly. quot;These are army horses bred to go to battlefronts.quot;

Maxiao didn't wait long for his mount after calling the herdsman. He thought he had rode horses before, so he attempted to mount a horse right after introducing himself. Unexpectedly, the horse screamed, stepped back and stared at Maxiao,tentative and hesitant, disdainful but hopeful.

Suddenly, Maxiao understood: He is tempting me,and he just wants to know if I deserve this kind of army horse!

Chapter Two

In Shandan Horse Ranch, there are not many fulltime wranglers left like Mr. Li.

Entrance to Shandan Horse Ranch is free, and they only charge for horse riding. The fees have not changed in a very long time. Visitors who don't know how to ride a horse will be accompanied by an assistant who will lead the horse by the bridle. If you know how to ride like a galloper, you are allowed to ride by yourself. You can also ride with masters, like Maxiao chose to do, and enjoy the beautiful scenery.However, this will cost you extra money.

Mr. Li is wearing an army coat. His Ushanka-hat is hiding part of his dark and wrinkled face. He doesn't speak much. He has been doing this job for over thirty years, and he saw more horses than people before this place became a tourist attraction. His main job is to gather horses twice a day and make sure that they go to a specifi c location to drink water every day. He isn't paid a lot, so he keeps tourists company for extra money.

But Maxiao has too many questions. He never ceased asking questions while they were riding.

Maxiao asked, quot;Is Shandan Horse Ranch truly the oldest farm in history?quot;

Of course! These ironclad details are irrefutable proof, documented in black and white. Two thousand years ago, Huo Qubing, General of The Flying Cavalry, reunited the Han dynasty. After that,Emperor Wu of Han built this farm. After many years,

it became a military farm that offered horses to the royal court. Then, new China was founded and the farm was taken over by the People's Liberation Army.

Maxiao asked another question: quot;What is the advantage of using Shandan Horses as army horses?quot;

In the 1960s and 70s, researchers crossbred local horses with Don River horses. It took them more than 30 years to create Shandan army horses,capable of any skill. They are among the best horses in the world.Maxiao kept asking questions. quot;Are these horses still offered to the army?quot;

Mr. Li sighed. In the 80s, the cavalry was discontinued. The military farm had to face restructuring transformations and was eventually taken over by a social corporation. Now the farm is mainly used for ecotourism, animal husbandry and food processing.

Mr. Li galloped off with his horse. He didn't want to talk about the diffi cult transformation. People left,horses dispersed, and the bugle only sounded in his dreams. Luckily, the farm isn't going anywhere.

Photo by Zhang Xuedong

Chapter Three

When Maxiao got home, he called the little boy.quot;Unfortunately, we don't have Red Hare here,quot;he said. quot;But you can go check out a farm called Shandan Horse Ranch.quot;

Maxiao wasn't upset at all, even though he lost a client. That night, he had a drink before going to bed. When he fell asleep, he dreamed:Vast sky, great snowy mountains, endless desert.A young general is on horseback, and the cavalry of Han is standing behind him. After a great roar,the young man takes off with his horse, followed by thousands of cavalrymen. The dust rises to the sky.

But on the other side, there is no enemy…