Taoist Master

Her Stallion

Pulling on her riding outfit, Bai Qian hurried as fast as she could.  Bai Zhen had just informed her that several wild horses had been spotted in the northern part Qing Qiu, horses that had possibly found a breach in her barrier because no one was claiming them.

It wasn't unheard of for horses to get loose from the hundreds of farms that dotted her lands, but it was rare for horses to be left unclaimed so that meant they had to be wild and from what Bai Zhen had said, they had been roaming wild for years only everyone thought they belonged to someone else.  That was until they became a real problem having been caught on numerous occasions foraging in the orchards and communal gardens while leaving them ravaged and bare.

And being the Queen meant it was her duty to ensure her peoples safety and wellbeing, and that included their livelihoods.   It wasn't often that something this big happened in Qing Qiu and not just because of a possible breach in the barrier.  But because her herd of horses had dwindled significantly over the years because Bai Yi, her older brother had taken most of them to his estate while leaving her with only a few  and being a woman who loved horses while also having a desire to raise up her own herd, then the chance to gain a few more had the excitement exploding by the time she flew out of the den to give chase.

Laughing, shoving and pushing as they both sped north where the herd had last been seen,  the northern Taoist Debate had completely slipped her mind.  Well, not entirely, because she received a notification from Mo Yuan a week before stating that he had taken it upon himself to accept her invitation on her behalf. So for a full week, she fumed quietly to herself.  It was enough that that the man dared to physically strong arm her to the last debate, but to also send correspondence on her behalf, was overstepping his boundaries.

Though for some reason, she had kept this to herself.  The thought of informing her family and especially Bai Zhen that the War God and the most revered Taoist Master was not only escorting her, but he was having to force her and if her father found out, she would never hear the end of it.  Actually, though he never said much about her astonishing win, she could see he was very pleased, after all, he had been her main teacher.  But if he learned that Mo Yuan who was also his revered best friend was being forced to Qing Qiu to ensure she met her obligations,, well, the world might as well end, because her father would absolutely lose his head.

But his head was not on her mind at that moment, and nor was the debate, though she did give Mo Yuan a quick thought.  He would no doubt be furious with her again and she expected him to storm Qing Qiu to drag her out, but her people were all that was on her mind along with a few horses of her own, including the stallion of which she had never had the pleasure of owning before.

Instead her mind was on Bai Zhen who was tying several lassos in preparation for a fight.  Wild horses in the Immortal world, were a thousand times more powerful than their earthly counterparts and just as feisty, so they both knew they had a battle ahead of them.

"The stallion will be the biggest Xiao Wu while the main mare will be at the back of the herd ensuring they all keep together.   To break up the herd, we need to split the two main heads so you take the mare, and I will take the stallion." he gushed excitedly as the main mare came into view.

"I don't want the mare, she is the oldest and probably the most physically weak of the lot!  I want the stallion!" she argued fiercely seeing as her brother was already racing ahead to catch up with the rest of the herd.

"She is the one the rest obey!  You need to get her gone if we are to have a chance at the rest.  It's not the Stallion they listen to!" he yelled back and becoming angry that she wasn't seeing the bigger picture.

"Then if she is so important, then you go after her.   I will take out the stallion!" she screamed back and forcing him to stop angrily in mid flight.