The next day, the sun rose.
Lu Zhi was woken by Ba Bi Q, and Wang Cao Tian and Jiang Yue woke up at the same time.
"Let's go for a ride," Jiang Yue stretched and went to the stable to get his horse.
Lu Zhi didn't need a lead rope; Ba Bi Q was very attached to him, obedient like a little tail, which made Wang Cao Tian envious.
However, just as Lu Zhi was about to go for a ride with Jiang Yue and Wang Cao Tian, the 'horse people' villagers, who had always seemed like fixed NPCs, were whispering and pointing at Ba Bi Q behind Lu Zhi.
Lu Zhi calmly observed these 'horse people.' When he passed a horse person who was closer, he discovered they were actually talking about the little pink horse behind him.
'How can there be a horse of this color?'
'She must be an anomaly.'
'Good heavens, why would such an ugly horse appear?'
Lu Zhi's steps faltered. He turned to look at the silent little pink horse. Although she pretended to be indifferent, holding her head high with pride, her steps lacked their initial lightness. Each step was taken with hesitation and unease, as well as unwillingness, loneliness, and even inferiority...
Lu Zhi frowned and suddenly said to one of the horse people, "I didn't realize there was still racial discrimination nowadays."
The horse person seemed surprised that Lu Zhi was speaking to him and angrily replied, "She's an anomaly; you shouldn't keep her."
Lu Zhi's eyes were calm. "An anomaly? Just because her color is different?"
"How can there be pink horses in this world! She's an anomaly," another female horse person said angrily. "She will bring misfortune to the tribe."
"Exile her."
"Drive her out of the tribe."
"We don't welcome her."
The little pink horse lowered her head and moved closer to Lu Zhi.
Lu Zhi gently stroked her head in comfort, his eyes looking coldly at the aggressive aura of these horse people.
"What's going on?" Jiang Yue and Wang Cao Tian returned. Jiang Yue frowned, "What are they saying, surrounding you?"
Lu Zhi looked surprised, "You can't understand what they're saying?"
Wang Cao Tian was bewildered, "No, we can't. If we could, we would have asked them for information long ago. We only understand the tribal chief here."
Soon, the chief that Wang Cao Tian mentioned emerged from behind the horse people surrounding them.
Lu Zhi hadn't expected the horse people's chief to be a fully human-looking woman, nearly three meters tall with well-developed muscles.
"Please give her to me," the chief said as soon as she opened her mouth, asking Lu Zhi to hand over Ba Bi Q.
Lu Zhi refused, "From the moment I named her, she has been mine. Why should I give her to you?"
The chief frowned, "She's an anomaly. For the safety of the tribe, I must drive her away. You can choose another healthy horse to raise."
Lu Zhi strongly disliked the chief calling the little pink horse an anomaly, and his tone became much colder, "I'm sorry, I only like this one."
The chief looked at Lu Zhi with very cold eyes, "She's an anomaly. For the tribe's safety, I must do this. Although you are our guest, please respect our tribal rules. Otherwise, we will have to drive you out of our camp as well."
The chief said meaningfully, "No one can survive outside the camp at night. You should think carefully."
The little pink horse shivered and cautiously looked at Lu Zhi.
"What anomaly? What's going on?" Jiang Yue, hearing that Lu Zhi was about to be driven out of the camp, quickly whispered to Lu Zhi, "On the first night, I tried to leave the camp, but after dark, only the area within the camp has some light. Outside the camp is just nothingness."
Lu Zhi's expression flickered. He looked at Ba Bi Q's injured eyes and said to the chief, "I am very sorry. I am not familiar with your tribal rules, but what I don't understand is, even if her skin color is unusual, it cannot deny that she is a 'subject' born of your tribe. To drive her away for such a reason is simply too overbearing."
Seeing that the chief remained silent, Lu Zhi continued, "I wonder if you have heard the story of the Ferghana horse."
"A long, long time ago, there was a white horse. When it ran, its fur would turn pink, and its sweat would also be pink. It could travel a thousand li a day and was the unique, fastest leader of the horse herd."
The chief frowned, "It's different. That was another tribe. From birth, she had pink fur; she's an anomaly..."
"How about this, you give us seven days," Lu Zhi interrupted the chief. "After seven days when she matures, I will bring my horse to participate in a competition. If she wins first place, you must acknowledge her as a member of your tribe and apologize to her."
The chief seemed to be considering.
Lu Zhi seized the opportunity, "What? Are you afraid? Or are you saying that you believe you will lose to an anomaly you despise, and dare not accept my proposal?"
The strategy of provoking them worked on these simple-minded people who valued speed above all else.
Indeed, many horse people nearby responded. These horse people were accompanied by foals.
Lu Zhi secretly breathed a sigh of relief, knowing his gamble had paid off. The foals accompanying these horse people were also horses that would participate in competitions after they matured.
"Alright, seven days it is," the chief said, then turned and left.
The other horse people also dispersed.
"Are you really sure she can win first place?" Jiang Yue asked worriedly after hearing the details, "That might be a bit difficult."
Lu Zhi sighed, "I'm sorry, I was impulsive. But seeing my horse being bullied, I couldn't control my temper."
Lu Zhi himself didn't know why his temper had become so irritable; he wasn't usually like this.
Ba Bi Q nudged Lu Zhi's arm with her head, looking worried.
"Don't worry, even if you don't get first place, I won't abandon you." Although he knew she was an incarnation of a deity, there would be no cheating in the deity's trial.
"What if she loses?" Wang Cao Tian frowned, "What happens if she loses?"
Lu Zhi smiled, "Did you forget? There's no ranking in the competition. As long as we finish the competition, we will pass the trial."
"Right, and then what?" Jiang Yue asked curiously.
Lu Zhi lowered his gaze, thinking for a moment, "I'm not sure either. I can only take a gamble."
"The gamble is to give up the deity's reward to exchange for her."
Jiang Yue and Wang Cao Tian exchanged glances.
That was right. The deity's reward had always been vague. If Lu Zhi didn't take a gamble, the little pink horse would be driven out of the tribe at that very moment.
Jiang Yue hesitated for a moment, "Lu Zhi, why don't you choose another horse?"
Lu Zhi thought about it and replied with a smile, "Perhaps because I am a person who stays true until the end? I haven't reached the point of giving up yet, so I want to struggle a bit more."
Lu Zhi suddenly turned his head and gently stroked the little pink horse's head, his voice soft and warm, "What are you talking about? Pink is really beautiful."
The little pink horse looked at Lu Zhi in shock, and tears flowed out of nowhere.
A long, long, long time ago, He had also said this to her with the same gentleness: 'Little pink horse, you are so beautiful.'
But later, He disappeared.