Chapter 1217: Values
Akhal-Teke horses were rare horses from Western countries. After the Han and Tang dynasty, there were very few purebred Akhal-Teke horses that were imported to the Central Plains. Thus, even the appearance of a mixed-breed Akhal-Teke horse could cause a huge commotion.
In his later years, when Great Zhouâs Emperor Shizong obtained a mixed-breed Akhal-Teke horse from the Western countries, he cherished it greatly.
In the past few years, because the relationship between Great Jin, Great Zhou, and West Xia had been tense, the land trade routes had been cut off for a while. In addition, horses were difficult to bring along, so no one had brought horses from the Western countries in the past hundred years. In the past, Qi Haoran and the others had either snatched the horses from Great Jin or bought them from vendors who frequently traveled to Great Jin.
In the past ten years, Qi Haoranâs horse farm in the north had gradually expanded. Only then did Great Qiâs horse market flourish and no longer rely on imports.
But while horses were easy to raise, fine breeds were rare. The officials of the imperial court had heard Qi Haoran argue with the Minister of Revenue about funding to buy horse breeds, so they roughly knew that fine breeds fetched a high sum.
In fact, a third-generation Akhal-Teke horse cost a thousand taels of gold!
Mind you, not silver, but gold!
Though Imperial Physician Wang wasnât adept at appraising horses, there were horse appraiser in the palace!
When the three children saw the red sweat on the horse and then looked at Scarletâs handsome appearance, there were only three words in their minds: Akhal-Teke horse!
Furthermore, those three words were in bold red font!
Tiger Head immediately howled and hugged Scarlet, refusing to let go. Little Lion also rushed forward to hug the other side of its neck.
Calmer than the other two, Little An immediately asked someone to enter the palace to call Qi Haoran back, making sure to bring the palaceâs horse trainers with him.
Though Fourth Uncle knew about horses, he couldnât possibly be as knowledgeable as a horse appraiser, right?
Initially, Qi Haoran had come back with the horse trainer with a skeptical mindset. However, when he saw Scarlet, which had completely lost its black color, his mind was filled with the same thoughts as the three children. There were only two words in his mind, and he was so stunned that he walked with a weird gait.
The horse appraisers were so overwhelmed with excitement that they knelt before Scarlet, carefully inspecting every part of its body. In the end, the imperial horse appraisers unanimously concluded that it was a purebred Akhal-Teke foal.
Qi Haoran immediately expressed to Tiger Head that he was willing to buy this horse with all his private savings.
Tiger Head refused without thinking. Little An and Little Lion also looked at Qi Haoran warily. Mu Yangling, who was at the side, felt very embarrassed and hurriedly pulled Qi Haoran away. âHow can you snatch something from a child?â
âIâm offering him money for it. How can you say that Iâm snatching it?â
Even Qi Xiuyuan, who had always been calm and composed, personally came to take a look. In the end, he sighed and said, âTiger Head sure is lucky!â
A courtier suggested that Tiger Head present this horse as tribute to the Emperor, but Qi Xiuyuan declined.
Although he also loved rare horses, he didnât necessarily have to own it. Even if he would be disappointed if he couldnât get it, he wouldnât force his will upon others, let alone considering that person was his beloved biological nephew.
The Emperor and Qi Haoran could only look at the precious horse and sigh. Similarly, others could only look on with envy.
Qi Xiuyuan and Qi Haoran only hoped that when Scarlet matured and went into heat, their horses would have breeding priorityâthat alone would satisfy them.
When they found out that Little An and Little Lion had asked him to share Scarlet with them for just 1,000 taels each, they immediately regretted it. If they had known that this kid had no desire to monopolize Scarlet, they would have proposed co-ownership long ago. Wasnât it just money? They didnât lack money now!
After the regret passed, it turned to fury. The two of them unanimously thought that Little An and Little Lion had duped Tiger Head. How could the Akhal-Teke horse would be worth a mere 2,000 taels of silver?
Qi Xiuyuan specially called the three children into the palace. He looked at them and sighed for a long time. In the end, he called Tiger Head up and stroked his head. âChild, why are you so gullible?â
Tiger Headâs eyes were filled with confusion. âRoyal Uncle, no one duped me. Who in Great Qi would dare to dupe me?â
Little An and Little Lion also ran forward and patted their chests. âRoyal Uncle, donât worry. Weâll definitely take good care of our younger brother and make sure no one bullies him.â
Qi Xiuyuan looked at the two of them and said, âOther than you two, who else would dupe Tiger Head?â
Stunned, the two of them immediately cried out in grievance, âRoyal Uncle, donât accuse us wrongly. We didnât dupe Tiger Head. Although we often bullied him and instructed him to do things, we really didnât dupe him. My mother (Fourth Aunt) said that good friends should be sincere towards each other!â
âEach of you paid a mere 1,000 taels of silver to share a Akhal-Teke horse with Tiger Head. Isnât that duping him?â Qi Xiuyuan felt that the two children were dishonest and said with a straight face, âYou canât bully Tiger Head just because heâs honest.â
Little An and Little Lion immediately looked at him as if he was joking. Also very embarrassed, Tiger Head tugged at Royal Uncleâs sleeve and whispered, âRoyal Uncle, stop talking. Iâm actually the one who took advantage of them in this instance.â
Tiger Head was very embarrassed. âI only spent 2,500 taels of silver purchasing Second Prince, and now Iâve collected 2,000 taels of silver from them. That means that I only spent 500 taels of silver on this horse. Itâs less than half of the money Brother Little An and Second Brother paid. Itâs a good deal for meâŠâ
Little An and Little Lion looked at Qi Xiuyuan self-righteously.
Speechless, Qi Xiuyuan taught Tiger Head, âThis debt canât be settled like this. Do you know how valuable a purebred Akhal-Teke horse is? Not to mention 2,500 taels of silver, one might not even be able to buy it with 100,000 taels of gold. Back then, didnât Emperor Wu of Han send troops to the Western countries to monopolize the Akhal-Teke horses? Do you know how much manpower and material resources he plowed into that operation?â
Tiger Head was confused. âBut Iâve never thought of monopolizing the Akhal-Teke Horse. Besides, this Akhal-Teke Horse is really not expensive, costing me only 2,500 taels of silver. Royal Uncle, Iâve in fact profited from this dealâŠâ
âYou only bought Scarlet for 2,500 taels of silver, but itâs far more valuable than this amountâŠâ Qi Xiuyuan felt that the actual price of an item should be assessed based on the value of the item, not its purchase price. Tiger Head was lucky to have obtained Scarlet. If he was given another 2,500 taels of silver, could he buy another Akhal-Teke horse?
That amount probably wouldnât even get him an Akhal-Teke horseâs hair.
âIf you want money, just sell the horse to Royal Uncle. Iâll offer you as much money as you want.â
âBut I donât need that much money,â Tiger Head said. âBesides, I didnât sell Scarlet. Scarlet is still mine. Mm, it now jointly belongs to Second Brother, Brother Little An, and me.â
Little An and Little Lion snatched Tiger Head back from Qi Xiuyuanâs arms and accused, âRoyal Uncle, donât try to sweet-talk him into selling you our horse. We wonât sell it to you.â
Having said that, they grabbed Tiger Headâs hand and ran away.
Qi Xiuyuan watched speechlessly as the three children disappeared. It really wasnât his intention to snatch their horses. However, when he thought about how an Akhal-Teke horse was only worth 2,000 taels of silver, his values collapsed.
Adults couldnât understand the world of children. As an adult, he felt that it was childâs play for a priceless Akhal-Teke horse to be traded by three children for a nere thousand taels. It was as though the children were playing house with a heirloom seal. What a waste of a fine treasure.
Likewise, children could not understand the values of adults.
From Tiger Headâs point of view, a horse that he purchased for 2,500 taels of silver was now sold at the rate of 1,000 taels for one-third of the usage rights and ownership rights. In an instant, he had recouped 2,000 taels of silver. Not only would he be able to continue owning Scarlet, but he would also be able to recoup four-fifths of the cost. This was simply an awesome deal, alright?
Little An and Little Lion also thought that Tiger Head had gotten a good deal, but they did feel like they had benefited from the deal as well. After all, who could own one-third of a Akhal-Teke horse with only 1,000 taels like them?
While the three friends were very happy, the adults were not.
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