Japanese Entertainment: From special effects actor to action superstar

Chapter 631 The Cinderella Legend of the Horse Racing World
Actually, there's a significant reason why Gu Ming doesn't like coming to Hokkaido: it snows there.

"Hokkaido, my hometown! The shakuhachi played beautifully..."

Gu Ming hummed the lyrics to himself and jumped out of the car first.

This car is quite remarkable; it was the earliest Toyota Corolla, and its shape resembles half a car.

This car was later known as the AE86.

Unfortunately, Gu Ming drives in a very conventional way and can't perform the kind of stunt of continuous sharp turns.

He reached out to the passenger seat and pulled Shaqin out of the car with him.

"We've arrived. This is Inaba Ranch in Hokkaido. The owner is called Inaba Nao. The horses and riders we used for filming last time were borrowed from here."

Gu Ming gave a brief introduction to the ranch.

The couple, Inaba Nana and her husband, were already waiting outside. When they saw Tani get out of the car, Inaba Nana came up and gave him a warm hug.

"Welcome! It's been a while since I've seen Furuya-kun."

"Right, but we can't come to Hokkaido all the time."

Gu Ming loosened his grip to prevent the old man from strangling him.

The ranch is quite large, and although it's far from the city, it's a great place for a vacation.

Nana Inaba casually introduced some leisure activities that could be done on the ranch.

"If I had to say... feeding the horses? Feeding the horses, watching the horses, of course, you can also try riding them, but with Furuya-kun's build, it's best to choose those draft horses. Although they don't run very fast, they can carry heavy loads without any problem."

Inaba Nao checked the time; it was time to feed the horses.

"Horses are animals that require meticulous care. They need to be fed at least five or six times a day, and at night they need a special feeding. They need to eat good food, not just coarse feed. Mr. Furuya, would you two like to go to the stables together?"

Gu Ming spread his hands, gesturing for him to proceed.

Inaba Ranch itself is not a large ranch, and it doesn't breed many famous horses. Last time, it took advantage of the popularity of Onimusha to expand its scale a little, but it only added a little manpower and horse breeds.

It was snowing season, and the horse farm was covered in snow. From a distance, Gu Ming could see the horses in the stables wearing cloaks and pawing restlessly.

Horses are animals that never stop; stopping is tantamount to death for them. Even in heavy snow, they still want to run wild in the riding arena.

Inaba Nao introduced each of the horses one by one, and surprisingly, they even had names.

Gu Ming rubbed his forehead, somewhat amazed: "I never expected Mr. Inaba to remember the name of every single horse. That's truly remarkable."

To outsiders, every horse looks much the same, but true Hermès owners remember the name of every single one.

Nao Inaba said casually as he stopped in front of another stable.

Gu Ming peeked over and saw a brown pony kneeling on the ground. Most of the hay in the stable had disappeared, and the pony was chewing on something, looking quite unsatisfied.

Gu Ming was shocked: "Is Mr. Inaba abusing the horse? Why isn't there any bedding?"

"Well, generally speaking, yes, but this horse is different."

Inaba Nao carried an iron bucket containing a mixture of hay and other feed, unlatched the door, and went inside first.

The brown pony sensed someone approaching and looked up at the group.

Shaqin leaned against the stable fence, gazing at the pony. She immediately noticed that the horse seemed a little unsteady on its feet. "What's wrong with its leg?"

"Oh, there was a problem. It had a problem when it was born. It couldn't stand up. It had to have a hoof-cutting surgery to stand up. Now it can run and jump and is a very cute little pony."

As Inaba Nao filled the bedding with hay, he continued to explain, "Actually, we change its bedding regularly, but this guy has a great appetite and will eat the bedding along with it. You can't tell when it's gone, so we have to feed it several times a day."

Gu Ming seemed to be deep in thought.

Hmm, it does look like a pretty nice little pony.

He held out the hay, and the brown pony came over to eat it, skillfully snorting with its lips, eating the hay without hurting his hands, leaving a large wet patch on Gu Ming's hand.

Gu Ming raised his hand to look at his palm. He didn't seem to dislike it, but he couldn't help but chuckle.

"Most horses are very picky about their food. They won't eat hay unless it's winter, but this guy is different. He eats everything. He's like a starving ghost."

After feeding the foal and watching the brown pony eat happily, Inaba Nao wiped the sweat from his forehead.

"I'm only worried about one problem right now. This horse has been treated, but it has bad legs and eats a lot, so it's not very valuable and probably won't sell. After all, I'm here to breed racehorses, and horses that can't run on the racetrack will probably have to be sent elsewhere."

“I think this horse is quite good. In my family, I mean Nara, there’s an old saying: ‘Being able to eat is a blessing,’ and people who can eat a lot are usually lucky.”

Gu Ming stroked the pony's neck, and the brown pony, unafraid, lowered its head and ate voraciously without raising its head.

Of course, being able to eat is a blessing, except for Liangzi.

Gu Ming raised his hand and touched it twice, then suddenly looked at Inaba Nao.

"Mr. Inaba, please sell this horse to me."

Seeing Inaba Nao's surprised expression, Tani Akira explained, "There's no particular reason. I've just always wanted a horse with a reed coat. I don't have a place to keep a horse, so I'll have to ask Mr. Inaba to take care of its food and lodging. I'll send money over regularly."

“Oh dear, you mean this…” Inaba Nao rubbed his hands, laughing uncontrollably: “This is so bad. This horse is obviously not fit for racing. If you want a better horse, Furuya-kun, I have other horses with better qualities, but I can’t charge you for this one. Food and lodging will be enough.”

Gu Ming looked at the brown pony; the pony's ears were all turned back.

This wasn't anger, but rather listening to the voice behind him; clearly, the horse was also interested in this fate.

The deal was easily struck: Inaba Nao would not charge a fee, but would have to pay a monthly fee to take care of the horse.

As for what Gu Ming wanted the horse for, that was none of Inaba Nano's business.

He only cared about raising horses and nothing else.

"Oh, right," Gu Ming suddenly remembered something, "Does this horse have a name?"

"It doesn't have a name yet, but according to the rules, the owner can name the horse. For example, the owner usually names the horse after their surname. Your surname is Gugu, and the horse's sire is called 'Dancing Hat' and its dam is called 'White Gem', so you can name it 'Gugu Gem' or 'Gugu Hat'."

Inaba Nao enthusiastically explained the naming rules for Japanese horse racing, and Tani Akira, always willing to listen, immediately shrugged.

Let's call it Gugu Hat then.

Anyway, judging from the appearance of this little horse, I don't care what its name is.

It's probably more excited about the feed in front of it than what people say.

(End of this chapter)