From stable boy to peerless immortal

"Ah Yuan, you are still young. When you go to Hua Rong Mansion, remember to be very careful and never offend the important people there!"

A middle-aged woman with patched coarse cloth skirt and graying hair held Shen Yuan's hand, wiping away tears as she gave him her final words of advice.

"Don't blame your father. Your sister has an eye disease, the third son is still young, and the family has run out of food... He had no choice but to sell you into the Marquis's mansion. But don't worry, your father signed a contract with flexible terms. He will definitely redeem you when he has the money."

"Waaah... It's all my mother's fault for being useless..."

That was true, but the woman wept even more bitterly.

The father, standing to the side, lowered his head in shame, speechless and unable to look his son in the eye.

While Shen Yuan appeared to be in a daze, his heart was actually in turmoil.

"I've actually time-traveled..."

This morning he accidentally tripped and fell, hitting his head and awakening memories of his past life.

In his previous life, he was also named Shen Yuan. He was a senior manager in a multinational corporation. After years of hard work, he settled in Shanghai and accumulated a nine-figure fortune. He was considered a successful businessman and a winner in life.

Who would have thought that in this life he would become a poor farm boy and be sold by his father to the Hua Rong Mansion to work as a stable boy.

Hua Rong Mansion was a residence bestowed upon Marquis Hua Long by the Great Zhou Dynasty!

Eight hundred years ago, Emperor Taizu of the Great Zhou Dynasty established his rule over the world. Marquis Hualong started as a horse breeder and followed him. He made great contributions in battle and raised famous horses such as the Crimson Dragon Heavenly Horse, the One-Horned Golden Horse, and the Thunder-Horned Dragon Horse. He was deeply trusted and valued by Emperor Taizu of the Great Zhou Dynasty. Therefore, he was granted the title of Marquis and his fief was Jiannan Prefecture. His title was hereditary.

Such an honor is truly rare!

In the entire Jiannan Prefecture, Huarong Prefecture was undoubtedly the local tyrant!

For ordinary people who can't even get enough to eat, selling themselves to the Hua Rong Mansion to raise horses means they can have enough to eat and wear, and they can also gain respect from their neighbors. It might not be a bad choice.

But for Shen Yuan... that's not necessarily the case.

Although he had been a beast of burden in his previous life, that was a civilized society where at least life, personal property, and human rights were protected. Even if he did nothing, he wouldn't starve and wouldn't have to depend on others.

In this feudal society that allowed the buying and selling of people and was filled with oppression and exploitation, human life was worthless, and being treated like cattle or horses could really lead to death!

No modern person with normal cognitive ability can accept being a slave or servant!

Unfortunately, the contract of servitude has already been signed, and he has no chance to back out.

......

Before long, a green-canopied carriage slowly approached.

The carriage was nearly five feet wide and more than seven feet deep. It was not luxurious, but it was dignified and elegant, and it was pulled by two glossy yellow horses side by side.

On one corner of the carriage, there is a magnificent and majestic mythical beast that is neither a horse nor a dragon!

This is the symbol of Huarong Mansion – the dragon and horse.

Hua Rong Mansion started by raising horses, and even raised the mythical dragon horse, which became the symbol of Hua Rong Mansion and no one dared to imitate it.

Sigh~~~

The driver was an elderly man with only one arm, his hair was gray, and his expression was indifferent. He pulled on the reins, and the carriage stopped in front of Shen Yuan and his two companions.

He glanced at Shen Yuan and said calmly, "Get in the car."

"Thank you for your trouble, sir."

Shen Yuan first bowed, then knelt down before his parents, saying, "Father, Mother, I'm leaving now. Please take care of yourselves and look after my younger sister and third son!"

Then, amidst her parents' tearful cries, she climbed onto the carriage.

When Shen Yuan entered the carriage, he was shocked to find that there were already five or six teenagers huddled together inside. They were all dressed in rags, thin, and looked fearful and uneasy.

Shen Yuan squeezed into a corner of the carriage, his expression calm. He ignored the gazes of the others, tightened his worn-out clothes, and began to close his eyes to rest.

"Giddy up!"

The one-armed old man cracked his whip, and the carriage slowly began to move.

......

Hua Rong Mansion covers a vast area, with pavilions, terraces, towers, halls and palaces distributed in a well-organized manner within its high walls, creating a pleasant landscape. Even some of the flowers and plants planted in the garden are rare and precious herbs that are hard to find elsewhere, showcasing a luxurious and profound heritage everywhere.

The carriage carrying Shen Yuan and the others entered the side gate of Hua Rong Mansion and headed west along a bluestone-paved path towards the horse farm.

At the racecourse, some teenagers were already waiting.

Before long, Shen Yuan and the others jumped off the carriage.

A middle-aged man with a goatee walked leisurely over, stood in front of the crowd, with his hands behind his back, and his eyes were long and bright, as if they could see right through people's hearts.

"My name is Fan Zhuo, and I am the steward of this horse ranch. You may call me Steward Fan."

Facing the awe-inspiring gazes of the crowd, he remained calm, exuding an indescribable air of superiority: "You are all servants bought by our Hua Rong Mansion. From now on, you will work in the horse stables. Today is your first day here, so I won't waste any more words. I'll just tell you three things."

Fan Zhuo held up three fingers:

"First, do not offend important people."

"Our Hua Rong Mansion started out raising horses. The horses in this stable are the prized possessions of the nobles in the manor, highly valued by the young masters and ladies. They are all of noble birth, and even a single hair on their head is more precious than your lives. They frequently come to the stable to ride horses or go hunting. When you encounter them, you must give way, bow, and treat them with utmost respect!"

"Secondly, take good care of the horses! In the next few days, someone will assign you tasks and teach you the rules of the manor and the knowledge of horse raising."

"Remember, a horse's life is more valuable than a human's! Your lives are cheap; you can get sick, you can go hungry, and it doesn't matter if you die, but a horse can't. Anyone whose horse becomes thin or sick will be punished! If a horse dies, it will be whipped twenty times!"

At this point, a sinister smile appeared on Fan Zhuo's face.

"You may not know, but the whips of our Hua Rong Mansion are made of black thorn vines soaked in tung oil for thirty years and tanned with golden silkworm silk. One lash will tear the skin and flesh of an ordinary person, break tendons and bones, and after twenty lashes, they will be nothing but a lump of rotten flesh!"

Looking at the sinister smirk on Fan Zhuo's face, the young men felt a chill run down their spines, and Shen Yuan's heart sank.

A single hair on the head of a noble person is more precious than one's own life; one must yield the way and pay respects upon encountering them... Human life is cheap, a horse's life is precious... It doesn't matter if a person dies, but if a horse dies, a person dies too...

These words were so direct and blunt that they were particularly jarring to him!

Seeing the crowd's reaction, Fan Zhuo was satisfied and continued:

"The third point... is to be obedient. You must do whatever I say without any objection."

After saying that, Fan Zhuo clapped his hands, called over several grooms, and led Shen Yuan and the others to arrange accommodations and assign tasks.

Shen Yuan and the others followed the one-armed coachman to a cluster of low-rise houses. After saying a few words, the coachman arranged for Shen Yuan and the other three teenagers to stay in one of the rooms.

Inside were several wooden beds, each with a complete set of bedding, a set of clothes, and a pair of shoes, clearly the uniform of a stable boy.

"As expected of a marquis's mansion, even the lowest-ranking servants receive this kind of treatment..."

Shen Yuan silently surveyed the four-person staff dormitory, quickly accepted reality, and began to change his clothes.

Since things have come to this point, there's no point in thinking about it anymore. Since what's done is done, we might as well go with the flow.

Although the stable boy is of low status, there is a path to transcendence and sainthood in this world. Hua Rong Mansion is the residence of Marquis Hua Long, and there are many powerful people in the mansion. There must be no shortage of cultivation methods!

This might just be his chance to make a name for himself!

However, Shen Yuan's primary goal is to save money to redeem his indenture!

Not being freed from slavery meant being a servant, inferior to others in every way, subject to arbitrary beatings, scoldings, and punishments, while still having to shout "Thank you for the reward, sir!"—as lowly as a dog.

Once freed from slavery, one regains freedom and becomes a true human being!

After Shen Yuan and the others changed their clothes, the one-armed old man led them to the stable.

At this moment, some bright red horses were eating hay in the stable. Hearing the noise, they all looked over.

Shen Yuan was taken aback.

"Holy crap, what a huge horse..."

These horses had soft, fluffy coats, short manes, and round, plump bodies; they were clearly foals.

Even so, these foals are mostly over seven feet long and six feet tall, no smaller than ordinary adult horses, and their muscles are clearly visible with strong lines. Once they reach adulthood, their body length will likely reach over ten feet.

Some of the horses even had scales that looked like snake scales on their bodies, with a cold, hard, iron-like luster, which was quite astonishing!

"These are probably no ordinary horses!"

Shen Yuan was astonished.

For some reason, his brow twitched, and his gaze unconsciously fell on a horse in the corner, feeling a strange sense of closeness to it.

"My surname is Niu, and I will be responsible for teaching you the skills of raising and training horses."

The one-armed old man's voice was somewhat hoarse:

"These fire horses are all descendants of ordinary horses and spirit horses, with excellent bloodlines and the potential to be promoted to spirit species. You must serve them with utmost care. Feed them small meals frequently, at regular times and in measured amounts, and after eating, take them for a walk in the stable to aid digestion."

"In addition, the stables need to be cleaned frequently, otherwise they are prone to illness. There's also grooming, massaging, watering, walking, training, and judging horses... In short, there's a lot to learn about these things, so you'll have to learn them slowly!"

Old Man Niu said a few words briefly, and then began to greet everyone:

"Now, each of you go and choose a horse. Remember, don't approach from behind, or you'll get kicked and broken!"

The group immediately rushed into the stable and gathered around the tall, spirited foals.

Shen Yuan couldn't help but look at the colt lying in the corner.

The horse was rather thin and looked sickly; it was clearly not a good choice.

But in Shen Yuan's mind, he felt a deep connection with the horse, as if it were part of his own body, making him feel exceptionally close to it!

Shen Yuan couldn't help but walk closer, reach out and touch the horse's neck, gently soothing it.

Ding!

The moment he touched the horse, a clear sound appeared in his mind.

Then, lines of small print appeared before my eyes:

【Fire Rome (Growing Stage)】

[Identity]: Doppelganger

[Rank]: Peak Mortal Species (Can be transformed)

[Status]: Minor injury (right foreleg)

[Introduction]: A relatively common Fire Roman horse, possessing some Red Scale Horse bloodline. It is naturally unruly, and adult Fire Roman horses are robust and can travel a thousand miles a day.

[Stage]: Growth stage (65%)

[Spiritual Charm]: None

[Cultivation Level]: None

......

[You have activated and bound your clone, gaining the Fire Roman talent – ​​Horse Language (the language of the horse race, including but not limited to neighing, eye contact, facial expressions, and actions such as ear flicking, tail wagging, and head shaking, allowing you to communicate with horses and understand their condition.)]