Duan Rong had a flushed face when he came out of the tavern.
In his previous life, although he sold insurance, he was naturally allergic to alcohol and never touched a drop.
Since his soul transmigration, this was his first time savoring the taste of alcohol. Initially, he and Yang Zhen were politely offering each other drinks, but by the time they got to the latter half of the rice wine, they were practically fighting over it.
For the sake of that last half bowl of wine, Duan Rong almost tore Yang Zhen's clothes.
Duan Rong hiccupped and murmured with bright eyes, "To think that after transmigrating, I can actually drink alcohol now, what a pleasant surprise..."
He patted his round belly, bid farewell to Yang Zhen, and headed towards the Yuan Shun Escort Agency.
Duan Rong staggered into the horse stable, where Old Man Sun was using a rake to fork the soaked hay into the feed trough.
It seemed he used too much force and strained his back; Old Man Sun coughed, leaning on the rake, and tapped his back.
Seeing this, Duan Rong quickly walked over, took the rake, and said, "Old Sun, take a rest, I'll handle the rest of the work."
Old Man Sun had thought Duan Rong wasn't going to come back today because it was almost 3 p.m. and he still hadn't returned.
He had to increase his pace to finish feeding the hay, not to mention cleaning the horse manure.
He had been working leisurely all morning, and the work had piled up. Seeing that he was alone, he couldn't finish by sunset.
In a hurry, he accidentally strained his back. Just then, Duan Rong suddenly dashed in and took the rake from him.
Seeing Duan Rong, Old Man Sun's face instantly turned black, especially noticing Duan Rong's flushed face and the smell of alcohol, he became even more furious and shouted, "Yuan Shun Escort Agency is a place of discipline, even for servant disciples, you can't just mess around."
Duan Rong keenly sensed Old Man Sun's anger and immediately used his previous life's apologetic tactics from dealing with customers.
"Old Sun, I know I was wrong, it won't happen again. Rest assured, I'll finish the remaining tasks neatly. I will clean up my own mess and won't cause you any trouble!"
Old Man Sun's expression softened a bit as he saw Duan Rong diligently working, lifting half a trough of hay with each stroke. Old Man Sun sighed, pointed to the eastern stables, and said, "After cleaning the horse manure, wash the six chestnut horses over there, they're set to leave for a delivery tomorrow. They've been in the stable for a month eating hay without moving, they're all fat now!"
Duan Rong looked up and said, "Don't worry, I'll make sure to clean them up, and when they go out tomorrow, they'll definitely make our escort agency proud!"
Old Man Sun smiled, shook his head slightly, and murmured, "This kid's getting quite eloquent."
Old Man Sun bent down and left the stable, planning to go home, rest his back, apply a plaster, and take a break.
Once Old Man Sun was out of the stable, Duan Rong complained, "This old guy didn't even finish feeding the hay all morning, just waited for me to come back and do it. Truly old and cunning, like a sly old horse."
Though Duan Rong was complaining, he didn't dare slack off in his work. After feeding the hay, he still had to clean the horse manure and wash the horses, there was plenty to do.
As Duan Rong worked, he unconsciously started to bend his legs into something resembling a horse stance.
He was surprised to find that his method of emitting force was different from before.
He seemed to instantly understand what it meant to unify waist and legs.
Previously, he forked hay by swinging his arms, with the force only reaching his shoulders at most.
But now he felt the force rising from his feet, passing through his waist to his shoulders, then to his arms.
The arms seemed to be borrowing force naturally, lifting the hay effortlessly.
"This..." Duan Rong was initially puzzled but soon understood.
He already had Entry Level Five Tigers and Sheep Saber experience, and though today was just his first practice, he quickly formed muscle memory.
Focusing on his work, he subconsciously integrated the Pile Skill and Saber Technique.
"Looks like once martial arts get on the right track, every action and movement becomes cultivation." Duan Rong became a bit excited.
In fact, once entry-level martial techniques are mastered, one truly becomes a martial artist. With skills in place, every action becomes cultivation, setting him apart from ordinary people.
Just getting past the entry level in martial arts prevents nine-tenths of people from progressing.
At this moment, an odd scene occurred in the stable, with Duan Rong standing in a horse stance, lifting hay.
As he moved from one trough to another, he maintained the Pile Skill stance.
His walking resembled a real horseback ride, swaying and bouncing left and right, with legs bent and waist sinking as if sitting on an invisible stool.
Duan Rong worked this way for a while, soon sweating all over, with steam rising from his head.
After feeding the hay, he began cleaning the horse manure in an awkward stance.
Two hours later, all his muscles were starting to feel sore.
Almost instinctively and seemingly self-taught, Duan Rong began to learn to shift his weight between his legs.
He stumbled upon this new thing while moving around in the stable, racing with the horses.
Shifting weight between legs allowed muscles to rest alternately.
It neither hindered the exercise of the Pile Skill nor strained muscles, an optimal solution.
Duan Rong did not finish until dusk.
He straightened up, exhaling a large breath of white mist.
Only then did Duan Rong realize his cloth shoes were soaked with sweat, his steps making a squishing sound like stepping on a swamp.
He simply threw off his shoes, stepping barefoot on the ground.
Wiping the sweat off his forehead, he estimated it was time for dinner, but he hadn't washed six chestnut horses yet.
Duan Rong rolled his eyes, betting Old Man Sun would definitely come to check his work.
Besides, he was still full from lunch, with all the chicken, duck, and fish in his belly, not valuing the dinner's two cornbread buns much.
He filled two buckets with clean water, picked up a brush, and went to wash the horses in the eastern stable.
While brushing, Duan Rong mumbled, "Look at this sleek coat! Eating top-class hay, with someone bathing you... You all are living like kings..."
"What're you mumbling about over there?" Unbeknownst to him, Old Man Sun had appeared behind him.
When Duan Rong turned and saw him, he pretended to smile innocently.
Seeing the stable cleaned spotlessly, and Duan Rong, skipping dinner to wash the horses, covered in sweat and still smiling stupidly, Old Man Sun's anger dissipated, and his fondness for Duan Rong rekindled.
Old Man Sun handed two cornbread buns to Duan Rong and said, "Dinner time has passed, I kept two buns for you. Eat them and go rest early."
"Rest?" Duan Rong asked in confusion. He had only washed two of the six chestnut horses.
Old Man Sun glanced at Duan Rong and said, "No need to wash them, tomorrow's delivery is canceled."
"Canceled?" Duan Rong's eyes widened in surprise.
Old Man Sun said nothing further and left the stable.
Watching Old Man Sun's back, Duan Rong suddenly understood.
"The old man was playing me!"
There was no delivery set for tomorrow. He was just creating trouble because I returned late from leave.
"Seems this old man is petty. I'll have to be careful with him in the future."
Duan Rong, biting on the cornbread, walked somewhat dejectedly towards the servant disciples' dormitory in the servants' courtyard.