Bole and Maxima

According to legend, the immortal who manages horses in the sky is called Bole. In the world, people call a person who is good at distinguishing the advantages and disadvantages of horses Bole.

The first person is Bole, whose real name is Sun Yang, and he was born in the Spring and Autumn Period. Because of his excellent research on horses, people forgot his original name and simply called him Bole, which has continued to this day.

On one occasion, Bole was entrusted by the King of Chu to buy a good horse that could travel every day. Bole explained to the king of Chu that swift horses are rare and hard to find. He needs to travel around the country. Please rest assured that the king of Chu will do his best.

Bole has traveled to several countries, even Zhao Yan, which is famous for its famous horses, has searched carefully, and it has been difficult to find a good horse. One day, Bole came back from Qi. On the way, he saw a horse pulling a salt cart and struggling on a steep slope. This horse is tired and it is difficult to take every step. Bole has always been very close to horses and can't help walking up to him. When the horse saw Bole approaching, it suddenly raised its head, widened its eyes and screamed loudly, as if to tell Bole something. Bole immediately judged from his voice that this was a rare good horse.

Bole said to the driver, "This horse gallops on the battlefield, and no other horse can match it, but it is not as good as an ordinary horse when it is used to pull a cart." You'd better sell it to me. "

The driver thinks Bole is a big fool. He thought the horse was ordinary, and he had no strength to pull the cart. He ate too much and was thin, so he agreed without hesitation. Bole took a swift horse and went straight to Chu. Bole led the horse to the Chu Palace, patted the horse on the neck and said, "I found a good master for you." Like a swift horse, he understood the meaning of Bole, raised his front hoof and giggled, making his neck long, hissing and loud, like a stone pot of a big clock, reaching the sky. The king of Chu heard the neighing of horses and walked out of the palace. Bole pointed to the horse and said, "Your Majesty, I brought you a swift horse. Please watch carefully. "

When the king of Chu saw that the horse led by Bole was so thin, he thought Bole had fooled him and was a little unhappy. He said, "I believe you can look at the horse before buying it, but what kind of horse did you buy?" This horse is difficult to walk. Can it go to war? "

Bole said: "this is indeed a swift horse, but it looks very thin after being dragged for a long time and not carefully fed." As long as it is carefully fed, it will definitely restore physical strength within half a month. "

The king of Chu was a little skeptical and ordered the groom to try his best to feed the horse. Sure enough, the horse became thin and handsome. The king of Chu whipped his horse, only to feel that the wind was blowing around his ears and the time for breathing had already run out of a hundred miles away. Later, a swift horse galloped the battlefield for the king of Chu and made great contributions. The king of Chu has more respect for Bole.

Bole (about 680 BC-6 BC10), formerly known as Sun Yang, was born in Gaoguo (now Chengwu, Shandong Province) in the middle of the Spring and Autumn Period. In the rich country of Qin, as a horse, he made great contributions and won trust, and was named "General Bole". Bole later summed up his life experience and wrote the first book on horse riding in China history-Bole Xiangma Jing.

During the Spring and Autumn Period, with the development of productive forces and military needs, the role of horses became very prominent. At that time, horses were divided into six categories, namely stallion (for breeding), military horse (for military use), neat horse (for etiquette), trail horse (for post station), field horse (for hunting) and Xu horse (for miscellaneous service), so raising and watching horses became an important knowledge. It is under such historical conditions that Sun Yang chose Xiangma as his lifelong career. When Sun Yang was engaged in the profession of Xiangma, there was no experience book of Xiangma to refer to, and he could only find the law through comparative exploration and in-depth thinking. Sun Yang is diligent in learning from Xiang Ma. "Lu Chunqiu Mastery" said: "Sun Yang learns from horses, but what he sees is nothing but horses, and he is sincere."

Sun Yang, who was not ambitious, realized that it was difficult to make a difference on the narrow land, so he left his native land. After going through various countries, he finally walked out of Tongguan in the west, arrived in the State of Qin, and became a minister of Qin Mugong. At that time, the economic development of Qin was mainly animal husbandry, and there were many horses. Especially in order to fight against the brave knights of the northern shepherds, the Qin people set up their own cavalry, so they attached great importance to raising horses and choosing good horses.

Sun Yang made great contributions to the neutrality of Qiang Bing, a rich country in Qin, and won the trust of Qin Mugong with its outstanding performance. He was named "General Bole" by Qin Mugong, and then moved to the north and south with the army, serving as a supervisor and killing less. Bole did his duty in his work. In addition to saying and recommending horses, he also recommended talents like Jiu to the State of Qin. This is a historical story.