The way Uma Musume looks at me is so scary!

Moreover, according to Megumi Ardan, she had spent a long time with her mother and remained in the courtyard where her mother had lived after her mother's death. It seemed that she could learn about her mother's past through her.

There's no need to place your hopes on inanimate objects anymore; right before you is a witness to your mother's past.

Xiu Xingmeng silently gripped the red ribbon in her hand, raised her head and looked at Megumi Ardan.

"You also have the blood of the Northern family, right?"

Although he didn't know why he said that at this time, Meguro Ardan still smiled and nodded.

Actually, she didn't know she had Northern blood in her until today, but this also explains why Xiu Xingmeng's mother was exceptionally kind to her when she was little and often took her out to play.

Perhaps it was because they shared the same bloodline of Meguro and the North that she was so close to him.

"So... you've been living here all along, right?"

"My mother once lived here, and so do you, who also have northern blood."

Xiu Xingmeng hesitated for a moment before speaking softly.

"So this place... can also be considered a kind of northern home..."

Upon hearing Xiu Xingmeng's words, Megumi Takamori's eyes lit up, and he was about to say something, but Megumi Ardan immediately silenced him with a look.

Megumi Takamine is used to leading her younger sisters as the eldest sister. Although she loves and cares for them, she can also be ruthless and strict when she feels that there is no room for compromise.

But this approach was useless on Xiuxingmeng. Unlike the many Mejiro family racehorse girls who were used to her imposing presence, Xiuxingmeng had long since developed an unyielding pride through her duels on the racetrack.

Therefore, the stricter she was, the more fiercely Xiu Xingmeng resisted, which led to the tense situation that occurred before.

Their personalities were practically diametrically opposed; they would explode if they clashed. So, Megumi Ardan stopped her sister from speaking and let Hideyuki say her own choice.

"And...remember to bring your mother's painting with you."

Looking at Xiu Xingmeng, who was quietly giving in front of her, Megumi Ardan couldn't help but show a tender smile. She gently stroked the other's smooth black hair in response.

"Of course, I'm your older sister."

How could I refuse my sister's request?

Chapter 177 The Loneliness Beneath the Smile

After finishing her endurance training, Xiu Xingmeng stood panting in place. This training ground had been partially abandoned by the Megumi family, so she cleaned up the snow a little and used it as her own training ground.

Compared to the open space behind the Northern Family Mansion, this training ground, no matter how abandoned it may be, is still a proper training ground. Moreover, the entire track has been specially adjusted for the longest distance, the Emperor's Spring Appreciation, making it almost identical to the Emperor's Spring Appreciation track.

For the Emperor's reward of consecutive victories in the Spring and Autumn Period, the Mejiro family's horse racing girls have shed countless drops of sweat here.

However, they have already achieved the astonishing feat of three generations winning the Imperial Award, and the accumulated wealth and glory have led them to abandon this old and dilapidated place, opting instead to rebuild a larger, newer, and more professional training ground within the estate.

If it weren't for Xiu Xingmeng's arrival, this training ground might have been gradually buried by weeds over the years.

However, Xiu Xingmeng didn't have much time to reflect on everything she had experienced at this training ground. After recovering her energy a little, she looked at her legs and muttered to herself.

"It's definitely different from before. I can even vaguely feel the progress that comes with each run."

"Is this the gift brought by the blood of the North?"

As long as Xiu Xingmeng's body can withstand it, the Northern Blood within her will continuously enhance her talent until she can stand at the same level as the legendary predecessors of the Northern Family.

Xiu Xingmeng suddenly remembered what her grandmother had once told her: the ancestor of the Northern family bloodline in Japan was named Northern Dancer. That predecessor never fell out of the top three in her entire racing career and even won the annual racehorse title in both Canada and the United States.

If the Blood of the North can bring his talent to the level of the Northern Dancer.

"I will definitely become a world-class racehorse girl, on par with the Golden Master in terms of physical talent."

Xiu Xingmeng looked at her legs and murmured to herself.

This is why my mother delayed using the limiter back then. If I had that talent, even just a little bit, winning the Emperor's Award for the Spring and Autumn Period would no longer be a pipe dream.

"Is it possible to gamble with one's life for the moment of glory...?"

These days, she has learned a lot about her mother's past from Megumi Ardan. Unlike the mother in her memory who was always gentle like the sun, her mother seemed to be a rather stubborn racehorse girl in the past. Once she made up her mind about something, she would swallow her blood and never give up, even if it meant breaking her teeth.

She was determined to become the horse girl who would win the Emperor's Sho Shunju title for two consecutive years, so she was determined to fight for it no matter what the cost.

This made Xiu Xingmeng feel that her mother was very similar to her when she was young, or that she herself was very similar to her mother when she was young.

However, unlike herself who was fighting desperately in the world of the script, her mother chose to take the risk even though she knew she only had one life.

"My mother was such a strong and brave person."

Xiuxing dreamed of her mother in her memory, whispering.

There were actually signs of this long ago. How could someone dare to raise a baby they found on the roadside alone if they didn't have unimaginable strength and courage?

Now that things have come to this, Xiuxingmeng has learned about her mother's past from Meguro Aldan, so there's really no need for her to stay in the Meguro family any longer.

As for news about Megumi Asama, since their family head isn't saying anything, and given how bad his relationship with Megumi Takamine is, he probably won't have a chance to find out.

"So I can go back to my home up north now."

Xiu Xingmeng stroked her chin and muttered to herself. Although her mother's portrait had been delivered, it wasn't that she couldn't bring it back. Although her training speed might decrease without this training ground, it didn't really matter with her ever-increasing talent.

Moreover, the main reason she agreed to meet Megumi Ardan was because she looked so much like her mother. Feeling indebted to her mother, Xiuxingmeng couldn't refuse her when she looked at her face.

Now that she has calmed down and is no longer affected, she seems to have no reason to stay at the Mejiro family anymore.

Just as Xiu Xingmeng was plotting how to sneak away with the portrait while Megumi Ardan wasn't looking, she suddenly heard applause beside her.

Startled, Xiu Xingmeng turned around at the sound and found Meguro Aldan, wrapped in a blanket, standing outside the track, smiling and clapping at her.

"Wow, Xingmeng is amazing. At this speed, winning the Emperor's Spring Festival celebration should be no problem at all."

"well enough……"

Xiu Xingmeng turned her head awkwardly in response. Although she could now distinguish between Megumi Ardan and her mother, the intimate gestures she had made when she was confused earlier still made her feel a little embarrassed.

Faced with Ardan's praise, she really didn't know how to respond.

However, Meguro Ardan didn't seem to notice her embarrassment and continued with a smile.

"Don't be shy, Xingmeng is amazing! You won the G1 level Chrysanthemum Award at such a young age. I haven't even won a single G1 match. You're already much better than me."

Hearing her words, Xiu Xingmeng was taken aback. She had heard of Megumi Ardan in the previous script world, but he appeared as a powerful enemy on the opposite side of Oguri Hat and the others.

As their opponent, how come Mejiro Ardan has never won a single G1 match?

"Whether it was the Japanese derby or the two Emperor's autumn viewings, my sister always fell just short."

"But in reality, there's no such thing as 'points' on the field; the only outcomes are victory or defeat."

"I lost, that's all."

Seemingly noticing her confusion, Megumi Ardan explained with a smile, though her smile seemed to carry a hint of melancholy.

"The Chrysanthemum Appreciation and the Emperor's Spring Appreciation were competitions that my sister could only dream of back then. Hoshino is already much better than my sister."

Seeing her dejected look, Xiu Xingmeng couldn't bear to say anything to comfort her.

"That's just because each racehorse is adapted to a different distance..."

Unexpectedly, after hearing this, Megumi Ardan sighed and muttered to himself.

"Adaptability..."

"I'd say mid-range is my limit... My body can't handle the distance for the Chrysanthemum Appreciation and the Emperor's Spring Appreciation, neither in the past nor now."

Ardan's words startled Xiu Xingmeng, leaving her momentarily at a loss for how to respond.

However, Megumi Ardan seemed to put her worries aside quickly, and a gentle smile reappeared on her face as she spoke to Xiuxingmeng.

"Your Majesty, do your best to enjoy the spring scenery! Your big sister will come to cheer you on every day!"

Seeing her smile, Xiu Xingmeng clenched her hands.

The thought of Ardan Megumi arriving at the training ground after she left, only to find no one there, weighed heavily on her heart.

The other person had shown her so much care and even told her about her mother's past. Leaving her alone like this made Xiu Xingmeng feel somewhat despicable.

"Then let's go to the Emperor's Palace to enjoy the spring..."

Xiu Xingmeng responded softly.

Chapter 178 The Eve of the Competition

"Northern Star Dream...The Emperor Enjoying Spring?"

Looking at the information in his hand, Kentaro Sugiki said in a low voice with some disbelief. He hadn't expected Hokuho Seimu to sign up for the Emperor's Spring Appreciation at this time.

She had clearly registered and qualified for the Arima Kinen race, but she did not show up at the venue. At that time, Kentaro Sugiki thought that she was like the Northern Family Race Horse Girls he had seen when he was a child, who made a brief appearance and then quickly left the race.

After all, this is the most important race of the year, Arima Kinen. Moreover, the second showdown between Narita Shirahito and Hokuho Seimu at Arima Kinen had already generated a lot of buzz in the horse racing world before the race. At that time, not participating in the race would be no different from announcing retirement.

"Why now? Why didn't you participate in the competition before?"

He didn't believe the claim that Narita Shiraijin was avoiding the match. As a professional commentator, Sugiki Kentaro simply couldn't convince himself that Hideyoshi Yume, who was leading Narita Shiraijin by a huge margin in the Chrysanthemum Prize, couldn't win against his opponent.

So at the time, Kentaro Sugiki thought that the reason why Shigeki Musume did not participate in Arima Kinen might be that she had already decided to retire. After all, most of the previous Northern Family Saima Musumes had retired after running only a few races.

But now, when the news of Xiuxing Meng's participation in the Emperor's Spring Appreciation arrived in Sugimoto Kentaro's hands, all his previous speculations came to an end.

Since it wasn't a retirement, what was her reason for not participating in the Arima Memorial back then, and what is her reason for participating in the Emperor's Spring Appreciation now?

Just as Kentaro Sugiki was racking his brains, he suddenly caught a familiar mark on the document out of the corner of his eye. He rubbed his eyes to make sure he wasn't mistaken before exclaiming in surprise.

"The Mejiro family?! That's the Mejiro family crest?!"

The well-informed Kentaro Sugimoto immediately recognized the Mejiro family crest and realized that the competition materials had been sent by the Mejiro family.

Kentaro Sugiki felt that this might be a major breakthrough to solve his doubts, so he immediately took out his phone and made a call.

As a veteran commentator with decades of experience, he naturally has an extensive network of connections in the horse racing world. However, the friend that Sugiki Kentaro asked this time was a good friend he had known before he became a commentator.

They used to cheer together for their favorite racehorse girls at the racetrack. Time flies, Kentaro Sugiki became a famous commentator, while his friend earned two medical doctorates and became the head doctor of the Mejiro family.

"Hey?"

A voice that sounded very familiar to Xiu Xingmeng came from the other end of the phone. If she were there, she would definitely recognize it as that of the middle-aged man.

"Do you know Hoshino Hoshino? Is she at the Mejiro family's place right now?"

As friends of over a decade, Kentaro Sugiki didn't hold back and immediately shouted the moment the call connected.

The person on the other end of the phone was silent for a while, seemingly considering something.

After a dozen seconds, he sighed and said.

"You saw the application materials? Well, it's normal for a veteran commentator to go through them once."

"Don't beat around the bush with me. Is there something you can't say?"

Kentaro Sugiki frowned at his old friend's strange attitude. He had been friends with this person for decades and never held back when chatting. There must be something else going on if the other person was thinking about it for so long.

But before he could ask any further questions, a voice came from the other end of the phone.

"Never mind, it's something that's going to be made public in the media anyway, so it's okay to tell you in advance."

“Hokuto Hoshino has the blood of the Mejiro family, and at the end of last year, the last head of the Hokuto family also passed away due to illness. Hokuto Hoshino, who was living alone, was also brought back to the Mejiro family.”

The overwhelming amount of information startled Sam Kentaro, but he almost immediately realized many things.

No wonder Hokuho Seimu didn't attend the Arima Memorial; she must have been busy grieving the passing of a loved one at that time.

As for why she participated in the Emperor's Spring Appreciation, it's even simpler: she has been taken to the Mejiro family, who have always been proud of their consecutive victories in the Emperor's Spring Appreciation.

Since Hokuho Seimei has the ability to win the Chrysanthemum Sho, he is naturally expected to win. The Mejiro family wants to win the Emperor's Sho Shunju again!

Then, an overwhelming surge of anger almost burst through Kentaro Sugiki's brain, and he unconsciously gripped his phone tightly, hissing at his friend on the other end of the line.

"What exactly does the Mejiro family want?! She's the last remaining member of the Northern family! Are they going to strip her of her surname just for the Emperor's reward for the title of the Spring and Autumn Period's Hegemony?!"

Upon hearing Kentaro Sugiki's words, the breathing on the other end of the phone became heavy.

"Do you want to see her left alone in our home up north? Let me tell you! It's not what we remember anymore! You want a child to live alone there in the dead of winter with no water or electricity?!"

“I don’t object to taking her to a better environment, but what does the family crest on the documents mean?! Her surname is Northern!”

"She's also a racehorse girl from the Mejiro family! Who do you think her mother is?!"

Kentaro Sugiki was taken aback. The other person's words reminded him of the stadium where he first met the other person more than ten years ago.

One of the riders in that race happened to be a racehorse girl who also possessed Mejiro Hokujo blood.

"Northern Star Dream...is she her daughter?"

Kentaro Sugiki's voice trembled slightly. As a commentator, his channels were not as convenient as the other party's. It was only now that he realized that Hokuho Seimu was actually the daughter of the racehorse girl he had liked when he was young.

Recalling the news from earlier, the Northern family had fallen into ruin, and the last head of the family had passed away from illness at the end of last year. Northern Hoshino was also brought back to the Mejiro family because she was living alone.