Chapter 18 Chapter Sixteen

How Gauconda rode a big mare to Paris; In that same year Faiole, the fourth king of Minutia, brought from Africa to Golanguj a mare so tall and large that no one had ever seen it.It was a horse of extraordinary shape (you know, the ones from Africa are always fresh), and was as big as six elephants, with split-toed hooves like Julius Caesar's horse, and two ears. It hangs down like a Languedoc sheep's ear, and a small horn grows behind the buttocks.In addition, the fur on the body is dark chestnut with gray spots.Especially curious is its prodigious tail, exactly as thick as the tower at Saint-Mars, near Langeais, and square in shape, with thick, bristly hairs that resemble ears of wheat.

If you think it is strange, then the tail of the Sitia⑦ sheep will also surprise you. The tail alone weighs more than 30 catties, and the tail of the Syrian sheep (if Dyno’s ⑧ is reliable), it needs to be used behind the sheep’s buttocks. It can only be walked by holding a small cart. You can see how long and heavy it is.You plain boys, of course you don't have anything like this. The horse had just been brought by sea in three galleons and a clipper to the port of Olona in Talmonté. Gao Lang Gujie looked at the horse and said: "Just to send my son to Paris. Oh, God, that's good. He's going to be a great scholar. If there's no fools there, we're going to be scholars."

On the second day, after drinking (this is conceivable), Gao Kangda, the teacher Bonokrate and the others set off together with the young servant Edmond.It was a sunny and warm day, and Gao Kangda's father made him wear brown leather boots, the kind that Baban called half boots. In this way they ate, drank, and walked happily until they reached Orleans.There is a great forest about thirty-five leagues long and seventeen leagues wide.The woods are terribly plentiful with gadflies and wasps, and those unfortunate donkeys and horses will suffer if their animals come here.But Gao Kangda ① Bonokrates, according to the Greek, means "majestic, powerful".

① Minutia: An ancient country in Africa, near Mauritania, part of Algeria. ② See Chapter 16 of Volume VIII of Plinius's "Compendium of Natural History". ③ See Chapter 42 of Volume VIII of Plinius's "Compendium of Natural History". ④ Languedoc: the name of an ancient French province. ⑤ Langer: The place name of Shinong County. ⑥ St. Mars is located on the outskirts of Shinong County, one kilometer away, where there is an ancient square pagoda. ⑦ Sitia: Refers to my country's Xinjiang and Tibet areas. ⑧ John Dyno mentioned in his "Overseas Travels" that Sudan sent sheep to Cairo, but did not mention Syria.Such sheep are described in the 113th section of the third volume of Herodotus' "History".

⑨ Talmontai: place name of the Vendée province. ⑩ The port of Olona is on the Atlantic coast of France and was an important town in the sixteenth century. ① Baban: Poland in ancient times.It is said that there was a shoemaker named Baban in Shi Nong, and the author may know him. ② Orleans is 121 kilometers south of Paris. ③ One fare is about four and a half kilometers. The mare, by a great surprise to the vermin, retaliated well for the infestation they had inflicted upon her kind.For as soon as they entered the forest, the swarm of wasps attacked, and the mare reared up her tail and beat the whole forest down.I saw it go forward and back, left and right, up and down, east and west, beating the woods like a mower mowing grass until all the trees and hornets were wiped out. A piece of flat land was created.

Gao Kangda was very proud when he saw it, but he didn't say anything else to boast about. He only said to the people around him: "I think it's 'Bao Si'①." From then on, it was convenient to change the name of this land to Bao Si.But they didn't even have a place to eat, so they had to eat yawning.The gentlemen of Boss still eat yawns in memory of this incident, and feel good about it, and even find it easier to spit. Finally, everyone came to Paris.Gao Kangda and his party rested for two or three days, eating and drinking happily while asking about the local scholars and what kind of wine Parisians drink.

① "Beauce" (beauce), which means "good, good-looking". ② It is said that the nobles of Bos were famous for their poverty.