For horse racers, making money is victory!

It was approaching evening.

Inside the chairman's office at Treson Academy.

The petite, loli-like chairperson, Akikawa Yayoi, waved her fan with a relaxed and cheerful smile.

"Wow, tonight's annual awards ceremony is going to be really exciting!"

"A 4GI year, a record that rivals Emperor Rudolf and is on par with Narita Shirahito's record in an odd-year."

"At the same time, there was also the Divine Eagle, who set a record for Japan's greatest foreign war record, leaving the second-place fighter far behind!"

"I wonder who will win the biggest prize, the most important 'Matchgirl of the Year'?"

As the chairperson of the board of directors of Treson Academy, Akikawa Yayoi naturally received an invitation to attend tonight's awards banquet.

She doesn't attend every year either.

But tonight, Akikawa Yayoi really wants to see.

"The Eagle's combat record is indeed quite impressive and significant, but..."

Shunchuan Tezuka, the chairman's secretary who was still engrossed in his work and eager to leave as soon as possible in preparation for the awards banquet that evening, immediately spoke up.

"There are too many reasons not to choose the Hawks, such as only having four races a year, or winning only one GI race a year."

"Furthermore, every triple crown winner has been able to win the Player of the Year award that year, without exception."

"While Xiaobai Zhuixue has no international matches, he has a higher GI than Shenying, with more matches played, and is undefeated."

"On the GI scale, there are 4 more matches than 1, and even more matches than 24."

"At the same time, Yi Xiaobai Zhui Xue can still run for a long time and has an excellent physique. For URA, her value is definitely many times higher than that of the retired Divine Eagle."

Shunkawa Tessuna is displaying keen analytical judgment.

"One is a classic racehorse that has reached the pinnacle of being a champion alongside the emperors. She is extremely popular and has immeasurable value, and can drive another new wave of spectator enthusiasm for Japanese races."

"The first superstar in history to drive a viewing frenzy was local idol Hesek."

"The second one is the superstar Little Lima, who also came from the local area."

"Xiao Bai Zhui Xue clearly has the potential to become the third idol."

At this point, Tsuna's preference is quite clear; she is more optimistic that Yui Shiro will win the Player of the Year award.

Akikawa Yayoi put down her fan, revealing her loli-like face, and sighed softly.

"Indeed, whether from the perspective of value, rationality, or even perfection, choosing Xiaobai was the right decision."

"The Divine Eagle is the ultimate in external warfare and hard power. Its outstanding strengths are extremely prominent, even surpassing those of the emperor."

"Xiao Bai Zhui Xue is perfect in every aspect: popularity, achievements, value, potential... all are top-notch."

"No matter how you look at it, Xiaobai Zhuixue has a 70-80% chance of becoming the best of the year, while Shenying has at most a 20-30% chance."

It can be said that the Eagles score 99 points in terms of strength and international combat, but only 70 or 80 points in terms of popularity, influence, and value.

Xiao Bai Zhui Xue is considered to be able to consistently score 90 points in all aspects outside of international competitions, and still has ample room for improvement.

It doesn't matter who you choose, but no matter how you look at it, Xiao Bai Zhui Xue's probability is definitely much higher!

Akikawa Yayoi also expressed her opinion.

"But—this might become a point of criticism for Xiaobai for a long time to come."

"After all, everyone agrees that the extent of the Hawks' achievements in foreign wars last year was truly astonishing."

"Those Japanese spectators who admire foreign wars and think that Japanese matches are just a bunch of weaklings fighting each other, wouldn't they be dissatisfied with this?"

Even those who are passionate about foreign wars might say things like "there's something fishy going on."

After all, you can find points to highlight the eagle's shortcomings as well as points to emphasize its strengths.

In the entire century, Japan has only produced one truly world-class creature like Shinkyo!

The next world-class player is still a long way off. Who knows if it will be next year, or ten or twenty years from now?

So there's nothing we can do.

If Xiaobai Zhuixue is burdened with this annual best honor but cannot completely crush Shenying, it will inevitably face this negative price.

As for the possibility of a "double king", both Shunkawa Tetsuya and Akikawa Yayoi automatically ignored it.

The reason is simple: this has only happened once in the entire history of Japanese horse racing.

That time was in the early 60s.

Now, I don't know how many years have passed, who still remembers, who still looks forward to it?

"I hope this pressure can be transformed into a driving force for Xiaobai's growth."

"I believe she has the potential to succeed Shintaka as Japan's second world-class racehorse girl!!"

At this point, Akikawa Yayoi jumped off the chair and picked up a fan.

"Tsuna, stop busy, let's change our clothes and get ready for the dinner."

"Okay, sure."

----

Two or three hours later.

Xiao Bai Zhui Xue, unusually dressed in a pre-made gown, sat in the center position at the very front.

Around her are famous racehorse girls such as Shintaka and Airi Soko.

The event was grand; even heavyweight veterans like Tsuna Hayate and Yayoi Akikawa were present.

The host is smiling as he announces the winner of a certain award.

"[Best New Year's Racehorse Girl] is..."

"—Ariyashiko!"

Suddenly, footage of Eliseko during the match appeared on the big screen.

Meanwhile, Forest Treasure Cave, who was also present and felt unwilling to accept defeat, clenched his fists.

She has the ultimate goal of "defeating Xiaobai Zhuixue"!

Therefore, for the ambitious Forest Treasure Cave, defeating Eliseko is the first practical goal.

As a result, the title of the strongest in the new Year of the Horse was snatched away by Airi Soko.

Could it be that Alice will become "Yoshiro Okita no Seiyuki II"?

As always, the pale-haired girl, Alice, wearing a white coat, paid no attention to the gazes of others, and simply turned her head to look at Yoshiro Tsurugi.

Alice remained calm, quickly walked onto the stage, and picked up the award.

Shortly after, the host announced the follow-up prizes.

"The next awards to be presented are those that are not controversial."

"That is—the Best Classic Year Racehorse Girl Award!"

"In this year's Best Classic Year Racehorse Girl award, she received an incredible, extremely rare 95% of the vote!"

"A triumph in undefeated form! In a classic year, he easily defeated Arima Gien! Achieving a 4GI record in a single year, the Triumph of Yoshihaku Tsurugi!"

The next second, the snow-white-clad girl suddenly stood up.

172. Two Kings Win! The Eagle's Thanks

Best Classic Racehorse of the Year – Yoshiro Tsurugi!

When the host announced Xiao Bai Zhui Xue's name, the entire audience erupted in cheers.

Moreover, after the video started playing on the big screen, the enthusiastic cheers from the audience grew even louder.

"Night White Chases Snow!! Night White Chases Snow!!"

"Without a doubt, Miss Chase Snow is not only the strongest classic year's racehorse girl, but also the best of the year, right?"

The huge awards ceremony was attended by eligible racehorse girls, URA executives, and others in the front row.

In the middle and rear, there were many news media outlets, retired racehorse girls, and even lucky girls who had drawn a number.

"It's obvious without even guessing, the next Year of the Ancient Horse Racer Girl will definitely be Shintaka. The only question is which of the two will be the ultimate, most prestigious Race of the Year..." yk

"Although Senior Divine Eagle is very strong, Miss Chasing Snow is a three-time champion!"

"Perhaps, Miss Yoshiro Tsurugi can truly replace the Emperor and Shin'taka as the real GOAT of Japan!!"

"Go, Miss Xue! Continue your undefeated streak in the Year of the Horse!"

The applause continued to ring out from the center, and the thunderous applause lingered long after Xiao Bai and Zhui Xue had taken the stage.

The snow-white-clad girl calmly embraced the trophy.

(Wow, 95% of the vote?)

Xiao Bai Zhui Xue was only surprised for a moment before regaining her composure.

She doesn't feel low, she even feels...

Isn't it a little too high?

As a participant, I naturally face opposition from some extremely xenophobic media reporters who would rather abstain from voting or cast their votes for racehorses like Narita-ji.

Therefore, in Xiaobai's prediction before Zhui Xue arrived, his vote share was around 80%, and then it was around 80%+.

I can't believe it reached 95%!

It seems that xenophobia and resistance to entry into Malaysia are the "lower code" of a small group of people.

But liking the Triple Crown, especially being obsessed with the Undefeated Triple Crown, is also a "bottom code".

Just like a cat that has triggered two underlying codes—licking its fur and hissing—it can only choose one.

Thanks to the buff of her undefeated triple crown, even many "Japanese champions" would vote for Yoshiro Osamu, so the votes were pushed to such a high level of 95%.

After expressing his surprise, Xiao Bai Zhui Xue quickly and politely thanked her before stepping down from the stage.

And then he went down.

The host then began to introduce the next award.

"Next up is the award for [Best Horse Girl of the Year]."

"This award goes to the legendary bird, the Divine Eagle, who set a record for Japan's greatest achievements in foreign wars, becoming the first bird in history to win a European GI award and soaring into the world stage!!"

And with the host's voice getting louder and louder.

Even Xiao Bai and Zhui Xue turned their gazes away.

She turned her head and looked at the seemingly carefree girl, Shin'yō, who had stood up not far away.

As always, Goddess was wearing her signature eye patch.

Like a bull warrior, she never takes off her blindfold!

As the GOAT in the international competition, Shin'yō appeared calm and composed, even smiling and greeting Yoshiro and Kusakabe.

Immediately afterwards, the divine eagle landed on the platform.

……

Awards were presented one after another.

Many trophies with "Best of the Year" prefix, representing the strongest in different fields, were taken home by the female racehorses.

It seems to be nearing its end, but the reporters filming and the fans watching are only getting more and more excited.

Because the real grand prize is about to begin!

Finally, only the trophy holders can participate in the competition for the true "Representative of the Year"!

"There are only a handful of racehorse girls, such as Airi Soko, Yoshiro Oyuki, and Shintaka."

The host spoke earnestly.

Meanwhile, those in the audience, including other racehorse girls, reporters, and spectators, all knew this.

This prize will only be awarded to one of the two racehorse girls.

The winner of this award is also known as the "Japanese Horse King" of that year, the "Japanese Horse Girl of the Year", or the "Strongest Horse of the Year".