Chapter 3 The arena is not about fighting and killing
Chapter 3 The arena is not about fighting and killing
Zhang Siwen carried Skywalker on his back, took big strides, and quickly disappeared into the night.
On the bank of Chaobai River, there is a lonely little shabby house built by himself. This is Shao Quanzhong’s home.
Being a constable is a temporary job, usually undertaken by unemployed people with some martial arts skills. They live a poor life relying on a meager salary and cannot afford to buy a house in the city.
Unless Shao Quanzhong is willing to do the same as Lao Liu and his gang of old-time yamen runners who have inherited their family's yamen from their ancestors and find all kinds of ways to extort the common people.
Zhang Ershazi swung the sledgehammer, sparks flew, and Skywalker's handcuffs and shackles were quickly smashed open.
Skywalker tore off the blood-stained rag wrapped around his leg, and a pig's bladder fell out.
He stepped forward and patted Shao Quanzhong's thin shoulder, causing him to sway. "Old brother, your martial arts skills are not good enough. I was pretending to be weak, but if I hadn't known the situation well, you would have almost hurt me.
I will write a letter right now, and ask you to go to Wudang Mountain when you have time and learn some real skills. "
Shao Quanzhong was stunned. "Brother, aren't you Yang Wudi's registered disciple?"
Skywalker laughed loudly, "Who in the underworld can be so honest?
I learned boxing and kicking from Master Yang, but my real skill is Wudang swordsmanship. The ghost-head knife contains hidden sword moves. I use the nickname Skywalker to hang out in the martial arts world only because I'm afraid that someone will track me down and catch me.
We are now friends who have risked our lives for each other, and if you and I can trust each other, of course we can be close friends - bring me some vinegar."
Zhang Siwen brought over a small jar of vinegar in a daze. Skywalker dipped some vinegar on his palm and rubbed it on his face. Then he stretched out his hand and pulled off his full beard.
The brothers Shao Quanzhong and Zhang Siwen were stunned to see the bearded gangster transformed into a heroic and extraordinary hero.
"Skywalker was my nickname when I was against Qing Yao. I will not change my name or surname. I am Tian Xing, the seventh generation successor of the Wudang swordsmanship's 'Dan' school.
When I was young, I was arrogant and earned the name of "Wudang Sword Master", which was me."
Seeing Shao Quanzhong clapping and praising him, but not really meaning it, and Zhang Ershazi being completely clueless, Tian Xing shook his head, "That was more than a decade ago, you're young and not in the martial arts world, so it's not surprising that you didn't know.
Brother Shao, you are a man of foresight. When you were a jailer two years ago, you dug a hole in preparation. When you were rounding me up a few months ago, you quietly let me go. Now you are using all of your skills.
With this kind of mind, if he also had martial arts skills——"
Shao Quanzhong waved his hand and said, "I appreciate your kindness. I don't want to be a hero, but I don't have time to spend another ten or eight years practicing martial arts.
In this world, if you want to have the final say, you must have soldiers under your command. I want to join the army.
On the battlefield, no matter how good your martial arts skills are, if you can't defeat your enemy with just one shot, then having good martial arts skills won't be of much use.
Brother Tian, now that you have changed your appearance, no one will recognize you when you walk down the street. I feel more at ease, Siwen--"
The fool Zhang Er ran to the backyard and pulled a donkey over. The one thousand taels of silver given to Skywalker were already in the mattress cover on the donkey's back. "Brother, we met by chance. I won't keep you here for long—"
Tian Xing pulled the donkey to leave, still unwilling to give up, "Brother, since you have the ambition to lead an army, why don't you go to join King Hong and kill the Tartars?"
Shao Quanzhong sneered, "Hong Tianwang is trapped in Jinling, he is not a leader who can establish a career.
The saint's second brother? I am the saint's third uncle, and he can't accomplish anything. Should I surrender to him and get slaughtered? "
"The Nian group, the Great Cheng State of the Tiandihui, the Shuntian Army of Li Duanta, and the Tianzong Army of Song Jipeng are all very powerful, and I know people in them—"
"Go to hell, you are all fools. The Qing Dynasty still has more than 50 years to live. I can't shake it. Rebelling now is like asking for death.
Don't try to persuade me. I want to be a loyal minister of the Qing Dynasty, lead the army to flatten the Japanese little nose, and relieve the hatred in my heart."
"Hey, brother, do you have the ability to know what will happen five hundred years in the past and eight hundred years in the future?
If the Tartars really only have 50 years left to survive, I will thank God.
The Japanese pirates don't seem to have any ability, how did they offend you?"
"Damn it, I have a deep hatred for the Japanese pirates.
Forget it, you won't believe me even if I tell you. I don't have the ability to know about it in eight hundred years, but I do have the ability to know about it in sixty or seventy years. I'm telling you, brother, the monk king will be defeated by the British and French devils at Baliqiao soon. The capital will be lost, and Emperor Xianfeng will have to go north to Rehe. Don't go south to die now.
We are acquainted, I have told you this, believe it or not."
Tian Xing led the donkey and shook his head as he walked, "You're just kidding, the Qing demons won a victory at Dagukou a few days ago.
The foreigners are only good at naval guns, but their warships cannot sail ashore. The Qing demons have 120,000 soldiers in the capital. How could those 20,000 foreigners take down Shuntian Prefecture?"
Watching Tian Xing gradually go away, Zhang Siwen, who had been grinning foolishly, suddenly said, "Brother, since you want to join the army, why did you take me with you when we were begging for food and we shaved our heads to be conscripted?"
"Tsk, what do you know? Soldiers are just cannon fodder. Once they go into battle, their lives are no longer their own.
The reason I'm trying so hard to please Mr. Wen is because I hope he can write me a letter of recommendation in the future.
Even though Master Wen had a bumpy career and was slowly promoted, his master was Lord Pan, and there were many capable fellow disciples.
One letter from him is worth ten years of fighting as a soldier on the battlefield, risking life and death."
Shao Quanzhong tapped his brother on the shoulder and said, "I know you're not stupid, but I don't have the same experience as you.
This world is not about fighting and killing, it’s about human relationships and worldly wisdom…”
…………
Tian Xing pulled the donkey and walked slowly in the night.
Hero Tian is a man of extraordinary courage. Humph, Shao Quanzhong won't let me go to the capital, but I want to go and take a look.
He is probably afraid that I will fail in the capital and give him away. Am I, Tian, that kind of person?
But Brother Shao, you say one thing and mean another, and team up with a traitor like me to defraud the bounty. Is this how a loyal minister of the Qing Dynasty behaves?
This time, I got some money with my brother Shao. Now that I have money, I have to go to the Prince Su's Mansion to see my mentor Yang Luchan, and then fight with Dong Haichuan to see how many moves I can last this time and understand the progress of my martial arts.
I haven't been to the Eight Great Hutongs for a long time...
"drive!"
A fast horse came hurriedly from the south, galloping on the official road in the dark.
The rider on horseback was an excellent rider. He vaguely saw someone leading a donkey in the middle of the road. He dodged the horse's head and whipped it on the top of the head with the whip. "Asshole, you dare to block the urgent military mission, you are looking for death!"
With Tian Xing's skill, he tried to duck his head to avoid the whip, but he failed. The whip seemed to have eyes and still hit his back, leaving a bloody wound.
When Tian Xing saw the speed at which the man on horseback attacked, he knew that this was not a martial artist.
However, he was lying on the horse's back, as one with the horse, a true master of riding. Even if he was twice as fast, he couldn't dodge the whip, which was a unique skill of the pure Mongolian cavalry.
Seeing that the knight did not stop to cause trouble for him, but headed straight for Shunyi County, Tian Xing pointed at the knight's back and cursed, "Tartar, if you have the guts, get off your horse and fight me twice. If I can't kill you - Eh? Mongolian!"
It was like a bolt of lightning exploding in Tian Xing's head. The Mongol soldiers in Shuntian Prefecture were basically subordinates of the monk king. They were traveling so fast at night, it seemed that there was really an urgent military situation.
Could it be that the foreign devils have really arrived in Tongzhou and are going to have a decisive battle with the Monk King at Baliqiao?
If this brother Shao really has the ability to tell fortunes by counting on his fingers and predict the future, then he would be amazing, even more amazing than Maitreya coming to the world.
No, I won’t go to Beijing. I want to go to Baliqiao to see what’s going on.
The daring Wudang sword master simply rode a donkey and headed straight for Tongzhou.
(End of this chapter)