Chapter 114: Arrows Shock the General

Chapter 114: Arrows Shock the General

Chapter 114: Arrows Shock the General
Xiao Xia thought he had read the name wrong, so he looked at the professor's nameplate carefully again and finally confirmed that he was not mistaken. The professor teaching archery today was actually Chang Sun Sheng.

Xiao Xia and Chang Sun Sheng had dealt with each other once. On the Jiangnan Canal, Chang Sun Sheng followed Han King Yang Liang to intercept the Xiao family's ship. Although Yang Liang let the Xiao family and himself go in the end, Chang Sun Sheng shot Xiao Hu to death with an arrow.

Of course, shooting Xiao Hu should have been the emperor's order. Xiao Hu was the true legitimate son of the Xiao family. Killing him would also cut off the Xiao family's legitimate bloodline. As for Xiao Hu's son Xiao Jiangu, he was not a legitimate son, but the son of Xiao Hu and a maid. The legitimate son born to Xiao Hu's wife died at the age of three.

Chang Sun Sheng had also seen me, but it was night time, so I don't know if he saw me clearly.

At this time, Chang Sun Sheng came to the playground. He had dark skin, a tall and strong body, especially long arms. His whole body was full of strength in his steps, and his tiger eyes were particularly sharp.

Chang Sun Sheng was certainly not a full-time professor. He was also a visiting professor who would come to the Imperial Academy to teach an archery class about once a month.

Chang Sun Sheng glanced at the dozens of students, waved his hand and asked, "Are there any students who are taking my class for the first time?"

Xiao Xia raised his hand, and he seemed to be the only one.

After looking around, only Xiao Xia raised his hand.

Chang Sun Sheng nodded and smiled: "Okay! Let's continue practicing archery."

Chang Sun Sheng has explained all the essentials of archery to the students. Everyone practices archery on their own, and then Chang Sun Sheng gives guidance, or his assistants and apprentices help give guidance.

There are more than a dozen targets on the archery range, and everyone takes turns shooting arrows. Of course, they only bring bows, and the arrows are standard wolf-tooth arrows provided by the Imperial Academy, which are all ordinary rifle arrows.

Chang Sun Sheng walked up to Xiao Xia, took a look at Xiao Xia, and was startled. The student in front of him looked familiar. He seemed to have seen him somewhere.
"What is this student's name? Is he a new student?"

Xiao Xia clasped his fists and said with a smile: "I am Xiao Xia, and I have just come to the Imperial College to study. I hope Professor Changsun will give me more guidance!"

Chang Sun Sheng's face changed slightly. He remembered that he had seen this young man on the Jiangnan Canal. There was a true ninth-grade master by his side, whose internal strength was unfathomable.

But Chang Sun Sheng didn't know who Xiao Xia was? The fall of the King of Jin was due to his illegitimate son, but the name of the illegitimate son was not important, and no one cared. What everyone cared about was the fall of the King of Jin.

Chang Sun Sheng nodded, "You are a descendant of the Xiao family in Jiangdu!"

Xiao Xia smiled slightly and said, "It doesn't matter whose family I am from. What matters is that I am your student now."

Chang Sun Sheng also laughed, "Is this your first time shooting arrows, or your first time taking a class?"

"The students practiced needle throwing for several months and also practiced archery a few times."

"It will be easy after you practice flying needles. Flying needles are the basis of archery. It's all about accuracy and hand-eye coordination. Just practice until you're proficient. According to the rules of the Imperial Academy, as long as you don't miss classes and hit six out of ten arrows from seventy steps away, you'll pass the course."

"The students are auditors, so they don't need to take the test!"

Chang Sun Sheng said calmly, "My course only takes one year to complete. If you want to be my student, you are not allowed to miss classes during this year. As for your grades, you must achieve 7 out of 10, otherwise I will never acknowledge you as my student."

"Students are not apprentices, right?" Xiao Xia asked a layman's question.

Chang Sun Sheng laughed, "I only have two apprentices, but I have hundreds of students. The two are not the same thing."

"Okay, enough nonsense, let me see your bow!"

Xiao Xia handed the bow to Chang Sun Sheng. Xiao Xia's bow was also a treasure collected by the Xiao family of Jinling. It was called the Sirius Bow, one of the nine famous bows collected by Emperor Wu of Liang. It was a three-stone hard bow. Xiao Lin gave it to Xiao Xia.

Chang Sun Sheng took the bow, a trace of surprise flashed in his eyes, and he praised it repeatedly, "What a good bow. It took at least ten years to make this bow. It weighs at least three stones. Can you pull it open?"

Xiao Xia nodded. In the obstacle-breaking state, he could easily pull it open.

"You can actually draw the three-stone bow, have you broken through the barrier?"

"The student has just reached the fifth rank!"

Chang Sun Sheng took an arrow from his quiver and gave it to him, "Shoot one for me."

"I used to shoot arrows randomly by myself. I beg you to teach me the tricks." Chang Sun Sheng pondered for a moment and said, "First of all, you are shooting with a horse bow, not a foot bow. Horseback shooting and foot shooting are completely different things. Foot shooting is static, requiring the body to be like a tree trunk, arms to be straight like branches, breathing evenly, and the mind to be focused. As long as you practice hard for a year, you can basically hit seven out of ten arrows. After three years of hard practice, you can hit nine out of ten arrows.

Moreover, archery on horseback is much more complicated and difficult. It is carried out in high-speed motion, and first of all, it requires control of the warhorse. It is necessary to achieve unity between man and horse, and it requires long-term running-in with the warhorse.

Then comes archery. There are three actions in horse archery, namely, Duideng, Moshuang and Fenzong. Duideng is to shoot on the left side, Fenzong is to shoot in front and a small range on the right side, and Moshuang is to shoot directly behind.

There are a few mnemonics for horse riding and archery. Remember them: "Move like chasing the wind, eyes like lightning, draw the bow fully, release the arrow quickly, do not blink, and do not sit arrogantly."

In fact, in one sentence, you should know the target you want to shoot before you draw the bow. You can't wait until you draw the bow to find the target, but you should lock the target with your sight in advance. "

Chang Sun Sheng finished speaking in one breath. He looked at Xiao Xia's bow and shook his head. This bow was not suitable for archery.

"The tips for horseback archery I just mentioned are simple to say, but it won't be the same when you actually practice horseback archery. But it's better to practice foot archery first. Foot archery is the basis of horseback archery. Shoot an arrow for me first, and find the feeling of shooting a flying needle. Then you can treat it as a big flying needle."

Chang Sun Sheng asked Assistant Instructor Li to get a two-stone bow and a pot of arrows from the warehouse and gave them to Xiao Xia, then took him to the novice target position, which was relatively remote and would not be disturbed by others.

Chang Sun Sheng smiled and said, "Can you shoot an arrow for me to see?"

Xiao Xia had practiced with his Tianlang bow more than twenty times in Jiangdu and on the way to Chang'an. He had long since found the arrow feeling that Xiao Moke mentioned.

Although this type of bow was his first time using it, it would not affect his performance. However, Xiao Xia held back and did not want to go all out right from the start.

Xiao Xia drew his bow and shot an arrow, aiming at a target seventy steps away. As expected, he seemed to have not found the feeling of the bow, and the arrow went past the top of the wooden target's head, one foot away.

Chang Sun Sheng secretly shook his head. It seemed that his flying needle was not very good. Chang Sun Sheng forced a smile and said, "At least the direction is correct. The first arrow is already good. The southern students I have seen are all like this. They are naturally weak in archery. You don't have to be discouraged!"

Chang Sun Sheng was trying to comfort Xiao Xia, but Xiao Xia found it a bit harsh. Are southerners naturally weak at archery? This is too much of an underestimation of southerners.

At this time, several students felt uncomfortable seeing Chang Sun Sheng instructing the newcomers. A burly student said, "Please invite Professor Chang Sun over!"

Another thinner student nodded and shouted loudly: "Professor Changsun, I feel something is wrong with this arrow. Can you come over and give me some advice?"

Chang Sun Sheng heard the student's shout, and said to Xiao Xia: "You practice first! Try shooting ten arrows first and get a feel for it."

He asked an assistant to watch Xiao Xia while he turned around to instruct other students. Xiao Xia's performance on the first arrow was not good, so he was not very interested.

Xiao Xia pretended to pull the bow several times, and shot a few arrows in the air, as if he had found the feeling of archery.

He put the quiver on his back and instantly entered the state of breaking through obstacles. He drew out an arrow, drew the bow like a full moon, and shot the arrow with his heart and arrow in one. "Pah!" The arrow hit the throat of the wooden target, and the arrow penetrated three inches into the wood.

Xiao Xia no longer wanted to be modest. He wanted to let Chang Sun Sheng see carefully that southerners were not naturally weak in archery as he thought.

Xiao Xia shot arrows one after another like a string of arrows, and every arrow hit the throat and forehead. The assistant coach next to him was stunned.

Chang Sunsheng was coaching a few students in archery when he suddenly saw the teaching assistant desperately waving at him. He walked over quickly and asked, "What's wrong?"

The teaching assistant pointed at Xiao Xia and stammered, "Professor, go... take a look at him. He's... so scary!"

Chang Sun Sheng saw Xiao Xia sitting cross-legged on the ground, so he walked up to her and asked with some dissatisfaction, "Why don't you shoot?"

"The quiver has been emptied."

Chang Sun Sheng was stunned. There were thirty arrows in a pot, how could it be empty?
He turned his head to look at the target, and was immediately shocked and opened his mouth. The wooden target seventy steps away was densely packed with arrows, fourteen arrows were stuck in the throat, and fifteen arrows were stuck in the face.

Chang Sun Sheng was stunned.

Not to mention the accuracy of archery, how much arm strength does it take to shoot thirty arrows in a row?

(End of this chapter)