Chapter 37: Martial Arts Gathering and Marriage Proposal (Part 1)

  "Brother Ling, what should we do?"

  The Yellow River Four Ghosts made a move, and Guo Jing couldn't wait to ask Ling Yun. At this time, Guo Jing was still just a young man who had just left his village, although his martial arts skills were much stronger than before under Ling Yun's guidance, but the lack of experience and knowledge could not be made up for by others, so he still instinctively sought advice from others when encountering things.

  "This doesn't count for anything, just be on time for our appointment tomorrow at noon. Aren't the Yellow River Four Ghosts your subordinates? What are you afraid of?"

  "But didn't they say that this time they came to deliver a challenge on behalf of their Shifu? I heard from several Shifus that the master of Huanghe Four Ghosts is Guī Mén Lóng Wáng Shā Tōng Tiān, who is also a notorious figure in the Jianghu. His master's younger brother should not be weak either, can we handle it?" Guō Jìng asked with some concern.

  Ling Yun looked at Guo Jing and smiled: "Brother Guo, what do you think we should do? Shouldn't we go to the appointment instead of running away halfway?"

  "Absolutely not, I've already promised to go. If I don't, wouldn't that be breaking my word? Wouldn't that make our Jianghu comrades laugh at us? And if the few masters were to find out, they'd definitely scold me for being useless."

  Ling Muyun said, "Brother Guo, you're wrong this time. Keeping promises sometimes depends on the person involved, not all promises need to be kept. As the saying goes, 'As long as there are green hills, don't worry about firewood.' A wise and intelligent person knows when to advance or retreat. If someone clearly knows it's a trap but still jumps in, that's not keeping one's word, that's foolishness."

  Guo Jing looked at Ling Yun with a puzzled expression: "So, Brother Ling, you mean we're not going to keep the appointment tomorrow? That's not very good, is it?"

  Ling Muyun smiled slightly and said, "There's no need for that. I'm just telling you this so that in the future, you won't be too honest and get taken advantage of. As for tomorrow's appointment at noon, we must go. Even if it were Ghost Gate Dragon King Sha Tongtian himself, he wouldn't be able to stop me, let alone just his junior apprentice, a role that can be easily dismissed. Why would I break my promise and not go?"

  "Oh." Guo Jing scratched his head, he now understood that according to Ling Zhu's meaning, they would go to the appointments that they could win and not go to those that they couldn't. However, Ling Zhu's idea seemed to conflict with the honesty and integrity that his six masters had taught him since childhood, making him feel a bit at a loss. Fortunately, tomorrow's appointment was one that he should attend, which didn't contradict his own values. Moreover, according to Ling Zhu's words, they also had an advantage in tomorrow's battle, so he didn't think about it too much.

  Having settled the appointment, the two returned to their rooms to rest. The next morning, they got up and had breakfast in the inn, then returned to their rooms to continue cultivating their spirit, until nearly noon when they paid for their room and board, mounted their horses, and galloped westward out of town.

  They walked ten miles west and indeed saw a large pine forest, with branches and leaves blocking out the sky. Ling Yun and Guo Jing dismounted their horses and entered the forest, walking along the small path for about a mile, still without seeing any sign of the enemy. Just as they were wondering, they suddenly heard someone shouting loudly in front of them: "You little bastard, you scoundrel, you son of a bitch..."

  Ling Yun and Guo Jing walked closer, and they couldn't help but be shocked and amused at the same time. They saw that the four ghosts of the Yellow River were hanging high up in the air, each one tied up with their hands and feet bound behind them, swinging back and forth, struggling desperately, but unable to find any leverage, getting angrier and more anxious by the minute, cursing nonstop. As for the person who had summoned them there, however, there was no sign of him anywhere.

  Guo Jing smiled and said: "Are you guys swinging here? Is it fun?"

  Ling Mu Yun couldn't help but secretly laugh to himself as he listened from the side. Having seen Jing Ping's usual foolish and honest appearance, who would have thought that this honest man would be even more formidable when teasing people.

  "Little rabbit, you farted, we haven't even swung yet." "Damn it, we've been secretly plotted against!" "Kid, if you have the ability, let us down." ... As soon as Guo Jing spoke, he immediately provoked a burst of shouting and scolding from the Four Ghosts of the Yellow River. And when the Four Ghosts became emotional, they struggled even more fiercely, swinging back and forth even more violently, becoming even more ridiculous.

  Ling Yun saw this scene and suddenly understood why the Yellow River Four Ghosts were in such a state. It seemed that despite his unexpected intervention, Huang Rong still took the lead as before to help get rid of the Yellow River Four Ghosts and distract the Three-Headed Python Hou Tonghai. However, in the original history, Huang Rong had helped Guo Jing, but this time it was unclear whether she wanted to help Guo Jing or himself.

  Having understood the reason, Ling Muyun lost interest in staying here any longer and called Guo Jing to leave. In fact, Guo Jing was also worried that the master of the Yellow River Four Devils might return at any time, and if they were blocked, it would be another fierce battle, so he nodded immediately and followed Ling Muyun out with Wang Lin.

  Those four ghosts of the Yellow River saw that Guo Jing and Linghu Chong were about to leave, so they shouted even louder: "Good kids, don't run away! If you have what it takes, put us down and let's fight one on one. We'll settle this once and for all. If we four gang up on you at the same time, that wouldn't be heroic."

  Ling Muyun turned around and glared at them, coldly snorting: "You four shut up for me. If you keep making a racket, I'll turn the four of you into corpses."

  Because they were slapped by Ling Muyun yesterday, the four ghosts of the Yellow River knew how formidable Ling Muyun was and still feared him in their hearts. At this time, seeing him like this, they immediately shut up and didn't dare to make another sound. They were afraid that if they continued to shout and provoke Ling Muyun, he would really kill them. Being tied up like this might not be comfortable, but it was much better than being dead.

  After the four ghosts of the Yellow River were cleared, Ling Yunqiu continued to walk with Guo Jing towards the outside of the pine forest. Along the way, Guo Jing kept wondering who had helped and asked Ling Yunqiu, but Ling Yunqiu, although he understood in his heart, pretended not to know on his mouth, so as not to reveal his "predicting before it happens" ability.

  Ling Yun and Guo Jing left the pine forest, mounted their horses, and continued on their way to the southeast. The two of them traveled day and night for several days before arriving at Zhongdu, the capital city of Yanjing. This was the capital of the Jin Dynasty and the most prosperous and flourishing place in the world at that time, surpassing even the old capitals of the Song Dynasty, Bianliang and Lin'an.

  Ling Yun was born into a wealthy family in Lin'an, so he had seen and experienced many things, but Guo Jing grew up in the desert, where had he ever seen such grandeur? He saw red buildings and painted pavilions, embroidered doors and vermilion gates, carved carriages and fine horses racing about. High shelves and large shops displayed all sorts of strange and exotic goods; tea houses and wine shops were filled with people dressed in finery and adorned with pearls. It was truly a dazzling sight, with drums beating loudly and flutes playing shrilly; gold and jade sparkled in the sunlight, and silk and satin fluttered about. This young man, who had never seen the world before, was completely bewildered by what he saw, and out of ten things, he didn't know what nine of them were, just like Liu Laolao entering the Grand View Garden for the first time.

  Ling Yun and Guo Jing first found an inn to stay in, putting their horses and luggage inside, then the two of them went out to find a restaurant for dinner, and immediately started strolling around. After all, it's not easy to come to this bustling place where four directions gather, how can you not take a good stroll and have a look around?

  Two men strolled leisurely along the long street, having spent half a day doing so. Suddenly, they heard the sound of people cheering and shouting in front of them. Looking from afar, they saw a large crowd gathered around something, but couldn't tell what it was. Guo Jing's curiosity arose, and he turned to Ling Zhiyun saying: "Ling brother, let's go take a look." After speaking, he didn't wait for Ling Zhiyun's response and pushed his way into the crowd with all his might.

  Ling Yun smiled and shook his head, then followed the crowd. Both Ling Yun and Guo Jing possessed superior martial arts skills, especially Ling Yun's skills had already reached the highest level. How could these ordinary citizens squeeze past them? Therefore, despite the crowded scene, they quickly squeezed to the front of the crowd.

  As I arrived at the crowd, I saw a vacant lot in the middle with a silk flag inserted into the ground. The flag had a white background and red flowers, embroidered with four golden characters "Martial Arts Competition for Marriage". The flag was fluttering in the wind, and on its left side stood an iron spear, while on its right side stood two short iron spears. Under the flag, two people were engaged in a lively fight, one of whom was a young girl in red dress in her prime youth, and the other was a sturdy man in his thirties.

  Only to see that the girl's every move was full of rhythm and method, obviously her martial arts skills were not weak. The big man, although tall and sturdy, had mediocre martial arts skills. After a few rounds of fighting, the red-clothed girl suddenly appeared behind the big man and punched him in the back. Although the girl was young, she had considerable strength and knocked the big man to the ground with one punch, causing him to stumble forward and fall face down in the dirt. He got up, his face full of shame, and slipped away into the crowd. The onlookers cheered and applauded loudly.

  At this scene, Ling Muyun's eyes suddenly lit up: "Martial arts to recruit a daughter-in-law? Could this girl be Mu Nianci?"

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