Chapter 3: Xiuer Learns Boxing

  After a long time, there was still no sound outside the village. Duanzi couldn't help but say: "Big Brother Niu, they've all run away."

  Liu Ziqiu shook his head and said, "Wait a little longer."

  The sky gradually brightened, and there was no one outside the village. Only bloodstains and a few steel knives were scattered on the ground. The night's vigil had not been in vain, and the villagers once again burst into waves of cheers. Zhangzi had already rushed out of the village, eager to collect spoils of war.

  Second Uncle's face was full of worry: "I'm afraid the Yang family won't let it go easily."

  Liu Ziqiu took a look at the eastern horizon, where the sun was just starting to rise, and said confidently: "Don't worry! If they dare to come again, our bamboo raft formation and fishing net formation are not to be trifled with. Leave a few hidden sentries, and let everyone else go back and rest."

  The Yang family had crossbows and arranged these untrained villagers as sentries. Liu Ziqiao was still not very reassured.

  The cheers brought the women and children who stayed in the village, and the small village suddenly became lively. In fact, many people didn't dare to close their eyes that night. However, the small courtyard of the Dacow family was still quiet. Perhaps Gaixiu had already fallen asleep from exhaustion while taking care of her sick sister.

  Liu Ziqiu couldn't bear to wake them up, so he stood in the yard and took a look without pushing open the door. For special forces, not sleeping for several days and nights was a common occurrence, and one all-nighter didn't count as anything. Liu Ziqiu took a horse stance, sank his breath into his dantian, and began his morning exercise.

  Actually, Gao Xiuer was like most people and didn't sleep a wink. She worried that Xiangcao's illness would relapse, worried that the villagers could not fend off those thugs, but more importantly, she had an additional worry.

  Gao Xiuer fell into Changshan Village and was taken in by Dà Niúniáng. At that time, everyone thought Dà Niú had already died, but only Dà Niúniáng didn't believe it. Gao Xiuer comforted Dà Niúniáng and agreed to become Dà Niú's wife, but unexpectedly Dà Niú really came back, and she couldn't face him.

  Suddenly, a coughing sound came from outside, which seemed to be the voice of "Dà Niú".

  Gao Xiuer sat up and listened carefully with her ear to the side, but there was no more movement. After a moment, another cough came from the yard, which was undoubtedly "Big Cow". Gao Xiuer felt a bit uneasy, so she quietly walked to the window and saw a different scene.

  In the morning mist, Liu Ziqiu was seen standing with his hands hanging down, in a horse-riding stance. Suddenly, he shook his whole body, coughed loudly, and then pressed his palms downwards. When they were still an inch away from the ground, his hands suddenly drew a circle outwards, clenched into fists, as if grasping something heavy and lifting it up high above his head. Then, with his head slightly tilted back, he took a deep breath towards the sky, and only then did his hands slowly drop down.

  This was repeated more than ten times, and then Liu Ziqiu changed his posture. Still in a horse stance, he lowered his body, with both palms grasping an imaginary ball shape, raised to the navel...

  Gao Xiuer saw his strange movements and couldn't help but let out a soft "hmm". The sound was light, but it had already been heard by Liu Ziqiu. Liu Ziqiu knew that he had startled Gao Xiuer's sisters awake, wanting to ask about Xiangcao's condition, but instead saw Gao Xiuer proactively come out and ask: "Big brother, are you practicing Wuqinxi?"

  Yesterday at the dock, Liu Ziqiu was forced to make a move. He had intended to pretend it was Wuqinxi according to Gao Xiuer's words. But seeing that half of his left face was terrifying, Liu Ziqiu couldn't bear to deceive this poor girl, so he smiled and said: "I've heard of Wuqinxi, but I don't know how to do it. What I'm practicing is Xingyiquan."

  "'Fist?' Xiaoxiu laughed, 'This fist is quite strange, probably can't even hit anyone.'"

  Liu Ziqiu patiently explained: "Xingyiquan is a very powerful boxing method, emphasizing actual combat, with the saying 'Xingyi can kill people in one year, Taiji takes ten years to make small achievements', how can it not be able to fight? It's just that what you see is me cultivating internal power."

  What Xingyi and Taiji were, Gaixiu had never heard of, but the martial arts have always been secretive and not spread outside, which didn't arouse her suspicion either.

  Gao Xiuer fell silent for a moment before suddenly saying, "Big brother, you said that this Xingyiquan can be used to kill people after just one year of practice. I don't believe it. Can you demonstrate it for me?"

  This seemingly gentle and weak girl was actually interested in martial arts, Liu Ziqiu was taken aback, but also felt that she was very pitiful, so he said: "The five fists of Xingyiquan are Pi, Beng, Pao, Heng, and Xuan, corresponding to the five elements of metal, wood, water, fire, and earth, implying the principles of mutual generation and restraint. I'll demonstrate a set of Paoquan for you."

  The cannon fist is like a cannon, belonging to fire, but not a cannon. It has the momentum of Jiang water pushing against the shore. Its nature is the most violent and its shape is the most fierce. Among the five fists, it is the most difficult to learn, but its power is also the greatest. Liu Ziqiu practiced bitterly for over ten years, and this road of fist method was unfolded, indeed like clouds flowing like water, with a tight body and solid push, expanding the body and releasing the hand, without seeing any gaps.

  Gao Xiuer watched with rapt attention, cheering loudly. When Liu Ziqiu finished his routine, she stepped forward and said: "Big brother, can you teach me?"

  Liu Ziqiu has been paying attention to Gao Xiuer's movements, seeing that she drinks every time just in time, at least having contact with martial arts. This girl has a secret behind her back!

  Hesitating for a moment, thinking that in the current chaotic world at the end of the Sui dynasty, it wouldn't be bad for a girl to have some self-defense skills. Liu Ziqiu nodded and said: "I can teach you, but learning martial arts is a difficult and bitter thing, can you bear this hardship?"

  "Of course I can eat it!"

  "Alright, watch closely!" Liu Ziqiu struck a pose and said, "First, I'll teach you the starting form and inner power of 'Fishing for the Moon at the Bottom of the Sea'."

  Gao Xiuer watched Liu Ziqiu's demonstration seriously, only then did she realize that the first move Liu Ziqiu practiced in the yard was called "Picking up the Moon from the Seafloor", and that cough was also part of it.

  At this time, Liu Ziqiu had already finished demonstrating the action and said: "You try it once and let me see."

  "Big brother, aren't you going to teach me the cannon fist?"

  Liu Ziqiu said seriously: "Practicing martial arts without practicing internal strength, in the end it's all for nothing. If you really want to learn, wait until you've mastered the twelve internal strength forms, and I'll teach you myself."

  Gao Xiuer was very clever and had secretly practiced several times earlier. Now, with Liu Ziqiu's guidance, she mastered the "Sea Bottom Moon Fetching" move in just one attempt.

  Liu Ziqiu shook his head, walked forward and pressed her shoulders, patted her lower back, hand in hand correcting every move of hers, unintentionally touching Gao Xiuer's chest, a soft and fluffy lump.

  Gao Xiuer let out a loud shriek and suddenly darted out. Just now, Liu Ziqiu had touched her body, which had already made her face flush with heat; this time she was even more embarrassed, her face burning red to the roots of her hair, at a loss for what to do.

  "This, I didn't do on purpose." Liu Ziqiu hadn't expected her reaction to be so intense, and felt a bit embarrassed, but still said, "Practicing this skill, if you're off by a hair's breadth, you'll be wrong by a thousand miles. Since I'm teaching it to you now, of course I won't dare to neglect it even slightly. For the parts that are rough and unpolished, please forgive me. How about this? You practice slowly, and I'll go take a look at how the fragrant grass is doing."

  Ten miles west of Yangguan County, there is a farm.

  A winding brook runs through the village, with green willows along its banks, a small bridge above it like a rainbow, and on both sides are green tiles and black bricks, presenting a picturesque landscape of Jiangnan.

  This was originally a villa of Chen Shu-zhen, the king of Yueyang in Southern Chen. After Sui destroyed Chen, Yang Jian awarded this place to Yang Su, Duke of Yue. As Yang Su was a northerner and both he and his son held positions in the court, this estate had been vacant until half a year ago.

  In the manor, Yang Jishan was in a rage.

  Although the Yang family is powerful, they cannot be too excessive. For several months, he has tried various means to force the villagers of Changshan Village to leave, but to no avail. Yang Jishan could not hold back and came up with the idea of massacring the village, but unexpectedly, both times ended in defeat. Especially the second night raid, although no one died, more than a hundred people who were sent out were all injured, and there were more than thirty seriously injured people.

  When leaving Dongdu Luoyang, Yang Ji boasted that he would build a salt farm at the mouth of the sea within three months. Now half a year has passed, but there is no progress, how can he not be angry?

  "Seventh Young Master calmed down, Black Tiger is willing to take people there again!"

  The one who spoke was the leader of the horse team from yesterday, named Yang Heihu, a member of the Yang family. Since childhood, he has been famous for his knife skills and was favored by Yang Su, who took him in and gave him the surname Yang.

  Yang Jishan was hesitating when he suddenly heard someone outside the door report: "Report to Seventh Young Master, Eldest Young Master has sent someone from the capital to deliver a letter."

  This is the third time Yang Xuangan has sent someone to urge. The idea of setting up a salt farm in Yanjun County was Yang Xuangan's idea. The Yang family is large and prosperous, with high expenses, and Yang Xuangan also likes to socialize with civil and military officials, gradually feeling a bit strapped for cash. Salt farming is a lucrative business, so Yang Xuangan wanted to get involved. Among the seven brothers, only Yang Jishan was not in official position, so this task naturally fell on his shoulders.

  Yang Jishan was also rushed by his elder brother, so he came up with a last resort for Tucheng Village. Seeing that someone had come to urge him again, he became impatient and casually threw the letter to Yang Heihu, saying: "Take a look, what does it say?"

  Yang Heihu looked at him with great respect and said, "I report to Seventh Master, the eldest master said in his letter that the imperial censor is keeping a close eye on the Yang family, so we should be more restrained in our actions."

  Yang Jishan flew into a rage: "Those obstinate commoners, if we don't give them a show of our authority, how can this matter be settled? No, you go to the county at once and tell that County Magistrate that if he doesn't relocate the villagers within three days, he'll have to take off his official hat himself!"

  Last night's sneak attack failed, and Yang Jishan had few people he could mobilize. The main responsibility of the cavalry was still to protect his own safety. With the help of the local government, it was already Yang Jishan's last resort, and he didn't want to give anyone an excuse unless absolutely necessary.

  At this moment, the gatekeeper came to report that Yuan Tianxia, the county magistrate of Yanchuan, was seeking an audience.

  "Can't see!" Yang Jishan brushed his sleeve and said, "Tell him to chase away the villagers first before coming back!"

  Yang Heihu furrowed his brow and said: "Seventh Young Master, why don't you let me go see him?"

  Without much ado, Yang Heihu came in from outside and cupped his hands to say: "Seventh Master, Yuan Tiange is here to bring a message on behalf of the villagers. The villagers want to cooperate with you."

  After listening to Yang Heihu's account, Yang Jishan sneered: "What are these unruly commoners? What makes them think they can discuss cooperation with me?"

  "Wait a minute," said Yang Hei Hu. "Why don't you just pretend to go along with him for now, and wait until the salt business is up and running before taking care of him?"

  Yang Jishan hesitated for a moment, his expression slightly easing, and said: "Call that surnamed Yuan in."