Chapter 21: Instructor
Tan Yanqing, apart from studying behind closed doors, did not relax his training of the guard troops. This was not Fujian, and he could not openly find a place to train the guard troops in marksmanship. He had no choice but to continue strengthening the hand-to-hand combat and cultural training of the guard troops. Every morning, he personally led the guard troops on a run around the Lotus Pond, with a sand-filled backpack on his shoulders, just like an ordinary soldier. A lap was at least six or seven kilometers long. After running, they would have breakfast together, and after breakfast, he would organize the soldiers to learn hand-to-hand combat. In the evening, he would teach them German.
After all, Tan Yanqing still needs to prepare for the exam, and in just a few days, he entrusted his family servant to recruit masters of martial arts and private school teachers in Changsha City. As for German, it is necessary for him to come and teach the soldiers himself, and Friedrich can also be used. Of course, the people recruited must also undergo his examination. After so long training, the bodyguards have a certain level of hand-to-hand combat skills, but when they face Tan Yanqing, more than ten people rush up and are still beaten by him until they are covered in bruises. Tan Yanqing does not expect them to become masters of martial arts, but as soldiers, if they appear on the battlefield in the future, they will inevitably have to engage in close combat with the enemy. If these soldiers can master one or two external skills and defeat the enemy within one or two moves, he is satisfied. Of course, letting soldiers train hard in hand-to-hand combat also has another idea in his heart - building a special forces unit.
It is unrealistic to form a special forces unit at this time. Tan Yanqian knew the great name of special forces, but he had never been in the military and only knew that the special forces of later generations were all-powerful. What he could do now was to increase the training volume of his soldiers and let these soldiers approach the special forces of later generations as he imagined.
Tan Yanqing entrusted his uncle Li Anqing to take care of the matters in Changsha, as Li Anqing was the only close relative of Tan Yanqing's mother. Mrs. Li had not seen her brother for over 20 years since marrying into the Tan family, until two years ago when Tan Zhonglin passed through Changxin Store on his way to take up the post of Governor-General of Fujian and Zhejiang, and it was only then that she saw her brother for the first time. Tan Yanqing also learned that he had an uncle at this time.
"Zu An, the person you want to find has been brought here. There are seven people waiting outside. Are you going to go and take a look?" Li Anqing said. Although he was Tan Yanqin's uncle, after all, he had not been in contact with the Tan family for over 20 years. Even though it is said that "seeing an uncle is like seeing a mother", the affection between them still needs time to cultivate. So when speaking, Li Anqing unconsciously used the tone of speaking to a subordinate.
Although the price of the detoxification pill was set relatively low, it couldn't keep up with the small cost and high demand. The Jianmin Pharmaceutical Company, which Li Anqing managed, was built according to Tan Yankai's old idea, with over 300 employees working in two shifts day and night using a production line method to produce the detoxification pill. The scale of Changsha Jianmin Pharmaceutical Company should be the largest pharmaceutical company in this era, but the produced detoxification pills were still in short supply. Zhang Zhidong even sent someone to supervise the workshop to urge them to hurry up, and even exempted taxes. Li Anqing managed Jianmin Pharmaceutical Company with the help of some people, and it was also well-organized. Mrs. Li had also instructed him to do a good job for Tan Yankai, and he didn't dare to be lazy at all. Tan Yankai was very satisfied with his uncle, and after returning to Changsha, he would entrust his uncle with any matters. As for the people in the family, he didn't want to expect anything from them.
"It's really hard on Uncle, you rest here first, I'll go out and take a look at them myself!" Tan Yanqian said as he poured his uncle a cup of tea with both hands.
Li Anqing held the teacup and smiled, saying: "What's so hard about this? As long as Zu An has something he needs, Uncle will do his best to take care of it. If you're not satisfied with these people, Uncle can go find more, finding someone who knows martial arts isn't a difficult task... I'll just go with you instead, whatever you're not satisfied with, I'll also get to see for myself, and when we look again, I'll have some idea in mind."
Tan Yanqin smiled and said, "Uncle, don't rush, the people have already been found. You drink this cup of tea first to moisten your throat, and then we'll go take a look together!"
"Today, I've invited you all here to select a master for the imperial guard. We won't be performing any 'hand-chopping green stones' here. My intention is simple - since we're teaching martial arts to the imperial guard, I only need you to teach them how to defeat an enemy with one move, and the time required to learn it can't be too long. Although internal family skills are good, if they take too long to practice, they won't do. Remember, I only need you to demonstrate your killing techniques now. You can choose to use your bare hands or the short knives over there, and I'll be your sparring partner!" Tan Yanqin said to the seven people in front of him.
Tan Yanqin's eyes scanned the seven people before him, who were a mix of old and young. Since they had been carefully selected by Li Anqing, it was certain that none of them were impostors - they must have been thoroughly vetted beforehand. They definitely had some skills up their sleeves. The short knives, made of wood for safety's sake, were also available for use.
"Under Huang Ke's sword, please instruct me, sir!" said Tan Yanqian. After he finished speaking, one of the seven men, a sturdy fellow, took a step forward and clasped his fists, saying:
Tan Yanqun nodded after listening, made a please gesture, and Huang Kexian pounced on him with a soft body, a black tiger ripped out his heart...
One after another, six people were tried, and Tan Yanqin shook his head in disappointment. These people were considered top-notch in terms of their skills, but unfortunately, they weren't what he needed. If he wanted to find bodyguards, these people would be more than capable, and taking on a dozen or so opponents wouldn't be a problem for them. However, their martial arts skills wouldn't be enough on the battlefield, where life and death were at stake.
The last person was a middle-aged man in his late thirties, who gave Tan Yanqun a familiar feeling at first glance - the other party might be an internal martial artist. This was also the second person he had seen practicing internal martial arts since he came to this era. Tan Yanqun waved his hand and said: "Sir, I need a killing move, if I'm not mistaken, you should be an internal martial artist, right? My soldiers don't need to practice internal skills..."
A middle-aged man glanced at him and said, "I am Zhao Hengjun. You have a good eye for people, I indeed practice internal martial arts. However, when it comes to using techniques to kill people, I'm not unfamiliar with that either. During the match later, I won't use my inner energy!"
Tan Yanqin nodded and said: "Then please show it on me!"
Zhao Hengjun indeed did not use his inner strength when he was entangled with Tan Yanqing, and as soon as they got close together, their fists and feet immediately clashed. Zhao Hengjun's moves were all aimed at Tan Yanqing's vital points, causing the onlookers to be dazzled. The guards nearby cheered loudly - they had finally found someone who could exchange blows with Tan Yanqing for over a dozen rounds without falling behind. Meanwhile, Li Anqing was worried sick, fearing that Zhao Hengjun would accidentally hurt Tan Yanqing.
Just then, Tan Yanqin let out a muffled sound - the two had barely exchanged blows when his throat was tightly gripped by Zhao Hengjun's hand, leaving him unable to breathe. He didn't doubt for a moment that his opponent could easily snap his neck or choke him to death with just a slight tightening of his grip. At this point, he released his own hands to signal the end of the trial, and just then Li Anqing rushed forward saying: "Stop at once!"
Zhao Hengjun let go of his hand and retreated to the side after seeing Tan Yanqin's gesture. Tan Yanqin said to Li Anqing, who rushed up in a great hurry: "Uncle, don't worry, this is just a test, there won't be any problem."
Tan Yanqin turned around and said to Zhao Hengjun: "Mr. Zhao's kung fu is impressive, if you don't mind, I plan to hire Mr. Zhao with a monthly salary of 50 taels to train these soldiers' kung fu... Of course, when I was competing with Mr. Zhao, I still felt that some moves were too complicated and hoped that the master could improve them!"
Tan Yanqin was extremely impressed with Zhao Hengjun's skills, able to subdue himself within twenty moves. In his impression, even his nominal master Huang Fengqi couldn't do it, and the only one who could match him was probably that uninvited guest who launched a sneak attack that night. What's more, Zhao Hengjun's moves were extremely ruthless, with almost no wasted movements, concise to the point of being shocking. In Tan Yanqin's view, this style would be perfect for arming his own guard team. If one day the guard team were to carry out infiltration operations like modern special forces, taking down enemies bare-handed would be absolutely no problem. Just based on Zhao Hengjun's skills, he wouldn't dare offer a price of thirty taels - this was the price he had quoted for his uncle. The substantial profits from the detoxification pills had given him a lot more confidence, and money wasn't an issue; what mattered was being able to spend it to find the people he needed!
Thus Zhao Hengjun became the new martial arts instructor of Tan Yankai's guard in Changsha, and the close combat techniques he taught were far more effective than what the soldiers had learned from their previous instructor in Fuzhou. Under Zhao Hengjun's leadership, the guard began new training every day in the large courtyard where Tan Yankai was staying at Xishu Hall. Originally, Tan Yankai had planned to arrange a separate room for Zhao Hengjun, but he refused and instead stayed at an inn not far from there.
Tan Yanqun never dreamed that the person he fought with in the middle of the night was Zhao Hengjun, also known as "Zhao Shu" by Fang Congying. Since Tan arranged for the guard team to stand watch, Zhao Hengjun did not dare to enter the Imperial Library to probe his movements. However, Zhao Hengjun did not expect that Tan Yanqun would recruit a martial arts instructor, which opened a back door for him to sneak in. Fang Congying followed him secretly from afar because she wanted to see what kind of person her future husband was, whether he was as decadent and idle as the other young masters she had met. As Zhao Hengjun became the martial arts instructor of the guard team in the Imperial Library, he could observe Tan Yanqun up close.
"Miss, the third young master is now preparing for the imperial examination and has no leisure time to meet guests. Every day, except for being with the soldiers of the guard team, he never takes half a step out of that study room. In my opinion, it's still necessary to wait until after the imperial examination to see what kind of person the third young master is. However, one thing is certain: the third young master is not like those spoiled sons of wealthy families, but rather a good match for you, Miss!" Zhao Hengjun said with a smile in front of Fang Rongqin.
Fang Qiong's face turned red after hearing this, and he quickly shifted his gaze, saying: "I heard that he is also teaching those guards foreign languages at night, is that true?"
Zhao Hengjun's face turned serious as he said, "I've seen many people in my travels south and north, but the Third Master is one I couldn't see through. His actions are very different from others! I heard those soldiers say that the Third Master taught his guards German, a language used by the Prussians of the Far West. The foreigner in the Third Master's mansion is a Prussian, and he's the instructor for those guards, but what he teaches is not the same as what I teach. It's said that if a soldier does well in their studies, the Third Master will send them to Prussia to study in the future. Not only did the Third Master have them learn German, but he also hired a private tutor specifically to instruct them. Now these soldiers are making rapid progress in their studies, and this is also a very good opportunity... I really don't know what the Third Master is thinking..."
Fang Rong slightly furrowed his brow and said, "I've heard Father say that the Third Master's bodyguards are all elite soldiers, each one capable of taking on ten men. Otherwise, they wouldn't have been able to eliminate so many bandits in Fujian Province. But as for sending them to Prussia to study, is there something else on his mind?"
Zhao Hengjun smiled awkwardly and said, "The Third Master is a scholar, his thoughts are not something that I, Zhao, can fathom. As Liu Gong had said before, the Third Master has great authority in the Fujian-Zhejiang Governor's Office, and Governor Tan basically doesn't interfere with anything. It seems that he is doing this for a deeper reason."
"But why does the third young master want to teach German himself? Why not find a local private tutor or martial arts instructor like usual? He's about to take the imperial exam soon, where will he have time to teach German?" Fang Rongqing said with a slight frown.
"I've also heard about this from the soldiers, who said that there's a story behind it. The Third Master once told them that in the first year of the Tongzhi Emperor's reign, the imperial court established the Tongwen Guan to cultivate translation talent, but no one was willing to take the exam. Later, a few people did go, and their peers viewed them as outcasts, even threatening to sever ties with them. That was the social atmosphere during the Tongzhi era."
"Hmph, it's just a foolish opinion!"
"The young lady is right, but it has been thirty years since the beginning of Tongzhi's reign, and the customs of the people have changed a lot. The third master is worried that Guo Songtao, the first ambassador to England, was scolded as a 'traitor' when he returned home, and the second ambassador, Zeng Jize, son of Zeng Guofan, was even worse off. When he returned home and took a small steamer back to his hometown in Hunan, he was treated like a beast by the local people as soon as he landed, and the small steamer was burned down with one fire. It's only been two years since Zeng Jize passed away, and it hasn't even been ten years since the small steamer was burned. The third master is afraid that the local people will have some ideas about him teaching German to the guards, so he has to be careful, no matter what. This kind of caution is still quite rare among young people!" Zhao Hengjun said with admiration.
Fang Rongying nodded after listening, she was also from Hunan Province. She had not heard of the incident where Zeng Jize's boat was burned by his fellow townspeople, but it seemed quite possible. If such a thing happened, Tan Yankai would certainly not dare to openly invite foreign language teachers, otherwise it might cause unnecessary trouble for him in the upcoming imperial examination.
"Uncle Zhao, I've only seen you at the Tan Mansion for a few days, how come your words are all different from before? You're spouting one classical allusion after another, and sounding so pedantic..." Fang Xiangqing said with a gentle smile.
"Miss, you don't know, the third young master treats those soldiers very well. Except for the strict training, everything else is very generous, including food and salary. He even hired a teacher to teach them specifically. When there's nothing going on, the third young master also mixes with them and talks about foreign countries' anecdotes. The stories of Zeng Jize and Guo Songtao were told by the third young master, I heard it from the side. Others may not dare to say it, but following the third young master, one's knowledge will unconsciously increase. If old Zhao lives long enough, one day I'll also learn to take the imperial examination!" Zhao Hengjun said with a big laugh.
Although Fang Qiong was a talented and beautiful woman, she couldn't help but laugh at Zhao Hengjun's words. Zhao Hengjun was also an optimistic person who could talk freely, which made him unsuitable to be part of Fang Zhiyi's inner circle due to his carefree nature. However, Zhao Hengjun had exceptional martial arts skills that were hard to come by, and it was only because of a coincidence that he became part of Fang Zhiyi's team. As a result, Fang Zhiyi kept Zhao Hengjun by his side as a high-ranking bodyguard in the mansion. Having watched Fang Qiong grow up, Zhao Hengjun was allowed to protect her on this occasion, lest something unexpected happened outside.
"Uncle Zhao, from now on, you should also pay more attention when you're by the Third Master's side. The Third Master's detoxification pills are a great merit that benefits both the country and its people, but they've also cut off many people's paths to wealth and offended quite a few individuals. It's inevitable that there will be those who seek revenge. Uncle Zhao should also take care of him more when he's by his side, don't let anything happen to him!" Fang Qingyu said in a soft voice.
Zhao Hengjun smiled and said, "Third Master's own martial arts skills are not bad either. Those ordinary thugs are no match for him. Plus, with so many guards by his side, those soldiers' guns would even make me afraid. Who would dare to mess with Third Master?! Of course, as the future husband of Miss, I, Old Zhao, will definitely rush to rescue Third Master even if it means jumping into boiling water or walking through fire..."
"Uncle Zhao, where did you go..."
