Chapter 132: Rivaling Xiang Yu, Brave as Lu Bu

The second day, outskirts of the city.

The sun rises with mountain clouds, the sky connects with spring grass.

Wang Yang and Chen Qingshan arrived early at the agreed location to wait for the Prince of Badong.

Wang Yang was wearing the popular tight-fitting clothing of the time—pants and pleats, with a black tight-fitting narrow-sleeved top and wide-legged pants, the cuffs tied tightly with black bands, also known as "binding pants." He wore a belt with dark gold patterns around his waist, looking sharp and upright, revealing a heroic spirit rarely seen in ordinary times.

He sat on horseback, trotting slowly while saying: "Qingshan, let me buy you a horse too."

"No need, I have money."

Wang Yang certainly knew that Chen Qingshan had money; those three hundred thousand from Jiao Zheng were still in Chen Qingshan's room.

If fixed assets were not counted, Chen Qingshan was much wealthier than he was!

But if you have money, you should buy it!

Wang Yang believed that Chen Qingshan was reluctant to spend money, so he said:

"Your money is yours, I am your..."

Chen Qingshan looked over coldly.

"Uh... as your employer, it's only right for me to provide you with a horse."

Chen Qingshan shook her head: "There aren't many opportunities to ride anyway."

"How can there not be? I'm going to come here to practice riding often in the future, and you always walking... that is, walking, it's not very appropriate."

Chen Qingshan was puzzled: "You are a noble from a high-ranking family; why are you practicing horse riding?"

Noble clan members in the Southern Dynasties mostly considered themselves elegant in literature and righteousness, entering and exiting in carriages, and few rode horses. Some officials with specific duties would even be impeached if they rode horses at will.

"Practical." Wang Yang became more determined to practice horse riding after experiencing two threats. "One is horse riding, one is martial arts, these are all for saving your life at critical moments, you must learn them well!"

"I already said there is no martial arts." Chen Qingshan did not know where Wang Yang had heard this term, or what this "internal energy" or "internal strength" was; he spoke of it as if it were a serious matter.

"Martial arts? Combat? Fighting? Anyway, it's that meaning."

In fact, the term "martial arts" did exist at the time, but its meaning was military achievements. Wang Yang had long been corrected by Chen Qingshan, but the term "martial arts" was truly deeply ingrained in his heart, and he could not change it for a while.

"Aren't you going to wait a while before learning? Are you not practicing that wave... jumping anymore? And what aerobic exercise..."

Wang Yang heard Chen Qingshan call "burpees" "arm-fighting jumps" and "aerobics" "melodious," and he laughed: "Practice it, this should still be practiced. This time, it will be done together with martial arts practice."

He originally planned to carry out strength and endurance training first to build a good foundation for his body, and then practice martial arts, but since yesterday, his sense of crisis had increased, so he decided not to wait.

"Your foundation is thin and you started late, so basic skills like body tempering and Qi practice can only be talked about slowly. Start with actual combat first."

Wang Yang said happily: "Actual combat is good, I want actual combat! Let me ask you first, if someone grabs my wrist and twists it behind my back, what should I do?"

In that mysterious courtyard, the move used by the feminine man left a deep impression on him.

Chen Qingshan said: "This is not difficult. If an enemy grabs your wrist, you bend your elbow and sink it, while turning your palm to the side and thrusting it upward." Chen Qingshan gestured while speaking.

"Then your feet slide forward, and you strike the opponent's Zhongwan acupoint with the side of your palm." Chen Qingshan's body suddenly moved forward, fast as lightning, her side palm striking out smoothly in one go, the momentum fierce, as if she had practiced it countless times.

Wang Yang couldn't help but shout, and at this moment, the sound of horse hooves shook! More than thirty riders arrived suddenly, rolling up smoke like a dragon.

It was the Prince of Badong!

Wang Yang dismounted and bowed, and Chen Qingshan retreated behind Wang Yang's side.

"Good palm technique! Take my punch!"

The Prince of Badong ignored Wang Yang, gave a loud shout, and flew off his horse, his brocade robe fluttering in the air as he actually threw a punch at Chen Qingshan!

Although Wang Yang's mind was quick, he did not yet have the reaction of a martial artist in combat, but Chen Qingshan immediately judged that the target of the Prince of Badong's punch was herself!

She turned sideways quickly, her toes lightly touched the ground, her body pressed back, and she swept out like a swallow.

As soon as the Prince of Badong saw Chen Qingshan turn, he did not wait for the punch to fully extend; his legs kicked off the ground fiercely, followed by an astonishingly powerful rotating leap. Like a goshawk pouncing on a rabbit, he rapidly closed the distance to his prey, his arm like a whip, smashing fiercely toward Chen Qingshan!

Chen Qingshan crossed her arms to block in front of her, and with a bang, she was actually knocked back several steps! Stumbling unsteadily, she knelt on one knee!

All this happened in a very short time. By the time Wang Yang reacted, the two had already passed two moves!

The Prince of Badong rushed forward, and another punch was blasted out!

"Stop!" Wang Yang roared, spreading his arms to block in front of Chen Qingshan!

The fist as big as a bucket occupied Wang Yang's line of sight, the wind of the fist scraped his cheeks, and a few strands of hair flew wildly. Wang Yang's breathing stopped, and his brain crashed instantly!

The fist stopped almost against Wang Yang's nose bridge!

Chen Qingshan watched this scene, her eyes trembling slightly.

The Prince of Badong smiled: "You kid blocked my punch for a woman? Are you worth it?"

Wang Yang dared to block the punch, mainly because he was sure that the Prince of Badong would not beat him in public, so as long as it wasn't in front of that woman and Wang Tai, the sense of security brought by impersonating the Langya surname was real.

However, fists and feet have no eyes, and the Face-Changing Prince is unpredictable; one cannot be one hundred percent sure that this Face-Changing Prince can stop at the last moment. But Chen Qingshan had already been defeated, and the Prince of Badong's attack was merciless; blocking him himself was better than letting him violently strike Chen Qingshan. After all, his own status was here; no matter how reckless the Prince of Badong was, he would still have some sense of proportion when striking.

There was also an additional point, which was that even if Wang Yang really took this punch, it might not be all bad. He could use this point to probe Wang Tai's intention.

Of course, there were other ways to probe this matter, and it was best not to be beaten.

Wang Yang looked at the fist in front of him, steadied his mind, and asked neither humbly nor arrogantly: "What does the Prince mean by this?"

The Prince of Badong slowly withdrew his fist: "Saw her martial arts were good last time, so I tried her skills."

Last time?

Have you met?

Yes, they met, at the White Tiger Dojo.

But is this how you try skills?

Why didn't you say hello!

Seeing Wang Yang's unhappy expression, the Prince of Badong said: "Don't be ungrateful! The Prince only used five points of strength just now, otherwise could your little beauty still stand up?"

Through previous contacts, Wang Yang roughly judged the Prince of Badong's temperament, changing emotions, jumping and unpredictable, and many times he was very awkward. On the one hand, he was arrogant and liked to hear good words, on the other hand, if others were too flattering, he would feel bored.

So if you want to get closer to the Prince of Badong, being submissive will definitely not catch his eye, and being unruly will definitely make him angry. This sense of proportion is really hard to grasp, you have to be tough when you should be tough, and soft when you should be soft, the wonderful use of operation lies in the heart.

So Wang Yang countered: "Does the Prince mean that I have to thank the Prince for showing mercy?"

The cavalry captain Wang Chongtian still hated the fact that Wang Yang made him lose face in the busy city last time. This time, catching the opportunity to put eye drops, how could he let it go? He shouted:

"Presumptuous! How dare you be rude to the Prince!"

Wang Yang pointed back at Wang Chongtian, his domineering side leaking: "I am talking to the Prince, do you have a share in interrupting?"

Wang Chongtian's face turned red: "You..."

"Alright." The Prince of Badong waved his hand, stopped his subordinates, then patted Wang Yang on the shoulder, and said as a matter of course: "That's natural."

He turned to look at Chen Qingshan: "Why didn't you use a whip kick? This Prince saw your leg technique was quite good last time."

Chen Qingshan's face turned slightly pale: "I was ambushed and didn't have time."

The Prince of Badong was interested: "Oh, this is not convinced! Come, come, this time let you make the first move!"

Wang Yang hurriedly blocked: "She is not the Prince's opponent!"

The Prince of Badong collided his fists and palms, cracking his joints, and grinned as he stepped forward: "It's okay, the Prince will let her use one hand."

Chen Qingshan took two steps back, her face even paler.

Wang Yang saw that the Prince of Badong was about to make a move, and immediately said angrily: "Prince of Badong! You are really bullying people too much!"

The Prince of Badong looked at Wang Yang, his face darkening. Chen Qingshan hurriedly pulled Wang Yang's sleeve and whispered: "It's okay, I can fight him."

Wang Chongtian was secretly happy, shouting: "Young Master Wang, you have repeatedly—"

"If Xiang Yu let one hand, would Zhang Er and Chen Yu be Xiang Yu's opponents? If Lu Bu let one hand, could Pan Feng and Xing Daorong block the Wenhou? The Prince clearly knows that he rivals Xiang Yu and is as brave as Lu Bu, yet he still says he will let one hand! Even if he lets two hands! Could my guard be your opponent? Prince, aren't you bullying people?!"

Wang Chongtian:???

Chen Qingshan: °o°

The Prince of Badong was stunned.

Who among those who practice martial arts doesn't respect Xiang Yu and Lu Bu?

He had practiced martial arts since he was a child, was gifted, and had always been proud of his martial arts, always yearning for the realm of being invincible in the world. At this time, hearing Wang Yang compare him to Xiang Yu and Lu Bu, and it was the words revealed in anger, he felt extremely comfortable in his heart, which was not something ordinary words could describe. This was much more comfortable than listening to Kong Zhangyu's dry blowing of "ten thousand enemies"!

After all, he is a talented person, his vision is indeed unusual! These eight words are worth pondering, there is something!

He suppressed the joy between his eyebrows and said as if nothing had happened: "It can't be said like that, if I let two hands, the Prince might not necessarily win steadily..."

Chen Qingshan: →_→

The Prince of Badong frowned when he said this and asked: "But who are the Pan Feng and Xing Daorong you just mentioned?"

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Note: ① The two great famous generals Pan and Xing are both fictional in "Romance of the Three Kingdoms," and they do not exist in official history. Although many contents of "Romance of the Three Kingdoms" also developed from folk legends and storybooks, there were no such storybooks at this time.

Lu Bu's heroic image did not start from "Romance of the Three Kingdoms," it was already like this at that time. There are too many examples, let's just say a few. Chen Lin's "Xi Wu Jiang Xiao Bu Qu Wen" listed the enemies swept away by Eastern Wu, saying "as strong as the two Yuans; as brave as Lu Bu." It can be seen that Lu Bu was famous for his bravery at that time. "Records of the Three Kingdoms" called him "Flying General," and also called him "the bravery of a tiger." By the Jin Dynasty, it was further strengthened. "Taiping Yulan" cites "Cao Cao Bie Zhuan" (actually "Cao Man Zhuan" cited by Pei Songzhi's notes in "Records of the Three Kingdoms"): "Lu Bu is brave, and has a fine horse. People at the time said: 'Among people is Lu Bu, among horses is Red Hare.'" When discussing how fierce the former Zhao ruler Liu Yao was during the Sixteen Kingdoms of the Five Barbarians, the example given was "can be compared to Lu Bu and Guan Yu."

② Regarding the martial arts of the medieval era, although there were no such gods as Dragon Subduing Palms, they had developed quite completely. For example, move formulas, "Baopuzi Waipian: Zixu" says: "I have also received shield and single sword and double halberd, all have formulas and essential techniques, waiting to take people, there are secret methods, their skill is divine. If you use this way to fight against those who don't know, you can win alone, and there is nothing in front of you." In modern words, it is "those who have practiced fighting those who haven't is like playing."

The same book also records: "Later, I learned the seven-foot staff technique, which can enter naked blades and take large halberds." Although in martial arts novels, staff technique is a separate category, in the writing of this era, staff technique is stick technique, and "entering naked blades and taking large halberds" means using stick staff to take people's weapons.

Using sticks to take weapons is nothing, Cao Pi's "Dian Lun" records that Deng Zhan "is good at arms, knows five weapons, and also claims that he can enter naked blades with empty hands." It feels very powerful, but Cao Pi is not convinced, and "discussed swords for a long time, saying that the general's method is wrong." So the two decided to have a fight: "When the wine was drunk and the ears were hot, they were eating sugarcane, so they used it as a staff, and they fought several times under the hall, hitting his arm three times, and the left and right laughed loudly."

Using sugarcane as a sword, the chivalrous spirit is coming to the face.

For example, light work: "Liang Shu: Yang Kan Zhuan": "Once stepped on the wall of the Yao Temple in Yanzhou, up to five fathoms, walking horizontally for seven traces." It is the "walking on walls" in the real "flying over eaves and walking on walls"!

Emperor Xiaowen of Northern Wei (who will appear in the Northern Dynasties volume) is even more "powerful," actually practicing the Finger Flicking Divine Skill: "Young and good at shooting, has physical strength, at the age of ten, can flick sheep shoulder bones into pieces with fingers." ("Wei Shu: Gao Zu Ji Xia")

However, if they really fought, Emperor Xiaowen should not be able to beat the fierce man Yang Kan. Yang Kan could "use his hand to dig the hall without fingers" ("Nan Shi: Yang Kan Zhuan"), you can imagine the scene of Mei Chaofeng digging a broken pillar with one claw, of course, it is not so exaggerated.

As for those who are good at boxing (also called boxing agility or boxing bravery at the time) or those who are specialized in various weapons, there are more records in the literature.

③ Regarding the question of whether officials in the Southern Dynasties could ride horses, it has always been said to be very mysterious. Song Dynasty scholar Cheng Dachang said in "Yan Fan Lu": "Han Wei Xuancheng served as a marquis, it rained and was muddy, he didn't drive a four-horse carriage but rode to the temple, the official impeached him and cut his title. So abandoning the carriage and riding, Han already had a ban."

This judgment involves two issues. First, there are specific circumstances for Wei Xuancheng being punished for riding a horse in the Han Dynasty, 1 heavy rain 2 temple sacrifice, riding a horse in the rain is easy to splash water, clothes are easy to be untidy, and it is easy to collapse water beads, causing chaos, losing etiquette; and temple sacrifice is a special place, some special places are not allowed to ride horses, such as the "River Bridge" of Northern Wei ("Nan Shi: Liang Yuzhang Wang Zong Zhuan": 'Wei law, crossing the river bridge is not allowed to ride a horse, Zong rode a horse and walked, the bridge official caught him and sent him to Luoyang') and such as the palace gate of the palace gate, there are more historical evidence for this, and it is easy to understand, so I will not cite it. Therefore, it is impossible to judge what the core reason for punishing Wei Xuancheng was based on this historical material alone. Is it not allowed to ride a horse in the temple? Or is it not allowed to ride a horse in the temple when it rains?

As for saying "In the Eastern Jin Dynasty, only carriages were allowed, and those who rode were impeached by the censor," I don't know where this comes from. I have an impression that I haven't seen relevant historical materials, and in the Eastern Jin Dynasty, although there were few noble clan members who rode horses, it was not rare. So I suspect Cheng Dachang remembered it wrong. He remembered the words of Yan Zhitui in "Yan's Family Instructions" cited by the author as the matter of the Jin Dynasty.

But what Yan Zhitui said was also very vague. He only said "Minister Lang rode a horse, then impeached him," meaning there was such an example, but didn't clearly say whether there was a ban on riding horses. As for "Old Tang Shu: Yu Fu Zhi" citing the words of the great historian Liu Zhiji of the Tang Dynasty, saying "If the official of Jiangzuo reached Minister Lang and rode a horse lightly, he would be impeached by the censor," I guess Liu Zhiji's statement also came from "Yan's Family Instructions," but he changed the words, the meaning seems to be that if an official reached Minister Lang, if he rode a horse at will, he would be impeached by the censor. It seems that riding a horse is also related to the size of the official position.

Examining the historical materials of the Southern Dynasties, most of the noble clan members rode ox carts, there is no doubt about this. Although there were few who rode horses, it was not that there were none. Besides military service, there were also those who rode horses in ordinary times, but those who rode horses and wandered without military status and special purposes were generally regarded as alternative or not dignified. (For example, Yan Yanzhi, "Song Shu: Yan Yanzhi Zhuan": "Also like to ride horses, traveling in the lanes.") That is to say, it is possible that noble clans who ride horses in ordinary situations without specific needs (such as hunting) and non-emergency (such as wartime martial law) will be regarded as alternative or not dignified.

And as far as my humble knowledge goes, there is no empirical evidence to prove that there was a ban on officials riding horses at that time. Yan Zhitui, who wrote "Yan's Family Instructions," spoke extremely about the weakness of the Southern Dynasties scholars and their inconvenience with horses, but only vaguely cited the example of "Minister Lang being impeached for riding a horse." As for under what circumstances he rode a horse, he did not explain.

I think it is unlikely that the Southern Dynasties explicitly banned officials and noble clan members from riding horses. It is possible that Minister Lang was impeached like Wei Xuancheng for riding a horse in some specific situation, and it may also be related to the identity of Minister Lang. Because Minister Lang is divided into Cibu Lang, Yicao Lang, Dianzhong Lang, etc., and many of them are related to the ritual system, for example, Cibu Lang is directly responsible for the affairs of the suburbs and temples, perhaps because of the nature of the work, it is easier to violate the ban by riding a horse. ===== CHAPTER 133 =====