Chapter 4: I'll Fight You

The Zhao family residence was in the west of Xuzhou city, not far from the Wu'an Gate. They reached the place before long. This goods yard was empty and very spacious. When they arrived, quite a few children were already playing here — a few gathered in the east, a few in the west, playing and making noise.

In his memories, Zhao Jin didn't much like this place, because everyone here always liked to fight or wrestle, and the thin, weak Zhao Jin often came out on the losing end.

Seeing Chen Sheng and Zhao Jin arrive, several children immediately called out greetings and came right over. It seemed everyone knew Zhao Jin had been scared to death while watching the execution, so seeing Zhao Jin come over alive and well, the children all came over excitedly to ask questions. Some even thought Zhao Jin might be a ghost, which was both funny and exasperating.

After this fuss went on for a while, Chen Sheng over there waved the short stick in his hand and raised his voice: "I've learned a new move! Who'll spar with me?"

Seven children had gathered around. Three of them were clearly a bit older than Chen Sheng and taller too, yet upon hearing "spar," they all shrank back. The others went without saying. This struck Zhao Jin as very strange. Boys are competitive and eager to win; they never lag behind when it comes to sparring and fighting. When that's brought up, plenty should want to join in — so why was no one answering?

The other clusters of children glanced this way. They were clearly very interested in the "back from the dead" Zhao Jin, but they didn't answer Chen Sheng's call to spar.

"Whoever beats me, I'll bring them sesame cakes to eat tomorrow!" Chen Sheng raised his short stick and called out even louder. Still no one paid him any attention.

These past few days, going in and out, the adults and children Zhao Jin saw along the way were mostly thin, most with a sickly pallor. A chubby kid like Chen Sheng was a rare sight. In fact, even Zhao Jin's own thin, weak body looked quite healthy and had a decent complexion when placed in a crowd. Most people couldn't eat their fill, so these sesame cakes counted as a rare treat. Among the children playing in the goods yard, many were sallow and emaciated, and many wore tattered clothes. Why did no one covet these sesame cakes?

The next moment, Zhao Jin came to a realization. It wasn't that no one coveted them — it was that they simply couldn't get them, because no one had been able to beat this Chen Sheng. Don't be fooled by Chen Sheng's fair, chubby appearance; he was incredibly good at fighting. Ever since Chen Sheng started "sparring" here two years ago, no one had ever won.

In his memories, this Chen Sheng always carried this short stick, but his victories weren't because others were barehanded while he had a stick. Some children got even longer sticks, yet were still beaten by Chen Sheng. There were even half-grown boys of fourteen or fifteen, taller and stronger than Chen Sheng, who still couldn't gain the upper hand. Over time, everyone became unwilling to take up the challenge — they got beaten and hurt badly, and still couldn't get the prize. Why suffer for nothing?

"I pinched him! He's not a ghost — ghosts are insubstantial!" Someone reached out and pinched Zhao Jin's arm. Another child, as if discovering something new, pointed behind Zhao Jin and shouted, "Look, look! He has a shadow! Ghosts don't have shadows!"

For no apparent reason, no one paid Chen Sheng any mind. A whole crowd of children surrounded Zhao Jin and began studying him. Zhao Jin looked like a thin, weak child on the outside, but not on the inside. He found the surrounding antics unbearably annoying. Chen Hong had long since squeezed over and was cautiously touching Zhao Jin. Chen Sheng also stopped shouting about sparring and stared at Zhao Jin with a face full of curiosity, looking like he was about to come over too.

Zhao Jin felt terrible, as if he were a lab animal being poked and prodded and studied. And being surrounded so tightly, it was hard to even break out. In his irritation, Zhao Jin simply raised his voice and shouted, "Chen Sheng, I'll fight you!"

The moment they heard this, the children surrounding Zhao Jin first went quiet, then scattered. They all looked at Zhao Jin with expressions of disbelief. Someone even muttered quietly, "Zhao Jin, are you sure you can?"

"Chen Sheng hits really hard..." someone else whispered from the side. Zhao Jin nodded and said, "Whether I can or not, we'll know after we fight."

He wasn't about to fight little kids or engage in some play-house style sparring match. Besides, Zhao Jin knew he was thinner and weaker than Chen Sheng, so winning would be very hard. But Zhao Jin would rather take a beating than be surrounded by a bunch of children again, discussing whether he was "human or ghost." It was maddeningly irritating.

"Zhao Jin, you want to fight me?" Chen Sheng asked incredulously, then immediately said excitedly, "You're the only one here who hasn't fought me yet! If you beat me, I'll bring you sesame cakes — or osmanthus candy, that works too."

Zhao Jin just felt incredibly awkward. He thought to himself, let's just finish this quickly and then go play somewhere else. He didn't just run off directly or try to weasel out of it. He knew that would cost him friends and playmates. Zhao Jin still remembered his uncle Zhao Zhenxing's words, telling him to make more friends. Having come to this era, he had to adapt to this era. Having a few more friends his own age was always a good thing. In that other life, back at the orphanage, in order not to be bullied, Zhao Jin had been aggressive and combative, and because of that, he hadn't made many friends — something he'd always regretted. Zhao Jin didn't want to make the same mistake.

Seeing Zhao Jin nod, Chen Sheng excitedly said to his younger brother Chen Hong, "Erhong, you still call the start!"

The children had already cleared a space. The other groups of youngsters also came over to watch the excitement. Chen Sheng stepped back five paces to put distance between them, gripped the lower end of his short stick with both hands, and slowly raised it.

Seeing this stance, Zhao Jin immediately sensed something was off. Chen Sheng's two little hands were like two white steamed buns, plump and puffy. His round face was pursed, forcing a serious expression — he looked very cute. But the current Chen Sheng had become a different person. It was as if he wasn't holding a short stick, but a saber.

Zhao Jin understood at once. This little fatty had definitely trained. No wonder he was so good at fighting. Just as this thought crossed his mind, Chen Hong over there had already gleefully shouted, "Start!"

In a daze, Zhao Jin felt as if he had returned to his childhood, back when he was always fighting with others at the orphanage and at school. Back then, he was also very thin and weak. The way to avoid being bullied was to strike first and be fiercer than the opponent!

Zhao Jin suddenly charged forward. The watching children cried out in surprise. They had all thought the cowardly Zhao Jin would be intimidated. Many of the children watching the excitement had fought Chen Sheng before. They all knew that when Chen Sheng stood firm and raised the short stick in his hands, his sparring opponent often felt fear.

Chen Sheng was also very surprised. He paused for a moment before stepping forward to meet him. As Chen Sheng stepped forward, his upper body, waist, and back exerted force simultaneously, and the short stick in his hands chopped straight down.

This strike was very fast. Zhao Jin raised his arm to block. The short stick struck his forearm heavily. Zhao Jin's body staggered, nearly toppling over. A piercing pain shot through his left arm, as if it were about to break. In an ordinary child's fight, after taking such a hit, one would often not dare to keep fighting. But Chen Sheng's movements were continuous and fluid. He flipped both wrists, and the short stick in his hands swung upward — aimed right at Zhao Jin's chin.

He really has trained, Zhao Jin thought to himself, but his movements didn't stop. Enduring the pain, he bent over and continued charging forward. The distance wasn't far; two steps brought him right up close. Zhao Jin's right fist slammed hard into Chen Sheng's belly. The punch sank right in. This Chen Sheng really was fat — his belly felt like there was a wad of cotton in there.

The watching children cried out again. Normally when fighting Chen Sheng, many were knocked down directly by his first chopping strike. No one expected Zhao Jin could actually withstand it and even land a punch on Chen Sheng.

Chen Sheng took a punch to the belly and cried out in pain. When children fight, after crying out in pain, they usually admit defeat or burst into tears. But this Chen Sheng actually endured it. Gripping the short stick vertically with both hands, he used the butt end to smash down fiercely toward the center of Zhao Jin's back.

"Thud!" Zhao Jin drew a sharp breath. His entire back seemed to have gone numb. But his fighting spirit had also been roused. He lunged forward fiercely, wrapped his arms around Chen Sheng's thick waist, pushed off with both legs, and directly flipped the person onto the ground.

By this point, even the cries of surprise were gone. The children in the entire goods yard stared dumbfounded as the two hit the ground. No one had imagined that the cowardly Zhao Jin could actually flip Chen Sheng onto the ground.

Once flipped onto the ground, Chen Sheng's stick was also knocked from his grip. Even less did he expect Zhao Jin could flip him over. Chen Sheng grew frantic too and reached out to tear Zhao Jin off him.

The moment Chen Sheng's hands grabbed Zhao Jin, Zhao Jin knew it was bad. This little fatty's strength was definitely greater than his peers'. Tearing him off would certainly be trouble. In that moment, Zhao Jin had already forgotten that even if the opponent tore him off, it wouldn't be a big deal. But by now, Zhao Jin had already returned to the fighting state of his childhood self: since the fight had started, he had to win.

Zhao Jin violently shook his shoulders, throwing off Chen Sheng's tearing grip. He struggled upward and slammed his head down fiercely.

Another "thud." Chen Sheng's movements suddenly went limp. His hands no longer continued tearing at Zhao Jin, but instead covered his own face.

That headbutt from Zhao Jin just now had smashed into Chen Sheng's nose. Although the force wasn't great and didn't draw blood, it made the bridge of Chen Sheng's nose sting sourly. Snot and tears gushed out, and he could no longer fight.