Chapter 45: The Fierce Martial Path (Part 1)

  Just as Gao Yuan and Li Yinghong were about to leave the store, someone said, "Yinghong, so it's you who's here."

  Gao Yuan and Li Yinghong turned their heads to look for the source of the sound, and saw that across more than a dozen shops, surrounded by four or five young people, there was a young girl in red clothes and a strong suit, waving at Li Yinghong.

  Her age is roughly the same as Li Yinghong's, with a beautiful face and elegant demeanor. Compared to Li Yinghong, they each have their own unique charm, and it's hard to say who is better. Moreover, she also wears a precious sword at her waist. The young people standing beside her are all wearing headscarves and arrow sleeves, with precious swords hanging from their belts, clearly all practitioners of martial arts.

  Zhao Guo was originally a martial state, and it had been at war year after year. The fashion of practicing martial arts was prevalent, and even Confucian scholars would learn some defensive swordsmanship and wear a sword as an ornament. There were also many martial arts schools and associations, so people dressed as warriors were very common.

  Li Yinghong saw the red-clothed girl and immediately smiled all over his face, taking a few steps forward to greet her, saying: "Hong Jin, what are you doing here too?"

  Several others also greeted Li Yinghong, calling out "Miss Li" or "Big Miss Li".

  As soon as the two girls bumped into each other, they immediately grabbed each other's hands. The girl in red said: "You've already returned to Handan, why didn't you come to the martial arts hall to find me? Are you afraid of competing with me?"

  Li Yinghong smiled and said, "Last time was just an accident, I lost to you in one move. Why should I be afraid of you? I've only been back in Handan for two days, and I originally planned to find you tomorrow. This time, I will definitely win it back. Because over the past few months, I have made great progress."

  The red-clothed girl said: "You're making progress, and I haven't been idle either. Since we've already met today, why not come to the martial arts hall now and have another match? I'm a bit impatient to see how much you've improved over these few months."

  Li Yinghong smiled and said, "Go if you want to go, I'm afraid you won't make it."

  Several other young people also burst out laughing, saying: "There's going to be a good show again." "Li Dajie and Hong Ying competing in martial arts will definitely be exciting to watch." "After the last match ended, I've been waiting for this one!"

  At this time, Li Yinghong turned his head and said to Gao Yuan: "Go, you go and be a witness for us."

  The red-clothed girl finally noticed the plateau and said: "Yinghong, who is this gentleman..."

  Li Yinghong said: "He is called Gao Yuan, you should have heard of him, he was just appointed as the Grand Master."

  The red-clothed girl and several others were also shocked, so the story of Gao's beheading of Shi Kui and Xing Ren in the martial arts competition at the banquet two days ago had already spread throughout Handan City. The red-clothed girl hurriedly knelt down and said: "Wu Honglian pays respects to Master Gao." Several other young people also knelt on the ground.

  "No need for formalities."

  Li Yinghong pulled Wu Hongyin up with one hand and said, "What's the politeness for? This guy is very casual, no need to be too polite in front of him. You all get up too."

  Wu Hongxian listened, and only then did they all stand up, their attitude also becoming more restrained, not as casual as Li Yinghong's. "Sir, do you want to go to my family's Wu Guan with Yinghong?"

  Gao Yuan nodded and smiled: "I've never been to the martial arts hall before, I'd like to go and broaden my horizons, I don't know if it's disturbing you?"

  "Wu Hong hastily said: 'Where, where, Doctor can visit Wu Guan, it is the honor of our Wu Guan, my father will be very happy.' Said that, he called over a young man and asked him to hurry back to send a message. Then led the way in front."

  On the way, Gao Yuan asked Li Yinghong and only then did he know that Wu Hongling's father was called Wu Lie, a military man who had served under Lian Po and was highly valued by him. He once became a general, equivalent to the rank of Daifu. Later, Lian Po was squeezed out by Guo Kai and escaped abroad, while Wu Lie also retired from his military post and opened a martial arts school in Handan, named Lie Wu Xingguan, relying on teaching disciples to make a living.

  Because Wu Lie had served in the Zhao army, he had a deep relationship with the military and also had some connections with Li Mu. Moreover, Wu Lie indeed had real talent and learning, and had experienced real battlefields. He not only taught martial skills but also taught military tactics. Therefore, his martial arts school attracted a large number of young people as soon as it opened, hoping to learn some real talents from him in order to achieve great things and make a name for themselves in the future.

  In addition, Wu Lie was a generous and righteous person, with a wide range of connections among the three teachings and nine streams of Zhao Guo, as well as both the black and white ways. Some things that the imperial court couldn't handle publicly would be handled by Wu Lie, and over the past twenty years, his martial arts academy had also sent many talented individuals to the military. As a result, he was quite famous in Handan City, with more than 10,000 disciples in his academy.

  It's actually quite normal for a martial arts school to have some connections with both the government and private sectors, but Wu Lie has clearly done exceptionally well in this regard. Not only do ordinary officials not dare to offend him, even Zhao Wangqian and Guo Kai have to show him some respect. Zhao Wangqian even granted him the courtesy of a grand ceremony.

  Wu Lie had a son and a daughter, his son was named Wu Zhanpeng, and his daughter was Wu Hongling. She was one year older than Li Yinghong and also learned martial arts from a young age. The two girls knew each other since they were around ten years old, but neither of them would admit defeat to the other, competing with each other every few months, with wins and losses on both sides, until now. And among the four great beauties of Handan mentioned by Du Yi, the fourth one was precisely this Wu Hongling.

  Before Li Yinghong followed Li Mu to the battlefield, he had another fight with Wu Hongling. As a result of this battle, Li Yinghong lost and now that he is back, he must have a rematch with Wu Hongling.

  When Li Yinghong finished speaking, the group arrived at the martial arts hall. The gate of the martial arts hall was open, and hundreds of disciples stood on both sides. A red-faced man in his fifties walked up quickly from the middle, while Wu Hongling hurried forward and said, "Father, this is Dr. Gao."

  Wu Lie immediately cupped his hands and saluted, saying: "Wu Lie has seen High Grandmaster." Because he had the courtesy of a grandmaster, he was considered to be half-official and half-private in status, and could discuss matters with Gao Yuan on an equal footing. The several hundred disciples also all knelt down and paid their respects to Gao Yuan.

  Kougen hastily returned the bow, saying: "Master of the house, no need to be so polite." Then Kougen stretched out his hand and said: "Everyone has also stood up, today I came in private attire, so everyone doesn't have to be formal."

  The crowd of disciples stood up one after another, all neat and tidy, also showing the results of Wu Lie's usual training for his disciples. Therefore, Gao Yuan also said: "The master indeed has a way to train his disciples."

  Wu Lie was quite pleased, then he also paid respects to Li Yinghong, but Li Yinghong didn't dare to be casual in front of Wu Lie either, and returned a courtesy, addressing Wu Lie as "Uncle Wu".

  After the courtesy, Wu Lie said: "Sir, Ying Hong, this is not a place to talk, let's go inside the Wu Mansion to speak."

  The martial arts hall occupies a vast area, with three large training grounds, the largest one in the center is slightly larger than a football field, mainly used for horseback riding and archery practice. The other two smaller training grounds are specifically designed for warrior training. At this time, there were over a hundred disciples on each of the two grounds, holding weapons and practicing diligently. Along the perimeter of the training grounds are the courtyards and buildings of the martial arts hall.

  Wu Lie led Gao Yuan and Li Yinghong into the room, only then did Gao Yuan discover that there was a small martial arts training ground similar to a courtyard inside the room. The length and width were approximately 25 meters, with one side having a platform about two meters high, on which were placed tables and chairs. The other three sides had corridors, where several weapon racks were placed.

  Gao Yuan and Li Yinghong were led by Wu Lie to the high platform, where they sat down. Wu Hongling accompanied them on one side. In the three corridors below the stage, a dozen or so disciples stood at attention, each with their chest out and belly in, looking very spirited.

  At this time, wine came from the human side, and Wu Lie said: "Two days ago, the lord killed Shi Kui and Xing Renjiu at the night banquet in the palace, and also vented a mouthful of bad breath for our Wu Guan. Therefore, all the people in our Wu Guan are very grateful to the lord." He said, holding up his wine bowl: "Lord Gao, I'll drink a toast to you."

  Gao Yuan also raised his wine bowl, and the two of them drank it all in one gulp. Only then did Gao Yuan say: "What grudge or enmity does Shi Kui, the master of the Jihe Martial Arts Hall, have with me? Why did he say that I was avenging a grievance for the Wu Martial Arts Hall?"

  Wu Lie said: "It's embarrassing to say, two months ago, Shi Kui, Xing Renjiu and Ji Qizi came to our Wu Guan to challenge us. As a result, they defeated more than ten of our high-ranking masters, including Quan Yu, who was injured by them. Later, I personally took the stage and managed to tie with Shi Kui. Therefore, it's only natural that you, sir, were able to behead Shi Kui and Xing Renjiu yesterday, which is a way for us Wu Guan to vent our anger. I must say, I have great admiration for you."

  Gao Yuan finally understood what was going on and said, "The host is too polite, in fact, the martial arts competition at the banquet the day before yesterday, I just won by luck. If we were to have a rematch in a different setting, perhaps I wouldn't be their match."

  Actually, Gao Yuan was telling the truth, but Wu Lie thought he was being modest, so his good impression of Gao Yuan suddenly increased. He smiled and said, "Sir is being too humble." Then he turned to Wu Hongling and said, "Hongling, go call your brother and Xiao Qi. They both lost to Shi Kui's sword, so Mr. Gao helped them save face. Therefore, they must toast Mr. Gao with a cup of wine."

  Wu Hongling responded with a sound and immediately left her seat.

  Wu Lie also stood up and said loudly, "Today, our martial arts hall is fortunate to have Master Gao and Miss Li come, it's a rare opportunity for you all to make an effort to show your skills, let Master Gao give you some guidance."

  He sat down and said to Gao Yuan: "Please, sir, instruct me."

  Li Yinghong smiled and said, "Uncle Wu, I remember every time you come with Father, you always say the same thing, can't you change it a bit?"

  Wu Lie also felt a bit awkward, and smiled: "Ying Hong, I'm just a martial artist, not a scholar, how can I say those flowery words and make Lord Gao laugh?"

  The plateau thought that Wu Lie was indeed straightforward and more in line with his own taste, so he said: "Actually, I don't like flowery words either. The host's words are quite refreshing."

  Wu Lie burst out laughing, at this time on the stage below there were already three pairs of young people, each holding wooden guns, swords and shields, standing facing each other. Of course, they were all using wooden weapons, and they were also wearing protective gear. Wu Lie shouted loudly: "Begin!"

  These three pairs of young people immediately began to fight each other, and the highlands also watched carefully. These three groups of young people were very serious, with one sword and one gun, all meticulous and skilled in their moves, agile and quick, obviously having undergone hard practice. For a time, the crowd cheered and shouted, the wooden weapons collided with each other, making a loud "cracking" sound, extremely intense. The surrounding people also cheered them on, the atmosphere was quite lively.