Chapter 85

Surrounded by the flat open ground were racks of weapons, long and short blades, and stone locks for strength training, all fully equipped.

In the center of the ground, a group of young men formed a circle, with a tall and strong man standing in the middle, loudly saying, "The Pi Gua Quan is a boxing technique advocated by Grandpa Qi in the army, emphasizing practical combat. The moves are simple and practical, with a broad and open style! I will demonstrate it now, so watch carefully!"

As Zhang Feng spoke, he assumed a starting stance, then his body began to move, the moves flowing continuously. Zhang Ke watched intently, feeling that his brother's boxing was majestic and unstoppable.

With the waist as the axis, the arms were straight, reaching far and hitting from a distance, using length to control shortness. The arms moved broadly and expansively, chopping and hanging with great force, like bamboo splitting, powerful and solid, capable of both extending and retracting. When he reached the exquisite part, he moved swiftly, rising and falling, with the agility of a sparrow piercing through the forest and the subtlety of a cat pouncing on a mouse, and the ferocity of a five-fold flip.

The brothers around him watched with wide eyes, clapping and cheering loudly.

Zhang Ke nodded frequently. His brother's boxing was steady and powerful, straightforward and direct, suitable for military combat, completely different from the flashy moves of later times. It looked smooth and fluid, almost a pleasure to watch.

In fact, Zhang Ke also knew some combat techniques, but he didn't care much about martial arts routines. No matter how good one's martial arts were, they could still be afraid of a kitchen knife. Combat was just about being faster and stronger! Traditional martial arts were often exaggerated, and many martial artists could still be beaten up in dark alleys.

However, after watching his brother's demonstration, Zhang Ke's thoughts subtly changed. Martial arts indeed had its merits, and some moves were clearly useful in military combat. Zhang Ke couldn't help but stretch out his hands and imitate Zhang Feng's movements.

After about fifteen minutes, Zhang Feng finally finished his routine, his body drenched in sweat, steam rising from his head. The brothers around him clapped and cheered.

"Great job!" Qiao Fu jumped up, clapping loudly, "Brother Feng, your boxing is much better than my father's. Teach me quickly!"

"Ha ha ha, my skills are not yet perfect. I can't control my breathing or maintain a calm face, and I'm far from the experts. But teaching you is enough. The Pi Gua Quan emphasizes covering the chest, moving horizontally, hanging the ears, protecting the groin, rolling the shoulders, chopping, and pulling with strength, and circling the steps to injure the opponent."

Zhang Feng then broke down the moves, and everyone followed along, including Zhang Ke. They practiced for over an hour, and Qiao Fu, Yue Xuan, Wu Boyan, Xie Chao, and others all memorized the first few moves, practicing them repeatedly.

Zhang Feng nodded and pulled Zhang Ke aside, smiling, "Brother, they can practice on their own. I have something good to show you. Do you want to see it?"

Which man doesn't have a martial arts dream? Zhang Ke nodded without hesitation, "Brother, show me what you have!"

Zhang Feng smiled faintly, "Have you heard of Shi Jingyan, the great martial artist?"

Zhang Ke frowned slightly, remembering the name. He seemed to be a martial artist from the late Ming dynasty.

"Is he the one with excellent spear skills?"

"Ha ha ha, that's right. Shi's spear skills are outstanding, known as the Shi family spear, on par with the Yang family spear!" Zhang Feng patted his chest proudly, "Everyone knows Shi's spear skills, but his sword skills are even more remarkable. Two years ago, he went to Liaodong to exchange martial arts with Uncle He. I was fortunate enough to learn a set of sword techniques from him, consisting of eight moves called the Eight Methods of Spring and Autumn. They are said to be the secret techniques of Lord Guan. Do you want to learn them?"

In a chaotic era, especially when leading troops, martial arts were essential for survival. How could Zhang Ke refuse! However, seeing the playful smile on his brother's lips, he felt like a fish caught by an old fisherman.

Zhang Ke said, "Brother, what do you want me to do?"

Caught off guard, Zhang Feng scratched his head and laughed, "Brother, we are brothers, and I will definitely teach you. But I need your help with a small favor, just a small one!"

"Tell me, and I'll help if I can!"

"Do you promise?"

Zhang Feng blushed and said, "Brother, when I was in Shenyang, I fell in love with a girl."

"Good news!" Zhang Ke smiled, "Our mother has been nagging about marriage. If you have a sweetheart, that's even better. Send the betrothal gifts right away!"

"Ah, Brother, if it were that easy!" Zhang Feng grabbed his hair, "I heard her father is a scholar, and he looks down on martial men. Even a general and a colonel were driven away when they came to propose. He said, 'I am a scholar, so my son-in-law must be better than me!'"

Better than a scholar, that means a scholar-official!

Zhang Ke glanced at his brother. With his level of education, he would never become a scholar-official even if he studied for ten more generations!

"Brother, can we find someone else?"

"No!" Zhang Feng said firmly, "Brother, don't laugh at me. I met her once at a temple fair, and it was love at first sight! Her eyes, her figure, she's like a fairy in my dreams. I swore then and there that I would marry no one else but her!"

"Didn't know you were such a romantic, Brother!" Zhang Ke smiled, "Alright, I'll take care of it. I promise you'll get what you want!"

"Brother, you've helped me again. Don't worry, I'll teach you martial arts well!" Zhang Feng promised, patting his chest.

In the following days, Zhang Ke realized the weight of this promise, almost to the point of tears!

Zhang Feng would wake him up before dawn, with sandbags tied to his legs, running around the training ground for half an hour. After breakfast, he would practice horse stances and boxing in the morning, and in the afternoon, he would run to the forest to practice sword techniques, chopping at trees as thick as washbasins, sometimes thousands of times.

By night, he would fall asleep as soon as his head hit the pillow, snoring loudly.

However, his intense training had a positive effect. His soldiers were all motivated, especially Qiao Gui and Qiao Fu, who trained even harder. Yue Xuan, Ma Rufeng, and Wu Boyan were no exception. They all knew that martial arts were their lifeline, and only by improving their skills could they survive.

The captains and the soldiers under them trained hard, and the combat capabilities of the soldiers in Dacheng Fort and Heyuan Village improved rapidly.

As the saying goes, martial arts are the lifeline of the poor and the rich. Training isn't just about talking; it's about destroying and rebuilding the muscles to make them stronger and more powerful.

Therefore, one must train hard and have enough protein to supplement, which means eating meat! Since starting the training, Zhang Ke ate at least two pounds of meat a day, mostly beef and mutton, and sometimes even venison.

As for the soldiers, they also needed sufficient meat. Qiao Tieshan arranged for a squad of soldiers to hunt every day and another squad to fish in the river. Even so, the silver spent on meat was enormous, and the silver seized from Heishankou was dwindling. Qiao Tieshan had to come to Zhang Ke to settle the accounts.

Zhang Ke's largest sum of money was the 20,000 taels of silver and 50 taels of gold seized from Xiashanhu. This time, to rescue his brother, Zhang Ke spent over a thousand taels, which was relatively little, as Master Hong Fugao and Zhang Ye didn't ask for payment. Even so, Zhang Ke couldn't neglect to show his gratitude, giving two almost immortal ginseng roots to Zhang Ye.

On the way back, Zhang Ke had only 6,000 taels of silver and 50 taels of gold left. Of the 10,000 taels he had set aside, he spent over 2,000 taels helping the An family in Heyuan Village, compensating the fallen soldiers, and giving silver and meat to the soldiers in Dacheng Fort, leaving less than 1,500 taels.

"Yongzhen, after all the calculations, we only have 8,000 taels of silver left. We've spent about 1,000 taels on meat in recent days. It seems like we have a lot left, but after spring, we need to buy seeds, farming tools, and oxen. Also, the ice walls in Heyuan Village will melt in spring and need to be replaced with brick walls, which will cost at least 10,000 taels. If we don't find a way to make money, we won't be able to sustain ourselves!"

Zhang Ke was stunned for a moment. He thought 20,000 taels was a significant amount, but it didn't last long!

After reviewing the accounts, he found that most of the expenses were for food, clothing, and compensation, all necessary and non-negotiable.

Zhang Ke gritted his teeth, "Uncle Qiao, I originally planned to wait until the soldiers were well-trained and the appointment as a defense officer was confirmed before leading everyone to fight bandits, making the bandits richer by fighting them! But it seems we need to do it sooner."

Qiao Tieshan scratched his head, "Dacheng Fort is close to the Mongol tribes, and there are many bandits, but they are all tough to deal with. I think we should wait a bit longer. Old Liu's blacksmith shop has produced a lot of things, which can be sold at the horse market to earn some silver and maintain our expenses!"

Qiao Tieshan's meaning was clear: he was still skeptical about the new soldiers' combat capabilities and didn't want to send them into battle yet.

Zhang Ke said, "Uncle Qiao, I'm not heartless, but if we don't eliminate the bandits around us, we can't farm peacefully. Without farming, we won't last long!"

Qiao Tieshan understood this and nodded, "Yongzhen, fighting bandits is one thing, but we must have a good strategy to ensure a decisive victory!"

Just as they were discussing, there was a commotion outside, and Ma Biao ran in.

"Sir, many people have come to visit you specifically."

"Oh!" Zhang Ke stood up quickly. It was only the sixth day of the new year, and it was still considered the New Year. Who could be visiting?

Zhang Ke walked out of the gate and saw a eunuch in a qilin robe, a strong man next to him, and many guards behind them.

Zhang Ke recognized both of them: Hong Qingquan and Zhuo Shi!

"Hong Gonggong, Brother Shi, why are you here?" Zhang Ke hurriedly ran a few steps to greet them.

Hong Qingquan quickly grabbed Zhang Ke's arm, laughing, "Yongzhen, we're disturbing your New Year. You won't mind having us as unexpected guests, right?"

"Hong Gonggong, you're too kind. Please come in!"

Zhang Ke led them directly to the study, where Hong Qingquan sat down and got straight to the point.

"Yongzhen, don't be busy. I have two reasons for coming. First, to congratulate you on your promotion and bring the imperial reward. Second, I have a task from the old master, asking for your advice on the arbitrage matter!"

Zhang Ke's eyes lit up at the mention of the reward, smiling, "Hong Gonggong, you really care about me. You knew I was short of money and brought it here."

"Ha ha ha, Yongzhen, if you can't explain the arbitrage clearly, I won't give you a single tael of the reward. I'll send it all to Shenyang to reward the soldiers. Do you believe me?"