Chapter 4

Zizhu Bridge's Guanyuan Flower, Bird, Fish, and Insect Market is undoubtedly one of the most profound representations of old Beijing culture. Here, the essence is all about "play." Guo Yu has visited many times, but each time he enjoys wandering around, looking at the things he likes—crickets, birds, goldfish, chinchillas, dwarf rabbits, walnuts, bodhi seeds, odd stones, insects, and all sorts of playthings. This is the Guanyuan Flower, Bird, Fish, and Insect Market, where the core is the "play culture."

Muyang had something to do and was not in the mood to linger, so he went straight to Pang Yuan's stall. The fat man was sitting in a recliner, watching the staff sell goods, and rubbing a pair of large walnuts in his hands.

"Brother Fat, business is good, huh," Muyang greeted as he entered.

The two were very familiar and had a good relationship, so the fat man didn't even get up. He asked from the recliner, "It's the weekend, and business is okay. You called me just now and came over so quickly. Is there something urgent?"

"Brother Fat, let's find a quiet place to talk. I have a favor to ask."

"You're being serious, huh? Alright, let's see what it is." The fat man led Muyang into a small room, less than 20 square meters, with no furnishings, mainly used for storing goods at night, and only a wooden bed in the corner.

"Brother Fat, I need to borrow something from you. Do you think it's okay?"

"Tell me what it is."

"I want to borrow your crossbow for a few days."

The fat man stopped rubbing the walnuts and looked at Muyang, saying, "That's not a toy. Don't get into trouble, or Brother Fat will be in trouble too."

"How could I? I'm a well-behaved college student. I won't do anything illegal. I just want to play with it for a few days and then return it. If you can introduce me to where to buy one, I can buy it myself." Muyang said.

"Is Brother Fat a stingy person? I'm just worried you'll get into trouble. Alright, play if you must. You're not the unreliable type, but remember, be very careful. If the police catch you, you'll be detained." The fat man reminded him worriedly.

"Brother Fat, don't worry. I won't ruin my future for a bit of fun. I can't afford to be detained."

"Alright, let's go to my place to get it." The fat man didn't dilly-dally, told the staff, and drove Muyang to his home. He rummaged through the storage room and found a leather case. Inside were a bunch of disassembled parts.

"This is the Arthur Knox crossbow, imported from Canada. This type of crossbow is currently used by our country's special police and is one of the most famous military and police crossbows in the world. See the camouflage pattern? It's called True Color technology and is processed with Kolorfusion to achieve the best camouflage effect, making it very suitable for concealment. And this scope has infrared, so it's effective even at night."

As the fat man spoke, he assembled the crossbow, and Muyang watched intently, afraid he might not be able to do it himself later.

"Don't stare so wide-eyed. Just get a general idea. There's a manual inside, and if you can read, you can assemble it yourself. These are the arrows. There are 20 original ones, and I bought 50 more domestic ones for practice. Take them all."

The fat man disassembled the crossbow again and packed it with the arrows into the case, handing it to Muyang. Muyang reached out to take it, but the fat man held onto the case, and Muyang couldn't pull it away. "Brother Fat, this isn't your wife. There's no need to be so reluctant," Muyang said, somewhat amused.

Muyang knew that the fat man had gone through a lot to get this crossbow. He had a friend who helped him get the original import, and the fat man paid 8,000 yuan and treated him to a meal at Quanjude to get it. After Muyang showed him his Buck 650 Night Eagle, the fat man had dismissed it with a sneer and showed off his prized possession.

"Xiaoyang, you know this thing is powerful and can easily hurt someone. I'm not worried about the crossbow breaking; I'm worried about you hurting someone and getting into trouble. I'm really worried about it," the fat man said, his face twisted with concern. If it weren't for their good relationship, he wouldn't have lent it out.

"Don't worry, Brother Fat. If I get you into trouble, I'll come to you with my head on a platter." Muyang grabbed the case.

"Alright, let's go back to Guanyuan." The fat man drove Muyang back to the Guanyuan Flower, Bird, Fish, and Insect Market, where Muyang's bicycle was still parked.

Nearby, at a large mall, Muyang picked out a gray Zhongshan suit for 160 yuan. He tried it on, and it gave him a very retro feel, transforming him from a city youth into a literary youth. He also bought a gold ring from the Lao Feng Xiang jewelry store on the first floor, spending over 2,000 yuan, almost bankrupting him.

"Looks like I need to go home and ask my dad for some living expenses."

With everything in hand, Muyang returned home. This was not the home he had just mentioned. This house was their old home, where he and his father lived for nearly two years after his mother's death. Then his father remarried, and they moved out, but the house was not sold. His father said it would be for Muyang's future marriage, so it was left there. Later, when Muyang went to college, he moved to the school, but since this house was near the university, he kept it as a place to stay, sometimes at school and sometimes here, making it his independent space.

After returning home, Muyang eagerly assembled the crossbow, packed some food, and traveled to the Republic of China era. He didn't plan to confront the Japanese right away. He wanted to find a suitable place to practice his crossbow skills first. If he encountered the Japanese and couldn't even hit the target, how could he kill them?

He left the cornfield and found a willow forest by a riverbank. The thick tree trunks were perfect for practicing archery.

He hung a red silk cloth on a tree as a target. The effective range of the crossbow was 150 meters, but Muyang couldn't achieve that. Even a special forces soldier probably couldn't. A skilled archer could hit a target at 40 to 50 meters.

At this distance, the crossbow was more powerful than a handgun, capable of taking down reindeer and brown bears.

He set the initial target at 50 meters, aimed through the scope, and fired.

The red silk cloth still hung on the tree, swaying in the breeze. Damn, he missed the target. At such a close distance, with a tree trunk a meter wide, how could he miss the tree? What a failure.

He continued to practice, not aiming to be a master archer but at least to be able to hit a target at close range. He didn't want to have to use a dagger, which would be too dangerous.

After practicing for a while, Muyang observed the area for a bit. He wanted to see if any Japanese soldiers passed by and if he had the opportunity to kill them in the wild.

Two days passed, and Muyang felt his archery skills improving rapidly. He could now hit a stationary target with one shot, but he didn't see any Japanese soldiers. He wasn't sure if it was bad luck or good luck, but his plan to kill Japanese soldiers in the wild was dashed.

Moreover, these days, Muyang didn't have a good time. He again experienced the downside of the time stop.

In the Republic of China era, he could practice archery, go home to eat when hungry, and sleep when tired. However, when he slept, the time in the Republic of China era also stopped. When he returned, he had to endure the cool night breeze and moonlight of the Republic of China autumn.

Finally, he had no choice but to set up a camping tent by the river, bringing a blanket to sleep there, saving time in the main timeline. He felt like he was back to his old hiking and camping days, but it was lonely being alone.

This state made him determined to practice his archery skills as quickly as possible and then go to the city of Baxian to explore. This is why his archery skills improved so quickly over the past few days, driven by necessity.

On the morning of the third day in the Republic of China era, Muyang packed up his camping gear, sent it and the crossbow back home, and brought his mountain bike upstairs. He changed into a new Zhongshan suit and prepared to set out for the city, starting a new journey.

He picked up his bike, muttered "travel," and appeared by the riverbank willow forest. Without delay, he carried his bike through the fields, came to the main road, and headed north toward the city of Baxian.

The mountain bike was perfect for the dirt road, and riding it on such a road felt the best. It was like they were made for each other.