Volume 1 Chushan Bandits Chapter 9: The Young Man's Evil Plan
Although Lu Xiong's guidance was short, Xu Huai felt completely different.
If you want to elevate your control over your bones, tendons and muscles to a whole new level, it will take some time of hard training, but the feeling of finding the right way and gaining insight is really great.
If you think about it this way, being involved in this kind of thing isn't all bad.
Xu Huai thought that if he had the skills of Lu Xiong, or if he could master the Fu Mang Fist to the same level as Lu Xiong, his strength might be even stronger. Why would he need to be afraid of three or five assassins who don't show up in the light?
The world is so big, is there any place he can't go?
Seeing the confusion and surprise in Lu Xiong's eyes, Xu Huai, who had no more scruples, pondered for a moment and asked, "At noon in the courtyard of the post station, I glanced at the official letter saying that Mr. Wang was demoted to Tangzhou, but could he stay in Huaiyuan Town instead of Biyang City? Huaiyuan Town is also considered Tangzhou's territory."
The assassin and Cai Ying, the mastermind behind the scenes, are unlikely to let it go.
Biyang County is the seat of Tangzhou Prefecture, with a population of 60 to 70,000 people living in the city and many merchants and travelers passing through. If the assassin really wants to attack again, it will be difficult for Lu Xiong alone to protect Wang Bing's safety.
In Huaiyuan Town, especially in the military camp, the relationship is much simpler and it is difficult for assassins to infiltrate; if the assassins dare to break into the military camp, the hundreds of soldiers of the Inspection Office are not just for show.
The more crucial point is that Xu Huai is out of reach of Biyang.
He also thought about it carefully and realized that it was unlikely that the assassin would look for him first, but after Wang Bing was assassinated in Biyang, it was still possible that the assassin would find him and kill him.
If he could ask Wang Bing, Lu Xiong and others to stay in Huaiyuan, he would not only be able to seize the initiative to some extent, but he could also continue to receive Lu Xiong's guidance on a daily basis.
"Your Excellency has been demoted to Tangzhou and will be under the supervision of the provincial government. Whether he can stay in Huaiyuan depends on the decision of the prefect Chen Shi!" Lu Xiong said thoughtfully.
He knew that Biyang was a mixed crowd, but where Wang Bing stayed was not something they could decide.
"If Mr. Wang suddenly falls ill and is bedridden tomorrow morning, is it possible for Chen Shi to let Mr. Wang stay in the Huaiyuan military camp to recuperate?" Xu Huai asked.
Lu Xiong's eyes lit up.
He saw the attitude of Deng Gui, the inspector of Huaiyuan, today .
Cai Ying supervised military affairs for nearly twenty years until he took charge of the Privy Council. His students and former officials were spread throughout the Privy Council and the imperial guards and garrison systems of various states, and his influence could also penetrate to the most basic levels of the Metropolitan Inspection Office and the Inspection Office.
However, in Tangzhou, the prefect Chen Shi and the civil servants in the prefecture government and Biyang County government had nothing to do with Cai Ying.
They had no reason to go against Cai Ying, but Wang Bing's sudden death in Tangzhou would not only be a stain on their official careers, but would also likely make them victims of factional struggles in the court.
Of course, Cai Ying was determined to kill Wang Bing. The bottom line that the prefect Chen Shi, the magistrate of Bianyang Cheng Lunying and others could accept was probably that Wang Bing died in an "accident", and it would be best if this "accident" happened outside their sight, so that they could justifiably push one or two low-level officials to take the blame.
Of course, Lu Xiong also knew Wang Bing's character very well, and said in embarrassment:
"Cai Ying, Wang Yongqi and others, in order to satisfy their own desires and fearing that the Censorate would reject their proposals, often colluded with the eunuchs to instigate Your Majesty's imperial edicts, so that the censors of the Censorate dared not reject them. Your Majesty did not care about his personal honor and disgrace, and repeatedly went against His Majesty's will, making it difficult for them to accomplish their plans. This time, he also had a fierce dispute with Cai Ying over something. Your Majesty repeatedly resisted His Majesty's will, and was eventually charged with the crime of 'disrespect' and exiled to Tangzhou. Your Majesty did all this without caring about his honor and disgrace, or his safety. It would be good if he could stay in Huaiyuan, but I'm worried that Your Majesty would not agree to feign illness!"
Xu Huai knew very little about the stories in the court, and he was not even sure about Wang Bing's reputation as an official.
However, he recalled the situation in front of Yingzizui Cliff. Wang Bing did want to die in order not to implicate others. He secretly felt that it would not be easy to persuade Wang Bing to cooperate with him in faking illness and staying in Huaiyuan.
"Can I go to the market now and buy some laxatives, and you can put them in the old man's tea as appropriate?" Xu Huai asked again.
Lu Xiong's eyes widened, full of questions: How could Xu Wujiang and others regard the young man in front of them as a fool?
Seeing that Lu Xiong had never thought of using such means, Xu Huai said, "It is more than 130 miles to Biyang. Uncle Seventeen asked Xu Xin'an to find a horse team to go with him. If nothing unexpected happens, it will be divided into two trips. I will go to prepare the laxative now, and I will go out with the horse team in the town early tomorrow morning. I will rest at Yushan Posthouse at night, and then Master Lu must make a decision."
"But the person behind you suggested this?" Lu Xiong asked uncertainly.
"..." Xu Huai knew that if he told the truth, he would not be able to win Lu Xiong's trust and would only cause trouble, so he said, "He wanted Old Master Wang to stay in Huaiyuan so that he could take care of him secretly, but how to keep him was something I came up with at the last minute. Perhaps my method is a little absurd does Master Lu have any other good ideas?"
Lu Xiong had never thought of using this method to force Wang Bing to stay in Huaiyuan, but he was not a person who stuck to the rules.
If you want to stay, you must try to stay in the Huaiyuan military camp, and act quickly rather than late.
Yushan Posthouse is located between Huaiyuan and Biyang City, about sixty or seventy miles away from each side, and was known as "one stage" in the world.
On the side of the Huaiyuan Inspection Office, more than a hundred soldiers can still persist in their daily training. Although Xu Wujiang and others seem to have low ranks, they are all quite skilled in the martial arts-loving Huai River. Not to mention that Deng Gui is a genuine martial arts graduate, and the military camp is equipped with strong bows and crossbows. If three or five assassins want to break into the military camp, it would be tantamount to seeking death.
Although the Inspection Office was affiliated to the Privy Council system, it was mainly controlled by the County Lieutenant Office and the State Military Supervisory Office (which was controlled by civil officials). Even if Deng Gui was willing, Xu Wujiang and others who came from local forces would definitely not be willing to be scapegoats and watch Wang Bing being assassinated in the military camp.
In addition to a few weak postmen, Yushan Post was much smaller than Huaiyuan military camp and was still easy to be infiltrated.
"Can you leave the military camp now?" Lu Xiong asked hesitantly.
"Okay." Xu Huai said.
Xu Wujiang and other captains and officers were drinking in Hedong Street Market at this time, and some even did not return home at night. He could find any excuse to go to Hedong Street Market, and he could find a ferry to cross the Baijian River, not to mention the military camp - otherwise, it would be quite cold to swim across the river in early spring.
"Okay, go get the medicine quickly." Lu Xiong said.
"Does Master Lu have any money? There are medicine shops in the market. Two laxatives are not worth much, but they still cost money..."
Even though Xu Huai also received a share of the military pay, the pay money was all saved up for him by Di Niang. He usually did not have to worry about food and clothing, and his pocket was very short.
Seeing Lu Xiong staring at him in surprise, Xu Huai felt embarrassed, but he couldn't rob a drug store just for two laxatives, right?
"Uncle Seventeen always thinks I'm ignorant and doesn't let me get involved in matters of money and property, and I'm happy not to get involved." Xu Huai explained.
"Oh, oh, oh, I have some silver here, do you think it's enough?" Lu Xiong took out a handful of silver ingots from his inner pocket and handed them to Xu Huai.
"You don't need so much." Xu Huai said.
"You stay here for now. I need to stay by the adults' side. I will need to trouble you if anything happens later." Lu Xiong said.
"That's fine." Xu Huai said.
Xu Huai did not delay. He stuffed the silver ingot into his arms and walked straight to the gate of the military camp.
The gatekeeper who was dozing in the hole in the wall holding his iron spear heard Xu Huai say that he was going to the military camp to find Xu Wujiang, so he laughed and said, "The tigress in Xu Jieji's family is showing off again? It seems that Xu Jieji will have to guard the wall with us tonight!"
Xu Huai left the military camp. There was a ferry parked at the crossing on the other side of the river. It was a special business for the officers and soldiers of the Inspection Office. Xu Huai called for the boat to cross the river, ran to the pharmacy, bought a packet of laxatives and handed it to Lu Xiong. It took less than half an hour.
After separating from Lu Xiong, Xu Huai returned to his residence. At this time, Xu Wujiang, drunk but energetic, walked back with Xu Xin'an.
"Where have you been so late?" Xu Wujiang asked.
"I couldn't sleep at night, so I walked around the village twice." Xu Huai said.
"What a fool! I'll take you out for a drink next time, but you can't be stupid and chew on a pig's trotter to death," Xu Wujiang laughed, took out a lotus leaf bag from his arms and stuffed it in his hand, saying, "Take it and chew it!"
Xu Huai opened the old lotus leaf package and found a piece of cooked mutton, which probably weighed half a pound.
Xu Huai didn't spend much time receiving Lu Xiong's instructions in the willow grove, but after a walk outside the military camp, he felt hungry - Xu Huai didn't remember much about his childhood, but the feeling of hunger was always with him. On weekdays, he didn't have any oily or meaty food, so he couldn't last half a day even if he ate a whole pound of wheat cakes or coarse grain rice.
However, in today's world, it is too luxurious to eat meat every day.
Xu Wujiang entered the backyard and heard him and Su Di whispering to each other.
Although this courtyard is small and has no side rooms in the front yard, there are three rooms in the back house facing south and north, directly opposite the Chuihua Hall.
After all, Xu Wujiang was of low status, and was only the head soldier in the military camp. His daily social interactions were simple, and Di Niang took care of everyone's daily life, food and lodging. There were no maids or servants, and there was no need for a separate gatehouse or reception room in the front yard, so Xu Huai and Xu Xin'an both had separate rooms.
Xu Huai returned to his room without taking off his boots and socks. He lay on the bed with his clothes on and thought about the many things that had happened today. He finished a piece of cooked mutton in three or five bites, then stood in front of the window and pushed it open.
Blocked by the eaves, Xu Huai could not see the bright moon in the night sky as he stood in front of the window. However, the moonlight shone in the yard, and he could vaguely make out two pomegranate trees sprouting tender buds in front of the corridor.
As the night dragged on, Xu Huai thought again about the key points that Lu Xiong had taught him in the willow grove. He stood with his legs in the air, and in the deep silence of the night, he tried to feel more subtly the key points of the "lifting" and "supporting" techniques of the Fu Mang Stance.
After persisting for half an hour, he stopped practicing when he felt a little tired, but it was much easier than usual.
Xu Huai swung his right arm to the side, trying to use the whip-hammer stance. He could feel that the continuity between the side elbow sweep and the sinking elbow strike was significantly better.
The most obvious progress is often made when one is just getting started.
However, after Xu Huai practiced the side elbow sweep and sinking elbow side strike for dozens of times, he felt the muscles on the outer edge of his right arm begin to swell and become uncomfortable.
Xu Huai secretly felt that he did not have a very solid foundation in mastering his muscles and bones. If he continued to practice like this, he was afraid that he would hurt his muscles and bones.
Of course, I have already seen the tricks. As long as I adapt to the new training method and integrate it into the previously learned Fu Mang Quan and swords and spears, there will be different changes every day, but there is no need to rush for success...
