Quickly conquer the martial arts world, and let your fists dominate the heavens!

Chapter 163 The Thirteen Martial Arts Schools of Beiping

Peking City.

Throughout history, Beiping has been renamed many times, from Youzhou to Fanyang, then to Dadu, and finally to Beijing.

In 1368, Zhu Yuanzhang overthrew the Yuan Dynasty and captured Dadu (Beijing). Because Dadu was located in the north, and Zhu Yuanzhang initially established his capital in Nanjing, he renamed Dadu "Beiping Prefecture".

The name "Beiping" was chosen to mean "pacifying the north," and Zhu Di, Zhu Di's fourth son, was stationed there.

After Zhu Di successfully seized the throne in the Jingnan Campaign, he changed Beiping Prefecture to Shuntian Prefecture in 1403, and Beiping was once again upgraded to the capital of Beijing.

This continued until the Republic of China era.

After the Nationalist government moved its capital to Nanjing in 1928, in order to eliminate the influence of the Qing Dynasty, Beijing was downgraded to "Beiping Special Municipality".

The name Beiping has come full circle, and now it has returned to this majestic city.

Chen Zhan knew that in another ten years or so, the name would change back to Beijing.

This most important town in the north, or even the most important town in the country, is currently in a period of intermittent decline.

A day ago, Ye Ningzhen and her group arrived here after a long and arduous journey.

There were only three people on the trip: Ye Ningzhen, Sister Hua, and Li Yao.

But just outside Fengtian, after traveling less than a hundred li, they encountered Cheng Yong and his two fellow disciples.

Ye Ningzhen was recognized and couldn't refuse, so she had no choice but to travel with him.

When Cheng Yong asked about Chen Zhan, Ye Ningzhen could only give a vague answer, saying that things were too chaotic at the time and they got separated.

Upon arriving in Beiping, Cheng Yong extended a warm invitation, but Ye Ningzhen declined, citing the need for accommodation. She had no interest in being a guest; the two sisters had already arrived in Beiping but had not yet met, and she was increasingly worried about Chen Zhan.

Sister Hua and Li Yao were even less enthusiastic.
What Bai Wu did was a near-death experience; I wonder how it went.

The three entered the city and rested for the night. The next day, Ye Ningzhen arranged for Hua Jie and the other two to go find Tian Jingjie, while she herself headed towards the Golden Pavilion.

There was also a Golden Pavilion in Beiping.

There are four "Golden Buildings" in Tianjin, Beijing, Foshan, and Shanghai.

In terms of scale, Shanghai is the largest.

But the Golden Pavilion in Beiping was the most complicated.

The Eight Great Hutongs consist of eight streets and alleys: Baishun Hutong, Yanzhi Hutong, Hanjia Hutong, Shaanxi Alley, Shitou Hutong, Wang Guangfu Xiejie, Zhujia Hutong, and Li Shamao Hutong.

It has been a place of brothels and pleasure quarters since ancient times.

During the reign of Emperor Qianlong of the Qing Dynasty, the Anhui opera troupes stayed in the Hanjiatan area when they came to Beijing, which became associated with the development of Peking Opera. In the early days, the area was mainly filled with male prostitutes. After the invasion of the Eight-Nation Alliance in 1900, the prostitution industry in the surrounding area expanded rapidly.

Every seasoned womanizer in Beijing who frequents brothels and lusts after beautiful women knows about the Eight Great Hutongs.

In recent years, a woman once wrote in a newspaper article that "all the men in Beiping (Beijing) want to die in the Eight Great Hutongs."

The brothels and pleasure quarters in the Eight Great Hutongs were diverse and unimaginable to those who had never seen them.

There's one more sentence at the end of the article.

"It would be best to die in the Golden Pavilion!"

This shows how well the Golden Pavilion in Beiping was managed.

But Ye Ningzhen herself had heard about this "good" in Tianjin, and although she didn't agree with it, there was nothing she could do about it.

She doesn't control the martial arts world alone, nor does she have the final say in the red-light district.

The various schools and sects are intricately connected, and no one can unravel their complex relationships.

Upon arriving near the Eight Great Hutongs, Ye Ningzhen followed the address in her memory, turning left into three narrow, straight alleys, and walked into them until she reached the fourth one.

"Knock knock knock~" Knock on the door.

"Tap tap tap~" Footsteps approached.

"You are wearing a Qinggang sword, do you know how many moves Songfengding will take?" A clear voice came from inside the door.

"Three moves to decide the fate of the world, a single sheath conceals the sound of pine trees," Ye Ningzhen replied.

"Songfeng Dingji" is a code name used to probe the identity of an opponent through weapon and move codes. The correct answer corresponds to the characteristics of the sect's moves, serving as both proof of identity and demonstrating familiarity with the sect's martial arts.

If they are like-minded but not from the same school, they would say, "We are neither from the same school nor from the same sect, but I would like to ask for your guidance a few times."

This person is also a member of the martial arts world, but we're not as close as before.

If you can't answer at all, you're an outsider; we won't open the door, or we'll prepare to fight.

"Crack~"

The door opened, and a red figure darted into Ye Ningzhen's arms. The figure wasn't large, but it was soft and fragrant. "Big sister, you're finally here! I've missed you so much!"

"Oh dear, sister, are you alright? Are you all safe and sound? Let me see you quickly. I'm so glad you're alright, so glad you're alright."

Even after being pushed away by Ye Ningzhen, Ruan Zhi couldn't help but come up and stare at her, turning her around in all directions. She reached out to touch her, but Ye Ningzhen slapped her hand away.

"Oh, eldest sister, you don't know how worried my second sister and I were. We thought it was just a matter with the Gong family, but who knew there would be so much trouble in the Northeast."

Ye Ningzhen walked in, and Ruan Zhi followed behind, continuing:
"I heard the Japanese suffered heavy casualties. It has nothing to do with you, right? No, it definitely has something to do with you. Since you arrived in Fengtian, the Japanese have been causing trouble frequently."

"Huh? Where's that...who's he? Why isn't he here?"

Ye Ningzhen sighed, Ruan Zhi's incessant chatter making it impossible for her to think.

He turned around, covered her mouth, and said, "Shh~"

Ruan Zhi looked horrified, thinking she had said something she shouldn't have and that someone had overheard her.

Where is your second sister?

Ye Ningzhen had already entered the small courtyard, which had three rooms. Ruan Zhi spoke, and since Li Qingsu hadn't come out, he wasn't home.

"Second Sister went to Shuncheng Baguazhang Martial Arts School. Uncle Hongbao is having some trouble, so she left me here to wait for you, in case you can't find her when you arrive," Ruan Zhi said with a smile.

"What trouble has Uncle Hongbao encountered?" Ye Ningzhen asked, puzzled.

Shuncheng Baguazhang School was the stronghold of Cheng School Baguazhang in Beiping, and was personally managed by Zhao Hongbao, a junior brother of Li Guangpu.

It is also the largest stronghold in the north. Over the years, it has been plagued by various troubles, but its heritage has never been broken.

"What else could it be but challenging other martial arts schools? There are too many well-known schools in Beiping, with thirteen leading ones alone. Although there are many people in Beiping, there are only so many who want to learn martial arts these days. So, it's become a matter of students choosing their teachers."

"Moreover, the business at Jinlou is too big, and money can be a powerful motivator. In the past two years, the conflicts have become more and more public."

Ye Ningzhen nodded. Beiping is very close to Tianjin, so she has a general understanding of many things.

"Big sister, aren't you going to take a look? At the Shuncheng Baguazhang Martial Arts School, several of Uncle Hongbao's personal disciples have been injured in the past two days. Otherwise, second sister doesn't need to go."

"Okay, I'll go take a look."

“Then I’ll go too.” Ruan Zhi’s eyes darted around, waiting for Ye Ningzhen to speak.

They were waiting for Ye Ningzhen here, so that they could act together once she arrived.

"You can't go there. Go to Guangqumen in the east of the city."

"Huh? What are you going to Guangqumen for?"

"Find people, wait for people. If nothing unexpected happens, Chen Zhan should be arriving soon. He instructed that there will be a child wandering around Guangqumen this afternoon. He has three thin marks on his face, like a fox. Find him and bring him back."

"Then you continue to wait over there. When Chen Zhan arrives, you two go to Shuncheng Bagua Hall together."

Ye Ningzhen thought about it. Originally, she planned to go find someone herself, but now Li Qingsu was in trouble, and Ruan Zhi was impulsive and not skilled enough in martial arts, so she wouldn't be able to help.

"Oh, then who knows how long we'll have to wait?"

"It should be soon. If he tells you to go, just go. Once he arrives, all the problems will be solved."

"Tch, is it really that amazing? Big sister, you're probably a bit out of your mind. Beauty is in the eye of the beholder."

"Even if it's higher, can it surpass Wang Xiangzhai, or Li Chunran?"

She knew that Chen Zhan was very skilled in martial arts, but each of the thirteen martial arts schools in the capital had a master in charge, all of whom were from the older generation.

"You won't understand, but you'll find out in time."

Ye Ningzhen was not boasting; in the martial arts world, might makes right. She couldn't imagine who in Beiping could be more skilled in martial arts than Chen Zhan.

Seeing how serious Ye Ningzhen was, she dared not utter another word in protest and turned away angrily.

It was almost afternoon by then.

The two of them split up.

The roads in Beiping are very complex, crisscrossing like a chessboard, and there are twenty city gates: nine inside, seven outside, and four in the imperial city.

However, many streets in the inner city are basically straight, which is quite different from Tianjin, where the hutongs are winding and meandering.

Guangqumen is to the east. Ruan Zhi walked out of the Eight Great Hutongs, walked a few steps south to Qianmen Dashanlan, and then went straight east. The road was as straight as it could be.

Ye Ningzhen followed the map, heading north out of the Eight Great Hutongs, and found that the Shuncheng Baguazhang Martial Arts School was located next to Dongsi Archway South Street.

Near Dengshikou,
She needed to navigate through streets and alleys, and looking at the map wasn't enough; she also had to ask passersby for directions. Fortunately, the Shuncheng Bagua Hall was quite famous, and she quickly found the correct location.

As soon as I got close, I heard a deafening roar from inside, "thump thump thump~"

(End of this chapter)