Gao Wu Da Ming: Starting as a military household and ascending to the rank of Martial Saint

Although Ji Shouyi did not allow Yu Shaowu to join his martial arts school, he did not hold back his own knowledge.

The Boxer Rebellion manual consisted of two volumes, which he handed over entirely to Yu Shaowu. Furthermore, it contained annotations personally written by Ji Shouyi's father.

One of these two books contains the moves and routines of boxing, and the other contains the accompanying breathing techniques.

After all, it is a martial art that mainly uses fist techniques. There are a total of nine basic steps in the Yihe stance, but each step corresponds to at least six fist techniques.

In total, the entire Boxer Rebellion style consists of sixty-four moves, not including minor variations.

With so many moves, Ji Shouyi couldn't explain them all at once. He could only explain the first six moves of the first step to Yu Shaowu. After Yu Shaowu learned them, he would continue explaining the rest.

Even so, this explanation took two full days. During this time, Madam Wan stayed at the martial arts school, helping Sister-in-law Ji with whatever chores she could.

On the third day, Yu Shaowu, carrying the boxing manual and the notes he had made over the past two days, bid farewell to Wan and left, returning to Yaomaodun.

On his way back, Yu Shaowu bought a donkey cart, which freed him from the hassle of having to run around on foot for everything.

He had his wife sit on the donkey cart while he drove it from the front. As they walked, he chatted with Madam Wan, chuckling softly, "Juyi Martial Arts School... Senior Brother Ji's name has a bit of a Liangshan Marsh vibe to it. For the government, it's not exactly a good name."

Turning his head, he saw that Wan looked depressed and asked, "What's wrong? Is something on your mind?"

Madam Wan looked apologetic and said, "Husband, I'm sorry, I've dragged you into this again."

Yu Shaowu asked, somewhat puzzled, "What makes you say that?"

Wan said, "The reason why those people at the Juyi Martial Arts School refused to accept you into the school is probably because they were mindful of my status as the daughter of a disgraced official."

Yu Shaowu hadn't expected her to be upset about this, so he smiled slightly and said, "You're overthinking it. If Senior Brother Ji and Senior Brother Lin were really like that, they wouldn't have left Tianxing Martial Arts School in the first place. They knew our identities from the beginning, so they wouldn't have changed their minds now."

"Then why won't they accept you?" Wan asked.

Yu Shaowu was silent for a moment, then said in a deep voice, "I think the problem might be with the martial arts school itself. A few days ago, when they received officials from the prefectural government, their demeanor was clearly off."

Reminded by this, Wan recalled the scene from that day and couldn't help but ask with some doubt, "Aren't they heroes of Baode Prefecture now? The entire prefecture is praising their heroic act of killing wolves, so why is the government making things difficult for them?"

Yu Shaowu did not answer again. He recalled the huge pack of wolves on Tumen Mountain that day, the armor on the alpha wolf, and how the prefecture government had specially ordered these civilians to go up the mountain to hunt wolves.

If it weren't for my arrows, these men would likely have been wiped out, becoming food for the wolves. —Was this the government's true objective?

Even Yu Shaowu, who had seen a lot in his life, felt a chill run down his spine at the thought.

He shook his head, dispelling these negative emotions, and his mind became firm again.

Wherever there are people, there will be struggles of human nature and calculations of the heart. This applies to both the imperial court and this desolate and barren land.

Nowadays, we are at the mercy of others, and many things are beyond our control. Only by focusing on honing our skills and accumulating strength can we more calmly navigate the hidden currents and reefs ahead.

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Liu Residence in Baode Prefecture.

Although he was the head of the Tianxing Martial Arts Academy and in charge of its prosperity, Liu Xingye spent most of his time living in the city. He only went to the academy to take charge during festivals or when there were important events.

After all, at the martial arts school, one must maintain a dignified demeanor as a strict and accomplished master. But in the residence in the city, one can be more casual. It's also closer to the government offices of the prefecture.

At this moment, in the martial arts hall of the Liu residence, Liu Xingye was wholeheartedly teaching Hu Zongrui, the youngest son of Prefect Hu Nan, the essence of the Yihequan style.

Seeing Hu Zongrui's powerful and impressive fist techniques, Liu Xingye stroked his beard and nodded with satisfaction, saying, "Not bad, not bad. Young Master Hu has mastered this set of Yihe Fist to the level of Dark Strength in less than a year. This shows his extraordinary talent. At most, he will spend another month to fully master it and become a peak Body Tempering Realm expert. It took me a year and four months to reach Dark Strength, which is quite inferior to Young Master Hu's."

Hu Zongrui was only twelve years old, but his eyes revealed a maturity and authority. He stood up, finished his move, dusted himself off, and said, "Compared to the Four Books and Five Classics, this is nothing more than a trivial skill. As a scion of a noble family, I can naturally learn faster than a peasant like you."

He spoke rudely, his words filled with contempt for martial artists. But Liu Xingye was not angry at all; instead, he nodded repeatedly and replied respectfully, "Young master, your ambitions are lofty, beyond the reach of ordinary martial artists like us. I was wrong to speak so abruptly."

As he was flattering Liu Xingye, a servant entered the hall and reported, "Master, Wang, the clerk from the prefectural government, Chang Qi, the deputy commander of the Baode Thousand-Household Garrison, and Zhao Daikui, the garrison commander of the prefectural city, have come together."

Liu Xingye dared not delay and immediately said, "Lead them to the back hall right away, I'll go there right now."

As he spoke, he bowed to Hu Zongrui and said, "Your esteemed advisor, Master Wang, has come to visit on business. I must attend to my guest, so please forgive me, young master."

"Go on, go on," Hu Zongrui waved his hand and said, "Tell Old Wang that I'll practice here. After you're done talking, tell him to leave on his own and not to make a fuss here."

"Yes, young master."

Liu Xingye bowed again, straightened his collar, and hurried to the back courtyard flower hall. Chang Qi and Zhao Daikui, though officials, were one thing, but that Wang Shiye was the mouthpiece of Prefect Hu, and could not be neglected.

Upon arriving at the flower hall, he found the three men already waiting there, drinking tea. Master Wang, seeing him arrive, gently waved his hand, gesturing for him to sit on the left, as if he were in his own home.

Liu Xingye didn't dare to say anything more. After bowing respectfully, he sat obediently on the left.

After settling down, Master Wang took a sip of tea and said with a solemn expression, "This incident at Tumen Mountain was planned for many days, but unexpectedly it all fell apart. Countless wolves were killed or wounded, and even the alpha wolf was killed. It can be said that the losses were enormous."

Those who shouldn't have died are dead, while those who should have died are still alive and well. This matter can be described as a complete failure. The prefect is furious, and Mr. Xiao Shan and Guo Shanying are also extremely dissatisfied.

Upon hearing this, Chang Qi, Zhao Daikui, and Liu Xingye immediately stopped smiling and straightened their posture.

Master Wang continued, "Let's discuss how this matter failed and how to remedy it, one by one."

As he spoke, his gaze first fell on Liu Xingye, and his eyes suddenly turned stern.