Chinese martial arts: From being shot and killed by the armed police during a mountain search to bec

The rickshaw stopped at Baietan Wharf, and Chen Hongwu and the others paid the fare and got off one after another.

Chen Hongwu looked up and saw that the surface of the Pearl River was as wide as a mirror.

In the distance, several fishing boats with their greyish-white sails moved slowly through the thin mist, their flags fluttering slightly in the wind.

The dock was bustling with people: porters carrying loads, merchants in long gowns, and women holding children, all jostling together in a lively atmosphere.

"Brother, let's buy tickets first, it's over there," Chen Hongwen pointed in a direction.

Chen Hongwu nodded: "Okay."

The group walked towards the ticket office.

The ticket office of Swire Shipping Company was located on the west side of the pier, in a small red brick building. A black-painted sign hung in front of the door, with the words "Swire Shipping Company" written in both Chinese and English.

Several lines of people were queuing in the lobby, and crowds were gathered in front of the windows.

Chen Hongwen squeezed into the queue, pulled out a wallet from his pocket, counted out a few bills, and handed them through the window: "Two bills, one for first class and one for second class, to Shanghai."

The staff member at the window raised his eyelids, glanced at him, then looked at Chen Hongwu standing on the steps at the door, and then lowered his head to issue the ticket.

In 1919, foreign firms monopolized most of the shipping routes on the Pearl River, with Swire, Jardine Matheson, and China Merchants Group dominating the market.

Swire is a British-owned company, and its ships are the largest, fastest, and most luxurious, but of course, they are also not cheap.

From Guangzhou to Shanghai, the first-class cabin cost 45 silver dollars, the second-class cabin 16 dollars, and the third-class cabin only 4 dollars.

But it was hundreds of people crammed into one big cabin, the air was murky and the stench was unbearable, living there was simply torture.

The staff pushed out two boat tickets, which Chen Hongwen took. He then bought two meal vouchers before squeezing out of the crowd and eagerly running to Chen Hongwu's side to curry favor.

"Brother, I've bought them!" He handed the tickets to Chen Hongwu.

Chen Hongwu took the ticket and glanced at it: Swire Shipping Company, "Foshan", First Class Official Cabin.

Chen Hongwen smiled and said, "Brother, you stay in first class, and I'll take Xiao Li and the others to stay in second class."

Chen Hongwu glanced at him with some surprise, but before he could speak, Chen Hongwen waved his hand and said, "I need this money to establish myself in Shanghai, so I can't waste it. Don't worry, brother, I'm not feeling wronged. The second-class cabin is clean, with wooden beds and blankets, much more comfortable than our shop's warehouse. I don't want to slink back to Guangdong after a month or two; this money needs to be used wisely."

He carefully folded the remaining banknotes and put them into his wallet, then patted it, saying, "Brother, don't be so fussy. We've already bought the tickets, so why not take the first class?"

Chen Hongwu did not say anything more.

He knew the price of the boat ticket: forty-five silver dollars for a first-class cabin, enough for an ordinary family to cover their expenses for half a year.

Chen Hongwen was willing to spend the money to buy him a first-class ticket, while he himself squeezed into a second-class ticket that cost sixteen yuan. He remembered this thoughtfulness.

The "Foshan" is a 3,000-ton passenger and cargo ship with a dark gray hull and a tall smokestack that spews out a cloud of white smoke.

"Waaah—"

The ship's whistle sounded long and deep, carrying far across the Pearl River.

Soon, it was time to board the ship.

As Chen Hongwu climbed the gangway onto the deck, a smell mixed with coal smoke, sea breeze, and tung oil wafted towards him.

The steel plates beneath my feet vibrated slightly, the engines roared in the lower deck, and the entire ship resembled a steel behemoth that had just awakened.

The first-class aisle was carpeted in dark red, and brass wall lamps hung on the walls, casting a warm and soft light.

The cabin door opened, revealing an interior that was even more spacious than Chen Hongwu had anticipated.

A large bed covered with white sheets, a sofa and a small coffee table by the window, a white porcelain vase with two fresh red roses on it.

The separate washroom even has hot water, and the brass faucets are polished to a shine.

Chen Hongwen went to the second-class cabin with two servants, while Chen Hongwu put down his rattan trunk in the cabin and sat on the sofa for a while.

The sofa springs were softer and thicker than the train seats. When he sat down, his hips sank slightly, his toes gripped the floor, and his knees bent slightly.

The sofas on a ship are soft, the floor is sloping, and the hull is undulating, so the pilings need to be even more solid in order to maintain their foundation during the turbulence.

He got up, pushed open the door, and walked up the gangway to the upper deck.

A salty, damp sea breeze swept over me.

The Pearl River parted on both sides of the bow, creating two white waves that looked like two giant silver snakes swimming on either side of the ship.

The river in the distance widened, and the buildings on the bank gradually became smaller and smaller silhouettes.

The ship finally sailed out of the Pearl River Estuary and into the vast South China Sea.

The sea and sky blend into one, stretching to the horizon.

Wave after wave surged in, the bow of the ship rising high and falling low, like a giant steadily advancing through the waves.

There weren't many passengers on the deck. A few businessmen in suits leaned on the railing looking at the sea, while a few children chased and played on the deck, their laughter torn apart by the sound of the wind.

Chen Hongwu walked to the railing at the bow of the ship, placed his hands on the railing, and gazed at the distant horizon.

A sea breeze blew in my face, making my clothes flutter.

The sea and sky stretch to the horizon.

This was a vastness he had never seen in Foshan before. There were no eaves to block the view, no arcades to oppress him, and even the air seemed to have been washed clean.

He suddenly felt that something that had been weighing on his chest was being blown away by the sea breeze. The pent-up frustration of his undeveloped inner strength, the exhaustion from fighting the enemy, and the vigilance and murderous intent that had been pressing on his heart day and night were mostly blown away in this open and unobstructed space.

There is a saying in the Tai Chi Classics: "Formless and imageless, the whole body is transparent."

The state of mind that I could never grasp during my daily practice suddenly became clear to me at this moment.

When a person's vision is broad enough, their mind will also broaden.

When you have an open mind, your Qi and blood will flow smoothly. When your Qi and blood flow smoothly, your pores will open and you will be able to exchange breath with the world.

This is called "the harmony between heaven and man, the foundation for all transformations".

"What should a husband worry about? He should regard the universe as a grain of rice. What is there to fear in the turbulent sea? Let him manage the affairs of the world."

Chen Hongwu inexplicably thought of this poem and recited it softly, only to be swallowed up by the sound of the sea breeze and waves in the blink of an eye.

Practicing boxing is like wading through water; the principles of boxing are like the flow of water; and a boxing master is like a boat sailing on the sea—if you don't advance, you retreat.

The ocean is vast because it embraces all rivers; the same applies to martial arts.

Xingyi, Bagua, Bajiquan, and Taijiquan—each style of martial arts has its own unique strengths and techniques, but like the sea, they all originate from a single drop of water and eventually form a vast ocean.

The obvious force is as fierce as crashing waves, the hidden force is as dense as an undercurrent, and the transformative force is as clear as all rivers flowing into the sea. Only when these three forces are finally integrated into one can one truly see the vast ocean of martial arts.

He looked down at the surging waves at his feet, at the deep, unfathomable sea, and suddenly felt a surge of impulse—

Jump into the ocean and box!

This idea was like a seed blown into my heart by the wind, and it instantly grew wildly like weeds.

Unbound by the land, the seabed is under constant water pressure. Every punch and kick must overcome the resistance of the water, the transitions between moves are slow, and the trajectory of the punch is clearly visible. It is the most extreme and purest form of boxing training.

If he could jump in and practice his boxing in deep water, feeling the pressure of the water on his body and the silence and power of the seabed, perhaps he could break through the barrier to mastering the ultimate skill in the shortest amount of time.

The ancients were inspired by the vastness of the world and the sea to understand the way of boxing. Huo Yuanjia observed the sea and realized the boxing principle of "using stillness to control movement". The sea is right in front of us, why not go into the sea and give it a try?

But jumping in front of so many people would be far too attention-grabbing.

Chen Hongwu withdrew his gaze, took a deep breath, and suppressed the impulse. He planned to sneak down again at night, when all was quiet, to experience the power of nature.

"Young Master Chen?" A pleasant female voice came from behind.