Mysterious Martial Arts: The Record of the Swordsman

Chapter 309 August in Jiangnan: Cloudy Then Sunny

Chapter 309 August in Jiangnan: Cloudy Then Sunny

The days flowed by slowly, and more than a month had passed since the Spring Equinox. The hustle and bustle of Wuyi Mountain, accompanied by the hard work of tea farmers, had finally dissipated the last bit of cold and presented a vibrant scene of spring after the cold.

Along the winding Jiuquxi River, patches of wasteland have been quietly cultivated. These wastelands have been cultivated and tilled very shallowly, with crooked ridges. Despite being right next to the river, there is no way to build irrigation canals. If this were to be done as farmland irrigation, subsequent irrigation would likely have to rely on manual labor to carry water back and forth, much like the lazy laborers in the village.

But at this moment, a group of dark-skinned and thin people were gathered in the field. Regardless of age, they were all working hard under the scorching sun of early spring, sweating profusely, with smiles on their faces that they could not hide.

"The land of lakes and rivers is now a battlefield, how can the people find joy in their simple lives? I think it's better to live in peace."

At this moment, Jiang Wen was leading the five disciples of the Wuyi Sect—Lin Pingzhi, Xiao Shitou, Hong Wending, Fu Ningdie, and Hu Fei—on a slow walk across the cliff of the Nine-Bend Stream, gazing at the scenery. At this moment, Sect Leader Jiang felt that the sect was full of talented people, but its only drawback was that it resembled a primary school students on a spring outing.

Little Stone stared intently for a while, then asked, "Master, why are they so happy?"

Lin Xiu smiled faintly as he looked into the distance. Seeing that his master remained silent, he answered on Jiang Wen's behalf.

“Junior brother, you may not know this, but the suffering of the Tanka people throughout history, besides the high winds and dangerous waves at sea, was also due to their inability to register as farmers and take land. For example, the Tanka people of Fuzhou could only stay on the Min River and could never set foot on land for the rest of their lives.”

There were also Tanka people in Fuzhou Prefecture, who lived in Yizhou, Bangzhou, and the three counties of Taijiang in Fuzhou. They were not far from the Fuwei Escort Agency, so Lin Xiu had heard about their situation.

It should be noted that Fuzhou is a place where rivers and seas meet, and resources are not scarce. However, the Tanka people have been classified as "lowly people" since ancient times. They are not allowed to live on land, take the imperial examinations, or intermarry with the residents on land. Sometimes, they are even not allowed to set foot on the land. This policy is not only a "divide and rule" strategy of the government, but also to prevent them from buying rice, flour, cooking oil, cloth, and firewood on the market. They can only obtain these by reselling them at high prices. Tanka women are so poor that they are unable to harvest clams and oysters, and some even have to engage in prostitution on their boats. Their suffering is truly unbearable.

"Now that Master has arranged for them to obtain local household registration, it's as if they've escaped from this sea of ​​suffering; and Chong'an County has generously allocated these woodlands, so they no longer need to rely on the sea for their livelihood and worry about their lives. Master truly has the virtues of a benevolent and virtuous man."

Hearing his eldest disciple's praise, Jiang couldn't help but feel a little smug, but he still had to say something.

“Pingzhi, please don’t flatter them too much. Getting them registered and settled is the reward they deserve, and it’s also a favor I owe them. As for the extra forest land, it’s just a virtuous act by the magistrate of Chong’an County who understood their good intentions.”

For the Wuyi Sect, having a hiding place for people is a good thing right now, and they're not afraid of anyone using it as a pretext.

The deep mountains have always been a haven for settlements, bandits, and refugees, not to mention the current situation in the border region of Fujian, Zhejiang, and Jiangxi, where bandits and refugees are everywhere. The presence of cults like those in Chong'an County is a minor matter; a county in the Central Plains might have several strange armed groups nearby, and the number of bandits and refugees in remote areas is countless. They generally don't report to the imperial court, let alone in mountainous areas like this.

Even in later generations, from the Red Army to the People's Liberation Army, strange armed groups were always found intermittently in the Wuyi Mountains. These included Qing Dynasty veterans, those who opposed the Qing and sought to restore the Ming, Han, or Yuan dynasties, as well as various religious groups, Chiang Kai-shek's thugs, local bandits, and vagrants. It was like opening a blind box, with one group after another.

“Master, Magistrate Guan Shengjun of Chong’an County sent people to deliver his calling card three times, wanting to come up the mountain to visit you. Why did you avoid seeing him each time?”

Hong Wending wasn't well-educated, but he was naturally intelligent and quick-witted. He sensed the underlying meaning in the words.

The reason why Guan Shengjun was so concerned about the registration of displaced people and even offered to give away more than 20 acres of nearby woodland was obviously to give face to the Wuyi faction. However, Jiang Wen avoided mentioning this in his words and only had the yamen runner report that he was grateful for the "benevolent governance of the county magistrate". It was clear that he did not accept this favor. As someone who had been deceived by Guan Shengjun, he was naturally very curious about the reason.

Jiang Wen flicked his sleeves, appearing upright and honest in his blue robe, and then chuckled, "Guan Shengjun is quite cunning and has a deep understanding of the world. Although he was subdued by Pingzhi's actions, he clearly still harbors the idea of ​​using his position as the head of a county to bargain with me. Well then, I'll treat him like a county magistrate for once and leave him out of the picture."

The other party, based on common sense, assumed that the Wuyi Sect was nothing more than the Jingyan Sect, and that they must want to seize power by force, take away some shops, land, and share the profits and rent. However, Jiang Wen did not play by the rules and remained inactive for a month, which really worried Guan Shengjun. He did not know whether the other party was truly a man of high moral character who did not seek fame or fortune, or whether he had a great plan and was waiting for a high price to sell.

After all, the Wuyi Sect is a Jianghu (martial arts world) force, while the magistrate of Chong'an County is an official appointed by the imperial court. The two should not have been talking on the same level. The reason that brought the two together was through the intermediary of the "Jingnan Prince's Mansion". Jiang Wen prided himself on his open-mindedness and let Guan Shengjun hesitate for a few more days. It would not be too late to make contact after he figured out how to treat the Wuyi Sect.

Jiang Wen, of course, wasn't just hiding in the mountains doing nothing during this time.

Guan Shengjun is not in the martial arts world and may not know that Jiang Wen, together with the Red Lotus Holy Mother, has spread the news of the Wuyi Mountain Heroes' Gathering throughout the martial arts world during this time.

Well, the claim about various places in the martial arts world is a bit exaggerated. Given the speed of information dissemination in this era, even if martial arts practitioners could learn about the Wuyi Sect within a month, it would be impossible for them to set off immediately and arrive deep in the mountains within a month.

Therefore, Jiang Wen calculated the travel time and focused the dissemination of the message on six regions: Fujian, Guangdong, Zhejiang, Jiangxi, Hunan, and Hubei. He sent people to hang notices, announcing that the Wuyi Sect, which had long been based in central Fujian, felt that the martial arts world was in turmoil and wanted to invite heroes from all over the world to come and discuss martial arts to defend the order of the martial arts world. All martial arts people who came were guests of the Jingnan Prince's Mansion, and local governments were not allowed to obstruct or harass them. In addition, the guests would be provided with three meals a day, lodging, and medicine, and their travel expenses would be reimbursed upon presentation of receipts...

Jiang Wen didn't really intend to deceive any prestigious sects, because he had other plans for them. This move only needed to trick some fellow martial artists from minor sects into joining him in the grand spectacle.

In the past month, the Red Sun Sect has learned that martial artists from all over the world are heading towards Wuyi Mountain, and reported that many of them have already gathered in Xiamei Town. Jiang Wen felt that the time was ripe, so today he took his disciples to Xiamei Town as the host to meet with heroes from all walks of life.

Following the Nine-Bend Stream upstream, you soon arrive at the tea-scented intersection of Xiamei Town. The carriages and horses of merchants are still shuttling back and forth, seemingly tireless like the flow of wealth, and the prosperity is even more impressive than last year.

Jiang Wen led his disciples straight to the Hundred Refinements Martial Arts Hall. Normally, when martial artists gathered in Xiamei Town, Master Luo of the Great Sage Chopping Box Sect would be the first to suffer collateral damage. Now, with so many martial artists present, if Yuan Ziyi and Yan Yongchun couldn't bear the disturbance and left, Master Luo would likely be beaten to death.

But when the six of them reached the crossroads of Hongbinlou, they found a large group of strong men in brown short-sleeved shirts gathered in front of them. They stood around one spot, clapping and cheering. Some of them got excited and started sparring with the others. The street was noisy, with the clinking of money thrown by passing merchants and shopkeepers as tips.

"Master, I'll go check on it for you!"

Jiang Wen was puzzled, when he saw Fu Ningdie take two quick steps, lift herself up with the help of Xiao Shitou and Lin Pingzhi's shoulders, then grab onto the wine shop flagpole by the roadside and hang on the top of the flagpole like a nimble ape circling a tree, looking out into the crowd.

"What kind of behavior is this for a girl..."

Jiang Wen grumbled with exasperation, then instructed, "Help your teacher see what happened? Did Master Luo get beaten up and have his teeth knocked out?"

As a result, a person turned out from the outer edge of the crowd. This person had graying temples and was strong and powerful. He was none other than Master Luo from the Hundred Refinements Martial Arts School.

"Master Jiang, can't you think of me for once?"

Jiang Wen chuckled and pretended to be nonchalant, quickly exchanging pleasantries: "Oh, Master Luo, it's been so long! You're still as robust as ever. What's going on here? What kind of street performance is so popular?"

Fu Ningdie climbed to a high place and looked into the distance. Although she couldn't hear what was being said inside, she had already figured out the situation. She called out to Jiang Wen, "Master, it looks like someone we know!"

Jiang Wen was immediately surprised. Seeing that the crowd showed no signs of dispersing, he simply reached out and patted the person in front of him on the shoulder, saying, "Excuse me, please move aside." His palm naturally landed lightly on the other person's shoulder.

The other party was naturally unwilling to move. Just as he was about to curse, Jiang Wen, who seemed to be just making an ordinary slap, had secretly activated his inner technique with his fingertips. He condensed a faint, absorbing energy in his palm, which, upon contact, pierced into the tendons and meridians of the limbs like a fine needle breaking through a cocoon.

The other person first felt a tingling and itchy sensation in their shoulder, which quickly turned into a brute pulling force. Their strength surged uncontrollably, rushing out through the Jianjing acupoint. It felt as if thousands of strands of energy were being forcibly pulled from their meridians. Aching, swelling, pain, and numbness spread throughout their body. They tried to break free by exerting their strength, but their whole body was weak. The emptiness in their dantian grew stronger and stronger. Only a muffled groan escaped from their throat, and their eyes were filled with panic as if they had fallen into an ice cave.

As they walked, they kept crying out in pain. Everyone felt their legs go weak and their bodies go limp, as if all the strength in their limbs had been drained in an instant. With a slight pull from the other side, they naturally leaned to the side.

As Jiang Wen tore open the encirclement, a wide road immediately opened up to the inner circle. Master Luo followed along without any surprise. Those who were easily pushed aside were as bewildered as if they had seen a ghost, unable to even utter a curse.

Lin Xiu, dressed in brocade robes and a jade belt, bowed to the martial arts figures while excitedly asking Jiang Wen, "Master, what kind of kung fu is this? It's so amazing!"

Jiang Wen wore a fake smile as he thanked each of the martial arts practitioners as if they had voluntarily given it up. He whispered, "This is called the 'Minor Method of Absorbing Internal Energy into the Earth.' I'll teach it to you once you've built a solid foundation in internal energy."

Several tables were set up on the spot among the crowd. One of them was stacked on top, where a round-faced fat man sat upright, speaking in a deep, booming voice, his spittle flying as he talked. Around him stood several ragged young men, who, in a slightly softer voice, repeated the general situation to those who hadn't heard clearly, holding broken bowls in their hands and shaking them from time to time.

"...Seeing his disciple injured, the great hero Jiang Wen roared, 'You corrupt official, what a show of power! Even the emperor himself would have to give me some face. How dare a mere imperial guard show off his skills before an expert! Behold my mighty Heavenly Dragon!' He then unleashed a palm strike the size of Mount Tai, which turned into the long-lost 'Mount Sumeru Divine Palm.' The imperial guard's iron staff clattered out of his hand, and he flew away, coughing up blood. A huge palm print appeared on his chest, denting his sternum!"

"The other imperial guards roared angrily, 'How dare you harm my companion!' Instantly, they unleashed a barrage of fists, palms, swords, and spears, surrounding Jiang Wen from all sides. But Jiang Wen was an unparalleled hero; how could he fear these petty men? He immediately concealed his hands within his robes with a flick of his sleeves and sent them flying one by one..."

At this moment, someone in the crowd raised an objection: "That's not right. You said that Master Jiang's most prized skill is the Shaolin Temple's 'Mount Sumeru Divine Palm,' which is supposed to be as large as a mountain when it strikes. How come it's hidden in his clothes?"

The fat storyteller stopped his narration, first taking a sip of the cold water offered by the young beggar, then giving him a knowing look.

"Hero Jiang Wen is a peerless hero whose martial arts skills are superb. He has mastered the 'Mount Sumeru Divine Palm' to the point that it can be made large or small, thick or thin, and can be used on his entire body. He can easily last an hour with one set of skills. How could you possibly fathom it?"

The man was immediately overjoyed: "This kung fu is so amazing, and Shaolin Temple is so far away. Where can I learn it?"

The round-faced fat man shouted, "You've come to the right person! I come from Shaolin and once had a brief encounter with the great hero Jiang Wen, from whom I learned the essence of the 'Mount Sumeru Divine Palm.' Today, in order to promote martial arts in the Central Plains and to participate in this grand gathering of heroes, I can teach him for just five taels of silver. Everyone who wants to buy should hurry, first come, first served, and there are discounts for bulk orders!"

Jiang Wen's face darkened upon hearing this. He felt like he was the protagonist in an aphrodisiac commercial. In a flash, he landed on the table, grabbed the round-faced fat man, and leaped out of the crowd, disappearing from everyone's sight.

Before the round-faced, chubby man could shake off his commercialized smile, he suddenly felt a change in scenery and a sense of top-heavy disorientation.

"Oh no! Someone's causing trouble!!"

Upon closer inspection, this round-faced fat man was actually quite robust and strong. It was only because of his round face and the bulky winter clothes that he appeared rather chubby. His subconscious reactions were extremely cunning, clearly indicating that he was not a person without guile.

Sure enough, they had a backup plan here.

Suddenly, a group of burly men in tattered clothes emerged from the narrow alley. Some of them deliberately showed off their strong arm muscles. They immediately crowded around and rushed towards them. The leader, with a stubble beard, looked quite heroic and spoke in a northern Mandarin accent.

"I am but a humble man, and I humbly request that Your Excellency show leniency and give the Xinghan Beggars' Sect and the Vajra Sect some face!"

Jiang Wen reached out and shook Zhou Long to the ground. He slowly turned around and gave a soft, cold snort. The people in the lead were immediately intimidated by his aura. They felt that the anger had arrived before it was even unleashed. It was not an overtly violent anger, but a heavy, mountain-like oppression, like thunder gathering in the clouds or a mountain torrent blocking the mouth of a gorge. Accompanied by a chill, it spread throughout their bodies, making them afraid to even breathe heavily.

"Chief Fan and Headmaster Zhou, it's been a long time since we last met. Why are you mocking me like this?"

Jiang Wen looked up and met the eyes of the two men. They were Fan Xinghan of the Beggars' Sect and Zhou Long of the Vajra Sect, whom he had met in Guangzhou. When they heard that the bronze ship had appeared and the protective object had shifted, they each led their disciples to escape through the Five Rams Dragon Vein and the secret passage of the pre-Qin period. Unexpectedly, they met here again. They were obviously in a sorry state, and even a group of them couldn't find a single shared bicycle.

Zhou Long looked at the silent Fan Xinghan with a deathly pale face, then at Jiang Wen, and finally closed his eyes.

"Great Hero Jiang, spare my life..."