Chapter 628: Chapter 599: Sparring
After the acupuncture session, the effects were almost immediate; Fan Lidada’s symptoms of frequent and urgent urination were rapidly alleviated.
At this moment, Fan Lidada was already completely convinced by Xu Chunliang’s medical skills. He stood up, clasped his hands together, and said, "My young brother, you truly have inherited deep family knowledge. I didn’t believe in traditional Chinese medicine before, but today I am truly convinced."
Xu Chunliang said, "I’ve only learned the basics of the Xu Family’s medical skills. If my grandfather were here, he could solve the problem with just one needle." He was being modest. Even if Xu Changshan were here, he couldn’t cure Fan Lidada with just one needle, and even Xu Changshan would have to concede to his grandson’s skills.
Fan Lidada said, "Great kindness cannot be repaid with words. In the future, if there’s anything you need from your elder brother, I will do my utmost." He was genuinely grateful to Xu Chunliang, who had saved his career, his dignity, and his health over the past few days, leaving him heavily indebted to Xu Chunliang.
Xu Chunliang laughed, "No need for formalities among us." He then wrote a prescription for Fan Lidada. Acupuncture could relieve his frequent urination symptoms but couldn’t eradicate them. To completely solve the problem, he needed to take herbal medicine as well. Xu Chunliang also reminded Fan Lidada that this was Old Xu Family’s secret recipe and should never be disclosed.
Upon leaving, he encountered Master of Tan Tui Ma Baomin and Master of Baji Fist Meng Youde in the corridor. They had just returned from drinking. Meng Youde was extremely unhappy after being pushed off the stage by Xu Chunliang in front of everyone. He managed to suppress his anger earlier, but after drinking, he started to make a fuss.
He blocked Xu Chunliang’s path: "Yo, isn’t this Dongzhou Xiang Yu?"
Xu Chunliang laughed, "My name is Xu Chunliang. What happened on stage was just acting. Please don’t mind it." He was actually reminding Meng Youde not to bring stage antics into real life, as they were all there to attend the conference, and there was no need to exacerbate the conflict.
Meng Youde said, "Your Baji Fist is pretty impressive. Are you interested in sparring again?"
Seeing Meng Youde’s aggressive demeanor, Xu Chunliang immediately lost his patience and said with a calm smile, "Not interested. It wouldn’t be good if you got hurt."
Meng Youde was a bit irritated: "What did you say?" This guy was simply too arrogant.
Ma Baomin, who was relatively sensible, pulled Meng Youde back, saying, "Old Meng, old Meng, you’ve had too much to drink."
Xu Chunliang shook his head, finding it unnecessary to argue with a drunk.
Early the next morning, the conference organizers arranged two yachts to take everyone to Taiming Lake to assess the local tourism situation.
Xu Chunliang and Su Qing boarded the boat with everyone else. In the morning, they circled the lake; at noon, they had farmhouse cuisine on a small, unnamed island in the middle of the lake. In the afternoon, they collectively went to Chacun Ancient Town to explore.
Xing Wenhua was in high spirits today, with a camera slung over his shoulder, while Fu Guomin finally found the opportunity to eagerly carry a bag for the top leader, pouring tea and diligently attending to them.
Su Qing, finishing her work, went to find Xu Chunliang and saw him haggling at a small stall.
Su Qing couldn’t help but laugh, finding this side of Xu Chunliang somewhat adorable.
When Xu Chunliang saw Su Qing, he handed her a boxwood comb and said, "This is for you."
Su Qing smiled and said, "Thank you!" Seeing that Xu Chunliang had bought two combs in total, she didn’t need to ask to know that the other one must be for Mei Ru Xue. Su Qing felt a bit downhearted but quickly reminded herself that Mei Ru Xue was Xu Chunliang’s legitimate girlfriend, and to him, she was just an ordinary friend. Feelings really couldn’t be forced.
Xu Chunliang also bought some local specialties like kudzu root powder and dried bamboo shoots, handing Su Qing two packets of kudzu root powder: "Take this and drink it."
Su Qing replied, "No need."
"Don’t stand on ceremony with me."
The old lady selling the goods said, "Girl, your boyfriend is so thoughtful. This kudzu root powder is great for beauty and bust enhancement."
Su Qing’s pretty face turned red with embarrassment. The old lady’s words were unfiltered—firstly, Xu Chunliang wasn’t her boyfriend, and secondly, gifting her kudzu root powder didn’t necessarily mean he was thoughtful. Who knows who the real beneficiary would be in the end... Su Qing felt doomed, her mind was a whirl of random thoughts, so she lowered her head, pretending to choose items.
After paying, Xu Chunliang noticed that no one else was around: "Where’s the main group gone?"
Su Qing said, "It was always free time. Are you worried you’ll get lost?"
Xu Chunliang laughed, "I couldn’t be happier if it’s quieter, so no one disturbs us."
Su Qing felt his words were a bit ambiguous and pointed to the stone arch bridge ahead, asking Xu Chunliang to take a picture for her.
Su Qing walked onto the stone bridge and saw the clouds looming overhead. She whispered, "It’s going to rain; we should hurry back."
Xu Chunliang raised his wrist to check the time; there were still two hours until the meet-up: "No rush, didn’t you bring an umbrella?"
"It’s a parasol."
Xu Chunliang took two photos of her, and then it started to rain.
Su Qing opened an umbrella, and the two of them jogged to the nearby guesthouse to take shelter from the rain.
Coincidentally, at the entrance, they ran into Master of Baji Fist, Meng Youde, again. This time he was with a middle-aged man in his forties, whom Xu Chunliang didn’t have much impression of.
There was some animosity between Meng Youde and Xu Chunliang, as if they were destined to meet in narrow paths. Although Meng Youde had drunk a lot the previous night, he still remembered Xu Chunliang saying he was no match for him.
Meng Youde smiled at Xu Chunliang and said, "What a coincidence, Xiaoxu. I remember you said last night that I wasn’t your match."
Xu Chunliang thought to himself, don’t you know your own weight? Yesterday you were publicly pushed off the stage by me, and now you dare to come and provoke me again. Should I praise your courage for being outstanding, or should I say you don’t know your place? Do I have to beat you until your teeth are all over the ground before you know how ugly you are?
Xu Chunliang nodded and said, "That’s right, your Baji Fist isn’t mature enough." Since he was asking for it, there was no need to save face for him.
Meng Youde snorted coldly and said, "Then I must ask for your guidance." Being a three-time national champion and being told his skill wasn’t enough was intolerable.
Xu Chunliang said, "Such a nice place, with all these relics. It would be a huge sin if they were damaged."
Meng Youde said, "There’s a courtyard at the back."
Xu Chunliang said, "No need." He glanced at the courtyard with water from all four sides, where a two-meter diameter water tank had already filled with rainwater.
Xu Chunliang said, "This place is just fine." He leaped lightly, landing steadily on the edge of the water tank. Set aside his jumping ability, an ordinary person would have a hard time just balancing on the edge of this tank, yet Xu Chunliang stood atop it with ease and composure, without a single movement.
Seeing Xu Chunliang’s skill, Meng Youde took a deep breath, starting to regret having issued his challenge.
Baji Fist is a short-range style known for its simple, powerful moves. It emphasizes breaking and seizing within inches, striking and opening forcefully. The key is that the force originates from the heels, moves through the waist, travels to the fingertips, with enormous explosive power, and is renowned for its combat effectiveness, famously shaking with the shoulders.
By choosing the water tank as the battleground, Xu Chunliang effectively eliminated Meng Youde’s advantage. If Meng tried to exert force with his feet, the tank would surely break. Without daring to exert force, how could his Baji Fist have any strength?
Meng Youde was momentarily stuck in a dilemma when the middle-aged man beside him smiled and said, "Junior brother, how about I test this young fellow’s skills for you?"
This middle-aged man was Cha Youliang, Meng Youde’s senior brother and a local of Chacun, where this guesthouse is located. Although he wasn’t as renowned as the three-time national champion Meng Youde, he was his master’s elder disciple, with more advanced skills.
Cha Youliang also leapt lightly onto the water tank.
Xu Chunliang glanced at the water’s surface, seeing ripples spreading over the still water, and a slight smile appeared at the corner of his mouth. This Cha Youliang was capable, probably a hidden expert.
Su Qing wanted to persuade Xu Chunliang to let it go, but upon seeing this momentum, she reckoned they wouldn’t stop until a winner was determined. Resolving problems through force is the most common method used by men, and Su Qing wasn’t adverse to it, as she was confident that Xu Chunliang would win.
The rain fell from the sky, landing on Xu Chunliang and Cha Youliang.
Since Baji Fist derives its power from the heels, standing on the water tank made it impossible for Cha Youliang to exert any force with his heels. Hence, he had to rely entirely on the waist, advancing a step forward. His body twisted, channeling the waist’s power into his fist, launching a punch at Xu Chunliang. His right fist sliced through the air, producing a firecracker-like sound due to the high-speed friction with the air.
Meng Youde sighed inwardly, as his senior brother’s martial arts had improved during their years apart, whereas he himself had regressed due to his social distractions.
Xu Chunliang leaned forward, stepping into the water tank.
Meng Youde was taken aback, thinking that Xu must be planning to jump into the tank to avoid his senior brother’s punch. But he quickly realized, if it were to avoid the punch, why not jump off the tank, why fall into the water so awkwardly?
Cha Youliang realized with shock as Xu Chunliang not only dodged his punch but also advanced into his guard. Xu Chunliang tread on the water’s surface as if it were solid ground, using the reverse buoyancy of the water to push through his waist to elbows, using the shoulder and elbows as the apex, and launching an unstoppable force towards Cha Youliang.
Meng Youde watched in shock, unable to comprehend how Xu Chunliang could execute a mountain-leaning move on a water tank. How was he generating such force? It seemed implausible that mere waist and hip power could result in such significant impact; that step Xu Chunliang took on the water’s surface was crucial. But how did he manage to step as if on solid ground? This completely upended Meng Youde’s understanding, not only of martial arts but of physics as well.
Could the buoyancy of this tank’s water really be that strong?
Facing such powerful offense, Cha Youliang chose to retreat, jumping off the water tank with an utterly shocked expression.
Xu Chunliang didn’t press his advantage, instead performing a backflip to land beside Su Qing.
Although the exchange was but a fleeting moment of rapid action, Cha Youliang recognized that this young man’s martial arts far surpassed his own. He cupped his hands and said, "Mr. Xu, your martial skills are superb, and I am ashamed of my inferiority."
