Free Web NovelChapter 36: Chapter 36: The Competition
The He Family’s main hall.
"Father, Gao Yuan’s whereabouts are unknown." freewebnøvel.com
"The County Yamen can’t find anything, so I can only rely on you."
A middle-aged woman spoke, her face streaked with tears.
She was none other than Gao Yuan’s wife, He Li.
The old patriarch of the He Family, He Rongsheng, had long white hair and was rolling a pair of lion’s head walnuts in his hand. Seated in the main chair, he said thoughtfully, "I’ve had people secretly investigating this for the past few days."
"Right now, we’ve only found that someone saw Gao Yuan leaving the city. The trail goes cold there."
"How am I supposed to investigate with that?"
Hearing this, He Li cried even harder. "Father, Gao Yuan has done so much for our He Family over the years. Now that his whereabouts are unknown, you can’t just abandon him."
He Rongsheng said coolly, "It’s not that I want something to happen to him. But with him gone, the position of Chief Constable is now vacant."
"To protect the He Family’s status, even I have to come out of retirement."
"We’ll put the matter of Gao Yuan’s disappearance aside for now."
He Li knew when to stop pushing. She could only sob, "Father, I’ll listen to you."
Seeing his daughter’s state, He Rongsheng’s heart softened. "Don’t worry. After some time has passed, I will give you a proper explanation."
.....
News that the County Yamen would hold a martial arts competition to decide the new Chief Constable spread quickly throughout Qingshui County.
Teahouses, restaurants, taverns...
Almost every public gathering place was abuzz with discussion of the matter.
"I can’t believe even Patriarch He was forced to come out!"
"His Wind Chasing Saber technique was incredible back in the day. I wonder how much of his Power he still has!"
"Experience counts. I’d bet the new Chief Constable will be him."
"I wouldn’t be so sure. Hong Mingchang of the Hong Family is old but still going strong."
"Then let’s wait and see."
"Yeah, who would’ve thought Gao Yuan’s disappearance would give us such a great show to watch."
Han Yuan sat in a corner of the tavern, listening to the townsfolk’s chatter with a calm expression.
"Don’t worry, these people will know your name soon enough."
Wang Changbai sat across from him, taking a sip of wine with a faint smile.
"I’m not as concerned with fame as you think."
Han Yuan said, shaking his head.
"A true man, born between heaven and earth, should naturally make a great name for himself."
"Only then is his journey through this world not in vain."
Wang Changbai suddenly grew impassioned and ambitious.
"Then how come I don’t see you out there making a great name for yourself?"
Han Yuan rolled his eyes.
"Obviously! I don’t have the ability."
"But you’re different."
Wang Changbai seemed drunk, letting out a heavy breath that reeked of alcohol.
’Make a great name... live a grand, heroic life...’
Han Yuan chuckled to himself.
.......
「Three days later.」
The training grounds outside the city.
This place, originally used for public beheadings, had been temporarily repurposed as the venue for the martial arts competition.
In the middle of a sparse, flat field, a large circle had been drawn with lime powder.
Due to the hot weather, a canopy had been erected near the circle to provide shade.
Zheng Heda and a group of other officials were seated under the canopy, where fruits had even been laid out to combat the heat and quench their thirst.
An event of this magnitude naturally drew a large crowd of townsfolk, but they were all held back ten meters away by the government officials.
"For this competition, the officials recommended a total of three people, and the County Yamen has five promising young constables who wish to try their luck, making for a total of eight contestants."
County Magistrate Hong Ming’an announced in a clear voice.
"Then let’s begin the drawing of lots."
Zheng Heda was sweating profusely, stifled by his Official Uniform.
"Sir, we’ve already prepared the list. There’s no need to draw lots."
But Hong Ming’an suddenly produced a list.
Clearly, he was acting first and reporting later.
Zheng Heda glanced at it and said helplessly, "Then proceed according to the list."
The list had obviously been deliberately arranged. Those old timers were all separated, clearly to avoid them fighting each other early on and wasting their Vitality.
Soon, the competition officially began.
He Rongsheng was the first to enter the ring.
He wore a black martial arts uniform, white-socked cloth shoes, and carried a long saber, looking vigorous and high-spirited.
His opponent was Constable Zeng Rongtian.
But as soon as he stepped into the ring, Zeng Rongtian cupped his fists and said, "This junior knows he is no match for Elder He. I concede."
He Rongsheng narrowed his eyes. "Constable Zeng, you flatter me. Come visit my He Family when you have time."
Zeng Rongtian smiled. "Then this junior will impose upon you later."
With that, the two left the competition grounds, talking and laughing.
This situation naturally drew a chorus of boos from the watching townsfolk.
"If that Zeng Rongtian didn’t want to fight, he shouldn’t have signed up."
"Boring."
Zheng Heda snorted coldly.
"He probably didn’t expect to run into the old Patriarch He in the first round."
Hong Ming’an said, shaking his head.
"Was it that he ’didn’t want’ to... or that he ’really wanted’ to?"
Zheng Heda said with strange, ambiguous sarcasm.
Hong Ming’an just smiled and didn’t reply.
In his eyes, Zheng Heda was just getting flustered and exasperated.
Following Zeng Rongtian’s precedent, the next two constables also conceded the moment their matches began, without the slightest hesitation.
Finally, it was Han Yuan’s turn to enter the ring.
He walked into the lime circle carrying his Cold Blade.
His opponent was named Huang Gu, a man in his forties who had served in the County Yamen for many years and had a vicious Blade Technique.
The appearance of these two finally drew some cheers.
Because the watching townsfolk knew that this time, nobody was likely to concede.
"I’ve seen this Huang Gu draw his saber before. He’s fast, precise, and ruthless."
"Although Han Yuan has made a bit of a name for himself, I reckon he’s still a notch below."
Hong Ming’an looked at the two men in the ring and smiled.
The other officials naturally chimed in with agreement.
Only Zheng Heda yawned out of boredom, seemingly unconcerned.
In the ring.
Huang Gu said in a low voice, "Han Yuan, I’ve heard your blade is fast. Today, I’ll experience it for myself."
"No problem," Han Yuan replied, his expression calm.
’This Huang Gu is from one of the powerful families. He was clearly arranged by Hong Ming’an to stop me.’
’After all, those three old-timers are getting on in years. None of them want to waste energy on me, so they found someone to block my path.’
"Begin!"
A government official suddenly shouted.
Huang Gu instantly charged toward Han Yuan.
His speed wasn’t fast, but his footwork was erratic, dazzling the eye and making it impossible to tell where he would attack from.
SWISH!
The next moment, Huang Gu suddenly drew his long saber, slashing diagonally from the left toward Han Yuan’s head.
Han Yuan dodged back lightly, his hand simultaneously landing on the hilt of his own saber and pulling it forward.
BANG!
Han Yuan didn’t even fully unsheathe his blade; the hilt slammed viciously into Huang Gu’s abdomen.
"Ah!" frёeωebɳovel.com
His opponent cried out in pain, feeling as if his internal organs had been ruptured by the impact, and his body instantly froze.
Expressionless, Han Yuan delivered a heavy kick!
BAM!
Huang Gu was sent sliding over ten meters across the ground, kicked directly out of the circle’s boundary.
For a moment, the scene was strangely silent.
No one had thought the fight would be over so quickly.
"These two... am I the only one who thinks they were acting?"
"I get that feeling too."
"Terrible acting!"
"Even faker than that Snake Form Diao Hand show I saw last time."
The watching townsfolk started complaining, feeling that Huang Gu and Han Yuan were just making a fool out of them.
Only He Rongsheng, who was off to the side, frowned to himself.
He might be old, but his eyes weren’t failing him. He saw exactly how Han Yuan defeated Huang Gu.
’That level of reaction speed and explosive power... Truly impressive.’
