Chapter 2: Chapter 2: Blade Technique
Two dilapidated wooden doors, clearly marked by the passage of time, were bolted from the inside. Chen Mu knocked on the door and announced, "I'm back," before hearing movement and sounds of delight from within.
Thump, thump.
The sound of bare feet running across the floor approached, then the door bolt was pulled open.
"Brother!"
A young girl wearing a coarse floral jacket (襖)¹, barely reaching Chen Mu's chest, appeared in the doorway. She stood barefoot, looking up at Chen Mu with a sweet and innocent smile.
Chen Yue was already fourteen years old. For most girls, this would be the age of blossoming, but due to childhood malnutrition, she remained thin and frail, her skin slightly sallow, unlike a typical fourteen-year-old girl.
In such times, it was impossible for ordinary commoner families to raise stunning beauties. However, in Chen Mu's eyes, Chen Yue had good potential. If their circumstances improved and she was well-nourished, she would likely transform into a pure and beautiful lotus flower emerging from the water. But for now, she could only endure hardship with him.
"Why are you running around barefoot again?"
Chen Mu affectionately ruffled the girl's head. He didn't have a younger sister in his previous life, and having such a sweet, obedient, and lovely sister here provided him with the only solace in this chaotic and cold city.
Chen Yue looked up with a grin and said, "I'll wear them when I go out. If I wear them too much at home, they'll get worn out, which would be a shame."
Chen Mu picked Chen Yue up and placed her on the kang² in the inner room. He reached out and touched her small feet, feeling how cold they were. He couldn't help but scold her, "It's almost winter. What if you get frostbite? If they wear out, we'll just mend them."
He knew why Chen Yue was reluctant to wear the shoes. Her previous pair had completely fallen apart, and her feet had grown a bit, so they couldn't be repaired or worn anymore. Chen Mu had bought her a new pair, and the little girl was overjoyed, treating them like treasures. Naturally, she was reluctant to wear them every day, especially since she didn't leave the house anyway.
"Okay, okay."
Chen Yue replied with some hesitation.
Indeed, if she got frostbite on her feet, they would have to buy medicine, which would be a waste of money.
Chen Mu handed her a bun, with a stern face, telling her to wash her hands before eating. But the little girl was about to run off barefoot to wash her hands, so Chen Mu simply brought the wooden basin over.
Chen Yue washed her hands and feet, her face flushed, then took the bun and started eating. Her eyes were filled with love and admiration as she looked at Chen Mu. He hadn't been so good to her before, but after his serious illness, he had suddenly become increasingly kind. Although he was her only brother no matter how he treated her, she naturally preferred their current life. Even though she had to stay home every day and eat the most ordinary white rice buns, she was still happy.
"It's been a long time since I've taken you out to play, hasn't it?"
Chen Mu, looking at Chen Yue, said thoughtfully.
Ever since he came to this world and discovered the chaos and danger outside, he had strictly forbidden Chen Yue from running out, even scaring her by saying he wouldn't want her anymore if she dared to run away. This had frightened the little girl so much that she had cried for a long time before he finally managed to coax her into feeling better.
"Four months!"
Chen Yue, while eating her bun, counted on her fingers.
Chen Mu smiled slightly and said, "Okay, after a while, I'll take you out to play."
He couldn't bear to keep a young girl of this age confined at home all the time. Taking her out wasn't entirely impossible. He could cover their faces, mess up their hair, wear old and ragged clothes, and carry her on his back. It would be best to go with Liu San, Li Liu, and a few other familiar colleagues, just like the last time he had taken her out for a stroll.
Although there was still some risk, staying locked up at home all the time was no different from being in prison.
"Yay!"
Chen Yue's eyes lit up with joy upon hearing Chen Mu's words.
But after the initial excitement, she looked at Chen Mu cautiously and hesitantly said, "Will... will it cause trouble for brother if I go out to play?"
Chen Mu ruffled her little head and didn't answer. He said, "Stay in the room after you finish eating. I'm going to the woodshed room."
"Okay."
Chen Yue nodded obediently.
...
The woodshed was spacious.
There was hardly any firewood, just a few scattered pieces. Firewood had become increasingly expensive recently. It was said that a group of woodcutters had gone missing in the mountains west of the city, scaring many others away.
Now, only a few brave souls, hoping to earn more during this time of rising firewood prices, would venture out of the city to chop and carry firewood. As a result, the supply had dwindled, and ordinary families were trying to conserve as much as possible.
Chen Mu carefully took out the booklet he had found earlier from his pocket.
The cover of the booklet was somewhat damaged, and only the three characters "...Wind Blade Technique" were clearly visible. After carefully examining the first character, Chen Mu thought it should be the character "狂" (kuáng), meaning "wild" or "frenzied." So, the complete title should be "Wild Wind Blade Technique."
"A blade technique..."
Chen Mu, looking at the manual in his hand, fell into deep contemplation.
The kind of story where one could obtain a secret manual of techniques, practice behind closed doors, and then become a master simply didn't exist in this world. Even this worn-out manual wasn't worth much if sold.
The reason was simple: to practice martial arts, whether it be fists, palms, legs, fingers, or sabers, spears, staffs, or clubs, one needed guidance from a true martial artist. Trying to learn on your own from a secret manual could easily lead to injuries to muscles and bones, with no one to blame but yourself.
As a constable, Chen Mu had actually practiced blade work at the City Guard Office.
However, the head of the City Guard only taught basic freehand techniques of horizontal and vertical strikes, not advanced blade skills. So, even after two and a half years of practice in this world, Chen Mu could at most handle ordinary people who didn't have proper martial arts training.
Chen Mu had once inquired with Liu Song and Li Tie, and their answers were the same. Obtaining a blade technique manual wasn't difficult or expensive. One could usually buy one at a pawn shop for about ten or twenty taels of silver. However, thinking that one could become skilled just by relying on a secret manual and the fixed illustrations of techniques within it was a fool's dream.
One had to go to the martial arts schools in the Inner City and receive guidance from a martial arts instructor, learning the various stances and methods of exerting force. That was the proper path.
But the problem was...
The fees charged by martial arts schools were exorbitant.
They could easily cost tens or even hundreds of taels of silver, and the various medicinal powders for treating injuries and bruises had to be purchased separately.
As the saying goes, "the poor study literature, the rich practice martial arts." Even Liu Song and Li Tie, who came from relatively well-off families, couldn't afford to go to the Inner City to train in martial arts, let alone Chen Mu, who couldn't even produce two taels of silver if his life depended on it.
"Should I sell it at a pawn shop? I might be able to get two or three taels of silver, which would be a windfall."
Chen Mu pondered.
But he felt somewhat reluctant.
In this chaotic world, being clever and resourceful was meaningless. Cunning schemes were more likely to get you killed, and only by being cautious and discreet could one survive. However, he had neither money nor power, so escaping his lowly status seemed almost impossible.
If he could master a blade technique and possess martial prowess, things would be entirely different. Not to mention that wealthy landowners and powerful figures would be willing to hire him as a guard, and he could also achieve a higher status within gangs. Even within the City Guard, he would have the opportunity to gain recognition from his superiors and be promoted from a low-ranking constable to a head constable.
Head constables were different from ordinary constables. Strictly speaking, constables weren't even considered officials. They were merely hired by the government and responsible for daily patrols. However, head constables were a different story.
Head constables promoted by the various City Guard offices were considered true "officials," even holding the rank of "ninth-rank" official, a world apart from ordinary commoners. Their status was vastly different from that of ordinary constables. Even weaker gangs and factions would offer them some silver to maintain good relations and avoid any trouble.
"I'll give it a try."
After some thought, Chen Mu decided to open the booklet before him.
Anyway, this type of external blade technique, even if practiced poorly, would at most result in muscle strains that could be healed with a few days of rest. There wouldn't be any major consequences. If it didn't work out, he could memorize the contents and then sell it to a pawn shop for some silver to buy meat.
"-- Wild Wind Blade Technique, belonging to the 巽 (xùn)³ Wind lineage of the Eight Trigrams of Heaven and Earth. Its form is chaotic, but its intent is not. Like a thousand winds passing, it wraps around muscles and scrapes bones. If cultivated to perfection, it can manifest a strand of 'Wild Wind' blade momentum."
The first page of the manual contained no illustrations, only this paragraph of text description.
Chen Mu thoughtfully turned to the next page and saw a figure holding a blade in a standing posture leaping on the yellow paper. The blade in his hand was guided by a dotted line, seemingly slanting upwards from below. The small text at the bottom described it as "Chaotic Wind First Stance."
Chen Mu scrutinized it for a moment, then stood up and drew his constable saber, swinging it according to the illustration.
He had practiced horizontal and vertical strikes for two years, so this swing looked somewhat decent. However, he felt it was very strange, and the force he exerted was even weaker than his usual pure horizontal and vertical strikes.
"As expected, what Li Tie and the others said was right. Just relying on a manual, one can at most learn the postures, but without a martial arts instructor from the same lineage to provide personal guidance on how to exert force and how to transition between movements, it's extremely difficult to figure it out on your own."
Chen Mu sighed inwardly.
Although the difficulty was high, since he had decided to try, he wouldn't give up at the starting line. Chen Mu continued flipping through the pages and saw that the next three pages each depicted variations of the Chaotic Wind First Stance, for a total of three variations, corresponding to different responses from opponents, with diagonal slashes, horizontal cuts, and downward chops.
After memorizing the variations, Chen Mu began to practice them. After a while, he managed to complete the movements in a preliminary way, but he only had a vague understanding of how to exert force and wasn't sure if it aligned with the proper methods.
Just like that, he practiced the first stance and its three variations in a confused manner for half a day. Afterward, he vaguely felt that it might not be as effective as the horizontal and vertical strikes he usually practiced. If he used these half-baked techniques in combat, not only might he not gain any advantage, but he might even suffer losses.
"It should still be a problem with the way I'm exerting force and the direction of my strength. A single page of illustrations doesn't provide much information."
Chen Mu pondered.
This practice session also confirmed that he was clearly not some kind of martial arts prodigy who could understand all the key points of a set of techniques just by looking at a few illustrations and then master it out of thin air.
If the remaining techniques were also this half-baked, even if he managed to become somewhat proficient, their effectiveness wouldn't be much different from ordinary horizontal and vertical strikes. This blade technique might only be worth exchanging for two taels of silver to buy meat.
"Brother, have some water."
Just as Chen Mu stopped practicing and let out a sigh, a voice came from beside him.
Chen Yue, wearing a pair of clean floral shoes, tiptoed over, holding a coarse clay pot filled with some clear water.
She looked up with her adorable little face and said, "It's boiled."
Chen Mu smiled gently and reached out to take the clay pot. He had warned Chen Yue several times that water couldn't be drunk carelessly and had to be boiled until it was rolling before consumption. In this backward world, life expectancy was directly related to one's diet and drinking habits.
He took a few sips from the clay pot, then handed it back and patted the little girl's head.
"Is brother practicing martial arts?"
Chen Yue, seeing the booklet and the illustrations of techniques on the stove, asked curiously.
"Yes."
Chen Mu nodded.
He had initially thought this might be an opportunity to change his fate, but now it seemed he had been a bit too optimistic. To truly master martial arts, perhaps he still needed to save up money bit by bit, accumulate a larger sum, and then go to the Inner City to become a disciple at a martial arts school.
However, just as Chen Mu was about to put the booklet away, he suddenly froze.
In his line of sight, several floating characters had appeared at some point. He blinked in a daze, but the characters didn't disappear and remained floating before his eyes.
[Martial Arts: Wild Wind Blade Technique (Uninitiated)]
[Experience: 2 points]
After confirming that this wasn't an illusion, a smile finally appeared on Chen Mu's face.
Footnotes:
¹ 袄 (襖): A type of padded jacket, often made of cotton and worn in cold weather.
² kang: A heated brick bed used for sleeping and sitting in northern China.
³ 巽 (xùn): One of the Eight Trigrams in Chinese cosmology, representing wind.
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