Chapter 56: Spear Duel
"Can we?"
I don't think so. Liang Ping thought these words and was just about to say them aloud when someone interjected, "Hey, why ask Instructor Liang? Just go ask He Yan directly! That kid knows his own limits. If he's willing, they'll duel; if not, they won't. Isn't it that simple?"
"Makes sense." Du Mao nodded and said to Jiang Jiao, "Go ask He Yan directly. But," he paused to add, "if you duel, keep it controlled—no injuries."
With things already at this point, Liang Ping had no choice but to watch helplessly as Jiang Jiao walked toward He Yan.
Jiang Jiao arrived at Instructor Liang's recruit squad and immediately spotted He Yan practicing with his spear. It wasn't because He Yan stood out particularly—it was just that his slender frame was too conspicuous among these burly men. Jiang Jiao didn't approach right away but quietly observed for a while. He Yan wasn't performing any complex spear techniques, just simple thrusts and retractions. Yet even with these basic moves, he practiced diligently, without a hint of laziness.
After watching for some time, someone noticed him and asked, "Brother, why are you standing here watching us?"
"I'm here to find someone." With that, Jiang Jiao strode up to He Yan.
He Yan was mid-thrust when suddenly someone grabbed his spearhead, forcing the person back two steps. He looked up in surprise. "Why did you grab my spear?"
Jiang Jiao staggered back two steps, a flicker of astonishment crossing his mind. He Yan's spearplay had looked soft and weak, lacking strength—but when he actually gripped the spearhead, he realized just how powerful that thrust had been. If not for his family's martial arts background and his own childhood training in spear techniques, an ordinary person would have been knocked flat.
With this realization, he shed some of his earlier dismissiveness and regarded He Yan seriously. "I've heard of Brother He's unparalleled skill. I'd like to spar with you in spear techniques. What do you say?"
He Yan blinked, understanding—another challenger?
Hong Shan, standing behind He Yan, smacked his forehead. "Oh no. Fame invites trouble, and pigs grow fat for slaughter. After A-He defeated Wang Ba last time, I knew this would happen. Look, here's the second one."
"Will there be more later?" Xiao Mai whispered.
"Plenty. There'll be a third, fourth, fifth..." Hong Shan shook his head. "People just love to compete. What's the point of all this rivalry?"
What's the point? He Yan thought it was plenty fun. He'd been thinking that to join the Nine Banners Battalion, he first needed Xiao Jue to recognize him as an outstanding, extraordinary hero. But Xiao Jue didn't come to the Martial Arts Field every day to watch recruits train, and He Yan had no stage to showcase himself—unless someone like Wang Ba kept challenging him, building his reputation until word inevitably reached Xiao Jue's ears.
Yet for some reason, ever since Wang Ba's crossbow duel with him, no one else had come to challenge him. He Yan guessed the lost dry rations might have demoralized the recruits, making them avoid him for now. He couldn't go around provoking people either, asking everyone to duel him.
But now another challenger had arrived—wasn't this like a pillow delivered just as sleep beckoned? It couldn't have been more perfect.
"Sure." He Yan planted his spear beside him. "How do you want to duel?"Her answer came so swiftly that even Jiang Jiao was taken aback. After a moment's hesitation, he said, "Just spar with the two of us. We'll stop at the first touch."
"Fine," He Yan replied. "Go get your spear. We'll compete on the platform in the Martial Arts Field."
"You..." Jiang Jiao hesitated before asking, "Don't you need to wait ten days?"
He Yan paused, amused. "Not every time requires ten days."
Did they think she needed some ritual during those ten days? Previously, it had been due to insufficient arm strength, but now, aside from regular training, she hadn't neglected practicing with stone locks. Though she couldn't match the strength of true warriors, ordinary crossbows were no longer a problem.
Several instructors who had heard the news crowded together. One nudged Liang Ping's arm and said, "Old Liang, I told you—your new recruit probably doesn't even take this little challenge seriously. You're the only one worrying for nothing!"
Liang Ping: "..."
He had assumed He Yan would refuse, thinking that if He Yan personally declined, Jiang Jiao would drop the matter. Yet He Yan had agreed without hesitation. Did this kid not know how to say no? Or was he so confident that he'd accept any challenger?
"I'm looking forward to this," Du Mao said, taking a sip from the leather water flask at his waist, his gaze fixed on He Yan as she walked toward the platform. "How about we place a bet?"
"No bets," Liang Ping refused outright. The last time someone in the new recruits lost their dry rations in a bet, they went hungry for a whole month—a pitiful sight. Now even the instructors were gambling?
"He's a coward. If he won't, I will!" another instructor declared. "I'll bet my ration of yellow wine for the end of the month. I'm betting on Jiang Jiao!"
...
When Cheng Li Su heard the news that He Yan was going to spar with Jiang Jiao using spears, his first reaction was to rush to Xiao Jue's quarters next door.
He arrived in high spirits, only to find Xiao Jue speaking with his personal shadow guard. Frowning at the interruption, Xiao Jue said, "Cheng Li Su, what's with all this running around?"
"Uncle, I came to invite you to watch a good show!"
Xiao Jue signaled for the shadow guard to leave. Once they were alone, he asked, "What is it?"
"My sworn brother, Brother He, is going to spar with someone using spears today!" Cheng Li Su tugged at Xiao Jue's sleeve. "It's about to start—right in the Martial Arts Field. Let's go watch, okay?"
"He Yan?" Xiao Jue raised an eyebrow.
He remembered He Yan. In just a few months, this name had spread throughout Liang Province's garrison. First, it was the running drills, then progressing from being unable to draw a bow to never missing a shot, and now becoming Cheng Li Su's sworn brother. Cheng Li Su sneaked off to deliver food to He Yan every now and then, and Xiao Jue turned a blind eye, treating it as a child's game.
Still, this person had remarkable determination. Though his natural talent was mediocre, every night after the recruits retired, he would return to the Martial Arts Field to train until the moon was high before finally resting.
"Exactly! You know my brother too!" Cheng Li Su pulled at Xiao Jue's sleeve, trying to drag him outside. "I heard that guy challenged my brother today. My brother will definitely teach him what real spear technique looks like!"
Xiao Jue glanced at him. "My sleeve."
Cheng Li Su immediately let go, switching to clutching his arm instead. Pleading, he said, "Uncle, just come with me for a quick look. My brother is really impressive—no worse than those warriors in your Nine Banners Battalion!"Xiao Jue let out a derisive laugh, as if dismissing what he had said, but his footsteps didn't stop as he finally followed him outside.
Cheng Li Su breathed a sigh of relief, thinking to himself, Big brother, this is as far as I can help you.
(End of Chapter)
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