Yun Chu Ling

Chapter 48: Learning Martial Arts and Unblocking Meridians

Yun Chu continued practicing her martial arts in the courtyard.

Qiutong carefully taught her the basic stances. After completing one set, she was drenched in sweat.

"Mother..."

A figure appeared at the courtyard entrance.

Wiping her sweat, she looked over and saw Xie Shiwei.

She spoke calmly, "What brings Wei Ge'er here?"

Since Xie Shiwei had received corporal punishment last time, aside from morning greetings, he basically never set foot in her courtyard. She preferred not seeing him and couldn't be bothered with him.

"Mother, I want to learn martial arts too."

Xie Shiwei walked in, mustering his courage to speak.

After his previous mistake, his food, clothing, and allowances had all been reduced by half. He often went hungry, and he had no silver to spend.

He had originally come to apologize and beg for mercy, hoping his mother would restore things to how they were.

But when he saw his mother practicing martial arts, with such elegant movements and stances, he suddenly wanted to learn a few moves himself.

He was no good at studying—his father scolded him daily, and Old Madam and his grandmother were always urging him. He thought he was truly useless.

But now he suddenly realized he just had no interest in studying; it wasn't that he couldn't learn anything. He felt he could take the martial arts path and might not be much worse than his elder brother.

Yun Chu looked down into Xie Shiwei's eyes.

This illegitimate son hadn't inherited Xie Jingyu's talent for scholarship, but he was born with a reckless courage. Back when he joined the Yun Family Army camp, he became a squad leader in less than a year. With the support of her Yun family, Xie Shiwei progressed extremely smoothly on the martial path...

She wouldn't give Xie Shiwei another chance to pursue martial arts.

"It's rare to see you so motivated. Then learn along with us," Yun Chu said gently. "Qiutong, first help him unblock his meridians."

Qiutong was somewhat surprised. Madam should know that beginners only needed to practice horse stance to strengthen their bodies. Unblocking meridians was something done much later—it couldn't be achieved now at all.

Ting Shuang said softly, "Just follow Madam's instructions."

Qiutong nodded and walked over to Xie Shiwei. "Second Young Master, pardon my offense."

She directly grabbed his right arm and pulled downward. With a crack, Xie Shiwei let out a scream and instinctively tried to escape.

But Qiutong gave him no chance. Finding his meridian pressure points, she pressed down hard and pulled forcefully.

"It hurts! It hurts!" Xie Shiwei was sweating profusely. "Let me go, let me go! I'm dying from the pain!"

Yun Chu sat in the rattan chair and said, "Your father told you to study properly, but you said studying was too boring. Old Madam indulged you, so no one said anything. Now, you're the one who wants to learn martial arts. Since it's your own choice, there's no reason to quit halfway. Unblocking meridians before learning martial arts is my Yun family's exclusive secret method, and it's the foundation that allowed my grandfather and father to master exceptional martial skills. I've always treated you as my own son, so I won't hold back from you. It's painful at first, but it'll get better gradually."

Xie Shiwei's face was pale from pain. "H-How long does the unblocking take?"

"It depends on when the pain stops—then you won't need to continue," Yun Chu said with a smile at the corner of her lips. "My father took three months. My elder brother tried for a year without success and gave up on martial arts."

Xie Shiwei was so shocked he nearly collapsed to the ground.

Trembling, he stammered, "What if... what if we don't unblock the meridians?""Without a solid foundation, one can only remain an ordinary martial artist for life, destined to be a mere foot soldier on the battlefield," Yun Chu said calmly. "Becoming a general like my grandfather and father would be utterly impossible."

Xie Shiwei stood rooted to the spot, his lips pressed tightly together.

He wanted to learn martial arts, but the process was unbearably painful—requiring at least three months just to begin...

"Qiutong, continue."

At Yun Chu's command, Qiutong immediately lifted Xie Shiwei upside down, removed his shoes, and began pressing hard on the acupoints of his soles.

Xie Shiwei screamed in agony.

He Shi had just returned to the Xie residence and was about to report to the main courtyard when she heard her son's piercing screams before even entering.

She hurried inside and was startled by the scene before her. "Madam, what has Second Young Master done wrong?" she asked anxiously.

Ting Shuang explained, "Second Young Master wishes to learn martial arts from Madam. This is to unblock his meridians."

Upon hearing this, He Shi felt a surge of anger rising in her chest.

Madam had never shown favor to children not her own. For Wei Ge'er to learn martial arts under her was like throwing himself into a trap—utter madness!

Besides, studying was far easier. Why seek such hardship through martial arts? Hadn't everyone seen how the Yun family's previous generation only had one old general left, and the current generation only Yun Chu's father remained? By Yun Chu's generation, the family no longer allowed their descendants to practice martial arts—proof enough that this path was not worth taking.

For Madam to push her son down a path even the Yun family had abandoned—what could she possibly be thinking?

Yun Chu looked up. "Concubine He, standing there without leaving—do you also wish to join the training?"

He Shi quickly replied, "Second Young Master seems tired. Perhaps he could rest before continuing."

Yun Chu nodded, and Qiutong immediately released him. Xie Shiwei collapsed to the ground.

He Shi rushed over to check on her son.

Yun Chu stood up. "Since Concubine He has always been close to Wei Ge'er, please look after him for a while."

She turned and entered the inner chamber, followed by all the maids outside.

He Shi seized the opportunity to whisper, "Wei Ge'er, martial arts is useless—completely useless. You must tell Madam you don't want to learn anymore."

Having just been tortured nearly to death, his throat hoarse from screaming, Xie Shiwei—never a person of strong will—completely broke down at He Shi's words. "But Mother said I can't give up halfway."

"Just tell her you're willing to focus on your studies instead," He Shi said, helping him up. "The Xie family is a scholarly household. Shouldn't its descendants prioritize education?"

Xie Shiwei made a pained face. "But studying is so difficult..."

"Is martial arts any easier? Look how badly you've suffered on just the first day! Will you ever have peace if this continues?" He Shi spoke with grave concern. "Let's avoid unnecessary suffering, my dear."

Just then, Yun Chu emerged from the inner room. "Wei Ge'er, let's continue unblocking your meridians. Earlier, Qiutong used only one-tenth of her strength. Next, she'll use half. Are you ready?"

Xie Shiwei stumbled backward in terror.

If he had nearly died from that small amount of force, increasing the intensity would surely kill him.

"Mother, c-can I stop learning...?"

Yun Chu's face darkened. "No. You must continue. This is the path you chose yourself. Qiutong, proceed."

Qiutong advanced toward Xie Shiwei.Xie Shiwei was so frightened that he immediately burst into tears: "Mother, I was just curious, I didn't really want to learn martial arts. I was wrong, truly wrong..."

Yun Chu frowned: "Learning is no child's play. You can't just decide to quit whenever you wish."

"I'll study diligently from now on," Xie Shiwei kept backing away. "Father said the Xie family has always valued scholarship, and every child must receive an education. I'll obey Father's words."

Yun Chu's lips twitched.

Children at this age were always like this - the more you insisted they do something, the more they resisted.

At least for the next three to five years, Xie Shiwei wouldn't bring up learning martial arts again. By the time he reached twelve or thirteen, it would become much more difficult to start martial arts training.

After He Shi escorted Xie Shiwei back, she returned to her own Bihe Garden. Seeing the fallen leaves scattered across the courtyard with no one cleaning them, she felt utterly exhausted.

She couldn't understand how things had come to this...