Chapter Seventy-Six: Instructing Martial Arts

“So impressive.” Hiding to the side, Qin Yao watched as Qin Yang, with just a single palm strike, sent a man weighing over one hundred and fifty pounds flying several meters away. Her eyes sparkled with admiration. The old master Qin, seeing the conflict resolved so easily, looked gratefully at Qin Yang. Then, noticing Qin Yao trying to hide, he shook his head helplessly and called out loudly, “Qin Ye, come out here.”

Qin Ye, who had been hiding in the inner room, heard the commotion outside and realized those people had left. Hesitantly, he walked out, trembling inside when he saw the old master’s furious expression.

“Qin Ye, tell me, why did you get into a fight?” the old master asked angrily.

Qin Ye pursed his lips stubbornly, refusing to speak.

The old master grew even angrier and looked as if he might hit him, but Qin Yao hurriedly stepped in to block him, pleading, “Grandpa, it really wasn’t my brother’s intention. Please don’t hit him.”

“You child, move aside. Covering for him and deceiving me together. I’ll deal with you later,” the old master glared at her, disgruntled.

“Grandpa,” Qin Yao clung to his arm, coaxing, “Qin Ye truly didn’t mean it. The man he hit deceived his girlfriend and insulted him, saying he was useless. That’s why Qin Ye lashed out. Please don’t hit him.”

“Oh? What exactly happened?”

The old master finally sat down.

Qin Ye remained stubbornly silent, standing off to the side in a lazy posture. Seeing this, Qin Yao explained, “Qin Ye recently started dating a girl, but Liu Fei tricked her away and insulted him to his face. Later, Qin Ye discovered Liu Fei was still flirting with other women, and, unable to contain his anger, he hit Liu Fei. Unexpectedly, Liu Fei’s older brother came looking for trouble afterward.”

“Fool!”

The old master glared at Qin Ye, raising his voice, “That’s no reason to get into a fight. Do you understand how serious fighting is? It could ruin your entire future! Do you realize that? The college entrance exam is next year—at this critical moment, you cause trouble? You can forget about university; you’ll have to go straight to work.”

Hearing this, everyone knew the old master would not pursue his mistake further. While they were talking, a middle-aged couple entered, both in their forties or fifties, with strands of white hair visible. The woman’s temples were even more grey, and her face carried a lingering sorrow, as though she had only recently emerged from pain and grief.

“Dad, what’s happened?” Qin Long asked as he came in. “I heard you calling from outside.”

“It’s nothing,” the old master replied, glancing at Qin Ye and covering for him, “This boy accidentally broke one of my teapots, so I scolded him a bit. Let me introduce you—this is Qin Yang, a good friend of my eldest grandson. They share the same name. He recently returned from out of town and, having learned about our Qin Yang’s situation from Officer Ling, came to visit.”

“You, you know him?” the middle-aged woman suddenly asked, trembling with emotion.

Qin Yang nodded, sighing inwardly. “He and I were good friends. I never expected that my short absence would lead to all this.”

The couple fell silent, then began asking about orphan Qin Yang’s life. He answered truthfully. His visit was to fulfill an old wish: to discover why he had been abandoned, why his parents had been so heartless. Now, he had found the answers, enough to ease his regrets. After recounting the brief life of orphan Qin Yang, he glanced at the time—it was already past ten o’clock. Rising to leave, he said, “It’s getting late. I won’t trouble you further. I just wanted to meet his family. I believe he would not blame you for abandoning him.”

“Qin Yang, don’t leave tonight. Stay with us,” the old master stood up and insisted, “It’s late, and cold outside. Finding a hotel now would be too troublesome. You’re his friend, so you’re family. Stay here tonight; we’d like to talk more about Qin Yang, and I want to thank you properly.”

Unable to refuse the old master’s hospitality, Qin Yang agreed to stay. Soon, Qin Long’s wife, Wang Yue, had prepared a room. She came out, wiping away lingering tears, and said, “The quilts have all been aired, there’s an electric heater in the room—it’s warm. Please rest well.”

“Thank you,” Qin Yang replied with a smile.

After Qin Long’s family returned to their own home, Qin Yang chatted with the old master late into the night before retiring. He slept soundly, but woke early the next morning. After dressing, he stepped outside to find the old master practicing Tai Chi in the courtyard. The sky was just beginning to lighten, and the cold wind still bit, but the old master, undaunted by the chill, radiated warmth from prolonged exercise.

Seeing Qin Yang emerge, the old master smiled, “Why not sleep a bit longer?”

“I couldn’t,” Qin Yang replied. “Your Tai Chi is really impressive.”

“It’s just for show,” the old master waved his hand. “I go to the square sometimes to practice, nothing more. At my age, I don’t have many hobbies. Not like you young people—your lives are so rich. I can see you’ve learned martial arts; your skills are excellent. There’s a sandbag here—Qin Ye bought it but hardly used it. If you’d like to practice, feel free.”

Qin Yang smiled and went over, pulling out a sandbag weighing one hundred and fifty pounds from under the gate. The old master helped hang it from an iron rod fixed to the wall. “Go on, give it a try.”

Qin Yang exhaled and struck with his fist. With a loud thud, the sandbag swung violently. He followed with another powerful punch, and the old master laughed heartily before heading inside to prepare breakfast. Qin Yang, growing more interested, continued practicing. Over the past days, he’d been too busy to train, much to Han Mufeng’s dissatisfaction—if not for Qin Yang’s improving physical condition, Han Mufeng would never have approved.

The door creaked open. Qin Yao poked her head in, saw Qin Yang practicing, and bounced over excitedly, watching with keen interest. After ten minutes, seeing Qin Yang sweating, she hurried forward with a towel.

“You’re up early,” Qin Yang said, wiping his brow with a smile. “You’re so eager—tell me, what do you want?”

“Oh, I just want you to teach me martial arts!” Qin Yao waved her tiny fists. “Your palm strike last night was so cool. Can you teach me? If I learn it, Qin Ye won’t dare bother me again.” She looked at Qin Yang with great anticipation.

Qin Yang was amused. “The essence of traditional martial arts lies in diligent practice. If you’re willing to work hard for five years, that palm strike is not impossible.”

“Five years?” Qin Yao’s face fell, her lips pouting. “Why does it take so long?”

Qin Yang smiled and nodded. “That palm strike relies on mastery of internal energy. If your control is poor, you might seriously injure your opponent. If you restrain too much, you could harm yourself. Five years is the quickest estimate, since you need to learn to harness your essence, energy, and spirit to achieve optimal attack without excessive force—and so you won’t hurt others. Watch—”

He demonstrated, sending a palm strike whistling through the air. With a resounding crash, the sandbag flew sideways, slamming into the wall.

“So impressive!” Qin Yao exclaimed excitedly.

Qin Yang smiled. Han Mufeng had taught him that the highest realm of martial arts was to use force to prevent conflict, to avoid harming others unless the enemy was truly ruthless. Had Qin Yang not restrained himself, that palm would have burst the sandbag.

“If you want to learn something quicker, that’s possible too,” Qin Yang said, seeing her eager expression and unable to refuse. “I’ve studied Xingyi Quan and Bagua Palm—both internal styles. However, my master once adapted Bagua Palm’s footwork to military combat techniques, creating a simplified self-defense system for beginners. It doesn’t require high fitness, yet its effectiveness is remarkable.”

“I want to learn that! I want to learn that!” Qin Yao nodded vigorously.

Qin Yang knew her interest would be fleeting, but he was happy to teach his little sister. He taught her diligently, beginning with footwork and basic moves in the courtyard. Qin Yao proved clever, memorizing all the defensive tactics by noon and grinning with delight. When Qin Ye came in, she immediately challenged him.

“Stay back—you’re always causing trouble,” Qin Ye waved her off, unwilling to spar.

But Qin Yao was persistent. As Qin Ye waved her away, she wrapped both hands around his right arm, stepped back, and immobilized him. Qin Ye tried to pull free but found his strength dissipated when Qin Yao struck his left shoulder. Astonished, he exclaimed, “Qin Yao, you’re really something!”

He tried to shake her off, but Qin Yao was quicker, kicking his knee and nearly making him kneel.

“Haha, do you admit defeat?” Qin Yao asked triumphantly.

“You, you—where did you learn this?” Qin Ye asked in surprise. “Let go, I surrender!”

“I’m clever, invented it myself,” Qin Yao replied with a mischievous smile, releasing him. “Qin Ye, behave yourself in the future—or else I’ll teach you a lesson.”

Inside, the old master watched with a chuckle. “Those two have been like this since childhood, always bickering. Qin Yao is smart—her grades are top-notch. She’ll have no trouble getting into a prestigious university. My biggest worry is Qin Ye. He’s always been mischievous, spoiled by the family, and now he’s completely unserious—bottom of his class. I just hope he can get into a technical college, then I’ll use connections to get him a job at Hailong Heavy Industry Group. That would give me peace of mind.”

“Hailong Heavy Industry Group? That’s the leading enterprise in Fengyang County, said to support nearly ten thousand families,” Qin Yang remarked. “But starting out, can he get a good position?”

“With connections, yes. Do you know Guo Yang, the general manager of Hailong Real Estate? He’s from our village,” the old master replied. “If I ask his family, getting Qin Ye in won’t be a problem. At least it would be a stable job.”