Chapter 160: Teaching You a Few Tricks

A jar of wine—one with a capacity of one catty—was completely emptied within the space of a single double-hour.

Liu Yitiao was still relatively fine; he could hold at least two catties of liquor, so a mere few ounces had practically no effect on him. However, his brother-in-law Zhang Chuwen was a different story altogether. After three cups, his head began to swim and his face flushed crimson. By the fifth and sixth cups, he was sprawled entirely across the table, retaining not a shred of the refined scholar or elegant literati he was supposed to be.

Old Zhang Buliang, on the other hand, held his liquor quite well. After finishing half the jar, his face only glowed with a faint flush. He looked at his prospective son-in-law Liu Yitiao with growing satisfaction.

"My worthy son-in-law truly has a fine capacity for drink! Ah, excellent, excellent! Much better than your older brother. Tell me, how can a grown man fail to hold his wine? How is he ever to accomplish great things in the future?" Old Zhang began to slur his speech. Holding his wine cup, he stood up, swayed unsteadily over to Liu Yitiao's side, threw an arm heavily around Liu's shoulder, and said with great familiarity, "Come, son-in-law, the two of us shall have another cup!"

Liu Yitiao hurriedly raised his cup with both hands to clink it against his. Sensing that his future father-in-law was noticeably intoxicated and figuring he had drunk quite enough for the evening, he stood up and said to Zhang Buliang, "Father, it is getting late, and this son-in-law should be heading back. If you..."

"Heading back? Nonsense!" Old Zhang pushed Liu Yitiao back down into his seat and said with displeasure, "We haven't enjoyed our drinking yet; how can my son-in-law leave first? Is it because there is no wine left on the table? No matter, son-in-law, just wait here. Father will have your mother-in-law fetch some more."

With that, Zhang Buliang raised his voice and called into the inner room, "Old woman, bring out some more of the wine we have buried at home! Today I am going to drink until I'm thoroughly drunk with my worthy son-in-law Yitiao! Yes, until we're both drunk!"

Having said his piece, Old Zhang waved a hand, slumped limply back into his chair, and fell fast asleep.

*Phew,* Liu Yitiao finally let out a mental sigh of relief. He had successfully appeased another one.

When Madam Zhang emerged, Liu Yitiao stood up and helped her support the father and son back to their respective rooms, bringing the evening to a successful close. Afterward, he made his apologies to Madam Zhang, led Liu Wuhen by the reins, and set off for home.

Before leaving, however, Liu Yitiao had entrusted his mother-in-law with a letter to be delivered to his little bride.

Inscribed upon the letter was a classic piece of poetry:

"I dwell at the source of the Yangtze,
You dwell at its mouth.
Day after day I think of you, yet see you not,
Drinking together from the same river waters.
When shall these waters cease to flow?
When shall this sorrow end?
Only I wish your heart to be like mine,
And I will never betray our yearning love."

This was *Busuanzi* by Li Zhiyi of the Song dynasty. It represented Liu Yitiao's state of mind at that moment, serving as a response to Zhang Chuchu's deep and sincere affection.

He wondered what kind of reaction Zhang Chuchu would have upon reading these verses.

Liu Wuhen walked very steadily. Even on such rural dirt paths, its gait was smooth, and one felt scarcely any jolting. Sitting upon its back was exceedingly comfortable.

Liu Yitiao leisurely crossed his legs, reached out to stroke the tuft of soft fur on Liu Wuhen's head, and admired the pastoral scenery along the way. Gazing up at the brilliant starry canopy of the Great Tang sky, his mind and spirit gradually relaxed.

It had been three months since he arrived in the Tang dynasty, and his experiences during this period had been quite colorful. A smile curved the corners of Liu Yitiao's mouth. Not only did he have parents now, but he also had a younger brother and sister, and in a few days, he would even have a lovely little bride.

With money, land, and family, this kind of life might not be so bad after all.

Upon reaching the front gate, Liu Yitiao swung his leg over and hopped down from the donkey's back. He looked up at the sky. The moon was now directly overhead, making it around nine o'clock in the night. At such a late hour, everyone at home should already be asleep.

Liu Yitiao fished out the key, unlocked the front gate, slipped quietly into the courtyard, tied Liu Wuhen up beneath the ox shed, and then felt his way in the dark to the room he shared with Liu Ertiao.

"Big Brother, you're back." An oil lamp flickered to life. Liu Ertiao sat up in bed and looked at Liu Yitiao, who had just stepped into the room.

"Oh, Ertiao? Why aren't you asleep yet?" Liu Yitiao walked over to the bedside, took off his outer robe, and hung it on the homemade rack at the head of the bed. Then he kicked off his shoes and socks, climbed into bed, slid under the covers, and said wearily to Liu Ertiao, "Look at what time it is. Blow out the lamp quickly and get some sleep."

Having traveled all day and consumed some wine, Liu Yitiao was genuinely tired. The moment his head hit the pillow, he had no desire to lift it again.

"Oh," Liu Ertiao saw the exhaustion on his older brother's face, swallowed back a stomach full of words he had prepared, let out a soft sigh, leaned over to blow out the lamp, and lay down beside Liu Yitiao.

The night passed without incident.

The next morning, following his usual routine, Liu Yitiao woke up early and began practicing Jeet Kune Do in the courtyard.

Punches, kicks, waist bends—fast and sharp. During the practice, Liu Yitiao began to circulate the breathing technique Sun Simiao had taught him: three short breaths and one long one, nicely balanced, regulating the flow of internal *qi* and blood to the utmost while coordinating with his movements.

"The Medicine King is truly the Medicine King." Liu Yitiao paused, looking with satisfaction at his tightly clenched right fist; he could feel that it was stronger than before.

Wiping away his sweat, Liu Yitiao walked toward the main room's doorway. Liu Ertiao was standing right there.

"Big Brother, I want to learn martial arts from you." Before Liu Yitiao could even ask, Liu Ertiao blurted out.

This kid still hadn't given up. Liu Yitiao glanced at him and said, "It's not impossible to learn martial arts. This is our Liu family's unique heritage after all, and you have every right to study it. But before that, you need to tell Big Brother: why?"

"You used to hold martial artists in utter disdain. Why all of a sudden do you want to learn this pugilistic skill? Did you suffer some grievance outside?" Liu Yitiao walked into the room, sat down in the main seat, took a sip of cold tea, and looked at Liu Ertiao.

"No," Liu Ertiao said stubbornly. "I just suddenly developed an interest and wanted to learn a couple of moves from Big Brother. I hope Big Brother will teach me."

It seemed this kid really had grown up; even his mouth had grown stubborn.

Liu Yitiao set his teacup down and looked at Liu Ertiao. "Very well, since you want to learn, today Big Brother will teach you two consummate and unique techniques. If anyone bullies you outside in the future, you use these, and you definitely won't come out the loser."

"Really?! Thank you, Big Brother! I will definitely study hard!" Liu Ertiao's eyes lit up, and he nodded eagerly at Liu Yitiao.

"Good," Liu Yitiao nodded, stood up, and said to Liu Ertiao, "Then come with me out to the courtyard now."

Actually, Liu Yitiao had more or less figured it out: this second Liu brother must have been bullied by someone outside, yet he was far too proud to let his family know.

He was truly growing up and developing his own self-esteem. However, since someone dared to bully his brother, how could Liu Yitiao let it go easily?

Having spent so much time with that old man Gongsun Wuda, Liu Yitiao had more or less picked up the bad habit of being fiercely protective of his own people.

Standing in the courtyard, Liu Yitiao looked Liu Ertiao up and down, pondering what he ought to teach him.

"Big Brother, let's start now. I wonder what you plan to teach me?" Liu Ertiao eagerly crowded close to Liu Yitiao, looking at him with burning anticipation.

"I am only going to teach you two moves," Liu Yitiao said, putting his hands behind his back and raising his chin. "One move is 'The Immortal Plucks the Peach,' and the other is 'Two Dragons Play with the Pearl.' Ah, both of these moves possess immense power yet are simple and consummate techniques. They can be used in combination or separately. Yes, they are very suitable for you to practice right now. Stand properly first, and Big Brother will demonstrate them for you once."

"Mm-mm," Liu Ertiao nodded full of anticipation. Following Liu Yitiao's instructions, he took two steps back and said, "Big Brother, you can begin."

"Alright, watch yourself then, Big Brother is coming!"

As soon as the words left his mouth, Liu Yitiao swiftly stepped forward with a raise of his foot and a thrust of his hand—one hand driving downward, the other thrusting upward—and viciously targeted Liu Ertiao's eyes and groin with an extremely tricky angle.

"Ah! Wu-wu-wu—" Liu Ertiao barely let out half a cry before Liu Yitiao clamped a hand over his mouth, choking him until his face turned a brilliant red and even his neck swelled thick.

After a long while, once Liu Ertiao had managed to recover, Liu Yitiao finally loosened his grip and smiled at him. "Was it really that painful? I only used a tiny fraction of my strength. Kids these days have no tolerance at all. Well, how do you feel? The power of these two moves isn't bad, right?"

"Uh, well, Big Brother," Liu Ertiao squeezed his legs tightly together, covered his crotch with both hands, and said tremblingly, "The power is indeed not bad, but... but this younger brother feels like these moves are a bit... vulgar?"

"They are very vulgar, but at the same time, they are extremely practical. You must have a profound appreciation of this point yourself." Liu Yitiao straightened his posture and said with a straight face, "A martial arts senior once said: whether it's a black cat or a white cat, as long as it catches mice, it's a good cat. The same goes for martial arts. Especially in a life-or-death struggle, as long as you can knock down your opponent, who cares whether the move is vulgar or not?"

"Ah, well, Big Brother speaks with reason! Then I shall learn these two moves! Please teach me quickly, Big Brother." Thinking of that piercing, bone-deep pain from just a moment ago—and then imagining inflicting that same pain on someone else—Liu Ertiao made up his mind.

"Good," Liu Yitiao nodded, and began explaining the key points and motions of 'Two Dragons Play with the Pearl' and 'The Immortal Plucks the Peach' to Liu Ertiao.

How to easily bypass an opponent's defense, how to swiftly subdue an opponent without harming their foundation, and how to prevent the opponent from using this very same move against oneself.

"Yitiao, Ertiao, what are you two brothers doing out there?" Old Liu pushed the door open and stepped out. Seeing that both of his sons were up at the crack of dawn, tossing about in the courtyard, he called out to ask them.

"Nothing, Dad. Ertiao here wanted to learn martial arts, so I was casually teaching him a couple of moves to keep him from getting bullied by others outside." Liu Yitiao smoothed down his garments and said to Old Liu.

"Hm?" Old Liu's expression changed. He looked at Liu Ertiao and said, "Ertiao, you must not pull any foolish stunts!"