novelSusiti Chapter 52 The army should have military songs
Chapter 52 The army should have military songs
The next morning at dawn, before the river fog had dissipated, training slogans could be heard from the opposite bank.
On the other side, Zhu Ming, wearing a mask, had also gotten up early to train.
"A big watermelon!"
He raised his hands, slowly spreading them apart, and shouted in a deep voice.
"A...a big watermelon?"
Shen Yourong also mimicked the gestures a couple of times.
"Cut it in half!"
Zhu Ming drew his hand vertically down in the air, then changed his posture, extending his left arm forward and retracting his right arm, assuming a crane spreading its wings stance.
"Half of you!"
Then Zhu Ming pushed the object to the left with his left hand and pulled it to the right with his right, applying force loosely but without letting it slip.
"Half of mine!"
Then he brought his right hand back and his left hand back as well, and his two hands overlapped in front of his chest to draw a small circle.
Shen Yourong followed along clumsily, her movements a beat slower than usual.
But he stopped, frowned, looked at Zhu Ming again, hesitated for a moment, and finally couldn't help but speak, his tone tinged with uncertainty, "General... if this old minister may be so bold as to ask, is this kung fu legitimate?"
Zhu Ming continued with his Tai Chi movements and answered without hesitation, "Of course it's serious."
As a time traveler, he dared not say whether this version of Tai Chi was legitimate or not, but it was definitely good for health.
Zhu Ming practiced diligently in the palace for over a year, and now his back no longer hurts, his spine is straight, and he enjoys the fragrance of water in the Kunning Palace every day!
So, looking at Shen Yourong's old face, which was still sleepy and now looked even more confused, he added, "This is a martial art passed down by Zhang Sanfeng, the master of Wudang. He lived to be over a hundred years old because he practiced this set of boxing every day."
"Zhang Sanfeng? Zhang the Sloppy?" Shen Yourong asked doubtfully, "Is he really a real person? I've heard rumors about him for half my life at sea, things like 'the Sloppy Taoist' and 'the Living Immortal,' but I've only taken them as stories. Is it really possible for someone to live to be over a hundred years old?"
"Yes," Zhu Ming answered without hesitation.
The ability to speak without thinking is something that can be developed through practice. Anyway, no one can verify the truth or falsehood. "Zhang Sanfeng lived during the late Song and early Ming dynasties. He lived to be 140 or 150 years old and practiced Taoism on Wudang Mountain. He created this Tai Chi style, which was passed down for hundreds of years."
He paused for a moment, then took back the phrase "hundreds of years" from his lips and put it another way, "It has been passed down through several generations and has only now come into my hands."
Shen Yourong's gaze fell on Zhu Ming, her doubts deepening.
If the commander-in-chief is Man Gui, then where did he learn this skill from?
Man Gui was a fierce general from Liaodong, skilled in horsemanship; he certainly wouldn't know anything about such slow, leisurely things. He pondered this to himself, but didn't press the matter further.
"Alright, Lao Shen," Yuan Keli interrupted, seeing through his thoughts. "Just follow along with the training. Would the Commander-in-Chief possibly betray us?"
Zhu Ming ignored the two and let his movements follow his breathing as he continued practicing Tai Chi.
Before he transmigrated, he had learned a few moves in another world. He wasn't an expert, but he at least knew the basics.
In the year since he transmigrated, he has become increasingly aware that health preservation is not something to be taken lightly.
The original Zhu Youxiao was weak in constitution, and his frame was thin in his twenties. Although he practiced archery and horsemanship every day to strengthen his physique, his foundation was still weak.
I practice Tai Chi for no other reason than to live a long and healthy life, and for the Ming Dynasty to last forever!
As he thought about these things, his hands gradually quickened their movements.
Starting stance, wild horse parting its mane, white crane spreading its wings, playing the pipa... one move after another, becoming smoother and smoother.
At first, it was slow, but later it felt like there was a force running through my body, making my arms and feet walk faster and faster.
Yuan Keli could no longer keep up and gradually stopped, standing aside and watching.
Shen Yourong's hand was still raised in mid-air, and she forgot to put it down.
Zhu Ming did not stop.
His body spun around in the morning light, the hem of his robe fluttering in the wind.
The ground trembled slightly upon landing, and the dust was kicked up by the shockwave. As the shockwave reached its peak, a series of afterimages were faintly visible as the robes fluttered, as if the person was being lifted by some force and spun around in place several times, or as if the wind was just too strong and blinding.
Shen Yourong rubbed her eyes. "Is this even a set of kung fu?"
"Young people are just so young," Yuan Keli exclaimed in admiration.
After a pause, he added, "If all the generals of the Ming Dynasty had the same literary and martial skills as the Grand Marshal, why would we lack good generals?"
He paused.
He didn't say the second half of his sentence, but it went through his mind: If all the emperors of the Ming Dynasty were as capable as Zhu Ming, skilled in both literature and martial arts, and knowledgeable about things that others couldn't understand, then what was there to worry about in this world?
If he were a decade or two younger, he could still wield a sword, mount a horse, and experience the thrill of revenge on the battlefield.
If… he suddenly remembered what Zhu Ming had said earlier: that Zhang Sanfeng could live to be over a hundred years old because of this kung fu!
He is only in his sixties now, which is middle-aged compared to the rumored age. Now is the time to work hard.
Thinking of this, Yuan Keli stopped talking and resumed his stance, earnestly following along with the movements.
After a few cups of tea's time, Zhu Ming slowly finished his stance, pressed his hands down, and exhaled a breath of stale air.
Yuan Keli and Shen Yourong also stopped their movements, their faces flushed and their breathing much more even than before.
"This skill is amazing! It can mobilize a person's internal energy!" Shen Yourong said with satisfaction as she felt the changes in her internal energy.
"Of course, so the commander-in-chief wouldn't lie to us!" Yuan Keli said slowly.
Both men were military officers who spent most of their lives practicing martial arts and were extremely sensitive to the flow of energy in their bodies.
After completing a set of slow punches, I was pleasantly surprised to find that my limbs and bones felt more relaxed than before.
Of course, Tai Chi emphasizes health preservation. This set of exercises has been passed down for hundreds of years. The longevity of the old Taoist priests on Wudang Mountain is also partly due to Tai Chi.
"Generals, just follow your own pace with this kung fu routine, no need to rush!" Zhu Ming said, turning around. "Young people have their own way of practicing; health preservation is the most important thing."
To prevent the two old generals from going astray in their practice, Zhu Ming simply told them to practice Tai Chi as usual.
"What you say is absolutely right, General! I have learned a lot!" Yuan Keli immediately understood Zhu Ming's meaning and knew that the worst thing in martial arts training is to rush things.
"Okay!" Zhu Ming nodded, then said, "Let's go, let's go see your new army on the other side of the river."
Yuan Keli snapped out of his daze, stepped aside to lead the way, and said, "General, please."
Shen Yourong was still standing there, wanting to say something, but it took her several breaths before she caught up.
He quickly caught up, glancing at Zhu Ming repeatedly along the way, his lips moving again and again, but he finally didn't ask the question, because he was finally certain that the commander-in-chief was not Man Gui. So what was his background?
At this moment, on the open ground across the river, four thousand people had already lined up in formation.
This is a newly replenished army. Xiong Tingbi had previously taken 8,000 new soldiers to join the Xuanwu Guard, and Yuan Keli had added another 2,000 new soldiers in the past half month. Together with the original 2,000 men, they had reached their current size.
The new recruits stood in the back row, their skin still bearing the damp, dark tan characteristic of people from the water towns. Each of them was a skilled swimmer recruited from various places along the river.
"Commander, is there anything you need to say to the new recruits?"
Yuan Keli said to Zhu Ming.
"No need for instructions!" Zhu Ming said calmly, standing at the front of the formation. "However, a country has its laws, and a clan has its rules! So an army should have an army..."
He paused, then looked at Yuan Keli and the others.
Shen Yan, standing behind him, reacted at this moment and blurted out: "An army should have military discipline! The Ten Military Rules and the Three Main Rules of Discipline are indispensable. Without rules, there is no army."
Zhu Ming neither nodded nor shook his head.
He turned to Yuan Keli, "Master Yuan."
Yuan Keli pondered for a moment and replied, "In my opinion, it is an invincible fighting force."
Zhu Ming nodded slightly, then turned to Shen Yourong, "Master Shen."
Shen Yourong, who had been holding back for a while, immediately stepped forward. "Luxurious equipment! Without good ships and cannons, everything else is useless!"
Zhu Ming listened and nodded slightly.
"Yes, they are!"
He took a step forward, stood at the front of the platform, and looked down at the four thousand faces.
"Rules are the backbone; without rules, there is no army. Combat power is the limbs; without combat power, there is no war. Equipment is the weapons; without weapons, it is difficult to defeat the enemy."
Then, in a loud voice, he said, "But I believe that the army should have its own military song."