Crouching and Rising, Body Like a Galloping Horse (1)

No. 33, Jin Dong Street.

This was a large courtyard, more than twice the size of the place Lin Zheyu rented.

From the outside, the house looked exquisitely built. It had to be expensive; he just did not know whether Master Liang rented it or had bought it.

Knock, knock.

Knock, knock, knock.

Lin Zheyu knocked rhythmically.

Before long, the door creaked open.

Liang Song limped over to answer it, then turned and went back to watering the flowers.

The courtyard was filled with purple flowers, and a refreshing fragrance lingered in the air, pleasant to the nose.

The plants' leaves were lush and emerald-green. Their blossoms were large and strange, like colorful butterflies in flight, rich in hue and beautiful to behold.

"Don't touch anything. Find yourself a place to sit."

Just as Lin Zheyu eagerly stepped forward to help water the flowers, Liang Song stopped him.

He treasured these flowers and did not want Lin Zheyu, who knew nothing about flowers, to harm them.

Lin Zheyu silently sat down beside the stone table in the courtyard.

Master Liang watered the flowers for over an hour before finally walking over and sitting across from Lin Zheyu with satisfaction.

He limped as he walked, looking like a scruffy Old Man without the slightest bearing of a martial arts master.

"You don't need to be so stiff. Relax."

"You even brought meat. That was thoughtful."

"We don't go in for formal apprenticeship rites here. Besides, I haven't decided to take you as my disciple yet."

Liang Song glanced at the things Lin Zheyu had brought on the table and said with a smile.

He had merely acted on a whim and planned to teach him some rudimentary martial arts. How much Lin Zheyu could learn would depend on his comprehension.

Lin Zheyu smiled but said nothing. He picked up the brewed tea on the table and obediently poured Liang Song a cup.

"Practicing martial arts depends on comprehension, perseverance, and resources."

"Your physical foundation is far too poor. You need to nourish yourself for a while first."

Liang Song accepted the tea Lin Zheyu handed him, snacking on the pastries Lin Zheyu had brought as he spoke with interest.

He liked the stories Lin Zheyu told. They were quite interesting, and many of the characters in them suited his taste.

The only problem was that they reeked too much of bookish sentiment. The protagonists were all scholars—indecisive and tiresome to listen to.

If it were up to him, Yan Chixia should be the protagonist. That would be the proper thing.

"Mm-hm. I've earned some money lately, and I've already started nourishing my body," Lin Zheyu said with a nod.

"That's not enough. Nourishing your body requires both eating and training."

Liang Song said flatly, "Your foundation is terrible. You've never practiced martial arts, and you hardly exercise. Your waist, legs, and feet are all weak and loose."

"A towering building rises from level ground. If you want to master martial arts, you must begin with the most basic stance training."

Liang Song walked to the center of the courtyard.

He swung his arms loose, bent his knees halfway, pushed both hands forward, and moved his body slightly up and down, like ripples stirred by a gentle breeze.

"Learn from me."

"This is one of the basic stance techniques: the Horse Stance."

Lin Zheyu walked over and copied Liang Song's posture. He half-squatted, stretched his arms straight out, posed as though riding a horse, and rose and fell.

"Your movements are wrong."

"As the name implies, the Horse Stance is a stance technique comprehended from riding a horse. Even when standing, you must rise and fall as one, as though you are standing a horse into being from thin air."

"Imagine that you are riding a horse, galloping at full speed. Let your feet become the galloping steed rising and falling beneath you, and merge the horse into your waist and legs."

Liang Song spoke softly.

His body rose and fell. Between each high and low movement, he truly seemed to be astride a fine steed, urging it into a gallop.

After demonstrating for a while, he walked to Lin Zheyu's side and instructed him. "Curl your five toes against the ground, raise your knees naturally..."

"As your body rises and falls, constantly shift your center of gravity..."

Following Liang Song's guidance, Lin Zheyu gradually got onto the right track.

Whenever one of his postures was wrong, Liang Song would flick out a small pebble and strike the spot where he was applying force incorrectly.

Before long, Lin Zheyu had learned how to hold the Horse Stance.

The moment he began standing it, he could not last ten minutes before his whole body trembled and he dropped onto the ground on his backside.

"Go back and practice."

"Come find me again once you can hold the Horse Stance for one shichen."

"If you cannot manage it within a month, then there is no need to come back."

Liang Song waved his hand, telling Lin Zheyu to leave.

He did not teach just anyone. He found Lin Zheyu pleasing to the eye, so he had given him an opportunity.

But whether he would teach him or not depended on Lin Zheyu himself.

If he did not even have the perseverance to practice stance work until he could hold it for one shichen, then there was no point in teaching him.

"Yes, Master."

Lin Zheyu rose to his feet on trembling legs.

His body was too weak. He had held the Horse Stance for less than ten minutes before he could no longer endure it.

Lin Zheyu did not leave immediately. Instead, he respectfully asked, "Master, do you have any medicinal soup formulas or medicinal bath recipes that can help the body recover quickly?"

It was difficult to learn the Horse Stance to the point of holding it for one shichen within a month.

One shichen was equivalent to two hours. Right now, even running for thirty minutes was a struggle for him.

Moreover, Lin Zheyu's physical foundation was too poor. Without the aid of medicinal baths or soup formulas, it would be far too difficult.

"Yes, but formulas like that are expensive. One dose costs over one tael of silver, and that is only for the most basic formulas."

"I'll give you a formula for replenishing qi and strengthening the blood. Just take it to a medicine shop and have them prepare it."

"This formula should cost a little over one tael of silver. Don't let them overcharge you."

Liang Song had Lin Zheyu go inside for pen and paper, then began writing with the vigor of dragons soaring and phoenixes dancing.

Liang Song's handwriting was just like the man himself—wild and uninhibited, with a touch of roughness. And amid that roughness... all right, he could not keep praising it.

Liang Song's handwriting was awful.

Who said an expert's handwriting had to be beautiful?

Lin Zheyu stared at Liang Song's writing and had to put in quite some effort before he could make out what it said.

"Thank you, Master!"

Lin Zheyu accepted the formula and said respectfully.

After bidding Liang Song farewell, he headed straight for the medicine shop.

"Martial arts truly are for the rich, while scholars stay poor. One formula alone costs a tael of silver."

Lin Zheyu sighed.

Only because his storytelling had gained some fame had it become easier for him to make money.

For ordinary people, earning roughly one tael of silver a month was enough only to buy a single medicinal soup formula.

Including the more than three hundred copper coins he had earned today, Lin Zheyu had saved over eighteen hundred copper coins.

At the current rate, more than fifteen hundred copper coins could be exchanged for one tael of silver. The money on Lin Zheyu's person was only enough to buy one dose of the formula.

Passing by a medicine shop, Lin Zheyu went in and bought a dose of medicinal ingredients.

The ingredients for such a basic Replenishing Qi and Nourishing Blood formula could be found in almost every medicine shop.

It was about as Master Liang had said. One dose of medicinal ingredients cost him one tael of silver plus one hundred and twenty copper coins.

The other party had initially asked for one tael of silver plus five hundred copper coins, but after bargaining, Lin Zheyu got it reduced by more than three hundred copper coins.

That was equivalent to more than a day's income for him.

After returning home, he washed the medicine pot he had just bought, filled it with water, added the ingredients, and simmered them over a low flame.

Brewing medicinal soup was not as difficult as he had imagined. As long as he controlled the heat, all he had to do was wait patiently.

One dose of Replenishing Qi and Nourishing Blood ingredients could be brewed three times. After each brewing, the remaining medicinal potency would rapidly decline.

Brewing the medicinal soup took a long time. Taking advantage of the gap, he went into the courtyard and began holding the Horse Stance.

His toes gripped the ground as his body rose and fell like he was riding a horse, his gaze fixed on the distance.

His body was weak, and at present he could only hold it for around three or four minutes at a time.

Each time Lin Zheyu persisted until his legs went soft and he could not help sitting down, he stretched his muscles and bones and rested for a while.

Once he had recovered some strength, he continued holding the stance.