"..."
Xu Yu's lips trembled slightly.
"What's wrong?"
"... Besides my mother, you're the first person to have been this good to me."
"I'm nice to you so you can help me with my work better in the future."
But I have nothing to do all day.
"You should first learn the moves I'm going to teach you; they'll be useful later."
"Um!"
"Eat it while it's hot."
"Um."
Inside the room, Xu Yu ate heartily, while Wu Shuangren watched him from the side.
While eating, Xu Yu suddenly wiped his face hard.
"What's wrong?"
"I miss my mother."
"Um."
"..."
Inside the room, neither of them spoke again.
Wu Shuangren stayed with Xu Yu until all the dishes were finished before leaving the house.
The next day at Chenshi (7:00 AM).
Wu Shuangren and Mo Zhengxing, along with Xu Yu and fifty militiamen, set off for the competition venue.
Today is the first day of the Fist King Championship.
Wu Shuangren is about to give a speech.
After leaving the Fist Academy and walking for about fifteen minutes, the group could already faintly hear the commotion coming from the boxing match ahead.
"Looks like today's going to be quite lively."
Mo Zhengxing said with a smile.
He could already imagine how much more popularity the Fist King Championship would bring to the Fist Academy!
Xu Yu, who rarely spoke, suddenly took two steps forward, his body tense, and said to Wu Shuangren, "I sense danger!"
Upon hearing this, Wu Shuangren looked at the street, which was deserted and devoid of any shops.
Without hesitation, he immediately ordered, "Everyone raise your shields and form defensive formation!"
Of the fifty militiamen brought out today, half are veterans from the earliest batch, and the other half also experienced the ambush outside Bo County that night. They are all used to obeying orders.
At Wu Shuangren's command, the fifty militiamen immediately sprang into action—
The militiamen on the outer perimeter held their shields in front of them, while those in the middle raised their shields high, covering their heads.
Just before the shield formation was fully completed.
Whoosh! Whoosh whoosh whoosh—
The sound of something cutting through the air exploded from all directions!
The restaurants, teahouses, cloth shops, grain stores... on both sides... all the second-floor windows opened at the same time, and dozens of figures leaned out from behind the windows. The crossbows in their hands gleamed coldly in the morning light, and the crossbow bolts poured down like a rainstorm, shooting towards the procession in the center of the street with a piercing whistle!
PS: This chapter has over 6000 words.
77 Forward! Forward! (Please continue reading)
Xie Mansion.
Xie Jingshan sat in the lobby, twirling two walnuts in his hands, unable to remain calm.
"Master."
The butler entered the lobby.
Xie Jingshan immediately looked at the other person, his eyes filled with undisguised eagerness.
"They've already made their move!"
The butler knew what Xie Jingshan most wanted to hear.
Xie Jingshan immediately stood up. "How is it?!"
Butler: "Specific intelligence hasn't come back yet, but all the crossbow bolts have gone off."
"Forty repeating crossbows could cripple them in a single encounter!"
Xie Jingshan murmured, as if encouraging himself.
Forty repeating crossbows—this was the Xie Clan Chamber of Commerce's most prized weapon, and he unhesitatingly brought them all out for today's ambush!
Repeating crossbows are inferior to ordinary bows and arrows in both range and power, and because they are difficult to penetrate armor, they are not used on a large scale on the battlefield.
However, its advantages lie in its simple operation, easy aiming, and fast rate of fire, making it a formidable weapon in the often unarmored battles of the martial arts world!
Small-scale, close-range, dozens of crossbows firing simultaneously, still a sneak attack.
Therefore, Xie Jingshan believed that the dozens of militiamen that Wu Shuangren had brought out should be severely injured in a single encounter!
What follows will be a massacre!
Even if Wu Shuangren is a top-notch First Rate, he can't fight against four opponents.
It's not uncommon for top-tier First Rate arts masters to drown in the martial arts world!
A little while later, someone ran in to report, "Master, the West River Gang has made a move, and a fight has broken out!"
Xie Jingshan immediately asked, "What are the casualties among the Fist Academy's personnel?"
The person shook their head. "It's still unclear."
Xie Jingshan paced back and forth in the lobby.
Today's ambush wasn't just orchestrated by the Xie Clan Chamber of Commerce, but also by the West River Gang!
However, it wasn't the West River Gang that approached Xie Jingshan; rather, it was Xie Jingshan who approached the West River Gang.
He took the initiative to visit Wu Shuangren, admitting defeat, making concessions, agreeing to cooperate in organizing boxing matches, and finally hosting a banquet for him at his home.
All these actions were intended to gradually lull the other side into a false sense of security.
From the day the Xie Clan Chamber of Commerce decided to get involved in the boxing match business, Xie Jingshan had already harbored murderous intent!
In Xie Jingshan's view, if boxing matches were done well, he could earn at least two thousand taels of silver a year just in West River Market!
If they expand further through West River Market to other areas, they will earn even more.
Such benefits are worth the Xie Clan Chamber of Commerce's all-out effort to fight for!
Ironically, the West River Gang, having been publicly humiliated and with one of its leaders dead and the other injured, didn't plan to make a move so soon.
Li Ming was persuaded by Xie Jingshan.
Individuals attacking the Fist Academy alone risk suffering excessive losses. But with the Xie Clan and the West River Gang forces, coupled with Xie Jingshan's schemes, their chances are much greater.
Xie Jingshan only regretted that Li Ming hadn't made up his mind sooner, allowing the Fist Academy to receive another 150 reinforcements.
Otherwise, this deadly trap would have been foolproof!
The Xie Clan Chamber of Commerce employs over 300 servants, of whom more than 200 have already been dispatched.
The entire 500 members of the West River Gang were mobilized!
More footsteps sounded outside, and a man came to report, "Master, the Fist Academy is now surrounded!"
West River Market only so big. Once news of Wu Shuangren and the others being attacked spreads, the militiamen who stayed behind at the Fist Academy will definitely go to their aid.
Therefore, Xie Jingshan divided today's battlefield into two locations: one was Changsheng Street, where an ambush was set up, and the other was the Fist Academy.
One hundred henchmen from the Xie Clan Chamber of Commerce and three hundred members of the West River Gang surrounded the Fist Academy, preventing the remaining militia from providing support.
Meanwhile, on Changsheng Street, the Xie Clan one hundred men and the West River Gang had two hundred men, all of whom were the most elite personnel from both sides, plus forty repeating crossbows, all of whom were determined to capture Wu Shuangren and his men!
Knock knock knock knock!
Arrows struck the round shield in rapid succession, sending splinters of wood flying.
The first volley of 120 crossbow bolts flew in!
Despite Xu Yu's advance warning and Wu Shuangren's decisive order to form a defensive formation, these militiamen were still some distance from being truly elite. The shield formation was not formed quickly enough, and some militiamen were still hit by arrows.
"Ah--!"
Screams erupted from the edge of the shield wall.
On the right, a militiaman's round shield was hit by three crossbow bolts in succession. He was so frightened that his hand trembled, and the shield tilted. As a result, the fourth crossbow bolt came through the gap and pierced his neck!
Blood gushed out like a fountain, the man's eyes widened, his spear slipped from his hand, and he fell forward. As he fell, the shield formation on the right side revealed a larger gap, and five or six more crossbow bolts pierced through.
The arrow struck three militiamen!
Fortunately, all fifty militiamen brought with them were wearing leather armor. The crossbow bolts were not very powerful, and the leather armor blocked the bolts, so there were no casualties.
But the group still became chaotic.
"Hold the shield tight and don't move!"
Wu Shuangren had already hidden inside the shield formation, activated his Internal Skill, and roared loudly:
"Fill in the empty seats!"
Under his command, the shield formation finally stabilized.
A second volley of arrows followed immediately!
This time, the ambushers adjusted their angle, specifically targeting the weakest point at the top of the shield wall.
Eventually, a few crossbow bolts still managed to slip through the gaps, and one of the militiamen next to Wu Shuangren was hit in the arm, causing the round shield he was holding to immediately begin to shake.
Wu Shuangren reacted quickly, grabbing the shield with one hand and supporting the militiaman beside her with the other, thus preventing any gaps in their ranks.
Mo Zhengxing took out a whistle from his pocket and blew it loudly.
A deep whistle echoed from afar along Changsheng Street.
After blowing the whistle and giving the signal, Mo Zhengxing was already covered in cold sweat.
This Third Master Mo was used to doing business and hadn't experienced a life-or-death struggle in many years.
Sweat beaded on Wu Shuangren's forehead. He pursed his lips and used the gaps in his shield to observe the situation outside.
This ambush was definitely premeditated. The enemy couldn't have only prepared these crossbows; there must be other enemies as well. We must return to the Fist Academy immediately.
Wu Shuangren was about to order the rear guard to become the front guard and return along the same route, but then suddenly stopped.
'If I were the enemy, I would definitely guess that my opponent's first reaction after being attacked would be to turn and run back to the Fist Academy.'
'Since the enemy ambushed us, how could the Fist Academy not have made preparations?'
'By moving the rear guard to the front, the formation changes, and gaps may appear in the shield formation, giving the enemy crossbows an opening.'
These thoughts flashed through Wu Shuangren's mind in an instant. He activated his Internal Skill and roared:
"Everyone! Maintain formation! Forward! Forward!"
The order was given, and the entire shield array began to move forward.
Wu Shuangren had extremely strict requirements for militia training, requiring at least three hours of training every day. After the veterans completed basic training, trust training, shield formations, and spear formations became the top priority.
In contrast to the rigorous training, Wu Shuangren provided him with the following treatment: three meals a day (in this era, people usually only ate two meals, and some only ate one), and he could eat meat once every three days.
Those who perform exceptionally well in training can receive extra tutoring.