HE YAN, THE CHAMPION
Translator: Sylph
Editor: Elsa
The recruits tilted their heads to look at He Yan.
The dozen moves from earlier were too short and it was difficult for them to see who had the upper hand. Yet at this point, there was no need for bystanders to demand an explanation. He Yan forced Jiang Jiao to the edge of the arena, causing him to almost fall. Clearly, Jiang Jiao had lost.
This teenager won again.
“Brother He is so powerful,” Mak murmured, “He’s getting stronger and stronger.”
Hong Shan scratched his head, “This kid. He didn’t tell us he’s this good before.”
“It’s not the first time he’s practised with a spear.” Shi spoke up after being silent for a while, “That’s why that guy can’t beat him.”
“But that doesn’t make sense,” Hong Shan exclaimed with surprise, “Ah He is the young master of a family. Do big families usually practice crossbows and spears at home?”
It wasn’t that He Yan couldn’t hear the whispers from the recruit but this was the perfect opportunity for her. She threw the long spear to the ground and took two steps forward, “Brothers, I have won again today.”
She said this without concealing the complacency with a hint of sarcasticness on her face. It was dazzling.
“What does this brat want?” Du Mao asked.
No one knew what He Yan’s intentions were.
He Yan smiled and continued, “In the future, there might be a few more who want to challenge me. Please don’t worry as I won’t refuse to fight. But I’ll only accept one match a day.”
The corner of Instructor Liang’s mouth twitched, “This guy, does he think he could set up a ring?”
The ‘ringmaster’, He Yan, had no care about the opinions of bystanders, and said, “Whipping, knife fighting, fencing, spear fighting, sword riding, archery; everyone in the barracks are all welcome to challenge me. Don’t worry, I won’t take your dry bread if I win. Anyone willing to fight can come and duel with me.”
Even though he knew that this teenager was equipped with great skills, this sentiment was too arrogant.
“How could there be such an arrogant person?”
“He’s not modest at all. He’s only managed to outsmart people with the crossbow and spear. Has he forgotten how big the world is?”
“Could it be…does he think that we couldn’t find anyone better than him in the great Liang Zhou? There are tens of thousands of sons and daughters and not one of them can win against him?”
He Yan laughed softly and thought to herself, it’s not like there isn’t anyone who can win against her. The young master who can fight at her level is the only one who doesn’t care to fight her at all.
She stated, “A gentleman’s word is a promise. To all the instructors and brothers who are here today, I, He Yan, will keep my word! If I win, I’m entitled to a sparring match, and if I lose, brothers are free to make demands but,” She seemed awkward, “That should be impossible.”
It would be better if she hadn’t said anything. As soon as she did, there was a sudden outcry from the new recruits.
“He’s belittling us!”
“Even the Liang Zhou Guards say that ten fingers have different lengths [1], does this kid think he’s General Feng Yun?”
“Forget it, we’ll see him again in a few days. There’ll be a time when he loses his face!”
He Yan gestured arrogantly on the stage before walking down. Without slowing down, she turned to an uncertain Jiang Jiao standing on the side, “To be honest, you’re actually very good with your long spear.”
Jiang Jiao was stunned, unsure of her subliminal message.
“But you’ve met me and I’ve beaten you. It’s obvious that I’m better.” She laughed loudly and walked off stage, no longer paying attention to Jiang Jiao.
On the other end, Du Mao’s face was as deep as the darkest ocean. It was fine that He Yan competed with Jiang Jiao but He Yan had just crushed Jiang Jiao’s pride without any hesitation. Jiao Jiao would no doubt be devastated. This was not what he wanted to see.
He patted Liang Ping’s shoulder and went over to Jiang Jiao with the intention to console the new recruit who had been slaughtered like a chicken under the butcher’s knife on his first try [2]. He didn’t want to lose a potentially good seedling.
……
On the pavilion next to the arena, Cheng Lisu jumped up and down and pointed in the direction as if he was the one who had just won the duel, “Uncle, my Big Brother He has won again! He’s really good! No one can beat him!”
Xiao Jue glanced at him. Without paying attention to him and his endless praise, he turned to walk out.
Cheng Lisu remembered something and hastily ran to Xiao Jue’s side, jumping left and right, “Uncle, look at him! First in crossbow, first in spear. He’ll be first in the whip, knife and all the other weapons in the future! He’s the number one in Liang Zhou Guards…besides you…right?”
“Wait until he gets first place in everything.” Xiao Jue replied nonchalantly.
“He’s won two duels now! It’s only a matter of time before he becomes first place in the other weapon duels too. And two wins is already quite a feat, isn’t it? Uncle, look at him. How many people can we meet with such outstanding talent? Isn’t it worth putting him in your Nine Banners Battalion? Uncle, just look at him!”
Xiao Jue paused, his gaze fell onto Cheng Lisu.
Cheng Lisu was delighted, thinking he had moved Xiao Jue. In the next moment, Xiao Jue stared blankly into his eyes and slowly spoke, “You’ve been mentioning He Yan quite frequently lately and you’ve mentioned the Nine Banners Battalion twice now. You’ve never paid attention to the Nine Banners Battalion before,” He cooly continued, “Cheng Lisu, are you trying to facilitate He Yan into the Nine Banners Battalion?”
Cheng Lisu’s heart jumped, the secret was out in the open, “No, no, I just…want you to pay more attention to my Big Brother.”
“Do you think I’m stupid, or do you think you’re smarter than me?”
Cheng Lisu looked at him for a moment and hung his head in frustration, “I’m the one who’s stupid…”
“How do you know about the Nine Banners Camp?” Xiao Jue asked.
Xiao Jue’s gaze was serene and there were no signs of anger. Nevertheless, Cheng Lisu felt cold and answered honestly, “I lived next door to you before and heard Chief Instructor Shen talking to you. That’s how I knew about the Nine Banners Battalion and the plan to recruit new members from the Liang Zhou Guards, so-”
Xiao Jue laughed lightly and mocked, “So you took this news and couldn’t wait to please your ‘Big Brother’?”
“No, no. I’m also genuinely thinking for my Uncle,” Cheng Lisu hastily denied, “I’ve got nothing to do for most of my days, so I’ve spent my time walking around and looking at the recruits of the Liang Zhou Guards. Brother He’s the only one worthy of entering the threshold of the Nine Banners Battalion. The others can’t even beat my Brother He, how can they enter your fine cavalry? My conscience is loyal to you!”
After a moment of silence, Xiao Jue asked, “What did he say?”
“Huh?” Cheng Lisu was stunned at first, realizing that Xiao Jue was referring to He Yan, he replied, “After I finished speaking with Brother He, he seemed very happy. Moreover, he said that he wants to enter the Nine Banners Battalion.”
“He said ‘he wants to’?” Xiao Jue repeated his words icily.
Cheng Lisu shrank back as if a gust of cold wind blew against his neck and nodded, “Is there anything wrong with ‘he wants to’…?”
Xiao Jue chuckled lightly, his autumn water-like clear eyes floating with inexplicable emotions. After a moment, he restrained his emotions and spoke casually, “This person does not lack courage nor does he have small ambitions.”
[1] no one is perfect
[2] without spending much effort, Kill: handle, execute, do; chicken: trivial little things, small things; scalpel: people or things with powerful functions and great capabilities. It’s like doing small things without great effort.
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