Traveling back to 1977

Chapter 790 The Plan Changes

On the eaves of the main house, a row of chairs was placed. Zhou Yali and the other two sat to Chen Fan's right, while Yang Zhenlong sat to his left. All of them were watching the figures on the threshing floor.

The others were scattered around. Yang Congling, holding a steel sword, bowed and said, "Yang Congling, the sixth-generation successor of Yang-style Tai Chi, requests guidance from Director Chen."

After saying that, he held the sword in his right hand, made a sword gesture with his left hand, and began to slowly wield the sword.

Yang-style Tai Chi traces its lineage back to Yang Luchan, who was once invincible in Beijing. His son, Yang Banhou, passed the art to Li Wancheng, who in turn passed it on to Yang Zhenlong. This marks the fourth generation of Yang-style Tai Chi.

Yang Congling is Yang Zhenlong's granddaughter, and therefore the sixth-generation successor.

Although Yang-style Tai Chi is famous for its fist techniques, it also uses weapons, such as the Tai Chi sword and Tai Chi saber, which are the most common short weapons in the Tai Chi lineage.

In addition, there are Tai Chi spears and Tai Chi sticks as long weapons. These are the four common types of Tai Chi weapons.

As Yang Congling and Yang Chenfeng had guessed correctly, Chen Fan wanted to select actors who knew kung fu, so he would definitely test their kung fu skills. Therefore, the first step in selecting actors was to have them perform a set of kung fu that they considered to be the best they had ever practiced.

Yang Congling was the first to sign up, and therefore the first to go on stage.

She held a long sword, her body moving slowly with the sword.

At the beginning, it was similar to the posture of Tai Chi routines. Apart from the fact that the whole body's strength was as one and the whole body was affected by the movement of one part, which deeply embodied the essence of Tai Chi, "one part is still, but when one part moves, the whole body moves", it was almost no different from the elderly people practicing routines in the park.

However, once her body was warmed up, Yang Congling began to speed up.

The sword light grew faster and faster, like a silver dragon coiling around his body, sometimes rising up and sometimes disappearing. For a moment, sword energy crisscrossed half the arena, accompanied by the gleaming sound of longswords.

Zhou Yali sat next to Chen Fan, feeling very curious. She leaned slightly towards Chen Fan and asked in a low voice, "I see other people practicing Tai Chi very slowly, how come she can practice Tai Chi sword so fast?"

At this moment, Yang Congling's sword dance speed was almost as fast as Aunt Lan's Bagua saber.

It is important to know that Bagua is known for its flexibility and speed, especially its knife skills, which are the foundation of Bagua weapons, as Bagua Palm originated from knife skills.

Aunt Lan practiced Baguazhang her whole life. Apart from a few older people, almost no one in the Zhou family could match her speed. At this moment, Yang Congling's swordsmanship was comparable to Aunt Lan's, which shows that her kung fu foundation was indeed profound.

The situation before her eyes was truly eye-opening for Zhou Yali.

It's so different from what I usually see and hear.

Hearing her question, Chen Fan, whose gaze remained fixed on Yang Congling, simply smiled and said softly, "Tai Chi is slow because it's for better understanding of internal energy, and it's also a method of training and cultivating internal energy. If you're still so slow in a real fight, who can you beat?"

Yang Congling is now using the true Tai Chi secret sword technique, which can be used in battle to kill enemies, not just a purely health-preserving exercise.

Grandmaster Yang Chengfu, the grandson of Grandmaster Yang Luchan and a renowned Tai Chi master, once described Tai Chi sword as having "sword energy like a rainbow, sword movement like a dragon, a unity of sword and spirit, and boundless mysteries."

Take another look; doesn't it perfectly match Yang Congling's swordsmanship at this moment?

On Chen Fan's other side, Yang Zhenlong naturally heard his words clearly, and immediately the corners of his mouth turned up, showing a bit of pride.

It seems that this Master Qinglian is quite knowledgeable about my Yang-style Tai Chi.

However, since they weren't talking to him, it wouldn't be appropriate for him to say even a few polite words. So, he could only smugly change his posture and continue watching.

Zhou Yali's facial features twitched slightly. She looked at him for a while, winking and making faces, then gently shook her head and said, "I can't tell."

Chen Fan sighed inwardly, looked past her at Jiang Tiantian, and said softly, "Tiantian, can you tell?"

Jiang Tiantian pondered for two seconds, her brows furrowing slightly. "I can tell, and this woman's skills are better than mine. I'm no match for her."

This time, Yang Zhenlong couldn't hold back any longer. He turned to Chen Fan and asked, "Master Chen, I just saw your female companions. They seemed to have Bagua Sect skills. I wonder how many years they've practiced and who their teachers are?"

Chen Fan turned around and smiled, "I didn't have a master. I just saw that they were physically weak, so I simplified a part of Baguazhang and taught it to them. It was mainly for strengthening their bodies and protecting themselves."

They hadn't been training for very long; they only really started practicing boxing around this time last year, so they naturally couldn't compare to the top disciples of the Yang family.

This time last year?
That was a year? And he practiced Baguazhang, which Chen Fan himself had adjusted?

Is it so easy to create a new style of boxing?
However, thinking of Chen Fan's kung fu, he fell silent again.

Even if it's a martial art created by a grandmaster, how can someone who has only practiced it for a year compare to Yang Congling, who started practicing martial arts at the age of 5, has been practicing for thirteen years, and is practicing the secret Yang family tradition, and has more than a dozen masters to spar with?

Yang Zhenlong's face twitched a few times, and he said with a stiff smile, "Okay, very good."

Aside from polite words, he didn't know what else to say.

You shouldn't have asked!

Jiang Tiantian had no idea that her words had almost provoked Yang Zhenlong.

After they fell silent, she whispered, "But I think she seems to have hit a bottleneck and hasn't broken through for a while. If she hasn't broken through within six months, I'm confident I can beat her."

Upon hearing this, Yang Zhenlong was stunned. He turned to look at her, unsure of what to say.

First of all, she was right about one thing: Yang Congling had indeed been stuck for two or three years without making any progress and was unable to break through.

As is well known, Xingyi has three stages of skill and three training methods. The three stages of skill are Yi Gu (changing bones), Yi Jin (changing tendons), and Xi Sui (washing marrow), and the three training methods are Ming Jin (manifested strength), An Jin (hidden strength), and Hua Jin (transforming strength).

Tai Chi is similar, with almost identical three-step techniques. However, since Tai Chi originated from Taoism, it adds a later stage of refining the spirit and returning to emptiness. The only difference between it and Xingyi Quan lies in the training method, but in reality, the differences are not significant.

Similarly, without reaching the Yi Jin Jing (Muscle/Tendon Changing Realm), one cannot develop internal strength.

More than two years ago, Yang Congling reached the peak of the Bone Transformation stage, but he was still unable to break through to the Tendon Transformation stage.

If Chen Fan had figured it out, Yang Zhenlong wouldn't have been surprised at all. But even a young girl like Jiang Tiantian could figure it out and be so sure that she could surpass Yang Congling in six months?

Doesn't this mean she's confident she can reach the Dark Force level in six months?
It's just that Yang Zhenlong didn't grow a beard, otherwise he could have plucked a huge handful by now.

Seeing his bewildered expression, Chen Fan didn't say anything more. He simply kicked his foot lightly, and a small stone on the ground flew towards Yang Congling, hitting her sword squarely.

The impact shattered her force, leaving Yang Congling frozen in place, staring blankly at Chen Fan, somewhat at a loss.

Chen Fan immediately whispered, "Unending spirit, continuous and unending."

Yang Congling's eyes lit up instantly, and she resumed her sword dance.

The others looked at Chen Fan with surprise.

Chen Fan smiled slightly, looked down, and saw that there were no more pebbles on the ground. The Yang family had done a thorough cleaning yesterday in preparation for his visit; even that one pebble had slipped through the net. There were no stones left for him to kick.

But it didn't matter, he always carried a small bag of carefully selected pebbles with him, grabbed two in his hand, and tossed one away with a whoosh.

Yang Congling's sword dance was interrupted again, but this time she did not stop. Instead, she adjusted her moves according to the force of the stone's impact, allowing her swordplay to continue uninterrupted.

At this moment, Yang Zhenlong also saw the problem and immediately nodded and smiled, "You're blinded by a leaf. If Abbot Chen hadn't pointed it out, I wouldn't have realized where her problem lay."

Chen Fan smiled and said, "Senior, you flatter me. This is no longer the chaotic world of the past. Nowadays, martial arts practitioners cannot use their fists and feet to hurt people at will, so they naturally neglect practical combat training. However, martial arts are born from practical combat. Take the Fanzi Chuojiao Fist for example. If you don't consider the consequences, I'm afraid even the three major internal martial arts styles would suffer if they faced it."

Without real combat experience, it's easy to master the form of kung fu but lose its essence, making it extremely difficult to achieve a breakthrough.

But once this is revealed, it's just a natural progression, nothing special.

Yang Zhenlong nodded slightly upon hearing this, "What Abbot Chen said is quite right, however..."

He shook his head halfway through his sentence and didn't continue.

But Chen Fan understood what he meant.

Even if you practice in real combat, what good is it? It's just a dragon-slaying technique, good for show.

Peaceful and prosperous times are a great blessing for ordinary people, but a great misfortune for martial artists; such things are hard to explain.

Unless they all join the army, but even if they were willing, the army might not necessarily accept them.

Now, firearms reign supreme; times have changed!
Chen Fan pulled himself out of his thoughts and looked at Yang Congling again. At this moment, her swordsmanship had become more agile. Only now did her swordsmanship truly conform to Yang Chengfu's words: "Sword energy is like a rainbow, sword movement is like a dragon, sword spirit is one, and mystery is endless."

After Yang Congling performed the sword technique several times and then slowly finished, a round of enthusiastic applause rang out from the sidelines.

She first held the sword hilt upside down, then bowed to Chen Fan, saying, "Thank you for your guidance, Abbot Qinglian."

At this point, since it is a discussion of martial arts, someone should be addressed as the Abbot.

When we talk about the film, we can address him as Director Chen.

Chen Fan smiled and waved his hand, "It was nothing, not worth mentioning."

Yang Congling bowed again before skipping and jumping to Yang Chenfeng, laughing heartily, "Third Brother, I caught up with you!"

Yang Chenfeng smiled and nodded, then picked a long sword from the weapon rack, strode to the center of the courtyard, clasped his hands in a salute to Chen Fan, and said, "Director Chen, I am Yang Chenfeng, the sixth-generation successor of Yang-style Tai Chi. Please give me your guidance!"

At this moment, his slight resentment had vanished without a trace. After Chen Fan nodded in confirmation, he began to practice Tai Chi sword seriously.

This is one of the reasons why Chen Fan specifically instructed Yang Congling.

One reason was to support Jiang Tiantian and prove that she wasn't exaggerating, that she could make Yang Congling cross the border immediately, and that she could make Jiang Tiantian reach the level of internal strength within six months.

Another reason was to establish authority.

Establishing authority doesn't necessarily require physical force; demonstrating one's strength is also a method.

Look, this young man who was a bit arrogant just now is now very well-behaved. The others also have a sense of awe in their eyes, unlike before when most of them were just curious, and some young people were even eager to try.

Want to challenge yourself or what?
When dealing with martial artists, you can't do without establishing your authority.

Without further ado, eighteen out of the thirty-odd members of the Yang family signed up and each performed their signature skill.

After reading the list, Chen Fan did not make a decision on the spot. Instead, he said to Yang Zhenlong, "Senior, in addition to the Yang family, I have also made appointments with several other families. We will decide on the final list after we have discussed all of them."

Yang Zhenlong immediately nodded, "Yes, I understand. It's about choosing the best of the best, that's only right."

He then chuckled and said, "But I have confidence in the younger generation in my family. I'm not bragging, but among the martial arts practitioners in the capital, there are very few who can defeat them. If it were a real fight, Yang-style Tai Chi would be fearless!"

He paused for a moment, then quickly added with a laugh, "You're not included, but you're the director, so you won't be participating either."

Chen Fan echoed with a smile, "Yes, yes, I also have confidence in the Yang family's descendants."

After saying that, he raised his wrist to check the time, stood up, and said, "I have another client to visit, so I won't bother you any longer..."

As soon as he stood up, Zhou Yali, Jiang Tiantian, and Jiang Lili next to him also stood up.

Before Chen Fan could finish speaking, Yang Zhenlong stood up and said, "Master Chen, I'd like to ask, you sent out so many invitations just for this one thing?"

Chen Fan smiled and nodded, "There was nothing else to do. I don't really understand the old customs, but my master said that if we want to be more formal, we should send out visiting cards, so I sent them all."

Yang Zhenlong laughed and said, "Hey, it's not that complicated now. It's just that your invitation card startled a lot of people. They thought you were up to something."

After a pause, before Chen Fan could speak, he continued, "Well then, Abbot Chen, I have a suggestion. What do you think?"

Chen Fan immediately raised his hand in a salute, "Please speak."

Yang Zhenlong laughed and said, "I, Old Yang, still have some influence in the martial arts world of Beijing because of my age. As for you, you can stay here in peace. Although my Yang family is not a wealthy family, we can still afford to treat you to a meal."

Otherwise, if you come and leave without even eating a bite, people will say that the Yang family doesn't know how to behave.

As for the other families, you might want to change your plans. I'll contact them and invite them all over so we can select everyone this afternoon.

If there's not enough time, we can add tomorrow at most, which will save you the trouble of visiting each house individually, wasting time and energy, which isn't worthwhile.

Chen Fan's eyes lit up when he heard this; if it were possible, he would definitely be more than happy to do so.

He immediately replied, "That would be wonderful, but is this proper etiquette?"

If I send a visiting card but don't go, won't they be angry?
"Hey, didn't I just say that times have changed, we don't need so many rules anymore?"

Yang Zhenlong grabbed Chen Fan's wrist, turned around and walked into the house, saying, "Just stay here with me and I'll arrange for someone to invite them from over there."

"If you're worried, if someone doesn't come, or has a problem with you, you can simply visit them on another day. But in my opinion, no one in this capital has ever dared to offend both of us at the same time."

Chen Fan: "Then I'll follow your instructions, senior!"

(End of this chapter)