The training ground of Tu Ningwei was very spacious. Since the days of guarding the border were boring and difficult, eating, drinking, whoring and gambling were all prohibited, and even making noises without reason was prohibited. There was a lack of fun, so even in the dead of winter when it was windy and snowy, there were always people competing in martial arts on the training ground.
Men competed in martial arts, horsemanship, archery, and charging into battle to kill the enemy... Especially in the military training ground competitions, which not only allowed them to determine who was better, but also had rules to follow, and were also exciting to watch. It was the greatest pleasure for the soldiers in their daily lives.
When everyone saw Guo Honglei accept the challenge, they were instantly excited. They watched him stride towards Tong Jing with his head held high, and they crowded around to watch, excitedly joining in the fun. Countless loud voices shouted, "Fight! Fight!"
"Hahaha, Captain Guo and Captain Tong are going to have a duel."
“I wonder who will win this time?”
"Captain Tong, he's a generation older and has a lot of experience."
"I'm betting on Captain Guo! Although he's young, his martial arts skills are formidable, as everyone can see."
…
The crowd was in a frenzy, arguing furiously, as if they were in the middle of a huge gambling game, and all that was missing was a waiter shouting, "Bet on Guo or Tong? Bet on it!"
The noise and chaos were overwhelming. Jiang Yushu's voice and figure were drowned out. She was terrified that their excitement would turn to anger, their duel to brawling, and they would be punished according to military regulations.
"Honglei——" She was uneasy and couldn't help but chase after him.
In the crowd, the personal guards and servants followed closely, busy making way: "Make way, make way!"
"Brother, please make way."
"Hey, stop pushing and let Mrs. Guo in!"
Tong Jing's friends and his men saw this, but they didn't dare to make a scene in front of him. Instead, they made way. Suddenly, they started whispering to each other, becoming even more excited. They started saying, "Look! That's Captain Guo's wife!"
"What does she look like? Is she pretty?"
"It's covered so tightly that you can't see the face. But judging by the posture, the face shouldn't be ugly."
"Tsk, how could she be ugly? When Captain Guo married her, the Marquis of Jingyang's mansion hadn't yet fallen. A marquis's wife must be both talented and beautiful."
"That makes sense!"
…
After a while, Jiang Yushu successfully squeezed to the front. The personal guards and servants worked together to stop her, persuading and urging her to clear a space of several feet in radius for her.
This was a battle for a man's dignity. She forced herself to remain calm, knowing she couldn't persuade him, and she couldn't persuade him. She was anxious and watched intently:
In the middle of the training ground, Guo Honglei and Tong Jing faced each other, looking at each other warily.
"Oh my, there are so many people here today, it's so lively!" Tong Jing twisted his neck, looked around, and glanced at the tall woman beside him. With a forced smile, he asked with concern, "Do you really want to compete? Your wife is waiting over there, why not do it another day? You can take her back to the city first."
Guo Honglei was young and full of passion. He was not afraid of the brutal enemy soldiers, but he was troubled by the unreasonable behavior of some of his "comrades." With a blank expression, he slowly twisted his shoulders, elbows, wrists, and knuckles, and answered loudly, "Thanks to Captain Tong for your kindness and repeated invitations. No matter how busy I am, I must make time to fight with you. Otherwise, wouldn't it seem ungrateful?"
"Hahaha, that's not true! We are all in the Tu Ning Guard. If you don't mind that I'm a rough guy, then we are brothers. There's no need to be formal between brothers. We can compete at any time." Tong Jing had already competed several times. His muscles and bones were fully exercised and his fighting spirit was high.
"What?" Guo Honglei raised an eyebrow. "Don't you dare to compete anymore?"
"Am I afraid of you?" Tong Jing raised his chin, "Whoever is afraid is a grandson!"
Guo Honglei wasn't naturally talkative, and when confronted by someone who was being unreasonable, he kept quiet. His eyes were sharp, and he asked in a serious tone, "Just one fight?"
"Tsk, let's have a competition." Tong Jing rubbed his hands ready to go.
Guo Honglei said in a resounding voice, "Alright! I'll accompany you today until Captain Tong is satisfied!"
"Stop talking nonsense and come on!" Tong Jing took the lead and took up his stance.
Guo Honglei was furious when his wife was teased. Without saying a word, he took a step forward and punched the opponent in the face, creating a gust of wind.
"Hey--" Tong Jing dodged sideways and chopped the opponent's elbow with his right palm.
In a blink of an eye, punches and kicks were flying, and the two men were fighting in a ball, and it was difficult to tell who was the winner for a while.
Jiang Yushu opened her eyes wide and watched the battle nervously, "Be careful!"
At first, she could still clearly distinguish: the tall one with broad shoulders and long legs was Honglei; the shorter one with a big and strong build was Tong Jing.
But gradually, as they fought, they moved farther away, and their moves became faster and faster. Suddenly they attacked, suddenly they retreated, suddenly they dodged and moved, and snow foam flew everywhere in the cold wind. The punches and kicks were so dazzling that it was hard to keep up.
Both sides were captains of a thousand households, wearing the same style of military uniforms, and were far away. Jiang Yushu gradually couldn't see clearly, so she blinked hard and walked forward involuntarily.
There was a flurry of chatter all around, and the soldiers were shouting and yelling, each one supporting their own formation, and shouting at the top of their lungs: "Brother Tong, knock him down!"
"Captain, be careful. He's a very good boxer."
"Legs, use your legs, force him away!"
"Quick, fight back quickly, don't give him a chance to stand up!"
"What a pity, we were one step late." The spectators sighed in regret, feeling disappointed with the match.
…
Jiang Yushu's heart was beating like a drum. It was her first time to see the daily life in the military camp. She was at a loss whether to laugh or cry. She thought to herself: So many men gathered together, they are all warlike and aggressive. If they are not allowed to vent their physical energy when there is no fighting, they will probably suffocate.
She was distracted for a moment when she suddenly saw someone being knocked down in the training ground. Immediately, cheers erupted from all around:
"good!"
"Captain Guo wins!"
"I bet on the right person, hahaha~"
"That move just now was quite neat and clean."
"Young Master wins!"
Win?
Jiang Yushu's face instantly lit up with smiles. She couldn't help but clap her hands and imitated the crowd in cheering, "Good!"
Guo Honglei looked heroic. He turned his head to look at her, smiled, and waved his hand, signaling her to step back.
"Is it okay? Is it time to go home?" Jiang Yushu asked as she backed away.
Guo Honglei knew that his opponent was very proud and competitive, and would not easily admit defeat. He shook his head and replied, "Wait a moment!"
Sure enough, Tong Jing, who had been knocked down, got up quickly, put on a relaxed smile, and started fighting again, "Brother, you have great skills. Come on, let's have another fight!"
Guo Honglei's anger had not yet subsided, and he answered loudly: "I will accompany you to the end."
Then, the two started fighting again.
Jiang Yushu's heart was in suspense again. She stared intently in the wind and snow, trying to distinguish the two figures fighting with bare hands, for fear of missing any key moves.
The training ground was bustling with activity. People kept rushing over after hearing the news, surrounding the two fighting men in three layers, with shouts of support rising one after another:
"Honglei, sweep his lower body!"
"Brother Tong, please stay calm!"
"Go ahead, punch! Punch quickly! Alas—he dodged it again."
"Knock him down, brother, I'm betting on you to win!"
…
Jiang Yushu was terrified and her ears hurt from the noise. She knew nothing about martial arts and didn't know who to listen to. She only saw that both sides were strong: Tong Jing had outstanding boxing skills, Guo Honglei had great leg skills, and they were powerful and real, with no fancy moves.
Tong Jing punched his opponent, "Fall!"
Guo Honglei dodged sideways, and when passing by each other, he kneed his opponent in the abdomen!
Tong Jing stumbled two steps, clutching his abdomen, staring intently with a dark face, "Cough, cough cough."
The rules of martial arts competitions in the military training grounds are to stop when the opponent is hit, that is, to knock the opponent down.
It's not over as long as the two are still standing.
"Oh, your martial arts are getting stronger and stronger." Tong Jing was punched in the face, and his mouth tasted blood. He turned his head and spat, saying in frustration, "I was careless!"
Guo Honglei said with a straight face, "Thank you."
"Come again!" Tong Jing roared, raised his fist and rushed forward, vowing to knock his opponent down.
Guo Honglei had previously considered the overall situation and kept a low profile, turning a deaf ear to previous provocations. However, today, since his wife was involved, he could no longer tolerate it and decided to teach the other party a lesson, so he took up the fight and gave it his all.
The crowd watching the show was extremely excited, taking it more seriously than the real person, arguing and gesticulating, wishing they could join in the fun themselves.
At the same time, the general tent
Commander Song Jikun put down his pen and asked in confusion, "What's going on outside? It's so noisy."
Accompanied by several trusted aides, he replied with a smile, "On the training grounds, it's nothing more than a duel of martial arts."
"A bunch of bastards, yelling and shouting, making a headache." Song Jikun listened and realized something was wrong. He frowned and ordered, "Old Ma, go and take a look. Be careful not to get into a fight."
"Yes." The general named Lao Ma stood up and took the order to rush to the training ground.
soon
Before Lao Ma got close, he saw a huge crowd of people cheering and clapping their hands:
"good!"
"Captain Guo won again, I bet on the right person again!"
"Hahaha, wonderful, really wonderful."
"Another match?"
…
Jiang Yushu was surrounded by cheers and discussions, and blurted out, "Stop fighting! Can we leave now?"
However, her voice was completely drowned out by the onlookers, who were eager to watch the excitement and were afraid that the world would not be in chaos, and they all started to jeer in unison:
"Another match?"
"Brothers, you haven't seen enough yet. Come on, let's have another match!"
"Go ahead and defeat him completely!"
Tong Jing lost two games in a row, and he was so embarrassed that his face turned red and his neck became thick. He was panting and shook his arms vigorously. He said angrily: "Then let's have another game!"
The north wind was biting, and Guo Honglei was sweating profusely. The sweat dried in the blink of an eye, and his anger gradually subsided. His fighting spirit was high, and he said solemnly: "Like I said, I will stick with you to the end. Please give me your advice."
"Boys, what are you shouting about? It hurts my ears. Hey, you two--" Lao Ma, who was ordered to come and investigate, was a step late. When he struggled to squeeze into the circle of people, the third competition had already begun. He could only choose to watch and ask the reason.
Jiang Yushu pursed her lips and watched the fight, clutching her cloak tightly with both hands. She tried to dissuade them, but her voice was drowned out by the raucous voices of the excited crowd. It seemed as if the next moment, the two factions in the north and south would go from bickering to cursing, and then into a brawl that would be impossible to end.
In the third game, Guo Honglei and Tong Jingjun fought for their dignity, trying their best and refusing to give in to each other.
"Go——" Tong Jing pushed with both fists, veins bulging on his neck and forehead.
Guo Honglei crossed his arm across his chest, hastily meeting the punch with his arm. He was knocked back, leaving two long boot marks in the snow. He staggered backward, swayed, and nearly fell.
Damn! Jiang Yushu held her breath, her heart almost jumping out of her throat, and she screamed, "Be careful!"
The next moment, Guo Honglei gritted his teeth, stabilized his lower body, and after removing the opponent's momentum, he did a side flip, then jumped up and kicked him in the chest!
"Ah--" Tong Jing was unable to defend himself in time and was kicked hard, falling into the snow with a "bang".
Suddenly, the crowd was extremely excited, and the Northern faction cheered wildly, "Great!"
“Wonderful, truly wonderful!”
"I knew it would be Hong Lei who would win. Hahahaha, those who bet on Tong Qianhu are going to lose miserably today."
“It’s so addictive.”
The Southern faction looked at each other in bewilderment, and said angrily, "Winning three games in a row? Is it a fluke?"
"If we play another match, he might lose."
"Our brother Tong's skills are definitely not inferior to Captain Guo's!"
…
The cheers and applause were deafening.
Jiang Yushu let out a long sigh, walked over quickly, and shouted, "We've had three matches, it should be okay now, right?"
Tong Jing slowly sat up, his military uniform covered in snow, panting heavily, his face flushed with anger and embarrassment.
"Thank you." Guo Honglei also gasped, his chest heaving violently. He clasped his fists as usual, "Captain Tong, are you okay?"
Tong Jing lost three games in a row and sat there in a mess. Although his ribs were not broken, he was in great pain. He forced himself to answer: "It's okay! Come on, let's play again--"
“Alright, alright!”
Old Ma walked over quickly, blocked Guo Honglei with his left hand, and grabbed Tong Jing with his right hand. He stood in the middle with a smile, as if nothing had happened, and said with emotion: "It's still good to be young. You are strong and energetic. You practice martial arts diligently even on snowy days. Not bad, not bad."
Guo Honglei slowly breathed a sigh of relief, regaining his composure. He then gave Tong Jing a way out and said, "Your Excellency is young and strong, and I was hoping to ask for your guidance in martial arts."
Old Ma waved his hand and replied cheerfully, "We'll spar some other day. It's too cold today. My old bones are frozen and I can't move."
Tong Jing stood aside, feeling both embarrassed and angry.
The other side
Jiang Yushu asked as she walked, "Who is that person?"
"Ma Tongzhi." Peng Changxing and others surrounded him and protected him. Mei Tianfu whispered, "He usually admires the captain very much, and he's also very good at smoothing things over."
Jiang Yushu said thankfully, "Oh, the smoother-upper is here!"
After a while, Old Ma glanced at the female official, immediately looking puzzled, and asked in surprise: "Honglei, didn't the general order you to escort Lord Jiang back to the city? What time is it now? Why is she still in the camp?"
Guo Honglei wanted to explain, "I——"
"You kid, you've been so engrossed in the martial arts competition that you've forgotten the time!" Ma Tongzhi, who was nearly fifty years old, urged without hesitation, "It's winter, the weather is short, so hurry up and set off before you travel at night."
"Yes!" Guo Honglei understood and agreed readily.
Jiang Yushu rushed over and asked with concern, "How are you? Are you hurt?"
"That's enough. How could I get hurt? I'm fine."
Jiang Yushu took out a handkerchief and wiped the snow off his face. "That was so scary!"
"What's so scary about this?" Guo Honglei smiled. "Let's go."
"Yes." She bowed to Ma Tongzhi, "Sir, goodbye."
Old Ma nodded with a smile, "Take care."
Jiang Yushu didn't even look at Tong Jing. Guo Honglei protected her and led his men to say goodbye and leave.
Humph, how ridiculous! I was careless and underestimated the enemy. Tong Jing was humiliated and secretly glanced fiercely at the backs of his rival couple. In addition to being angry, his mind was full of thoughts of how to avenge the humiliation, and he almost gritted his teeth.
A group of people walked out of the camp gate and mounted their horses.
Jiang Yushu insisted on returning the cloak, saying, "I can't ride a horse while wrapped in two cloaks."
"You should have taken a sedan chair. If I had known, I wouldn't have taught you—" Before Guo Honglei could finish his words, she whipped him:
"drive!"
Jiang Yushu took the lead, rushing into the snowstorm, and shouted happily: "Come on, let's have a horse race. The first one to enter the city wins!"
The servants and personal soldiers watched with suppressed laughter. Guo Honglei sighed, spurred his horse to chase after them, and shouted, "It's a horse race. There's no reward for winning, but there's a penalty for losing!"
Because the competition delayed the time, the group did not enter the city until nightfall.
In terms of riding skills, the apprentice was far inferior to the master. Along the way, Guo Honglei sped up and slowed down, deliberately teasing her, but when the city gate was in sight, he silently pulled the reins and let her go first.
Jiang Yushu smiled, her eyes shining. "Although I know you are giving in to me, the truth is, winning is winning, and I win!"
"Well, you win." Guo Honglei rode closer, "I admit defeat."
"Hahaha~" Jiang Yushu continued to move forward, rushing towards home, "Let me think about how to punish you!"
Unexpectedly, when the group dismounted and stepped into the yard, Jiang Yushu looked up and unexpectedly found a guest standing at the door of the hall——
The author has something to say: Onlookers: Fight, fight, fight! A few more matches, I haven’t seen enough [eating melons excitedly]
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