"This brave man is truly incredibly strong, a natural genius. We two admire him greatly." After the others left, the two servants stepped forward, clasped their hands in a salute to Wang Han, and praised him. Then they asked, "May we ask where you currently hold a position, sir?"
"I'm just a free man now, and I don't want to get involved in those complicated matters," Wang Han said, shaking his head, already knowing the purpose of the two men staying behind.
"The Yellow Turban Rebellion has just been quelled, but many remnants remain. The court is in dire need of capable men. If you, sir, were to serve the court, it would be a matter of upholding the Han dynasty, a matter of justice, and a matter of course for a man. It is certainly not a matter of right or wrong." An official, understanding the refusal in Wang Han's words, countered Wang Han in the name of the Han dynasty and then invited, "Sir, would you be willing to serve the court?"
"I'm used to a leisurely life and don't want to travel around. You two should go back," Wang Han said, shaking his head. The Han dynasty is now corrupt and incompetent, the people are suffering, and warlords are rising up everywhere. Wang Han has no intention of restoring the Han dynasty, much less pledging allegiance to anyone and entrusting his life to another.
“A man should strive to achieve great things and bring glory to his family. How can he be idle and accomplish nothing?” The official was unwilling to leave just like that and continued, “Since you do not yet have a high position, why not serve my lord and the Han Dynasty? With your talent, you will surely be valued by my lord and bring honor to your ancestors.”
“Now I have no worries about food, clothing, or expenses. I am the only one in my family. If I were to die on the battlefield, leaving no descendants, wouldn’t that be extremely unfilial? How could I bring honor to my ancestors? Establishing merit and bringing glory to one’s family is useless if there are no descendants. So I appreciate your kindness.” Wang Han shook his head and refused without even asking who their lords were.
"You, sigh!" Seeing that they couldn't persuade Wang Han, the two officers could only sigh and leave, preparing to report to their lord and let him figure out a solution himself.
After the two officials left, the remaining burly man stepped forward, clasped his hands in greeting to Wang Han, and said, "My name is Zhang Shan. I have practiced martial arts for some time and would like to stay as a retainer. Is that possible?"
“Of course, but you’ll need to show off a few skills,” Wang Han nodded and said.
“I am no match for you, but it is feasible to fight him,” Zhang Shan said, pointing to Li Si.
"Alright, but stop there. Don't let things get out of hand." Wang Han nodded, gave this instruction, and then stepped aside to watch.
After exchanging fist salutes, Zhang Shan and Li Si set up their stances in the courtyard and, without saying much, began to spar with each other using the various martial arts techniques they had learned.
Wang Han watched with great interest, secretly memorizing many of their moves. He was just waiting to practice them himself in the mountains the next day.
After exchanging forty or fifty moves, Zhang Shan's martial arts skills proved superior, and he subdued Li Si.
"Good, you do have excellent martial arts skills." Wang Han said happily, "Zhang Shan, you can stay here from now on. You can live in the room next to Li Si. You two should get to know each other better in the future."
"Thank you very much, host." Zhang Shan quickly clasped his hands in thanks to Wang Han.
"It's late tonight, so everyone should go back and rest early," Wang Han said, and then returned to his room. The servants who had been watching the commotion dispersed when they saw there was nothing more to see.
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The next day, Wang Han got up early, watched Zhang Shan and Li Si practice martial arts for a while, then took the second set of miniature weapons he had made and ran away from Luoyang City to the mountains to continue his training.
In Luoyang, just as Wang Han had predicted, as the sun rose and people came out to work, news spread that Wang Han could single-handedly lift a 6,000-jin (approximately 3,000 kg) sledgehammer. He was hailed as the strongest warrior of his time, possessing the strength of ten thousand jin (approximately 5,000 kg), unmatched by anyone in the world. However, apart from those who witnessed it firsthand, almost no one else believed it. The weight was simply too exaggerated. Even Xiang Yu, the Hegemon-King of Chu, could only lift a 1,000-jin (approximately 500 kg) cauldron; Wang Han's weight was six times that of Xiang Yu, and he did it with one hand.
Many people wanted to come and see him in person, but apart from a few powerful and wealthy people, most ordinary people were stopped at the door by Li Si and his companion and could only wait outside for Wang Han to return.
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At night, Wang Han ran into Luoyang City just as the city gates were closing.
The entrance to the courtyard that Wang Han bought was almost completely blocked by busybodies. After finally squeezing his way to his own courtyard, Wang Han saw that the entrance was guarded by Zhang Shan and Li Si, along with a dozen soldiers.
"Master, you're finally back." Li Si rushed to greet Wang Han upon his return and said hastily, "General He Jin has been waiting for you in the courtyard for quite some time."
"General He Jin, I didn't expect to have startled him here. I understand." Wang Han nodded upon hearing this, straightened his clothes, and walked into the courtyard.
As soon as Wang Han entered the courtyard, he saw more than twenty soldiers struggling to lift their drumsticks with several wooden sticks in the center of the courtyard. A middle-aged man, eight feet tall and with a burly build, was watching with several generals.
"General, he is the brave man who can wield these two great hammers." Upon seeing Wang Han enter, the two officials who had left helplessly the day before quickly said to General He Jin.
"Can someone as thin as him really lift those two sledgehammers? I just had someone measure them myself; each sledgehammer weighs over six thousand jin (approximately 3,000 kg), and it would take twenty soldiers working together to lift them," He Jin said skeptically, looking at Wang Han as he entered. He wouldn't have come today if these two officers hadn't risked their lives to vouch for the rumors.
"General, we two men witnessed it with our own eyes yesterday. It was indeed this man who easily lifted those two hammers." Upon hearing this, the two officers said with absolute certainty.
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