Chapter 49: Taking up arms and buying horses
Upon seeing Ma Pingchuan arrive, the four burly men hurriedly bowed and greeted him respectfully, "Young Master!"
Ma Pingchuan dismounted and asked, "How is the situation? Is my father alright?"
One of them said, "The situation is not good; several experts have gone in."
Upon hearing this, Ma Pingchuan hurriedly entered the stronghold, followed by Murong Hanchan and the others. When they reached the inner hall, they saw Ma Kaitai sitting upright, with two subordinates on his right and four unfriendly guests on his left. Standing in the center was a man dressed in simple clothes, with disheveled hair, holding a light knife, his face contorted with malice, exuding a sinister air.
The man said, "Chief Ma, my brothers have short tempers and limited patience. Please agree."
Ma Pingchuan shouted loudly, "Father!"
The two subordinates on the right hurriedly stood up and bowed, saying, "Young Master!"
Ma Kaitai stood up with a smile and said, "Pingchuan, you're back!"
Upon seeing this, the person in the hall greeted Ma Pingchuan, saying, "You must be the young master of the Ma family gang. You are truly young and promising, full of vigor! I am Shi Jiquan, the leader of the Yongle Gang. Greetings, young master!"
Ma Pingchuan laughed and said, "So you are the leader of the Yongle Gang. My apologies for my disrespect!"
Shi Jiquan gestured to the four men on his left and declared, "These four are all my good brothers, and this one is Chongsheng!"
The reborn man rose and bowed. His skin was as white as a sheet, without any skin markings or body hair. He was burly, over eight feet tall, and his eyes were covered with a black cloth. Ma Pingchuan returned the bow.
Shi Jiquan: "Lü Zhong!"
Lü Zhong stood up, holding a seven-foot silver halberd in his right hand. He was handsome, tall and imposing, over seven feet tall. The two exchanged greetings.
Shi Jiquan: "British tattoo!"
Ying Qing stood up, with twin (identical) halberds tied around his waist. His face was somber, and he was tall and imposing, over seven feet tall.
Shi Jiquan: "Xiang Kui!"
Xiang Kui glanced disdainfully at Ma Pingchuan, but did not rise. He held two large, round iron hammers in his hands, each with a short handle connected by an iron chain at the end. Seeing him give a perfunctory bow while holding the two hammers, Ma Pingchuan returned the gesture with a smile.
Shi Jiquan smiled and said, "Young Master Ma, we are here today for no other reason than to buy two hundred fine horses from your gang. The old gang leader is in a bit of a dilemma. Young Master Ma, please give us some advice!"
Ma Pingchuan laughed and said, "Our Ma family gang deals in horses. As long as Chief Shi has enough money, you can take the horses away at any time."
Shi Jiquan laughed and said, "Young Master Ma, you must know about our Yongle Gang. We eat red bean paste rice, but we do hard labor. You asked us for the money for two hundred fine horses, but we don't have a single penny right now."
At this moment, Ma Heng, a subordinate of the caravan, angrily cursed, "This is a huge joke! You may not have money, but do we have horses? Bringing men to fortify the stronghold, I think you're just trying to rob us!"
Upon hearing this, Xiang Kui flew into a rage and stood up, retorting in a powerful voice, "So what if we rob you? If it weren't for the fact that your Ma family gang is considerate of the villagers and has never done anything to harm the people or seize profits, we would have already razed your village to the ground."
Ma Heng's eyes turned red as he drew his sword and said, "What nonsense! My Ma family gang is not one to be trampled on."
Ma Pingchuan hurriedly said, "Uncle Ma, put the knife away. We are businessmen, and everything can be discussed. Let's not resort to violence."
Shi Jiquan also scolded Xiang Kui, "Brother Xiang Kui, sit down first!"
Ma Pingchuan laughed and said, "Chief Shi, it's not right that you bought two hundred fine horses without paying a single penny."
Shi Jiquan laughed and said, "Young Master Ma, it's not that I don't want to give it to you, it's that I'll give it to you later!"
Ma Pingchuan asked in confusion, "Give it to me later? May I ask what the gang leader means?"
Shi Jiquan: "The world is in chaos now, with constant warfare between various factions. Some time ago, we heard that the Xiantian Sect was preparing to attack Baiyun City, and our city lord has disappeared without a trace. Both cities are already in chaos. My five brothers and I cannot bear to see the people suffer, and we want to pacify these two cities. Therefore, we need several hundred warhorses to better resist the clutches of the Xiantian Sect in the future."
Ma Pingchuan sighed, "I see. But these two hundred warhorses are no small number. Although my gang has some, if we give them to you for free, the entire Ma family gang will starve."
Shi Jiquan laughed and said, "Young Master Ma, I know you are in a difficult position, but we are determined to get these horses. If we fight to the death, it will not benefit either of us. I have an idea, I wonder if Young Master Ma and Chief Ma would like to consider it?"
Ma Pingchuan: "Master Shi, please speak freely."
Shi Jiquan loudly proclaimed, "To avoid casualties on both sides, we will each send out four people to fight, best of four rounds, with no regard for life or death."
Ma Kaitai stood up anxiously and said, "This?... How can this be!"
Ma Pingchuan was also in a dilemma. He thought: the other side was clearly trying to steal from him, but a fight to the death would not benefit either side. A duel to decide the outcome was the best strategy, but these four men were imposing and incredibly strong. How easy would it be to win three rounds in a row?
Shi Jiquan smiled and said, "Young Master, do you think Shi Mou's idea is feasible?"
Just as Ma Pingchuan was in a dilemma, Murong Hanchan, who was standing next to him, said boldly, "Okay! We'll do as Chief Shi says." After saying that, she nodded to Ma Pingchuan.
Ma Kaitai said urgently, "Hey...you..."
Ma Pingchuan understood and quickly nodded to Ma Kaitai.
Upon hearing this, Shi Jiquan politely asked Murong Hanchan, "May I ask who you are, young lady?"
Murong Hanchan smiled and said, "I am the younger sister of the young mistress of the Ma family gang, and this is my elder sister!"
After saying this, Qiu Xia blushed slightly, but still stepped forward and said in a hearty manner, "Greetings, Chief Shi. I am Qiu Xia, the young mistress of the Ma family. This is my younger sister, Xia Han!" Qiu Xia didn't know what he meant, so she just called her by her name on the spot.
Yin Xiaosheng, standing to the side, chuckled to himself, thinking, "Two more expert actors." Ma Kaitai, on the other hand, looked bewildered, wondering, "My son hasn't been seen for a few days, and he's brought several beautiful women and handsome men with him."
Shi Jiquan laughed and said, "Chief Ma, Young Master Ma, do you also agree to settle this with a martial arts contest?"
Ma Kaitai waved his hand and said, "My son will make the decision on this matter." After saying that, he sat down with his legs bent.
Ma Pingchuan said, "A promise is a promise. Best of four games. Please move to the horse racing track."
Immediately afterwards, the group marched out of the hall with imposing presence, carrying knives and weapons, and entered the horse farm.
Ma Heng looked worried and walked to Ma Kaitai's side, saying, "Brother, do we have any chance of winning like this?"
Ma Kaitai, with a roguish look on his face, said in a low voice, "So what if we don't have it? Is there a better way? If someone tries to take it by force, you still have to fight them!"
Ma Heng's eyes widened, speechless: "This..."
Ma Kaitai: "Alright, let's see how Pingchuan handles this. Perhaps his friends are quite skilled; they all carry swords, don't they?"
Ma Heng said with a look of disdain, "Just those few? Even two of them combined aren't as big as theirs, how could they possibly win! Forget it, I'll prepare first and pick out the best horses." With that, he left with a roguish look on his face.
A moment later, the horse farm was also empty. Hearing that the duel was about to begin, the brothers from the horse farm and the Yongle Gang brothers from outside the village gate flocked over. In the time it takes to drink a cup of tea, a large circle had been formed around the horse enclosure.
Murong Hanchan looked at Shi Jiquan and asked, "Chief Shi, who will fight in this first battle?"
The blindfolded reborn one said, "I'll do it!"
Ma Pingchuan added, "Then I will ask Your Excellency to give me the challenge!" With that, he leaped into the horse racing field.
Qiu Xia tried to stop Ma Pingchuan, but Murong Hanchan stopped her. Qiu Xia asked in confusion, "Little sister, why are you stopping me? This man's internal strength is formidable; Brother Ma is definitely no match for him!"
Murong Han laughed and said, "In the first round, we must let them win, and we must also make Brother Ma lose."
After thinking for a moment, Qiuxia smiled and said, "I understand!"
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