A Gathering of Heroes series: Anhu

Chapter 8 (Zhang)

"So Ren-shifu stared down that guy from the Howling Tiger School and gave him a good whooping for calling him 'a charlatan who waves his daggers around to look pretty'..." Liu Ganzorig exaggerated as he demonstrated the moves much to his steed's consternation. Wei, beside him on her horse, laughed like a bell twinkling in the wind. I smiled, watching Wei absorbed in his lively narrative. That was Ganzorig for you; a carefree, but skilled young man – with a penchant for drinking and pranks – hailing from the Khitan tribe up in the northwestern desert.

Ren-shifu was considered eccentric by many masters for taking in students of various backgrounds and offering to teach nobles self-defense. This practice was frowned upon by the old masters who felt that taking money for their services was an insult to their art. Of course, there were others charged exorbitant fees and cheated their students by teaching them basic forms that could be found in any beginner's guide to martial arts sold in bookstores.

To shifu's credit, he tested all potential students before deciding if he would accept them. He made no exceptions for the nobles. As for compensation, he was practical, preferring goods or enough money to run his school. Certainly, there were times when his actions were questionable, such as the time he bought several bottles of rice wine with the money; on the whole, he did not deceive his students and sought to challenge them to overcome their shortcomings.

The annual martial arts tournament had occurred last month, according to Ganzorig. It was held to determine the rankings of individual martial artists and schools. I had forgotten about it, but I had never participated in one since my father had forbidden me. Oh well.

I turned to Xuan An, a comely young woman from the neighboring western county, to my left and asked, "How did the two of you fare this time?" An was a renowned user of hook swords, a pair of deadly weapons that required skill to wield without injuring oneself. An grinned. "I rose up two ranks this time and made it to the semi-finals. That lazy guy over there only rose one rank, but still managed to score above average in the 'Multiple Weapon challenge.' I was pretty sure if he tried a little harder, he could have topped everyone."

Ganzorig made a noise of protest when he heard An's comment. Leaning over, An winked at me and whispered, "I think he was distracted by the Lady Dragoness and held back. You remember how he tried to woo her a few years ago?" Yes, I remembered. It was a silly affair involving much moping and sighing that even Ren-shifu did not know what to do with him.

Shaking my head, I commented, "Ah, the passion of youth!" We all laughed.

Ganzorig tried to defend himself. "That's not fair! There were a lot of tough competitors this year. We probably should have asked Wei to join in and represent the school as well. With Wei, An, and me, we probably could have scored higher."

"Point taken," I said laughing. "Besides, I am glad that both of you are here with us."

"Well, shifu did give us a choice..." An said, trailing off. She slowed her horse to a walk. The rest of us slowed our horses as well. We were now on the rocky plains that marked the outskirts of the woods that surrounded shifu's academy. It was midday now with the sun shining high. I lowered the brim of my traveling hat with my hand to shield my face from the sun.

"Shifu did say that we would be undertaking a journey of sorts and that we truly have to be prepared for any danger. It won't be like training." She paused, adjusting her bamboo hat.

That was somewhat foreboding, I thought.

"I did hear about your sister, and I know what it is like to lose someone close to you. I will do what I can to help you, Huizhong. I can do at least that much to help a friend who helped me overcome a tough time." An squeezed my shoulder reassuringly.