No taboos in the world

Chapter 4: Hung Fist
night.

Warm yellow electric lights illuminate the long table.

Hong Zhennan sat in the main seat, with his wife on his right and Hong Chen on his left.

The master's wife was holding a young baby girl in her arms, and her two daughters were sitting beside her.

"Xiao Chen, just make whatever you like to eat, just treat it like you're at home." The master's wife said in a friendly manner.

Just as Hong Chen was about to reply, Hong Zhennan said, "What do you mean by treating him like your own home? From now on, this is his home. He is my disciple, which means he is my son!"

Hong Zhennan is already quite old, but he still has no children.

The master's wife was in her early twenties and had already given birth to three children for him, which was not unusual in that era, and it was foreseeable that Hong Zhennan would continue to have children with her until he had a biological son.

It is not an exaggeration to say that Hong Chen, the only disciple, is his son.

Since ancient times, there have been many people who took an apprentice as their son.

When Hong Zhennan spoke, his master's wife certainly didn't dare to talk back, but they had a good relationship as husband and wife, so his master's wife also quietly rolled her eyes at him and picked up a piece of meat for Hong Chen.

After meal.

The master's wife made a pot of tea and carried the child back to the back hall.

Hong Chen took the initiative to stand up and pour tea: "Master, please have some tea."

Hong Zhennan hummed in satisfaction, took a sip, and looked up.

Hong Chen immediately sat up straight.

"Since I have officially accepted you as my disciple, we can't just talk about it and leave it at that. Tomorrow I will ask someone to choose a good day to hold a banquet for you to be my disciple, and invite all the martial arts colleagues to witness it. This will be polite to you, me, and the entire Hong Kong martial arts community."

"I will follow Master's instructions."

"You will live at home from now on. I will have someone buy you a set of clothes later. You are my entry-level disciple. No matter who the other disciples are, they are all your junior brothers."

"Okay, Master."

"Okay, you go down first. Get up early tomorrow and I'll teach you how to do horse stance first."

"Yes, Master!"

He followed the servant back to his residence. Although it was just a small separate room, it was enough to make him feel at ease.

The servant brought hot water, Hong Chen took a bath, changed into the new clothes that had just been delivered, lay down on the bed and fell asleep quickly.

The next day.

As the sun rose, Hong Chen had already taken up horse stance under the longan tree in the backyard of the Hong family.

Hong Zhennan stood nearby, holding a thorn stick in his hand, and walked around Hong Chen, talking as he went.

“Practice your legs first before you practice boxing. Before you learn kung fu, learn to stand still first. It’s the same no matter what kind of kung fu you are learning.”

"Knees, feet, shoulders and head are level. This is the Siping Dama. Hold your fists and hide your waist. Keep your waist straight. Now you need to stand firmly and stay still. Then you can hold an empty bowl, water and iron sand. Do this day after day until your body and horse are as strong as cast copper and iron. Only then can you be called the Tongqiao Iron Horse!"

As he spoke, he whipped Hong Chen repeatedly with the whip in his hand. The force was not strong, but it was enough to cheer him up.

"Keep your head straight, your neck straight, your chest and abdomen tucked in, your anus lifted and your waist straightened, your hips open, your shoulders lowered, and your buttocks tucked in."

"Do you understand the art of holding your chest in and stretching your back, and holding your head high? It doesn't matter if you don't understand. It's useless to just preach about these things. Once you've truly established yourself, you'll understand them sooner or later!"

Hong Zhennan took the whip in his hand, sat on the armchair opposite Hong Chen, and just stared at him quietly.

Throughout the morning, I practiced the Siping Horse intermittently.

Hong Chen felt like his legs were about to break.

After lunch, they returned to the longan tree. Hong Zhennan put down the bramble and demonstrated his skill.

It starts with the five major exercises in the basic training of Hung Gar, namely "Wu Long Pan Da", "Scholar Bowing", "Wind-Swaying Willows", "Minister Kissing Boots" and "Sideways Lying Boots".

The twelve bridge hands, namely "hard, soft, force, straight, divide, fix, inch, lift, retain, move, control, and order", are the mental method, which emphasizes understanding the principles of boxing in practice.

The Twelve Bridge Techniques, namely "penetrate, sink, divide, frame, touch, push, seek, grind, hang, bump, lock, and chop", are techniques that are mainly used in actual combat.

In Hong Zhennan, Hong Chen saw a Hung Fist that he had never seen before.

The simplest basic skills were displayed perfectly in him.

The bridge hand and bridge technique reveal the extraordinary nature of a master of Hung Gar from the inside out.

"When you can stand firmly in the Four-square Horse stance, I will teach you the I-shaped Fuhu Fist, which is the mother form of Hung Gar. It includes the bridge hand, bridge technique, and bridge horse stance. Once you have mastered the I-shaped Fuhu Fist, you can learn the Five-Shape Fist, the Tiger-Crane Double-Shape Fist, the Ten-Shape Fist, the Staff, and the Knife! After you turn 18, you can learn the Iron Wire Fist, which is a combination of internal and external training. Boy, you have a lot to train for in your lifetime!"

It looked like a pie in the sky, but Hong Chen ate it with satisfaction.

Hung Gar has three treasures.

Gongzi Fuhu Quan ranks first, because it is the mother of many Hongquan styles, and its footwork forms a "gong" shape, hence the name Gongzi Fuhu Quan.
The second is Iron Wire Fist, a high-level internal power boxing method designed for training boxers. It also incorporates many practical fighting methods and is the key to the internal and external cultivation of Hung Gar. However, Iron Wire Fist requires exerting energy and strength, and if you are not careful, you will hurt your energy. Because people's internal organs cannot fully grow until they are 18 years old, Iron Wire Fist is not suitable for children under 18 years old to practice.
The final Tiger-Crane Double Form Fist is derived from the Five Form Fist, taking the "strength" and "form" of the tiger and the "image" of the crane, combining the tiger's strength and power with the crane's flexibility and agility. It is the epitome of both hardness and softness, and is an ideal for actual combat application.

three days later.

Hong Zhennan held a banquet to recruit disciples and entertained guests. Not only did many masters in the martial arts world come, but also many Chinese businessmen came to show their support, and even a lot of foreigners came.

The name Hong Chen also became circulated in Hong Kong Island for the first time.

However, as time went by, Hong Chen always practiced hard with his master, ignored external affairs, and even stayed away from the Hong family for a long time. Therefore, except for some students of Hong Zhennan Guoshu Club, outsiders soon forgot his existence.

It took Hong Chen a full month to gain a firm foothold.

It took a year of practicing the Gongzi Fuhuquan to achieve what Hong Zhennan called "something accomplished".

Five-Shape Boxing, three months.

Tiger-Crane Double Form Fist, one year.

Ten-Shape Fist, two months.

This time refers to the time it takes to really get started and lay a solid foundation. To truly master it, you still need persistent practice.

Although Hong Zhennan does not think that persistence is the most important thing in practicing martial arts, it is definitely the most indispensable part.

At first, Hong Chen would spar with his fellow disciples in the National Martial Arts Club, but later, his only sparring partner was Hong Zhennan. In addition, Hong Zhennan strictly forbade him to fight with anyone else, not even asking for a fight.

Hong Zhennan has only one explanation for this: to practice martial arts one must be able to endure loneliness.

Furthermore, carrying a sharp weapon without having the intention to kill should be a part of practicing martial arts.

The positive spirit of Chinese martial arts, such as martial ethics, self-cultivation and chivalry, will always be its inseparable core.

Although Hong Zhennan has a hot temper and a fiery personality, he still teaches his disciples to follow traditions. I think he himself is very aware of his own shortcomings.

However, Hong Chen did know that the deeper reason was that he could not guarantee that he could perfectly control the power of his right hand at any time, and the power of his right hand did not remain the same, but increased as he grew older.

This right hand is Hong Chen's trump card, and it is also the reason why Hong Zhennan initially took a fancy to him.

Fortunately, the twelve bridge moves of Hung Gar, with hardness as the sky and softness as the ground, combined with the other ten bridge moves, are the overall strength essentials of Hung Gar. This also requires Hong Chen to hone his control over strength at all times during the practice, and now he can use it smoothly and freely.

Today, Hong Chen can confidently introduce himself to others like this:

I am a martial artist who has been practicing for two and a half years.

(End of this chapter)