Observing Wanfa from the martial arts school servants

Chapter 26 River Source Chronicle

Lin Mu stopped at the door of the side room, straightened his sleeves, and then went inside.

Inside the room, Zhao Rong sat behind his desk, his mustache meticulously combed. He looked up from the file and sized him up.

"You're Lin Mu?"

"Yes."

"Junior Lin Mu greets Lord Zhao."

Zhao Rong put down his pen, leaned back in his chair, crossed his hands in front of his abdomen, and looked at Lin Mu from head to toe with eyes like two rulers.

"Why did you choose to become a minor clerk?"

Lin Mu replied, "I'm interested in martial arts and want to find a part-time job that's close to it."

Zhao Rong nodded slightly, then asked, "The monthly salary here is only one tael. You're a Ming Jin martial artist; you could easily find three to five taels for any job outside. Are you content with that?"

Lin Mu paused for a moment and said, "There are no elderly people in my family who need to be supported. I only need to eat my fill. My monthly allowance is enough to make ends meet."

Zhao Rong frowned and examined it for a moment, then pulled a blue booklet from the desk and threw it in front of Lin Mu.

"Copy this entire 'Heyuan Chronicle'."

"The original copy must be submitted to the imperial court, and the Palace Guard must keep a copy."

Lin Mu flipped through the "Heyuan Gazetteer," which recorded the history, geography, customs, taxes, and population of Heyuan County...

There are no records of martial arts from various schools and sects.

Without asking any further questions, he began grinding ink, laying out paper, and picking up his brush.

The pen tip scratched across the paper.

Heyuan County Gazetteer, Volume 1

Heyuan County was formerly known as Yongye County.

It is nestled against towering mountains to the north and bordered by a secluded forest to the east. The forest is so dark that it is as dark as night during the day, hence its name, Eternal Night Forest. The town is named after the forest, and is called Eternal Night.

Thirty-five years before the beginning of the martial world, strange phenomena suddenly appeared in the Eternal Night Forest.

The sun and moon shone brightly, and the midnight sun lingered for ten days. The forest was as bright as candlelight, and every blade of grass and tree was clearly visible. Terrified, the monsters rushed out of the forest and wreaked havoc across the fields.

Over three days and nights, seven villages were burned down, more than three hundred people were slaughtered, corpses littered the fields, and blood stained the streams.

The villagers were in a panic and had no way to defend themselves.

Some strong men, seeing the ferocious beasts pouncing and devouring, imitated their forms, sounds, and fighting styles. First they learned the tiger's pounce, then the wolf's run, then the snake's coiling, and finally the eagle's strike. Over time, skill arose, skill became technique, and technique was passed down through generations. This is the origin of martial arts in the Heyuan region.

After the rebellion was quelled, the survivors built huts on the ruins, changed the town into a county, and renamed it Heyuan, meaning "the source of all things, like the beginning of the river".

The boxing style in the county still retains its ancient style, and many of its forms resemble animal shapes, which is said to have originated from this.

......

Heyuan County is actually the birthplace of martial arts?

Martial arts actually evolved from imitating the biting movements of demonic beasts?

Lin Mu copied the contents silently, not stopping until noon.

During this time, Zhao Rong looked up at Lin Mu three times.

Each time, Lin Mu was engrossed in copying, his posture unchanged and his writing speed undiminished.

Zhao Rong put down his pen and handed him the waist token of the Palace Guard.

"Go to the kitchen for a meal; you can get some beef to replenish your qi and blood."

"it is good."

Lin Mu agreed and went to the kitchen located on the west side of the Palace Guard.

It was a small room with a blue cloth curtain hanging at the door.

Lin Mu lifted the curtain and went inside. There were two long tables, several long benches, and several clerks were eating with their heads down.

Behind the food serving window stood a middle-aged woman. She glanced at Lin Mu, and seeing that he was a stranger, she tilted the spoon in her hand, causing a piece of meat to slide back into the bowl.

What fell into Lin Mu's bowl was mostly vegetarian food, with a few thin slices of meat scattered around.

Lin Mu didn't say anything, picked up the bowl, walked to the corner, and sat on the bench.

There wasn't much rice or vegetables in the bowl. He chewed slowly, recalling the records in the River Source Chronicle.

At this moment, the curtain was lifted, and two people entered, both dressed in the black official robes of the Palace Guard.

The tall, thin man in front had high cheekbones and a sharp chin, like an upright sickle;

The short, stout man behind him had a round face like a pancake, his eyes narrowed to slits, and he was holding a bowl overflowing with rice.

The two got their food and sat down at a table not far from Lin Mu.

The tall, thin man gestured with his chin toward Lin Mu and lowered his voice, "Who is this person? I've never seen him before."

The short, stout man glanced at him, then lowered his head and shoveled some rice into his mouth: "He must be a newly recruited clerk by Lord Zhao."

"What minor official? He's just an unregistered martial artist who can be dismissed at any time."

The tall, thin man picked up a piece of food with his chopsticks and chewed it with a crunching sound. "Besides, because this is the Palace Guard, to maintain face, only martial artists with Ming Jin or higher can participate."

"A martial artist who's willing to accept even a mere tael of silver a month has basically reached the end of his martial arts career." The short, stout man shook his head.

"Of course."

"Moreover, Lord Zhao has extremely high standards; he kicked out the previous visitors." The tall, thin man said, glancing at Lin Mu again.

"One tael of silver a month, and you still have such high demands."

"If it were me, I would have quit long ago." The short, fat man shoveled a big mouthful of rice into his bowl, his cheeks puffing out.

"Could they have ulterior motives?"

"What's the point? To copy martial arts history? To list the martial arts techniques of various schools?"

"Even if it's a martial arts manual confiscated by the Palace Guard, would it be his place to copy it down?"

"Indeed, I don't know what they're thinking." The tall, thin man finished speaking and buried his head in his food.

Lin Mu held the bowl and chewed slowly, as if she hadn't heard anything.

After the meal, Lin Mu returned to the private room, where Zhao Rong was already engrossed in writing, without even looking up.

Lin Mu sat down, ground ink, laid out paper, and continued copying.

The afternoon's content remained the same: trivial records from local chronicles—the terrain of mountains and rivers, the distribution of rivers, the population and taxes of each village and town, and their products and customs.

Which mountain produces copper? Which river has fish? Which village has a market on the fifth day of the month? Which family has produced a filial son and a virtuous woman?

There was no interesting content related to martial arts or boxing techniques.

As the sun began to set, Lin Mu turned a page; the title read, "Strange Events in the Eternal Night Forest, Year 339 of the Jingwu Calendar."

He paused for a moment, then continued copying.

Around that year, the Eternal Night Forest was in turmoil again, with monsters surging out like a tidal wave, larger in scale and more ferocious than before the initial martial arts event.

The six major sects, including Xuanmen and Xianmen, joined forces to descend the mountain and lead martial artists from all over the country to the Eternal Night Forest to fight against the monsters.

Initially, they advanced steadily, breaking through three lines of defense and penetrating hundreds of miles into the forest.

However, the more they killed the monsters, the more numerous they became, and the more ferocious they grew. The sect's warriors suffered heavy casualties and had no choice but to retreat.

They retreated and suffered defeat after defeat, until they reached Heyuan County, where there was nowhere left to retreat to—further retreat would lead to the densely populated inland hinterland.

The six major sects formed a defensive formation in Heyuan County and fought a bloody battle for seven days and seven nights, finally stopping the decline.

For the next century, Heyuan County became the first line of defense against monsters.

Lin Mu was in a daze when Zhao Rong walked up behind him and patted him on the shoulder.

"That's all for today. Come help out on the first, second, and third days of each ten-day period, and rest on the rest of the days."

Lin Mu put down his pen, stood up, and cupped his hands in thanks: "Thank you, Editor Zhao."

He tidied up his brush and ink, neatly arranged the copied pages, and placed them under the inkstone.

He glanced back at the shelves full of files, then pushed open the door and went out.

When Lin Mu came out of the Palace Guard, it was already completely dark.

The inner city was brightly lit, and the bluestone pavement shone brightly.

The shops were still open, and the sounds of abacuses from the silk shop, pounding medicine from the pharmacy, and storytelling from the teahouse blended together, yet it didn't feel noisy.

The pedestrians were neatly dressed and walked at a leisurely pace; even the soldiers on night patrol walked at a slow and unhurried pace.

Compared to the outer city, this place is much more peaceful, like a carefully framed painting.

A black carriage drove past the gate of the Palace Guard, the curtain fluttering slightly in the wind—Yan Hua sat inside, chatting and laughing with someone.