Chapter 40 Martial Arts Arena

“Brother Li, please don’t be so polite. Brother Qin has a large and wealthy family; if you don’t accept this small token of our appreciation, he’ll get a scolding when he gets home,” Shen Xu said with a bright smile and a sincere expression. Qin Xiaolin, standing beside him, smiled and nodded repeatedly, seemingly agreeing with Shen Xu.

"Alright, let's eat here tonight. Sister Ling'er made some new kinds of buns that you haven't tried yet. But now I have to go to the hill behind the academy. I've made an appointment with an old friend. If you two are free, would you like to come along?" Bringing a couple more people for Grandpa Sun to practice on, haha, that way he won't catch her practicing her skills.

"That sounds very interesting, Brother Qin, let's go too," Qin Xiaolin nodded in agreement. Li Xi told Tian Tian to lock her door, as everyone went to the restaurant later and no one was there.

The hill where Elder Sun lived belonged to Baichuan Academy, and Headmaster Xu required students to climb the hill for exercise every morning. He hoped to cultivate students who would no longer be weak scholars who could not lift a finger or carry heavy loads. Physical fitness tests, fire-making and wood-chopping, and cooking three dishes and a soup were all part of the annual assessments. The top ten students would receive awards, and the first-place student would be accepted as Headmaster Xu's disciple.

The assessment process must not involve any fraudulent activities; otherwise, expulsion will be the consequence. No one, whether a commoner or a son of a noble family, will be treated equally here. Respect will be shown to the teachers and martial arts instructors, and reverence will be shown to classmates who excel in both character and academics.

The reason why Baichuan Academy has been able to thrive for so long is because of its unique teaching methods, which have cultivated many talents for Jingyuan. Although its status is not as high as that of the Imperial Academy, no one dares to bully it. This is an academy founded by the Empress Dowager. There is also a girls' academy in the western suburbs.

Li Xi once suspected that the Empress Dowager had traveled from the future and had advanced ideas for this era. It was said that the Empress Dowager was over sixty years old and was currently traveling all over the country.

Watching Li Xi's agile figure ahead, effortlessly climbing the rugged path leading to the summit like a galloping wild horse, her steps steady and powerful, like a nimble antelope leaping through the forest, Shen Xu felt a pang of envy. He, however, was already feeling the strain when he reached the halfway point.

On the contrary, Li Xi's breathing was even and deep, as if showing the world his inexhaustible energy. Despite the rugged mountain road, she maintained a fast pace, and Qin Xiaolin, who was close behind Li Xi, was not to be outdone. Before long, he was keeping pace with Li Xi.

As Shen Xu, who was following far behind, gradually lost sight of the two figures, Li Xi exclaimed, "Brother Qin, what stamina!" She had never expected that these pampered young masters from noble families would have such good physical strength; she had thought they were just all show and no substance.

"Not at all, not as good as Brother Li. Your breathing is still so steady. Climbing the mountain must be quite easy for you," Qin Xiaolin said admiringly.

"Hey, I'm used to it. Brother Qin, you're pretty good too." The two flattered each other, and just as the atmosphere was about to turn cold, Old Sun appeared.

"Xiao Xi, you've kept me waiting. I'll punish you by making you bring me a few more pastries later." Old Sun thought something had happened to Li Xi, so he thought of going down the mountain to find her. He hadn't gone far when he met the two of them.

"Oh dear, Grandpa Sun, I'm so sorry, I ran into two distinguished guests on my way out. Look, they've come, and they've even brought two people to play chess with you," Li Xi introduced to Grandpa Sun.

"Grandpa Sun, this is Young Master Qin. There is another Young Master Shen who hasn't climbed up yet. Let's wait for him," Li Xi said ingratiatingly.

"Oh? So you're Qin Yu's grandson. I've met you once by chance," Old Sun stroked his beard and nodded with a smile.

"So it's Senior Sun. My grandfather often talks about you. It's great to meet you today. You are indeed as vigorous as my grandfather said," Qin Xiaolin said, bowing to Senior Sun with the respect due to a junior.

"Haha, your grandfather really has a good eye," the group joked as they finally caught up with them. "You two ran way too fast, didn't you even wait for me?" Shen Xu bent down and sat down, leaning against a tree.

"I almost couldn't breathe, let me rest, don't walk anymore," the others couldn't help but smile when they saw Shen Xu's appearance. This conspicuous bag was too weak.

"You're too weak, kid. You should learn from your two brothers." "Yes, you're right. You must be Senior Sun. Brother Li just said he'd take us to find you. We're sorry to have bothered you." "It's alright. The more the merrier," Old Sun waved his hand and beckoned the group to follow.

The two of them were still laughing happily, but Li Xi chuckled maliciously at the thought of how they would be tormented by Old Master Sun later.

The training ground atop the mountain was a full thirty acres in size. There were two training grounds of this size, one at the foot of the mountain and one halfway up, with the one at the foot being the largest. There were also horse riding fields, a football field, an archery range, and so on. Li Xi was quite shocked when she first saw it; was this the world of the wealthy in ancient times?

She was only able to get in and move around because Elder Sun was acquainted with Headmaster Xu. Following Elder Sun, she was considered an outer disciple of Baichuan Academy. "Grandpa Sun, what do you want to do today?" Li Xi asked curiously.

"Since there are so many people today, let's do a triathlon," Old Sun said, pointing to the obstacles in the distance. "Cross the obstacles, then ride a horse around the training ground five times, and finally shoot ten arrows at the archery range," Old Sun said thoughtfully. He wanted these people to try out his new creation, which was built according to the booklet given by the Empress Dowager.

Shen Xu and Qin Xiaolin were quite interested, as this was the first time they had ever seen such a training ground. Unlike their own Imperial Academy, Shen Xu and Qin Xiaolin, being from aristocratic families, naturally studied at the Imperial Academy.

"Senior, how do you play with these obstacles? I don't quite understand," Shen Xu asked, puzzled.

"Xiao Xi, show them what you've got," Li Xi said, clearly very familiar with the obstacle course. She'd played many of these games during her company's team-building activities in her previous life, and despite her short arms and legs, she was quite agile. She was certain the Empress Dowager must be a special forces soldier who had transmigrated from another era.

The 100-zhang obstacle course includes events such as a horse-drawn carriage wall, a log bridge, climbing stairs, rope ladders and inclines, high hurdles, square windows, round holes, continuous low walls, horizontal suspension ladders, sloping wall trenches, high walls, and low pile netting.

Li Xi nimbly navigated through the obstacles, completing the task in the blink of an eye. Before Shen Xu and Qin Xiaolin could even react, Li Xi was back beside them.

"Grandpa Sun, it would be even better if the hurdle were a little higher," Li Xi couldn't help but marvel at the advantage of having long arms and legs. With one step, he leaped over the hurdle.

"Hmm, hmm, you two should give it a try too," Old Sun said, scratching the back of his head.

The two were already eager to try. At a command, the three of them ran towards the obstacle course. Li Xi was the first to rush forward and was the fastest. Qin Xiaolin followed closely behind. After watching Li Xi's demonstration, he was not very skilled at first, but after getting used to it, he slowly caught up with her pace.

Li Xi and Qin Xiaolin jumped onto their horses one after the other, while Shen Xu was still struggling at the obstacle course. The two ran around the arena twice before Shen Xu finally mounted his horse. Qin Xiaolin's horsemanship was superior to Li Xi's; for scions of noble families, horseback riding was the most basic skill.

Qin Xiaolin fired ten arrows first, nine of which hit the bullseye, with only one missing slightly. Li Xi arrived shortly after; her archery skills had improved significantly, hitting the bullseye seven times.

The two stood aside watching Shen Xu ride his horse. They noticed that he looked tired, and only three out of ten arrows hit the target, while seven missed.