On the way back to the dormitory, the Perry sedan drove along the road. Cheng Zitong held the steering wheel, gazing ahead as he said, "Though I really wanted to persuade you a bit more, since this is your own decision, I respect it."
Chen Chuan said, "Thank you, Master."
Cheng Zitong said, "You really don't need to be so formal with me. Next, I'll instruct you on how to train jin specifically. But speaking of it, while this jin technique is ordinary, so few people have practiced it over the years that I've never taught it before. I'll need to look through it again myself, so the two of us can study and explore it together."
The car soon returned to the entrance of the dormitory building. Cheng Zitong said, "Go back to your dorm first. I need to go file a report. Any jin technique learned at the academy has to be registered with the school's archives office so it can be referenced and reviewed."
Chen Chuan acknowledged, got out of the car, and headed upstairs.
Cheng Zitong turned the car toward the administrative building. A few minutes later, he reached the ground floor, parked, and headed straight for the Admissions Preparation Office. Arriving at the doorway, he glanced inside and saw that Yue Hong and Bian Feng were also waiting there. "All here?" he remarked.
With that, he walked in, took out the completed form from his briefcase, placed it on Master Gao's desk, and said, "The jin technique has been chosen. Time to file it."
Master Gao reached out to pick it up and take a look. In a low voice, he said, "He chose this?"
"Yes," Cheng Zitong replied. "I told you he has a mind of his own. He didn't care for that jin technique you offered at all, and picked this in the end."
Yue Hong froze, standing up to ask, "Supervisor Cheng, Master Gao, what jin technique did he choose? Wasn't it Xuanxiang Jin?"
Master Gao shoved the form forward. "Take a look yourself."
Yue Hong hurried over and snatched up the form. After reading it, he looked up in utter bewilderment. "Zhouyuan Jin? Was there some mistake? Why on earth did he choose this?"
He then looked at Cheng Zitong. "Supervisor Cheng, didn't you explain it clearly to him? This jin technique is thoroughly mediocre. Learning it would only hold his studies back. Shouldn't he reconsider?"
Cheng Zitong said, "There's nothing to reconsider. Like I said, this was Chen Chuan's own choice."
Yue Hong pressed on, trying to persuade him: "But Supervisor Cheng, look at him—he's just a first-year student. His knowledge and experience are shallow; his choice might not be the right one. As instructors, shouldn't we steer him onto the right path?"
Cheng Zitong had no desire to argue with him. "That's how you noble rationalists look at things. I've told you, my student belongs to the intuitive school; he only needs to trust his own thoughts and instincts. Besides, I am Chen Chuan's advising instructor. As long as he remains my student, I will respect his choice."
He reached over, took the form back from Yue Hong's hand, and slid it back in front of Master Gao. "All right, it's settled. Senior Martial Brother Gao, stamp it."
Yue Hong hurriedly said, "Master Gao, how about waiting a bit—"
Ignoring him, Master Gao brought out the Admissions Preparation Office seal and stamped it down firmly. Yue Hong could not help letting out a heavy sigh.
Master Gao stood up with the form and walked straight toward the archives. With him gone, Cheng Zitong had no intention of lingering either, following right behind him out the door.
Yue Hong and Bian Feng could only exit the office as well. Yue Hong complained, "Old Bian, why didn't you chime in and help persuade him just now?"
Bian Feng said in a deep voice, "It seems Supervisor Cheng wants to protect his student. There's nothing wrong with that. As a teacher, he's well qualified, and we shouldn't be overly demanding of him."
Yue Hong shook his head. "Old Bian, why are you singing that tune too? Supervisor Cheng has no ambition himself, spending all day delving into occult nonsense, but we can't let him ruin the student as well! We can't give up eating for fear of choking—as long as we learn from what happened last time, we can protect our students."
Bian Feng said, "The student has his own ideas; can we really just force him along? Besides, do you really have so little faith in a student's own choice? That student from last time spent his few brief years living for others, living for the academy. Even watching it made me exhausted. We ought to do some soul-searching ourselves."
Yue Hong sighed, speaking with melancholy. "Perhaps you're right. It's truly a pity."
After taking two more steps, something occurred to him. "Teacher He seemed somewhat persuaded last time. Even though he went through that affair back then, anyone could see that his longing never truly died out. If Chen Chuan had chosen Xuanxiang Jin this time, he would definitely have come back to see him. But now, how are we supposed to convince him?"
Bian Feng replied, "Not necessarily."
Yue Hong paused, thought for a moment, and suddenly perked up. "Right, you're right. I need to keep calling!"
***
Master Gao walked all the way to the archives and signed the register at the door. The instructor sitting there greeted him with a smile: "Delivering an archive, Master Gao?"
Master Gao said, "A student's."
"Right, right, please wait a moment... All registered. Shall I open the door for you, Master Gao?"
"I'll do it myself."
Master Gao walked over, took out a key, unlocked the door, and stepped inside. Rows of student archives were arranged here. He walked deeper in, passing through two doors until he reached the Class A students' archive room.
Locating the drawer belonging to Chen Chuan, he unlocked and pulled it open, then picked up the form and looked at it once more. He knew this jin technique hadn't actually been called this in the past; it had been known as "Zhoutian Jin." Later, because it violated a naming taboo, a character was changed. There was nothing wrong with that, really—an ordinary jin technique couldn't bear the weight of such a name anyway.
He placed the form inside, pushed the drawer shut, locked it again, and walked out.
Barely fifteen minutes after he left, two figures approached from across the hallway. They appeared to be a white-haired elder and a young instructor. Seeing them, the instructor at the archive room door immediately stood up and respectfully greeted the white-haired elder: "Master Gu."
The white-haired elder nodded. "Open the door. I need to check an archive."
"Yes, sir."
The instructor immediately unlocked the door for the elder.
The white-haired elder walked inside alongside the young instructor, heading straight to where Master Gao had just placed the file. Taking a key from his waist, he had the young instructor open it. The younger man took out the newly filed form and handed it to him.
The white-haired elder glanced at it and sighed with emotion. "How can we let a fine blade grow dull? This won't do."
The young instructor asked, "Teacher, what should we do?"
In a calm, ordinary tone, the white-haired elder said, "Let the students down below make their moves first."
"Understood, Teacher."
***
Meanwhile, Cheng Zitong returned to Chen Chuan's dormitory. Telling Chen Chuan to keep training for now, he sat on the sofa, brought out the manual for Zhouyuan Jin, and flipped through it. He found that perhaps because it was published so long ago, many sections used regional archaic phrasing, making the meaning quite obscure.
Fortunately, this was his specialty. After browsing for a while, he had a rough grasp of it. After some thought, he called Chen Chuan over and said, "This technique isn't overly complicated; the key lies in the training method.
"In the old era, pugilists mostly used fixed stances, whereas the more prevalent jin techniques nowadays have all been modified into flowing stances. Very few people have researched or improved this jin technique, so I initially thought you could only train it with fixed stances, which would be very inefficient.
"But as I read on, I realized that wasn't the case. After all, flowing stances simply use repetitive, distinct movements to adjust the body's operating structure, stimulating specific mutated tissues so they can grow and even undergo metamorphosis.
"Zhouyuan Jin, on the other hand, can be trained through all sorts of boxing styles and stances. Naturally, mastering every boxing style is impossible, nor would anyone have the energy for it. But there is a set of forms that can cover nearly everything."
At this point, he smiled and said, "You should be very familiar with it."
Chen Chuan's heart stirred, and he blurted out, "Greater Sanshou!"
"That's right!"
Cheng Zitong lifted the booklet in his hand and gave it a wave. "Greater Sanshou! This most fundamental sanshou routine embodies the painstaking effort of countless predecessors. Simple as it may seem, it has been forged through endless refinement and covers every aspect, which is why it can serve as the foundational routine for any boxing style. However, Greater Sanshou alone is not enough."
His expression turned solemn as he said, "Next, I will teach you the Orthodox Sanshou that only Wuyi Academy teaches, and only Wuyi Academy allows you to use! This set of forms covers all angles—fingers, palms, elbows, and knees are all brought into play; throws, catches, parries, and clinches are all encompassed within it. Paired with medicine and specific breathing, it can serve as the perfect substitute for flowing stances!"
Chapter 53