Chapter 39: Deadly Demonstration
Anji woke up feeling sore from yesterday’s training. She spent the whole afternoon in bed, only getting up to eat dinner. After her second bath and Lizi’s expert massage, she fell asleep again. The morning brought some relief, her muscles aching less than before. However, Zhao Wanting was adamant that Anji should not engage in any physical activities without Doctor He’s approval. Anji could only watch as her mother demonstrated the most basic martial art forms.
"Let’s review the horse stance from yesterday," Zhao Wanting smiled. "The key to a stable footwork is controlling your centre of gravity."
According to her mother, there were six different basic stances that applied to every martial arts routine. They were — horse, bow, cat, empty, cross and single-leg stances.
"Combine these stances with any variation of hand movements. You can create an endless string of movements. The most important thing in Taiji Fist is to maintain your flow of movement. You must be as flexible as water and never trap yourself into a position that blocks your ability to counteract."
Wanting demonstrated the five basic techniques with Lizi as a sparring partner, teaching Anji how to curl her hands into a proper fist.
"Never tuck your thumb inside your fist," she pointed out. "You will break your thumb bone if you punch someone like that. The impact of a punch should come from the flat bones of your fingers between your knuckles and your curled joints. Remember always to keep your wrist bone straight when you throw a punch. Crooked wrists will bend upon impact, and you could end up breaking it."
After correcting her fist-gripping method, Wanting showed Anji the simplest movement of throwing a straight punch. At first glance, it seemed simple. Even Anji could replicate that while sitting on a stool. However, when Lizi reappeared with several bricks, Anji questioned her common sense.
Pow!
In one punch, the brick Lizi held up was shattered into dust in the middle. Anji had to hold onto the table and close her eyes to avoid getting blown backwards by the powerful gust of wind conjured by her elegant mother. Although Zhao Wanting did not use any qi in her punch, her physical condition after many years of tampering and cultivation far surpassed that of soldiers who had been conscripted into the army.