Chapter 13: [013] The request of the great monk, gifting Wild Ginseng
Master Chen had instructed that once he could synchronize his punches and steps even with ten pounds of lead tied to his feet, he should return to learn more forms of Xingyi Boxing from him.
Before achieving this goal, Wang Longhu naturally felt it was inappropriate to approach Master Chen.
Thus, for two consecutive days, Wang Longhu practiced his punches along the mountain roads. At the end of the road was the path downhill, which would eventually lead back to the city, completing a loop to Wang Longhu’s home.
After two days of practice, Wang Longhu gained more insights into the Beng Fist. Initially, his steps were large when taking the first step.
But as his punches became faster, Wang Longhu began to shorten his stride, from a full step to a third of a step, and eventually to half a step.
That day, after learning some information about Xingyi Boxing from the monk, Wang Longhu went home and searched online for knowledge about Xingyi Boxing.
For instance, during the Tongzhi era, Grandmaster Guo Yunshen used Beng Fist in Shen County to kill a tyrant and was captured and imprisoned in a death row cell.
Even as a prisoner, Guo Yunshen continued to practice the stepping Beng Fist taught by his master, Li Longneng, in that confined environment.
However, with heavy shackles on his feet and the small space in the death cell, practicing Beng Fist was quite difficult. Guo Yunshen, therefore, devised the half-step Beng Fist based on taking a full step with the front foot and a half step with the back foot while walking with shackles.
Understanding the context of Beng Fist, Wang Longhu realized why Master Chen wanted him to practice with ten pounds of lead tied to his feet.
On the same day he finished his research, Wang Longhu ordered a pair of ten-pound lead sandbags online, ready to use as soon as they arrived.