Gold Tiger King - Ch. 4

Weeping Willow, Warrior Spirit

Rated E Everyone

Li Yuan and the boys did not stay for the entire month at Duan Men Jie. Jiancheng seemed bored after the first few days, and Shimin eventually started to lose interest as well much to the duke’s disappointment. But Long Yen-shu had returned to Wugong a new man.

Every day for the next three years, Yen-shu would practice what he could remember from the one week they spent in Duan Men Jie. When Shimin was at school, Yen-shu would go to a weeping willow near the Li Estate after finishing his morning duties. He would condition his body by striking the trunk with his fists, knees, feet, and even his head. Most of the moves he remembered from the Jiao Di event were used by those who were trained at monasteries: flying kicks, animalistic stances, and a certain gracefulness. For Yen-shu, martial arts was at its best when it was as beautiful as it was deadly.

The weeping willow he would train at was often referred to by the farmers as the hag tree as it seemed to be in a perpetual state of dying. There were gaps between clusters of draped leaves, and the bark was a lifeless grey. However, after the first year of Yen-shu’s training, something miraculous happened.

The elderly commoners took notice first with one old lady being particularly interested. Word of the willow’s transformation made its way to the farmers next until finally the whole county was talking about it. By the time Yen-shu was sixteen, the hag tree had a full head of beautiful blue leaves with bark as vibrant as grizzly fur.

Li Shimin noticed something had changed within his rival as well. In their martial training, Yen-shu seemed even more composed than their teachers. Though Shimin picked up technique and theory quicker than Yen-shu, there was something about his demeanor that he found irritatingly impressive.

In the year 613, a high ranking official named Gao Shilian came to Wugong to meet with Li Yuan in regards to his second son.

“Let me see the boy,” Shilian said over tea with Yuan and his wife.

Dou led the duke and Shilian over to where Shimin was practicing horseback riding. The young lord noticed he was being watched and began showing off. He equipped his bow and rode next to a rack of arrows. He swiped a few and dropped them into his quiver. In five seconds, Shimin fired three arrows perfectly into three targets while riding. Yuan and Dou turned to see Shilian beaming.

Li Shimin grabbed the last arrow from his quiver and pushed himself up off of the saddle. He flipped upside down then fired the arrow past his parents and into a fruit one of the stable hands was about to eat. The young noble landed perfectly and stood tall as Shilian let out a hearty laugh.

“Good to see word of Li Shimin’s talent well proven,” the official barked. “I would like to honor him and your family by offering my niece’s hand in marriage.”

The dutchess gasped as a smile grew on her lips. Both she and Li Yuan bowed before Gao Shilian.

“We will repay this honor by seeing to it Li Shimin is a man worthy of your niece,” Yuan said. “In five years, they will both be of age. Thank you for this opportunity.”

“One can only imagine the man he will be by then,” Shilian said, looking back to Shimin brushing his horse. “Do you believe what that old fortune teller said all those years ago? About him bringing the empire into prosperity?”

Yuan hesitated to speak for he did not want to sound overly proud.

“I knew when the two great dragons flew over our home the day he was born,” Dou answered. “‘He has the features of both dragon and phoenix’.”

“He must live up to that then,” Shilian said.

“He will,” Yuan affirmed.

“I believe you. I sensed that beautiful, blue willow I saw on my way here was a good omen.”

Yuan and Dou looked at each other. Then back to the official.

“Blue willow?” they both inquired.

#

One day, while Shimin was still at school, the duchess saw Yen-shu rush out of the estate after finishing his duties. She decided to follow him but couldn’t keep up. Eventually she found herself in one of the commoner squares and was greeted kindly by her subjects as they all jogged toward the outskirts of town. Curious, she followed the crowd of mostly children until she saw it: the blue willow.

Long Yen-shu was there, attacking the trunk and sloppily striking animalistic poses. Dou raised a brow as she joined the small audience. Some of the children laid out a blanket for her to sit and she gently accepted.

Beads of sweat fell from Yen-shu’s forehead as he practiced a combination mixing aggressive palm strikes with spinning kicks.

“It is good to see you again, Furen,” whispered a frail voice.

Dou turned to with a start to see the old fortune teller, Lu Jan. The elderly woman stood next to the blanket where the duchess sat. She seemed to hold herself up with her little, wooden cane.

“I didn’t know you lived in Wugong,” Dou responded.

“I have a nice little home between here and Cheng Du,” Jan said. “I had a dream of this tree and came to see it for myself.”

“Unfortunately, this is the first time I’ve seen it.”

“It’s the first time anyone’s seen it.”

“Hm?”

“Up until recently, this willow was known as the hag tree. But this boy…”

“Long Yen-shu. He is a servant in our home.”

“Your family is blessed. First Li Shimin then this...Long Yen-shu.”

“What do you mean by that?”

“Your son was gifted with the power of both dragon and phoenix at birth. That was clear to me when he was only four years old. But this Yen-shu is nothing special.”

“That’s not what I thought you would say.”

“He is no more special than any of these children, yet there is something about him. I can feel a fire burning within him. That’s probably what brought this tree back to life.”

Dou’s eyes widened. She looked back at Yen-shu then up at the willow’s blue leaves.

“It’s possible this boy has developed a strong wǔ. I’ve seen him train at this tree for the past three years. That warrior spirit burning inside of him made new life out of the hag tree.”

“What does that mean? For us, specifically.”

Jan squinted as she mumbled inaudibly.

“This Yen-shu will grow out of the life he lives now,” the fortune teller prophesied. “I do not know his heart, but his fist will become like the earth. I would keep my eye on him if I were you.”

“Will he be a danger to our family?” Dou asked.

“You would already know that by now.”

Yen-shu ended his training with a powerful palm strike to the willow’s trunk. The sound echoed throughout the farmland, and the children broke out in laughter and cheer. Yen-shu spun and chuckled at his audience’s reaction. Then he saw the duchess who gave him the prettiest smile. The cub blushed and bowed as low as he could. Dou giggled, and Yen-shu stood with a grin.

#

Two years later, Emperor Yang was ambushed and blockaded by the Eastern Turkic Khaganate. Li Shimin, who was seventeen at the time, was chosen to lead the rescue party.

“I will not ride without Yen-shu,” Shimin declared.

“Uh-um,” stuttered the imperial emissary.

“Forgive my son’s impertinence,” Li Yuan interrupted. “He will join me and my forces tomorrow. We will save the Huangshang.”

The imperial emissary bowed to both the duke and his son before scurrying out of the Li Estate.

“Your talent is a waste if you refuse to know your place, Li Shimin.” Yuan scolded. “This is the opportunity we have all been waiting for.”

“I didn’t say I wouldn’t go,” Shimin retorted. “I just said that Yen-shu had to come with me.”

“Do you think I would insult the emperor by sending a servant to fight in his rescue party?”

“Do you think the Huangshang is going to care by what hands the blades of his salvation are wielded?”

Li Yuan was silenced by this, astonished by his son’s wisdom.

“I will say it once more, Father,” Shimin said respectfully. “I will not ride without Long Yen-shu.”

TO BE CONTINUED