Chapter 4: Acting justly and courageously is an obligation that every person from Qin should fulfill

Not only Ji Ying, but even the burly man with the long beard was taken aback; this was indeed a case of seizing a white blade with bare hands

The Qindiquan consists of sixteen techniques, utilizing both hands and feet, integrating throwing and grappling. Depending on different situations, it can effectively combat four styles, and it is certainly not comparable to the soft and feeble military boxing.

The events unfolded too suddenly, and Ji Ying had no idea what was happening behind him, but what followed would be etched in his memory for a lifetime

Ji Ying loosened his belt, called for Teng Zi, and helped Hei Fu bind the three thieves tightly, continuously praising his skills.

Heihfu was unafraid; in his previous life, he had often followed tasks while interning at the police station and had seen similar scenes many times. He smiled and said, "This is something I should say to you all." At the same time, he pointed towards Ji Ying and said, "You have one, and I have three!"

"Do you know how much the penalty for the second-class value is?" Ji Ying asked as she tied the last knot and looked up.

Ji Ying's heart was in her throat, yet Hei Fu remained unperturbed. He stood his ground, legs apart, feet slightly shifting, with his fists placed before his chest, his eyes fixed intently on the movements of the burly man with the twisted beard, assessing the range of his attack.

Things happened rapidly; by the time Ji Ying reacted, Hei Fu had already attracted the attention of three individuals, while the remaining thief approached him.

He felt a sense of lamentation, and it is not that he is dismissive of the past; rather, the bizarre phenomenon of the twenty-first century, where people are reluctant to help the elderly who have fallen, and those who do help end up being extorted, is truly disheartening. One can only utter the phrase "the heart of man is not as it once was"

The person who was previously being chased was likely a local merchant. In his flight for survival, he did not forget the heavy bundle on his person. Upon seeing someone come to block the thief, he immediately showed a look of joy, quickly slipped behind them, expressed his gratitude with a "thank you," and then vanished in an instant, leaving Ji Ying and Hei Fu to face four opponents alone.

The four thieves were clearly bandits from Yunmengze. Among them, three were dressed in tattered clothes, their faces dark and holding rudimentary weapons, either a short stick tied with a spearhead or an axe or a harpoon. Only the burly man in the center, with a twisted beard, was clad in tattered leather armor and wielded a polished iron sword!

Heifu, it turns out your martial skills are indeed remarkable, no wonder you are not afraid of facing many with just a few.

This is what I heard from the traveler in the countryside

Although Ji Ying boasts about his exceptional martial arts skills, in reality, he has only learned a few self-defense techniques. Fortunately, the thief he faced was also lacking in ability, and the two engaged in a prolonged stalemate, neither sustaining any injuries apart from being covered in dirt and out of breath.

Why are you standing there in a daze? Quickly help me tie them up

Ji Ying picked up a branch and wrote the number fourteen on the ground, then wrote the number three, and pointed at them saying: "The law states that capturing one bandit is equivalent to executing two at the second level, and the government rewards fourteen gold! One tael of gold is worth 576 half-tael coins..."

On the other hand, where there are heavy penalties, there must also be heavy rewards

Ji Ying was already so astonished that his mouth was agape. The thief who was confronting him, upon seeing this, had long since fled in panic

Just as he rushed up to him, he suddenly stepped aside, while swiftly grabbing the thief's left arm with his right hand, pulling it towards himself with force, and striking the thief's elbow with a fist from his left hand

At this moment, Hei Fu's sword was plunged into the leg of the second fallen thief, and he was unarmed. However, he still had to face the fully armed, mustachioed man. What should he do now

Although these thieves are desperate outlaws, they mostly rob defenseless merchants and fishermen. Where have they seen such professional techniques? Moreover, their somewhat careless strategy of three against one, taking turns to attack, provided the black man with opportunities to defeat them one by one. If they had charged at him all at once, he felt that he might not necessarily win.

The burly man also realized this and laughed wildly, saying, "You little brat, no matter how skilled you are, without your weapon, you are no match for me!"

This means that simply not helping an elderly woman who has fallen can cause a financially struggling soldier to bear significant economic losses, which is why later generations often say that the laws of the Qin dynasty were harsh

So expensive

This time, Jing was somewhat surprised: "Taking down two people in a row, the black husband is truly impressive!"

He pressed down on the bearded man, already out of breath. He knew that he had just been in a very dangerous situation, far from as easy as it appeared.

The troublesome part was when the short sword of Heifu pierced the leg of the thief wielding a short spear, the burly man with a thick beard was also attacking him, forcing Heifu to abandon his sword and retreat, with his elbow also sustaining a wound.

If it were in the State of Qin, would you dare not to help an elderly person who has fallen? If someone helps them up, would you dare to extort them?

Before he could recall, Ji Ying spoke rapidly: "In Nanjun, the first-class degree is 1,344 coins, while the second-class degree is 2,688 coins"

Heihufu had anticipated this. First, he blocked the attack and seized the thief's arm. Then, he lifted his left foot and forcefully kicked the thief in the abdomen, hitting the mark perfectly

At this moment, the burly man beneath began to struggle desperately. The black servant quickly subdued him and, seeing that Ji Ying was still standing there in a daze, shouted a few times. Only then did Ji Ying come to his senses and limped over to lend a hand, having twisted his ankle during the earlier fight

The term "赀" refers to a fine. This regulation was known to the blacksmith, and it is one of the reasons he held the laws of the Qin state in such high regard. In later generations, acting justly and courageously is merely considered a "virtue," but in the Qin state, it was explicitly protected by law, transforming it into an obligation that every Qin citizen was expected to fulfill

The officials of the Qin state will teach you how to conduct yourself using laws rather than morals in a matter of minutes

Indeed, indeed, you have captured three individuals, and there is a reward of over twenty-four thousand coins!

Upon arriving in this era, Heifu was still not very clear about the various prices.

Fortunately, he still had a trump card, which was the "Capturing Enemy Fist" he learned in his previous life at the Armed Police Academy! After arriving in this era, whenever he found a moment alone, he would practice a few moves, and little did he expect that today it would come in handy.

The burly man with a twisted beard was startled, retreating repeatedly. He had lost his weapon, yet still, emboldened by his anger, he intended to strike back with his fists

Heifu Dao: "Do not keep me in suspense, just speak up."

I am not afraid of the officials pursuing accountability afterwards

The two thieves who rashly charged forward had long suffered from hunger, their bodies weak and emaciated, and thus they were no match for the strong man, being brought down to the ground in no time.

After binding the three thieves and finding some herbal leaves to help Hei Fu treat the wound on his hand, Ji Ying mysteriously asked: "Do you know how much reward the government offers for capturing one of the bandits?"

The characteristics of the Qin law can be summarized in one word: meticulous. Even minor matters, such as a mouse gnawing at a grain storage bag, must be addressed. Another word is: severe! The severity of the Qin law's penalties is evident from the fines imposed.

Ji Ying explained somewhat helplessly: "You are not wrong; the law states that if someone robs and kills on the main road, any passerby within a hundred steps who does not provide assistance shall be punished with a fine of two hundred taels of silver"

As the burly man from the Han dynasty bent over in pain, the black-clad man suddenly struck his back fiercely with his left elbow, forcing the mustached giant to fall flat on the ground, unable to move. Then, the black-clad man picked up a weapon and pressed it against his throat

Before he could finish counting on his fingers, the black servant had already completed his mental calculation, taking a sharp breath and saying: "Fourteen gold pieces, which amounts to 8064 coins... My heavens"

Having spoken, the black man suddenly stepped forward, closing in on the burly man with the twisted beard, making a thrusting motion that forced the thief to retreat several steps...

As for the miraculous "empty-handed seizure of a weapon" in Ji Ying's eyes, it is merely the fourth technique of the enemy capture fist, "grabbing the wrist and smashing the elbow," which is the best move to deal with assailants armed with deadly weapons. Following that, a "leg sweep and throw" and a "side kick and smash" would subdue the burly man with the twisted beard

As he was contemplating how to extricate himself, he suddenly heard a muffled groan from behind. Ji Ying was taken aback, thinking that the black servant had been struck. He seized the opportunity to take a look, only to find a fierce axe-wielding thief who had already fallen to the ground, with a sword wound to his ankle, while simultaneously clutching his abdomen in a state of excruciating pain

Ji Ying held a short sword in hand, cautiously guarding against the thieves before him, filled with deep regret. How could he, a person who had always been so astute, act impulsively and stand before these four robbers alongside Hei Fu?

"Then why did you stand out with me?" Ji Ying's mediocre skills were noted by Hei Fu, yet he did not look down upon him, nor did he immediately turn and flee, which was already quite commendable

With a clang, the short sword was cleanly knocked from the hands of the burly man with a twisted beard in just one strike

This person is the leader of the thieves. Upon seeing Ji Ying and Hei Fu disrupt their plans, he spread his arms wide, signaling three accomplices to disperse, and simultaneously spoke in a thick local accent: "If you wish to keep your lives, step aside"

He sighed, for he knew that the price of rice in Anlu County varied between 40 to 120 coins per stone, depending on whether it was a good or bad year. Taking this year's rice price of "80 coins per stone" as a reference, a fine of 2 jia would be equivalent to a penalty of 33 stones of millet, which is the annual food supply for a strong man like him, not a small amount

Oh? This fellow Hei Fu has quite good skills

The Qin state valued martial prowess, and men would carry weapons when going out. His short sword was just over one foot long, equivalent in length to the combat daggers used in modern police academies. Moreover, the reverse grip dagger fighting was precisely the skill that the blacksmith practiced the most. Additionally, in both his past and present lives, he was left-handed, which made his techniques quite different from those of ordinary people, rendering them difficult to defend against

At this point, Ji Ying enviously patted Hei Fu on the shoulder and said, "Hei Fu, you have struck it rich. If one becomes wealthy and noble, one should not forget the past!"

"He is indeed a reckless man, causing me considerable trouble..."

This is truly unfortunate! Ji Ying was almost in tears, cursing inwardly: "I am only nineteen, and I have not yet married! If I were to die like this, how could I face my parents?"

The front-line police officers often face not trained martial artists, but rather thugs with brute force or armed assailants. Therefore, the techniques of capturing an enemy are most suitable for dealing with small bandits from ancient times who have turned to a life of crime

Having said that, he let out a furious roar, "Die!" and charged at the black man with a blade in one hand. The stance he took was as if he intended to pierce the black man through completely

If future generations could also do this

The entire process took only a moment, as the black-clad man effortlessly took down three thieves with his fluid and decisive moves

Before Ji Ying could express his praise, the thief in front of him lunged at him again, and the two engaged in a struggle, only separating after quite some time. At that moment, he heard a scream and quickly turned around, only to see the thief wielding a short spear also being knocked to the ground by Hei Fu, clutching his blood-soaked thigh with both hands, wailing incessantly, as the short sword was deeply embedded, leaving only the hilt visible.

However, Ji Ying still felt a chill in his heart, believing that Hei Fu, facing three opponents alone, would certainly not be a match for them. Once those three thieves dealt with Hei Fu, they would come to besiege him.