Unparalleled Duo
Chapter 43 - 43 29 Duel on the Arena

43: Chapter 29: Duel on the Arena 43: Chapter 29: Duel on the Arena Today’s Xuzhou City…

is bustling.

There’s a duel.

Zheng Mukai, the head honcho of Kaifeng Prefecture’s Guangxing Escort Agency, has decided to publicly spar on the city’s arena with Ge Shi, the fifth-ranked master of Huaian’s Heroic Gate.

Both are well-known figures in the Martial Arts community.

Zheng Mukai, at thirty-five this year, is known as the “Kaifeng Three-Armed Sword.” Of course, he’s not some Three Sword Styles practitioner; he wields only one sword.

However, his swift swordplay is so fast that it seems as though he has three arms instead of one.

On the other hand, Ge Shi is no pushover either.

At thirty-one this year, his nickname is “Scorpion Tail Spear,” and his seven-foot spear technique is so versatile and fierce that in the Huai River region, he’s a household name.

These two men…

originally had little to do with each other and had no reason to come to blows, let alone sign a deathmatch agreement and fight on the arena.

But today, they had to fight, and there was no getting out of it.

Why, you ask?

It’s not that hard to guess—most men fight to the death over money or women.

Money—they’ve got plenty of it.

So, the answer must be a woman.

And there are many kinds of women.

Zheng Mukai and Ge Shi both have wives at home, and their wives are women too.

But they were clearly not fighting over their far-off spouses today.

They…

were fighting over a woman neither of them had ever met.

That woman, with the stage name “Chuxue,” is the top courtesan of “Qiliu Youlan,” the largest brothel in Xuzhou City.

Brothels in those times came in different rankings; let’s not even mention those of the low-class, those typically had fewer rules.

But the first-grade brothels…

visiting one had many more formalities.

Such brothels, renowned enough to send shockwaves through a region, undoubtedly had powerful backers.

Hence, common folk could rarely meet the courtesans from such establishments.

It wasn’t as if you could just throw money around and demand to sleep with the top courtesan.

Sorry, no such deal.

For those with status, even indulging in a brothel required sophistication and class.

They couldn’t just jump into bed like ordinary villagers visiting lower-class brothels—that would be animalistic to them.

What the real dignitaries and learned men sought was not just physical release; they needed to be satisfied spiritually first.

So, to meet a top courtesan from a high-class brothel, you’d have to go through a process akin to a job interview: you’d have to “request an audience.”

No matter whether you got to meet her or not, you had to shell out the silver first to make sure the madam knew you were willing to spend.

Then, they’d typically invite you into a room for tea, allowing the courtesan to take a peek at you from a concealed spot first.

If you looked unsightly or unrefined…

you’d probably be sent on your way after finishing your tea.

If you looked and acted presentable, there was a next step: the courtesan would come out for a chat…

Of course, just a chat.

If you started getting handsy or acted desperately upon seeing her, she’d turn and leave.

You had to be reserved and courteous, maintaining an unshakeable demeanor even in a brothel, engaging in conversations about music, chess, calligraphy, painting, and poetic themes…

Only then would she start offering you tea or wine or flirting with you.

After talking into the wee hours, only if the courtesan herself nodded to her maid to send the signal and close the door, inviting you to join her in the inner chamber for rest, could you proceed to fulfill your actual purpose for visiting the brothel.

This whole series of procedures…

which may seem as superfluous as removing pants to fart to us modern folks, was seen as an essential part of the foreplay, even more critical than the actual foreplay itself in the upper echelons of that era.

Upon closer reflection, there’s a reason behind it.

Getting something too easily tends to reduce the pleasure of enjoying it…

Even with something as mundane as relieving oneself, the satisfaction of going when you just feel the urge compared to when you’re about to soil yourself is simply incomparable.

The happiness a wealthy and handsome man feels after winning over his dream woman in a day cannot be compared to the joy a hopeless admirer feels after doing the same over a year.

Thus, intentionally creating obstacles for oneself, to relish the anxiety of possible failure or rejection, is a higher realm of existence.

It’s a tactic for cleverly prompting your brain to release more endorphins.

Of course, we have to come back down to earth: you need the means to engage in such tactics.

Without the requisite capabilities, you’re more likely to fail regardless of your efforts.

I’ve digressed…

Back to the point.

So, what’s the deal with Zheng Mukai and Ge Shi?

Having laid down the context, the explanation is quite straightforward: Both of them went to Qiliu Youlan last night, hoping to meet Miss Chuxue.

As a result, they were both invited by the madam to have tea.

Chuxue didn’t show up; she merely had a look at the two men from behind the screen and said, “One flake (of snow) cannot be divided into two halves.”

Then she sent the madam to show the guests out.

Confused by her words, they asked the madam to inquire about Miss Chuxue’s meaning for them.

Seeing that they had spent their silver and were men of stature in the Martial Arts community, she obliged and relayed the message back, written on a piece of paper.

But what did she really mean?

“One flake,” undoubtedly referring to herself, as flake is synonymous with snow.

As for “cannot be divided into two halves,” on the surface, it seemed like she was saying, “I, a ‘flake of snow,’ can’t fall into two ‘valleys.'”

But that’s not it…

She was hiding a wordplay there.

“Halves” was not referring to “yu” but to “spouse,” considering there were two “men” sitting there.

Miss Chuxue, astute as she was, could tell from their garments, boots, and details on their cuffs and belts, understood they were both men with families and their wives took good care of them.

By using the word “spouse,” she was reminding them of their wives, deliberately leaving a radical out as advice for them to be “human” and have a conscience.

The phrase meant to say, “I, Chuxue, do not wish to ‘break apart’ your ‘beautiful couples.'”

That was her intention.

But Zheng Mukai and Ge Shi took it differently.

That’s the trouble with being uneducated—do you think women who become top courtesans have a low level of education?

If women could sit for civil exams, they’d have become officials by now.

And yet, folk like you two want to meet the top courtesan?

Aren’t you just asking for trouble?

And so, the two interpreted the sentence literally.

According to that interpretation, it seemed as if she was hinting, “If only one of you had come, then I, the snowflake, would have fallen there.”

Consequently, they ended up in their own version of “two peaches kill three warriors.”

Both being practitioners from the reputable and upright Martial Arts community, they couldn’t just brawl outside the brothel at night.

What if someone won and then went back?

That wouldn’t look good if word got out.

Thus, they agreed to settle the score today at 1 p.m., on the arena at East Street, Xuzhou City.

As for the reason…

naturally, they didn’t publicly state it was over a courtesan.

They simply said it was to exchange martial arts techniques and determine who was superior.

Considering the unpredictable nature of swords, they also formally notified the local security chief and signed a life-or-death waiver.

That’s what they professed.

But in truth, both had murderous intentions.

Once a life-or-death waiver is signed, how could one hold back?

The agreement essentially functions as a “legal killing contract.” If both parties willingly sign it, then whatever happens afterward is fate, and none of either’s family or friends should seek revenge.

Whoever seeks revenge or engages in reprisals is at fault.

…

After noon had passed, the crowd at East Street began to gather to watch the spectacle.

Casual encounters with Martial Arts feuds scare off ordinary people, as they don’t want to be collateral damage.

But a rule-regulated arena contest?

They loved to watch, and some nosy folks even climbed onto nearby rooftops for a better view.

1 p.m.

arrived in the blink of an eye.

Finally, Ge Shi and Zheng Mukai took center stage.

Both waited until the last moment to show up, a sign of their experience in the Martial Arts world—they knew arriving early at such an event could make them jittery.

The life-or-death waiver was already signed.

The two men briefly saluted the local security chief, who provided a quick overview, and then employed their Qinggong to leap onto the arena, over six feet high.

“Please.”

“Please.”

Holding their weapons and exchanging a salute with clasped fists, they greeted each other for one final time in the center of the arena before heading to opposite ends.

At that moment…

“Come on, place your bets, make your choice!

The fight’s about to start, last minute to wager—quickly now, what’s that?

What’s a minute?

A minute is when you count seconds, from one to sixty.”

A shrill male voice could boldly be heard selling bets about fifteen meters away from the arena, at the corner of an alley.

Another voice, not far from the “bookie,” was authoritatively instructing a group of locals: “Guys, trust me, I’m a pro commentator.

I’m telling you, in today’s match, it’s a 60-40 chance in favor of Ge Shi…

It’s said that it takes a hundred days to practice a knife, a thousand for a spear, and ten thousand for a sword.

At their level…

oh no…

with their mastery, usually the spear practitioner is slightly stronger.

Of course, Zheng Mukai is a few years older than Ge Shi, that’s a factor to consider.

Trust me, bet on Ge Shi, you won’t go wrong.”

The owners of the two voices?

Who else could they be but Sun Yixie and Huang Donglai?

These two had also just arrived in Xuzhou yesterday, and as word of the duel was spreading through the streets this morning, they joined in the excitement.

True to his business acumen, Sun Yixie thought to set up a “betting stall” near the arena almost immediately after hearing the news; not that he’s short on cash, but having recently been robbed of two hundred silver taels at Zhu Xiaowan’s scam of an establishment, he wasn’t feeling great and wanted to make some quick money on the side—it’s just his nature, nothing to do with the money really.

Huang Donglai, on the other hand, had a strong affinity for commentating and decided to help Brother Sun “build a narrative.”

The two started out standing there, chatting away like a comic duo, until an audience gathered.

Then, Huang Donglai took over the monologue like a storyteller while Sun Yixie conveniently whipped out the “chips” he had prepared all morning and began taking bets, creating the scene now unfolding.

Listening to the brazen words and actions of those two lads, Zheng Mukai and Ge Shi on the arena were both visibly embarrassed, their lips twitching.

But the moment of truth had come, and calling a time-out was hardly an option.

The combatants could only pretend not to hear, assuming their fighting stances, ready for the bout to commence.

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