Chapter 160 Wrestling

Elcyra's wish brought a bit of extra amusement into Liu Ji's military camp. Of course, once everything was running on track and women were no longer permitted to stay in the camp, the commander-in-chief was naturally no exception. After daily training, he had no choice but to retire to the city to rest. If he happened to be too wild one night and woke up late, he would be greeted by the strange, knowing looks of his subordinates.

Who could blame them when he had plucked the most beautiful flower in Nepal?

For reasons unknown, the young woman had grown much more proactive lately. Sometimes she seemed even more eager than he was. Liu Ji understood well enough in his heart that she was anxious about his impending departure; therefore, he could only respond to her initiative with even greater passion, until both of them were too exhausted to move.

Before he knew it, the tenth day arrived. On this morning, Liu Ji woke up later than on any previous day. Remembering the ambiguous looks of those fellows and the gossip that would surely be spreading behind his back, he felt a tickling itch of annoyance and resolved to ramp up the training intensity today so they would have no idle time to wag their tongues.

Unexpectedly, just as he stepped out of the city gates and before he even reached the camp, he received some unexpected news.

Li Siye had arrived.

Counting the days, from the moment they captured the city and sent messengers in both directions to the time of his arrival, it had been ten days. He must have set out almost immediately upon receiving the news. It seemed he was far from the only one who couldn't sit still.

And understandably so. It had been well over half a month since the capture of Kantipur, with virtually no battles to fight. How could a natural-born warmonger like Li Siye possibly sit still? Managing to restrain himself until the news arrived was already a sign that he was taking the greater overall situation into consideration.

"Where is he? When did he arrive, and why didn't anyone come to fetch me?" Liu Ji asked as he walked toward the camp.

"He's been here for an hour. We offered to go call for you, but the Commissioner simply wouldn't allow it. Look, he's wrestling with Deputy Chen and the others right now."

Greeting him at the door was Squadron Deputy Chen Jin. Hearing this, Liu Ji had a fair idea of what was going on. Li Siye was feigning casualness for two reasons: first, to learn the outcome, and second, to discuss the next move. Since that was the case, he himself could not appear overly anxious.

He had not taken many steps inside the camp before he heard thunderous cheers. An open space in the middle of the main camp was surrounded by a large circle of Tang soldiers, and even the cavalry under Yang Yu's command had squeezed in.

Liu Ji walked up behind Yang Yu and tapped him unexpectedly on the shoulder. Yang Yu turned his head, his face beaming with excitement.

"Quick, quick! We've been waiting for you."

"Waiting for me for what?"

"To get in the ring!" Yang Yu pointed to the center of the arena, looking thoroughly exasperated. "Old Zhang only lasted three rounds, and Old Xu doesn't look like he's holding up either. You've made me lose several wagers, and I'm counting entirely on you to win it back. You must salvage this for us."

Speechless, Liu Ji squeezed his way past him and immediately caught sight of the two figures in the center. Both were stripped to the waist, chest heaving as they glared at each other.

One was his deputy, Xu Guangjing; the other, naturally, was Li Siye.

The former could be overlooked, but this was Liu Ji's first time seeing Li Siye engage in a physical contest. Standing nearly two meters tall with his hair and beard bristling like a lion's, Li Siye possessed an immense, oppressive presence. His iron-like arms, gnarled and bulging with knots of muscle, were enough to make an ordinary person lose their nerve just from the sight of such raw power. Right at that moment, Xu Guangjing made his move, and just like the others, he failed to hold his ground.

Liu Ji could tell something was amiss the moment he saw Xu's form. Xu Guangjing stood nearly one meter ninety, just a fraction shorter than his opponent, but since both his height and weight fell short of Li Siye's, he had no choice but to rely on technique or wait for the opponent to reveal an opening. This particular move of his was a feint.

Yet Li Siye's reactions were even faster. In the blink of an eye, he closed the distance, instantly depriving Xu's movement of its foundation. Instead, Xu exposed a fatal opening due to his unstable lower stance, and was promptly overturned by his strength-advantaged opponent, landing flat on his face.

"Aah!" A chorus of wails instantly rose from the surrounding crowd; it was clear they had all placed their bets on their own man.

"Big Club Xu, you damned good-for-nothing! You could at least have lasted one more round so I could win back some of my stake!"

Yang Yu shouted with an exaggerated expression. Xu Guangjing climbed up from the ground, looking dejected without offering a retort, and merely cupped his hands toward Li Siye. "I have lost."

"Hahaha, you weren't bad. Who's next?" Li Siye stood with hands on hips, scanning his surroundings, undisguised triumph radiating from his expression.

"Fifth Brother, you go," Yang Yu urged, giving him a sudden, unexpected shove that pushed Liu Ji right into the center of the ring.

The appearance of their own garrison commander instantly reignited the soldiers' enthusiasm, and the crowd waved their arms and cheered.

"Commander!"

"Commander!"

Li Siye looked at him as well, smiling as he said, "Well? Let me see what Master Tian has taught you."

Things had reached a point where Liu Ji had no choice but to step up. This was plainly an unfair contest; his opponent stood nearly two meters tall, towering over him by a full head and more, not to mention having a physique of an entirely different magnitude—he looked almost twice Liu Ji's size.

Yet even if one lost the match, one could not lose face. On his own turf, with someone coming to his doorstep to challenge him, backing down was never his style.

"What are the stakes?"

"Five rounds. If you can last that long under my hands, I'll call it your win." Li Siye clearly did not believe he could pull it off.

To everyone's surprise, Liu Ji shook his head. "Too many. One round. Winner takes all. Does the Commissioner dare?"

As soon as these words left his mouth, not only did his subordinates break into an uproar, but Li Siye was also driven to laughter. Looking across the Four Garrisons of Anxi, the only one likely to utter such words was that madman Cheng. Liu Fifth Brother? He simply wasn't in that league yet.

"Really?"

"Naturally."

Liu Ji tore off his outer garment, tossed it casually aside, stretched his wrists, waist, legs, and feet, and then stood squarely facing his opponent.

"Good!" Yang Yu was the first to shout. Win or lose, this kind of spirit had already salvaged a great deal of face, immediately sparking cheers from the onlookers.

Amidst the roaring applause, Li Siye squatted slightly, pressing his giant, fan-like hands against his knees, his bulging eyes fixed intently on that young and arrogant figure.

Liu Ji had successfully provoked his anger.

At this moment, his opponent was like a mountain. If there were no flaws to exploit, his end would be no better than Zhang Wujia's or Xu Guangjing's. If it came down purely to raw strength, even Dalan Qi would never have lasted five rounds.

Therefore, he deliberately set the limit to a single round, forcing Li Siye to take the offensive, because the one who could not afford to lose face was the opponent.

Sure enough, Li Siye's frame shifted. To his surprise, despite his massive height, the man's movements were not the least bit slow. Liu Ji barely had time to dodge one of his legs before his wrist tightened—he had already been grabbed in a firm grip.

Instead of retreating, Liu Ji pressed forward, offering his other hand as well. Li Siye seized both of his wrists without hesitation, twisting hard in an attempt to flip him over. Liu Ji used the momentum to spring upward, dodging a knee strike while vaulting onto Li Siye's shoulders, bending his knees to lock around the man's head.

Li Siye had not expected him to be so agile and was forced to release his grip temporarily, reaching up with both hands to pry off Liu Ji's legs. Liu Ji threw his upper body straight backward, wrapping his arms around Li Siye's waist from behind, hanging suspended upside down against his back.

He was waiting—waiting for Li Siye to lean backward so as to pin him underneath; if that happened, his opportunity would arrive.

Unfortunately, his opponent evidently anticipated his intent. Li Siye dropped his center of gravity, firmly anchoring his lower stance, and then suddenly exerted explosive force with a lion-like head toss, hurling Liu Ji forward with tremendous power.

Left with no alternative, Liu Ji executed a front flip, detaching himself from the man's body, spun mid-air, and landed steadily on his feet.

"Well done!"

The surrounding soldiers watched with breathless awe until both men came to a complete halt before bursting into thunderous cheers.

"You win." The trace of anger in Li Siye's eyes had vanished, replaced entirely by deep appreciation.

"It was merely luck, and thanks to your forbearance. Let's call it a draw."

Liu Ji naturally knew that the other man had held back and not delivered a fatal blow; that was the gamble he had taken, otherwise his wrists would likely have been crippled.