Taiping Dao at the end of the Han Dynasty

Chapter 11 Sharpshooter
The first rays of the sun shone brightly, casting long shadows of flags. Dust rose slightly on the earthen ground. More than five hundred children stood in roughly aligned rows of ten.

They were thinly dressed, barefoot, and generally quite thin, but their spirits were good. And the eyes of those children all had a bright gleam in them, like the sun at seven or eight o'clock in the morning.

"The end of Mao Shi (5-7 AM), the beginning of Chen Shi (7-9 AM)... um, around seven o'clock."

A newly made sundial was placed in front of the children. It had a flat wooden base with a circle one foot in diameter carved into it. A straight bamboo stick was inserted into the center of the circle. On the outer edge of the circle were twelve equally divided sectors, each marked with one of the twelve two-hour periods: "Zi, Chou, Yin, Mao; Chen, Si, Wu, Wei; Shen, You, Xu, Hai." Following the marked hours were hour numbers from 0 to 23, written in a talisman-like pattern, further refining the division of time.

Of course, in this era, the twelve two-hour periods were usually called "midnight, cockcrow, dawn, sunrise, breakfast time, mid-morning, noon, afternoon, late afternoon, sunset, dusk, and nightfall," which are very colloquial and easy to understand. And the current "end of Mao hour and beginning of Chen hour" is when "the sun comes out" and "it's time to eat breakfast."

"Peace and tranquility reign! At sunrise, before breakfast, is the origin of heaven and earth, the time when yang energy is newly born. Therefore, standing for two quarters of an hour to generate yang energy is also called morning standing meditation..."

Zhang Cheng walked through the line of children with his hands behind his back, and if he saw any that were crooked or crooked, he would adjust them.

"Keep your head upright and neck straight, chin slightly tucked in. Heels about a foot apart, toes slightly turned inward. Breathe through your nose, slowly and steadily... Child, do not turn to look at me, remain calm and still!..."

"Ah! Yes, Master Zhang..."

"do not speak!"

"yes!…"

On the other side, Gao Daonu also brought some disciples to help instruct them. He was actually more skilled in this kind of "martial arts," having practiced diligently. As the saying goes, "the poor study literature, the rich study martial arts," and the amount of wheat he ate was equivalent to that of three or four ordinary strong men.

Given the current state of the Tianqi Temple, Zhang Chengfu couldn't possibly provide that much grain. Therefore, just like with meditation, he taught standing meditation. While practicing standing meditation, he also trained the children in formation and instilled in them a sense of discipline and time.

"Stand still like a pillar, with a calm mind, following your breath through your nose, and focusing your attention on your lower abdomen... This is the most basic standing posture skill."

"Simply put, it means 'body still, mind focused, and breath undisturbed'..."

"Stand for a full 15 minutes, and you can eat wheat porridge!..."

Upon hearing the words "eat wheat porridge," the sound of children swallowing saliva arose from the line of boys. Zhang Chengfu raised an eyebrow, gave them a stern look, and the sounds quickly disappeared. He maintained a serious expression, but inwardly found it amusing. However, upon hearing the boys' rumbling stomachs, he sighed inwardly.

"Peace and prosperity! Only after we've eaten our fill can we proceed with further training. Whether it's practicing hand-to-hand combat and weapons, or drilling and marching, an empty stomach is never enough... But in this plague-stricken and food-scarce land of Ji Province, where will the food come from? The surrounding provinces—Yu Province, Qing Province, and Yan Province—are all suffering from the same disaster. Bing Province is impoverished; I'm afraid we'll have to buy from You Province. You Province, Zhuo County, Zhuo County..."

Zhang Chengfu pondered silently, thinking of certain people again. The sun's traces moved across the corona. After practicing stillness and eating breakfast, it was "Chen Shi" (7-9 AM). Immediately following was the "cultural lesson" of learning to read. After making the corona, he taught the children how to write the twelve two-hour periods, their corresponding meanings, and the celestial phenomena highly valued in Taoism.

"The period from 23 PM to 1 AM is called 'midnight,' when the handle of the Big Dipper points directly north, and the Milky Way is clearly visible. The period from 1 AM to 3 AM is called 'cockcrow,' with the first rooster crow always occurring at the end of the period. The seven eastern constellations gradually appear at this time. The period from 3 AM to 5 AM is called 'dawn.' At this time, the morning star is at its brightest, dew condenses, and dawn breaks at the end of the period. Dawn means that the sun is flat and appears on the horizon."

"From 5-7 AM (卯时) is sunrise. From 7-9 AM (辰时) is breakfast time. From 9-11 AM (巳时) is mid-morning (隅中). '隅' means 'to the side,' so '隅中' means the sun is near the center of the sky, but not yet. From 11 AM to 13 PM (午时) is midday (日中), when the sun is at its zenith and the shadow is shortest. From 13 PM to 15 PM (未时) is afternoon (日昳), when the sun is already setting..."

"From 15 PM to 17 PM is 'Bu Shi,' which is when we eat our second meal at the end of Shen Shi. From 17 PM to 19 PM is 'Ri Ru,' when the sun sets in the west and twilight descends. From 19 PM to 21 PM is 'Huanghun,' when the last rays of sunlight fade in the west. However, the sun sets later in summer and earlier in winter; I will explain the reasons for this later. Finally, from 21 PM to 23 PM is 'Ren Ding,' when people go to sleep. The handle of the Big Dipper points northwest..."

There is so much to say about celestial phenomena and time. As an introduction, Zhang Chengfu simply reinforced the concept of time and taught the related vocabulary. These twelve two-hour periods, plus their common names, total about 30 characters. It would probably take three days to teach them all, and the children in the group would have to help each other learn.

The sun's shadows grew shorter and shorter until after noon, when they began to lengthen again. Since there were only two meals a day, there was no lunch. The children could only practice meditation on empty stomachs. Then, at 2 PM, they began studying arithmetic.

The lessons these past few days have been interconnected. Since we've taught about the time of the solar corona, arithmetic involves calculating addition and subtraction of time, as well as learning about the angles of a disc. Two-digit addition and subtraction need to be done carefully; you're required to learn all of them. As for the angles and radians of a circle, we'll just teach a simple concept first, just enough to get a general idea.

The day passed quickly, and by five o'clock in the afternoon, it was time for the children to happily eat again. Zhang Chengfu wiped the sweat from his brow, thinking about what new rhymes he could teach that evening, or tell his "disciples" some historical stories, when he saw his eldest brother, Ma Yuanyi, arrive with a smile, accompanied by his second brother, Tang Zhou.

"Chengfu, you're certainly making quite a splash as the head of the children's camp! Sometimes, even your master comes out of the temple to take a look from afar..."

"Absolutely! I'd like to see what this children's camp, which has consumed so much food, is really like...?"

"Ah! Senior Brother Yuanyi! Senior Brother Tang Zhou!..."

Zhang Chengfu quickly bowed, and his two senior brothers returned the greeting. The three of them strolled around the camp for a while, watching the children eat in groups. Gao Daonu maintained order with a short wooden stick and greeted them again. After observing the scene, Ma Yuanyi and Tang Zhou exchanged a glance, both showing some surprise.

"Peace and prosperity reign! Chengfu and Daonu, your training is quite impressive!"

"Hmm, it does have some method. It wasn't in vain that we ate so much food..."

"They can't compare to the disciples under the eldest brother..."

"Ha! Yuanyi, Junior Brother, you're quite arrogant! You still want to compare yourself with your elite disciples who wield staffs!"

"Haha! Given time, it's not impossible! After all, these children are still young, and they have good energy. Hmm, they're just a bit thin..."

While it was still light, the three of them emerged from the children's camp. Ma Yuanyi took an eight-dou hunting bow and twenty bone arrows from his accompanying disciples and handed them to Zhang Chengfu with a smile.

"Here, the hunting bow you asked me for. You've never even touched a bow before, so why did you suddenly decide you wanted to learn archery?"

"I touched a bow before, tried it out, and felt like I might know how to shoot an arrow..."

"Can you shoot arrows?... "

Hearing this, Ma Yuanyi and Tang Zhou looked surprised and suspicious. Their junior brother came from a farming family; their master had found him when he was only ten years old. They had watched him grow up; how could they not know whether he had learned archery or not? Could it be...?

Tang Zhou seemed to be deep in thought. He smiled, took Zhang Chengfu's arm, and walked into the temple.

"Come, follow me! I have a straw man in my storeroom, and Yuan Yi's disciples have a training ground. Let's go there and shoot a couple of arrows!" "Great! Let's go to my training ground and practice!"

Zhang Chengfu couldn't refuse and had no choice but to follow his two senior brothers. Ma Yuanyi's eight hundred elite disciples had a formal camp outside the temple. These eight hundred men ostensibly practiced with sticks, but in reality, the sticks with spearheads became short spears for the army.

Ultimately, this force was the core military force that Zhang Jiao, the Great Teacher of Virtue, truly relied on at his Taoist temple in Jizhou. They were "Taoist soldiers" selected and trained from among many believers, possessing both faith and martial prowess. Unfortunately, Zhang Jiao only had eight hundred such "Taoist soldiers" under his command, and Zhang Bao and Zhang Liang had roughly the same number; any more would be unaffordable.

"Chengfu, how far are you going to put this straw figure?"

"Let's start with thirty steps!"

Thirty steps? Are you sure?

"Hmm. Let's try the bow first..."

On the earthen ground, Zhang Chengfu stood with his feet shoulder-width apart, gripping the light hunting bow, his entire demeanor becoming solemn. A strangely familiar feeling washed over him once more. He took a deep breath, aimed at the large red cloth tied around the head of a human figure to the chest of the straw man, slowly drew the bow to his lips, and released an arrow with a steady motion, his body remaining completely still!

"Whoosh!"

Seeing the imposing stance and drawn bow, Ma Yuanyi and Tang Zhou both became serious, their backs straightening in surprise. Their eyes widened as they watched the arrow fly smoothly and steadily towards the ground, then... the arrow struck the red cloth, landing about two inches away.

"Huh? Chengfu can actually shoot arrows?... "

"Unfortunately, the shot wasn't very accurate..."

"It's alright, he'll get better with practice. He draws that eight-dou bow with ease!"

"Ha! It's because he's been strong since he was a child, just like Dao Nu..."

The two senior brothers, who were not skilled archers, breathed a sigh of relief when the arrow missed. However, Liu Gong, one of the disciples who had come to watch, looked on with solemn respect. The first test shot of this new bow was only two inches off?
"Hmm, thirty paces, off by two inches to the lower left. I aimed and fired, so to fire again I'd need to move my aim slightly to the upper right to compensate for that deviation..."

Zhang Chengfu stepped forward, carefully examined the straw man's target, calculated the deviation, and then returned to a distance of thirty paces. He straightened up, steadily drew his bow, and fired another arrow in an instant!
"Whoosh!"

The second arrow struck the upper right of the red cloth, just an inch off target. Zhang Chengfu went forward to examine it again, gesturing with his fingers to determine the correct aim and how much compensation was needed. He then returned to his position, adjusted his breathing, sharpened his eyes instantly, aimed again, and fired another arrow.

"Whoosh!"

This time, the arrow flew swiftly, striking the red cloth in the center of the straw doll's target. The two senior brothers' eyes widened immediately! But before they could speak, Zhang Chengfu took another arrow, and three more shot in quick succession, all hitting the center of the bullseye, right next to each other!
"Hiss! That arrow wasn't a fluke? Is it due to that archery skill?..."

"It really is a soul possession... cough... it's a divine gift!"

Ma Yuanyi and Tang Zhou exchanged glances, their faces showing both surprise and delight. If this junior brother possessed truly exceptional archery skills, he could certainly shoulder more responsibility in the important affairs of the Way of Peace later on. As they thought this, Zhang Chengfu stepped forward again, retrieved the five arrows, and pulled the straw figure twenty paces away.

"Huh? Fifty paces?!..."

"Isn't this a bit too far?...

Zhang Chengfu lowered his eyes, carefully feeling the bow and arrow in his hands, sensing the innate familiarity and the precision of his movements honed through countless trials. However, his control over his muscle strength had not yet reached a level of meticulous detail. Even if the shooting motion was flawless, there would still be a slight deviation in the force applied.

"Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh!"

Five more arrows came from fifty paces away! All five arrows were on the red cloth, but they were scattered into a pentagonal pattern. Ma Yuanyi and Tang Zhou were still smiling and praising, but Liu Gong's forehead was already sweating. You must know that with such archery skills, if he were using a heavy bow and wolf-tooth arrows, he could already pick off enemy officers by name on the battlefield, even through the enemy ranks!

"Fifty paces...that's about the limit of this bow. Any further and the bow will tremble, and the shot won't be very accurate."

Zhang Chengfu felt the bow vibrate and instinctively sensed its limits. Yet, he still dragged the straw man seventy paces and fired five more arrows! This time, only one arrow hit the red cloth; the other four were barely touching it, the furthest being no more than an inch. And the depth of the penetration was only shallow.

"Hmm, headshot within fifty paces...bodyshot from fifty paces away..."

Zhang Chengfu seemed lost in thought, then carefully put the arrow away again. He had tested the stationary targets enough; what about the moving targets…? Thinking this, he looked around and spotted a sparrow in a tree. Under the questioning gazes of his two senior brothers, he walked to the tree, and from a distance of about ten paces, lightly fired an arrow.

"Whoosh!"

The first arrow grazed the sparrow, piercing through the branches and leaves of the tree. Startled, the sparrow immediately took flight from the treetop, like a frightened rabbit. A dozen paces away, the second arrow arrived in an instant, piercing the sparrow and carrying it further into the sky! Then came the third arrow, piercing the falling sparrow once more, sending it soaring a little higher. Then came the fourth arrow, striking its target—three arrows in quick succession!
"Heavens above! Could Chengfu's arrows be the legendary rapid-fire arrows?!"

"Ah! Hitting a flying sparrow three times in a row? What level of archery is that? I don't think I've ever heard of such a thing before...?"

Only after four arrows had been fired did Zhang Chengfu let out a long breath, steadily lowering his hunting bow. The dead sparrow, pierced by three bone arrows, fell from mid-air. At that moment, the field was deathly silent. The disciples stared wide-eyed, utterly incredulous. Ma Yuanyi and Tang Zhou exchanged bewildered glances; they had no idea what level of archery this was!

On the entire training ground, only Liu Gong was trembling. He could barely contain his excitement, and his heart was pounding. After a few breaths, he pursed his lips and murmured in disbelief.

"Three shots in quick succession, all hitting sparrows... This... this must be a skilled archer in the army! And a master archer among the Hu people!... Taiyi, you're amazing! Chengfu is so young, yet he's... a potential master archer?!..."

"Heavens above! Arrows are hard to defend against. Such a divine archer, and so young... Once he grows stronger, how many famous generals and heroes will fall by his arrows?..."

The heavens were silent, the setting sun casting long shadows. Zhang Chengfu turned and saw Liu Gong, a happy smile spreading across his face. He brandished his bow and arrow, revealing a clean, youthful smile, completely concealing his murderous intent.

(End of this chapter)