Chapter 19: The Boxer Rebellion

Looking at the money in his hand, Chen Zheng couldn't help but feel a sense of excitement. This was the first income he had earned since arriving in this world, and it felt like a big achievement. He had almost forgotten what it felt like to make money. 

On the road from Baoding back to Tianjin, Chen Zheng had been traveling alone. The main reason for this was that he wanted to find some people to spar with. With twenty or so strong men in the convoy, even if bandits wanted to rob them, they wouldn't dare to make a move. 

Sure enough, traveling alone turned out to be a much better decision. Over the next four days, Chen Zheng encountered seven waves of robbers. At first, he was excited about the opportunity to gain some practical combat experience. However, as he learned more about the historical context during this period, his excitement faded. 

Who would want to be a bandit if they could survive through honest means? Everyone wanted a stable life. Living on the edge like that, always facing death, was something no one truly desired. 

The North had been experiencing a severe drought that year, making life even harder. Coupled with the war indemnities, the poor were left with no choice but to turn to banditry. The money the bandits made had to come from somewhere, and of course, it came from the common people. Ultimately, the villagers, driven to desperation, were forced into banditry. 

In the northern regions, most villages were organized around a single surname, and the tradition of martial arts was strong in these areas. Nearly everyone could perform a few basic martial arts moves. Every village would have at least one or two people skilled in martial arts, who would gather the villagers to practice during the off-season. The idea wasn't just to practice for fun but to be prepared in case of a fight or a raid by bandits. 

The idea of practicing martial arts for health was unheard of. People didn't think of it as exercise—they just wanted the skills to protect their families and livelihoods. If they couldn't survive through honest work, rebellion was often the only option left. These villages, organized and trained in combat, were potential troublemakers for the government. 

The martial artists in these villages were often referred to as "Master Brothers." Their martial arts were not divine techniques but had been passed down through organizations. Some of these were known as "Yihe Quan" (the Boxer Fist), a style of martial arts associated with the early phases of what would later be called the "Boxer Rebellion." 

Now, as the villagers faced ruin, many of the "Master Brothers" began to lead their people in rebellion. At first, the Qing government tried to suppress them, but as the situation worsened, they had no choice but to offer a form of appeasement. The movement, which initially seemed simple, later gained the slogan "Support the Qing, Destroy the Foreigners," which complicated things further. 

Chen Zheng, reflecting on these events, remembered hearing about the Boxer Rebellion. When he encountered some of the bandits on the road, he heard the leader of the group called himself "Master Brother," which reminded him of the history unfolding around him. 

"I wonder if there's any way I can stop this?" Chen Zheng muttered to himself, looking up at the night sky. 

However, his thoughts were quickly interrupted by the sound of a gunshot. His sleepiness vanished immediately. "No way. On the first night out camping, I get caught in something like this? What kind of luck is that?" 

Having spent time in a gun club as an exchange student in Singapore, Chen Zheng instantly recognized the sound of the gunshot. 

Without hesitation, he used a quick sand kick to extinguish his campfire and swiftly climbed up a nearby tree. He could hear voices and footsteps getting closer, heading in his direction. At this moment, Chen Zheng was wary—he didn't yet have the means to handle firearms, so he decided to wait and observe. 

About a minute later, he saw a group of people running toward him. Leading them were three figures, one of whom had long hair—likely a woman—and the other two, though difficult to identify at first, appeared to be men. Behind them, a group of people carrying torches was following, shouting and cursing as they chased after the trio. 

When they got closer, Chen Zheng could see that the three in the front were foreigners: one woman and two men, with the men holding guns. Every so often, they would turn around and fire shots, but the pursuing group seemed undeterred, even as one of their own fell, still continuing to chase. 

"That's the Boxer Rebellion!" Chen Zheng thought when he saw the pursuers' white headbands inscribed with the phrase "Support the Qing, Destroy the Foreigners." 

"Just my luck," he muttered. "I was just thinking about the Boxer Rebellion, and now here I am, right in the middle of it." 

Chen Zheng had no intention of playing the hero and saving the foreign woman. His attitude toward foreigners at this time was far from favorable, and he figured he'd just let the situation play out. Once the group passed, he could get back to what he was doing. 

But fate had other plans. Not far from where he was hiding, the woman tripped and was quickly surrounded by the group. The members of the Boxer Rebellion stopped beneath the tree where Chen Zheng was hiding, and from his vantage point, he could see that there were about twenty people. The three leaders at the front were likely martial artists, the so-called "Master Brothers." 

Then, something interesting happened. The two groups couldn't understand each other at all. One side spoke in heavily accented Mandarin, while the other spoke English. Despite the language barrier, they exchanged words. 

From their conversation, Chen Zheng gathered the gist of the situation. It turned out that neither side had any personal animosity toward the other. The Boxers, however, followed a strict principle of "Support the Qing, Destroy the Foreigners," which meant they attacked any foreigner on sight. So, when they encountered these foreigners on the road, they had pursued them relentlessly. 

The foreigners, despite having guns, were not professional soldiers, and their shooting accuracy was poor. In the chaos, they had already run out of ammunition, and once the Boxers realized this, they no longer hesitated. 

After knocking out the two men, they didn't kill them right away but bound them with ropes. The leader of the Boxers said something about making them suffer a slow and painful death. Chen Zheng furrowed his brow. Though he didn't like the foreigners, he felt this was a bit too cruel. 

Just then, the woman's clothes were torn off by one of the Boxers, and Chen Zheng… 

"Swish, swish…" Suddenly, a small, thin Boxer leader threw something in Chen Zheng's direction. Chen Zheng immediately heard the sound of objects cutting through the air.