Chapter 52: Women's Self-Defense Techniques

  Contrary to Wang Po's expectations, Ximen Qing showed no interest in the braised lamb on the table or that pot of wine.

  Since crossing over, I'm so sick of eating mutton all the time! My brother really misses the smell of pork!

  This hot Huangjiu is really not my cup of tea, it would be better to bring over a few bottles of Jingyangchun from the store.

  Pan Jinlian's heart was racing, she sat sideways, secretly glancing at Ximen Qing, and didn't have the appetite to eat.

  The man opposite had touched her soft breasts and hugged her body, although it was unintentional, but the feeling still lingered. Didn't Pan Jinlian herself accidentally pinch Ximen Qing a little?

  The atmosphere was a bit awkward for a moment. Ximen Qing stretched out his hand: "Jinlian, nice to meet you, I'm Ximen Qing."

  If we're going to have a romance that transcends time, then let's start from scratch. Moreover, Ximen Qing hopes Pan Jinlian recognizes his true self, rather than the wealthy playboy of Qinghe County.

  As for how Pan Jinlian reacted, Ximen Qing could accept it calmly.

  When did this way of shaking hands appear, and whether it conforms to this era, Ximen Qing doesn't know, nor will he care.

  Facing Ximen Qing's strange greeting, Pan Jinlian, although somewhat unable to adapt, still learned to stretch out her hand and said stiffly with her five slender fingers clenched together: "Master...hello, I'm called Pan Jinlian."

  Ximen Qing smiled and stretched out his hand a bit further, grasping Pan Jinlian's soft but slightly tense small hand. Pan Jinlian immediately understood the etiquette, her small hand no longer stiff, and gently grasped Ximen Qing's large hand in response.

  It's still good in this era, if this scene happened in that moralistic suffocating era, I'm afraid Pan Jinlian would have to cut off her own hand and bring it back to satisfy those moral guardians.

  Pan Jinlian felt the warmth from Ximen Qing's palm and smiled slightly.

  This set of etiquette is really quite interesting.

  Pan Jinlian didn't know that this handshake was supposed to be released at some point, while Ximen Qing shamelessly continued to hold on, and conveniently moved his stool over, becoming shoulder-to-shoulder with Pan Jinlian.

  After shaking hands, it directly became holding hands.

  Pan Jinlian was still sitting sideways, but this time she had turned towards Ximen Qing.

  Ximen Qing tightly wrapped his arms around Pan Jinlian's soft body, smelling the faint scent on her hair, and began to whisper disjointedly in her ear.

  Talking about life, discussing ideals, and making witty remarks - Ximen Qing is most skilled at these things.

  When Ximen Qing first held her, Pan Jinlian's body was still a bit stiff, and she listened to Ximen Qing's words with a panicked and disordered heart, but in fact, she couldn't hear half of what he said in three sentences. But slowly, Pan Jinlian's body began to relax, and she could also listen calmly to what Ximen Qing said, occasionally interacting with him from time to time.

  Ximen Qing is no good at history, but he's full of jokes and has a lot of quick wit. This kind of thing can still be used to make girls happy.

  Listening to Ximen Qing slowly telling jokes she had never heard before and various tasteless brain teasers, Pan Jinlian already had a smile on her face.

  This Ximen official has so many small stories to tell?

  Listening to the laughter of Ximen Qing and Pan Jinlian coming from inside, Wang Po was very satisfied at first. This Ximen Qing is also an old hand, he's going to enter the harbor so quickly.

  But then, what Wang Po heard was laughter, still laughter, and mostly Pan Jinlian's laughter; the kind of gasping sounds or creaking bed board sounds that Wang Po had hoped to hear were all absent.

  Wang Po even began to suspect that she had put the wrong medicine in her wine jug, and let Pan Jinlian drink it, laughing uncontrollably.

  At this time, Ximen Qing happened to be telling a joke: "The bear was furious, pointing at the hunter's nose and scolding him loudly: Are you here to hunt or sell your body?"

  This shameless joke made Pan Jinlian laugh non-stop: "Sell body... Haha... Sell body."

  This remark left Wang Po, who was eavesdropping at the door, completely bewildered and unsure of what had happened inside. She wanted to peek through the crack in the door, but it was tightly closed by herself earlier and even tied with a cloth strip, leaving no gap at all.

  Fortunately, the door was made of wood, but the wooden lattice on it was pasted with paper, so Wang Po moistened her finger with saliva and slowly poked a hole in it, then put one eye to the hole to peek inside.

  Ximen Qing is embracing Pan Jinlian, his hands also touched her, great! But why is Pan Jinlian laughing non-stop? And the wine and dishes on the table haven't been touched at all, which surprises Wang Po greatly.

  Watching things develop not according to her own design, Wang Po suddenly coughed shamelessly outside the house: "Spring nights are short, great officer!"

  Ximen Qing detected the anxiety in the old woman's words and couldn't help but smile, knowing that Wang Po was so eager to push him and Pan Jinlian into bed together that she had come up with this sentence.

  Pan Jinlian's face turned red as she struggled free from Ximen Qing's arms and sat up straight: "What nonsense is this, Stepmother?"

  "As people get older, they often talk nonsense." Ximen Qing smiled and said, "At times like these, let's just pretend we didn't hear it. They're all saying it for our own good, but they're also being a bit too anxious."

  Pan Jinlian nodded silently, a hint of worry flashing between her eyebrows, and although it was only for an instant, Ximen Qing, who had been watching her all along, noticed it.

  "Sixth Lady, is there something on your mind?" Ximen Qing asked tentatively. Sixth Lady was Pan Jinlian's nickname, and through their conversation just now, the two had become familiar with each other.

  Pan Jinlian silently rolled up her right sleeve, revealing a plump and tender arm with several dark bruises. Ximen Qing looked at the arm, which was as white as a lily, and asked with some concern: "What's this? What happened?"

  "Master Wu would not take his medicine, saying that what I made for him was all poisonous. Every time, he forced me to pour it away." Pan Jinlian's eyes were brimming with tears: "This bruise was given by Master Wu...he pinched me."

  "What!" Ximen Qing could no longer sit still: "This Wu Da, I had good intentions and saved his life, but he turned out to be so ungrateful!"

  In Ximen Qing's mind, only the most useless men would take out their frustrations on their own wives.

  "Why don't you resist?" As soon as Ximen Qing's words left his mouth, he realized that he had misspoken.

  Pan Jinlian deeply lowered her head, this question was fundamentally unanswerable.

  How can Pan Jinlian resist? From a young age, she was sold to Zhang Dahu in Yanggu County as a servant girl and has been living a life of endurance. Even if she was bullied, there was no place to speak out. Just because of her beauty, Zhang Dahu's wife was jealous at heart. Although Zhang Dahu had ill intentions, his wife still found an opportunity to drive Pan Jinlian out of the house, not only that but also forced her to marry Wu Dalang, a three-inch dwarf!

  Pan Jinlian didn't want to resist, but she really couldn't!

  Ever since she married into a military family, Zhang's household was not to be mentioned, and many poor households would often hang around the entrance every day, shouting: "What a good piece of mutton, but it fell into the dog's mouth!"

  Ximen Qing originally thought that Wu Dalang was still a decent person, but it turns out that this guy is also a coward who gets bullied outside and takes it out on his wife at home!

  Looking at Pan Jinlian lowering her head in silence, Ximen Qing sighed and said: "Sixth Lady, since it's like this, I'll teach you a few moves to protect yourself. At least, don't let Wu Da bully you."

  "What method?" Pan Jinlian raised her head, her eyes filled with hope. Through the conversation just now, Pan Jinlian had deeply felt that in front of Ximen Qing, even the most difficult things could find a corresponding solution.

  Ximen Qing had occasionally come across some posts about women's self-defense techniques before crossing over, and had also watched two episodes of related TV shows. Although he had previously looked at them with a playful mindset, he never thought that one day he would seriously teach this kind of self-defense technique to others.

  Fortunately, several moves in women's self-defense are quite simple and easy to learn. Ximen Qing quickly thought of a few simple moves in his mind.

  Ximen Qing firmly believed that as long as the posture was correct, he would be able to achieve the desired effect.

  "Come, you lie on the bed first."

  "Ah?" Pan Jinlian was taken aback, where did the serious Ximen Dajia go just now?

  Watching Pan Jinlian misunderstand his meaning, Ximen Qing awkwardly smiled: "This needs to be rehearsed a bit, the effect will be better."

  Pan Jinlian's face turned red as she sat down on the edge of the bed, and with a mind full of confusion, slowly lay down.

  "That's right!" Wang Po reminded herself and left, but she couldn't help coming back to take another look. She found Pan Jinlian already lying on the bed, which made her feel quite relieved and satisfied. She nodded her head in satisfaction and continued to go back to the front to cover for the two of them.

  "Suppose I'm a bad guy now, and I've come to bully you." Ximen Qing said as he walked to the bedside, his hands propping up the headboard, his body slowly pressing down: "What do you think you should do to defend against me?"

  "What? This... I don't know." Pan Jinlian didn't know whether it was Ximen Qing's shameful appearance that had stirred up a thread of lust in her, or if she was simply at a loss for what to do with this strange teaching method, and her body stiffened, not daring to move.

  "Think carefully." Ximen Qing encouraged.

  Pan Jinlian looked at the face that was getting closer and closer, thought seriously for a moment, raised her hand and gently patted Ximen Qing's cheek.

  "Give him a good slap?"

  This is better described as a slap, rather than saying Pan Jinlian reached out and touched Ximen Qing's face.

  "No, keep thinking." Ximen Qing almost fell onto Pan Jinlian's body, the two people's breath intertwined together.

  "My family... can't think of anything." Pan Jinlian's face turned red as she looked at Ximen Qing, who was about to kiss her, and simply gave up.

  "You have to do it this way." Ximen Qing raised his hand and grabbed one of Pan Jinlian's legs, just as he was about to try to bend her leg over onto his abdomen, he found that due to Pan Jinlian's excessive tension, the muscles in that thigh were stretched taut, and simply couldn't be bent.

  "Sixth sister, you're quite relaxed..."