Inside and outside the Jixian Hall, the civil and military officials, as well as the internal and external envoys, gathered together.
In front of the hall was a three feet high platform covered with red carpet. This was the place for sumo wrestling.
The invited officials who liked to watch sumo scattered around the three corridors surrounding the platform to watch. According to the customs of the Tang Dynasty, whether it was the concubines of the palace or the women of the common people, they did not avoid meeting guests. Therefore, many of the concubines and maids were also crowded inside.
Sumo wrestling was a type of wrestling. It was similar to the wrestling techniques of the grassland tribes, but the rules and specific techniques were different. Therefore, it was difficult for the sumo teams of the Turks and other countries to gain an advantage. In the past three years, the sumo championship had been won by Princess Taiping's residence. This year, it seemed that she was still determined to win.
In the first match, someone from Princess Taiping's residence appeared. However, their opponent was not from the White Horse Temple, but the sumo wrestlers from Wu Sansi's residence. Yang Fan watched the match seriously. There were both male and female sumo wrestlers from Princess Taiping's residence. The first one to appear was actually a female sumo wrestler.
However, when he saw her cleanly win against the sumo wrestlers from Wu Sansi's residence, Yang Fan couldn't help but frown. Her skillful martial arts, domineering strength, and vigorous posture were all extraordinary.
It wasn't that martial arts were good, sumo wrestlers were good. The only difference between them was physical fitness. If the two were to fight face to face, Yang Fan was confident that he could defeat the female sumo wrestler in three moves. However, if they were to fight on the stage according to the requirements of sumo wrestling, it would take a lot of effort.
The female sumo wrestler from Princess Taiping's residence was obviously not the best sumo wrestler. Thinking of this, Yang Fan couldn't help but say to Chu Kuangge, "No wonder Princess Taiping's residence could win the sumo championship three times in a row. Just by looking at the female sumo wrestler who appeared first, you can see how good they are. It's hard to find a match for them in sumo. "
Chu Kuangge said, "That's natural. However, cuju and sumo wrestle are all teams. The two of us are limited by the team's strength, so I'm afraid it will be difficult to win. If we want to win glory for Master Xue, we have to go all out. Even if we can't win the team, we have to win the individual championship."
Yang Fan nodded lightly and said, "Yes! I admit that their sumo wrestling skills are not bad, but they might not be able to beat me! Sumo wrestling is up to you and me. We must take the number one spot from Princess Flatboard! "
The two looked at each other and smiled.
Yang Fan's first opponent was a Tibetan called Kungong Jebu. This person also made the same mistake as Song Er. As soon as he saw Yang Fan's' slender 'figure, his heart was filled with contempt. As soon as the match started, he went straight for Yang Fan, not holding anything back. He wanted to send Yang Fan out of the arena in one move.
In the end, Yang Fan took a step forward, cut off his attack, twisted his wrist, and pushed him to the ground with just one fall. Yang Fan pressed down on his body and tightly gripped his joints, making him unable to get up for a long time. This pounce was called the 'Life Guard Pounce' in sumo. Kungong Jebu lost miserably. Although he knew that it was because of his carelessness, he couldn't say anything.
Chu Kuangge's first opponent was a sumo expert from the Tang dynasty's imperial army. Both of them were tall and strong. Chu Kuangge had the advantage in experience, while that person was young and vigorous. The sumo wrestling between the two was far more interesting than Yang Fan's simple and clear fight.
The two of them fought for seven or eight rounds. Chu Kuangge used a 'Goose Wing Fall' and knocked his opponent to the ground. Amidst the cheers of the audience, he also obtained the qualification to advance.
Sumo wrestling didn't last long. Every match was decided in a very short amount of time. Even sumo wrestlers with similar skills were the same. One mistake and they would immediately lose. Fighting for three hundred rounds was simply unimaginable. As a result, it didn't take long for the contestants to advance to the finals to be determined.
Yang Fan and Chu Kuangge were both contestants who advanced to the finals. In addition, there were six more spots. The Princess Taiping's residence took three spots. The other three spots were occupied by the Tibetans, the Turks, and the Minister of Rites, Wu Sansi. However, the sumo wrestler raised by Wu Sansi's residence was a Turk, so he could be considered as external help.
The imperial army was completely annihilated. Professional soldiers like them couldn't compare to these professional sumo wrestlers who didn't do anything else but immersed themselves in the art of sumo.
During the Qilin Selection, Empress Wu and many other important officials had been drinking in the hall and had not come out to watch. Only now, on the white marble steps of the main hall of the Immortal Gathering Hall, a yellow silk umbrella finally appeared. The Empress Dowager, the Emperor, the ministers, and the members of the Imperial Family all came out to watch.
When the Empress came out, everyone stopped what they were doing and greeted her. Yang Fan was very curious about Empress Wu. When he greeted her, he took a peek. From afar, he was secretly amazed by Empress Wu's appearance, which clearly didn't match her age. Immediately, he saw Princess Taiping beside Wu Zetian.
Princess Taiping looked around as if she was looking for something. When Yang Fan saw her, he quickly lowered his head. When he lowered his head, he felt as if two pairs of eyes were staring at him. Yang Fan raised his head slightly and met Princess Taiping's smiling eyes. Yang Fan was caught red-handed by her and felt very embarrassed.
He was embarrassed in his heart, but his face revealed such a young man's attitude. When Princess Taiping saw this, her eyes suddenly showed a smile.
Wu Zetian sat down on the "rope bed", smiled and asked everyone to sit down, and ordered: "You can start."
The first pair to go up was Chu Kuangge and a Tibetan player. The Tibetan was a military officer beside a Tibetan envoy in the Tang dynasty. He was also a first-class wrestler in the country. Sumo wrestling was popular in the Tang dynasty. After he came to the Tang dynasty, he was very familiar with the art of sumo wrestling. The two wrestling techniques were similar, so he could be considered a master.
Last year in the Sumo Wrestling Competition, he had won third place. Unfortunately, he met Chu Kuangge this year. Chu Kuangge was most proficient in bow fighting and sumo wrestling. Back then, when he was in the Imperial Army, he was already famous and famous in the three armies. In recent years, he had been wandering among the common people and had fewer opportunities to ride a horse. On the contrary, the number of times he fought sumo wrestling had increased.
Chu Kuangge had made up his mind to show off his skills in the sumo wrestling competition, so he went all out. The Tibetan player knew the famous sumo wrestlers of the Tang dynasty like the back of his hand. In his impression, only the sumo wrestlers of Princess Taiping's mansion were his strong opponents, but he did not expect that Chu Kuangge would appear out of nowhere.
Chu Kuangge's fighting style was different from the sumo wrestlers of Princess Taiping's mansion. Although he paid attention to techniques, he paid more attention to using his strong physical fitness to fight head-on with his opponent. This was originally the Tibetan's best method of wrestling. The Tibetan was anxious to win, but Chu Kuangge disrupted his attacking rhythm. In the end, he was taken by Chu Kuangge's "fall". He lost his footing and knelt on one knee, losing the match.
Next was the sumo wrestler of Wu Sansi's mansion against the sumo wrestler of Princess Taiping's mansion. In the end, the foreign aid that Wu Sansi invited was lifted by the belt by the female sumo wrestler of Princess Taiping's mansion, who was more majestic than a man, and directly thrown out of the arena. It could be said that he won the most carefree match.
The third match was between Yang Fan and the sumo wrestler of Princess Taiping's mansion, Ye Wanying. Yang Fan had not fought with this Ye Wanying before, so when he heard the name, he thought that it was a man. But when he walked onto the stage, he found out that it was a woman, a very tall and sturdy woman.
Yang Fan vaguely remembered that he had seen this woman last night. At that time, she was one of the four strong women who were guarding Princess Taiping. Yang Fan subconsciously glanced at the stands. Princess Taiping was dressed in luxurious makeup, graceful and gorgeous like a peony flower. She was sitting beside Wu Zetian, holding a bright apricot in her hand, and gently placing it into her tender and beautiful sandalwood mouth.
When she saw Yang Fan looking at her, Princess Taiping's big eyes rippled, and her eyebrows slightly raised, revealing a look that said, "I want to see you have a good show!"
Xue Huaiyi was wearing a purple kasaya, and his seat was originally behind Wu Zetian. At this time, when he saw Yang Fan enter the arena, Xue Huaiyi couldn't help but jump up, waving his fists, and loudly shouted, "Seventeen! Get rid of her! Get her back for me! "
"Master!" Wu Zetian rebuked him with a glare. After all, this was the imperial palace, and Xue Huaiyi was shouting like this, which was really not proper. Only then did Xue Huaiyi realize that he had forgotten himself, and hurriedly sat down in embarrassment.
Wu Zetian smiled and said, "Is this little monk a disciple of Master? I see that his body is much weaker than the female sumo wrestler in Taiping Residence, can he win? "
Xue Huaiyi said confidently, "Empress, as the saying goes, you can't judge a book by its cover. This poor monk's disciple is proficient in sumo wrestling, and there's nothing he doesn't know. Although it was Princess Taiping's residence that won the championship for three years in a row, hehe, I'm afraid this time it's our White Horse Temple's turn to show off our might."
Princess Taiping listened and smiled without saying a word. Wu Sansi, Wu Chengsi, and the others took the opportunity to flatter him, one after another. Xue Huaiyi listened with pride, as if the sumo wrestling championship was already in his hands, looking left and right, insufferably arrogant.
On the stage, Yang Fan and the female sumo wrestler had already begun to compete. The opposite woman had a round collar, arrow sleeves, and was dressed in a short robe. She cupped her fists in greeting, then stepped forward and grabbed his chest. Yang Fan flashed his palm and knocked her wrist, and the two of them quickly exchanged positions.
As soon as they exchanged blows, Yang Fan understood why his opponent was able to become a famous sumo wrestler despite being a woman. This woman's figure was strong and vigorous, and her sumo techniques were superb. Her hands and legs were hard like pillars, and when they were soft, they were like snakes. If one was the slightest bit careless and got entangled by her, they would be thrown to the ground.
Yang Fan roused his spirit to fight with her. After fighting for seven or eight rounds, Yang Fan deliberately showed an opening, luring her to grab his belt. Seizing the opportunity, he used the superior skill of the 'Eighteen Staining Falls' to shake off her palm.
It was unknown how many sumo wrestlers this woman had competed with, but she was experienced and skilled. When her palm was shaken off, although she was surprised, she knew something was wrong and quickly retreated. But Yang Fan had been waiting for this moment. Taking advantage of the time when she was pouncing forward to stretch out her palm, he took advantage of the momentum and the woman staggered and fell down.
Although her movements were light and graceful, and she only pressed her palm lightly on the ground before spinning around and standing still, in a sumo match, she had already lost. The woman turned around and cupped her fists towards Yang Fan. Her fierce-looking face unexpectedly revealed a trace of a gentle and admiring smile, "Young Langjun, good kicks and punches!"
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