stonecrandall Chapter 36 Signing Rules
Chapter 36 Signing Rules
The appointed day arrived quickly. To ensure the competition proceeded smoothly and fairly, Hong Liguo specially asked Sun Changlin to invite several senior students to act as referees. He had to guard against He Yunlong and his brother changing their minds halfway through, otherwise his entire plan would be ruined.
These senior students were once prominent figures on campus, and their influence and prestige still remain. With them present to supervise, Hong Liguo was certain that even if the He Yunlong brothers saw through his plan, they wouldn't dare to act recklessly in public. After all, everyone values their reputation, and the more self-important a person is, the more they value their image above all else.
These senior students were quite accommodating; they were actually persuaded by Sun Changlin to agree to act as referees on the day of the sparring match.
To be on the safe side, Hong Liguo asked Yi Jianping and others to find some classmates to act as spectators.
After everything was arranged and they had lunch, they gathered in a corner of the campus during their lunch break and then headed to a field outside the campus.
It's not the busy farming season, so the threshing ground is empty, without crops or clutter, flat, spacious, and clean.
Meanwhile, He Yunlong and his brother also headed straight for the threshing ground. But as soon as they got close, they were stunned—there were more people in the threshing ground than they had expected. He Yunlong thought to himself, "Why are there so many people? Did they bring reinforcements? Wasn't it supposed to be a one-on-one sparring match? Have we been tricked by Sun Changlin?"
He Yunhu's mind was in turmoil, and he cursed Sun Changlin inwardly: "You little bastard, how dare you break your promise and ask for help. But it doesn't matter, the word 'fear' doesn't exist in my dictionary. So what if you asked for help? Do you think I'm afraid of you?"
Several timid people behind He Yunlong wanted to back out, their steps were heavy, and their legs trembled uncontrollably.
Seeing this, He Yunlong shouted angrily, "Coward! What are you afraid of! We'll deal with whatever comes our way. Whoever's afraid can go back!"
Those men, who already lacked the courage to leave, now braced themselves and followed He Yunlong into the courtyard.
Several senior students greeted He Yunlong and his group upon their arrival. Seeing the brothers' grim expressions, they knew they suspected Sun Changlin had brought in reinforcements. They quickly explained, "You two don't need to be nervous. We're just here to act as impartial judges; we mean nothing more."
Sun Changlin also came over and explained, "You two brothers, please don't take it to heart. We invited these senior students here for no other reason than to ensure a fair and impartial competition, with them acting as judges."
He Yunhu snorted and said, "Who do you think you are! Do you think we brothers would break the rules?"
He Yunlong quickly nudged his younger brother with his elbow, signaling him to stop talking nonsense. After all, the other side had invited a referee, so let's hear what the referee has to say.
The senior student then looked at He Yunlong and asked, "Brother Yunlong, would you be willing to let us act as mediators and uphold justice for both sides?"
He Yunlong couldn't figure out what Hong Liguo was thinking, so he didn't respond immediately. Instead, he looked at Hong Liguo and Sun Changlin—the referee issue hadn't been mentioned during their initial discussion, and he wanted to hear their explanation.
Seeing this, Hong Liguo quickly stepped forward and explained with a smile, "Here's the thing: with our strength, we are indeed a bit weaker than you. That's why we specially invited a few older brothers and classmates to act as mediators. Anyone who breaks the agreement will be ridiculed by the classmates, even if they win."
He Yunhu glared at him, his eyes wide with dissatisfaction, and said defiantly, "I'm not afraid of any kind of sparring! What I'm afraid of is you guys breaking the rules and bringing in people to back you up!"
Taking the opportunity, Sun Changlin asked, "He Yunlong, what do you think of this arrangement?"
He Yunlong felt something was off, but he couldn't quite put his finger on it—what the other party said made no mistake, it was still a one-on-one duel, just with a few referees and spectators. He had no reason to refute it, so he could only nod in agreement.
Seeing He Yunlong nod, Hong Liguo immediately took out the sparring rules he had prepared in advance from his pocket and handed them over: "Boss He, take a look at these rules. If there are no problems, we'll follow them."
He Yunlong took it and looked at it carefully. He found that there were no changes from what was agreed upon that day, and he couldn't see anything suspicious. So he nodded and said, "Okay."
Hong Liguo pressed his advantage: "Since both sides agree to the rules, why not sign a document to formally settle this?"
Sun Changlin was the first to sign the rules.
He Yunlong muttered to himself, he had never drawn up any written rules when he sparred with others before. But if he didn't sign, he was afraid people would laugh at him for being a coward; if he did sign, he always felt that there was some kind of trap hidden in it. But after looking at it over and over again for a long time, he still couldn't find any problems. In the end, he gritted his teeth and signed his name.
Hong Liguo handed the signed rules to a senior student in the third year of junior high school. The senior student took it, cleared his throat, and read aloud: "In response to the challenge from the second-year junior high school students, the Nine Dragons and One Phoenix and the Six Swordsmen agree to spar with him. Before the sparring, both parties have reached the following gentleman's agreement through negotiation:"
1. Each side sends out fifteen people for one-on-one duels. A match ends when one side is thrown to the ground and cannot count to three, or when one side is not thrown to the ground but voluntarily concedes defeat. The side that is not thrown to the ground is judged the winner.
2. During a sparring match, no one may enter the arena to interfere or offer assistance. If any person violates this rule, the other side will be declared the winner.
3. If the two players are evenly matched and neither can defeat the other, the match will be decided by time, with each match lasting twenty minutes. If no winner is determined within the allotted time, the match will be considered a draw.
Fourth, since this is a gentleman's fight, there should be no unrestrained fighting. Both sides should focus on friendly sparring and stop when the point is reached. No weapons should be used. Only fist and foot skills are allowed. Once the opponent is knocked to the ground, controlled, and loses the ability to fight back or admits defeat, the attack must be stopped. The one who continues to attack is judged the winner.
5. As the initiator of this competition, the Dragon and Tiger Brothers are the challengers and must first select a person to fight. Then the other side selects a person to fight. No substitutions are allowed during the competition. If a substitution is made, the other side will be declared the winner.
VI. If either party fails to abide by the above agreement, it shall be deemed to have conceded defeat. Even if they win, they will be ridiculed by everyone. Gentlemen should abide by gentlemanly agreements when engaging in friendly competition.
VII. The final winner of the competition will be the side with the most wins.
After the senior student finished reading the rules, he took out his digital watch, glanced at the time, and announced loudly, "The competition officially begins! Both sides, please select your representatives to enter!"
These past few days, He Yunlong hadn't been completely idle. He had already thoroughly investigated the Nine Dragons and One Phoenix and the Six Swordsmen—who had the highest combat skills, who was a fool, and who would deal with whom—all of this was meticulously planned in advance. Based on their understanding of Hong Liguo's side, they were certain that Dragon and Tiger would win this competition. If not all fifteen matches, they would at least win twelve or thirteen. Therefore, their men were all brimming with confidence and didn't take Hong Liguo and his group seriously at all.