138: Chapter 135 The Current Situation is Worrying

This Antoine Martin is from the Tenderloin district. What is the situation like over there? You can think of it as the Brooklyn of New York, the city that never sleeps.

According to Martin's description, he didn't dare go out at night. Once, he didn't believe it, and he ended up getting robbed nine times. The last time, a burly man almost had his way with him in the middle of the street.

After that incident, he never dared to go out and fool around at night again. Every time, he would go home on time to eat and sleep. And according to his description...

This kid really likes Chinese Kung Fu. At first, he became obsessed with this sport through the movies of Dragon. He felt that such a small frame could explode with such exaggerated power, and he felt that this must be the magical spell of China.

Later, as movies featuring the other Dragon, Jackie Chan, appeared in his field of vision, he knew this wasn't magic, but a martial art that anyone could learn—a fighting technique from the mysterious East.

He even once saw a big black guy bullying a yellow-skinned man on the road while he was returning home near dusk.

The conversation at that time was very interesting. It has always been a talking point for Martin, and it has even become a topic he is now instilling in Li Changsheng.

"Li! You wouldn't believe it. That big guy at the time must have been on something; you know how many people around here like that stuff for no reason.

But it's a pity he picked the wrong person. I still remember that old Chinese gentleman carrying his hands behind his back telling him: 'I don't think you want to look for trouble. I will give you a chance to leave here now, sir. I'll pretend this never happened.'"

Speaking of this, Martin was very excited. Li Changsheng watched, heart racing. Good heavens, at least look at the road while driving!

"At that time, the big guy was still very arrogant. He said, 'I'm the one who runs this place.' He was very arrogant, really!

But soon, I saw that old Chinese gentleman take him down in a few Moves. Then, the old gentleman even helped him up. He was very polite. I discovered something very magical: you Chinese people are all very polite.

That old gentleman even looked at him kindly and said: 'What did you learn from today's incident?'

Oh, God, so after that time, I went crazy looking for a Chinese Kung Fu school. I want to learn real kung fu, really! It's so cool!"

Martin said excitedly, and even let out a loud laugh.

Listening to this, Li Changsheng nodded secretly, though his heart felt a bit bitter.

What does it matter if kung fu is famous all over the world? In the U.S., Chinese people also receive the most unfair treatment and bullying.

Those who admire and respect Chinese people like Martin are in the minority. Most are just like the big guy he just mentioned, looking down on Chinese people.

It's like the food chain in the U.S.: the whites bully the blacks, and the blacks and whites both bully the yellows and look down on the yellows.

Except for the people from the Universe's number one country to the north of China who have some deterrent power in the U.S., the situation for Asians in the U.S. is about the same.

But the status of Chinese people is actually quite worrying. Some Indians also often bully Chinese people along with them.

"If you want to make people afraid, it's simple if you say it's simple, and difficult if you say it's difficult."

Li Changsheng sighed slightly. This kind of thing isn't something you can just do because you want to. Creating a big scene can certainly turn the situation around, but you can't do it without reason.

Moreover, the U.S. has always held a threat theory regarding China, which isn't comparable to the situation with the Universe country; after all, they are ultimately the little brother of the U.S.

Being their own people, of course, they won't bully their own.

Along the way, Li Changsheng gradually understood what the old man was doing in the U.S.

He didn't open a martial arts school, but an old friend of his from the past did, and it was for Taiji.

Because this old Taiji master used to follow Zhang Youdao and learn a few Moves, he often respectfully addressed Zhang Youdao as Master Zhang in the martial arts school.

That was why there was the scene where Martin addressed Zhang Youdao as Grandmaster Zhang.

Hearing this, Li Changsheng was quite enthusiastic, thinking about being able to see the situation of Traditional Martial Arts abroad soon, and he was looking forward to it a bit.

But soon, Martin poured a bucket of cold water on him.

"Li, although I really like Chinese Kung Fu, you don't know that in our U.S., Chinese Kung Fu isn't actually very famous.

The most famous is actually Kenpo Karate, and Jeet Kune Do created by Dragon is only fourth. As for Taiji, it's not actually very famous here."

As he spoke, Martin shrugged, his expression a bit lonely. After all, he practiced Taiji, but since what he learned wasn't valued much, he felt a little disappointed.

"Kenpo Karate?"

Li Changsheng was somewhat familiar with this term, and the book on fighting techniques from various countries he had recently read quickly came to mind.

It is said that this Kenpo Karate was created by an American named Parker in the 1950s, and later combined with various improvements in modern fighting techniques to gradually become the national fighting technique of the U.S.

Besides Kenpo Karate, the second most popular in the U.S. is Tang Soo Do.

Although the little Japan country put their own characters on some signs, this actually originated from Chinese martial arts, mainly based on Southern Fist.

Supplemented by Xingyi, Bagua, Taiji, and Shaolin styles, it combines internal and external skills. It can be considered a hodgepodge of kung fu.

Of course, Tang Soo Do isn't called that in the U.S.; in the U.S., they just call it Karate.

However, in places like Southeast Asia, the existence of Tang Soo is recognized.

After Southern Fist from Fujian province was introduced to Ryukyu (now Okinawa), it was called 'Tang Shou' by the Ryukyuans to indicate its origin from China (Fujian). After being introduced to the island nation, 'Tang Shou' was changed to 'Karate', but the pronunciation in Japanese remained the same.

However, in the little Japan country, the term Tang Shou still appears in their history textbooks. This must be said to be the only advantage of the little Japan country.

At least they admit to many things, which is a bit better than the Universe country, except for the matter of the War of Resistance, where they are fickle.

However, the little Japan country also learned all the dregs. They not only changed Tang Shou to Karate, but also removed all the killing Moves and ruthless techniques from Tang Shou, learned all the flashy, cool-looking Moves, and carried them forward.

So now in the U.S., the one ranked second is said to be Tang Shou, but it is actually divided into two types: one is Karate, and the other is the real Tang Shou.

But in a broad sense, the Tang Shou popular in the U.S. is actually Karate, while the real Tang Shou can only be seen in some obscure corners.

As for the third place, it is the fighting technique of the U.S. Marine Corps.

The fourth is Jeet Kune Do. It is said to be Chinese, but in the hearts of Americans, this is a product of a Sino-U.S. joint venture.

After all, there are many Americans who continue the Legacy of Jeet Kune Do. Of course, there are also some Chinese people who specialize in or learn Jeet Kune Do as a hobby, but whether the total number can compare to theirs is unknown.

As for the local Traditional Martial Arts of China in the U.S., it is actually quite worrying.

Along the way, Li Changsheng learned quite a bit, and couldn't help but sigh.