| | <blockquote>The 16th-generation descendant, Chen Yanxi (Chén Yánxī 陈延熙, 1848–1929), grandson of “Champion of the Shrine” Chen Changxing (Chén Chángxīng 陳長興), and son of the “Divine Hands of Taiji” Chen Gengyun (Chén Gēngyún 陳耕耘), was one of the primary 8th-generation inheritors of Chen-style Taijiquan. Gifted with intelligence and eagerness to learn, Chen Yanxi excelled in both literature and martial arts. From a young age, he mastered mounted skills and became adept in all forms of Chen family boxing and weaponry. His movements reached a state of transcendence, exuding grand momentum (qìshì 磅礴), and achieved the level of perfection where his techniques were both powerful and delicate, agile yet stable, balancing hardness with softness. His strikes were swift, fierce, and flexible, with forceful, well-coordinated energy that could dispatch an opponent in an instant. He won admiration from elder masters, including his teacher You Ben (Yǒuběn 有本) and senior figures such as Gengyun, Qingping, and Zhongshen, from whom he received much guidance and deepened his skills. His spear and sword techniques flowed like clouds and water, with the vigor of a dragon, while his mastery of the Qianjin Biao (Qiánjīn biāo 金錢镖) was unparalleled, allowing him to strike his target with precise accuracy. He was passionate about classics such as the Inner Canon (Nèijīng 内经), Qianjin Fang (千金方), and Bencao Gangmu (本草纲目), and he devoted himself to refining his understanding. Specializing in ancestral orthopedics, he was well-known for his medical expertise by his twenties, incorporating Chinese medical principles into his martial techniques, thereby attaining profound insights into Chen family secrets, such as tendon manipulation (zhuājīn 抓筋), membrane pressing (ànmó 按膜), and acupoint striking (diǎnxué 點穴).</blockquote> |
