In the late Qing Dynasty, Yang Luchan endured countless hardships in his pursuit of the highest level of martial arts. Yang Luchan's family had lived in Guangping Prefecture in southern Hebei for generations and was wealthy, but he was frail from birth and often sick as a child. To help him build up his strength, his father had him study martial arts under the family's guard. He first trained with the martial artists Li Defa and Liu Ligong, gaining a solid foundation, but still yearned to master more advanced techniques. When Yang Luchan heard that Chen Changxing of Chenjiagou in Wen County, Henan, was a Tai Chi master, he traveled a great distance to seek him as his teacher. Chen Changxing, however, refused to take him on. Undeterred, Yang Luchan even disguised himself as a mute and went to the Chen family to beg for food. Only after he collapsed from the cold was he allowed into the household as a servant. From then on, he lay low in the Chen household and secretly learned Tai Chi. One day, unable to contain his admiration for Chen Changxing's skill, he burst into praise, exposing his identity as a "mute." But his devotion eventually moved Chen Changxing, who taught him everything he knew. Later, building on Chen-style Tai Chi, Yang Luchan developed Yang-style Tai Chi and became a grandmaster.
