Читать книгу Complete Wing Chun. The Definitive Guide to Wing Chun's History and Traditions онлайн

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One account holds that Yip Man came to learn Wing Chun again while in Hong Kong attending school at St. Stephen’s college during the 1910s. Through a classmate, Yip was introduced to an old man who was said to be skilled in the martial arts. Yip, known for his brash and feisty character, challenged the old timer. According to some accounts, Yip charged at the old man, missed, and fell into the water at the pier where the match was taking place. Yip Man later found out the old man was, in fact, Leung Bik, the son of Leung Jan and his own sibak (martial arts uncle). Suitably impressed, Yip followed Leung Bik for the next few years, polishing his Wing Chun before making his way back to Foshan.

In those days, it was not uncommon for practitioners of Wing Chun to keep their knowledge secret, and simply not teach at all. So it was that, at first, Yip Man himself did not teach and practiced only with his good friends and martial arts peers. During the Japanese occupation, conditions changed. Life grew more difficult and Yip saw his wealth and prosperity dwindle. In 1941, to repay the kindness of Chow Chen-Chung, Yip Man taught some students in the nearby village of Yongan. These pupils included Chow’s son Kwong-Yiu, as well as Kwok Fu, Chan Chi-Sun, Lun Kai, and Chow Sai. As of this writing, most of Yip Man’s early 1940s students have passed away. Kwok Fu and Lun Gai, however, still preserve his art in Foshan.