Partiality

Noon.

The air temperature quietly rose.

Pharmacy.

The fragrances of various herbs filled the air, growing even richer.

Chen Sheng had just spread out a batch of Honeysuckle to dry when he heard a soft thud behind him.

—The Copper Herb Grinder in Li Huayao's hand had fallen to the floor.

"Junior Sister Li!"

Huang Wangyou stood beside the herb rack with her hands on her slim hips, the Gold Bracelet on her wrist gently swaying as she spoke.

"That's the third time you've dropped something."

She frowned and scolded her fiercely.

Her face was clearly childish, yet she deliberately put on the stern expression of an adult.

Li Huayao stuck out her tongue, hurriedly picked up the herb grinder, and muttered softly,

"Got it, Little Senior Sister."

As she spoke,

the corner of her eye secretly glanced toward Chen Sheng.

Seeing him quietly sorting herbs while Huang Wangyou did not even spare him a glance,

Li Huayao could not help pursing her lips and complaining inwardly:

Little Senior Sister is so petty. She's all smiles with Junior Disciple Brother, but she nitpicks everything I do.

Pretending not to see Li Huayao's resentful little look, Chen Sheng brushed his fingertips over the dried Polygonum Multiflorum and carefully swept the scraps at the edges into a Bamboo Winnowing Basket.

Ever since Little Senior Sister Huang Wangyou had come to the pharmacy to supervise them, Li Huayao's days had indeed become much harder.

The time she used to sneak in for a rest had been tightly restricted. Even when she took a sip of water, she would be criticized for "dawdling."

Yet Huang Wangyou was far more lenient with Chen Sheng, occasionally even teaching him tricks for handling obscure Medicinal Ingredients.

"Little Senior Sister, what do you think of how I handled this Fifty-Year Oolong Ginseng?"

Chen Sheng raised the herb in his hand. The root tendrils were intact and fully spread, while the cut was smooth as a mirror.

Huang Wangyou immediately leaned closer.

The tip of her little nose nearly touched the ginseng tendrils, and her round eyes shone with earnest focus.

"Mm. The head was removed, leaving four inches of tendrils, and the cross-section has a sheen. It passes."

She stood on tiptoe and lightly patted Chen Sheng's shoulder, smiling as she spoke.

"It's much better than the Astragalus you handled last time. Xiao Yunzi, you're improving quickly."

At that intimate form of address, the Herb Scissors in Li Huayao's hand went "Kacha," snipping off an extra stem.

A sour feeling welled up in her heart as she looked at the mountain of herbs before her, then at the pile on Chen Sheng's side that was nearly finished.

She could not resist making a face at Huang Wangyou's back, then quickly lowered her head and pretended to be busy.

Another two hours passed.

Huang Wangyou was too bored, so she took an Ebony Go Board from a wooden cabinet and set it on the table.

Black-and-white stones fell onto the board,

making crisp clicking sounds.

Holding a black stone in one hand and a white stone in the other, Huang Wangyou furrowed her little brows as she studied a game record in deep concentration. She did not even notice Li Huayao secretly stuffing candied fruit into her mouth.

Beside the green mountain.

Li Huayao had been slacking off for quite a while.

Seeing that there was still a mountain of Medicinal Ingredients before her,

she sighed.

Suddenly,

her eyes rolled, and she came up with a new idea.

"Little Senior Sister, playing Go alone is so boring. Let me play with you."

Li Huayao quietly sidled over, her voice sweet as honey.

Without raising her head, Huang Wangyou placed the black stone between her fingers at tengen.

"You want to slack off again!"

"Don't even think about making Xiao Yunzi help you."

"Be careful, or I'll punish you by making you copy the Classic of Hundred Herbs tonight."

Li Huayao immediately wilted at those words and dragged her feet back to her Bluestone Platform.

Suppressing a laugh, Chen Sheng lowered his head and continued handling the herbs in his hands.

From time to time, he looked toward the girl playing Go in the distance.

An idea stirred in his heart.

In his past life as a prince, with countless beauties attending him, he had picked up many hobbies as well.

His cultural attainments were no weaker than Huizong's.

As for Go, he had achieved quite a bit.

Not until five in the afternoon

did Chen Sheng finish processing the last herb.

When he walked over to the Go table,

he saw Huang Wangyou toss the white stone in her hand aside and glare at the board indignantly.

"Why can't I get past this seventy-second move?!"

Her cheeks were flushed, and fine beads of sweat glistened on her forehead, making her appear even more adorably innocent.

"Senior Sister, I've finished all my work."

Chen Sheng spoke softly.

Only then did Huang Wangyou notice him.

Her eyes lit up, but she quickly put on a stern face again.

"Bring it over for inspection."

She followed Chen Sheng to the herb rack, her fingers brushing over the neatly arranged herbs. From time to time, she pinched off a bit and raised it to her nose for a light sniff.

At last, she nodded in satisfaction.

"It's fairly proper."

Just as she turned to return to the Go table,

Chen Sheng said as if casually,

"I saw Senior Sister stuck on the seventy-second move earlier. Perhaps you could try a small knight's move corner enclosure in the upper right?"

Huang Wangyou halted, then abruptly turned around.

"A small knight's move corner enclosure?"

She immediately crouched before the Go board again.

Having reached the First Level of Qi Refining, her spiritual sense had naturally emerged.

Her memory had greatly improved!

Huang Wangyou already had the sequence in mind. Her little hand traced imaginary moves over the game record, and she suddenly slapped her thigh and laughed.

"That's right! How did I not think of playing it that way?!"

She raised her face to look at Chen Sheng, her eyes bright like a hamster spotting nuts.

"You know how to play Go?"

Before Chen Sheng could answer,

she had already grabbed his sleeve and dragged him toward the Go table.

Her grip was so strong that Chen Sheng staggered two steps.

Black-and-white stones interwove across the board.

The game began.

At first, Huang Wangyou remained calm and composed, the fingers holding her stones curved elegantly as her moves followed a clear strategy.

But as the game deepened,

her brows drew tighter and tighter. Her little mouth pouted slightly, and she occasionally bit her lower lip, looking as though she were racking her brains.

Chen Sheng's style appeared gentle, every move subtle and unremarkable, yet without her realizing it, he had woven an enormous net.

"Pa!"

The final black stone landed.

The great dragon was cut cleanly in half.

Huang Wangyou stared at the board, her eyes widening wider and wider, disbelief filling them.

"How could this happen..."

She sat there dumbfounded, repeatedly replaying the game in her mind.

His style was truly strange. The entire game had been like needles hidden in cotton, and before she knew it, she had lost.

Chen Sheng smiled faintly.

"Senior Sister, I'll be going."

Huang Wangyou immediately snapped out of it and gazed at him with watery eyes.

"Play another game with me."

At Huang Wangyou's repeated pleading,

the second game soon began.

Huang Wangyou set the stones, stubbornness written all over her little face.

"I refuse to believe I can't beat you!"

The second game, the third game... until the ninth game ended.

Huang Wangyou's puffed-up little face had turned into a steamed bun. Her eye sockets were red, tears brimming in her eyes, and she was just about to burst into loud sobs.

Seeing her like this,

Chen Sheng deliberately revealed a flaw in the tenth game.

"Hahaha! I won!"

When Huang Wangyou placed the winning stone,

she immediately jumped up and cheered!

One moment her eyes had been full of tears, and the next, her brows and eyes curved with laughter.

"Xiao Yunzi, you still need a few more years of practice!"

Chen Sheng nodded with a gentle smile.

"Senior Sister's Go skills are superb. This Junior Disciple Brother admires you."

Only then did Huang Wangyou calm down. Resting her chin on her hand, she asked,

"You're so good at Go. Who taught you?"

Chen Sheng's gaze quietly fell upon the edge of the board.

He spoke softly.

"My mother. She loved playing Go most when she was alive. Unfortunately, I only learned twenty or thirty percent of her skill."

The smile on Huang Wangyou's face faded somewhat as her fingers gently rubbed a stone.

"Auntie must have been very skilled."

She suddenly lowered her head, her voice much softer.

"My mother has been gone for four years too. This Go board was the birthday gift she gave me."

Chen Sheng froze. He truly had not known that.

He was just about to apologize,

when Huang Wangyou suddenly looked up and smiled.

"Forget it, we're even!"

"From now on, you play Go with me, and I'll teach you how to identify herb illustrations."

Her round eyes blinked like those of a cunning yet adorable little fox.

In the corner, Li Huayao watched the two playing Go and secretly curled her lips.

Then she hurriedly lowered her head and pretended to count herb pellets.

She muttered inwardly:

Partiality! She plays with Junior Disciple Brother, but not with me.