The Yu Emperor raised his tea and took a sip. It tasted quite good. Though it could not compare to the Cloud Mist Tea supplied exclusively to the Imperial Palace, it had a sweetness all its own, born of the mountains and wilderness.
"You certainly take things in stride," the Yu Emperor said with a soft chuckle.
"By now, I'm accustomed to the roads of this world; wherever I go, my heart rests at ease," Li Hao replied with a casual smile.
Poetry and literature experience +66.
The Yu Emperor paused and glanced at Li Hao. Thinking of the young man's circumstances, his eyes flickered slightly.
"No wonder those stubborn old bones at the Hanlin Academy are all so fond of you."
His words seemed both a sigh and an expression of admiration.
Li Hao was a little surprised. Wasn't the Hanlin Academy a place for scholars and poets? He did not seem to have had much contact with them.
"Come, let me see whether your game has improved. Don't just put on a show."
The Yu Emperor lifted the hem of his robe and sat on a meditation cushion, speaking half in jest.
Seeing this, Li Hao also sat upright. He knew His Majesty had not come merely to play, but his arrival had already brought the answer Li Hao had been waiting for.
Only, that answer ran deeper and weighed heavier than he had expected.
Instead, it left him feeling somewhat ashamed.
They gathered the scattered stones from the board and slowly began placing their pieces.
Li Hao played white.
"Don't go easy on me. I don't need anyone giving me a handicap," the Yu Emperor said, holding a stone between his fingers.
Li Hao nodded. "I wouldn't dare."
Soon, the white stones launched a fierce