The 3-3 Point

"Star Point?"

Seeing Yu Shao place his stone, Zheng Qin raised an eyebrow and glanced at him across the Go Board.

For some reason, even though the person across from him was only a high school student who hadn't even qualified for professional rank yet, Zheng Qin inexplicably felt a trace of tension.

"Must be my imagination."

Zheng Qin shook his head, feeling that he was overthinking things. Then he reached into the Stone Box, picked out a White Stone, and gently placed it.

Click.

Fourth column, sixteenth row. Star Point.

"That kid really isn't asking Little Zheng for a handicap? Little Zheng is already working toward becoming a Professional Go Player."

"That's pretty gutsy. I think it'll be over by the middlegame."

"That's being generous. I think he might resign before the middlegame—even the opening might be enough."

"Want to go watch?"

"Let's go."

As Zheng Qin and Yu Shao's game began, quite a few people nearby thought it over and gathered around to watch from the side. Clearly, they were all waiting to see Yu Shao make a fool of himself.

Outside Shanhai Chess Hall.

A black Bentley pulled up outside the chess hall. Then the door opened, and an unbelievably beautiful girl stepped out from the back seat.

If Yu Shao had been there, he would have recognized her at once. She was none other than Xu Ziqin.

Xu Ziqin had already changed out of the old-fashioned school uniform. She wore a red-and-white striped short-sleeved shirt on top and jeans below, outlining her balanced, slender figure. A pair of white canvas shoes covered her feet, leaving her delicate, slim ankles slightly exposed.

Xu Ziqin was the sort of girl who could make even a school uniform look good, but now that she'd taken it off, her simple outfit made her look even more beautiful. Stunning would not have been an exaggeration.

"Uncle Wang, sorry to trouble you, but please wait in the car for a while."

After getting out, Xu Ziqin politely thanked the driver in the front seat.

"It's fine. It's what I should do."

The driver, Uncle Wang, smiled. "Miss, send me a message if you need anything."

"Okay."

Xu Ziqin nodded, then turned and walked into Shanhai Chess Hall.

"Hello, welcome."

The moment the glass door opened, the receptionist put on a professional smile and looked up at Xu Ziqin. When she saw her face, she couldn't help saying in surprise, "Wow, little sister, you're really pretty."

"Thank you."

Xu Ziqin smiled slightly and thanked her politely, her voice crisp and pleasant.

"Your voice is lovely too!"

The receptionist had been hit head-on by Xu Ziqin's beauty and immediately switched into compliment mode. "This is your first time here, right? A girl as pretty as you—I definitely would've remembered if you'd come before."

"Thank you. It is my first time."

Xu Ziqin nodded and asked, "I heard there's someone named Zheng Qin here. I'd like to learn from him in a game. Is he here?"

"Huh? You're looking for Little Zheng?"

The receptionist froze for a moment, then said, "He is, but he's playing someone right now. A boy who looks about your age, from Jiangling First High School."

"Jiangling First High School?"

Hearing those words, Xu Ziqin was stunned. After coming back to herself, she nodded and asked, "All right, thank you. Can I go in and watch? How much is the hall fee?"

"Of course you can."

The receptionist had an extremely favorable impression of the pretty girl before her and smiled. "If you're only watching a game, you don't need to pay the hall fee."

After saying that, the receptionist pointed toward the game room and thoughtfully showed Xu Ziqin the way. "They should be at the Go Table by the window. That boy is wearing a school uniform, so he'll be easy to find."

"Okay, thank you."

Xu Ziqin nodded and headed toward the game room. She quickly found Zheng Qin and Yu Shao by the window. Yu Shao was wearing the Jiangling First High School uniform, so he really was easy to spot.

"He is..."

Standing among the crowd, Xu Ziqin looked at Yu Shao, her lovely brows knitting slightly as she tried to recall whether she'd seen this schoolmate before.

Then...

She had no impression of him.

But Xu Ziqin didn't find that strange. Aside from having some vague recollection of classmates from her own class, she generally had no impression of students from other classes.

And the main reason she remembered her classmates at all was that she was the math class representative and had to collect homework.

So Xu Ziqin didn't think much of it. She moved her gaze from Yu Shao's face to the Go Board.

Only two moves had been played so far. Black and White had each taken a Star Point, both using the most common Star Point opening.

Then it was Yu Shao's turn again.

Yu Shao picked a Go Stone from the Stone Box. After pondering briefly, he gently placed it.

Click.

Sixteenth column, sixteenth row.

Yu Shao's second move was another Star Point.

"Huh? Another Star Point?"

"Is this kid deliberately trying to steer the board into a complicated, fierce fight?"

"Probably. Facing Little Zheng, it's a wise move for the kid to seek a sliver of hope in a chaotic battle. After all, a flurry of wild punches might actually knock out an old master."

"Not necessarily. Maybe he just can't handle a Mokuhou opening. Compared with Star Point openings, Mokuhou variations are far too complicated."

The people around them whispered among themselves, keeping their voices low enough not to disturb the players.

After all, compared with taking a corner with Mokuhou, a Star Point placed greater emphasis on building influence. It was faster and easily dragged the board into a complicated, fierce exchange of attacks. It was a move for those who pursued combat.

"Another Star Point?"

Zheng Qin studied Yu Shao's move and gave him a thoughtful glance.

He too felt that Yu Shao simply wanted to use a Star Point opening to bring the game into a complex fighting position and seek victory amid chaos.

After thinking for a moment, a faint smile appeared at the corner of Zheng Qin's lips as he reached into the Stone Box again.

"If that's what you want."

"Then..."

Zheng Qin picked up a White Stone, his gaze sharp and his wrist held high.

"I'll grant your wish!"

"Come on!"

The White Stone fell with a resounding snap!

Smack!

Fourth column, fourth row. Star Point!

"It's... another Star Point?"

"What does that mean?"

"He accepted the challenge?"

Seeing this move, the onlookers were all taken aback. They exchanged looks, each able to see the confusion in the others' eyes.

There was an idiom: avoid the enemy's sharp edge. Since Black clearly wanted a fight, White's best move should naturally have been to avoid one. Choosing Mokuhou or Mokugai would both have been perfectly natural.

If you wanted to go all out and fight to the death, then I could use softness to overcome strength and deflect your force with minimal effort.

But none of them had expected White to choose a Star Point as well. The once relatively calm game instantly became fraught with danger.

Because White's meaning was obvious: if you wanted bloodshed, then bloodshed it was. You drew your sword, and I would draw mine. Let's see who came out on top!

That wasn't to say playing a Star Point was bad. On the contrary, it was an impeccable orthodox move. It was simply that many people didn't want to give their opponent what they wanted.

The moment Zheng Qin placed another Star Point, Yu Shao reacted almost on reflex. Without even stopping to think, he reached into the Stone Box and picked out a Black Stone.

Then—

He gently placed it.

Click.

The Black Stone made a crisp sound as it landed on the Go Board.

But as that stone fell, the entire room suddenly grew quieter.

Some people stared wide-eyed at the newly placed Black Stone, wondering whether their eyes had deceived them. Others unconsciously leaned forward, wanting to see more clearly.

Even Xu Ziqin, standing among the crowd, couldn't help furrowing her delicate brows.

Zheng Qin, sitting across from Yu Shao, looked even more stunned. This move had completely exceeded his expectations—and everyone else's.

Because the move had landed at—

Third column, third row!

3-3 Point!