Playing Chess

Po On Road Public Library.

Yang Chu stood before the rows of bookshelves, beginning to search for the books he wanted to read, just as he had yesterday.

Some of these were titles he hadn't had time to examine closely the day before. Furthermore, the scope of his selection had expanded from topics like sleep and self-consciousness to the various circulatory systems within the human body and books related to the brain.

Selecting seven or eight volumes, Yang Chu carried them to a quiet corner of the reading room and began to read with focus.

After his reading session yesterday, Yang Chu had already discovered that his reading speed was remarkably fast. Aside from the mental effort required to maintain the operation of his own systems, he could remain in a state of total immersion for a considerable amount of time.

Yang Chu had also begun to understand this point.

Ordinary people could, in fact, enter a state of high-focus reading similar to his—a state of forgetting food and sleep, a state of self-oblivion.

In Yang Chu's view, the "self" in this self-oblivion referred, to some extent, to one's subconscious instincts.

When a person is fully immersed in a task, their brain consciousness ignores subconscious feedback such as muscle soreness from sitting too long, mental fatigue, the need for excretion, and hunger.

Naturally, Yang Chu found it easier than most to reach this level of high focus, even though he had to divert a small portion of his mental energy to maintain his body's internal circulation, respiration, and other systems.

Moreover, Yang Chu discovered another point: although he had consumed a massive amount of food, the proportion of energy used to maintain bodily functions, recover from injuries, and improve his physique after last night's high-intensity training likely accounted for less than fifty percent of the total.

More than half was being consumed by his brain.

For a normal person, the brain accounts for only 2% of body weight, consuming about 20% of the body's energy.

Yang Chu's brain consumption had far exceeded this ratio.

Calculating based on the calories Yang Chu had ingested, he had eaten enough food in these short one or two days to sustain a normal adult male for seven to ten days. The amount of energy converted from this food and consumed by his brain was absolutely terrifying.

Yang Chu estimated that this was because his brain consciousness was becoming increasingly adept at keeping his internal systems running at all times.

Furthermore, the fact that he could remain awake for long periods after only a brief, "womb-like" sleep in water to clear out the impurities generated by his brain's operation was likely also related to his brain's high energy consumption.

Additionally, as Yang Chu stood before the library shelves, he discovered that he could remember almost everything he had read the previous day, even if he had only glanced at it.

It seemed that once the subconscious instinct for managing caloric distribution was removed, his brain, in its constant multi-threaded operations, was acquiring more energy and nutrients, which in turn had greatly enhanced his memory, calculation, comprehension, and logical reasoning.

From the short burst of exercise last night that improved his physical fitness to his current realization that his brain was also undergoing changes, Yang Chu's interest in exploring the mysteries of the human body was growing ever stronger.

Turning the pages one by one, he lost track of how much time had passed until a familiar voice sounded by his side: "You are truly focused when you read."

Yang Chu looked up to see Xu Xi, dressed in what appeared to be the somewhat plain, slightly bulky attire common to people in Hong Kong Island at the time. He smiled and said, "There are many answers in books that I don't know."

"You look much better today than you did yesterday." Xu Xi stood to the side, watching Yang Chu, his slightly shy smile tinged with a hint of surprise.

"I slept well yesterday." Yang Chu closed the book and patted it gently. "I've temporarily solved the sleep issue, though I'm still looking for a better way."

"Then I must congratulate you."

Xu Xi smiled, his gaze falling on the book in Yang Chu's hand as he pointed to it. "I've read this one too. It really does help one understand oneself better."

"Is that so? I hadn't noticed that. I just thought it offered some useful references regarding the brain, the body, and self-regulation."

The book in Yang Chu's hand was titled The Body Keeps the Score, a work on treating psychological trauma.

Most of the content was of no use to Yang Chu, but the sections delving into the brain, understanding the mind, and neurology had some reading value.

"Xu Xi, we're going to eat. Would you like to join us?"

At the library entrance, a middle-aged man in gold-rimmed glasses called out to Xu Xi among a group of men and women who were leaving.

Yang Chu recognized these people; they were all staff members of the Po On Road Public Library.

Only then did he notice the wall clock in the reading room, which showed it was already noon.

The library closed for two hours at midday and wouldn't reopen until two in the afternoon, so the staff usually went out to eat.

"No need, Director, you all go ahead!" Xu Xi didn't accept the middle-aged director's invitation, merely waving his hand with a smile.

After they left, Yang Chu said with a smile, "Not eating with your colleagues? Your direct superior was there, too."

"No," Xu Xi shook his head with a smile. "They eat at expensive places; I'll just have a bento box."

"Then let's eat together." Yang Chu stood up from his seat. "I had a lunch box of yours yesterday; today, it's my treat."

"A lunch box?" Xu Xi tilted his head slightly, a hint of amusement in his eyes.

"Then a lunch box it is." Yang Chu nodded.

"I'll go make the call."

Xu Xi did not refuse this time, instead smiling as he went to the office area to call in the order.

Soon, a delivery boy arrived with the lunch boxes they had ordered—three in total, char siu and roast goose leg, standard Hong Kong-style fast food.

Yang Chu paid, and the two sat in the same spot as the day before. Xu Xi ate one box, while Yang Chu ate two.

After finishing the meal, Xu Xi cleared away the boxes and retrieved a set of Chinese chess from his workstation. "Nothing to do now, shall we play a game?"

"That works."

Yang Chu did not refuse. The library wasn't open to the public yet, and he wasn't about to make a staff member like Xu Xi break the rules for such a trivial matter.

The pieces were laid out.

Yang Chu opened with a cannon to the center, and Xu Xi responded by advancing his horse. The two traded moves, and the situation quickly unfolded.

Xu Xi's play was more varied than Yang Chu had anticipated. While it appeared defensive, his layout was profound, often delivering a lethal blow from seemingly unremarkable moves.

Yang Chu's chess skill was not strong, and he didn't expend much mental energy calculating the entire board, so he soon found himself at a disadvantage.

"Sigh, you shouldn't have moved there. Jump the horse, otherwise, your chariot will be taken."

Just as Yang Chu's position became precarious, a voice suddenly appeared from the side.