That morning, the women enjoyed themselves along the streets, some dancing gracefully, some singing at the tops of their voices, some drawing with charcoal, and others plucking the strings of three harps.
Zhao Xinning and Hill did not stay idle either. They came out together to embrace this bright, happy day with everyone else. Even simply sitting off to one side, basking in the sunshine with their eyes closed and listening to it all, was wonderful.
Zeng Mu and Kanni sat cross-legged on the ground, their attention fixed on the floor beneath them. On a board drawn in black charcoal lines, milky-white and inky-black pebbles served as the two colors of pieces.
Naturally, a crowd of women surrounded them to watch. They came from different places, and among them were well-traveled women and young ladies of noble birth. Yet none could identify the little game before them.
The players were usually blind to what the spectators saw clearly, but now the opposite seemed true.
"Three points," Zeng Mu said as he placed a piece.
"Blocked," Kanni said, setting down his piece after two seconds of thought.
"Four diagonally. I win again." Zeng Mu smiled as he placed his black piece.
Kanni shook his head slightly and glanced at him, as if to say, Oh, honestly, you... couldn't you let me win just once? All these people are watching.
"Come on, let's keep playing, you know?" he said with a chuckle, then added, "This is only the simplest version. When we have a chance, I'll teach you how the game is normally played."
Kanni lost the next few rounds too. Zeng Mu spared him no embarrassment. With such a rare opportunity, he wanted to see the man squirm. The result both met and exceeded his expectations: Kanni's face flushed red, yet