The light by the window was always bright. It fell on Shen Shuangjian's smooth, snow-white profile, as though piercing crystalline frost flowers and melting the cold that flowed in silence.
"Shuangjian, I was losing from the very beginning. If you hadn't avoided me, I wouldn't even have made it to the middle game."
Playing Go was like quietly revealing one's heart. Some played steadily, dragging the game all the way into the endgame to fight over a single stone or half a point, while others were fierce and forceful, taking the initiative to close in for a capturing race.
Xie Jinghui had intended to surrender every white stone. If Shen Shuangjian had not avoided him, but turned to meet him instead, Xie Jinghui would not have schemed so painstakingly, ultimately forcing his way into swallowing the black stones.
The room was utterly silent. Only the cameras positioned at various angles were still running.
[So this is what rich people do for fun? Play Go after reading.]
[Then what does all the gaming I usually do make me?]
[A corporate slave.]
[I don't get it. Why did white resign?]
[Actually, white shouldn't have resigned. Both sides only had one liberty left, but after white made that move, black had to extend outward first, then come back to put white in atari. But white could capture black directly.]
[I don't understand, seumnida.]
[Basically, two lions are biting each other. One's lost so much blood it's about to die, while the other only needs to wear it down slowly to win. But it couldn't resist taking another bite, giving its opponent a chance to bite a vital spot.]
[They were both very steady early on. Their outside influence and control of the four corners were about equal, so they had to fight for territory in the middle game. With two groups of stones tangled together, the situation was pretty tense. One wrong move meant total death.]
[So you're saying Xie Jinghui lost on purpose?]
[Right. If wifey Shuangjian had kept jumping outward, Xie Jinghui would've lost. But wifey Shuangjian got hooked by the white stones. He moved one step closer, which was basically walking into the trap himself.]
[Then didn't Xie Jinghui win?]
[Well, when you compete against your own wife, whoever wins loses. (doge)]
[Actually, it's just a little flirting between a couple.]
[Not quite. Wifey Shuangjian could've won before the middle game, but his play was too gentle. He kept avoiding a fight.]
[Playing Go is also a way of expressing your heart. You can convey your thoughts and ideas to the other person. What Xie Jinghui meant was basically: I'm yours to do with as you please, hurry up and accept me. But Shen Shuangjian just wouldn't, so he turned around and took hold of Shen Shuangjian instead.]
[Why else would they call Go a conversation of hands?]
[Xie Jinghui's game was doomed to total defeat from the start. Only if you come closer can I survive.]
[I stake the success or failure of over a hundred painstakingly planned moves on the possibility of you.]
[So this is a fucking confession, right? That's so romantic.]
[Don't doubt it. It's a confession.]
Xie Jinghui had used the game to reveal his heart, explaining his thoughts to Shen Shuangjian. Just as in this game, he was not bent on competing or concerned with winning or losing.
He offered his stones in surrender, with the resolve of someone baring his neck for the killing blow, asking only to enter deep into black's territory. As long as Shen Shuangjian did not evade him, he was willing to lose everything.
Unfortunately, Shen Shuangjian was too slow to understand Xie Jinghui's subtlety at that moment, finding a single game too short, its sentiment not abundant enough.
Yet it was also a range of gleaming green mountains that even a handful of words could not fully describe.
Over the past few days, those who could cook had grown considerably more practiced. At dinner, Lin Weiluo not only changed the ingredients but, after discussing it with the others and obtaining their unanimous agreement, also switched to a bottle of bayberry wine.
After a few glasses of the sweet-tasting but rather strong bayberry wine, everyone inevitably began to grow excited.
Yu Sheng had failed to secure a seat beside Shen Shuangjian this time, so he simply sat opposite him. After a couple of mouthfuls of wine, Lin Weiluo took the initiative to make a suggestion.
"Why don't we play truth or dare? After three rounds of rock-paper-scissors, the winner asks the loser a question or makes him do something. If the loser doesn't want to, he drinks a glass of wine!"
Lin Weiluo's suggestion quickly met with everyone else's agreement. Though Shen Shuangjian felt he could not fit into such a lively gathering, they kept bringing him up every few sentences. Even if he wanted to spoil their fun, he could not get a word in.
So Shen Shuangjian could only press his lips together and extend his hand, going along with the farce.
Gu Xuanlin lost the first round. After several complicated rounds of rock-paper-scissors, Li Yi emerged victorious.
He was not a celebrity in the industry and was uninhibited when playing games. Though he did not start by going overboard, he was not so easy to brush off, either.
"Then here's my question: Gu Xuanlin, is there someone you like right now?"
Though the question was pointed, it still left room to maneuver.
If Gu Xuanlin truly wanted to avoid it or hide something, he could simply say no. Even if it was not the truth, what could anyone do?
Yet, in front of the cameras, Gu Xuanlin chose the stupidest method, and the one that most clearly betrayed what he was trying to hide.
He raised the wineglass in his hand and drained it in one go.
Amid Li Yi's cheers and the others' teasing clamor, Gu Xuanlin set down his glass, his gaze shifting as a strained smile appeared on his face.
In the second round, Shen Shuangjian had the worst luck, losing at the very first stage. Seeing that he was the one they would be questioning, everyone still competing to be the winner grew interested.
Yu Sheng, in particular, seemed pumped full of adrenaline. With an attitude of certain victory, he promptly lost right after Shen Shuangjian.
"I won!"
Lin Weiluo stood up excitedly. She spread her arms, basking in her victory and everyone else's envious, jealous looks.
"Shuangjian, truth or dare?"
Shen Shuangjian had actually never played a game like this. In the past, people usually did not invite him to such crowded, lively gatherings or drinking parties, and even when they did, he declined from the outset.
Shen Shuangjian hesitated a moment before answering softly, "Truth."
Lin Weiluo did not make things difficult for him. Never forgetting to play wingman, she immediately asked, "Shuangjian, what type of person would you date? Give us a complete answer, both personality and looks!"
"..."
As soon as Lin Weiluo finished speaking, the others wore differing expressions, but all fell silent in tacit agreement, waiting unobtrusively for Shen Shuangjian's answer.
In fact, Yu Sheng was particularly obvious, practically craning his neck and cocking an ear to listen.
Their gazes were too obvious, the question too direct. Shen Shuangjian quietly lowered his eyes. Though his mind was blank, deliberately thinking about it inevitably made the tips of his ears burn.
Picking up the slender wineglass between his fingers, Shen Shuangjian hesitated for an instant before finally drinking the sweet-and-tart bayberry wine slowly in small sips.
His raised, slender neck was as fine as porcelain, yet its thinness was impossible to conceal. As his hair fell, even the slight movement of his swallowing looked vividly alluring.
The lingering taste of alcohol beneath the sweetness and tartness was still a little too much for Shen Shuangjian. After two sips, he had to stop and take a moment.
Beside him, Xie Jinghui was the first to reach out and stop him. "This wine is quite strong. If you can't drink it, don't."
By the time Shen Shuangjian belatedly felt the burn in his throat, it was already too late. The strong fumes filled his nose and breath, inevitably leaving someone who had never drunk alcohol before at a loss.
Just as Xie Jinghui leaned closer to take the glass away, Shen Shuangjian raised his eyes toward him.
His brows were lightly drawn together, and the alcohol had forced a vivid flush into the corners of his eyes. The dark blue-green tear mole was nestled there too, very faint and very small.
Shen Shuangjian rarely showed any expression other than cool detachment, but at that moment, perhaps bewildered by the unfamiliar, he took the rare initiative to seek Xie Jinghui's gaze.
His coldness receded. His pale, tea-brown eyes revealed his uncertainty, carrying a fragility that might shatter at a touch as a haze gradually rose.