Chess Talk (Thanks to "Zuowangdao Boqing" for the Great God certification!)

The seven-day surveillance period was not all that boring.

Aside from not being allowed to enter or leave Jinzhou City freely, Lu Guan faced few restrictions, as the Frontier Court had taken his identity into account.

After Jinhsi took over as Jinzhou's magistrate, Changli, who had been handling Jinzhou's affairs on her disciple's behalf, found herself with time on her hands.

Now, aside from occasionally offering the young magistrate advice, she was waiting for the golden-eyed stranger her master had spoken of.

Thus, during his stay at the Frontier Court, Lu Guan occasionally took Dania for a stroll around Jinzhou City under Sanhua's "protection." For entertainment during the rest of his time, he played chess with Changli.

Although Lu Guan's chess skills were poor enough for him to be called a hopeless player, Changli went easy on him, so he could still hold his own against her.

After all, chess was entertainment, not a life-or-death contest. Why be so competitive? A back-and-forth exchange was much more enjoyable.

Those were Changli's exact words, and Lu Guan agreed wholeheartedly.

Just as he had never bullied foolish catgirl newcomers when playing Strinova in his previous life, a game without fresh blood was no different from one dying a slow death.

Maintaining a healthy gaming environment required effort from both the game's developers and its players, not mutual exclusion.

The same applied to governing Jinzhou City. It was already the region with the weakest foundations and scarcest resources in Huanglong. If the magistrate did nothing and the soldiers and civilians below grew apathetic, how could there be any talk of peace and prosperity?

As Changli played chess with Lu Guan, she told him about her experiences when she had first arrived in Jinzhou.

At the time, Jinzhou was still under the shadow of the Battle of the Crescent. People throughout the region were on edge, and although Jiyan, the newly appointed general of the Midnight Rangers, was highly respected within the army, public opinion of him was sharply divided.

Some believed he had defied General Geshu's orders and was a deserter through and through. Others believed Geshu Lin's battle plan would never have worked, and letting him have his way would only have led to worse consequences.

The rout on the front lines had unsettled those in the rear. Thus, with Jinzhou in turmoil, it needed someone capable of being a stabilizing force to take the magistrate's seat, which had long stood empty.

Jinhsi, who had already been chosen as the future magistrate, had been left with no choice but to shoulder responsibility for the entire region despite her youth. From then on, the girl, who had not yet come of age, had held herself to the strictest standards so she would not disappoint everyone's expectations... all to become a competent magistrate.

Fortunately, she had persevered, and her efforts had soon paid off. Jinzhou's soldiers and civilians had gradually come to accept the young magistrate, no longer questioning her ability because of her age...

It had to be said that Changli was much more skillful with words than Jinhsi. Everything she said spoke of Jinzhou's journey, without a single mention of recruiting or courting him. A normal person would have found it hard not to develop a favorable impression of Jinzhou...

But Lu Guan was no normal person. He was a god among men.

He had lived two lives, and no matter how low his emotional intelligence had once been, experience had sharpened it. It was just that he had never responded well to pressure, and most of the time he said whatever came to mind, so he often said rather shocking things.

That did not mean he could not see what Changli was trying to do.

So he raised a hand, pointed at the white stones Changli had just captured and set aside, and asked the empty air beside him, "Referee, didn't she just break the rules? Several times, she didn't put the captured stones on the lid of the stone bowl."

Changli: "???"

Like a master fighter brought down by a flurry of wild punches, Changli, who had been confident everything was under control, lost her train of thought at Lu Guan's joking interruption.

But she soon understood what Lu Guan meant. To avoid awkwardness, the boy was using this roundabout way to turn down her recruitment.

Changli did not know whether to laugh or cry. "What rules are those? Who would make a rule that captured stones have to be put on the lid of the stone bowl?"

"Just a custom from across the ocean..." Lu Guan shook his head.

Then he abruptly changed tack and brought up another subject. "Dania's situation must have reached Huanglong's upper ranks by now, hasn't it?"

"...I really can't hide anything from you." Changli paused in surprise, then admitted it openly. "A resonator of a Threnodian from another region has appeared in Jinzhou territory. This is not something Jinzhou can handle on its own now."

"So the seven days of surveillance are a delaying tactic, meant to buy time for the Ming Court to send someone over, right?" Lu Guan narrowed his eyes slightly. "Will they be from the Ministry of Divination or the Pacification Bureau?"

Changli was startled. She had assumed that Lu Guan, being so young and the young master of a prominent family, would not have encountered political maneuvering...

The way she looked at Lu Guan immediately changed.

She really had not expected that Lu Guan, who seemed so guileless, had deliberately been playing dumb. He could even use a question about who was coming to sound her out about what the Ming Court was thinking...

The Ministry of Divination oversaw Sentinel affairs, including some matters related to Threnodians. If the Ministry of Divination sent someone, it would mean the Ming Court intended to take a conciliatory approach to Dania's case.

If the person came from the Pacification Bureau, they might do things unfavorable to Dania...

"That I don't know." Changli shrugged. "I left the center of politics a long time ago. How would I know what the Ming Court is thinking?"

"If you want to know the upper ranks' attitude toward Dania, why not call your father? He's sure to know."

"I'll pass... We'll deal with whatever comes." Lu Guan waved a hand. "I'd rather not trouble the old man with this."

The Dragon Lord's position was unclear, and his own old man belonged to the Dragon Lord's faction. If a conflict arose, it would only put him in a difficult position.

"By the way, does Jinhsi know about this?" Lu Guan suddenly asked after placing a stone. "Was reporting Dania's situation to the Ming Court your idea, Changli, or did the magistrate authorize it?"

"Jinhsi... doesn't know." Changli shook her head. "To tell you the truth, after things ended that day, Jinhsi told me in private that she actually felt a great deal of sympathy for Dania."

"Rather than report the situation to the Ming Court and invite further complications, she would personally prefer to make Miss Dania feel at home here, provided Jinzhou's safety is assured..."

"But there are some things she can choose not to do that I cannot leave undone."

Changli looked at Lu Guan apologetically.

"I'm sorry. The existence of a Threnodian resonator has far-reaching implications, after all. If I knew and failed to report it, both Jinzhou and Jinhsi herself would be in a difficult position if the Ming Court held them accountable afterward."

"I understand." Lu Guan nodded. "I don't mean to blame you, Changli. I was mentally prepared for this before I brought Dania to Huanglong. This was within my expectations too."

Though he had not expected them to be exposed so quickly...

Lu Guan thought of the factional infighting in the Huanglong Court.

The upper ranks of the Ming Court were not of one mind. Even the Dragon Lord, who stood at the center of power, was deeply troubled by the political struggles among those high officials...

Back then, it was only because the Dragon Lord had stepped in and forcibly suppressed the matter of Lu Guan that it had not had a more serious impact on the Lu Family.

Even some outside forces had been involved. Although Lu Guan did not have that kind of resonance ability, his father, Lu Yi, meant certain interested parties would have had their eyes on him to some extent.

This incident with Dania could very well become a weapon for his father's political enemies to use against him, so Lu Guan had to handle it properly and prevent it from having worse consequences.

"For now, all we can do is wait and see who comes." Lu Guan let out a quiet sigh. "Hopefully, they'll be fairly easy to deal with..."

Lu Guan's game against Changli ended when he conceded.

Lu Guan returned to his room and played with the hair of Dania, who was sprawled over the dressing table like a salted fish, waiting for mealtime.

"Have you been bored?"

"It's been okay. I'm used to being bored anyway." Dania shook her head. "Whatever else you can say about it, Jinzhou food is much tastier than the vital-sign maintenance meals the president gave me."

"I didn't mean the food." Lu Guan chuckled and rubbed her shoulders. "We've been under house arrest for almost a week. Haven't you felt a little uncomfortable?"

"I kept saying I was bringing you here for a trip, but we'd barely arrived before the Frontier Court restricted our movements..."

"It's okay." Dania comforted Lu Guan instead. "Lovers should be understanding of each other. Complaining to you over something this small wouldn't be how a good girl acts."

It really was a miracle. Despite the teachings and pressure of the inherently evil Fractsidus president, Dania's values had somehow turned out perfectly fine, aside from her rather listless and empty disposition...

Ding-dong!

The terminal at Lu Guan's waist sounded a FliChat notification.

(These chapters will have quite a bit of plot setup, so they may be a little dull. I'll post a full four chapters today, meow!)