Chapter 29: Play Go!

Zuixianlou is located on the central street of Wu'an County. It has four floors and is decorated in a gorgeous way. It can accommodate 700 or 800 people to have dinner at the same time. It is the largest restaurant in the county.

Behind the restaurant, there is also a Zuixian Inn, which has hundreds of rooms, and is also the largest inn in the county.

The little Duke of Qi, Cui Zongzhi, is now staying in Zuixian Inn.

At noon, Li Zhao, Bai Mo and Manager Sun came outside the inn gate and were shocked. He saw that the inn gate was closed. There was a wooden sign hanging high in front of the door, with two big words "Dragon Flying and Phoenix Dance" on it: No guest.

It turned out that I learned that the young Duke of Qi, Cui Zongzhi, was staying at Zuixian Inn, and there were endless people coming to visit, including literati, local tyrants, and small officials... Some brought valuable gifts, and some had beautiful daughters. The purpose of these people was basically the same: flattery and cling to the powerful.

Cui Zongzhi was so upset that he simply closed the door and thanked the guests. He even hung a sign of guests at the gate. No matter who comes to pay a visit, the servants will block the guests!

Even so, there were still many people who refused to leave and were waiting outside the gate. The team could line up one or two miles long, and it was still increasing, just to meet the Duke of the Little Qi Kingdom.

Li Zhao couldn't help but be a little stunned. If he queued up in sequence, he might have been waiting for three days and three nights, and it wouldn't be his turn to lock the door and ask for a meeting. Even if it was his turn, he wouldn't be able to enter the door. What should we do?

When I forced myself into it, there were guards inside and outside the gate, and the wind and rain were not clear.

It would be too rude to sneak into the wall and make people laugh.

What else can I do?

...

Now, let’s think about it from the perspective of others. The purpose of my trip was to meet the Duke of Little Qi. Since I couldn’t enter the inn, wouldn’t it be enough to just lead the Duke of Little Qi out?

The question is, how can we lead the snake out of the hole?

"Manager Sun, do this little Duke of Qi have any hobbies?"

"When I say that Young Master, I heard that Xiao Qi has two major hobbies in his life: one is drinking and the other is playing chess. He has excellent chess skills and has reached the third level. He has rarely had opponents among his peers."

"Oh, play chess?"

"Shibition" records that Go was created by Emperor Yao.

During the Spring and Autumn Period and the Warring States Period, Go was widely circulated in society and became one of the favorite games of wise men!

During the Sui and Tang dynasties, Go entered a stage of prosperity, with countless lovers, even the emperors were no exception. For example, Emperor Gaozu Li Yuan secretly planned the major event of raising an army against Sui during the game against Pei Ji.

Emperor Taizong Li Shimin even integrated military tactics with Go. Playing chess is like using troops, combining the right and strange things, and changing all the time!

Today, Zi Li Longji is a hard-core Go enthusiast. When he has nothing to do, he often plays with ministers, royal family and concubines. He also set up a "chess and waiter" official position (sixth rank) in the Hanlin Academy to attract Go masters from all over the country and play chess with him.

For example, Wang Jixin, the number one national player today, settled from a countryside because of his good Go game, and became a favorite minister of the emperor. He accompanied the emperor on weekdays and rewarded him continuously. He was even more glorious than his royal relatives and became an envious object of countless people.

If there are good people above, the lower ones will be even more!

Under the leadership of the emperor, the subjects of the Tang Empire were all involved in the chess path, especially those with certain social status. If they don’t know how to play chess, they would be as embarrassing as illiterate. They would be embarrassed to say hello to their neighbors when they go out.

In addition, in the order from high to low, people habitually divide chess players into nine grades: one is to enter the spirit, two is to sit and shine, three is to be specific, four is to be open to the secluded, five is to use wisdom, six is ​​to be small, seven is to fight, eight is to be foolish, and nine is to be clumsy.

That little Duke of Qi actually has the specific level of the third grade, which shows that he is a master of chess!

...

After asking about the situation, Li Zhao touched his belly and quickly came up with a good solution. Then he asked Baifu to buy a pair of Go and borrow a pair of pen, ink, paper and ink.

"Master, why are you buying Go?"

"Haha, of course it's used to lead the snake out of the hole, go quickly."

"promise!"

Baifu wandered around the street and quickly bought a pair of the most ordinary Go. The board was carved from wild pine wood, and the chess pieces were polished with black and white pebbles. It only cost a hundred cents. I borrowed pen, ink, paper and ink from nearby shops.

There is a thousand-year-old ginkgo tree in front of the gate of Zuixian Inn. It has lush branches and leaves, and is as green as a cover. Li Zhao sat cross-legged under the tree. After a little thought, he put on a life-and-death question on the Go board.

I picked up the brush and wrote a line of big words on the white paper:

‘Dear uncles and aunts, uncles and aunts, brothers and sisters, I am a high school student. I accidentally lost my wallet while out. I prayed for eight yuan to go home. Good people will be rewarded...’

Wrong, rewrite!

‘The unknown boy from the mountains and fields set up a game of life and death to challenge the masters of chess skills in the four directions. If someone can break this game, he will give him a gift of a ancestral blood jade unicorn. If he cannot break the game, please leave a liang of broken silver. He has no basis for saying it, and establish the words as the basis!’

The rules were also written down next to me, and the challenger played the white chess, and the white chess first, seeking survival.

After writing, Li Zhao picked a pecan-sized jade pendant from his neck, which was red as blood. It was engraved with a beast pattern: dragon head, deer antlers, lion eyes, tiger back, bear waist... It is the head of the five auspicious beasts in Chinese mythology - Qilin!

The Qilin is called Qilin, and the female is called Lin. The horns of the former are thicker and majestic, giving people the feeling of dominating the world. The horns of the latter are small and slender, with a gentle and gentle expression.

This jade pendant is a Qi beast with excellent material and exquisite carving. It has been hung around Li Zhao's neck since he was a child.

"Master, this Qilin Jade Pendant is a ancestral inheritance. If it loses, how do you explain to the ancestors?" Bai Mo grew up with Li Zhao, knowing that he can't play chess at all, and he hasn't even seen the chess record. Now that he challenges the Sifang Chess master, wouldn't he be defeated?

"Haha, don't worry, no one can win this jade pendant!" Li Zhao smiled slightly. He was sure that he dared to come out to set up a chess game.

You should know that when Go first appeared, there were only 11 chess boards in each vertical and horizontal way. After that, as time went by, it gradually developed to 13, 15, and 17... It was not until the end of the Southern and Northern Dynasties that there were 19 chess boards with 19 chess boards in each vertical way, with a total of 361 intersections, combined with the number of Zhoutians on the upper side, and the wonderfulness of the five elements below, and the pattern of Go was determined.

From the late Southern and Northern Dynasties to the prosperous period of the Kaiyuan period of the Tang Dynasty, it only took only two hundred years. In other words, the current Go technique is still in a preliminary stage of exploration and its level is not high.

In the space where Li Zhao lived, after more than 1,400 years of development, the 19 Go games have been fully mature, with novel layouts and numerous changes, and countless killer moves.

As a player, Li Zhao naturally knows how to play Go. He has also watched many Go competition videos, studied many chess scores, famous games, and life-and-death questions... With such strength, in this world, he is definitely comparable to a first- and second-grade Go master, and even more than that!

In addition, Li Zhao's chess game is definitely not ordinary, called "Eagle Fighting Rabbit", which is a famous life-and-death question in the "Xuanxuan Chess Classic". It seems simple on the surface, but in fact it changes endlessly, with killer moves step by step, and a difficulty index of five stars.

To be honest, even if the first-class chess player of this era comes, if you want to solve this problem, you may have to spend a few days and nights, and you will be worried about losing hundreds of hairs.

It is impossible to crack it in a short time!

...

Everyone has a curiosity, and soon someone gathered over and pointed at Li Zhaohe's chess game...

"Whose kid is this? How dare you put a life-and-death question here? I really don't know how high the sky is. However, this jade pendant is really good. The material and carving are all top-notch, at least worth a few hundred taels of silver, or even more!"

"Little baby, you really lost the ancestral jade pendant. Don't cry, haha!"

...

"Haha, once a real man says, it's hard to catch up. If anyone of you has the ability, just come and take it!"

"Okay, I'm going to challenge it!"

Among the onlookers, a thin literati in blue-shirt walked out and sat opposite Li Zhao to challenge this life-and-death question.

From the chessboard, black chess has the advantage, just like an eagle with spreading wings. It is very dangerous to slap the white chess that symbolizes the white rabbit. However, although white chess is at a disadvantage, there is also a chance to break through. As long as the arrangement is done properly, the rabbit can kick the eagle and turn the defense into an offense!

Next, the breaking starts.

The scribe in the blue shirt played the white chess. The first step was: long, trying to break out from a corner.

Li Zhao played the black chess, and the first step was: to fight, blocking the opponent's breakthrough route.

The second move of the white chess: win and continue to break through.

Black chess second hand: keep blocking.

...

After more than twenty moves, the black chess blocked step by step and was impeccable. The white chess broke through several times, all ended in failure and was finally culled in the corner.

"I'm careless, I'm really careless, let's have another round."

"good."

...

"Oh, I'm careless again, let's have another round?"

"good!"

The scribe in the green shirt challenged three times in a row, and ended in failure three times. Only then did he realize that this life-and-death question was not simple. He shook his head helplessly, left three taels of silver, and returned to the crowd depressedly.

But he did not leave, but stood by and pondered how to solve this problem. For those who are obsessed with chess, this is more important than eating!

The problem is unclear and the sleep and food are hard to rest!

"Do not let go, let me give it a try!" Then another white-bearded old man stepped forward and sat opposite him with confidence, vowing to solve this life-and-death question.

And his luck was no better than the previous one. He challenged three times, failed three times, left behind silver, and retreated in disappointment!

"It's so difficult. I have been studying chess skills for more than 30 years. I have never seen such a life-and-death question. It seems simple, but in fact it's ever-changing and complex, making people feel like they are trapped in a maze. How can I get out?"

"Who said no? Today is an eye-opener. I dare to ask, what is the origin of this young man who set up the game?"

"I don't know, I don't know!"

The chess game has spread, and more and more people have gathered together, inside and outside, and it is hard to understand the wind and rain. Some people are thinking about how to solve this life-and-death problem, and some people are interested in Li Zhao and secretly inquire about the news?

But after a long search, no one knew the situation. This is a mysterious boy!

However, there is one thing that people firmly believe: such a profound and life-and-death question cannot be presented by a young man. There must be another expert behind the scenes. If possible, it will definitely benefit a lot from trying to get to know this expert!

(End of this chapter)
Chapter completed!