Xiao Jingchuan glanced at Fu Yunzhu and saw that she had once again sat upright, her smile composed and appropriate, her brows slightly raised.
“Yunzhu, are you satisfied with Xiuxue as a teacher?”
Fu Yunzhu obviously couldn’t say she wasn’t. She nodded reluctantly. “Mm.”
Pei Xiuxue frowned. “Yunzhu, what do you mean by that? Was I not teaching well just now?”
“You taught well,” Fu Yunzhu said, “but it’s too expensive. I can’t afford the tuition.”
Pei Xiuxue laughed. “Oh, as long as it’s not because my level isn’t good enough. Money is easy to talk about let the Xiao family pay. There aren’t many people in their family who spend money anyway.”
After saying that, she looked at Xiao Jingchuan expectantly.
Xiao Jingchuan naturally knew Pei Xiuxue’s level; otherwise, there wouldn’t have been a need to hire a tutor in the first place. He smiled gently.
“Since Yunzhu doesn’t need Teacher Gu to teach her, I’ll teach her personally.”
Pei Xiuxue was stunned. She quickly grabbed Fu Yunzhu and said, “Alright, alright, I won’t charge tuition anymore. But if you get good results in the future, you must report my name let’s see who still dares to say my fundamentals aren’t solid.”
Fu Yunzhu agreed readily. “Alright, Teacher Pei.”
Then she asked Xiao Jingchuan, “Are we heading back?”
“We’ll go keep Old Master Pei company for a couple of games first. We’re staying for dinner today.”
Fu Yunzhu nodded. “Okay.”
Pei Xiuxue exclaimed in surprise, “Yunzhu, you know how to play Go too?”
“I just learned.”
Pei Xiuxue closed the book and immediately followed them. “Who did you learn from?”
“My mom,” Fu Yunzhu replied, then added, “Technically speaking, my mom and I come from the same line of instruction, so that would be Chief Xiao.”
Pei Xiuxue quickly asked, “You didn’t pick up Chief Xiao’s chess temperament, did you?”
Seeing Fu Yunzhu freeze, she hurried to explain, “If he didn’t win even a single game, he wouldn’t let people leave until he did. So my grandpa had to play quite a few fake games with him.”
Fu Yunzhu suppressed a laugh. “Your grandpa is really patient.”
“He was his prized subordinate, and the only one at that. What could he do? Fortunately, Grandpa raised Brother Jingchuan.”
As they spoke, they arrived at a room that was antique and elegant. Screens stood inside, bookshelves lined the corners, and a Go table sat in the middle. An elderly man and a handsome young man were seated opposite each other.
“Grandpa, Second Brother,” Pei Xiuxue called out.
The young man stopped his move, stood up, smiled at Pei Xiuxue in response, then walked over to Xiao Jingchuan. His gaze fell on Fu Yunzhu.
“This must be Sister Yunzhu.”
“Yes,” Xiao Jingchuan replied.
Fu Yunzhu politely greeted them both. “Grandpa Pei, Second Brother Pei.”
Grandpa Pei beckoned to her. “I heard from Jingchuan that your Go skills surpass his. I’m very curious what kind of good seed Tianwen taught, to actually defeat my student. Come play a couple of games with me.”
Fu Yunzhu accepted smoothly and sat respectfully in front of Grandpa Pei. “Alright. Best two out of three.”
Xiao Jingchuan and Pei Zhaolin each stood behind Fu Yunzhu and Grandpa Pei to observe, while Pei Xiuxue dragged over a chair and sat in the middle.
Grandpa Pei laughed heartily. “I’ll say this old Xiao Tianwen really has an eye for talent. Whether your skills truly match what Jingchuan says remains to be seen, but just your courage and composure on a first meeting already surpass my Xiuxue’s. You’re not stage-shy at all.”
“That’s not true,” Pei Xiuxue protested. “When Yunzhu first came in, she was extremely reserved. I gave her courage, told her to treat this place like her own home that’s why she relaxed.”
Fu Yunzhu nodded in agreement. “Yes, I was nervous at first. But seeing how generous and easygoing Miss Pei is, I thought her family must be the same. Once I came in and saw Grandpa Pei’s kind face and Second Brother Pei’s gentle demeanor, I immediately relaxed.”
Xiao Jingchuan raised his eyebrows slightly at that.
Pei Zhaolin’s gaze lingered on Fu Yunzhu again. What a sweet tongue no wonder Jingchuan accepted her so quickly.
“Haha,” Grandpa Pei laughed again. “Alright then, Yunzhu goes first, so no one can say this old man bullied you.”
Fu Yunzhu didn’t decline. The black stone fell, the white followed. White took the star point, black responded with a small knight’s move. Standing behind them, Pei Zhaolin couldn’t help but say, “Sister Yunzhu, don’t treat my grandpa like an old man when it comes to Go. Show your real skills go straight for the kill.”
Xiao Jingchuan smiled. “A gentle blade is still a blade.”
“I don’t see any gentle blade from Yunzhu,” Pei Xiuxue said. Her Go skills weren’t strong she’d only learned because Grandpa loved the game and needed opponents so she couldn’t understand much of the board.
After being reminded, Pei Zhaolin suddenly noticed that the black stones had already formed a connected net, silently tightening. He sucked in a breath.
“Sister Yunzhu’s gentle blade really is exquisite. If you hadn’t said anything, my old man would’ve been boiled like a frog in warm water before he realized.”
Xiao Jingchuan didn’t respond. He watched the girl in front of him pick up white stones with fingers as delicate as white jade, the corners of his lips lifting slightly.
After two games of three rounds, Grandpa Pei tossed the remaining stones in his hand into the bowl and sighed deeply.
“You little thing how did that old fellow manage to scoop you up? If I’d known earlier, I would’ve taken you as my disciple. Alright, I’ve lost.”
Fu Yunzhu smiled. “Grandpa Pei, actually my mom taught me first. Then I played a few games with Chief Xiao and spent a long time figuring things out on my own.”
Grandpa Pei looked even more heartbroken. “Still just a level-two apprentice.”
Then he turned to Xiao Jingchuan. “Your father and I have played Go for a lifetime, even reluctantly playing many fake games. I finally taught you so I could openly cultivate your habit of losing with grace. Who would’ve thought that old fellow already learned to accept defeat calmly and ended up unintentionally raising a level-two apprentice who made both master and disciple look bad.”
Pei Zhaolin laughed. “There are still two games left.”
“That’s right! That’s right! Two more games!” Grandpa Pei’s interest flared again.
Fu Yunzhu nodded. “This time, Grandpa Pei goes first.”
“Alright.”
Grandpa Pei placed his stone. Fu Yunzhu asked, “Grandpa Pei, do you need me to play a fake game with you? I can make sure you won’t be able to tell.”
At that, Pei Zhaolin burst out laughing. This girl was highly skilled, extremely clever, and still carried a touch of playful sharpness.
Grandpa Pei laughed too. “I’m not that old fellow who can’t afford to lose.”
Fu Yunzhu nodded. “Alright then.”
In the second game, Fu Yunzhu once again let Grandpa Pei experience what it meant to lose everything from a single misstep.
By the third game, Xiao Jingchuan glanced at Grandpa Pei’s expression and smiled.
“Grandpa Pei, let me take your place for this one.”
Grandpa Pei was broad-minded, but his old face still couldn’t quite handle it. He immediately gave up the seat to Xiao Jingchuan.
Fu Yunzhu looked at the man sitting upright across from her. Imitating him from last time, she extended her hand politely.
“You go first.”
Xiao Jingchuan nodded and complied. Two stones fell in succession. Back and forth they went, evenly matched. Fu Yunzhu hadn’t expected that the kid had improved again since last time he seemed to have grasped all the patterns she displayed on the board.
He no longer attacked aggressively like the first time. Instead, he calmly maneuvered around her, circling left and right.
Being slowly led around by him, Fu Yunzhu grew a bit anxious and wanted to attempt a decisive kill.