Yu Qing also knew that what he was doing would change nothing, but he simply wanted to tell Yuwen Yuan in another way, so what if he was just a servant? You merely come from a better background than I do!
After many rounds of alternating fast and slow moves, Yu Qing raised an eyebrow slightly, then slowly placed a stone, finally steering the game into the position he wanted, waiting quietly to see what Yuwen Yuan would do.
Yuwen Yuan was already playing slowly. After staring at the board for a while this time, anxiety gradually filled his eyes. His face was full of unease, and he hesitated to place the stone he held between his fingers.
After waiting for quite a while without a move, it became so slow that the two people in the study could hardly bear to watch.
Wen Xin slowly lowered her head in silence. Even without going over to look, merely observing the players reactions made it clear that Yuwen Yuan was having a terribly difficult time. He had definitely hit a major stumbling block this time.
She did not quite understand. Since the game had reached this point, did he really still believe he had a chance to win? Why not just admit defeat and give up?
In her view, losing to Yu Qing was nothing to be ashamed of, especially given his potential.
Xiao Hong turned and left the study, wanting to see exactly what was going on.
She brought fresh tea back to the pavilion and noticed that Yuwen Yans tea had not been touched from start to finish. Still, she replaced the tea for both him and Wen Kui.
Yu Qing was still left out. A servant was a servant. There was no rule that allowed them to sit as equals with their masters and drink tea.
Putting her work down, she began to examine the board closely. As she watched, Xiao Hong gradually understood why Young Master Yuwen found it so hard to make a move.
The game had reached a stalemate. Both players were on a knife edge, feeling that one wrong move from either side would lead to total defeat. They had both arrived at the critical moment that would decide the outcome.
How had it come to this? Xiao Hong was surprised. It was her first time seeing such a game. She had initially thought Young Master Yuwen had lost, but it turned out they were evenly matched.
Only then did she realise she had underestimated Young Master Yuwen.
After watching for a while longer, she fell into the same state as Wen Kui. Subconsciously siding with the hesitant Yuwen Yuan, she also found herself trying to figure out where his next move should be.
Once she started thinking about it, her mind was immediately drawn into the game. She felt nervous, sensing the danger at every step, unsure which way to go.
Only by being caught up in it did she understand how difficult the immediate choice was. One wrong direction meant total loss, while the right one meant victory.
Victory and defeat hung by a thread. This kind of decision was truly exhausting, so how should he choose?
No matter how difficult, the game had to continue. Yuwen Yuan placed a stone, beginning to fight for control of the board.
Yu Qing immediately followed with a sharp tap of his own stone.
After a few exchanges back and forth, Yuwen Yuan found himself in trouble once again.
Watching from the side, Xiao Hong stared fixedly at the board, her hands instinctively clenching into fists. She noticed the game had looped back in a different form. The slight advantage Young Master Yuwen had worked so hard to open up was, under A Qings relentless step by step pressure, once again tangled into another life or death situation.
Faced with another exhausting choice, Yuwen Yuan broke into a sweat on his forehead, his eyes full of anxiety and his face covered in apprehension.
He suddenly looked up at his opponent again. The man across from him was just a servant. If he lost, it would be dishonourable.
He had always been carrying an invisible burden.
The main point was that he still had a chance to win. How could he willingly give up?
Raising his sleeve to wipe his sweat, he took a deep breath, gathered all his concentration once more, and immersed himself back in the life and death struggle.
He placed a stone.
After several more rounds of exchanges, Xiao Hongs scalp tingled. Her eyes widened and her breathing grew somewhat rapid.
She saw that the position Young Master Yuwen had fought for again had looped back once more, presenting yet another variation of that life or death decision.
As a mere spectator, she was nearly driven to distraction.
Repeated life and death choices came one after another. Even as a spectator, she felt her energy being drained. How much worse must it be for Yuwen Yuan himself?
Yuwen Yans breathing grew heavy and rapid. His eyes were bloodshot as he stared dead at the board. His complexion flushed and paled in turns, and beads of sweat dripped from his chin. He still hesitated to place the stone he held, his hand trembling, perhaps from the fatigue of keeping it suspended for so long.
He only felt as though he were leading an army into battle at that moment. After countless clashes and desperate struggles, he was completely exhausted. Yet the lives of so many under his command depended on him. Victory seemed within reach, but a single mistake would lead to eternal ruin. What could he do? He had to pour out his heart and soul and force himself to stay alert.
Phew! Wen Kui suddenly raised his head and exhaled deeply. The tension of the game had nearly made him hold his breath. Fortunately, he was not a player, and his wandering thoughts allowed him to break free in time.
He suddenly paused, realising something was wrong, and cast a cold glance towards Yu Qing.
He had initially thought Yu Qing was holding back from crushing Yuwen Yuan to let him win. Now he realised that was not the case at all. Yu Qing was deliberately leaving him alive.
One or two life or death decisions could be called coincidence. But three times in a row? Could that still be chance?
Observing Yu Qings reaction, waiting repeatedly for his opponent to move, he did indeed seem rather bored. He played with the stones in his hand, occasionally glancing at his feet under the table, adjusting his clothes, stroking his small moustache, or turning his head to look at the flowers and plants in the courtyard. Whenever another servant passed by, he would follow them with his eyes.
In short, he had quite a few little fidgets.
Wen Kui was certain now. The match was not a close life or death struggle at all. On the surface it appeared so, but in reality, it was a one sided domination of skill.
Precisely because he understood, his heart suddenly skipped a beat. The person who could repeatedly create such decisive situations possessed terrifying strategic ability within this small grid. It was his first time seeing such a monstrous talent. Who exactly was this man?
Besides, this was not playing a board game at all. It was clearly an attack on the mind.
He stared at Yu Qing, completely at a loss for words. He had told him to play seriously, but there was no need to push someone to the brink of death.
He strongly suspected that this fellow might just be showing off his superior skills in hopes of a reward.
Apart from that reason, he could not figure out why this man of unknown origin was acting this way.
Looking again at Yuwen Yans condition, Wen Kui nearly jumped in fright. He had not expected Yuwen Yuan to look like such a wreck.
He clearly realised he could no longer hesitate. If he himself felt suffocated just watching the game, letting Yuwen Yuan continue would surely make him cough up blood. That was not an impossibility.
He immediately made the firm decision to intervene, acting contrary to gentlemanly conduct, and interrupt the game.
He suddenly reached out, grabbed Yuwen Yans trembling hand that held the stone, and said in a deep voice, “Young Master, do not play any more.”
Yu Qing looked over in astonishment, somewhat speechless. Did he not know the rule of watching in silence? Was this not ruining the game?
Although Yuwen Yuan, his eyes bloodshot, had raised his head to look at Wen Kui, the confusion on his face had not faded. His emotions were clearly still trapped in the game. Gasping heavily, he said, “I have not lost. It is not over yet. I have not lost.”
Xiao Hong, who had also snapped out of her trance beside him, was utterly stunned. She stared blankly at Yuwen Yans wretched state, his bloodshot eyes, rapid and uneven breathing, pale cheeks flushed with colour, and his head drenched in sweat. His upper garments were completely soaked through, clinging tightly to his body.
She was truly a bit frightened. When she had arrived earlier, it had not been like this. How had it changed so drastically in the blink of an eye? And she had not noticed it at all.
Seeing Yuwen Yuan in this obsessed state only made Wen Kui more unwilling to let it continue. He stood up, gripped Yuwen Yans hand firmly, shook it, and said sternly, “Young Master, it is nearly noon. The master wishes to host a banquet for you. Do you intend to make our elderly clan chief wait for you to eat?”
Hearing this, Yuwen Yuan finally woke as if from a dream. His eyes instantly regained a clear, though deeply exhausted, focus. He turned his head to look outside the pavilion and said in surprise, “Is it noon already?” He clearly had not expected that an entire morning had passed without the game even finishing.
He looked back at the board.
Not wanting him to fall back into it, Wen Kui pulled him away from the board. “Do not play any more. This match is a draw! Young Master, the master is waiting for you. Let us go!” He gestured with an open hand.
A draw? Yu Qing was speechless once again. However, he had no say in the matter under these circumstances. If Wen Kui declared it a draw, then it was a draw. Even if Wen Kui said he had lost, he would have to accept it.
Still somewhat dazed, Yuwen Yuan uttered an “oh”. As he stepped down the stairs, his foot suddenly caught on a half step, missed the ground, and with a thud, he stumbled and fell to his knees.
“Oh!” Xiao Hong cried out in surprise, quickly running out to help. Together with Wen Kui, who hurried over, they each took an arm to lift him up.
Yuwen Yuan said to both of them, “It is fine, it is fine.”
Xiao Hong quickly bent down to help him brush the dust off the hem of his long gown.
Inside the study, Wen Xin, who stood by the window, finally got a clear look at her betrothed. She had not expected their first proper sight of each other to be like this, and he had happened to kneel in her direction.
She was equally stunned and speechless. For a moment, the shyness and nervousness of seeing her betrothed for the first time vanished. Instead, her gaze fell on Yu Qing, who had followed them out of the pavilion. He seemed to be hovering awkwardly behind them, unsure of where he could help.
She did not quite understand. It was only a game. How had Yuwen Yuan ended up looking so dreadful?
Wen Kui supported Yuwen Yuan and practically hurried him away. He was full of regret. He regretted ever letting Yu Qing play against Yuwen Yuan. He had not expected it to turn out this badly. The key point was that Yu Qing had sought his approval. It had been his own idea.
Clan Chief Wen Maos intention had been for Yuwen Yuan to leave a good impression on Wen Xin so she could feel at ease. Wen Kui had not expected it to backfire completely. He could only hope that Wen Xin had not seen Yuwen Yans dishevelled state.
“Right, you may return now.”
When they reached the moon gate separated by just one wall, Wen Kui turned around and told Xiao Hong and Yu Qing that they did not need to see them off any further.
Before parting, Wen Kui gave Yu Qing a meaningful glance.
Receiving that look, Yu Qing instantly froze on the spot.
After the incident was over, he also felt regret and reflected. Was this level of skill something a household servant could possess? Knowing he had acted impulsively, he could not help but remember the words of his senior martial brothers who had opposed him becoming sect leader back then. It seemed they had not been wrong. He was young, impulsive, and lacked stability.
Xiao Hong, meanwhile, gathered her skirt and ran back, having spotted Wen Xin stepping out and walking towards the pavilion.