Zheng Qin stared blankly at the board for a long time before finally closing his eyes and lowering his head.
The room remained deathly silent.
Finally, it was over...
Many in the audience still hadn’t fully detached themselves from the intensity of the match.
This game had left an indelible impression on everyone.
From White's daring diagonal approach in the opening, to White's first sacrificial attack, to the godlike press and pinpoint jump that secured the advantage.
Just as Black seemed to be losing ground, a desperate counterattack emerged with the breathtakingly brilliant counter hane, pulling the game into unfathomable complexity and reigniting hope.
Yu Shao looked at the dazed Zheng Qin, feeling momentarily silent.
To be honest, Yu Shao had never truly considered Zheng Qin a worthy opponent—until this match.
Although many of Zheng Qin’s moves still seemed too immature to Yu Shao, this game allowed him to see Zheng Qin’s talent and... his love for the game of Go.
It reminded Yu Shao of himself in his past life.
While Zheng Qin's skill was still far below his own, this game had made Yu Shao recognize Zheng Qin as a rival worthy of his respect.
After a brief pause, Yu Shao finally stood up and said, “I’m leaving.”
Zheng Qin didn’t try to stop him; he simply stared blankly at the board, lost in thought.
Yu Shao sighed inwardly.
He understood the pain of losing to a superior opponent. After all, in his previous life, the road to his current skill level had been paved with countless crushing defeats. This was a pain Zheng Qin would have to overcome on his own.
Yu Shao slung his backpack over his shoulder, nodded toward Zheng Qin, and turned to leave.
As Yu Shao moved to exit, the crowd around the table instinctively parted, making way for him.
Even after Yu Shao left, the chess room remained enveloped in silence. No one spoke. Like Zheng Qin, everyone’s gaze was fixed on the board, unable to utter a word.
It was clear to all that Zheng Qin had given his all in this match—he’d even performed well beyond his usual level.
And yet... the result was an even more crushing defeat than the last.
A high school student who had never undergone professional training at a Go dojo, nor participated in amateur ranking tournaments.
If that were all, perhaps it would be easier to accept.
But what made it unbearable was that even after Zheng Qin had found a glimmer of hope through his counter hane, White mercilessly snuffed it out. In the endgame, Black couldn’t muster even a sliver of resistance, being completely... obliterated.
Everyone understood how devastating this loss must be for Zheng Qin, who was preparing to take the professional Go exam this year.
A middle-aged man in a jacket finally couldn’t hold back and spoke up, his tone filled with concern. “Are you okay?”
He was worried this match might shake Zheng Qin’s confidence, potentially affecting his performance in the upcoming professional Go exam.
Hearing these words, Zheng Qin finally snapped out of his daze.
He looked up at the man in the jacket, shook his head, and smiled. “I’m fine.”
The man still looked skeptical.
“Really fine,” Zheng Qin said with a faint chuckle.
“If it were me, losing like that would’ve broken me,” the man in the jacket admitted, still unconvinced. “Besides, your reaction earlier didn’t exactly scream ‘fine.’”
Zheng Qin turned his gaze back to the board in front of him.
On the board, his black stones lay in shambles, utterly devastated by White’s attack. The large dragon had been completely slaughtered—a loss that would be difficult for anyone to swallow.
“It really was an incredible game.”
Zheng Qin stared at each stone, speaking slowly. “I gave it my all, played seriously, and even performed far beyond my usual level. But in the end, I still lost.”
“To say it didn’t sting at all would be a lie. When my dragon was slaughtered, for a brief moment, I felt lost. I even wondered if I was truly cut out for Go.”
“To be so thoroughly crushed, without a single chance to fight back... it felt as though we weren’t even on the same level. It was as if my moves had been completely seen through.”
At this point, Zheng Qin’s voice grew faint.
“But when I reexamined the game, I no longer felt that way.”
He gazed at the board, the reflection of the stones shimmering in his eyes. “Even though I lost, wasn’t this match absolutely incredible?”
“I can’t believe... I was able to play a game ...”
“Maybe that’s why I love Go so much?”
“And in the end, it doesn’t have anything to do with winning or losing.”
Hearing this, Xu Zijin froze for a moment, taken aback.
Zheng Qin raised his head and continued, “I want to become a professional Go player. I thought so before, and now I’m even more determined.”
“I will keep sharpening my skills and wait for another match against that high schooler named Yu Shao.”
“Even if I lose again next time, there will be another match after that.”
“One day, I will win.”
As Zheng Qin finished speaking, everyone in the chess room couldn’t help but feel moved.
“D*mn, no wonder you’re so good at Go! That was honestly pretty inspiring.”
“Little Zheng, I believe in you! You’ll definitely become a professional Go player!”
“Zheng Qin, I believe in you too. After you polish your skills a bit more, you’ll crush that Yu Shao kid and leave him in shambles!”
“Let that high schooler know the meaning of ‘what goes around comes around!’”
“Exactly, Little Zheng, come play a game with me! Let me have a nine-stone handicap. Once you’re a professional, I’ll brag to everyone that I beat a pro player!”
Amid the crowd’s laughter and teasing, Xu Zijin quietly slipped out of the chess hall.
Before long, she approached a sleek black Bentley parked outside the building, opened the rear door, and got in.
“Uncle Wang, let’s head back,” Xu Zijin said as she fastened her seatbelt.
The driver, Uncle Wang, nodded, stepped on the gas, and the Bentley smoothly pulled away, heading into the distance.
Seated in the back seat, Xu Zijin gazed out the window at the rapidly passing streetscape. Zheng Qin’s words from earlier echoed in her mind.
“‘Because I couldn’t believe I could play a game , that’s why I love Go so much,’ huh?” she murmured softly to herself.
Before long, the Bentley arrived at a luxurious villa.
After stepping out of the car and bidding Uncle Wang goodbye, Xu Zijin made her way toward the villa.
As soon as she entered, she noticed a young woman, around twenty-five years old, sitting on the living room sofa. The woman wore a floral dress, her features fresh and delicate, and she had a Go board laid out in front of her while scrolling through her phone.
“Teacher Xia,” Xu Zijin called out immediately.
The woman, Xia Wen, smiled and said, “You’re home a bit late today. What’s the occasion? Did you get yourself a boyfriend?”
“No.” Xu Zijin shook her head. “I went to the Mountain-Sea Chess Hall.”
“Oh? Did you play against that kid Zheng Qin? Did you win or lose?” Xia Wen asked curiously. “How was it? He’s pretty good, right? I remember when he competed in a university Go tournament—I was invited as a guest. He played very well in the finals.”
“I haven’t played against him yet,” Xu Zijin replied, shaking her head again. “I just watched him play a match against someone else.”
“You just watched a match?” Xia Wen looked puzzled.
As Xu Zijin’s Go teacher, Xia Wen only had one day a week to teach her due to her busy schedule as a professional Go player. She often had her own matches to attend and rarely had time to spare. If it weren’t for the exceptionally high payment offered by the Xu family, she might not have taken the job at all.
Last time she came to teach Xu Zijin, she had casually mentioned that Zheng Qin was a decent player who often played at the Mountain-Sea Chess Hall. She had suggested Xu Zijin find him for a match if she had the time.
Because of her packed schedule, Xia Wen hadn’t been following the recent events at the chess hall.
“Teacher, let me show you this game first,” Xu Zijin said without further explanation.
She sat down across from Xia Wen, opened the Go set, took out the stones, and began recreating the match on the board.