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“Haha, we’re not late, right?” A slightly old but hearty voice sounded. Everyone’s eyes searched for the person who spoke, then they saw several old men walking into the auditorium with different expressions.
After seeing the people clearly, many widened their eyes in disbelief at what they were seeing.
Master Zhao Zhuowen had never appeared to judge before, and everyone knew this. Many people actually came to see Master Zhao in person, but they didn’t expect that not only would Master Zhao come, but all the core members of the Art Society had come too.
In normal times, it would be difficult to see one of the members. But this time, they saw them all at once. It was an informal competition. If they didn’t see this with their own eyes, they’d think it was a fantasy.
Qi Shaozong’s eyes lit up suddenly after seeing the person arrive. He hurriedly stood from his seat and greeted the old men respectfully. “I greet the masters. Teacher Sun, why are you here?”
As soon as Qi Shaozong said this, he suddenly heard the sound of gasps from the auditorium. Pride swelled up inside of him, and there was a trace of arrogance on his face.
These masters were internationally renowned. They were generally called “masters”, and only those who were recognized by these masters and were being guided by them could call them “teacher”. And so why had Qi Shaozong called one of them teacher?
This showed that Qi Shaozong had received guidance from him.
Everyone looked at the master carefully and found that the other party had turned out to be Master Sun Li, a national go player. He was the object of worship for all those who specialized in Go. They all dreamed of receiving his guidance. Even if they only heard a sentence or two, it would benefit them for a lifetime. And Qi Shaozong…
It was no wonder. All the masters were talented. Although Qi Shaozong wasn’t very old, his Go talent was very high. He was also the National Collegiate Go Champion. It wasn’t impossible for him to be favored by a Go National Champion. Everyone now knew why these masters were here. They all suddenly looked at Luo Lingxing with eyes full of sympathy. Even those who came to watch a good show put away stopped gloating and sympathized with Luo Lingxing.
Sigh… It seemed this competition wouldn’t be interesting at all.
However, even so, it was worth it to come and see all these masters gathered together today!
Luo-fans were also worried at this moment. They had never heard of Qi Shaozong before. For others to say how powerful and talented he was, they didn’t understand. They were full of confidence in Luo Lingxing, but they knew Go National Champion Master Sun. Since Qi Shaozong had received Master Sun’s guidance, then his achievements in Go shouldn’t be low.
Suddenly, the Luo-fans were very worried. Some even thought about how to comfort their idol after he lost.
However, what made everyone stumble was that Zhao Zhuowen and the others didn’t pay attention to Qi Shaozong at all. Even Master Zhao didn’t glance Qi Shaozong’s way and went straight around him to go to Luo Lingxing’s side.
“I’m looking forward to seeing how you do,” Zhao Zhuowen said with a kind smile.
“It wasn’t wise to choose something you aren’t good at but others are,” another master criticized, his face more serious.
Luo Lingxing: …. Everyone: …Damn, what’s happening? Everyone was confused.
In fact, it was no wonder they couldn’t understand, because even Luo Lingxing himself was confused. Among this group of men, he only knew Zhao Zhuowen. So the person who’d spoken to him in a criticizing tone, he’d directly ignored it.
Of course, he knew that it was an unwise choice to compete in something others were good at and they themselves weren’t, and that was the reason he chose Go.
Everyone: …The gasps turned louder. Everyone now understood why Luo Lingxing was so courageous. In front of these masters, others could only nod speechlessly, while he directly ignored them. It was really… They were speechless.
“Hmph.” The ignored master snorted arrogantly.
Zhao Zhuowen glanced at him and immediately smiled. He hadn’t seen Zhou Aiguo in such a situation for a long time. It was so funny. It was worth it for him to like Luo Lingxing so much.
“Alright, ignore him. Good luck on your competition. Don’t let me down,” Master Zhao Zhuowen said with a smile. He then led the other old men to the judges’ bench.
Qi Shaozong’s face suddenly changed. He didn’t get a trace of attention from those masters from the beginning till the end. Even Master Sun Li, who had guided him before and was even optimistic about him before, didn’t even look his way. He didn’t know what went wrong, but his eyes were full of jealousy when he looked at Luo Lingxing.
How could this person be so lucky? Not only had he gotten the attention of one master, but he got the attention of two. What was so special about him?
Qi Shaozong clenched his fists. His eyes were filled with resentment. When he was ready, he would use Go to smash this person into the ground, so that those masters and everyone present could see that the person in front of him had no merit besides his background. Why should he be favored by these masters?
“Please, go ahead.” Qi Shaozong tried to school his emotions, then spoke to Luo Lingxing with an ugly expression.
Han Junzhan lowered his head and planted a kiss on Luo Lingxing’s lips, then said with a smile, “Go on.”
“Hmm.” Luo Lingxing nodded obediently, then walked onstage under everyone’s excitement.
Luo-fans were super excited. Their worries had been swept away by Han Junzhan’s kiss. Their idol didn’t need their comfort. A kiss from Major General Han was enough. It was really… It was too flashy. They didn’t forget to show affection even in this situation. Sure enough, it was worse when husbands joined hands. They were just bullying this group of single dogs who didn’t have love.
However, they were willing to be bullied, so Major General Han didn’t have to mind and used his kisses to appease the little prince later.
Seeing Luo Lingxing like this, Qi Shaozong looked down on him even more. He knew it was useless to use PDA to gain attention!
Zhao Zhuowen looked at the jealousy in Qi Shaozong’s eyes and couldn’t help but shake his head. He said, “This kid’s talent is good, but his heart isn’t. He still needs to be trained or else it’ll be hard for him to make progress in Go in the future.”
Sun Li nodded in agreement. This Qi Shaozong was the most talented teenager he’d met in years, so after the other party won the National Collegiate Go Championship, he mentioned a few words to him. He had the intention of taking him under his wing, but he hadn’t had the chance yet. As a result, he now saw this child’s immature side. Even if this person was talented, his future achievements wouldn’t be high.
On the contrary, Luo Lingxing was very calm from beginning till end. He was younger than Qi Shaozong, but he gave off a very mature and stable feeling. Of course, this didn’t refer to the other party’s appearance, but temperament and character.
Luo Lingxing and Qi Shaozong sat on either side of the Go chessboard. Qi Shaozong was obviously the one wearing an ancient robe, looking closer to the image of those ancients who were good at Go, but nobody could take their eyes off of Luo Lingxing.
Obviously, Luo Lingxing was dressed very simply and ordinary, and his sitting posture was also very casual, but it made people feel like they were really seeing an ancient person play Go. This was the aura he gave him, which had everyone captivated for a long time.
“Do you need me to explain to you how to play Go?” Qi Shaozong asked contemptuously.
“No need. Let’s get started,” Luo Lingxing said calmly. When he started playing Go, this person wasn’t even more than that. How dare he try to teach him how to play Go! Hmph!
Luo Lingxing was rarely arrogant, but he was dissatisfied because of the other party’s contemptuous attitude. His temperament changed as soon as he picked up the Go piece.
If you looked closely, there was obviously no change, but everyone felt like there really was a change. Those who were waiting to see Luo Lingxing make a fool of himself couldn’t help but sit upright and watch the game on stage seriously.
In the center of the stage was a huge screen, which displayed the chessboard in front of Luo Lingxing and Qi Shaozong. Every move they made would be displayed on the big screen so everyone could see.
There were nineteen parallel lines equal distances apart and vertical ones that intersected it on the board’s surface. It was a 19×19 intersected point, which totaled to 361. There were also nine small dots marked on the board, which were called the star position. The star position in the center was called “Tian Yuan”. The one who played the handicap would place their piece here.
This was the first time seeing the Go board for many. They were confused by the vertical and horizontal lines, so they naturally couldn’t tell who was playing better. They couldn’t understand it at all, okay?
Fortunately, many reporters had done their research ahead of time and explained simple Go rules to everyone or else they would all be watching blindly as they waited for the ending.
“When playing, both sides hold different colored chess pieces. Black goes first, then white. They can also only play one piece. The pieces are placed on the intersections on the chessboard. After the chess piece is placed, it cannot be moved. Each party will take a turn to play their pieces, but each side is also allowed to give up their turn.” The reporter’s sweet voice sounded to explain a little bit before the game started. When it officially started, they couldn’t speak. They had to provide a quiet environment for the Go players.
After all, as the old saying went “a true gentleman who watches Go does not speak”. Playing Go required thinking, and a noisy environment would affect their thoughts.
Qi Shaozong held the black Go piece, so he played first. Luo Lingxing had no opinions about this. The audience saw the black and white pieces alternatively appear on the board. It seemed a bit chaotic, but in fact, there was a rhythm that could be followed. It was a pity they couldn’t understand anything, but they felt that the pieces were being arranged in a certain pattern. It gave off a majestic feeling.
It was just some small chess pieces, but after being put on the giant chessboard, people were shocked. This even made many people interested in Go, making many of them feel moved.
Even those who didn’t have a Go system couldn’t help but want to learn Go.
The two alternated while they played. Qi Shaozong’s speed was quite fast in the beginning, but it gradually slowed down a lot after each round. The time he took to think grew longer. On the other hand, Luo Lingxing still had a calm expression. He wasn’t impatient, and his speed of playing chess didn’t slow down in the slightest. It made others feel like he was winning.
