The First Lackey Under The Empress

The number of people in Huangting Alley increased, and those standing at the back could hardly know what was happening in the front.

They could only learn the latest developments of the game between the unfamiliar Young Master Lin and the Western Regions Little Monk through word of mouth from the inside out.

In the center of the chess stall, which was surrounded tightly, the game had reached the middle stage. However, unlike the restless and frequently inquiring crowd outside,

at this moment, as the center of the "storm," including Princess Wenzhu and many other onlookers, were holding their breath, as if they didn't even dare to breathe loudly.

The gazes towards Zhao Du'an also gradually changed from the initial surprise, doubt, or indifference to astonishment and admiration.

"Pa ta."

Princess Wenzhu closed her legs and squatted on the small stool, staring at the chessboard. Zhao Du'an made another move, and a very subtle exclamation sounded in her ears.

It was quickly suppressed by people holding their breath.

It's just that in the sweltering air, the faint atmosphere of excitement that swept away the previous decline and despair, even people who don't understand Go at all, can easily judge the situation based on the expressions of the two players.

The composure and ease on Danche Little Monk's face had long disappeared.

He leaned forward, and his red monk's robe was slightly wet with sweat.

On his slightly childish face, he stared intently at the black and white pieces strangling together on the chessboard, as if he had fallen into some extremely dangerous predicament.

Correspondingly, Zhao Du'an, dressed as a wealthy young master, was calm and relaxed, enjoying the gentle fanning of the maid beside him with great interest.

Qian Kerou squatted beside him, and the slight "swishing" sound made by the chess manual used as a fan was extremely clear as it waved repeatedly.

Beside him, Chen Jiuyan, the chess instructor in the palace, squatted next to the game, completely disregarding his image, breathing heavily, as if he was performing some kind of deduction.

This great master still couldn't believe what had just happened.

Initially, when Zhao Du'an took his seat and made his move, people only thought it was a futile attempt by a young man who didn't know the immensity of heaven and earth, or who was hot-blooded, to block the chariot with his arms.

However, after a few moves, the originally scattered crowd that was about to disperse was attracted back to the game.

There was no other reason.

It's just that Zhao Du'an's chess path greatly exceeded everyone's expectations.

There was no aggressive offensive, nor step-by-step calculations.

From the very beginning, Zhao Du'an did not follow the backward chess path of this world.

He never dared to underestimate the ancients, and he knew very well that if he simply competed in calculation, he, a half-baked player, would definitely not be Danche's opponent.

So he chose the joseki in his mind that had never appeared in this world.

Initially, those moves that were considered "heretical" in the eyes of these mature chess players once caused an uproar, and even made people suspect whether this unknown young master understood chess at all.

However, as the situation gradually progressed, earth-shattering changes took place.

Then people suddenly realized that the situation had already fallen into Zhao Du'an's control since some unknown time.

Those few seemingly meaningless moves at the beginning, under the new joseki and concept, collided head-on with Danche, the pinnacle of Go in the old era, and then, the latter unexpectedly collapsed.

It was as if the scene was reappearing, but this time, it was Zhao Du'an who was advancing steadily and full of killing intent.

The one who was tired of coping, gradually losing territory, and showing signs of collapse became Danche, the monk who had won eleven consecutive games without a single defeat!

"Good move!"

When Zhao Du'an played this key move in the middle game, the great master watching the game beside him, after quickly deducing, a crimson color suddenly surged on his face, and he almost blurted out these two words!

His eyes were bright and dazzling!

Along with this shout, the situation on the chessboard suddenly changed, the sky sent out killing intent, dragons and snakes rose from the land, and Zhao Du'an's move suddenly transformed into an all-out offensive.

For a time, killing intent boiled, the world turned upside down, the smoke of gunpowder rose abruptly, and blood flowed like a river.

"Pa."

"Pa."

"Pa."

......

Zhao Du'an and Danche took turns making moves, without prolonged contemplation to delay time, only the frontal fight between the two armies.

The winter wind swept through the alley from the gaps, and the century-old winter plum tree at the entrance of the alley rustled, shaking down large pieces of snow powder, fluttering and falling.

The crisp sound of the pieces falling was like the drumbeat of a battle formation, passionate and solemn.

It was like a heavy hammer, striking the hearts of the onlookers.

Finally, after an unknown amount of time, the smoke of gunpowder dissipated, and Zhao Du'an played the last move.

The Danche Little Monk, whose monk's robe was soaked with sweat and whose body was leaning forward almost plunging headlong into the chessboard, his hand reaching into the flag box, was no longer able to pinch even a single black piece.

Zhao Du'an said calmly: "You lost."

The chess stall was silent, the air seemed to freeze, and people incredulously heard this sentence, unable to judge the truth or falsehood of this sentence because the situation was too complex and novel.

So, gazes subconsciously turned to Chen Jiuyan.

But seeing that Chen Jiuyan, the chess instructor in the palace who had caused a great disaster not long ago, was staring intently at the game, muttering to himself, and finally confirming with the last bit of strength:

"Winning by five points, no mistake!"

He raised his face and said blankly: "We... we won."

Won!

Really won!

The crowd suddenly boiled from deathly silence, and a group of Yu Kingdom chess players suddenly came back to their senses. Someone suddenly shouted loudly: "We won! A great victory!"

"The Western Regions monk lost!"

The sound spread from the inside out, towards the entire Huangting Alley.

It was like a stone thrown into a lake.

"Princess! ?"

The female warrior wrapped in a cloak was surprised to see Princess Wenzhu suddenly stood up, the suddenness of the action caught a group of guards off guard.

But Princess Wenzhu just stared at Zhao Du'an with her beautiful eyes, revealing a shocked expression.

This Young Master Lin really defeated Danche? Isn't... isn't this your first time here? Why... why is there such a powerful chess player hidden in the capital?

Much stronger than the chess instructor in the palace? Why is he unknown? He just happened to meet me?

At this moment, she even suspected that this was not a coincidence, but she only had a temporary idea to watch this excitement, and she had not told the people around her before...

"Young Master..." Hou Renmeng and Shen Juan and others also couldn't hide their astonishment, thinking that their lord's chess skills were so terrifying?

Danche Little Monk sat blankly in place. He raised his head, the pride on his face had disappeared, and he looked at Zhao Du'an blankly, and said in a hoarse voice:

"I have never heard of you, a chess player in the capital."

Zhao Du'an stood up, smiled, and did not explain too much:

"The capital is not as simple as you Western Regions people think."

Leaving these words, he felt the surrounding atmosphere, knowing that he could no longer stay, otherwise, once the news spread, he would never be able to escape.

He glanced at Princess Wenzhu apologetically, leaned over and said in a low voice:

"It's getting late, I still have some things to do, so I'll take my leave first."

Princess Wenzhu then came back to her senses, pursed her lips. Although she couldn't wait to take this guy to the room and inquire carefully, she still nodded: "Young Master, please do as you please."

Zhao Du'an gave Qian Kerou and others a look and was about to leave.

"Wait!"

Suddenly, Chen Jiuyan with a strand of white hair on his forehead suddenly opened his mouth excitedly:

"May I ask where this young master's mansion is, Chen wants to visit..."

Zhao Du'an paused, glanced at him, and said meaningfully:

"I have a word to give to Instructor Chen."

Chen Jiuyan was stunned and respectfully cupped his hands: "Young Master, please speak."

Zhao Du'an, however, casually left a sentence: "If you desire the official's hat, you must bear its weight. To be an official, you must first bow."

Chen Jiuyan was stunned, carefully pondering it, and immediately his face turned red.

He realized that this mysterious young master had seen through his intentions for coming here today at a glance.

It was nothing more than the fact that in the past year, the Empress had promoted countless new officials, and too many people like Han Zhou and Feng Ju had risen to prominence in one step.

As a chess waiting-for-edict official, Chen Jiuyan was eager to make a move. That's why he knew there was a risk in coming to challenge, but he still came alone without asking his superiors.

The purpose was nothing more than to "show off" and curry favor with the Empress, but he forgot that not everyone is qualified to rise to the top.

The crowd subconsciously made way, and three Pear Blossom Hall guards cleared the path as Zhao Du'an walked out of Huangting Alley.

Chen Jiuyan raised his hands high and bowed deeply towards his departing back.

The crowd scattered with a bang, spreading the news of this unannounced and abrupt game that took place on a chess stall in a winter alley, but was enough to be recorded in history.

… …

"Ahead is Huangting Alley. My disciple Danche is over there."

The old monkey, honored as a Red Sect Guru, rode in a carriage with Dharma Master Bianji, pointing to the chess academy building in the distance.

Dressed in white, Bianji barely managed a smile. Although the loss of face in the Yu Kingdom's chess world had little to do with the Shenlong Temple, giving the opponent such a limelight at the juncture when the debate was about to begin was not a good thing.

"Let us proceed on foot." The Red Sect Guru got out of the carriage and, surrounded by several Western Region monks, smiled and stepped on the thin layer of snow on the street.

However, as soon as they walked past the street corner, they saw a large crowd of people returning in a chaotic mass.

Each of them looked excited, eager to share the news with their friends.

"There seems to be a change." Bianji raised his eyebrows, sensing something was wrong.

The Red Sect Guru frowned slightly, and saw a Western Region monk who had been keeping watch here also running over with the crowd. Seeing the monks, he hurried to quicken his pace.

"Where is Danche? Is he still playing chess?" the Red Sect Guru asked.

The monk with low emotional intelligence shook his head, not even caring that Bianji was present, and said breathlessly:

"Danche won against the national player of Yu Kingdom, but was defeated by an unknown person."

He paused, adding: "A crushing defeat."

The smile on the Red Sect Guru's face slowly froze, like a lump of ice and snow in the corner of the wall.

… …

Imperial Palace.

When the great national player Chen Jiuyan went to play chess without authorization, relevant news had already been delivered to the Baima Prison, and an envoy entered the palace to send the message to the Empress's desk, who had just returned from the Xiuwen Hall.

"What? A Western Region monk swept Huangting Alley, and chess waiting-for-edict official Chen Jiuyan went to play chess?"

In the Imperial Study, Xu Zhenguan's expression changed slightly upon hearing this, and then anger surged between her brows:

"Who allowed him to go? Quickly summon him back... No, I'm afraid it's too late. Go and find out the result of the victory or defeat and report back immediately."

After sending someone to investigate, the Empress paced in the room, feeling uneasy.

Mo Chou, a female official standing on the side of the room, said softly:

"Your Majesty, it's just a chess game. The impact is ultimately limited. Besides, National Player Chen's strength in the current chess world is obvious to all."

Xu Zhenguan was not comforted, and the Empress shook her head and sighed:

"What I care about is not just a mere game of chess?"

Her bright face looked out of the Imperial Study, at the silver-clad palace:

"What I care about is the ancestral court of Buddhism."

Mo Chou was silent for a moment.

The Buddhist debate seemed to be an internal struggle between two forces, but how could it have no impact on the court's territory?

Not to mention the escape of the Great Purity Guru, but the Western Region Buddhist ancestral court took the opportunity to expand its influence after the court banned Buddhism and suppressed the Shenlong Temple.

Standing in Xu Zhenguan's position, she was unwilling to see the Shenlong Temple grow stronger, and of course, she was unwilling to see the Western Region Buddhist ancestral court become famous by stepping on the chess world of the capital.

This concerns not only some face, but also the world's view of the new dynasty ruled by the Empress.

"I can almost imagine how those scholars in the South who dislike me will slander and spread the news if Chen Jiuyan loses, and make a big fuss about it, arguing that the court under my rule has humiliated the face of Yu Kingdom."

Xu Zhenguan said expressionlessly:

"Besides, since the Western Region monk has caught everyone off guard, how can he have no confidence?"

Mo Chou also gritted her teeth in anger:

"That chess waiting-for-edict official is hateful. Doesn't he know that he represents the court? At this juncture, every move, involving the Western Region, will be watched by the world?"

But no matter how angry they were, it was too late. The news came too late. Even if the Empress's cultivation was shocking, she couldn't personally rush over and drag Chen Jiuyan back from the chess game.

The monarch and her subject waited in an anxious atmosphere for a while, and finally waited for the servant to report, learning the result of Chen Jiuyan's crushing defeat.

The atmosphere in the Imperial Study suddenly froze.

Even though she had already expected it in her heart, after truly learning the result, Xu Zhenguan could not help but sigh.

"Your Majesty, this servant will go and arrest that chess waiting-for-edict official."

Mo Chou was indignant, "Should we summon the other national players to challenge? Or... try to cover up this matter?"

Since things had come to this, Xu Zhenguan's anger subsided instead. After a little thought, she finally sighed:

"No hurry. Order the Zhao Yamen to minimize the impact of this matter. The other national players should not play."

Losing one can be said to be careless and underestimating the enemy. If they had to send the other national players to the field to recover the impact, if they lost again, it would be promoting the Western Region people instead.

"Yes." Mo Chou responded, but did not retreat immediately, but said:

"Your Majesty, the people who were sent out reported that Princess Wenzhu's group is suspected to have appeared in Huangting Alley."

Aunt?

Xu Zhenguan was stunned, frowned and thought for a while, and said:

"Understood. Is Princess Wenzhu still there?"

"They said that after Chen Jiuyan lost the chess game, the monk Danche hadn't left and was still accepting challenges. Princess Wenzhu is also there, um, there seem to be a few people around the princess, with unknown identities," Mo Chou said.

Xu Zhenguan nodded and said:

"Send someone to continue to keep an eye on them, and report any movements, but don't stare at Princess Wenzhu too closely."

"Yes."

After the person left, the Empress stood alone at the door of the Imperial Study, looking at the bright sun and white snow outside, lost in thought.

I don't know how long it took, Mo Chou hurriedly returned, her expression obviously a little excited:

"Your Majesty, there has been another change in Huangting Alley!"

Xu Zhenguan came back to her senses and cast a questioning gaze at her confidante female official.

Mo Chou said with a strange expression: "Someone took action, defeated the monk Danche, and reversed the defeat! Now the news has exploded over there."

Xu Zhenguan was stunned, extremely surprised: "Is the news true?"

This result greatly exceeded her expectations.

In the situation where Chen Jiuyan lost, who could turn the tide?

The first thought was which chess waiting-for-edict official went without permission, but then she felt that something was wrong.

Mo Chou nodded excitedly:

"The news was sent by Princess Wenzhu. She is outside the palace and is asking to see Your Majesty. By the way, the young man who defeated Danche is the person next to Princess Wenzhu."

… …

Typos will be corrected later.