However, the more chess pieces in hand, the better. It would be great if Du Heng could become a piece, but Ji Yuan had no intention of looking for the other eight people.
Success in chess cannot be forced, and those who can succeed in chess all have their own special qualities. To put it bluntly, it's all about fate. The chivalrous agreement between Lu Shanjun and the Ninth Young Hero was also a part of fate.
“Hey, hey, hey…no regrets on this move, no regrets on this move!”
"No, I was distracted just now. That step doesn't count, it doesn't count!"
The two old men next to them started arguing, which drew Ji Yuan's thoughts back, and the two old men started arguing again.
It is normal for one to want to regret his move and the other not to. However, Ji Yuan particularly likes watching the two old men play chess these past few days, because the two old men are indeed chess masters, the kind that have no rivals in the entire chess hall. However, it is hard to say about their chess quality.
Once one person wants to regret his move and the other person does not, the two will have an interesting solution.
"Okay, okay, I won't argue with you. Let's follow the old rules!"
"Come on!"
So the two of them stopped arguing and just continued with the current situation.
For experts, the time spent on making the next move may be very long, and sometimes they can play several games of chess in a day. The current situation is that it took more than half an hour for the two of them to finish this game of chess.
The old man who wanted to regret his move kept struggling, while the one who didn't let him regret his move refused to give in at all. By the end of the game, it seemed like the winner had been decided to outsiders, but the two of them were just in a state of sulking and had to play to the end.
Ji Yuan looked around and saw that more and more people were gathering around to watch the chess game, because everyone knew that an interesting scene was about to take place.
"Hahahaha… I still win. How can I make you regret your move?"
"Hehe, review the game!"
The two old men bickered with each other for a while, put away their chess pieces and began to review the game on the chessboard. They actually returned to the point where they were arguing about regretting their move, except that this time they were in a state of regretting.
"Watch this, if I hadn't been distracted and made the wrong move, you'd be dead!"
"Bullshit! Let's wait and see!"
The two old men started playing chess according to this situation, and this time the game started to go in a completely different direction from before. The other old man became arrogant, while the other one became cautious. The emotional changes were very interesting.
For those watching the game, the change between the two possibilities is also exciting and can even stimulate the emotions of the spectators.
This may be boring for people who don't like Go, after all, sometimes the other side doesn't make a move for a long time and it's boring to watch. But everyone here likes Go. The battle on the chessboard is a silent war, and the game of Go is also exciting.
In Ji Yuan's eyes, the chessboard of the two old men was different, because when others looked at the chessboard, it had 19 vertical and horizontal lines, so the black and white pieces were fighting for more than 300 points, but it was not the case in his eyes.
The chessboard coincides with the artistic conception all the time, and the range in which the black and white pieces can spread is infinite. What they are fighting for is no longer that small piece of energy. When the two pieces are competing against the chessboard itself, the changes of yin and yang are also displayed in it. The process of the two old men fighting against each other in black and white also evolves into a process of mutual generation in Ji Yuan's eyes.
Therefore, Ji Yuan experienced the mystery of two levels: one is regular Go and the other is the artistic conception of Go. Naturally, the experience was more exciting than that of others.
In the end, the other old man won. Naturally, the two old men had a quarrel, and the chess enthusiasts nearby also commented on it.
"No more, no more. We have to go home early on New Year's Eve."
"Yes, I haven't bought the Spring Festival couplets yet!" "Let's ask those scholars who are taking the imperial examination to write them, and pick some good words!"
"That's right!"
Some people left the chess hall while chatting.
Ji Yuan came back to his senses from his previous chess game and looked around the chess hall. Many people had left without him noticing. He had only watched a few games, but it was already afternoon. The waiters were packing up tea cups, chess boards and other items, while some other waiters were putting up couplets and hanging red lanterns in the hall.
"Mr. Ji, how about playing a game of hands with you?"
The owner of the chess hall was a man wearing a square crown. He came over and gave Chong Jiyuan some advice in a friendly manner.
He is an expert in his field. Although the owner of the chess hall has rarely seen Mr. Ji play chess, he believes that he is definitely a master of chess.
Because of his extraordinary popularity, the shopkeeper inevitably paid more attention to him. They inadvertently watched the game together several times. He saw the subtle changes in this gentleman's expression when he was watching the game. He always had a feeling that he understood the situation better than the two players. It was just that it was not clear to what level this gentleman was at chess. Anyway, there seemed to be no one in the chess hall who interested him in playing, and only the two old men could make him watch more.
"No, no, I won't show off my chess skills. Today is New Year's Eve, don't you want to start early?"
After Ji Yuan politely declined, he asked casually and politely, saying that a chess hall could only be opened by a truly elegant person, because it really did not make any money. The owner was also a chess lover, and even if he had other business, he would stay in the chess hall the longest. Sometimes when he met players who were good at chess, he would give them tea and melon seeds, and would record their chess records without charging any money.
Upon hearing this, the shopkeeper looked around the chess room where seven or eight people were still playing chess.
"Leave it to the shop assistants. We have to wait for people to finish playing chess. I'm going to Wenqu Street to buy some New Year posters."
"I happen to know a scholar who is a great calligrapher and has a stall on the street. Shopkeeper, can we go and take a look?"
Ji Yuan's suggestion was exactly what the shopkeeper wanted, and he had long wanted to get to know Mr. Ji, so they hit it off and headed to Wenqu Street together.
Wenqu Street was actually originally a colloquial name used by common people, and later it gradually became the mainstream name because many scholars preparing for imperial examinations would set up stalls here to earn some money.
Even though the imperial examinations were held only once every three years, there would always be scholars living in the capital, and Wenqu Street would become more and more prosperous.
This place is not only a place to sell calligraphy, but also a good place to appreciate the literary talent of various tribute scholars. Who would dare to set up a stall here without some skills
Painting, couplets and calligraphy all require the scholar's skills, so even if the tribute candidates do not set up stalls, they will definitely visit Wenqu Street more often to understand the strength of their opponents. Even some officials in the imperial examination system will occasionally come here.
Although Yin Zhaoxian and Shi Yusheng were not short of money for the time being, they also came out to set up stalls this time. However, Shi Yusheng's calligraphy was just average, so he was just strolling around. Yin Zhaoxian, on the other hand, set up a writing stall.
The street was not wide and was surrounded by tall buildings such as teahouses and inns, so there was not much cold wind on the street. When Ji Yuan and the chess hall owner Lu walked over, they happened to see several people gathered around Yin Zhaoxian's stall, and the two old men who had played chess before were also there.
"Manager Lu, the man setting up the stall over there is the scholar that Ji mentioned. He is the top scholar in Jizhou and has great literary talent. The key is..."
Ji Yuan smiled when he said this.
"I am also from Jizhou, and I am an old acquaintance of Yin Jieyuan. I know that he is a man of great integrity. Asking for Spring Festival couplets from him will bring a unique sense of purity that can cleanse the bad air in the house."
"Is there such a thing? Then Lu must ask him to write a few more couplets."
Shopkeeper Lu joked and went with Ji Yuan.
After getting closer, in order not to disturb Master Yin, Ji Yuan cast a spell and stood on the outside, while Manager Lu came closer to take a look.
"What a good handwriting!" "Not bad, not bad, this handwriting is really good!"
"Birds are singing in spring, marking the start of a new year. Dragons are offering blessings as the century changes... seconds!"
"Who is this scholar?" "He is a very capable one anyway!"
"Sir, write one for me too. Price is not an issue!"
After putting down his pen, Yin Zhaoxian blew on the couplet he had just written and rubbed his sore wrist. He was shocked to see so many people gathered around him without realizing it.
"Everyone please wait a moment, come one by one, come one by one!"
"It's my turn, sir, please write a few big words 'Fu' for me."
"good!"
Yin Zhaoxian changed to a large brush and wrote a big "Fu" on the corner of a square red paper. The handwriting was graceful but powerful, and writing large characters showed his calligraphy skills.
"Oh, what a nice handwriting!" "Thank you very much, sir!"
Yin Zhaoxian smiled, recalled some things he had chatted with Ji Yuan, and gave the old man who was asking for the calligraphy a word of advice.
"When the old man goes back to paste the characters, he can paste the character 'Fu' upside down."
"Stick it upside down?" "Oh, doesn't that mean 'good fortune arrives'?"
Many of the people in the crowd were smart and they immediately thought of the meaning behind it, and some of them immediately praised it.
When Mr. Yin Zhao was in high spirits, Ji Yuan met another friend. An old man named Lao Long in gorgeous clothes was walking towards him from the other end of Wenqu Street. He began to bow to Ji Yuan from a distance, and a soft voice was heard from him.
"I know that Mr. Ji must still be in Gyeonggi Prefecture before the Spring Examination. If we find Yin Zhaoxian, we can find you!"
Ji Yuan also laughed. What was the matter with this old dragon, why didn’t he stay in Tongtian River with his family on New Year’s Eve but came to find him
Then Ji Yuan looked at the other side, and it happened that the "Third Young Master" also seemed to be looking for Yin Zhaoxian. Under the guidance of a servant, he went straight to Master Yin's stall.
Although the parties were not related, Ji Yuan still complained in his heart.
'Let's play mahjong!'