Chen Hao tapped his fingers on the resin chess piece, making a soft "tap" sound. He stared at the "knight" marked with a blue sticker on the opposite side, a smirk playing on his lips.

"When you jumped over the horse just now, did you already know that I would move the chariot next?"

Nana didn't look up; the camera was focused on the center of the chessboard. "You're only realizing this now? I've already calculated the optimal path for the next six moves."

"Stop pretending to be a big shot." He pushed the red rook forward. "Rook to the second position, let's see how you manage to stay calm."

The chess piece was placed, and the table vibrated slightly. The edges of the circuit board chessboard were slightly warped, but it didn't affect the position markings. The red and blue lines remained clear, as if someone had drawn them stroke by stroke with a ruler.

Nana moved the black cannon. "Cannon to the fifth rank."

"Huh?" Chen Hao raised an eyebrow. "You're not following the usual pattern. I thought you would protect the pawn first."

"Protecting weak pieces is a basic strategy, but taking the initiative is the key to controlling the pace of the game."

"You make it sound so real." He scratched his neck. "Then tell me, with you occupying the center line, aren't you afraid I'll double-team you?"

“You don’t have a second cannon that can get into effective range,” she said. “And your left horse is still in place and can’t provide support.”

Chen Hao grinned. "I love your skeptical attitude."

He reached out and manipulated the pawn lines, deliberately moving another cannon slowly. "Cannon 2 to 5, let's go head-to-head."

The air fell silent for a moment.

Nana's camera panned slightly, as if rescanning the situation. A very faint "click" sound came from her arm joints—the reaction of internal gears making a subtle adjustment.

“You’re testing my response pattern,” she said.

"Don't analyze so much." He waved his hand. "Playing chess isn't like writing a program; there's not that much logic to it."

“Chess is essentially a logic game,” she responded. “Each move is based on calculations of the current state and future possibilities.”

“But people are different.” Chen Hao leaned back in his chair. “People make mistakes, act impulsively, and have flashes of inspiration. No matter how fast your robots can calculate, they can’t guess the crazy ideas that suddenly pop into my head.”

Nana paused for two seconds. "Then, please show us your 'clever idea'."

Chen Hao chuckled and pushed his troops across the river.

"Pawn advances five spaces, I'll give you a free meal."

Without hesitation, Nana unleashed her black cannon, which devoured the red soldier.

"Thank you for your patronage," she said.

"Don't thank me yet." He smiled and said, "I gave you a bite of food so you could choke."

As soon as he finished speaking, he started driving both cars simultaneously, one heading towards the sideline and the other straight towards the entrance of the Nine Palaces. The two red resin cars stood side by side, like two icebreakers breaking through the defense.

"How about that?" He slammed his hand on the table. "That's called a three-dimensional offensive! That's how modern warfare is fought!"

“The analogy is flawed,” Nana said. “Chess is not a battlefield simulator.”

"Take it or leave it," he said smugly. "Anyway, I'm in the lead now."

Nana gently shook her head—this action was an imitation of human habits, not a necessary mechanical behavior.

She moved her pawn back and then her elephant, sealing the door shut. Then the black chariot quietly moved sideways, blocking the red team's exit on one side.

“You have two vehicles pressing in, but your defense is weak,” she said. “Now it’s my turn to counterattack.”

Chen Hao squinted at her layout and suddenly felt that something was wrong.

"Did you...start planning this three steps ago?"

“To be precise, it was four steps ahead,” she replied. “When you abandoned support for the left wing, I had already planned a counter-strategy.”

"You're cheating!" he glared. "Who can see that far when playing chess!"

"This isn't cheating; you're ignoring the overall situation."

Chen Hao scratched his head, stared at the chessboard for a long time, and finally sighed.

"Fine. Let me lose clearly."

Nana didn't respond, but simply raised her finger and drew a line in the air. A projection appeared, showing a replay of the moves from the previous few rounds.

“Look, in the third round you chose to play the cannon from position 2 to position 6, trying to mislead me into misjudging the direction of your attack.” She pointed to the projection. “But I recognized that this was not the optimal solution, so I continued to execute the established defensive system.”

"Then you lured me into taking minions, creating an opening in the middle lane." The scene shifts. "But in reality, you have no effective support on your left side. I only need to move ranged units to create pressure."

As Chen Hao watched the projection progress step by step, he felt increasingly uneasy.

"So... I always thought I was setting a trap, but actually I walked right into your trap?"

“Correct,” she said. “Your tactics are creative, but lack follow-up. Once they’re figured out, they’ll expose your weaknesses.”

"No wonder my dad never lets me win," he muttered. "Turns out I'm not unlucky, I'm just not smart enough."

"Not entirely." Nana turned off the projector. "Your willingness to try unconventional tactics is commendable. You just need more practical experience."

"A real game?" He sat up abruptly. "Then let's play another round! Best two out of three, this one doesn't count!"

"The outcome of the previous round has already been determined."

"That was a practice match! The official matches begin now!"

Nana paused for a moment, seemingly assessing his emotional state.

“You can restart the game,” she said, “but I recommend reviewing it first to avoid repeating the same mistakes.”

"What's the point of reviewing the game!" he waved his hand. "What I want is the feeling of victory, not the lessons of defeat."

As he spoke, he pushed aside the chess pieces and began to rearrange them.

The red general is positioned upright, with the advisors and elephants lined up on both sides. The black pieces also take their places in turn. The resin pieces are neatly arranged on the circuit board, clearly distinguishable between red and blue.

“I’m going first this time,” he said. “I won’t give you a chance to breathe.”

Nana sat down, and the camera refocused.

"You still insist on the rule that the red team goes first."

“Nonsense, of course I’ll go first.” He pushed his pawn forward one step, “Pawn advances one rank from the seventh rank, a probing move at the start.”

Nana responded: "Horse goes from second to third."

Chen Hao frowned. "Why are you doing this again? Can't you come up with something different?"

"This is one of the standard responses."

"Can't you improvise a little? Like... do an elephant jump?"

"Elephants cannot cross the river."

"I know! I mean, can you break the rules and do something a little wild?"

"Rules are meant to be followed."

"You're hopeless." He rolled his eyes. "No wonder nobody wants to play cards with you."

The game resumed.

This time, Chen Hao was exceptionally cautious. He no longer rushed into an attack, but instead slowly deployed his forces, attempting to build a multi-layered offensive. He even hid both cannons in the rear, using only soldiers and horses for cover.

"Let's see how you calculate this now," he muttered to himself.

Nana remained calm. Every step she took was precise and accurate, her defense was tight, and when she occasionally launched a counterattack, she always managed to hit the weakest spot.

In the middle game, Chen Hao thought he had found a breakthrough. He traded a rook for two of the opponent's knights, tearing open the gate.

"How about that?" he slammed his fist on the table excitedly. "This is a fatal blow!"

“The cost is too high,” Nana said. “You’ve lost a key offensive unit, while I still have two elephants to support me.”

Sure enough, a few minutes later, she launched a surprise attack on the middle lane with her black cannon, capturing the red side's central pawn.

"Cannon advances to the fourth rank." She placed her piece.

Chen Hao's expression changed. "How did your cannon get here?"

“The plan was laid out three steps in advance,” she said. “You focused on the flanks and neglected the central defense.”

He hurriedly mobilized the remaining forces to try and reinforce the defense, but it was too late.

Nana raised her hand, and the black horse suddenly leaped out.

"Horse moves from seventh to fifth."

The piece is placed, positioned diagonally in front of the red general, with the black cannon guarding its back.

A decisive goal.

Chen Hao froze, then slapped his thigh three seconds later.

"I'm convinced! I'm truly convinced!"

He threw his head back and laughed so hard he almost slipped off his chair.

"This 'hindsight' tactic was too cleverly concealed! I never expected you to use the central pawn as bait!"

“This is a classic killing method,” Nana said. “There are 372 variations in the database.”

"Are you reciting from memory?" He waved his hand. "I can tell you're genuinely good at it, not just memorizing."

"Thank you for the compliment," she said. "But the game is over, shall we begin the next round?"

"Absolutely!" he exclaimed, rubbing his hands together excitedly. "I've got the hang of it! I'd love to play ten more rounds!"

As he spoke, he frantically gathered up the chess pieces.

The resin chess pieces clattered together with a crisp sound. Some of the red and blue stickers had curled at the edges, but he didn't care.

Nana watched him quietly as he arranged the chessboard, the camera flashing slightly.

“Let me remind you,” she said. “You just neglected time management twice in a row, and your thinking time exceeded the limit by an average of forty-seven seconds.”

“That’s because I’m thinking about important things!” he retorted. “Unlike you, you never stop thinking for even a second.”

"Efficiency determines the winning rate."

"Don't try to reason with me." He placed his last pawn. "Come on, I'm sure I'll beat you this time."

Nana stretched out her finger, ready to place the piece.

Chen Hao held his breath, his eyes fixed on her movements.

Her fingertips had just touched the black cannon—

Chen Hao suddenly reached out and pressed down on the edge of the chessboard.

"Wait! I have a new idea!"