The next day, after Fang Yang and Zhou Xin had breakfast, Fang Yang went back to his room to get two rolls of something. Then he drove to a nearby fruit shop to buy some fruit, which earned him a scolding from Zhou Xin. "Why did you buy fruit? We have everything at home. You could have just gone there empty-handed."

"It wouldn't be right to come empty-handed on your first visit, so bringing some fruit is the proper thing to do."

Under Zhou Xin's guidance, Fang Yang parked the car in a solemn courtyard. Although the car had a pass, the checks and reports along the way made Fang Yang feel like he wanted to die. It was just too strict. Especially when the car was stopped in front of the guards with guns in both hands for inspection, Fang Yang was afraid that if he did something wrong, these soldiers would shoot him.

Let's not talk about being upright and honest here. Otherwise, when you're facing the cash handlers at the bank entrance, do you dare to move your hands around? Or are you thinking, if I put my hand in my pocket, will these people point their guns at me immediately, or will they yell at me or just shoot me?

We are just ordinary people, we don't understand the rules, so we don't dare to try, we don't even dare to have the thought. Fang Yang felt the same way, and not just once. After going through three checks in a row, he finally drove the car into the small courtyard. He was really panicked and had an urge to turn around immediately.

As soon as I parked the car, an old woman came out of the house to greet me. "Xiao Xin, have you had breakfast yet? This must be Xiao Fang. He's so handsome. Come in quickly, it's cold outside."

Fang Yang was pulled into the house by the old woman. The thing was still in the car and hadn't been taken out yet. He couldn't very well shake off the old woman and go get it, could he?

He gestured to Zhou Xin to take the things out of the back of the car, then looked around. The house was called a sanatorium, but it was actually a two-story villa. There were many flowers in the courtyard. It was deep winter, and apart from a few wintersweet trees that were in full bloom, the branches of the other flowers had been cut off, leaving only the main branches standing stubbornly and proudly in the cold wind.

In the center of the courtyard stands an ancient locust tree, so large that it takes two hands to encircle it. The entire courtyard is covered by the locust tree's shade, so compared to sleeping in the courtyard in the summer, you don't even need an electric fan.

The villa has two floors above ground and probably one floor below ground, but it's not visible now. The house is quite old. You can tell when you enter the hall that the walls are covered with marks of the times, and the floor tiles are the kind of mosaic tiles that were popular many years ago. The sofa is a wooden sofa, which is quite old and looks like it's made of mahogany, but Fang Yang isn't really sure if it is.

As soon as she entered, the old woman called out, "Old man, Xiao Fang is here, come out quickly."

As soon as he finished speaking, two white heads popped out from upstairs. Seeing Fang Yang standing in the middle of the hall, they waved and said, "Come on, Xiao Fang, come up quickly."

Fang Yang was a little confused standing in the hall. It seemed that one of them was Zhou Xin's grandfather, but what did it mean to be summoned upstairs as soon as he entered? What were the two old men upstairs doing?

It was Zhou Xin, who came in carrying a large bag of fruit, who came to the rescue. "Those are my grandfather and my maternal grandfather. The two old men are probably playing chess upstairs. You go up first, and I'll bring you some tea later."

Fang Yang suddenly realized what was going on and ran up to them. Seeing how anxious the two old men were, he guessed they were in the middle of a fierce battle.

The two elders didn't wait for Fang Yang. As soon as Fang Yang ran up, they went straight back to their study. The game of chess had just reached an exciting point. If it weren't for his wife calling them, neither of them would have paid any attention. As long as Fang Yang was here, where else could he go?

As soon as Fang Yang entered the study, he saw the two old men staring intently at the chessboard. After Fang Yang came in, they pointed to the chair next to them, indicating that Fang Yang should sit down, and then focused on playing chess.

Fang Yang's grandfather loved playing chess, and he was always made to play with him since he was a child. Fang Yang was quiet and Fang Hai was playful, so Fang Yang, who had no one to play chess with, naturally became the best tool. Although they weren't together most of the time, he was the best chess prodigy during the Spring Festival. It wasn't until Fang Yang went to high school and became busy with his studies that he was finally freed up.

So although he didn't qualify for a rating, he was good enough to be a good partner. Fang Yang then focused his attention on seeing which of the two old men had better chess skills.

The game had entered a life-or-death stage. Both old men had their brows furrowed, their minds focused on the movement of each piece. Every move they made was extremely cautious. Even Fang Yang, who was watching from the sidelines, slowed his breathing a few beats, afraid of disturbing their train of thought.

As if she already knew about this situation, Zhou Xinjing quietly handed the tea to Fang Yang as she brought it in, and then stood next to Fang Yang without saying a word.

Fang Yang didn't mind. He held the teacup in both hands, not wanting to disturb the two elderly people by drinking water, but it was a good way to warm his hands. Winters in Beijing are too cold. The central air conditioning in this villa wasn't very warm, only around 23 degrees Celsius. It was very comfortable inside, but Fang Yang felt a little uncomfortable every time he came in from outside.

"Checkmate!" After such a long stalemate, the battle has finally entered the close combat phase. The red side has a chariot and two horses, all of which are under attack, and there is also a cannon threatening from behind. The checkmate is due to the red chariot being moved to the bottom. The elephant and advisor on this side have been moved aside to trip up the horses, but unexpectedly the chariot took the opportunity to break into the camp.

With his advisors and elephants bound hand and foot, Black had no choice but to move his rook back to the front to return to its starting position. Red, of course, showed no mercy. How could such a long-planned offensive be thwarted in one move? With a swing of his rook, Red slashed down, and Black's cannon, suspended in mid-air, blasted the entire rook circle flat. Red immediately kicked the cannon to pieces, allowing Black to catch his breath and retreat ten miles, giving his general a temporary respite.

The game has now entered the endgame stage. Red has an absolute advantage with two knights and a cannon, while Black has only one knight left to protect its general and defend its territory. With the city lost and its general gone, all that's left is to wait out the game.

Zhou Xin nudged Fang Yang's waist with her fingertip, her eyes questioning. Fang Yang gestured to the old man on the right holding the red chess piece, indicating that the red side had won.

Zhou Xin nodded, gesturing for Fang Yang to drink some water. The situation was now settled, and there was no need to be so tense. It wouldn't bother anyone, and even if it did, it would be pointless. The outcome was already decided, and even a dark horse couldn't turn the tide.

Fang Yang took a sip of tea and communicated with Zhou Xin through his eyes, interspersed with some spoken words. He finally figured out the identities of the two men. The one holding the red cup in his right hand was Zhou Xin's grandfather, while the one holding the black cup was Zhou Xin's maternal grandfather. The two old men were not satisfied if they did not have a three-hundred-round battle every day. The two houses were close to each other, so they had several rounds almost every morning, noon and night.

It's fortunate that it's winter now. If it were summer, the two of them playing chess in the courtyard would attract several old men from the surrounding area to come and join in. The scene would be even more spectacular, with noise loud enough to lift the roof off. Fang Yang chuckled, but then he heard a shout, "You two little devils, you're just disturbing my concentration. How can we play chess like this?"