Chapter 153 Why talk about the stairs?

Kong Zi suddenly became alert and continued to search for the word "Zhuang Fei". Soon, news about Yu Shao popped up.

"Yu Shao, amateur chess player, sixteen years old..."

"It was this guy who sent Zhuang Fei to the loser group, and then Zhuang Fei met Fang Haoxin in the loser group, and ended up being eliminated?"

"How did Fang Haoxin end up in the loser bracket? Lost to...Su Yiming?"

Kong Zi had experienced many ups and downs, but after reading the reports about the Southern Division qualifying tournament, he was stunned.

Zhuang Fei and Fang Haoxin lost to an amateur chess player respectively and both fell into the loser group. Will they have a peak showdown in the loser group?

No, what the hell is going on with this Southern Division qualifying tournament?

Isn't the script like this?! Kong Zi suddenly seemed to have thought of something, and was slightly stunned, and then his eyes suddenly lit up. "Zhuang Fei has been eliminated now, and this guy named Yu Shao has been promoted to the rank with a perfect record. Zhuang Weisheng is likely to play with that guy named Yu Shao in the Xinhuo Battle!"

As an opponent, Kong Zi knew Zhuang Weisheng too well. After seeing the news, he immediately guessed what Zhuang Weisheng might do next.

"Interesting, interesting!"

Kong Zi suddenly became excited, and after thinking about it carefully, his eyes became brighter and brighter.

"If I apply to partner with this guy named Yu Shao and defeat Zhuang Weisheng in the Xinhuo Battle, then this guy named Yu Shao has defeated both Zhuang Fei and Zhuang Weisheng at the same time, right?"

"Even though it's just a firefight, the media will definitely report it this way!"

The more Kong Zi thought about it, the more excited he became. He immediately exited the webpage, opened his phone's address book, quickly found Ma Zhengyu's contact information, and then dialed the number.

"Hey, old horse?"

Listening to the voice on the other end of the phone, Kong Zi smiled and said, "Hey, it's a big deal. It's just a loss in a game of chess. Winning and losing are common in the military. Why would I take it to heart?"

"Yeah, by the way, let me tell you something."

Kong Zi coughed twice and said, "Generally speaking, the Xinhuo Tournament selects high-level chess players from the region to partner with beginners, right?"

"Although I am a chess player from the northern region, I pay close attention to newcomers from every region. After all, newcomers represent the future."

"So even if it's a beginner in the southern region, I'm happy to give them some guidance. Who says I'm always willing to help others?"

"I heard... there is a Yu Shao first dan this year?"

"Although he started out as an amateur chess player, he was promoted to professional chess player with a perfect record. Not only is it true that heroes emerge young, but it also shows that heroes are not judged by their origins. It really makes people feel that young people are to be feared. I am very interested in him."

"How about this? In this year's Xinhuo Tournament, he and I will form a partnership to help the younger generation win their first battle on the road to becoming a professional chess player. How do you think?"

But soon, after hearing Ma Zhengyu's explanation on the other end of the phone, Kong Zi's eyes widened.

"What did you say?!"

"In the Xinhuo Battle, several 9th-dan chess players have already applied to form a partnership with Yu Shao? Among them is Chang Yan, 9th-dan?!"

"Why is she, a female chess player, joining in the fun? Is she crazy? Isn't this ridiculous? Although she is very strong, how can a female chess player compete with a male first-dan player?"

Oh no, someone wants to go with me! Kong Zi was a little itchy, and said quickly: "No, no, Lao Ma, the Xinhuo War is just an exhibition match anyway, the victory or defeat is not important, and he has no master, so anyone can be arranged, you must arrange it for me!"

"Lao Ma, we have such a good relationship. Two months ago, when I went to Jiangling for a competition, I treated you to mutton hotpot. You wouldn't want to disappoint me, right?"

…………

Gangneung, Southern Chess Academy.

Inside the chess academy cafeteria.

Ma Zhengyu had a wry smile on his face. Just after he hung up the phone, a chess academy referee beside him asked with a funny look on his face, "Who wants to form a partnership with Yu Shao Chudan?"

"Kong Zitian...Kong Zi celebrity."

Ma Zhengyu originally subconsciously wanted to say Kong Zi Tianyuan, but halfway through he suddenly remembered that Kong Zi's Tianyuan title had been taken back by Zhuang Weisheng, and now Kong Zi's title was celebrity, so he temporarily changed his words.

Every time he encountered this situation, Ma Zhengyu couldn't help but think of Zhuang Weisheng Tenth Stage.

The holders of various major titles are always changing, but only Zhuang Weisheng's tenth-dan title remains unshakable. He has held the tenth-dan title for twenty years, and no one can shake it.

"Kong Zi celebrity?"

Hearing this, the referee of the chess academy nearby was dumbfounded and said, "Master Kong Zi is a chess player from the northern division. How can he interfere with our southern division?"

"It's really rare. Generally speaking, high-level chess players don't care much about the Xinhuo Battle. Many high-level chess players even think it's troublesome and are not very willing to participate."

Someone laughed and said, "This is the first time that so many high-level chess players have taken the initiative to apply to partner with a beginner chess player they have never met in the Xinhuo Battle."

Zhang Feng, a reporter from the Southern Chess Academy, was also eating in the restaurant at the time. Upon hearing this, he said, "After all, he defeated Zhuang Fei, so it's normal for him to attract attention."

"We didn't spread the news that Zhuang Weisheng, 10th dan, applied to be Yu Shao, 1st dan's opponent in the Xinhuo Tournament, but all the players seemed to be certain of this."

The reporter opposite Zhang Feng was somewhat puzzled and asked, "Could it be that Zhuang Weisheng's 10th stage spread it himself?"

"No, Zhuang Weisheng Tenth Duan will not take the initiative to tell others, he is not that kind of person."

Ma Zhengyu shook his head, denying his guess, and explained: "The reason they know is because they are rivals to each other."

“Yeah, it always feels magical.”

Zhang Feng was somewhat emotional, and asked the reporter opposite him: "The people who know a person best are not parents, brothers, or friends, but often opponents who want to kill you. Why is that?"

"Fuck, you're asking me?"

Hearing this, the reporter sitting opposite Zhang Feng couldn't help but roll his eyes and said, "Old Zhang, I studied journalism, not philosophy."

"Chairman Ma, since you are in charge of the Xinhuo Battle, who have you decided to let Yu Shao Chudan's partner?" At this time, a referee couldn't help but ask curiously: "Do you have any idea now?"

"I was still hesitant, but since Mr. Kong Zi called me, then I'll just go with Mr. Kong Zi."

Ma Zhengyu pondered for a moment and said, "Mr. Kong Zi is willing to travel all the way from the north to the south to participate in the Xinhuo War. We should not let him down."

"Is that so?"

Hearing this, the referee who had just spoken deliberately pretended to be surprised and joked, "I thought it was the mutton hotpot that Master Kong Zi treated you to two months ago that played a role."

Hearing this, everyone in the restaurant couldn't help but laugh, even Ma Zhengyu himself was no exception.

"By the way, Ding Huan, you have been following up on the Fangyuan Cup, right?"

Ma Zhengyu suddenly thought of something, looked at the reporter opposite Zhang Feng, and asked, "It's been two days since the end, why hasn't the official report of the chess academy been released until today?"

"I'm worried too."

Hearing this, Ding Huan sighed and said helplessly, "It's hard to think of what to write. After all, we were eliminated by the American team, and there's already a lot of criticism online."

"It's too hard to report this kind of defeat and give a commentary on every game..."

Ding Huan smacked his lips, smiled wryly, and continued, "I really don't know how to write it, but I'll try my best to finish the manuscript today."

After hearing this, the originally cheerful atmosphere in the cafeteria suddenly became dull.

"really……"

The smile on the face of a referee gradually faded, and he said, "More than a decade ago, the overall level of Go in the United States was slightly behind ours, but now it is on par with us."

"European countries are also catching up. Although there is still a gap between the high-level chess players and us, many outstanding young chess players have emerged in recent years."

"Not to mention Japan and South Korea..."

The latest novel is published first on Liu9shuba!

Hearing this, some people nodded in agreement, sighed, and said, "Although the overall level of Chinese Go is still at the top of the world, I don't know how many years it can maintain this level."

"I always miss the era of Shen Yi. Who could compete with us back then? Not to mention Shen Yi, even Fang Xin and his team could overwhelm the world chess community."

"It's a new era after all..."

Hearing these words, Ma Zhengyu was silent for a moment, then suddenly shook his head and said, "Why do you always reminisce about the past?"

"The past cannot be changed, but the future can be pursued."

Ma Zhengyu couldn't help but think of the match between Yu Shao and Su Yiming in the qualifying tournament. He took a deep breath, smiled, and said, "I'm the exact opposite of you."

“I am full of expectations for the future!”

…………

The disturbances in the outside world had nothing to do with Yu Shao. At this time, Yu Shao was playing chess with Su Yiming online.

Inside the room, Yu Shao looked more focused than ever before, staring at the computer screen. After a long time, he finally clicked the mouse lightly and placed the chess piece.

Ta-da, ta-da, ta-da…

In the quiet room, only the sound of chess pieces falling continued to echo.

Although the two were not together, at this moment, the computer turned into a chess table, spanning the space. The two sat opposite each other in the endless darkness, taking chess pieces out of the chess box and dropping them alternately.

After a long time, a pop-up window appeared on the computer.

Su Yiming, gave up.

"After the officials and the numbers were counted, Kuroko lost... six and a half points."

Six and a half points is already a huge win.

However, even though he won by six and a half points, Yu Shao did not show any joy on his face at this moment. He still stared at the computer screen with a serious expression.

"The endgame requires extreme precision and delicacy, which is what I am good at. Moreover, after the training of AI in my previous life, I should have the advantage. In the end, we are evenly matched!"

"We were leading by nearly 15 points in the middle game, but we were forced to catch up in the middle and late game and were only ahead by 6.5 points."

"Totally, underestimated him."

"It was blasphemy to describe him as a genius before. This is simply a monster..."

Yu Shao stared at the computer screen, his expression becoming more and more solemn.

In his previous games with Su Yiming, the battles all ended in the middle game, but this time in the online game, the two sides fought to the endgame, and finally... Yu Shao was able to get a glimpse of Su Yiming's full chess skills.

"It was just a normal online game, and we were all very relaxed."

"But, because of this, there are no other factors interfering, and the only factor that determines the outcome of this game is the strength of the chess players."

"It's obvious that he...is not as good as me."

Although he could see the difference in chess skills between the two more clearly, Yu Shao's expression became even more solemn.

"But if he could have the understanding of Go that the previous players had, the judgment of thickness, the understanding of layout, and the judgment of the situation."

"When he has all the knowledge of the AI ​​era, with my current attacking method, if I don't make any progress and just stand still, the answer will be obvious..."

"I will lose!"

Yu Shao stared at the chess game on the computer screen in silence. He felt an incomparable threat from the obvious gap in the game.

Yu Shao slowly closed his eyes.

He had this feeling countless times before. In his previous life, he had felt pressured, threatened, and worried because of the pursuit of countless talented young chess players.

In this life, there is Su Yiming, who is far superior to the geniuses in his previous lives and can only be described as a monster.

After a long time, Yu Shao suddenly opened his eyes, his gaze was like a sword, showing his ruggedness and sharpness.

He still felt the pressure and the threat, but now he had no worries. In fact, this threat and pressure made him feel happy! "I am no longer at the top."

"But in this life, I want to climb higher and stand on the top!"

Yu Shao took a deep breath, his eyes flickering.

"If there were no rivals, no threats and pressures—"

"How can I talk about stairs?!"

…………

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