At the entrance to the Royal Palace of Ryan, eunuchs were already waiting.
The eunuchs were servants in the royal palace responsible for the daily lives of the royal family members, and judging from the old eunuch's attire, he should at least be of the rank of steward or higher.
The Imperial Guard's military vehicle dropped Zhang Fan off in front of the palace gate and then drove away.
"General Zhang, this way please." The old eunuch led Zhang Fan into the palace.
Although this was Zhang Fan's first time entering the palace, he didn't feel too unfamiliar with the surrounding scenery. He had visited the Palace of Versailles on Earth, and the two were similar in style.
The only difference is the guards here; there's a sentry every five steps and a patrol every ten, the defenses are extremely tight. Moreover, the guards all stand with their backs to each other, clearly indicating a desire to minimize interaction and avoid contact with anyone entering the palace.
The front part of the palace was mainly where Grand Duke Ryan handled government affairs. The council hall was in front, and behind it, through three palace gates, was the inner courtyard of the royal family, which was the living area of the Ryan royal family.
After passing through three layers of guards to enter the inner courtyard, the situation here was completely different from the outside. There were no guards, no bustling ministers, and no servants hurrying around. If it weren't for the palace buildings, Zhang Fan would have thought he had walked into a quiet suburban park.
And unexpectedly, Zhang Fan saw a familiar figure here.
Mrs. Qiu.
Zhang Fan confirmed that the other person had also seen him, but Qiu Wanyan just smiled and then walked away arm in arm with a simply dressed old woman next to her.
The old eunuch bowed to the old woman from a distance, then led Zhang Fan onward.
The old eunuch stopped in front of a stone path in the garden and pointed to a pavilion not far ahead.
"The Grand Duke is waiting for you there, General. Please go there yourself."
Zhang Fan walked forward on the stone slabs on the grass. Ahead was a pavilion built of nanmu wood, surrounded by gauze curtains, and two people could be vaguely seen playing chess inside.
“Zhang Fan, commander of the 358th Regiment of the Ryan National Army stationed in Benghazi.” Zhang Fan lifted the gauze curtain and entered the pavilion. He was wearing a military uniform at the moment. He saluted an old man in a white robe in front of him, “Greetings, Your Excellency.”
"Hehe." The white-robed old man smiled and glanced at Zhang Fan, but did not reply. Instead, he turned to look at the other gray-robed old man sitting opposite him, playing chess, and asked, "Is he the young man you mentioned?"
The old man in gray turned his head, smiled, and waved to Zhang Fan, inviting him to sit down next to the chessboard. The old man's clothes resembled a Zhongshan suit, a traditional Chinese garment.
"Greetings, Marshal!" Zhang Fan snapped to attention and gave a standard military salute.
The two most powerful people in the Duchy of Ryan were right in front of him. Zhang Fan didn't dare to sit on equal footing with them. They could be polite to him, but he couldn't be polite to them in return.
Rumors circulated that Grand Duke Ryan had placed Marshal Zhu Yifu under house arrest, but the scene before them did not resemble house arrest at all.
"Don't be so formal." The old man in the white robe patted the chair gently and said with a smile, "There are just two old men in front of you who want to play a game of chess."
Since Grand Duke Ryan had said so, Zhang Fan saluted the two elders again, then straightened his back and sat down in the empty seat next to the chessboard.
Zhang Fan knew this was Go, and the rules were the same as on Blue Star. He glanced at the situation on the board: Grand Duke Ryan was playing white, and Marshal Zhu Yifu was playing black.
On the board, the black pieces have gained the upper hand. Although they haven't yet decided the outcome with a single move, they are already overwhelming the white pieces in every aspect. On the other hand, the white pieces are struggling to hold on under the heavy pressure from the black pieces, fighting for every inch of ground. However, the slightest mistake could lead to a complete defeat.
Grand Duke Ryan stared at the chessboard, holding a white piece in his hand, but he couldn't make a move for a long time.
"Your Excellency, it's your turn to make a move." Marshal Zhu Yifu was in high spirits, smiling as he looked at Duke Ryan. "Or you could surrender? Surrender and you'll lose half the battle."
"We've served and fought side by side for half our lives, when have we ever thought of surrendering?" Grand Duke Ryan glared angrily at Marshal Zhu Yifu. "You want me to surrender over a little chess game? No way!"
"Hehehe!" Marshal Zhu Yifu chuckled without saying a word, seemingly unafraid of Grand Duke Ryan at all.
These two close comrades-in-arms in their youth have now grown old and become like two bickering children, fiercely competitive with each other.
Archduke Ryan's finger hovered in the air above the chessboard, having moved several times before finally landing. No matter where he placed it, he couldn't turn the tide; instead, he would be further hampered by the black pieces and face imminent collapse.
Grand Duke Ryan, a man in his seventies, was furious and glaring. It wasn't that he couldn't accept defeat, but he just couldn't stand Zhu Yifu's smugness.
As a member of the royal family, Grand Duke Ryan was not so magnanimous as to overturn the chessboard, but he couldn't win the game, so he could only sulk. In the end, he disregarded the rule of "not speaking while watching chess" and directly asked Zhang Fan, who was outside the game, for help.
"Do you know how to play chess?" Grand Duke Ryan pointed to the chessboard in front of him.
"I know a little bit." Zhang Fan nodded.
When he was at the Mars "Bird's Nest" base, he often played Go with the computer when he was bored.
"You take a turn, let me see." Grand Duke Ryan handed the white piece to Zhang Fan.
"Hey, hey, that's going too far!" Marshal Zhu Yifu protested, tapping the chessboard with his fingertips.
“You’re almost seventy or eighty years old, why are you arguing with a child?” Grand Duke Ryan glared at Marshal Zhu Yifu with displeasure, patted Zhang Fan’s arm and urged, “Don’t mind him!”
Zhang Fan, of course, knew about Grand Duke Ryan's stubbornness and unwillingness to admit defeat. With Bai Zi at his wit's end, Grand Duke Ryan had no other options. Rather than racking his brains and suffering himself, he figured he might as well pass the game to someone else. Even if he lost, he could simply claim it was someone else's fault.
Zhang Fan smiled, took the white piece from Grand Duke Ryan, raised the piece, and placed it.
despair!
"Nonsense! How can you play chess like that?" Marshal Zhu Yifu glanced at the chessboard, was stunned at first, and then became somewhat annoyed.
“Young man,” Duke Ryan shook his head helplessly after seeing Zhang Fan’s move. “You’ve filled in a space for yourself, killing off a whole group of your own white pieces. What kind of chess game is that?”
The white group on the board was already down to its last breath. Archduke Ryan had been struggling to keep the black pieces from capturing it, but Zhang Fan took the initiative to seal off the last breath of the white group, essentially killing one of his own pieces.
Zhang Fan continued to smile, offering no argument, and waited for Marshal Zhu Yifu to make his move with black pieces.
By the way, the computer Go program that Zhang Fan played against at the "Bird's Nest" was called "AlphaGo".
Although Zhu Yifu was furious, he knew that his opponent's move had not violated the rules. After removing the white pieces, he planned to press his advantage and win the game in one fell swoop.
The black piece is now raised in mid-air.
but.
But it failed to fall for a long time.
Zhu Yifu stared wide-eyed at the chessboard.
He never expected that once the white piece was removed from the board, the situation would suddenly change dramatically.
White no longer needs to worry about the life or death of this large group of white stones, nor is it hindered in every way. White's space has become more flexible, and it is not as constrained as before.
despair……
After much deliberation, Zhu Yifu finally placed a black stone amidst his hesitation. After all, the advantage was still on the black side, so placing a stone safely shouldn't be a problem, right?
Snap!
White takes the initiative to place a piece.
However, it wasn't Zhang Fan who made the move, but Grand Duke Ryan. He had already noticed the change in the game and was flushed with excitement, looking eager to try his hand at it.
Zhu Yifu was stunned for a moment, frowned as he looked at the chessboard, and after thinking it over again and again, he decided to play the white piece for the safest option.
Snap!
Grand Duke Ryan made his move almost without thinking.
With each tick of the stones, the game came to an end. Looking at the turning points of the entire game, White first tightened its own liberties, then Black countered by capturing 16 White stones, then White cut off, and finally captured 80 Black stones.
White wins decisively.
Zhu Yifu was dumbfounded.
"Hahaha!" Grand Duke Ryan laughed heartily, "How about that? How about that? Didn't you say surrendering meant losing half the battle? Haha—"
"Sigh..." Zhu Yifu looked at the chessboard and smiled bitterly, "We were so fixated on the gain or loss of a single piece that we never expected that once we let go, everything would suddenly become clear and bright."
“Yes, we are all getting old.” Grand Duke Ryan also sighed with emotion, looking at Zhang Fan with approval. “Your chess skills are remarkable and your character is admirable. Young man, it seems that Old Zhu really did not choose the wrong person.”
"What are your orders, Your Excellency?" Zhang Fan asked, bowing respectfully.
“Here you go.” Grand Duke Ryan picked up the key white piece from the chessboard and placed it in Zhang Fan’s hand. “It was originally yours, but before that, I hope you can do something for me.”
"This is not a deal, but a request from a dying old man. Can you help me?" Grand Duke Ryan smiled kindly. At this moment, he looked like an ordinary old man, not a ruler of a country. This reminded Zhang Fan of his deceased grandfather.
Zhang Fan nodded.
"Thank you." Grand Duke Ryan smiled with satisfaction. "Thank you."
Zhang Fan opened his palm, holding a white chess piece, but he knew the meaning behind this piece:
Star Core!
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