The next moment, the sound of the flute and the recitation abruptly ceased, Yang Mengchen had already gracefully ’flown’ back, alighting beside Hai Tang, who slowly lowered her raised hands.
Yang Mengchen, with Hai Tang and the other four, bowed to the Emperor and the three judges, concluding the performance.
Applause thundered through the venue.
The Emperor, looking proud, exclaimed, "Excellent, excellent, excellent! Only today did I come to realize how exceedingly beautiful Jiujiu’s dance is, truly ’This dance belongs in the heavens; so rarely heard on earth’! Hahaha!"
Everyone’s praises were unceasing, agreeing wholeheartedly with the Emperor, and the thunderous applause lingered on for a long time.
"You all also performed very well, especially Hai Tang. Your martial arts skills are so powerful that you almost sent Jiujiu soaring to the heavens." The Emperor chuckled: "Each of you shall receive a generous reward."
The performers bowed and expressed their gratitude.
The audience suddenly realized why they had seen a flicker of light and shadow before, now that Princess Chen had flown into the air, all thanks to that maid’s effort.
Certain individuals wore solemn expressions, having not expected such an exceptional master by Princess Chen’s side. It seemed they had to reconsider their positions.
Yang Mengchen and Hai Tang exchanged a discreet glance, and to avoid unnecessary trouble, Hai Tang had only made a feint just now.
Yang Mengchen unquestionably took first place again, with Princess Yashuang in second, Princess Feilan third, Qi Qiuxin fourth, while Hai Ruofeng and Su Manru ranked in the middle.
In the subsequent competitions, Yang Mengchen consistently won first place, and the people from Dong Chu walked with their heads held high, beaming with pride wherever they went.
Whether it was Yang Mengchen’s poetry and painting, or her singing, dancing, and musical performances, especially her approachability and kindness, her reputation quickly spread through the alleys of The Capital. She earned not only the respect of the common people and the military, but her reputation among the literati also reached its peak.
Just as Prince Duan and Prince Jing had expected, the subjects of Dong Chu respected and sincerely admired Long Xuanmo and Yang Mengchen. The advantage was clearly one-sided.
Yang family.
Considering the chess match in the afternoon would be mentally taxing, everyone agreed not to disturb Yang Mengchen, who rested in her room after lunch.
Of course, Long Xuanmo never left her side and, because of the competition, he did not even press her for conjugal matters, lest he tire her out.
In the afternoon, Yang Mengchen and her entourage arrived at the competition venue on time.
The competition was a knockout format, where players with the same number matched against each other, and one had to win within the designated time to advance.
Yang Mengchen was still very lucky, facing a talented woman from Xiliang Country.
Hai Ruofeng also had good fortune, with an opponent being a talented woman from Nanping.
Su Manru, however, was quite unlucky, coming face to face with Princess Yashuang right off the bat.
Qi Qiuxin was equally unfortunate, her adversary being Princess Feilan. Her chess skills were already weak, and coupled with her nervousness, the outcome was predictable.
At Old Hai’s signal, the players commenced their matches.
No matter how strong or weak the opponent’s chess skills were, Yang Mengchen always treated the game seriously. It was the least respect she could show her opponent, and a form of self-respect.
The talented woman from Xiliang, however, sat upright with a straight spine, her expression tense and clearly very nervous.
"The most important thing in a competition is to participate. Relax, just treat it as you normally would," Yang Mengchen encouraged softly.
The woman gave Yang Mengchen a grateful smile, yet she remained very nervous, so much so that fine beads of sweat appeared on her fair, jade-like forehead.
Yang Mengchen chose not to say more.
Each competition table was flanked by two people, one responsible for supervising the players, and the other for relaying the moves to the outside, duplicating each move on a larger chessboard for the audience to watch.
The supervisor for Yang Mengchen’s table was from Nanping Country. Hearing Yang Mengchen gently reassuring their own compatriot, they silently praised her good demeanor.
After a few moves, Yang Mengchen had gauged her opponent’s level. To avoid embarrassing her opponent with an overwhelming defeat, she managed the game with great finesse.
The stipulated time hadn’t arrived yet, but her opponent conceded voluntarily, standing up and bowing deeply, "Princess’s chess skills are superb; I humbly admit my inferiority.
Yang Mengchen stood up and spoke softly, her face wreathed in a gentle smile, which greatly endeared her to the opponent.
As Old Hai announced time was up, all players ceased their games.
Soon, the victors of the first round were announced: Yang Mengchen, Princess Yashuang, Princess Feilan, Hai Ruofeng, and one player each from Nanping and Xiliang.
The six players drew lots once more.
Yang Mengchen was fortunate; her opponent was the talented lady from Xiliang.
Princess Yashuang was pitted against her own countrywoman, while Hai Ruofeng faced Princess Feilan.
The new round began, and Yang Mengchen still maintained the right measure, leading to her opponent conceding voluntarily once again, albeit this time feeling thoroughly convinced of her defeat.
Except for Chu Dieyi, nobody knew Yang Mengchen’s true level, so everyone was quite worried and anxious. Seeing her win two rounds in a row was somewhat relieving.
Only Long Xuanmo gazed at his beloved wife with unwavering tenderness. To him, winning or losing was not important; what mattered was Ah Jiu’s happiness.
Compared to Yang Mengchen and Princess Yashuang, people were more invested in the match between Hai Ruofeng and Princess Feilan. With both players being evenly matched, the competition was naturally much fiercer, with the audience debating heatedly over each move on the large chessboard, thankfully without disturbing the players, so the judges did not intervene.
After the second round, the victors were Yang Mengchen, Princess Yashuang, and Princess Feilan.
The three of them drew their number tags, and fortune smiled upon Yang Mengchen yet again as she was given a bye, allowing her to watch the showdown between Princess Yashuang and Princess Feilan from the sidelines.
The chess skills of Princess Yashuang and Princess Feilan were virtually indistinguishable, making for an especially fierce battle, magnificent and thrilling, holding the audience in rapturous excitement and suspense.
Ultimately, Princess Yashuang won by a mere single piece.
Yang Mengchen herself suggested that Princess Yashuang take a brief rest, considering that not only was she a woman but she had also played three consecutive matches and would understandably be weary.
Yang Mengchen’s gesture not only earned the gratitude of Princess Yashuang and the people of Nanping but also immense admiration from all those present.
Only after Princess Yashuang said she was ready to play did Yang Mengchen sit down opposite her, smiling gently at her.
Princess Yashuang returned the smile sincerely.
After Old Hai announced the start, he and the other judges sat quietly around, observing the game in silence.
Although Princess Yashuang was quite outstanding in chess, she was at least two or three levels below Yang Mengchen. However, Yang Mengchen took her seriously and did not underestimate her, eventually winning by half a piece.
The top three had been decided, and naturally, there was no need for the first six eliminated players to participate in a fifth round of competition.
As Long Xuanmo was about to leave with Yang Mengchen wrapped in his embrace, the oldest judge suddenly approached them, his tone sincere but hopeful, "Princess Chen, may this old man have the honor of playing a round of chess with you?"
From the recent matches, he could see that Princess Chen had not given her full effort, especially considering her moves seemed ordinary but were in fact complex and unpredictable, which piqued his curiosity and prompted his request to have a round with her. freewebnovel-cσ๓
"No time," Long Xuanmo declined bluntly.
After a glance at Long Xuanmo, Yang Mengchen turned to look at this judge from Nanping Country, the world-renowned chess master, Master Zhen.
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