Chapter 81

In the pavilion, fallen leaves drifted, and the gentle spring breeze brought a peaceful and tranquil afternoon. The three people sitting around the table were all silent.

After Zhang Changling spoke those words, Feng Jueyu's eyes kept darting between the two of them. What were they thinking? It was hard to guess...

Zhang Changling stared at Shangguan Ruomeng. At this moment, beads of sweat appeared on her forehead, as if she had been seen through and could no longer pretend.

"Sir, did you guess it all?" A bitter smile flashed across Shangguan Ruomeng's lips, and her expression was somewhat dejected.

Zhang Changling picked up his teacup and took a sip from the rim, then said with a chuckle, "Do you think an old man like me is senile? Ha, not at all. My eyes are still good. The batch of supplies sent to the border ten days ago almost met with disaster, but thanks to the Shangguan family's efforts, the situation was salvaged. I am deeply relieved by this, but..."

He changed his tone, "This is not a reason for me to show favoritism."

"I know. Because of this, the Shangguan family's businesses in Tiannan have been hit by the Gold and Silver Association, resulting in a significant reduction in monthly revenue. Logically, I should take more care of the Shangguan family, but it's hard to satisfy everyone... Tiannan not only has your Huairen Hall, but also Miaoshan and Huichun. I can't ignore them, can I..."

Shangguan Ruomeng opened her mouth to speak, but Zhang Changling interrupted her, "I understand your difficulties. The position of the president of the Tiannan Chamber of Commerce is crucial for the future development of the three families, but you shouldn't try to approach me through favoritism. Using such means to seek a way out for the Shangguan family is unfair to the Chen and Xu families..."

As he spoke, Zhang Changling looked at Feng Jueyu with deep meaning and said with a smile, "But I can't help but admire your methods. To have a well-known playboy in Tiannan City study my chess moves so thoroughly in just half a month, who could have taught him?"

"Hmm?"

Feng Jueyu was already confused by what Zhang Changling had said. The more he listened, the more puzzled he became. What did the Tiannan Chamber of Commerce and the development of the families have to do with Zhang Changling's chess moves? And what high-level person? What was this all about?

Feng Jueyu listened and quickly interrupted, "Wait, Sir Zhang, please forgive my ignorance, but what does this have to do with me?"

Shangguan Ruomeng was also confused and inadvertently glanced at Feng Jueyu, her eyes full of bewilderment.

Zhang Changling chuckled, "Still not admitting it? This month, the three major medical shops in Tiannan are competing for the position of the president of the Tiannan Chamber of Commerce. At this time, the Gold and Silver Association attacked the Shangguan family's businesses in Tiannan, causing a significant reduction in revenue. You spent a lot of effort to get close to me, wasn't it to delay the deadline and catch up?"

Upon hearing this, Feng Jueyu immediately understood. It was all about this.

He really didn't know that the three major medical shops in Tiannan were competing for the position of the chamber of commerce president. It seemed that the Shangguan family had lost control of the position due to the supplies sent to the border, so they were trying to find Zhang Changling to negotiate. Zhang Changling, as the president of all associations in Tiannan, had the final say.

However, this old man thought that Feng Jueyu's chess games were orchestrated by Shangguan Ruomeng to get closer to him.

It seemed this old man had misunderstood. This young master had no idea about this at all.

Shangguan Ruomeng also understood and immediately denied it, "Sir Zhang, please don't misunderstand. Brother Feng was not sent by me to deliberately get close to you. I only learned about your acquaintance with Brother Feng today..."

"Really?" Zhang Changling smiled, but clearly didn't believe them. He smiled and shook his head, "Forget it, then I must have misunderstood. But today, I have given you enough face at my birthday celebration. I will consider it as repaying the Shangguan family for their contributions to the Tiannan Empire. Let's end this discussion here..."

As he spoke, Zhang Changling was about to put away a few chess pieces on the board...

"Wait..."

Feng Jueyu suddenly reached out and held Zhang Changling's hand, both of them were surprised. Then Feng Jueyu removed Zhang Changling's hand, picked up three chess pieces, and moved the basket of white pieces to his side. With his left hand holding black and his right hand holding white, he started playing on the board.

As he played, he said, "Sir, you think I approached you for the Tiannan Chamber of Commerce by playing chess with you, but what evidence do you have?"

Zhang Changling watched the game and smiled, "Do I need evidence? Girl, you have sought me out several times, and today you came to my birthday celebration with heavy gifts. Wasn't it for this?"

Shangguan Ruomeng wanted to speak but stopped, her face full of shame. She had tried to meet Zhang Changling several times before, but he had always refused her. She knew that Zhang Changling was a man of principle and never showed favoritism. But for the Shangguan family, she had to ask him to extend the deadline, which had inadvertently involved Feng Jueyu.

Shangguan Ruomeng looked at Feng Jueyu with an apologetic expression and sighed, "Sir, you are right. I did want you to delay the deadline, but please believe me, I never intended to use Brother Feng to get close to you, Sir..."

As she was about to continue, Feng Jueyu spoke up, "Sir, let's see how to solve this game."

Surprised, Zhang Changling and Shangguan Ruomeng turned to look at the chessboard. As they looked, both of them frowned. Feng Jueyu had quietly set up a difficult endgame while they were talking...

In this era, anyone with a bit of talent in the arts, including women, knew something about music, chess, calligraphy, and painting. Chess was one of them. Zhang Changling was the chess saint of Tiannan, and even Shangguan Ruomeng knew some chess. Looking closely, the board showed a complex endgame.

The black and white pieces were connected in lines, surrounding each other. A large group of pieces in the center seemed trapped, like a dragon stranded on a shallow beach, unable to soar into the sky. It was a dead end.

When this endgame was set up, Zhang Changling couldn't take his eyes off the board. He stared at it for a long time and shook his head decisively, "This is a dead end, unsolvable."

"Is it?" Feng Jueyu smiled slightly, picked up a piece, and placed it with a "snap." Then he placed several more pieces, and after a dozen moves, the trapped dragon was freed, and the dead end came to life. The black and white pieces continued to fight, and with Feng Jueyu's swift and decisive moves, the board seemed to come alive with the power of the dragon and the changing winds.

After reviving the dead end, Feng Jueyu picked up his teacup and smiled at Zhang Changling without a word... "You think I'm a nobody? You think I studied your chess moves with a high-level person? What a joke. Do I need to rely on you?"

He thought Zhang Changling was friendly and kind, but it turned out he was cunning and suspicious, thinking Feng Jueyu had a hidden agenda. "If I don't shock you today, I'm not the Evil Emperor."

Feng Jueyu had clearly understood that Shangguan Ruomeng was trying to ask Zhang Changling to extend the deadline to prepare for the election of the Tiannan Chamber of Commerce president. But Zhang Changling thought they had used underhanded methods, sending Feng Jueyu to get close to him. Feng Jueyu hated being wronged, and he would not take this silently.

Therefore, Feng Jueyu didn't bother to explain. "You think I studied your chess moves? Then let me set up a dead end for you to solve. If you can't solve it, and I can, what will you say?"

With this thought, Feng Jueyu didn't hold back and used the "Dragon Out of Water" position from the "Wang You Qing Le Ji," stunning the chess saint Zhang Changling.

In the five thousand years of Chinese history, there were countless talented people. The "Wang You Qing Le Ji" was a collection of chess moves compiled by generations of predecessors, far beyond what Zhang Changling could match.

Zhang Changling looked again and again, his heart racing. The chess moves were similar to Feng Jueyu's, with a strong and aggressive style. The dead end he thought was unsolvable was quickly revived by this young man. The chess moves, the style, and the momentum were truly rare in the world...

But Zhang Changling didn't believe it. He thought Feng Jueyu, at such a young age, couldn't have such talent. After a while, Zhang Changling sighed and said with a bitter smile, "I didn't expect the Shangguan family to put so much effort into the Tiannan Chamber of Commerce."

He thought this chess move was deliberately studied to intimidate him.

After all, in this era, there were almost no chess moves he hadn't seen...

"Oh?" Feng Jueyu still didn't explain, but he pushed the chessboard aside, mixed the black and white pieces, and set up another endgame, just like before, with his left hand holding black and his right hand holding white...

Snap, snap, snap...

In the pavilion of the back garden, the sound of chess pieces falling continuously, like a sudden storm, another "Opposite Thousand Miles" position was set up. This time, he didn't give Zhang Changling a chance and asked, "Can you solve it?"

Zhang Changling's eyes bulged in shock, his face almost touching the board, and after a moment, he shook his head.

Feng Jueyu's lips curled in a slight sneer, and with his right hand, he placed the pieces, and in a few moves, the dead end was revived...

Without giving Zhang Changling a chance to analyze, he set up another position: "Feigned Surrender."

"Can you solve it?"

Zhang Changling was sweating, thinking, "Where did this young man get so many exquisite chess moves? Each one is unsolvable, but he can turn them around. If the Shangguan family put this much effort into the Tiannan Chamber of Commerce, it's too much. How many chess masters with my experience would it take to study this?"

Zhang Changling shook his head...

He set up another position: "Mysterious Depth."

"Can you solve it?"

Shake...

He quickly revived it, then set up another position: "Thousand Layers of Treasure Pavilion."

"Can you solve it?"

Zhang Changling was already stunned. In his eyes, Feng Jueyu's moves were like a butterfly dance, never stopping to think. Each move was exquisite, each attack was deadly, and the flow of the game was like holding the universe in his hands, a terrifying skill that only a chess god could possess...

Shangguan Ruomeng was equally stunned, her eyes wide with shock. Her chess skills were far inferior to Zhang Changling's, and she couldn't even see the terrifying aspects of the game. But she could see that Feng Jueyu played without hesitation, and each move was precise, each game was perfectly executed, and then turned into a dead end, which even the chess saint Zhang Changling couldn't solve, but Feng Jueyu easily resolved...

As she watched, Shangguan Ruomeng was sweating profusely. Just by looking at the chess style and moves, Feng Jueyu's chess skills were already beyond the ordinary...

Neither of them knew that Feng Jueyu could solve these chess moves not because of his talent, but because his master in his previous life had studied them for decades. He was a true chess god and chess enthusiast...

Feng Jueyu had memorized these chess moves hundreds of times...