Trafford's Trading Club

Chapter 866: Worry-Free, Naihe (2)

The chessboard for international chess differs greatly from that of Gomoku, and while one side has only 16 pieces, this is far fewer than the number of pieces held by the other side in Gomoku.

In simple terms, using international chess pieces as substitutes, one side can make a maximum of only sixteen moves. Furthermore, due to the spatial constraints of the international chessboard, the paths to connect five pieces are also limited.

Moreover, if we consider the additional rules of Gomoku, such as the prohibition of certain moves, the three-move exchange, or the mountain mouth rule, then this Gomoku game, limited to sixteen moves, may be far more difficult than initially imagined.

Both Ouyang Jie and Zhong Luoyue have exceptional memories and are skilled in algorithms, so they can easily calculate the possibilities of forming a line of five pieces.

Basically, with this approach, unless someone is deliberately trying to let the other win, the most likely outcome is a draw.

However, Tu Shenyin stated that Luo Qiu must win in order to pick grapes... which means Luo Qiu can only win. Undoubtedly, this might be a game destined for a draw from the start, and based on the conditions of the game, Tu Shenyin is still at an advantage.

“You’re the guest, so you can choose to go first or second,” Tu Shenyin gestured with an inviting motion, adding, “There are restrictions on moves.”

Luo Qiu nodded and picked up a rook, but instead of placing it immediately, she asked, “Only use the pieces in this set, right?”

Tu Shenyin nodded, “This game is simple; each side only uses its sixteen pieces.”

“Got it.” Luo Qiu smiled slightly and placed her piece in the upper right corner of the board, “I’ll choose the black pieces.”The international chessboard differs from the Go board in that it is arranged in a grid of squares, consisting of 8 rows and 8 columns, for a total of 64 squares.

Luo Qiu’s placement was at H8.

Seeing Luo Qiu place her piece there, Ouyang Jie and Zhong Luoyue both frowned simultaneously. If it were them, even knowing it would end in a draw, they would have placed their piece in the center of the board to create more possibilities, instead of starting with a position that eliminated half of their chances.

Especially considering the restrictions on moves?

Tu Shenyin glanced at Luo Qiu, noting her calm demeanor, and smiled slightly. He then picked up a rook and placed it at D5.

Next, Luo Qiu picked up another rook and placed it at H7.

Tu Shenyin also picked up a rook and placed it at C5.

At this point, Luo Qiu picked up a bishop and placed it at H6.

Tu Shenyin looked at Luo Qiu again, nodded, and casually placed his bishop at D4.

Luo Qiu then picked up her second bishop and placed it at H5, making it seem like a path was being drawn in black. Tu Shenyin shook his head and picked up his second bishop, preparing to place it at H4.

However, just as Tu Shenyin was about to place his bishop down, he suddenly paused. He looked up and glanced at Luo Qiu with a strange expression.

In the end, Tu Shenyin didn’t place his bishop down but returned it to the box. Then, to the astonishment of Ouyang Jie and Zhong Luoyue, he stood up and said, “Wait a moment.”

Tu Shenyin walked over to another table under the grape trellis, retrieved a hollow bamboo basket, and a pair of scissors.

He looked up at the clusters of plump grapes hanging down from the trellis, selected a bunch, cut it with the scissors, and then came back to Luo Qiu, saying, “Here, take this.”

Luo Qiu smiled and said apologetically, “I took advantage of the situation.”

“Winning is winning, losing is losing,” Tu Shenyin shook his head. “Since it wasn’t clearly defined from the beginning, it’s really my oversight. But you’re right; it was indeed taking advantage of the rules. However, those rules were set by people; it depends on how you view it.”

“Thank you for the grapes, Mr. Tu,” Luo Qiu nodded slightly. “I’ve gotten what I wanted, and since these were personally picked by you, they must be the best here… I won’t disturb you and your student anymore. Gan Hong, let’s go.”

“Oh… oh!”

Gan Hong was momentarily stunned, but seeing that Young Master Qiu was truly leaving without hesitation, she quickly put on her shoes and followed.

It seemed… the spot on her heel that had been scraped was no longer painful; instinctively, Gan Hong glanced down and noticed only some red marks… strange, wasn’t it supposed to be scraped?

…

“Master, why did you concede this game?” After Luo Qiu left, Ouyang Jie sat down with a frown. “You haven’t even played yet!”

Tu Shenyin replied calmly, “Then tell me, where should I have placed my piece?”

Ouyang Jie instinctively pointed to H4. “Of course in this spot; otherwise, he’s bound to… wait, since there weren’t any prior rules, could it be… outside the chessboard?”

Tu Shenyin smiled and began to pack up the chessboard and pieces on the table. “He didn’t win because of his chess skills; he won by using something outside the rules.”

“That’s cheating,” Ouyang Jie shook his head.

But Tu Shenyin replied slowly, “Using an international chessboard to play Gomoku, is that considered formal? He asked me if we were only using these pieces, but he didn’t say it had to be on this board.”

Ouyang Jie opened his mouth but found himself speechless.

“Winning is winning, losing is losing. I’ve lost before too,” Tu Shenyin said earnestly. “It’s just a bunch of grapes; I can afford to lose.”

“But…” Ouyang Jie still wanted to say something.

Tu Shenyin shook his head and gently patted Ouyang Jie’s shoulder. “It’s almost time. Take Miss Zhong to the cellar first. I’ll go change my clothes; it’s about time for me to head over.”

Tu Shenyin walked out from under the grape trellis, surveyed the surroundings, and then chuckled, “Outside the game, the players… their hearts are really big.”

He left with his hands behind his back.

...

...

These freshly picked grapes were said by Luo Qiu to be a gift for someone. Gan Hong initially thought they might be meant for her father, but she suddenly realized that the grapes in Young Master Qiu's hands had disappeared without her noticing.

“Maybe they fell somewhere,” Luo Qiu said casually.

“I should go look for them,” Gan Hong hesitated.

But before she could put her plan into action, they were quickly found by Song Ying upon returning to the banquet hall, who scolded them for running around.

However, when she learned from Gan Hong that they had met the Gambling God Tu Shenyi and that Luo Qiu had even played a game of Gomoku with him, Song Ying's eyes widened in disbelief—she knew Gan Hong wouldn’t lie to her, at least not about something like this.

But because it was true, Song Ying felt helpless—she had impulsively decided to steal some grapes from someone else's garden and then happened to encounter the legendary Gambling God.

Why did this plot sound like a scene where a new student encounters an old janitor, only to discover that the janitor is actually the principal?

“Did you invite Tu Shenyi to join the Song Dynasty?” After internally mocking herself, Song Ying immediately asked.

Luo Qiu shook his head and curiously asked, “Can I represent the Song Dynasty Group?”

“You certainly…” Song Ying shot him a fierce glare and coldly huffed, “No!”

Luo Qiu smiled, not caring.

At that moment, Luo Qiu suddenly noticed a crowd of guests gathering in a corner of the hall and curiously asked, “What are they doing?”

“Want to know?” Song Ying crossed her arms and continued coldly, “Go look for yourself!”

Luo Qiu nodded and walked towards the crowd, which made Song Ying glare at him in irritation, stamping her foot, “You’re just going to obey like that?”

At that moment, a series of gasps suddenly came from the crowd.

Gan Hong, with her experience as a attendant, had already squeezed through the crowd before Luo Qiu arrived, allowing him to see the source of the guests’ astonishment.

It was a man in old-fashioned suit, leaning against the wall and sitting cross-legged on the ground.

The man’s complexion was somewhat pale, with a few strands of stubble on his face. He appeared to be nearly forty, and his hair was unkempt, revealing a typical East Asian appearance.

In every way, this man seemed out of place among the attendees, like a poor man who accidentally wandered into a wealthy gathering.

At that moment, this somewhat down-and-out man was holding a ball slightly larger than a fist in one hand, resembling crystal or possibly just a glass object. In front of the disheveled man stood a slightly plump middle-aged gentleman.

This middle-aged man was squatting in front of the disheveled man, intently observing the ball in his hand, exclaiming in astonishment.

“Oh! My God, it’s changed again! This time it's the Milky Way! Incredible!” the middle-aged man exclaimed again.

Luo Qiu found the situation amusing and focused on the small ball in the disheveled man's hand, while Gan Hong asked a nearby noblewoman, “Excuse me, what’s happening here?”

The noblewoman glanced at Gan Hong’s attire and casually said, “This man claims that he has a treasure in his hand. Different people can see many different landscapes through it, as if it contains a small world. Some people didn’t believe it and tried it… It seems like it might really be true? My God.”

From the noblewoman's tone, she likely was one of the onlookers as well.

“A small ball that can show different landscapes?” Gan Hong looked at Luo Qiu with confusion, who was now joined by Song Ying.

“What an incredible treasure.”

At that moment, the middle-aged man's expression became slightly excited as he directly spoke, “Sir, is this ball for sale? Name your price; I wish to possess it… It’s just too exquisite and too unbelievable!”

“Sorry, this ball is not for sale,” said the disheveled man in fluent local dialect, calmly. “There may only be this one in the world; if I sell it to you, I won’t have it anymore.”

The middle-aged man was unwilling to give up just like that, quickly saying, “Name your price, no matter how high! It’s truly a gem, far beyond anything that can compare to stones or diamonds!”

“Uh… could you think it over?” The middle-aged man was relatively polite, simply pleading for the other to sell it without being pushy, even offering a surprising price.

On one hand, it was due to his own pride since there were many prominent people here. On the other hand, though the man looked down-and-out, he had evidently passed through several layers of scrutiny to be here without being turned away, suggesting he was either invited by the Gambling God or someone capable of obtaining an invitation.

“Alright, please give me some time to consider,” the disheveled man seemed to shake his head, looking somewhat reluctant, as if he found it hard to make a decision.

“Playing tricks,” a voice suddenly came from the crowd—it was Song Ying.

The disheveled man turned to see Song Ying. He smiled slightly and said, “How will you know if it’s real or fake if you don’t take a look?”

Saying this, the disheveled man slowly stood up, holding the ‘treasure ball,’ and approached Song Ying, gently raising the ‘treasure ball’ into her view.

Song Ying had little fondness for this attention-seeking guy, but since the ‘treasure ball’ was now in front of her, it was hard not to look. She sighed and turned her gaze towards the ‘treasure ball.’

“Isn’t it just an empty thing? A scam.” Song Ying frowned; the ‘treasure ball’ was an ordinary glass bead, nothing special except being slightly larger than usual.

“You need to look with your heart,” the disheveled man replied calmly. “Legend has it that fish have a memory of only seven seconds, so they cannot remember the many beautiful things in the world; it is too cruel for them. There is a kind of fish that, to preserve the beauty it has seen, seals its memories in its tears. Years pass…”

The disheveled man’s voice became magnetic, like waves washing over the beach in the evening, gentle and comforting to listen to. “And years pass, the fallen tears gather into pearls, entrusting the beauty they have seen in their lives. Why do you look at it with doubtful eyes?”

Song Ying’s gaze gradually changed as she looked at the ‘treasure ball.’

The ‘treasure ball’ was originally transparent; one could even see the lines on the disheveled man’s palm through it. But at that moment, it suddenly became hazy, as if something was brewing within.

It seemed covered by countless white clouds; when the mist cleared, Song Ying saw an island in the middle of the sea.

Blue skies and blue seas, white fine sand… this was an untouched primitive land, more beautiful than any so-called pirate tourist spot she had ever visited.

“How beautiful…” Song Ying instinctively reached out her hands and took the ‘treasure ball’ from the disheveled man, as if enchanted.

At that moment.

Luo Qiu suddenly placed his hand over the ‘treasure ball,’ blocking Song Ying's view while also taking the ‘treasure ball’ into his own hands.

Song Ying was momentarily stunned, seeing Luo Qiu look at the disheveled man, calmly saying, “Can I take a look too?”