As soon as he let his guard down, the Emperor of Xiyun laughed and said, "It’s just a few dishes, I won’t have indigestion from eating them, and tonight you won’t be able to escape. During the day, you promised me that you would play a game of chess with me and let me win."
An Jing: "..." What’s there to be proud of about being let win... It’s as if it’s something to brag about all year long...
Xiao Changyi didn’t pay any more attention to the Emperor of Xiyun. While he ate his vegetables, he made sure An Jing also had plenty.
On the way here, his wife hadn’t eaten well, so he took the opportunity to make sure she was well fed.
The Emperor of Xiyun continued eating the vegetables Xiao Changyi picked for him while observing Xiao Changyi and An Jing. He noticed that Xiao Changyi frequently served An Jing vegetables, and An Jing did the same for Xiao Changyi. Seeing their harmonious relationship as husband and wife, he grew increasingly satisfied with An Jing as his daughter-in-law.
After dinner, they rinsed their mouths with mouthwash tea, and then the three of them moved to the Main Hall of the Imperial Palace to drink real tea.
The tea leaves were rolled tightly like needles, somewhat resembling the Jun Mountain Silver Leaf that An Jing had tried in modern times, but An Jing didn’t ask what tea it was. Instead, she sipped her tea while watching Xiao Changyi and the Emperor of Xiyun play chess.
An Jing had played Go with her grandfather before. Although she knew how to play, she wasn’t very good; her grandfather would always beat her soundly. But she never thought about winning against her grandfather; as long as he was happy, that was good enough.
Besides farming, her grandfather had only two hobbies in his life: calligraphy and playing chess.
Especially Go and Chinese chess, her grandfather was considered a master in the village, and very few people could beat him.
It is customary to remain silent while observing a game of chess, but An Jing could tell that Xiao Changyi was deliberately letting the Emperor of Xiyun win. Yet the Emperor of Xiyun was still getting massacred and lost completely. An Jing really wanted to make a comment.
The Emperor of Xiyun’s chess skills were clearly even worse than hers!
The problem was that the Emperor of Xiyun always liked to challenge people to play chess with him. Was he torturing himself or others...?
Looking at the disastrous situation on the chessboard with no chance of turning the tide, the Emperor of Xiyun lamented with deep resentment, "Yi Er, didn’t you say you’d let me win...?"
Xiao Changyi was simply at a loss for words. He had let the Emperor of Xiyun get to this point, yet he still couldn’t win; what more could he do?
An Jing stifled a laugh.
"This game doesn’t count; let’s play again!" Saying this, the Emperor of Xiyun pitifully held out two fingers to Xiao Changyi, "Give me a two-piece handicap."
Xiao Changyi didn’t even think before replying, "Ten pieces."
The Emperor of Xiyun immediately became enraged: "You underestimate me too much! Fine, ten pieces it is!"
"Pff." An Jing couldn’t hold it in any longer and laughed out loud.
The Emperor of Xiyun immediately narrowed his eyes at An Jing, his imperial demeanor fully manifesting as if he were about to order someone’s decapitation the next moment.
Being close to the Emperor is like being close to a tiger, and An Jing knew this saying well. Seeing the Emperor of Xiyun’s reaction, she quickly put down her teacup, wanting to apologize: "May my father-in-law not be angry, your daughter-in-law meant no disrespect—"
But before she could finish her sentence, Xiao Changyi stopped her and icily said to the Emperor of Xiyun, "Do you still want to win or not?"
The Emperor of Xiyun immediately nodded vigorously, "Yes!" Then he turned to An Jing with a smile: "Jingjing, there’s no need for you to be so formal. With Yi Er protecting you, even if you are presumptuous, I will not take it seriously."
An Jing was at a loss for words all of a sudden.
"Just laugh as much as you like, don’t mind him; his chess skills are really terrible," Xiao Changyi reassured her as he pulled An Jing to sit down again.
The Emperor of Xiyun felt frustrated and after a long while, spoke again, "Let’s play another round, this time I will surely beat you!" After a pause, "You promised to let me win, Yi Er, you can’t go back on your word!"