Harem Daily Life

Kang Mowan saw this and quickly tried to smooth things over: "Prince Ning made a mistake in his haste. I hope Your Majesty and the Empress will not blame me. How about this? I'll increase the prize to 20,000 taels, and the winner will take it."

He Jinan snorted coldly: "Okay, then let's do as Prince Jingnan said. Your Highness Prince Ning, please."

At the beginning of the game, Prince Ning's offensive was fierce and aggressive, and every move was like a sharp blade that went straight to He Jinan's defense line.

He Linzhang frowned deeply, watching the game while explaining it to Tao Yanyan, who knew nothing about chess.

"Pressing forward step by step, leaving no room for survival, it seems Prince Ning is a radical."

"Jin'an is retreating to advance, making a concession first, but in fact it is luring the enemy deeper."

"It's a pity that we couldn't defend it. Prince Ning was slightly better."

"Jin'an made a good move. He thought four steps ahead. His chess skills have improved."

He Jinan remained calm, his eyes fixed on the chessboard, his fingers tapping rhythmically. After a moment's thought, he placed a seemingly ordinary move, yet it subtly constructed another line of defense.

As time went on, the situation became increasingly stalemate.

Beads of sweat formed on Prince Ning's forehead, and a hint of nervousness lingered in his eyes. He Jin'an, however, remained calm, his every move precisely timed at the crucial moment.

"What we competed on just now was skills, and now it's a competition of mentality. It depends on who can keep calm and break through the siege." He Linzhang looked at his son with a look of approval and appreciation.

Tao Yanyan's heart was also lifted. Although she didn't care about winning or losing, who wouldn't want to win if they could? She gently held He Linzhang's hand, staring at the chessboard without blinking.

Just when everyone thought the situation had reached a stalemate and was difficult to move forward, He Jinan suddenly launched a counterattack, and a series of exquisite chess moves caught King Ning off guard.

Prince Ning's face turned pale, and he almost dropped the chess piece in his hand. However, he still had some skills. In the end, Prince Ning successfully reversed the situation, and the two fell into a stalemate again.

Mr. Shi stroked his beard, looked at the chessboards of both sides, and said, "Let's stop here. You two are tied. Continuing would only waste time."

The two men looked at each other. Young men would not give in in their fights, so they ignored Mr. Shi and focused their attention on the chessboard.

Mr. Shi had no choice but to turn his attention to He Linzhang.

He Linzhang also knew that what Mr. Shi said was right. He cleared his throat and said, "Mr. Shi is absolutely right. The game is already deadlocked. It's hard to tell who will win if we continue. Why not just call it a draw?"

Although He Jinan and Prince Ning were unwilling, they had to put down the chess pieces in their hands because they could not disobey the emperor's order.

Kang Mowan smiled and stood up. "Even a draw is fine. Both of you are masters of chess. Your Majesty and the Empress will decide how to handle this prize."

He Linzhang looked at Tao Yanyan, who thought for a moment and said, "How about we each take half of this twenty thousand taels of gold?"

It was fair and just, and everyone applauded.

He Jinan and Prince Ning also put aside their competitive spirit and returned to their seats. While the game remained undecided, it showcased the mastery of both nations' skills. Only after the banquet concluded did He Jinan have a chance to chat privately with his teacher, Mr. Shi, to hear his honest opinion on the previous game.

Mr. Shi stroked Jin'an's arm and said, "That last game was your best performance in recent years. I didn't expect that even in such a desperate situation, you could remain calm and gradually turn the disadvantage around. Not bad, not bad."

He Jinan said ashamedly: "I am still not good enough in my studies and I have failed to live up to the teacher's teachings."

Mr. Shi hummed, "Being able to reflect on this is progress. Okay, you can delve deeper into this later. Look at those rare chess games more often, train your thinking, and find the tricks."

He Jinan then asked about the Xia Kingdom's Ning Wang's true chess skills. Mr. Shi said, "At first glance, he is indeed exceptionally sharp and his skills surpass yours, but he lacks stamina and is easily distracted by external factors. If he plays for too long, his mind will be disturbed. He is a person who is eager for quick success and instant benefits. His chess skills will not go far."

He Jinan had the same feeling. In fact, if the teacher had not come out today and asked them to count it as a draw and have enough time to continue playing, He Jinan was confident that he would be able to beat the opponent as time went on.

He Jinan was furious when he thought about how such a person would have the audacity to ask for the Emperor's sister's hand in marriage. "Teacher was being too frivolous today. He forced her into a trap and almost made my Emperor's sister the prize in a gambling game, harming her."

Mr. Shi: “…”

"Xiao Jinan, why are you like this? Who put a knife to your neck and forced you to fight? You did it voluntarily!" Mr. Shi put his hands on his hips, puffed his beard and glared.

"Ahem, it was clearly the teacher who was playing dirty first. He looked down on Prince Ning and didn't want to play against him, so he pushed me out and made me bear so much pressure for nothing. Why doesn't the teacher allow others to say anything?"

"You, you, you, I gave you the opportunity to show your learning results in front of your father and mother, and to defeat the Xia Kingdom by the way, but you don't even appreciate it." Mr. Shi pouted, as if to say that it was really difficult to lead an apprentice.

He Jinan chuckled: "Come on, teacher, you pushed me out because you didn't want to, and you said it so righteously, teacher, you are not telling the truth."

The old man and the young boy were arguing, and neither of them noticed that a figure was standing at the corner not far behind them.

After the two men finished "blaming" each other, Mr. Shi slowly left the palace, and He Jinan watched him leave before returning to his own palace.

Shu Yunyun turned the corner and looked in the direction He Jinan had left, lost in thought. She had previously kept her gaze fixed on the Emperor, but today, upon meeting the Second Prince, his tall stature and jade-like face, a bold idea formed in her mind. Instead of trying to capture a Majesty who only had eyes for the Empress, she might as well focus her efforts on this fifteen-year-old prince.

In terms of age, she was sixteen and the Second Prince was fifteen. It didn't matter if the girl was older; they were of similar age and had more conversations to share. Besides, at this age, most princes would begin choosing a wife. If she became a prince's consort, her future would be bright.

The more Shu Yunyun thought about it, the happier she felt. However, there was still a huge problem in front of her, which was the seniority of the two.

According to seniority, she was the Second Prince's aunt, twice as old as him. But she also heard that the Second Prince was adopted by Empress Tao from the common people and was not a true member of the royal family, so he had no relationship with her at all.

As soon as Shu Yunyun returned to the Clothing Bureau, she began to plan how to approach the Second Prince.

A few days later, the Shangyi Bureau had a batch of new clothes for princes and princesses to be delivered to various palaces. Shu Yunyun volunteered to deliver the clothes to the second prince.

Seeing that she did not try her best to show herself before His Majesty this time, Manager Zhao handed the Second Prince's clothes to her and specifically reminded her that the Second Prince was now living in Qingyun Pavilion and must not be sent to Changle Palace.

Shu Yunyun dressed up nicely and then went to Qingyun Pavilion with her clothes.