After dinner, Raymond Lei went off to handle official business, while Madam Lei finished her chores and headed to Snow Yue's room.
She found it odd to see Snow Yue simultaneously manipulating black and white stones on the board, locked in battle.
"Snow Yue, what's this game?"
Snow Yue looked up at Madam Lei. "Aunt-master, this is Go."
Madam Lei thought about it and realized she had never heard of Go before, so she sat down across from Snow Yue. "Snow, what do you think of Little Huang?"
"He's pretty good."
Snow Yue answered absentmindedly, her hands never stopping as she toyed with the stones.
Hearing this, Madam Lei couldn't help but feel thrilled, as if she'd finally turned the tables and could celebrate. "So, what did you two talk about this afternoon?"
"We didn't really talk about anything," Snow Yue replied just as casually.
"Didn't you spend the whole afternoon together?" Madam Lei asked in surprise.
"Oh, actually, we were playing Go the whole time."
Madam Lei stared at the little board covered in black and white stones and couldn't help but feel at a loss for words. She never expected Snow Yue to still have such a playful side; to her, Go was just a children's pastime.
Just then, Snow Yue happened to look up and caught the skepticism in Madam Lei's eyes.
So, she had an idea. "Aunt-master, why don't we play a game?"
This afternoon, she'd played five games against Ian Song and lost miserably each time, even though she improved with every match. Since she couldn't beat him, she figured she might as well find some sense of accomplishment by playing her aunt-master.
"Alright, I'll play a couple of games with you. But first, you have to teach me how to play." Wanting to probe what had really happened that afternoon, Madam Lei naturally didn't refuse. She was sure Snow Yue was hiding something—there was no way they spent the whole afternoon just playing Go.
A sly glint flashed in Snow Yue's eyes, and she quickly explained the rules and basics of Go to Madam Lei.
The rules and gameplay of Go weren't difficult; Madam Lei picked it up after just one explanation.
"Aunt-master, since you're a beginner, you take black and go first!" Snow Yue said.
"Alright. Please go easy on me, Snow."
"Of course, of course!"
At first, Madam Lei, just like Snow Yue when she first tried Go, didn't take this simple game seriously.
But soon enough, she realized this little board was anything but simple.
It was a real test of a person's ability to plan and calculate.
Because of a careless mistake, in just half an hour, the white stones formed a massive dragon on the board and trapped the black stones completely.
"I lost."
Madam Lei laughed, "Let's play another round."
Finally winning a game, Snow Yue felt as if she'd finally turned the tables and could celebrate—she was thrilled.
Second round.
Madam Lei still played black and went first.
But this time, Madam Lei was clearly much more serious, pausing to think before every move.
Gradually, Snow Yue started to feel the pressure. Suddenly, she remembered the patterns Ian Song used against her earlier, and with a flash of inspiration, began to copy his strategies.
Step by step, one sequence after another.
Soon, Madam Lei was trapped in a corner, unable to fight back.
Madam Lei felt puzzled by her loss, staring at the board for a long time before she finally saw the hidden subtleties.
"You little rascal, you're downright sneaky!"
Madam Lei said this and sat back down, while Snow Yue stared blankly at the board, her brows tightly knit, completely absorbed—she didn’t even notice Raymond Lei’s arrival.
Raymond Lei asked, "Madam, what are you two doing?"
Madam Lei quickly whispered, "Shh, don’t talk. Don’t disturb Snow’s thinking."
Hearing this, Raymond Lei grew even more confused. What were his wife and Snow Yue up to?
In the third game, Madam Lei lost.
But it took Snow Yue a full hour to beat her, and she had to use two of Ian Song's strategic patterns.
"Interesting—let's go again!"
Without realizing it, Madam Lei was completely hooked.
The fourth game began.
The two battled for more than an hour, and in the end, Madam Lei won—by just two points, a narrow victory.
After staring at the board for a while, Snow Yue realized she'd made a small mistake in the midgame, and her aunt-master had caught it, steadily turning that tiny error into a bigger advantage, finally breaking her strategy and snatching victory from defeat.
"I was careless this time. Let's play again."
"Sure!"
...
Raymond Lei finished his official duties and returned, only to find his wife nowhere in their room.
Instinctively, he glanced toward Snow Yue's room and saw light shining from inside.
He walked over and knocked gently on the door.
The door opened.
Madam Lei invited him in.
"Make yourself comfortable, dear," Madam Lei said, then sat back down. Snow Yue, meanwhile, was staring intently at the board, brows furrowed, completely absorbed—she didn't even notice Raymond Lei had arrived.
"Madam, what are you two doing?" Raymond Lei asked.
Madam Lei quickly whispered, "Shh! Don't talk, don't disturb Snow's thinking."
Hearing this, Raymond Lei grew even more confused. What were his wife and Snow Yue up to?
Instinctively, his gaze fell on the board covered in black and white stones, but he couldn't spot any hidden secrets.
Finally.
After another fifteen minutes, Snow Yue placed a white stone on the board, her furrowed brow suddenly relaxing and even a faint smile appearing at her lips.
Now it was Madam Lei's turn.
She stared at the board for several seconds, then closed her eyes in deep thought, looking just like a meditating monk.
"Oh, Uncle Lei, when did you get here?"
Snow Yue looked at Raymond Lei, a little surprised.
"I've been here for a while!" Raymond Lei replied, speechless. He'd been standing there for some time and was completely ignored.
"Snow, what are you and your aunt-master up to?"
"Oh, we're playing Go," Snow Yue replied.
"Go?"
"Uncle Lei, here's how you play Go...!"
Raymond Lei was a smart man. After Snow Yue explained, the board that had made no sense to him suddenly came alive. The more he looked, the more serious his expression became. After following the latest moves, his brow furrowed deeply.
He finally understood why such a small board could captivate both his wife and Snow Yue—there were deep mysteries hidden within.
After a long moment with her eyes closed, Madam Lei finally opened them and made her move.
"Madam, how can you play that move? Isn't that suicide?"
Seeing this, Raymond Lei couldn't help but point it out. Madam Lei's move had killed a whole group of black stones nearby.
Madam Lei just shot him a look and ignored him.
On the other side, Snow Yue was deep in thought.
Feeling a bit embarrassed at being ignored, Raymond Lei started calculating from the white side. Only then did he realize his wife's move was actually brilliant.
The two went back and forth, move after move.
Finally, after another full hour, the game ended.
Raymond Lei, who had been watching for over an hour, couldn't resist any longer. "Madam, let me play a round with Snow!"
"Sure!"
Raymond Lei thought he'd fully mastered Go after watching for so long, but as the saying goes, the bystander sees clearly. Once he sat down, he found himself completely on the defensive.
In just fifteen minutes, he ran out of moves.
The mighty commander of a million troops had actually been defeated by a young girl—Raymond Lei was not happy about it.
So, he demanded a rematch.
In the second game, Raymond Lei lost even worse.
What he didn't know was that after so many battles with Madam Lei, Snow Yue's Go strength had improved tremendously. Through sparring, she had gradually mastered Ian Song's patterns; so even though Madam Lei was gifted and brilliant at calculation, she was still a step behind Snow Yue.