I Really Didn’t Mean to Play Go!
Chapter 102: Does This Kid Have Pro-Level Talent?

Time flew by, and soon it was Saturday.

Normally, even on weekends, Yu Dongming and Cai Xiaomei would be at their hotpot restaurant by nine in the morning—people in the food business didn’t really get days off.

But today was an exception.

Even though it was already past nine, they hadn’t left for the restaurant. Instead, they were still at home, waiting.

They had made arrangements with a retired 1-dan professional Go player to assess Yu Shao’s skill level at a Go training center today.

"Yu Shao, it’s nine already! Why are you still dragging your feet? Hurry up and wash up!"

Cai Xiaomei called out from the living room impatiently.

"Coming, coming!"

In the bathroom, Yu Shao sighed, quickly finished brushing his teeth, splashed water on his face, and finally stepped out. "Alright, I’m ready."

Yu Dongming glanced at his watch, walked to the door, put on his shoes, and added, "We’ll grab some soy milk and fried dough sticks on the way. Eat in the car."

The three of them left home, bought breakfast downstairs, and then drove toward the Go training center.

About twenty minutes later, the car came to a stop.

As he unbuckled his seatbelt, Yu Dongming said, "Alright, we’re here. Let’s get out."

Yu Shao stepped out of the car and looked up at a well-decorated Go training center.

The sign above the entrance was made of seven giant black-and-white Go stones, each inscribed with a single, elegant character. Together, they formed the name:

Yidao Go Training Center.

"Old Yu, isn’t there a typo in the name?" Cai Xiaomei asked, frowning at the sign. "Shouldn’t it be ‘Yi’ as in ‘dueling’?"

"You don’t know, do you?"

Yu Dongming chuckled smugly, eager to show off. "This was done on purpose. Over a hundred years ago, there was an undefeated Go Sage named Shen Yi, who never lost a game after turning twenty-three."

"The ‘Yi’ in his name is written like this. Even though he’s been dead for years, he’s still an idol for many Go players. That’s why some people say ‘Yidao’—it’s actually referring to Shen Yi’s way of Go."

"Oh, Shen Yi? I’ve heard of him! I’ve even seen some short videos about him online," Cai Xiaomei said, suddenly enlightened. "Didn’t they say he was so strong that he had no opponents left, and that’s why he became depressed? That’s insane!"

"Yeah, I don’t get it either. Being undefeated sounds like a dream. How could that make someone depressed?"

Yu Dongming shook his head in disbelief, then turned to Yu Shao.

"Alright, let’s head in. When you see Teacher Su, be respectful—he used to be a professional player. Make sure you call him Teacher Su, understood?"

Yu Shao nodded.

Only then did Yu Dongming and Cai Xiaomei push open the glass doors and step inside.

As they approached the playing room, they could already hear the crisp sound of stones being placed on the board—

Tap. Tap. Tap.

Yu Dongming stopped at the door and knocked.

A moment later, a lean man in his mid-thirties opened it.

Seeing Yu Dongming, the man looked a little surprised before breaking into a smile. "Oh? Boss Yu? You’re here early!"

Then, his gaze fell on Yu Shao. "And this must be your son? He’s a good-looking kid!"

"Yes, Teacher Su, this is my son."

Yu Dongming quickly pulled a pack of cigarettes from his pocket, offering one to the man while shooting Yu Shao a look.

"Hurry up and greet Teacher Su."

Yu Shao obediently said, "Teacher Su."

Su Chengping took the cigarette with a smile. "Boss Yu, over the phone, you mentioned that your son wants to become a professional Go player?"

"That’s right."

Yu Dongming sighed. "He says he beat a former Dojo Trainee and now wants to go pro. My wife and I don’t know much about this stuff, so we figured we’d bring him here and have you take a look."

"Beating a former Dojo Trainee? That’s no small feat."

Su Chengping glanced at Yu Shao and chuckled. "But winning against a trainee and becoming a professional are two completely different things—especially if we’re talking about a former trainee."

"Exactly! This kid taught himself Go. I didn’t even know until recently."

Yu Dongming nodded. "That’s why I feel like this whole thing isn’t very realistic. But since he seems serious about it, I wanted to bring him here to see if he has a real shot."

"Taught himself Go... and still managed to beat a former trainee?"

Su Chengping raised an eyebrow, visibly surprised.

Even if the opponent was formerly on the path to pro, that still suggested serious talent.

"Of course, he’s nothing compared to you, Teacher Su. You were a professional player! If it weren’t for health reasons, you’d probably still be dominating the tournament scene!"

Yu Dongming grinned.

Hearing this, Su Chengping was clearly pleased.

He had retired early due to health issues, and though he rarely talked about it, it was still a sore spot.

"Alright then."

He nodded. "Since the kids are all playing their matches right now, I’ll play a game with him and see how he does."

Hearing this, Yu Dongming’s eyes lit up. "That would be amazing! Next time you come by the restaurant, your hotpot is on the house!"

"Haha, no need for that."

Su Chengping chuckled and turned to Yu Shao. "A self-taught player who beat a trainee? That’s worth seeing. Come on in."

"You two can wait outside on the sofas," Yu Dongming quickly added. "We’d just be in the way inside—we don’t understand any of it anyway."

"Fair enough."

Su Chengping nodded, then looked at Yu Shao.

"You’re Yu Shao, right? Come in."

Yu Shao nodded and followed him into the playing room.

Inside, Yu Shao was surprised by what he saw.

"So many people?"

The room was massive, filled with nearly two hundred students, all engaged in their games.

There were boys and girls, some as young as seven or eight, while others looked to be in their mid-teens.

No adults, though—this place was clearly focused on youth training.

The atmosphere was intense.

Everyone was completely absorbed in their games, heads down, eyes fixed on the board. The subtle tension in the air was almost suffocating.

"Damn, this place must be making a fortune."

Yu Shao did some quick math.

He had glanced at the price list outside—6,000 yuan per student per year.

With two hundred students, that meant a revenue of 1.2 million a year—

And they only came on weekends.

Meaning Su Chengping only worked two days a week—and still made millions annually.

...Respect.

Su Chengping led Yu Shao to an empty table, pulled out a chair, and sat down.

"Have a seat."

Yu Shao sat down across from him.

"You want to play Black or White?" Su Chengping asked.

"Let’s decide by guessing."

Su Chengping raised an eyebrow. Most amateurs preferred choosing their color.

Still, he didn’t comment.

"Alright, let’s guess."

He grabbed a handful of white stones. Yu Shao took a single black stone and placed it on the board.

Su Chengping opened his palm—

"Two, four… six."

With six stones, that meant he would play Black.

Yu Shao nodded, returned the stone to the bowl, and exchanged Go sets.

"Please guide me," he said.

"Likewise," Su Chengping replied.

He thought for a moment, then placed the first move.

Tap.

Column 17, Row 4—Small Point.

"So this is my first real game against a professional Go player in this world..."

Yu Shao’s gaze flickered.

He had played against Wu Shuheng before, but that was a handicap game.

This, however, was a true, even match.

After a brief pause, Yu Shao placed his stone.

Tap.

Column 4, Row 4—Star Point.

"Star Point, huh?"

Su Chengping watched as Yu Shao placed his stone, falling into deep thought.

"If I want to assess his strength properly, I should lead the game into a complex position—not an all-out battle, but something that tests his understanding of subtle nuances."

"Alright then… a diagonal Small Point approach."

With that decision made, Su Chengping picked up a black stone and placed it gently on the board.

Tap.

Column 16, Row 17—Small Point.

Yu Shao glanced at the board, then immediately played his move.

Tap.

Column 4, Row 16—Star Point.

The game quickly developed into a Diagonal Small Point vs. Two-Star Formation. The two players continued exchanging moves, the crisp sound of stones filling the room.

Before long, they had played over twenty moves.

"Hmm…"

Su Chengping examined the board and nodded internally.

"At least in these first twenty moves, his opening is solid. No obvious flaws."

After a brief pause, he placed another move.

Column 10, Row 16—Extension.

The moment his black stone landed, Yu Shao, without hesitation, placed his next move.

Tap!

Column 13, Row 4—Diagonal Approach!

"He went straight for the diagonal approach?"

Su Chengping was slightly taken aback.

If White had played a simple knight’s move to contain Black, this match would have turned into a long, drawn-out battle.

But this aggressive diagonal approach made it clear—Yu Shao wanted to attack!

It was a direct threat to Black’s two stones on the right side, forcing a response.

"This kid… even though he knows he’s facing a professional, he isn’t afraid to fight. His moves are incredibly fierce!"

Su Chengping frowned slightly, thinking through his options.

"If I want to keep things stable, I could just press down. That would steer the game toward a calmer direction. But if I attach instead… it’ll lead to an all-out war across the board!"

"Hmm…"

Originally, he had planned to test Yu Shao’s Go fundamentals slowly—to evaluate his understanding of the game through subtle exchanges rather than direct combat.

After all, most amateurs wouldn’t dare engage in an all-out fight against a professional—because if they lost, they would lose catastrophically.

But now, seeing Yu Shao take the first aggressive step, his thoughts changed.

"Alright then—if you want a fight, let’s fight!"

Su Chengping’s eyes sharpened.

He swiftly picked up a black stone and slammed it onto the board.

"If you think becoming a professional is easy…"

"Then let me show you how far you still have to go!"

Tap!

Column 13, Row 5—Attach!

Faced with White’s attack, Black didn’t back down—instead, he pressed forward aggressively, initiating the strongest counterattack.

With this move, the game erupted into a storm of conflict!

Yu Shao remained unfazed.

His expression remained calm as he picked up his next move and placed it down without hesitation.

Tap.

Tap.

Tap.

One after another, the stones fell onto the board.

In the lower-right corner, an intense battle unfolded.

Neither side backed down.

As the fight escalated, Su Chengping’s expression slowly changed.

What started as calm confidence turned into deep concentration, and eventually, into something close to disbelief.

"He… he’s not weak!"

"Even in this battle, I haven’t gained any advantage!"

"His responses are flawless!"

"I originally planned to hane and clamp him down, but his unexpected Flying Press completely disrupted my rhythm, giving me no breathing room! And now… those two Black stones on the left are suddenly difficult to handle!"

Su Chengping locked his eyes onto the board, falling into a long thought.

"If I jump away, he might extend and continue the fight. If I cap, he has a forcing sacrifice!"

"If I cut, he’ll hane. If I stand, White absolutely won’t let me hane forward—he’ll extend instead, splitting the battlefield in half!"

"If he plays a two-space jump, I might be able to Tiger’s Mouth and stabilize, letting Black gain some influence while White takes territory."

After a long silence, Su Chengping finally placed his next move.

Column 13, Row 16—Cut!

Without hesitation, Yu Shao placed his response.

Tap.

Column 10, Row 19—Throw-in!

This move completely shattered Su Chengping’s predictions.

His eyes widened in shock.

"White just invaded Black’s formation outright?!"

He had never considered this move.

Not even for a second.

Not until Yu Shao actually played it.

And now, seeing it on the board, he felt an immediate sense of danger.

"If I don’t capture this stone, White will have a foothold deep in my territory, leading to a life-or-death battle in the lower-left corner!"

"Whoever wins this corner… wins the entire game."

"Whoever loses… will be completely wiped out!"

"The complexity of this fight is beyond anything I expected!"

Su Chengping clenched his jaw, rapidly calculating the variations.

"If I capture, I’ll end up a move behind, and White will gain influence. But if I don’t… then this fight will escalate beyond imagination."

He was at a crossroads.

This single move would decide the entire trajectory of the game.

After a long silence, he finally made his choice.

Tap.

Column 9, Row 19—Capture.

Meanwhile, outside the playing room…

Cai Xiaomei sat on the couch, restless.

"How much longer is this going to take?" she asked her husband anxiously.

"It’s only been half an hour. I don’t know much about Go, but a game should take at least two hours, right?"

Yu Dongming checked his watch and smiled. "What, you can’t wait anymore?"

"It’s not that," Cai Xiaomei sighed. "I’m just worried about Xiao Shao. He was so confident about becoming a pro, but if he gets crushed, it’ll be a huge blow to him."

Hearing this, Yu Dongming hesitated.

"Old Yu, you should’ve told Teacher Su to go easy on him! Xiao Shao’s just a self-taught player—he may have won that high school tournament, but that’s nothing compared to a real professional."

Cai Xiaomei frowned. "Why did you throw him straight into a match against a pro? You could’ve found a Dojo Trainee instead!"

"I don’t know any Dojo Trainees!"

Yu Dongming sighed. "Teacher Su comes to our hotpot place all the time—that’s why we know him."

"But what if Xiao Shao gets discouraged? He’s only self-taught! We didn’t even know he played Go until he told us!"

Cai Xiaomei’s worry deepened. "How can a self-taught player compete against a professional?"

"But Xiao Shao agreed to it himself," Yu Dongming reasoned. "Sometimes, letting kids take a hit is good for them. Otherwise, how will they learn their limits?"

Just as Cai Xiaomei was about to argue back, the playing room door suddenly opened.

Su Chengping stepped out.

"Teacher Su is already done?"

Cai Xiaomei froze in place.

"Xiao Shao… lost that fast?"

Yu Dongming was also stunned.

Regaining his composure, he quickly pulled out his cigarette pack, hurried over, and offered one to Su Chengping with a polite smile.

"Teacher Su, you’re finished already? That was fast."

Su Chengping didn’t take the cigarette.

He looked at Yu Dongming, his expression unreadable.

After a long moment, he finally nodded slightly, his voice a little hoarse.

"Yeah… we’re done."

Yu Dongming felt something was off.

But he still asked the question he cared about the most.

"Teacher Su… does this kid have the talent to become a professional?"