I Really Didn’t Mean to Play Go!
Chapter 28: Signed Photo

After finishing his explanation of Go’s history and current development, successfully stirring the students’ enthusiasm, Wu Shuheng struck while the iron was hot. He began setting up pieces on the large demonstration board to explain some basic Go concepts.

These basics included things like liberties, life-and-death situations, tesuji, capturing stones, and some Go-related terms, such as small knight move, jump, and attach.

At this point, Yu Shao found himself somewhat distracted, in contrast to his classmates, who were listening intently as if ready to single-handedly save the current state of Go.

“Hey, Yu,” Zhou De leaned over smugly and whispered to Yu Shao, “I already know everything he’s talking about!”

“If you didn’t, then those days of studying were a complete waste,” Yu Shao shot back.

“I could totally get up there and give that lecture,” Zhou De said, puffing out his chest.

“Then why aren’t you signing up for the simultaneous exhibition later?” Yu Shao raised an eyebrow and asked.

“Heh, true masters don’t reveal their skills so easily.” Zhou De crossed his arms, striking a smug, untouchable pose.

“That’s true. As long as you don’t play, you can’t lose. And if you don’t lose, that’s a win,” Yu Shao nodded and remarked, “Your claim to be Shen Yi of Jiangling has my approval.”

“Speaking of which, I just thought of something.” Zhou De suddenly furrowed his brows and asked, “In Go, there’s a title called ‘Go Sage,’ right?”

In professional Go, beyond the dan rankings, there are honorary titles. These titles are earned by winning specific tournaments and defeating the previous titleholder. If the challenger fails, the current titleholder retains their title. This system makes every title match highly anticipated.

Yu Shao nodded, curious. “Yes, what about it?”

“‘Go Sage’ sounds pretty prestigious.” Zhou De continued, “But why is there only a Go Sage? Why not titles like Go Emperor, Go King, or Go Sovereign? Instead, they come up with things like Tenth Dan, Tengen, or Meijin. Doesn’t it feel like the prestige takes a nosedive?”

“Read fewer novels in your spare time,” Yu Shao said, exasperated.

“No, seriously, think about it.” Zhou De pressed on. “Two players are competing, one with the title ‘Go Sage’ and the other with ‘Tenth Dan.’ Doesn’t Tenth Dan just sound way less impressive?”

Yu Shao hadn’t given it much thought before, but now that Zhou De mentioned it, he couldn’t help but feel that Tenth Dan did indeed sound less grand than Go Sage.

Damn, Zhou De’s nonsense was rubbing off on him!

After a while, Wu Shuheng finally wrapped up his explanation of the basics and smiled. “Alright, that’s all for now. If you’re interested in Go, you can buy some Go books or sign up for a Go class to learn more.”

He smiled again. “Next, I’ll play a ten-board simultaneous exhibition against some of our school’s students.”

“From what I’ve just taught you, you should now have at least a basic understanding of Go. Watch closely and experience the charm of the game through these matches.”

“Now, let’s welcome ten of my schoolmates to the stage!”

As soon as he finished speaking, the classroom erupted into applause. Students clapped while craning their necks, curious to see which ten students would be playing against Wu Shuheng.

At that moment, Li Kang, seated in the front row, turned his head and looked at Yu Shao.

Yu Shao immediately understood and stood up from his seat.

“Yu, hang in there! Try not to lose too badly!” Zhou De shouted.

“Shut up.”

Yu Shao shot Zhou De a glare before heading toward the stage.

Just as Yu Shao was about to step onto the stage, there was a commotion from the direction of Class 6. He turned his head and saw Xu Zijin standing up from her seat, also heading toward the stage.

“She signed up too?”

Yu Shao was a little surprised.

It wasn’t that he was shocked Xu Zijin knew how to play Go. After all, he had seen her twice at the Mountain-Sea Chess Hall, and both times, she had quietly watched the games from start to finish.

For those who don’t understand Go, watching a game is usually incomprehensible.

Yu Shao, however, was only slightly surprised that someone as aloof as Xu Zijin would sign up for this Go simultaneous exhibition.

He himself was participating for conduct points—what about Xu Zijin? Surely, she wasn’t doing it for conduct points too, was she?

“Classmate, do your best!”

At that moment, a clear and sweet voice called out.

Yu Shao froze for a moment and turned his head, only to see Wu Zhixuan clenching her delicate little fists, brimming with energy as she cheered him on.

When she noticed Yu Shao looking her way, she smiled, revealing two charming dimples. In a small voice, she reminded him, “My brother is really good! Good luck!”

She was undeniably adorable.

Even Yu Shao had to admit it—this girl had a charm that could brighten anyone’s mood.

“I’ll do my best,” Yu Shao replied with a smile. “But I’m feeling a little unmotivated. How about this: after the match, you give me a signed photo? That’ll really motivate me.”

“Eh?”

Wu Zhixuan blinked in confusion, looking puzzled. “But I’m just a Beginner Dan player?”

In her mind, only truly exceptional, well-known Go players ever got asked for autographs.

“But you might become the greatest female Go player in the future,” Yu Shao said with a grin. “By then, it won’t be so easy to get your signed photo.”

“Good eye!”

Wu Zhixuan’s eyes lit up. She nodded confidently and patted her ample chest. “Alright then! Play well. After the match, this future greatest female Go player will give you a signed photo.”

“It’s a deal.”

Yu Shao chuckled before heading to the stage. He pulled out a chair at the closest board and sat down.

But as soon as he sat, his eyes widened slightly when he saw the board.

“This is…”

On the Go board in front of him, two black stones had already been placed on the top-left and bottom-left star points.

A handicap game?

Soon, the other nine students began making their way to the stage, one by one. Wu Zhixuan cheerfully encouraged each of them, though unlike Yu Shao, these high school boys blushed furiously under her encouragement and could only nod shyly.

Before long, all the participants in the simultaneous exhibition had taken their seats.

The cameraman adjusted his camera to focus on the Go boards. During the match, he would follow Wu Shuheng and livestream each game to the big screen.

“This will be a handicap game,” Wu Shuheng said into the microphone, smiling at the audience. “As a professional 3-dan player, if I didn’t give a handicap, you might say I was bullying you.”

The room erupted into laughter.

“However, giving a two-stone handicap and playing against ten people at once does add some pressure for me. I might even lose,” Wu Shuheng joked.

Though his words were humble, the confident smile on his face betrayed his true thoughts.

Clearly, he didn’t believe he was at risk of losing.

The gap between amateur and professional players is nothing short of a chasm. Even an amateur 5-dan player, someone capable of winning or even dominating major amateur tournaments, would struggle against a professional.

For a professional player, giving a three-stone handicap to an amateur 5-dan wouldn’t be a problem.

Even though Wu Shuheng was facing ten opponents simultaneously, giving only a two-stone handicap was completely manageable for him.