I Really Didn’t Mean to Play Go!
Chapter 98: Do You Think Becoming a Professional Go Player Is That Easy?

Monday.

Yu Shao didn’t show up to class until after the morning self-study session. He still had leftover conduct points to use—might as well enjoy a bit of freedom.

As soon as he entered the classroom, he heard Zhou De boasting loudly, his voice full of excitement as he exaggerated his story to the surrounding students.

"At that moment, Yu Shao placed his stone on the board, and his opponent turned pale, unable to say a word! It was a move that shook the heavens and stunned everyone present! But only I, Jiangling’s very own Shen Yi, saw the true intention behind Yu Shao’s play..."

As soon as Yu Shao stepped in, all his classmates simultaneously turned their heads to look at him.

Even Cheng Mengjie was staring at him, her expression somewhat complicated.

Zhou De met Yu Shao’s gaze and raised his eyebrows smugly, as if saying, "Bro, how does it feel to have me hyping you up?"

Yu Shao glanced at Zhou De speechlessly, then walked over to his desk, pulled out his chair, and sat down. He unzipped his backpack and took out his textbook.

"Hey, teach me how to play Go," Zhou De leaned over and said. "I want to learn the Great Avalanche! I read that it’s an insanely complicated opening, even professional players fear it—super cool!"

"Don’t play the Great Avalanche," Yu Shao shot him a sideways glance.

"Why not?" Zhou De’s eyes widened. "It’s such a sick opening—this is my destined strategy!"

"You also like flashy plays in games, but every time I check your record, it’s 0/11/0. Ever considered why that happens?" Yu Shao countered. "Besides, weren’t you saying just a while ago that the Three-Star Formation was your ‘destined strategy’?"

"You looking down on me or what?"

Zhou De immediately got fired up. "Games are games, Go is Go! I’m learning the Great Avalanche no matter what! Once I master it, I’m gonna wreck you!"

Yu Shao gave him a sharp look but, seeing Zhou De’s unwavering determination, didn’t argue further.

The Great Avalanche was indeed considered obsolete by AI, but that only applied to professional players. For amateurs, using it wouldn’t make much of a difference.

More importantly, over the past month, Yu Shao had discovered something that was almost harder to accept than eating dirt—Zhou De actually had a talent for Go.

Between Classes

After two periods, it was time for the morning exercise break.

A wave of students poured out of the teaching building and onto the field, but surprisingly, the usual nationwide broadcast of the morning calisthenics didn’t play.

Immediately, the entire student body exchanged confused glances.

Did the speaker break?

Soon, the portly principal stepped onto the stage at the front of the field, holding a microphone. With a broad smile, he said, "Students, quiet down for a moment."

The crowd quickly hushed, all eyes on the principal, faces full of curiosity.

"The day before yesterday, three of our students—Yu Shao, Xu Zijin, and Zhong Yufei—represented our school in the 8th City High School Go League, organized by the City Education Bureau, and they emerged as champions!"

The principal beamed. "As winners, each of them will receive a 3,000-yuan prize and a certificate of 'Outstanding Young Go Player' awarded by the Education Bureau!"

"Now, let’s give them a big round of applause as they come up to receive their awards!"

The students erupted into a frenzy of chatter.

"Three thousand yuan? Holy crap, they give that much for a high school Go competition?!"

"Dude, Go tournaments always have big prizes. Professional events offer millions, and international tournaments have prize pools in the tens of millions! Three thousand is just pocket change."

"That’s not the point! The real shocker is that I heard South China Third High had two former dojo trainees trying to go pro, and our school still won? We’ve been getting eliminated in the first round for years—how did we suddenly take the championship?!"

"Didn’t Yu Shao and Xu Zijin beat Wu Shuheng, a 3-dan player? Why wouldn’t they be able to win?"

"But… weren’t they given handicap stones?"

"If they manage to beat former dojo trainees, doesn’t that mean they have a shot at going pro?"

"I heard that once you become a professional Go player, you get an automatic recommendation to top universities!"

"Forget that—think about the money! Do you know how much pro players make?!"

"No way, becoming a pro is insanely hard. My cousin has been training in a dojo since she was a kid, and she’s been trying to get her pro license for seven years. She’s eighteen now and still hasn’t made it."

A heated discussion spread through the crowd, and many students turned to look at Yu Shao with astonishment.

Among them, Yu Shao himself was slightly taken aback. He hadn’t expected the prize money to be handed out in front of the entire school.

"Yu Shao, what are you standing around for?"

Li Kang frowned when he saw Yu Shao still standing there. "Go up and get your award!"

Snapping back to reality, Yu Shao nodded and walked onto the stage. He accepted the envelope with his prize money and the certificate from the principal.

Soon, Xu Zijin and Zhong Yufei also came up and received their awards.

"Let’s give them another big round of applause for their outstanding performance! We hope they continue to achieve great results!"

With that, the entire school burst into applause.

Some students clapped with admiration, others with envy, and of course, there were a few with a hint of bitterness.

Three thousand yuan might not mean much to an adult, but for a high school student, it was a huge sum.

After Yu Shao stepped down from the stage, the principal continued his speech for a while before finally wrapping up the morning exercise session.

"Yu, you have to treat us today!"

As soon as the break ended, Zhou De declared, looking like he’d cut ties with Yu Shao if he refused.

"Yeah! Treat us!" Zhang Wenbo joined in, openly displaying his jealousy. "After school, we’re playing Five-Man Squad at the internet café. You better cover the fees!"

That Evening

After a long-overdue Five-Man Squad session with Zhou De and the others—and suffering a glorious seven-game losing streak—Yu Shao returned home.

He finished his homework and then curled up on the sofa, watching TV while waiting for Yu Dongming and Cai Xiaomei to come back.

It wasn’t until 10 PM that his parents finally returned, stepping into the house and changing their shoes at the entrance.

"Dad, Mom, you’re back?"

Seeing them enter, Yu Shao greeted them immediately.

"Mm."

Yu Dongming glanced at Yu Shao while switching shoes and asked, "Watching TV again? Did you finish your homework?"

"Yeah, all done."

Yu Shao nodded, then hesitated for a moment before saying, "Dad, Mom, I have something I want to tell you."

"What is it? Do you need money?"

Yu Dongming immediately guessed, his tone wary. "What do you need money for?"

"No, it’s not that."

Yu Shao shook his head. After a brief pause, he finally said, "I want to become a professional Go player."

The room fell into silence.

Both Yu Dongming and Cai Xiaomei froze on the spot.

It took them a good few seconds to process what they’d just heard. Then, Yu Dongming frowned deeply and said,

"Are you running a fever? What nonsense are you talking about? A professional Go player? You think that’s something you can just decide to be?"