The world of film and television begins with Hikaru no Go

The opponents on the second day were the fourteenth and thirteenth place teams, and there were still no major surprises.

On the third day, the same happened to the twelfth and eleventh place finishers.

A group of students ranked lower were almost powerless against Yu Liang.

But each of them felt that playing this game with Yu Liang was more rewarding than practicing for a month on their own.

On the fourth day, Zhang Fugui came in tenth place.

Zhang Fugui is a "special character" in the group. His chess skills are not weak, but he has one characteristic that makes everyone's headache - he is slow.

It wasn't just slow, it was an appallingly slow pace.

You have to think about every move, think it over and over again, confirm it after you've thought it over, hesitate after you've confirmed it, and after you've hesitated and are about to make a move, you pull your hand back and say, "Let me think about it some more."

Zhu Dayong had scolded him countless times for this, but Zhang Fugui remained unchanged. It wasn't that he didn't want to change, but that was just his nature, and he couldn't be changed in a short time.

In the classroom, Zhang Fugui remained seated, his hair disheveled, his hands resting on his knees, his fingers unconsciously rubbing his trouser legs.

"Zhang Fugui!" Zhu Dayong walked over and slammed his hand on the table. "It's your turn today. Yu Liang is already waiting in the game room. Why aren't you going over there yet!"

"I...I know." Zhang Fugui swallowed hard. "Let me calm down and I'll go right away."

"Calm down? Playing chess isn't a blind date! Do I have to give you a scrub first?"

Zhang Fugui was momentarily speechless, then immediately got up and ran out.

"Everyone else, sit down! This morning we're going to go over life-or-death problems. Anyone who dares to daydream will have all their wrong answers eaten!"

Upon entering the game room, Yu Liang bowed slightly and said, "Please give me your guidance."

Zhang Fugui hurriedly returned the greeting, but his nervousness caused him to move so much that he almost knocked over the table.

But he was lucky and won the coin toss, so he got to play black first.

Zhang Fugui took a deep breath, picked up a black piece, hovered it above the chessboard, and then remained still.

One second, two seconds, five seconds, ten seconds...

Zhang Fugui stared at the chessboard, his lips moving slightly, seemingly calculating something.

His brows furrowed more and more, and the pressure on his fingers as he gripped the chess piece fluctuated.

At three minutes and fifteen seconds, Zhang Fugui finally made his first move.

Black, top right corner, star point.

Yu Liang responded almost without hesitation—white stones, lower left corner, small eye.

Zhang Fugui began to ponder for a long time again, tilting his head to look at the chessboard, his index finger against his chin, his eyes narrowed into slits.

This time, he thought for a shorter time than the first time, about a minute, before making his second move—a black stone, in the upper left corner, at the star point.

Yu Liang responded with a white move, in the lower right corner, outside the eye.

Zhang Fugui's third move, Black, in the lower right corner, is a small eye-hanging move.

The player chose to approach the corner from the outside, a common move intended to pressure White's corner territory.

Yu Liang's fourth move, a small point in the lower right corner—a solid corner defense, not giving Black an easy opportunity to enter.

Zhang Fugui's fifth move, Black, is a large knight's move in the upper right corner, extending the side.

Chu Ying floated in mid-air, looking down at the chessboard, and nodded slightly.

Although Zhang Fugui was slow, he made every step in a proper and orderly manner, without any obvious mistakes.

His moves weren't pretty or sharp, but they were very straightforward.

"Take it easy and proceed steadily."

Yu Liang played his sixth move, White, on the left side, at the star point, creating a variation of the Chinese opening.

Zhang Fugui fell into deep thought again, his gaze sweeping across the chessboard, his right hand unconsciously drawing circles in the air.

Fortunately, this wasn't an official match, otherwise it seems Zhang Fugui would have lost after only a few moves due to timeout.

Yu Liang remained seated quietly, his back straight, his breathing even, and his expression calm, showing no signs of impatience.

Zhang Fugui finally made his move, black, in the lower left corner, a two-space high clamp.

This is a relatively aggressive move, attacking White's small eye from both sides and attempting to provoke a fight in the local area.

It's rare to see Zhang Fugui display a hint of aggression today.

Yu Liang jumped up from the bottom left corner.

Zhang Fugui's ninth move, Black, on the left side, splits two pieces.

Yu Liang's tenth move was on the top, a large area, occupying the last empty corner, and then expanding outwards from the side.

The game entered a stable phase, and Zhang Fugui began to speed up slightly, but only a little.

Yu Liang's responses remained fluid, requiring almost no thought; each move was executed within seconds of Zhang Fugui's move.

Chu Yingpiao stood beside the table, intently watching the two play chess.

After a while, the door to the game room was gently pushed open.

Time peeked in through half its head, peering inside.

He had just finished class and ran all the way over.

These past few days, whenever he had the chance, he would come to watch the game.

Shi Guang was initially worried that Yu Liang would ask him to play chess, but the other party completely ignored him. Shi Guang was a little puzzled, but he was happy with it.

Give him a little more time, and he'll catch up soon.

However, while you may be watching from the sidelines, you shouldn't disturb the people playing chess.

Shi Guang slipped in and stood against the wall in the corner, trying not to make a sound.

I glanced at the chessboard from afar—the black and white pieces each occupied most of the board when I stepped inside, and the situation seemed fairly balanced.

Chu Ying floated to his side: "Both sides played very conservatively in the opening, Zhang Fugui played very cautiously, and Xiao Liang left many hidden tricks in the opening stage..."

"Who has the upper hand?"

"The game is currently even. But Xiaoliang's moves are more efficient—he gained the same amount of territory in fewer moves. Zhang Fugui didn't make any mistakes, but he was a bit too conservative. If you can't see through the traps Xiaoliang laid in the opening stage within the limited time, you'll be very passive in the middle game."

Shiguang nodded and continued watching the game.

Zhang Fugui, bottom right corner, Xiao Fei hangs in the corner.

The loss of territory forced him to change his strategy. White's territory on the right and top sides was getting bigger and bigger. If he didn't take action soon, the game would be over.

White's sharp point provides a solid defense of the corner, while simultaneously pressuring Black's corner stone.

Black expanded outwards, making a significant move.

White moves, small knight's move.

After this move, White's corner territory was basically secured. If White simply left it there, Black's corner approach move would be a waste. Zhang Fugui needed to gain something here, so he decisively extended the territory by two spaces.

Chu Ying shook her head slightly as she observed this change.

The split-two pattern following the pointed top is the standard diagram in Go textbooks. This variation is so common that Yu Liang could handle it with his eyes closed.

White makes a large knight's move on the left, continuing to expand its influence in the center.

"Zhang Fugui spent too much time here, but the result was just 'standard.' His moves didn't exceed Xiao Liang's expectations. Playing 'standard' moves against Xiao Liang is tantamount to handing over the initiative."

Yu Liang's next moves all revolved around the center. He first made a move on the left to fill the gap in Da Fei's position, and then made a move on the top to connect the forces on the right and left.

Zhang Fugui started to panic.