After saving the Empress, I became the top scholar in the imperial examination.

Upon entering the courtyard.

"Thump thump thump—clang clang clang—"

On the stage.

Two musicians played the sanxian and the yueqin.

The drummer sits at the mouth of the Nine Dragons, and the gongs and drums resound.

After the three drumbeats, the gong was struck and the cymbals were rubbed, and the melodious and stirring opera music began to play in a very rhythmic way.

In an instant, the entire stage was transformed into a grand spectacle!

After performing five plays, the most famous opera troupe in the capital finally performed the grand play requested by a customer—"Sun Wukong's Havoc in Heaven".

"Ta-da! Ta-da!"

As the music began, a martial arts performer, resembling a monkey, wearing a bright yellow round-necked robe and wielding a long, golden-red staff, somersaulted onto the stage.

Bang!

After landing gracefully, the monkey wearing a purple-gold crown made a "tsk" sound, swept its long stick, and its eyes blinked repeatedly as it scratched its ears and cheeks, full of spirit.

The monkey's face is adorned with an exquisite "upside-down peach" design, featuring a red base, white eyeliner, and yellow ear and sideburn paint, creating a lifelike "hairy-faced thunder god" image!

but.

Unfortunately, what used to be a spectacular performance that would have won thunderous applause has now received only a few responses.

The audience below the stage was surrounded by layers of people in an open space at the back, where the crowd was lively and noisy.

They were shouting things like "Kill him!", "Invincible Jia!", "Jump the horse!", "What's wrong with exchanging a piece with him?", "Can't we even win one game?"... It was quite a lively scene!

Although a few people were still sitting at the tables below the stage, they were mostly rubbing their bruised foreheads and muttering to themselves.

They talked about how they should have played the game, how they should have played it, how they regretted it, and how if they had made that move, things would have turned out differently... without ever looking at the stage.

On stage, the martial arts performer shouted, "Today, I, Old Sun, wield my iron cudgel, reach the Heavenly Gate, and soar to the heavens!" His momentum was overwhelming, but in his heart, he was lamenting his misery.

Glancing to the side, he saw that the troupe leader also had a bitter look on his face. The martial arts actor sighed inwardly, took a short walk, and continued reciting the rhyming recitation.

Although opera singers are considered to be from the lowest social class, regardless of whether there are people in the audience or how much applause they receive, stepping onto the stage is like a general entering the battlefield; they must continue performing. Only in this way can they make the ten years of hard work, from sunrise to sunset without ever stopping, worthwhile.

Just then, as the martial arts actor sang, "That old Jade Emperor has wronged me and made me suffer," a figure suddenly came into view, and the actor's bright eyes lit up.

A noblewoman with bright eyes and white teeth, wearing a small braid, suddenly rushed down from the stage. She seemed to have been running for a long time and was panting heavily. Then, she raised her head and looked up at the stage.

"Hey!"

The martial arts performer suddenly became energetic, his legs tensed, and he was about to perform a special skill. But before he could even lift his leg, he saw the noble lady below the stage shift her gaze back to the chessboard.

Wu Sheng sighed inwardly. Before he could even feel disappointed, he saw the noble lady do something extremely daring... She actually climbed onto a square table!

The noblewoman, like a child, climbed onto the table and peeked into the chessboard. After a few glances, she started jumping up and down, waving her hands and calling out "Jia Songling," "Jia Songling"...

After calling out a few times, the noblewoman paused, then suddenly grew louder and more excited, waving her slender, fair arms and calling out something like "nephew," "nephew"...

The girl bouncing on the square table was as graceful as a willow branch, and her voice was as sweet as a nightingale's song.

The martial arts actor stared at the scene for a moment, his eyes widening in disbelief, and even his familiar recitation of the lines slowed down.

"belch……"

In the chess circle, Ning Nan's face was flushed, his steps were a little unsteady, and he let out a burp.

He slammed his black chariot onto the opponent's chessboard and sneered, "Prefect Cheng... Checkmate!"

Prefect Cheng, bent over, glared at Ning Nan, and after a few breaths, exclaimed "Ouch!" and slapped his forehead, pointing angrily at Ning Nan, "I... I knew you were going to do this!"

Someone nearby asked curiously, "Then why don't you move the carriage to defend yourself?" Judge Cheng's forehead was a little swollen, and his face was red as he cursed, "Defending is death, not defending is also death, so I might as well gamble that he didn't see me... I'll get on the carriage, and I can beat him in three more steps..." The old man was still cheating, and some people around him cursed, some laughed, and some told him to get lost.

San Zhuang's throat became hoarse.

At this moment, he just laughed heartily, picked up the sky-blue patterned wine cup, and poured wine for Ning Nan.

"I can't drink anymore..." Ning Nan's stomach churned, and he groaned inwardly, but he still accepted the wine glass handed to him by this clueless, dim-witted young man.

The Prince's Mansion was, after all, a Prince's Mansion. The wine that San Zhuang casually brought over was Shaoxing Privet Wine, aged for who knows how many years. It was smooth on the palate but had a powerful aftereffect. Even the most resilient drinker would find their head spinning after drinking like this.

Just as he sighed and was about to drink, he looked up and his drunken eyes suddenly narrowed.

"Huh?" Ning Nan blinked hard, as if trying to see the scene not far away clearly.

The noise around me continued.

A night breeze blew.

My mind and eyes immediately became clearer.

"Aunt?" he uttered blankly.

"What are you gurgling about, Jia Wudi!" "Come! Come quickly! I've already made my move!" "This old man's brilliant move is enough to stop a child from crying!" At this moment, several chess tables nearby were already calling out to him.

Ning Nan ignored him, rubbed his slightly sore forehead, rubbed his sleepy eyes, and looked back at the scene.

……

……

The courtyard is divided into three sections.

Shangguan Zhao, the fourth son of the Marquis of Zhenguo, was sent out to play chess.

The battle between Nalan Ruo and Gongsun Shanzhang, spanning nineteen different paths, was nearing its end.

Those skilled at the game on both sides will explain their brilliant moves to those around them.

To the left of Zhu Cuiwei, seated at the head of the table, Sun Chengshan, the Grand Tutor of the Eastern Palace, would occasionally offer a few words of explanation to Prince Xin.

In fact, she could generally understand the two men's moves, but when Grand Tutor Sun explained them to her, she would occasionally show a look of sudden realization and say with a smile, "Thank you for clearing up my doubts, Grand Tutor Sun."

"I never imagined that Master Gongsun's chess skills would surpass even Old Man He's." Nalan Ruo held the chess piece, her eyes becoming slightly serious.

Gongsun Yuliu, with his white hair and youthful face, laughed and said, "Brother Nalan, that fellow Wei Xianhe really thinks he's invincible in Go. He's been obsessed with poetry all these years. It's no wonder his Go skills haven't improved. It's understandable that Brother Nalan underestimates me. But if you think that just because you've beaten Wei Xianhe, you can look down on us Jiangnan people, that's a bit inappropriate."

Nalan Ruo shook his head and smiled, "Nalan wouldn't dare underestimate Jiangnan, at least not Brother Gongsun. However, my game of chess with He Weng should be kept secret, so why did Brother Gongsun...?"

Gongsun Yuliu stroked his beard and said calmly, "Wei Xianhe accepted an ancient inkstone from Chen Yuezhi of the Eastern Palace. He promised to meet Brother Nalan at this chessboard today, after I do. But since he lost to Brother Nalan the day before yesterday, he is naturally ashamed to come today, so he told Chen Yuezhi about it."

"Ha," Nalan Ruo chuckled, "Did the old crane return the ancient inkstone?"

Gongsun Yuliu said, "Of course not."

After saying that...

The two of them chuckled at the same time.

Nalan Ruo's gaze darkened slightly, and he smiled, "It's a pity. The other day, Elder He took on half a disciple and even passed on his copy of 'The Game of Chess and Cards of Wei Xianhe Crossing the River in the Year of Yihai,' which was quite a careful instruction. It's a pity that the man can't come today. Otherwise, having him play a game of chess with Brother Gongsun would have been quite a spectacle."

"Oh? May I ask, Brother Nalan, is this person from Jiangnan or from the Northern Dynasties?"