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

Nilong, a meticulous man, lowered his voice and told Dachun that the two of them currently had a record of four wins and four losses. If Tongjia could win just one more game in the next two rounds, the day would be over.

If one player wins a game, the match ends in a draw.

Only by winning two games can Tong Jia be said to have a slight advantage over his opponent.

Da Chun sighed slightly and said that even if Tong Jia did not win, it would end here for today.

Nilon pondered for a moment, twitched his mustache, and nodded solemnly. Things had taken an unexpected turn; they couldn't continue. What if they lost even more?

Previously in the north, Tong Jia played chess with a chess fanatic, and her chess skills surpassed the fanatic's.

Although the chess fanatic's skill level is still improving, the Southern Dynasty chess saint and many others have lost to him, suggesting that there weren't many top-level chess players in the Southern Dynasty.

At first, things did go as they expected.

Wu Qisheng was indeed the strongest among them, but he only won three games.

Especially Wu Tanhua, who was very famous, lost to the twelve-year-old Tong Jia, which made everyone in the Northern Dynasty extremely proud.

Several more students and Xun Gui came up later, but their chess skills were far inferior to Wu Yanchou's. Tong Jia let them win a game or two, which gave them a sense of control over the game.

If we just further humiliate the Marquis of Jingbei's mansion, the Northern Dynasty can achieve a complete victory in the elephant opera game.

pity.

Suddenly, Shangguan Zhao appeared out of nowhere.

Da Chun stood up, smiling broadly as he bowed to Prince Xin at the head of the table, saying, "Your Highness, it is getting late. Soon, our dynasty and the Rakshasa Envoy will present Your Highness and His Majesty with a grand gift!"

He had a full beard, but spoke softly and with a cheerful demeanor.

"I'm sure your dynasty will appreciate this generous gift... Even the Rakshasa Envoy is getting impatient."

Zhu Cuiwei narrowed her phoenix eyes slightly and remained silent.

The King of Qi, sitting to the left, tilted his head slightly and exchanged a glance with Dou Yuan. The two of them raised their eyebrows slightly.

Da Chun said, "In my humble opinion, Tong Jia and Your Highness's Fourth Prince Zhao are evenly matched, a true contest of talent. Regardless of the outcome of the next two games, shall we consider it a draw?"

Zhu Cuiwei glanced at Da Chun through the beaded curtain, pursed her lips, and her gaze became complicated. After a while, she said, "Alright. We'll do as Your Excellency says. Regardless of the outcome of the game outside... um... it'll be a draw."

"Hehe," Dachun chuckled, "Thank you, Your Highness."

Not long after.

On the board, the red pieces make another move.

Dachun and Nilong exchanged a glance, and the two, along with the envoys from the Northern Dynasty, all breathed a sigh of relief.

Tong Jia won the ninth game.

In other words, the Northern Dynasty at least managed a draw in tonight's game.

Shangguan Zhao won four more games in this round, and the people of the Southern Dynasty were extremely surprised and even felt like they had survived a disaster.

Qin Xi smiled and said, "Congratulations, Your Excellency. Your dynasty's prodigy is exceptionally skilled in chess and will surely achieve great things in the future."

King Qi smiled and said, "Indeed, the Fourth Prince Zhao is more than ten years older than Tong Jia. It is extremely difficult for your dynasty's prodigy to win the battle for so long."

then.

The Left Vice Minister of the Ministry of Rites and others also joined in with toasts, praising Tong Jia's amazing chess skills, numerous ingenious moves, profound strategies, and other such remarks.

As she listened to the toasts, Madam Jia's expression darkened, and she felt somewhat displeased. She thought that if it weren't for Zhao'er's intervention tonight, the Southern Dynasty would have lost all face.

As a result, seeing that Zhao'er had saved the face of the Southern Dynasty, these guys actually went so far as to fawn over the Northern Dynasty's child prodigy!

If the Southern Dynasty suffers a crushing defeat, then such flattering words will be perfectly reasonable, nothing more than empty praise. The people of the Northern Dynasty won't take them to heart, and it would only offend His Highness and the officials of the Southern Dynasty.

But seeing that Zhao'er was there, the Southern Dynasty regained its dignity. If they said these things again—even things that trampled on Zhao'er's dignity, such as saying that Zhao'er was ten years older than Tong Jia—the Northern Dynasty envoy would feel proud.

Facing His Highness, she could easily claim that she spoke those words out of a sense of duty as a guest from afar, out of courtesy befitting a great nation, and out of friendship with neighboring countries—truly a smooth and slippery maneuver. Madam Jia raised an eyebrow, instantly becoming somewhat exasperated.

At this moment, the King of Wu, who was standing next to the King of Qi, stood up with a smile.

The King of Wu was around thirty years old, with an elegant demeanor and refined manners.

"Gentlemen,"

The King of Wu, with a resolute expression, raised his golden goblet and, with a smile, spoke a fair word for Zhao'er.

"While this Northern Dynasty prodigy is indeed formidable, my Fourth Young Master Zhao of the Southern Dynasty is not necessarily inferior. Although Fourth Young Master Zhao is indeed more than ten years older than Young Master Tongjia, who knows if twelve-year-old Shangguan Zhao will be inferior to twelve-year-old Tongjia Qi?"

Hmm? The eyes of the Northern Dynasty delegation narrowed immediately.

King Wu, oblivious to the situation, continued to laugh and say, "You should know that the Fourth Prince Zhao has been staying in the Marquis of Zhenguo's mansion all these years and has not had the chance to fight against any of the top martial arts masters from all over the country."

"It's not surprising that his knowledge is actually inferior to that of the twelve-year-old Prince Tongjia."

"In my opinion, the Fourth Prince Zhao is exceptionally gifted, while the Marquis of Zhenguo, having been surrounded by orchids for so long, has become oblivious to their fragrance. He is unaware that these four young men, who serve him daily, are actually geniuses no less talented than the chess fanatic!"

Upon hearing this, the atmosphere on the Southern Dynasty's side became lively. Lady Jia smiled and raised her cup, saying, "Thank you for your kind words, King Wu."

The other nobles also raised their cups to the King of Wu, giving him friendly looks, and echoed, "Your Highness is right," "Your Highness's words are reasonable!" "The Fourth Prince Zhao is truly the chess master of the Southern Dynasty"...

By this time, no one cared about Wu Yanchou's reputation anymore. Fortunately, he had been an official for a long time and had developed a thick skin. He remained silent and pretended not to hear anything.

King Qi glanced at his fourth brother, who was speaking eloquently, but did not refute him. Instead, he smiled and apologized to Lady Jia:

"My lady, I misspoke just now."

Lady Jia lowered her head and returned the greeting, saying, "Your Highness is overthinking it. I am truly apprehensive."

The tenth inning is nearing its end.

On the chessboard, the red pieces have one rook, one horse, and one advisor left, while the black pieces have one pawn, one rook, and one elephant left.

Tong Jia had the upper hand.

Seeing that the Southern Dynasty had not lost face, Qin Xi had no intention of carrying the sedan chair for the noble sons of Xun Gui, no matter what the King of Wu said at this moment. He smiled and said:

"It seems that your dynasty's prodigy is still slightly superior."

Nilon and Dachun exchanged a glance, also feeling that the situation was settled.

He chuckled and said, "That's not necessarily true. Your Highness's Fourth Young Master Zhao possesses superb chess skills and his strategic planning is truly breathtaking..."

At this time.

Suddenly, a sobbing sound rang out from the entrance of the third courtyard, the sound of weeping growing louder as it approached.

"Waaaaah—waaaaah—"

The crying was accompanied by sobbing, the sound clear and pitiful.

Upon hearing it, one could tell that the owner of the voice must be extremely sad and aggrieved at this moment, and the voice... seemed to be that of a child crying.

Everyone was stunned.

"Who? What's going on?"

"Whose child is this?"

"Where did this child come from?"

Not long after, a child wearing a yellow striped mandarin jacket and a melon-shaped hat walked into the courtyard, sobbing and crying. Several embarrassed servants from the Prince's mansion followed behind him.

The people from the Northern Dynasty were taken aback.

They all stood up at the same time.

"Tong Jia?" Nilong stepped forward and exclaimed in surprise, "Why are you crying?"

Da Chun narrowed his eyes, then his eyebrows shot up... Ha, what a Shangguan Zhao! He even made Tong Jia cry?!

Nalan Ruo finished his endgame move a moment ago, while Gongsun Shanzhang on the opposite side... hadn't made a single move in a quarter of an hour. The game was already decided, and it seemed that if Shanzhang thought about it a little more, he would resign.

He was greatly surprised to hear his apprentice crying. He turned his head, looked at his apprentice who was walking towards him while crying, and couldn't help but smile and say:

"What happened? Did you lose the last game?"

Nalan Ruo smiled, but in her heart she still felt sorry for the little girl disguised as a boy, and comforted her disciple.

"So what if we lost! It's just a draw anyway, five to five."

These words were spoken.

Tong Jia immediately lowered her arm that was wiping away her tears, let out an "Ah!" and cried even louder. Her sobs became louder and more rapid, her face turned red, and she was crying so hard that she could hardly breathe.

"Waaaaah—waaaah—"

"Master, I, I..." Tong Jia's eyes were red, and she looked at her master with a pout, "Waaah—I, I, I've lost ten games!"