Chapter 71

After a moment's thought, he felt the former possibility was more likely; otherwise, how could Jiang Sishui have known nothing about martial arts from the very start?

At this moment, Ding Chunqiu, who had been watching from the side, leaped out, jabbing a finger at Jiang Sishui and cursing: "Brat, you've got some nerve, daring to impersonate a disciple of our sect. This old man will deal with you later!"

Saying so, he turned to look at Suxinghe, furiously questioning: "You old fool, just to make trouble for me, you dare take that old thief's name in vain to take on disciples! Tell me, did you sell off all of our sect's martial arts?!"

Of course, Ding Chunqiu would not believe the "ghost story" that Wu Wu Ya Zi was not dead.

In his view, if Wu Wu Ya Zi were not dead, he would have come out long ago to deal with him; how could he possibly have allowed him to roam free and at ease?

"The Maze of Bewildering Array" was set by Wu Wu Ya Zi?

That was even more utter nonsense!

How much ability Wu Wu Ya Zi had, Ding Chunqiu believed he knew perfectly well; this was absolutely not something Wu Wu Ya Zi could have done.

Therefore, regarding what Jiang Sishui and Suxinghe had said, he did not believe a single word.

In his thinking, Jiang Sishui must have been specially invited by Suxinghe to get rid of him, and in exchange, what Suxinghe had to pay was most likely the several martial arts of the Xiaoyao Sect that he had long been coveting.

Suxinghe cast a sidelong glance at him and said coldly: "What did you just call Master?"

Ding Chunqiu let out a cold laugh, utterly unafraid: "He's an old thief, so I call him old thief!"

Suxinghe's old eyes narrowed, and just as he was about to speak, Jiang Sishui said: "Senior brother, why bother wasting words on a dying traitor?"

"Since the 'Maze of Bewildering Chess Game' has begun, our Xiaoyao Sect cannot neglect these guests either. You just focus on playing against the various heroes with peace of mind; leave the rest to me."

Saying so, Jiang Sishui looked at Ding Chunqiu again and said lightly: "Ding Laoguai, Master instructed me to kill you."

Ding Chunqiu let out a contemptuous snort and said disdainfully: "Did that old ghost appear to you in a dream?"

Jiang Sishui gave a faint smile and did not argue further.

We'll see later if this old fellow's mouth can still be that tough.

077 A Chance Encounter with Charming Huang Rong, and the Mad Tang Bohu

Seeing that the matter had its twists and turns and seemed to involve an internal struggle within the Xiaoyao Sect, the gathered heroes all refrained from taking sides for the moment.

The situation was still unclear; better to watch the show first.

Therefore, even Duan Yu and Murong Fu temporarily quieted down, silently waiting for an opportunity.

They knew things would absolutely not end here.

Thus, the heroes' attention was drawn once again to the half-played chess game.

Having been interrupted midway and delayed for so long, Shen Lang had long since figured out his follow-up moves.

"I'll play it this way!"

Saying so, he placed a white piece on the board.

Suxinghe nodded, seemingly in approval, and followed up with a black piece.

Shen Lang had worked out over ten moves ahead, then placed a white piece; Suxinghe placed another black piece.

After the two had played over ten moves, Shen Lang let out a long breath, shook his head, and said: "The Maze of Bewildering laid by the old gentleman is profoundly ingenious in the extreme; I am unable to solve it."

Suxinghe had won, but under normal circumstances, he would actually have been unhappy about it.

But last night, with Jiang Sishui's arrival, Wu Wu Ya Zi had already chosen his successor, so no one breaking the game was actually the best outcome.

Therefore, his expression was calm as he generously offered praise: "Young hero, your chess thinking is meticulous; these dozen or so moves have already reached an extremely high level. It's just a pity you failed to think one step deeper!"

Shen Lang gave a carefree smile, rose, and leapt down from the great bluestone, going to the stone wall to retrieve the dozen or so white pieces he had placed on the board.

Suxinghe also collected his dozen or so black pieces.

The original formation remained on the board.

Suxinghe looked around, clearly waiting for the second challenger.

"I'll go!"

No sooner had Shen Lang stepped down than Tang Bohu went up.

As the two passed each other, Tang Bohu patted Shen Lang's shoulder and said: "Brother Shen, watch your little brother get your face back for you."

Shen Lang smiled bitterly and shook his head.

Playing against others at home and playing against Suxinghe here; the bystander, the player... both were two entirely different feelings.

This "Maze of Bewildering Chess Game" was not just about chess; there were many complications within it.

When the second person took the stage, the heroes' attention was drawn over once again.

However, not everyone was focused on the chess game.

Huang Yaoshi watched Jiang Sishui from afar for a long time, frowning: "A Heng, do you think I misjudged yesterday? Is he actually a master, just very good at disguising himself?"

Feng Heng did not answer, but smiled gently and said softly: "Don't you already have the answer in your heart?"

Huang Yaoshi was startled, then laughed: "That's right! I should trust my own judgment. Therefore, this boy must have had some extraordinary encounter."

As he spoke, the corner of his eye suddenly caught sight of Huang Rong nearby.

Ever since she came back yesterday, this daughter of his had given him no pleasant face for some reason, leaving Huang Yaoshi deeply vexed.

Now, casting a casual glance, he discovered his daughter had actually been staring in Jiang Sishui's direction the whole time.

That wasn't quite right either; she would also glance from time to time in the direction where Murong Fu was, then roll her eyes about furtively.

Huang Yaoshi's heart gave a sudden thump.

He knew that little expression all too well!

She must be cooking up some scheme again.

"Jiang Sishui... Murong Fu..."

Unaware of what he had thought of, Huang Yaoshi's mood suddenly soured somewhat.

Huang Rong did not know that Huang Yaoshi had misunderstood.

She was not just looking at Jiang Sishui, but also at Zhao Qiying and A Bi by his side.

She was not looking at Murong Fu, but at Wang Yuyan and A Zhu.

Especially the former!

Huang Rong's gaze lingered on her longer than on everyone else combined.

After scrutinizing her for a long while, and constantly comparing them in her heart, she finally had to admit a fact—

Both scoring full marks for appearance, this "Immortal Sister" did indeed edge her out by half a point.

No wonder Jiang Sishui had judged her to have reached the pinnacle of mortal beauty—among all the women under heaven, at most they could only match her.

Having seen Wang Yuyan in person, she believed it.

Huang Rong couldn't help feeling a bit deflated.

But then she recalled that she was the "Number One Extraordinary Woman of Wu Xia" in Jiang Sishui's heart, not the more beautiful Wang Yuyan, and her spirits lifted again.

Her gaze swept toward where Jiang Sishui stood. Huang Rong wrinkled her delicate nose: "He's quite good-looking, just a bit of a flirt. But with so many people harboring ill intentions, how are you going to handle them?"

Recalling Jiang Sishui's confident bearing, and the dominance and overbearingness in yesterday's diary entry, Huang Rong couldn't help feeling a hint of expectation.

She wanted to see how Jiang Sishui in reality differed from the one in the diary.

Suddenly, a pair of eyes shot toward her, happening to meet Huang Rong's gaze.

Their eyes locked. Huang Rong neither dodged nor avoided, merely giggling, her pretty face radiant as spring blossoms, her bearing as lovely as the autumn moon.

But Jiang Sishui's heart jolted, his vision blurred, his ears rang, his whole body grew hot.

The two gazed at each other from afar, when suddenly a burst of crazy, deranged laughter rang out.

"I, Tang Bohu, am brimming with talent, unrivaled in both poetry and painting, ranked first among the Four Great Talents of Suzhou, and I have eight beautiful wives and concubines, each virtuous and gentle, skilled at managing the household, learned and courteous—I'm truly too happy! Ahahahaha—"

Tang Bohu shook his head, crying and laughing at once. The assembled heroes, seeing this, were all dumbfounded.

At that moment, Shen Lang leaped up, pulled Tang Bohu down, then channeled his internal force like a sudden blow to the head, jolting Tang Bohu awake.

"Oh, what happened to me? What's going on? Why was I crying?"

After coming to his senses, Tang Bohu discovered his face was streaming with tears, and looked at Shen Lang in confusion: "Brother Shen, did you secretly hit me?"

Shen Lang: "..."

He suddenly realized that this shamelessly cheeky fellow in front of him was getting more and more deserving of a beating.

"Brother Bohu, you've Kewu Society Shen the Great Hero. You were just so obsessed with chess you went into a trance."

Zhu Zhishan and the others hurried forward to explain, simultaneously currying favor with Shen Lang.

After all, he was the new backer they had found.

From now on, how well they could get along in 263 Suzhou depended entirely on how close their friendship with these two Grandmasters was.

After hearing the whole story, Tang Bohu couldn't help feeling a wave of embarrassment.

Fortunately his skin was thick enough, otherwise he would have already covered his face and fled.

And Zhu Zhishan and the others, seeing Tang Bohu make a fool of himself, naturally didn't want to try it themselves either.