Chapter 41: Are You Really Talking About Chess?

“I reaaaally wasn’t doing it on purpose.”

“It’s just… I was only one step away from turning the tables… Hmph!”

He Yimo puffed up his cheeks innocently, holding the chess piece. His reaction made Mo Yuyan’s initially cold, beautiful eyes flicker with uncertainty.

Her resolve, made just moments ago, softened within three seconds.

After a moment’s thought, she decided to trust He Yimo, just this once.

Mo Yuyan crossed her arms, supporting her chest, and remained silent, watching He Yimo’s hand reach the edge of the board again, placing another white piece in the blind spot beneath her bosom.

Tsk. Where did he put it this time?

Mo Yuyan looked down suspiciously, but her view was still obstructed by the prominent mounds of her chest. She couldn’t see the situation at the edge of the board at all.

Tch, he made me so mad I forgot about this awkward setup…

Mo Yuyan touched her forehead and sighed inwardly. She took a deep breath, keeping her arms crossed, and leaned back slightly, maintaining her elegance, until she could finally see the few white pieces at the edge of the board.

The slight lean itself wasn’t obvious, but Mo Yuyan had been taught since childhood to sit with perfect posture, upright and graceful like a willow tree.

Now, as the esteemed Senior Sister and Sword Master, having to adjust her posture under He Yimo’s gaze for such a strange reason was a trial and challenge to her sense of shame!

Yet, Mo Yuyan couldn’t really blame him. Who told her to have such large… obstacles? Who told her not to replace the decades-old stone table and stool?

Besides…

He Yimo had looked deep in thought the entire time, so it didn’t really seem like he was teasing her.

“In the heart of my black territory, you think you can reverse the situation with just three white pieces?” Mo Yuyan raised an eyebrow, puzzled, now that she could see the board clearly.

He Yimo didn’t elaborate, simply continuing the game. Every subsequent move he made landed beneath Mo Yuyan’s chest, but luckily, she had gotten used to leaning back and could follow the game.

Half an incense stick’s time passed.

As He Yimo pressed his advantage step by step, the suspicion on Mo Yuyan’s face turned into growing shock. She tried to surround the three white pieces clinging to the edge, but the more moves she made, the more she realized He Yimo was leading her exactly where he wanted.

“Since when… S-Since when did you start planning this…?” Mo Yuyan mumbled, her face flushed with humiliation and grievance as the white pieces escaped her blockade along a pre-planned route.

Her supposedly flawless strategy had been utterly broken because she’d carelessly given He Yimo those three critical moves, allowing a long white serpent to emerge from deep within her territory!

Just as He Yimo had claimed, the tide was indeed turning.

At first, Mo Yuyan thought he was just teasing her by deliberately placing pieces under her cheat. She hadn’t expected that even her flustered, angry reaction was part of his calculations!

Seeing defeat looming once again, Mo Yuyan sighed in frustration. She put down her black piece, crossed her arms, feeling both impressed and genuinely curious. “You… H-How did you even come up with such a despicable, cunning, and utterly absurd strategy?”

“When you see enough, you naturally get inspiration for breaking the deadlock,” He Yimo answered without hesitation.

A strange look flashed in Mo Yuyan’s eyes. “See enough?” She bit her lip, suspecting she might be misinterpreting him, but unsure… After all, coming from He Yimo, the explanation somehow sounded oddly plausible.

He Yimo coughed into his fist and said meaningfully, “What I mean is, observing the game itself is also a skill.”

“Mm.”

Looks like I was the one with the dirty mind…

Mo Yuyan felt a brief moment of repentance internally, then straightened her posture, gesturing for He Yimo to continue his ‘lesson’.

“Playing chess is like cultivation, yin and yang merging…”

“Mm.”

“For example, this white piece… it’s not just very white, but also big and round…”

“Hm?” Mo Yuyan’s eyebrow twitched midway through his sentence, feeling an inexplicable chill across her chest.

“Ah, sorry, got a bit sidetracked. Actually, just like the theory of yin and yang—besides the white pieces, these crystal-clear, jade-smooth black pieces are also equally important!”

“?” Hearing the description of the black pieces, Mo Yuyan felt a sudden chill down her legs too, instinctively pressing her black-silk-clad legs together under her skirt.

Her gaze towards He Yimo was now filled with resentment and coldness. She seriously suspected the ‘images’ in this little pervert’s head and the ‘chess observation’ he was talking about were completely unrelated, like two different conversations happening at once.

Meanwhile, He Yimo sensed Mo Yuyan’s patience wearing thin. He cleared his throat and smiled politely.

“Overall, I feel fortunate to play chess with you, Senior Sister. Such dangerous yet captivating games require close observation—only by being deeply invested in watching can one find the solution to a stalemate.”

“Are you really talking about chess? Haaaah?” Mo Yuyan let out a cold scoff, then turned her head away, biting her lip sulkily.

Truthfully, even back at the Grand Preceptor’s mansion, Mo Yuyan had felt He Yimo’s gaze was off. Whenever they played, his eyes would either be dazed while looking at her face or lingering on the shadowed intersection between her chest and the chessboard.

Mo Yuyan had often wondered if he was intensely studying the game or… her chest.

After spending several days together, although He Yimo never admitted it, Mo Yuyan already had a faint answer in her heart—

“So… that’s how you figured out this despicable strategy? By staring at my ‘chess’ game all along?” This time, she deliberately played along with his ambiguous wording.

The reason was simple: firstly, Mo Yuyan wanted to save face and didn’t want to break their tacit understanding. Secondly, even if she confronted him directly, what could she really do?

Mo Yuyan knew herself well. Without concrete proof, her clumsy tongue was no match for He Yimo’s wit. It would only end with her fuming silently.

Besides, He Yimo didn’t have X-ray vision. Mo Yuban was covered from head to toe. At most, he could only appreciate her figure’s curves. What harm could looking do? Could he wear down stone just by looking?

She had gotten used to it over the past few days.

He Yimo wasn’t stupid. He might seem frivolous on the surface, but he acted with restraint, keeping every action within ‘reasonable and legitimate’ boundaries, never leaving her any leverage…

So, whoever lost their cool first, lost!

Just now during the game, Mo Yuyan had been too sensitive, which allowed him to easily distract her. She wouldn’t fall for the same trick twice!

“Watching closely is part of it, naturally,” He Yimo continued seriously. “But after watching enough, one must also learn to apply the knowledge flexibly.”

“Only by knowing the enemy’s depth can one strike directly at the heart.”

He really didn’t want to make it this awkward, but since Mo Yuyan insisted on asking, this was the only veiled way he could answer. He couldn’t possibly say outright that after staring at her chest so much, he noticed a blind spot and got inspired to exploit it…

“So, you understand me well enough to know what would annoy and distract me, and deliberately used my personality against me?” Putting aside her embarrassment, Mo Yuyan analyzed his words and found they actually made a twisted sort of sense.

Although his method was despicable, the underlying thinking was quite enlightening for Mo Yuban. She remembered something her father taught her as a child…

The more proficient a master of formations, the less likely they are to be constrained by the limitations of a small chessboard!

In a darkly ironic way, He Yimo had actually grasped the essence of chess.

“Senior Sister, you don’t have to be so blunt, really.” Being completely figured out made He Yimo’s smile a little awkward.

He had to admit, as a sword master, Mo Yuyan’s comprehension was exceptionally high. Even though He Yimo spoke cryptically, she understood quickly and could even apply the concepts immediately… Thank goodness Mo Yuyan was born into a prestigious family with a good upbringing. If she were taught the wrong things, she might become quite the cunning ‘Old Driver’ in the future.

“Aren’t we just analyzing the essence of the chess skills you taught me?” Now it was Mo Yuyan’s turn to appear nonchalant. The earlier blush completely gone, she crossed her arms, tilted her chin slightly, and let out a mocking scoff. “I must say, Young Master He, this game has truly taught this Immortal a profound lesson… You taught well. I miscalculated this time, but I won’t let you succeed again!”

“Thank you for your recognition, Senior Sister…” Being praised so sarcastically made He Yimo blush slightly. He averted his gaze, conceding defeat in the battle of wits.

Although he had won the chess game, temperament-wise, he still couldn’t withstand Mo Yuban’s interrogating gaze.

He Yimo thought he should find opportunities to practice making eye contact with Mo Yuyan for ten minutes daily to build his composure. Otherwise, how could he face powerful opponents in the future if a mere glare made him feel weak and flustered?

As they bantered, Mo Yuyan picked up her Yinshuang Sword and placed it back in the gap across her chest. “From this game, I’ve summarized the reasons for my failure today.”

“One, this stone table and stool are positioned a bit too close. I need to go down the mountain and fetch another stool later.”

“Two, I forgot to hold my Yinshuang Sword in front of my chest today. Otherwise, the sword’s presence would have deterred any scoundrel from taking advantage!” She smiled faintly. Though her words sounded polite, her tone and eyes clearly conveyed a warning to He Yimo.

See? You can’t just poke the tigress!

He Yimo suddenly missed ‘Prisoner Jiang’ a little. The fox demon lady was easier to bully, at least. Due to her assumed persona and disguise, even if bullied, she wouldn’t dare actually hold a sword to his neck.

With their light banter, the first chess match after their reunion concluded. But Mo Yuyan hadn’t forgotten the original issue.

She tidied the messy chessboard, straightened her posture again, held her sword, and shifted her cold gaze downwards, her eyes finally resting on the space between He Yimo’s legs beneath the stone table—

“So, you still haven’t explained where this little deer came from, the one that’s been hiding under your legs trying to look cute and get away with it since the beginning?”