Chapter 12: The Fourth Miss's Splendid Debut (Part 1)

  Arriving at the study, Pei Zhucheng saw that the weather was fine and he had some free time, so he wanted to take Yuan Song out for a walk. Sitting in the comfortable carriage, Pei Yuan Song secretly lifted the curtain, looking through the thin gauze hanging down from the canopy, taking in the bustling scene outside. As they drove along, tall buildings stood on either side, shops lined up, and all sorts of goods sparkled before their eyes, people dressed in colorful silk clothes walked to and fro like a brocade, looking magnificent and resplendent.

  "General!" Suddenly, Shi Yan's voice came from outside the carriage door. "Ahead, Hei Bai Qi Juan Xuan is playing chess again, and it's said that this time's prize is a seven-colored crystal bead, which has attracted many people and blocked the road. So, please instruct us, should we stop for a while or take a detour?"

  This chess pavilion is a famous scenic spot in Beijing, with a reputation that has spread far and wide, especially the Chess Pavilion being the most victorious.

  The Black and White Chess Pavilion is divided into two courtyards, the front courtyard uses the heavenly stems and earthly branches as a sequence, with sixty chess rooms, each room has a master of high chess skills sitting in it. To be able to win three games in a row, one must have the qualifications to enter the back courtyard and play against the pavilion owner. Whoever can beat the pavilion owner will be able to win the prize money for the chess competition. However, every time the Chess Pavilion takes out the prize money, it is always a rare treasure, unfortunately, after three years of chess competitions, no one has ever been able to take away the prize money from this pavilion owner's hands.

  "Seven-colored glaze bead..." Hearing this phrase, Pei Zhucheng's expression was somewhat unusual. He pondered for a moment, then suddenly grasped Pei Yuange's hand and laughed resolutely, "Come on, Song'er, let's go play chess with Father! I suddenly want to meet this mysterious and unpredictable Xuan master."

  Under everyone's astonished gaze, Pei Zhucheng won three rounds in a row and was led to the backyard.

  Compared to the cold and simple black-and-white tone of the front yard, the backyard of Qiji Xuan is elegant and refined, with a profusion of colorful flowers and a fragrance that assails the nostrils. The two of them reached the second floor, where they saw a screen standing in the middle, separating the room into two parts. The beaded curtain hanging down from it emitted a soft glow, blocking the view inside and out, so that only a vague outline of someone could be seen behind the screen.

  A yellow-clad girl sat in front of the beaded curtain, with a bright and beautiful face, but it was hard to conceal her arrogant air. She was staring at the chessboard in front of her with a full face of discontent.

  "The girl lost!" A clear and cold voice came from behind the screen, warm and flat, but with a hint of coolness, like the fusion of ice and snow, clear but with a distant temperature.

  "This doesn't count, let's try again until I win!" The woman in yellow said with a disgruntled tone.

  She was the only legitimate daughter of Yang Ningbo, Yang Xiu Xian, who had always been arrogant and proud of her exceptional chess skills. She happened to participate in this chess competition and boasted that she would definitely win the Seven-Colored Crystal Bead. Unexpectedly, she lost to the master after just two or three moves. If those thousand-gold misses found out, wouldn't they laugh at her to death? How could she still have the face to mention chess in front of them? No matter what, she must get the Seven-Colored Crystal Bead!

  "One game decides victory or defeat, that's the rule of the backyard! A new challenger has appeared, please step down, young lady."

  "Listen up, I'm the only legitimate daughter of Yangning Bo's household. If I say come again, then come again! Don't waste my time! You're making me angry, believe it or not, I'll smash this black and white chess pavilion! Yang Xuan's temper flared up, she turned her head and glared at Pei Zhucheng with disdain, "You've also heard my identity, if you know what's good for you, leave now. Don't disturb Lady's chess game, or I'll make sure you can't walk away!"

  Bai Zhucheng wasn't afraid of her threat, calmly sat down and said to the person behind the screen, "Bai Zhucheng requests guidance on chess from Your Excellency!"

  Yang Xian didn't even bother with her, and in an instant, she was so angry that smoke was coming out of all seven orifices.

  "What's with the Pei family? Yang Xiu's expression changed slightly, and she sneered: "I thought it was someone else. So it's the Pei family that was jilted by the Town Country Marquis' manor? Is the woman behind you the jilted Pei Yuange? You're still so bold after being jilted, how dare you! If it were me, I'd be too ashamed to show my face. I've heard you're as dull as a saltless dish, without talent or virtue, no wonder you got jilted. And no wonder you're wearing a veil, probably because your looks are unbearable!"

  "The young lady's appearance is like a willow tree, when going out she uses a veil to cover her face, so as not to be seen by outsiders. Of course, it can't compare with Miss Yang, who is said to be breathtakingly beautiful, no wonder the capital city is spreading rumors that Miss Yang is as lovely as a flower!" Pei Yuange smiled and said, his voice was clear and smooth like jade, gentle and pleasant to listen to, making people feel refreshed and delighted.

  "That's natural, how can you compare with me?" Yang Xiu Xian said proudly.

  Everyone in the room, including the maids, couldn't help but laugh, and even a soft laughter came from behind the screen. A noble lady's appearance shouldn't be easily seen by outsiders; Pei Yuange wearing a veil when going out was the correct thing to do. She said "seeing is believing" and also said "no wonder everyone in the capital says that Miss Yang is as beautiful as a flower", which was actually a veiled criticism of Yang Xiang's careless exposure of her appearance, losing her virtue as a woman, but she thought it was praise instead. How could there be such foolish people in this world?

  Seeing everyone laughing, Yang Xiu also realized that something was wrong. After a while, he reacted and angrily said: "You dare to scold me?" He raised his hand and was about to slap Pei Yuansong's face.

  Bai Zhucheng couldn't bear to let Bai Yuange be beaten, but he didn't want to argue with Yang Xianyun, an unmarried woman, so he just pulled Bai Yuange over and protected him behind his back.

  "This is Hei Bai Qi's pavilion, not the Yang Ning Bo Fu. Miss Yang wants to hit someone, please go elsewhere!" Behind the screen, the master's voice slowly turned cold, although calm, but with a bone-piercing chill. After just one sentence, he ignored her and started playing against Pei Zhuo Cheng, with a maid serving as an intermediary, transmitting their moves back and forth between the people in front of and behind the beaded curtain.

  Yang Xiu Xian originally wanted to ruin it, but thinking that she hadn't gotten the Seven-Colored Luminous Pearl yet, in case the host really got angry and she was alone and powerless, being chased out with her tail between her legs would be too embarrassing! Unwillingly, she shut her mouth and glared fiercely at Pei Yuan Ge, but also didn't want to leave, just standing there watching. Hmph, she wanted to see what kind of skills this Pei Zhuo Cheng had? If he lost, let's see how she would mock him!

  At first, both sides fell quickly. Gradually, with each move, Pei Zhucheng's thinking time became longer and longer, and fine beads of sweat began to seep from his forehead. Pei Yuange took out a handkerchief from her sleeve and gently wiped it for him. However, Pei Zhucheng was still unaware, focusing solely on the chessboard, but also knowing that the trend was hard to reverse.

  As expected, the game ended with Pei Zhucheng losing seven pieces.

  "Hmph, I've heard that General Pei is proud of his exceptional chess skills and has boasted that anyone who dares to play against him in the capital will be defeated. Now it seems that's all just talk, and from now on, it's better for you to tone down your arrogance!" Yang Huaizheng spoke up, ridiculing Pei Zhoucheng's defeat and venting his earlier frustration.

  "Isn't that right? Having just lost seven sons, it's far from being a situation where not even a single armor remains. Indeed, it's nothing to be concerned about!" Pei Yuange retorted with a composed tone.

  Yang Xiu's words were stuck in her throat, but the facts were all there, yet she couldn't refute them. In a flurry, she said: "You have the nerve to mock me? Hmph! You're still the eldest daughter of the General's Manor, and you can't even do anything like play the zither, chess, calligraphy or painting. What qualifications do you have to mock me? If you can win that seven-colored crystal bead, I'll give you my head!"

  This General Pei has his own thoughts, but unfortunately, he is straightforward and rough around the edges. However, he values relationships and will repay kindness many times over. I wonder what Miss Pei Si is like? The host thought for a moment before speaking up: "If Miss Pei doesn't mind, why don't we give it a try?"

  As for playing chess, Pei Yuange only knew the rules and couldn't even be considered a novice. If Yang Xuanzhen weren't here, she would have readily admitted it, but now that Yang Xuanzhen had provoked her, no matter what, she was unwilling to show weakness. After all, Yang Xuanzhen had lost so badly, wanting to lose worse than her would be quite difficult. So she sat down and said: "Let's play then, losing terribly is nothing special, who can't do that?"

  This sentence made Yang Xiuhen so angry that her face turned white, she stomped her foot and crumpled the embroidery handkerchief in her hand into a tangled mess.

  However, seeing Pei Yuange's first move, Yang Xiu Xian was overjoyed and burst out laughing: "I told you that you wouldn't be able to play chess, and indeed I was right! Who makes this kind of move on the first step? It's a complete mess! If you can't play, then admit defeat early and avoid losing too badly, or else it'll be hard to save face later!"

  Bai Zhucheng also secretly sighed in his heart, Song Er's chess skills were indeed ordinary, and this move was not very brilliant!

  However, the master behind the screen saw the first move of the chess piece passed on by the maid, and his expression changed slightly. As Pei Yuansong gradually made his moves, his expression became increasingly solemn, and he couldn't help but exclaim, "Huh?" His voice seemed to be quite surprised, somewhat unexpected, and a bit puzzled. It was even more solemn than before, vastly different from the relaxed and casual atmosphere when playing against Pei Zhucheng earlier.

  Xuan Zhu's voice was filled with a mixture of surprise and solemnity, as if he were facing a formidable enemy, and everyone felt a sense of wonder.