Seeing Gu Zhaosi’s stare, Chu Yanze was puzzled.
They weren’t close, and he couldn’t even recall Gu Zhaosi’s name at first when he saw him by Gu Zhaoping’s side.
But since he was her brother, Chu Yanze gave him a friendly, warm smile, looking a bit confused, as if asking,
“What’s up?”
Wow…so calculating.
Playing innocent.
Gu Zhaosi turned back, shaking his head heavily.
I don’t know how you found out about today’s matchmaking, or if my sister even told you, but you’re going to cry facing Ni Tiansong.
Sacrificing a knight for an attack!
Ni Tiansong’s hand froze again, not reaching for a piece.
He’d paused to think before, but never this long.
He suddenly realized he couldn’t read her strategy.
Her pace was erratic—sometimes fast, sometimes slow.
He could barely tell if she was thinking, setting a trap, or genuinely stuck in the current position.
He knew almost nothing about her, and her moves didn’t match any known style in the world.
For the first time, Ni Tiansong was on the defensive, unsure whether to take the knight.
Chess is a mentally intense game, requiring you to predict several moves ahead vertically while simultaneously calculating multiple possible branches horizontally, filtering out the useless ones.
She seemed to calculate too quickly.
Every time he made a move, it felt like she’d already rebuilt her strategy, incorporating his new move into her considerations.
Even more surprising was her composure.
Whether conceding a piece, playing black, or losing pieces—even when temporarily at a disadvantage—she showed no signs of impatience.
Her face was calm, her gaze fixed on the board.
For the umpteenth time, he looked up at her again, then chose to take the black knight.
Her black queen suddenly ambushed h4.
The white king was on the verge of checkmate.
White played g3 to block the queen.
But two moves later, Ni Tiansong’s hand froze.
Both fell silent, while the others in the room, clueless, kept glancing between them.
Though they didn’t fully understand chess, the two players’ calm demeanor hid the game’s intensity and danger.
Still, the onlookers felt inexplicably nervous.
Gu Zhaosi was getting antsy.
What was going on with the game?
Come on, you’re playing this seriously for a matchmaking meet?
Are you planning to play all day?
Seeing Ni Tiansong pause, Gu Zhaoping finally looked up, her gaze landing on his face.
It was the first time she closely observed the man sitting across from her.
Before, she’d only seen him as a stand-in Li Xunwen had brought, not paying him much mind.
From the moment she arrived, she’d figured out Li Xunwen’s plan—likely trying to cheat by using the car accident excuse to have this guy play for him.
Gu Zhaoping didn’t care.
She didn’t have time to wait around for Li Xunwen’s games.
She was curious to see just how good this quiet helper he’d brought was.
After playing, she realized he was indeed formidable.
…No matter.
He happened to play right into her strongest strategies.
Plenty of pieces remained on the board, and the game didn’t look dangerous, but Ni Tiansong had been stalled for a long time.
Finally, he said,
“Shall we continue?”
The outcome was already clear.
Gu Zhaoping’s brow relaxed.
If he was willing to save her time, that was great.
She nodded, about to say,
“Let’s end it here,” when the door was suddenly pushed open.
The supposedly stuck-in-traffic Li Xunwen finally appeared!
As soon as he walked in and saw Ni Tiansong sitting in his place playing Gu Zhaoping, his face lit up with joy!
Yes!
He knew he’d made the right move.
Ni Tiansong had stepped in for him!
He knew Brother Tiansong wouldn’t be so heartless and would help him out at a critical moment!
Under everyone’s gazes, he walked up, stood beside Ni Tiansong, looked at the board, and said gleefully,
“Brother Tiansong, keep going! Why’d you stop?”
Gu Zhaosi nearly jumped up.
Li Xunwen?
What are you doing here?
You’re crashing my sister’s matchmaking game?
Have you no shame?
What’s going on?
Li Xunwen glanced at the board with delight.
Ni Tiansong could still take one of Gu Zhaoping’s pieces, clearly in a dominant position.
As expected of Brother Tiansong—
Gu Zhaoping was easily handled.
But they’d been playing for so long, and even with his delay, the game wasn’t over.
That was unexpected.
It seemed Gu Zhaoping had some real skill.
Maybe she’d actually studied chess seriously.
Li Xunwen even glanced at the timer.
Wow, they were almost out of time, nearly matching his own games.
Good thing he’d brought Brother Tiansong, or he wouldn’t have been sure of winning.
He froze.
Li Xunwen watched with a beaming smile as the two players looked up at him, neither saying a word.
Their silence made him a bit awkward.
He looked back at the board and said,
“Why’d you stop? Take her bishop…”
Ni Tiansong gave him a faint glance, as if asking,
“Are you sure?”
Seeing the others still expecting them to continue, Ni Tiansong lowered his head and, as instructed, took Gu Zhaoping’s bishop.
That’s more like it…
But Gu Zhaoping’s next move made Li Xunwen’s pupils constrict sharply!
Gu Zhaoping played g3, forcing the black queen to retreat to f1, where it formed a crossfire with the rook!
Now they moved much faster, almost without thinking, picking up pieces and advancing as if they’d already calculated the next few moves in their earlier silence, now just reenacting for the others.
Gu Zhaoping moved to f5, sacrificing a pawn to open a line.
The black knight jumped to g5, threatening checkmate.
In the final move, her queen and black bishop cornered the white king for checkmate!
Only at this moment did Li Xunwen’s eyes widen, pupils shrinking, still not processing what he’d just seen!
Then he jerked his head up, looking at Gu Zhaoping, then at Ni Tiansong.
Both were calm, as if these final moves were just a formality, the true outcome already decided in their minds!
Gu Zhaoping picked up the white king, set it aside, and said,
“Thank you.”
Ni Tiansong finally relaxed, giving her a slight smile.
“No, I lost.”
“You’re impressive.”
Gu Zhaoping nodded.
“So are you.”
Ni Tiansong’s expression softened, as if momentarily stunned by her praise.
The chess game had been a whirlwind of tension and fierce competition, yet both players’ faces remained as calm as meditating monks, showing no ripple of emotion.
Only now, with the game over, did a hint of liveliness appear on Ni Tiansong’s face.
His gaze followed Gu Zhaoping as she stood up, finished the game, and turned to put on her coat, saying,
“It’s over. I have something to attend to, so I’ll take my leave.”
Li Xunwen, still dumbfounded, stared at Ni Tiansong and let out a shocked cry: “Lost? How could you lose?!”
His face was full of disbelief, even panic.
He grabbed Ni Tiansong: “Brother Tiansong, you didn’t go easy on her, did you? You wouldn’t have let her win just because I wasn’t here, right? Brother Tiansong!”
Ni Tiansong firmly pulled his hand back, saying calmly,
“I’m not as great as you think.”
A loss was a loss—simply a matter of being outplayed, no more, no less.
Li Xunwen froze, staring blankly at him, his mind unable to process it.
He even heard Ni Tiansong say calmly,
“You were right to worry about facing her. She’s incredibly strong, far beyond you.”
Gu Zhaoping glanced back briefly.
She had no interest in dwelling on Li Xunwen, but noticing Gu Zhaosi was there—knowing his sharp tongue—she said to him:
“I made a bet with Li Xunwen. If he lost, he’d write a 1,000-word essay every day praising my virtues, to be shared with everyone. Make sure he follows through.”
She turned and left, confident that Gu Zhaosi’s biting words would ensure Li Xunwen wouldn’t dare back out.
Gu Zhaosi blinked, then it hit him—huh?
His sister had made a bet with Li Xunwen?!
He whipped around to glare at the stunned Li Xunwen!
No way, Li Xunwen, you got a ringer to help you?
And Ni Tiansong, aren’t you supposed to be on a date with my sister?
Why are you helping someone else against her?
What’s your deal?
Do you even want this date?
Wait, hold on—
Gu Zhaosi froze again, realizing something was off!
His sister beat Ni Tiansong!
My God, Ni Tiansong!
Gu Zhaosi’s jaw dropped, his eyes slowly turning back to the chessboard he hadn’t fully understood earlier.
A chill ran through him, his mouth agape.
Sis, I’ll follow you forever!
You’re the true chess king!!
Before Li Xunwen could react, Gu Zhaosi rolled up his sleeves.
Pointing at Li Xunwen, he let loose: “Well, well, you dared to bet against my sister? And you tried to cheat, huh? Bringing Ni Tiansong in? Have you no shame? Knew you couldn’t even match half of her toe, so you got backup? Ha! Guess what? Even with your backup, you couldn’t beat her! Go find someone else—I dare you to find another helper. Even Ni Tiansong lost, and you still won’t give up?”
“Li Xunwen, I’ve never seen someone so eager to get their face slapped by my sister. Thanks for that! Her ego’s gonna be well-fed with your rainbow praises—no need for me to bother!”
Gu Zhaosi waved his hand grandly: “Hurry up, you’ve got one hour to write the first essay and post it now!”
Li Xunwen’s face twisted.
He couldn’t even process his disbelief, unable to accept that Ni Tiansong had lost to Gu Zhaoping.
And she beat him in even less time than Ni Tiansong would’ve taken to beat him?
“Gu Zhaosi, what are you so smug about—”
“Smug? Yeah, I’m smug! So what? You’d be smug too if you had a sister like mine! Oh, wait, your sister’s Li Xunxi, right? She’s not half as awesome as mine. Oops, sorry, did I hit a sore spot? My bad, flaunting what you don’t have. With a sister this epic, you’d be showing off too!”
“You!”
“Are you writing or not? Fifty-nine minutes left!”
“Gu Zhaosi, don’t get too cocky! This game hasn’t been judged by a professional yet…”
“Fifty-eight minutes!”
Gu Zhaosi started timing him.
“Needing a pro to judge? Even I, who knows nothing about chess, can see who won and who lost. Li Xunwen, did your brain get stuck in a door? Still clinging to hope? Believe me, when the pros come, you’ll look even worse!”
Gu Zhaosi didn’t blink.
“Uncle Qi’s right here, isn’t he? Call him to judge now!”
The two argued nonstop, while Ni Tiansong’s gaze lingered on Gu Zhaosi for a moment.
Seeing Gu Zhaoping leave, he stood to follow and say something, but his phone rang.
He glanced at it, answered, and said,
“I’m here.”
A moment later, he froze.
His voice made the arguing pair pause, turning their attention to him.
Ni Tiansong slowly looked up at Gu Zhaoping’s departing figure and the unclosed door, stunned.
He listened to the voice on the phone, unable to snap out of it for a long time.
“What…did you say?”
“Young Master, the Chess Association announced the record! Even the Guinness World Record was broken!”
The butler’s voice was frantic, shocked, and almost breaking.
“It’s…it’s the Gu family’s Gu Zhaoping!”
The voice was so loud everyone heard it, and the room fell silent, all eyes fixed on Ni Tiansong.
His pupils constricted sharply as he processed it.
All the information he’d heard over the past few days wove together in his mind in a split second, connecting into a web of realizations.
The record-breaker, the opponent Li Xunwen asked him to face, the person Master Qi wanted to introduce him to…
Ni Tiansong’s body stiffened, and he rushed out after her.
Li Xunwen, seeing him brush past and nearly knocking him over, was shocked.
What was up with Brother Tiansong?
In all their years of knowing each other, he’d never seen him so urgent!
Then it hit him: “Record? What record?”
Gu Zhaosi was stunned too, but he was quicker.
After a brief daze, he yanked out his phone and started searching online.
The others stopped arguing, nervously turning to watch him!
Gu Zhaosi’s heart pounded wildly.
He’d vaguely heard something about a Guinness World Record, but he wasn’t sure.
Afraid he’d misheard, afraid it wasn’t what he thought, afraid he’d find nothing online, his hands trembled, his mind racing with disbelief.
No way, sis, are you really that incredible?
He tapped the screen, opening a webpage.
A flood of notifications popped up.
Everyone around him, and Gu Zhaosi himself, had their pupils shrink in shock.
He shakily read the words on the screen, lips trembling, reading over and over as if he’d lost the ability to comprehend basic text.
After reading it a dozen times, Gu Zhaosi finally looked up, his expression clear but even more stunned.
They were all dumbfounded!
It was true!
It was true!
Gu Zhaosi’s eyes widened, hands shaking, letting out a silent scream!
The entire internet had exploded!!
Like a nuclear blast, it unleashed monstrous waves from the depths of the ocean, as if the whole online world had been flipped upside down!!
It was really a Guinness World Record!
In chess!
She broke the record—his sister broke the record!!!
Gu Zhaosi’s hands shook as he gripped his phone, staring at the screen.
The news was everywhere, flooding every corner of the web.
His sister, Gu Zhaoping, had shattered a chess world record, earning a Guinness World Record title.
The details were still sinking in, but the posts and articles were relentless, hailing her as a phenomenon.
“Sis…” he muttered, voice trembling with awe, “you’re an absolute legend!”
He turned to the others, eyes wide.
“Did you see this?! She’s the real deal! The chess queen!”
Li Xunwen, still reeling, stammered,
“W-what…how…?”
Gu Zhaosi smirked, pointing at him.
“Told you! You thought you could cheat your way past her? Even Ni Tiansong couldn’t touch her! And now—boom! World record! Start writing those essays, buddy—59 minutes left!”
Ni Tiansong, who had rushed out after Gu Zhaoping, paused at the door, his phone still in hand.
The butler’s words echoed in his mind: Gu Zhaoping, Guinness World Record.
His calm facade cracked, a mix of admiration and disbelief flickering in his eyes.
He glanced back at the chaotic room, then stepped out, determined to catch up to her.
The room buzzed with excitement, everyone pulling out their phones to confirm the news.
Gu Zhaosi, practically vibrating, shouted,
“I’m telling everyone! My sister’s the GOAT!”
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