Noon .
His mother had called to order a barbecue .
"Just place it here . "
"Alright, Auntie . "
"Oh yes, bring some more beer . It's a grand occasion today . "
"Is someone celebrating their birthday?"
"It's not that . My son has just come back!"
Several of the hotel's staff carried the barbecue equipment and food over to the villa's yard . They also brought over a lot of cold beers and placed them on the table . As Zhang Ye was afraid that he would get recognized, he habitually put on his sunglasses again . This had become a reflex of his over the years ever since he started working in the industry . But he soon discovered that no one seemed to have noticed him at all, much less recognized who he was .
When the hotel staff left .
His mother laughed and said, "Was that necessary?"
Zhang Ye chuckled and said, "The sun was too bright . Can't I put on my sunglasses on for that reason?"
His father called him over . "Son, let's drink together today!"
"Whoa, it's so rare seeing you wanting to drink," Zhang Ye said happily .
Wu Zeqing brought their daughter out and said, "Our dad is just really happy today . "
His father said, "That's right, I'm very happy today . "
His mother said sarcastically, "What are you so happy about? Now that this kid is back, something big is surely going to happen again . Do you think he can give it a rest for even a day? Like I'd believe that!"
Wu Zeqing laughed .
Everyone got seated .
Sisi was sitting in Wu Zeqing's lap . Sometimes, she would give Zhang Ye a look, then steal another glance at him every now and then .
Wu Zeqing smiled and signaled to Zhang Ye with her eyes . She whispered, "Our daughter seems to be paying a lot of attention on you . Let her get used to it first and take it slowly . "
Zhang Ye nodded .
His father said, "Come, let's toast . "
Zhang Ye smiled and said, "Sure . "
Wu Zeqing also raised her cup . "Cheers . "
Zhang Ye said, "Dad, Mom, Old Wu, it's been hard on you these past few years . I'm not gonna say anything else, so lemme toast you . I'll drink first, and you can drink at your own pace . "
He emptied the cup into his mouth .
His father sighed like he had a lot to get off his chest .
Only then did Zhang Ye ask, "How has everyone in the family been?"
His father said, "Your grandpa had some heart issues last year and underwent a heart stent procedure . He has recovered quite well since then . Your grandma still has the same old problems . She still has high blood pressure and cerebral thrombosis, but they're all under control . As for your mom and I, we're doing quite alright . "
Zhang Ye asked, "Have we renovated the house yet?"
His mother laughed and said, "Renovate? We've already moved out from there . "
Zhang Ye said, "Where did you move to?"
His mother said, "Some place not too far from where Zeqing is living . She has to go to work, so your dad and I take care of your daughter . Oh, and sometimes it's Zeqing's parents who take care of her . "
Zhang Ye looked at Old Wu, "How're Mom and Dad doing?"
Wu Zeqing smiled . "Pretty good . "
His mother said, "Yes, it's just that Zeqing's dad would put you down so often . "
His father laughed and said, "That's only because our son did not live up to their expectations . Since there's some resentment, surely we can allow him some criticism . "
His mother said, "About your return, aren't you going to let Zeqing's family know about it?"
Zhang Ye hurriedly waved his hands . "Please don't tell them . Wait until I return to Beijing so that I can go and apologize to them in person . If we tell them now, I'm afraid that Father-in-law will take the next plane and come for me in the afternoon . "
Everyone laughed .
Wu Zeqing smiled and said, "Don't say that . I think it's actually possible that he would do something like that . Quite a few people from the China Qiyuan have also come to Sanya on vacation . If I remember correctly, they should be staying near our hotel . My parents had wanted to come as well, but they didn't as they don't really like flying . "
Zhang Ye said, "I've already met the Qiyuan people . "
Wu Zeqing said, "When did you see them?"
"On the way here . " Zhang Ye said with a laugh, "I got a ride from them, but they didn't recognize me . I even played several games of Go with them . '
His mom exclaimed, "You haven't touched Go in so many years . Can you still play?"
Zhang Ye smiled and said, "Of course . "
Wu Zeqing asked, "Did any of the newcomers catch your eye?"
Zhang Ye gave it some thought and said, "They're alright . They aren't too bad . I played some games with Chen Ying's two nieces and saw many ways of playing that I've never encountered before . "
Wu Zeqing nodded and said, "In these years that you've been away, the Go world has undergone a lot of change . There are a lot more playstyles now, and many of them were innovated by my dad and those old comrades he retired alongside . They studied all the different ways of playing and came up with new ones in order to deal with the AI . But after two years, there is still no one who can beat PeterGo in a match . "
His father sighed and said, "The Go world is in such a terrible state right now . "
Zhang Ye said, "I've also heard a little about this . "
Wu Zeqing smiled and said, "That's why my dad keeps putting you down whenever he's at home . He says that if you were around, there could still be a chance that humans could turn the tables on PeterGo . "
Zhang Ye's eyes narrowed as he smiled and said, "Aren't I back now?"
Wu Zeqing said, "When do you intend to announce this to the public?"
Zhang Ye said, "We'll see about that . I haven't decided yet . "
Out of the blue, Sisi said, "Mommy, I'm full . "
Wu Zeqing nodded . "Alright, why don't you go and play by yourself?"
Sisi said, "I want to play Go . "
Wu Zeqing smiled . "Why don't you play with Daddy then?"
Zhang Ye replied excitedly, "Yes, yes, Daddy will play with you . "
Sisi was unwilling . "I want Mommy to play with me . "
Wu Zeqing ruffled her hair and said, "Mommy isn't as good as Daddy . Didn't I already tell you that? Daddy is the greatest Go player in the world . Back then, there was no one in the entire world who could beat him . "
Zhang Ye corrected, "What do you mean 'back then'? It's still relevant now . "
Sisi whispered, "Is he better than Grandpa?"
Wu Zeqing said, "Of course . "
"Hur hur . " Zhang Ye laughed and said, "Even if there are ten of your grandpas, they wouldn't be a match for Daddy . He will always lose to me . "
His mother rolled her eyes . "Will it kill you to brag less?"
Sisi did not believe that . She tugged at Wu Zeqing's sleeve . "Mommy, I want you to play with me . "
Wu Zeqing could do nothing about it . "Alright then . "
The mother and daughter set up the Go board nearby .
Zhang Ye asked his father . "My daughter can even play Go?"
His father laughed and said, "It was Zeqing's dad who taught her . He teaches her whenever she goes over to their place . He says that it would help with the early development of her intelligence . In fact, Teacher Changhe's teaching method is quite good . The girl is very smart too and doesn't play too badly . It happens that Sisi is also quite interested in the game herself . "
She likes to play Go?
That is good!
This is an opportunity!
…
Meanwhile .
At Yalong Bay . In a hotel's restaurant .
A group of over 30 people were sitting together . Chen Qiqi and Chen Niannian were also among them .
"Have you all stowed your luggage in your rooms?"
"Yes . "
"Alright, let's eat then . We'll assemble for training tomorrow . "
"Ah? We're starting tomorrow?"
"Did you really think we're here on vacation?"
"Alright, we get it, Teacher Tian . "
"We'll have one day of rest and start taking on PeterGo in batches from tomorrow onward . "
"Ah? Please, no . "
"What are you guys yelling about? This is the training schedule we planned . "
Tian Weiwei lectured them with a stern face . He looked like he had matured a lot and was no longer the green teenager who was a crybaby several years ago .
Much had happened in these past few years . The artificial intelligence had dealt the Go world a bloodbath and a storm was raging . The former world number one of the Go world, Xiang Rong 9-dan, had quietly gone into retirement, while Li Yi 9-dan and the others gradually left the scene as well . The Go world was devastated, so a lot of people were forced to grow up quickly .
At this moment, Chen Ying came over from afar .
There were also a few others with her . They were all of the higher ranked professional Go players .
Chen Qiqi pulled a long face and said, "Aunt, are you all going to challenge PeterGo again?"
Chen Ying said with a smile, "Yes, you guys are the future hope of the Go world . What you have to do now is to study your opponent and familiarize yourselves with it . You have to believe that PeterGo is not unbeatable . There will come a day when someone will beat it . Teacher Tian and I, along with everyone else at the Qiyuan, are hoping that the person will be one of you . This is because you are the most outstanding players among the newcomers . "
Chen Niannian gave a bitter smile . "What future hope of the Go world? Aunt, don't speak so highly of us already . "
Chen Ying was taken aback . She said in amusement, "What's the matter?"
A girl said, "Hai, don't mention it . "
A boy said, "While we were on the way here, we were crushed by someone . "
Tian Weiwei was startled . "There's someone who can defeat you guys in Go?"
Chen Qiqi said dejectedly, "Yeah, it was an expert amateur player who beat us . "
Chen Niannian added, "And he even uses that really old Cosmic Flow playstyle . It was such a bloodbath, and he also knows how to play Xiangqi . "
An 8-dan Go player asked curiously, "Who is that person?"
Chen Qiqi shook her head . "I don't know . "
Chen Niannian said, "Oh yes, I think he said that he knows Teacher Tian and Aunt . "
Chen Ying and Tian Weiwei looked at each other . "He knows us?"
Chen Qiqi couldn't explain it . "The man is about this tall, and he was wearing a pair of sunglasses, so we didn't get to see his face properly . In any case, his Go skill is pretty impressive . He claims to be an amateur 9-dan, but I think he's higher ranked than that . "
Chen Niannian interrupted, "He didn't say that he was an amateur 9-dan . Now that I think about it, he only said that he was a 9-dan . "
Chen Qiqi rolled his eyes . "Like he would be a professional 9-dan? There are only so many professional 9-dan players in history . Would we not know if he was one of them?"
Chen Niannian said, "Well, that's true . "
Tian Weiwei said, "Or maybe it was one of the retired Go players?"
Chen Ying said, "Where is he staying?"
Chen Niannian pointed west . "At No . 1 Villa Hotel . "
Chen Ying didn't really take this matter to heart either . "I guess we'll know who it is if we ever bump into him over the next few days . "
Chapter end
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