108 Maidens of Destiny Chapter 158

Su Xing pointed to a set of Chinese Chess,1 smiling: "Let's gamble with Chinese Chess!"
Chai Ling had thought Su Xing would want to gamble something, but unexpectedly, it was Chinese Chess. Che could not help but make a light disapproving sigh, "You wish to use Chinese Chess to show This Palace is poor and destitute. You really are too creative.
"Chinese Chess is only the method, the outcome is the important point."
The Noble Star discerned the meaning of Su Xing's words. She unenthusiastically smiled: "What plan do you have?"
"If I lose, then I will stay to listen to your commands." Su Xing expressionlessly looked at the Little Whirlwind.
Chai Ling shook her head, covering her smile: "This Palace still wants to see the Knowledge Star lose her virginity."
Su Xing's eyes flashed a trace of ice-cold. He coldly grinned: "If you lose, I want you to follow my request to cram gold onto the chessboard."
"Cram onto the chessboard?" Chai Ling broke into laughter: "And how shall it be crammed. Using a hundred liang should be sufficient."
Su Xing used his hand to point at the chessboard: "If Little Sister Chai Ling loses, place one liang of gold upon the first square of this chessboard. Two liang in the second, four liang in the third, eight in the fourth, and the fifth would have sixteen liang. In a similar way, increase as you go one by one through the squares all the way to this last sixty-fourth square. Finally, give this gold to Your Servant. This is the request, Little Sister Chai Ling wouldn't refuse, right."
After listening to Su Xing's request, Chai Ling had nearly laughed to death. What did filling her trillion liang of gold onto this insignificant sixty-four square Chinese Chess board count as. She looked at Su Xing with a look that could not help but be full of mockery: "This Palace is even about to think over being your Elder Sister, but do not be satisfied with this small of a gain…is it this simple?"
You can slowly laugh, but I will see how you cry in a moment. Su Xing thought. The most famous chessboard bet on this earth at first glance seemed very simple, but it seemed it would thoroughly and absolutely make Chai Ling's jaw drop.
"It is this simple." Su Xing said: "But, I hear Noblewoman Chai is stingy and very fond of hoarding gold. The person herself should be a bit more generous. If you lose, you can also not stuff it, but it must be exchanged for three other requests."
"What requests?" Chai Ling actually wanted to know what other thoughts the youth before her had.
"The first request, lend us the Red Ink Iron Certificate."
Chai Ling nodded, "This is nothing."
"The second request, whenever you see Your Servant in the future, sweetly call out Big Brother Su Xing." This request immediately arose in Su Xing purely due to Chai Ling's arrogant manner. She stayed away from what she did not like, so Su Xing was even more insistent on this.
Chai Ling's brow slightly wrinkled. She was not angry, but smiled instead: "You truly are bold. Do not think that staying behind in this castle will let you have lustful nights every night. This Palace has but many ways to treat you…This Palace agrees to this calling out of yours."
"The third request. Seeing as Milady's mouth was hung full of filthy words just now, Your Servant wants to make Milady give Your Servant an erotic dance, but thinking about it…it would be better to forget about it. If you are filled with resentment, just sending me your kiss will do." Su Xing sneered. She took Wu Xinjie's virgin body to be like business merchandise in her eyes, so Su Xing could not help having the idea to punish her. Originally, he had something even more nasty, but the other person was the Noble Star Little Whirlwind, after all. Reflecting over and over again, he could only have a kiss as a gift.
"What This Palace said was not wrong. Men only naturally are creatures that think with their lower halves." Hearing Su Xing's request, Chai Ling actually laughed out loud. She collapsed the Golden Thread Feather Fan, and she had a cold look in her eyes and a tone that immediately fell to the freezing point. "Then This Palace shall let you see Your Servant's financial might."
"Don't be so hasty, first play a round of Chinese Chess." Su Xing smiled. "So as to avoid you blaming Big Brother for not caring for you."
A cold wind suddenly rushed in.
And then it broke apart in front of Su Xing.
Hair was raised, and there were several fractures.
Hearing Su Xing say as such, Jinzhi and Yuye then made a move.
Su Xing was calm as a flower, electricity jumping between his fingers.
"Jinzhi, Yuye, what are you two doing. Just let this man speak as he pleases. Fancy that This Palace believed in treating you favorably for signing the Knowledge Star and Skilful Star. It seems you are nothing more than a frivolous lecher…This Palace suddenly actually wants a court eunuch to serve her…"2 Chai Ling smiled yet did not, a natural and sumptuous attitude. "You will not refuse, will you?”
"Then Little Sister must remember to send me a kiss."
At first, they seemed to be sweethearts flirtatiously bantering, but on closer inspection, each of the two had a cold glint in their eyes, opposing each other with equal sharpness, each brimming with the concentrated scent of gunpowder. Cha Ling had actually been bored in this Great Circle Castle for a very long time, and suddenly encountering this interesting matter, she was actually full of interest.
A table to play chess on was set up. The Chinese Chess board was carved from Black Scented White Pear Wood, which was very expensive. Each piece was built completely from precious jade valued at several hundred million. The red side was White Lotus Jade, and the black side was Black Ink Essence, which were priceless. The ninety intersections over the entire chessboard were all inlaid with considerably pricey green jade. This Chai Ling was rich and overbearing as expected, with anything from the Great Circle Castle being above one hundred million.
Su Xing chose black.
Liangshan's Chinese Chess and the Chinese Chess he had previously seen were no different. His old grandfather was an incredible Chinese Chess player, having previously defeated several national players with one move. Su Xing frequently played with him at home, and to speak of it, this Chinese Chess was a specialty of Su Xing's.
Chai Ling was also considered proficient in Chinese Chess. She was set up on high, so the queen who paid no attention worldly affairs found herself some fun to pass the time.
Chai Ling grasped the Lotus Jade white piece to take the first turn. Seeing Su Xing so haughty, seeking victory so impatiently, she wished she could take Su Xing's "General"3 in one fell swoop. He gathered his spirits, straightened his soldiers and spurred his horses, rushing his chariots like the wind, throwing himself directly at the opponent's positions.
The moment an expert moved, that was when it was known whether or not he had the knowledge.
Seeing the very first steps of Chai Ling, Su Xing's heart was even more certain he would beat her. In modern Chinese Chess, techniques had already been perfected, so why would he fear he could not defeat her?
Su Xing planned in advance, taking matters calmly, tightening his defenses and slowing his attack, firmly controlling the center zone.
Not long after, both sides were engaged in fierce close quarters combat, entering the mid-game phase.
Su Xing contemplated for a short while, resolutely sending his chariot into the opponent's tiger den. Afterwards, he jumped the horse for the general, sinking his soldiers to the bottom line. His chariot firmly grasped the throat, an attack like a cannon barrage firing in succession.4
And in a short instant, he had checkmated her.
Chai Ling was stunned, actually holding somewhat of a new level of respect for Su Xing. To be so calm under Chinese Chess for his age, even veterans would not make her astonished. Although she lost, the Little Whirlwind was not dismayed. She called out: "Jinzhi, take one million liang of gold to fill this Chinese Chess board. The remainder might as well be gifted to this Young Lord, too." The Noble Star Little Whirlwind wore a slight sneer, as if she was saying, cramming this Chinese Chess with gold was truly childish.
"One million liang? You have to count clearly." Su Xing chuckled.
"Could it be you are dissatisfied with this little?"
"Just now, I said to place one liang of gold on this chessboard's first square, two liang in the second square, four liang in the third square, eight liang in the fourth square. The fifth square would be sixteen liang, and so on all the way to the last sixty-fourth square, is that not correct." Su Xing smiled.
When Chai Ling heard him, she had thought Su Xing would say something, but it was just using this method to fill it. Her mouth smiled yet did not, and her eyes brimmed with ridicule: "Indeed so. This Palace had even thought you would make her shocked, but it was only so." Her grand trillion liang of gold, was it possible it was unable to fill the board? It was only an insignificant sixty-four squares.
"Jinzhi, Yuye, just follow according to what this Young Lord Su Xing said."
Jinzhi and Yuye voiced their asset. They crowded the chessboard, putting their heads together as they counted. Counting on and on, the continuously cold and statuesque expressions of the two girls suddenly exhibited great changes. They were stupefied, unable to utter even a word.
This was the first time Chai Ling had seen the two maids forget themselves like this. She could not help but furrow her brow in annoyance, asking: "What? However large the amount, just give it to him. There is no need to be frightened into that manner!"
Jinzhi stammered: "Milady, Milady, counting in accordance to this method of his, upon reaching the sixty-fourth square, giving all of Milady's gold to him would be nothing more than a small sum!"
"What??!!"
Chai Ling loudly shouted, severely saying: "You two must have got it wrong."
"Milady, Slave Servant does not dare!" Jinzhi and Yuye looked at Su Xing, the expressions full of astonishment.
Chai Ling wrinkled her brow, turning her head around to stare at Su Xing. She saw he still acted as if nothing had happened.
"What? Did you suddenly feel your so-called vast wealth equal to that of a nation is pitifully lacking?" Su Xing thoughtfully smiled: "Even an insignificant chessboard could not be filled."
"How could it be that This Palace's trillion in wealth is insufficient for you?" Chai Ling scoffed. She had Jinzhi and Yuye withdraw and counted the gold herself. A while later, the graceful Little Whirlwind immediately lost her color, and that Golden Thread Feather Fan fell to the ground.
"How could it be this much?"
Her mouth hung agape in surprise.
Su Xing was not a single bit shocked at her astonishment. The words he gave Chai Ling were from Earth mathematics' extremely famous "Sessa's Wheat and Chessboard Problem."5 She perhaps was pretty good in business, but this seemingly simple chessboard's gold actually very easily confused people. Because the chessboard was only sixty-four squares at first glance, accumulating from the one liang on the first square was not much. The several tens of ten thousands would be sufficient, but the terror of this type of successive accumulation lay at the end. The more towards the end, that absolutely was an astronomical figure. If she really wanted to fill this sixty-four square chessboard, that was an astronomical figure reaching 20 places. This little bit of capital of Chai Ling’s was not enough to fill the gaps between teeth.
"Milady!!"
Jinzhi and Yuye were somewhat anxious.
"Darling Little Sister Chai Ling, why don't you call out Big Brother?" Su Xing chuckled.
The Little Whirlwind Chai Ling looked at Su Xing filled with fear. Unbelievably, this seemingly superficial youth would think of this frightening of a calculation method. Chai Ling had no choice but to concede. All of her wealth was incapable of satisfying the condition. That a tiny chessboard could be this mysterious made Chai Ling feel disbelief.
"Amazing, worthy of the one who could sign the Skilful Star. This Palace has underestimated you." Chai Ling said.
"Isn't it too late to say such nice words? I previously said, if you are unable to do it, don't forget those three requests…" Su Xing ruthlessly used forceful words: "Call out Big Brother right now."
"Do not be too impudent!" Jinzhi and Yuye said in cold voices when they heard this. To make their lady, the grand queen of the Great Circle go calling a man that looked smaller than her “Big Brother” was simply supreme humiliation.
"Cease, you two!" Chai Ling stared at Su Xing, biting her lips hard enough to draw a trace of blood.
If it was before this, Su Xing perhaps would have had a change of heart, but now he remained unmoved. Who let her regard Wu Xinjie's chastity as a bill.
"…Big…Brother!!" Chai Ling squeezed these two words out with extreme difficulty, wishing she could eat Su Xing alive.
Seeing the set up on high and arrogant Her Majesty The Queen say "Big Brother," Su Xing truly felt incomparable satisfaction: "Little Sister Chai Ling must leave light refreshments."
"You can be considered incredible." Chai Ling silvery teeth bit tightly.
"Right, there seemed to be something else…"
Chai Ling immediately lost her color.
Author’s Note:
It can't be maintained, pleading for a vote!! Please surpass 630 tickets, I acknowledge I lost!! 象棋 ↩ Uh-oh, Su Xing… ↩ 將 ↩ Not too knowledgeable about Chinese Chess, so this translation was done with some liberties. ↩ A foray into geometric series and sequences. More math y’all! ↩