Go: Is the portable old man the nine-time champion?

Chapter 347 Sharing a Victory Drink

"Seal of the Chess Saint".

Yi Zheng looked at the seal he was holding in his hands, which represented the trophy for this year's Chess Saint.

At the top of the seal, a miniature carved auspicious beast, the Qilin, is coiled up, its form ancient and majestic, with its scales, horns, and whiskers clearly visible, as if it is about to struggle and leap out of the seal stone at any moment and roar across the chessboard.

The slight wear on the seal knob is a trace left by the deliberate aging process during the replication. The three large characters "Yi Zheng Yin" are engraved at the bottom of the seal, indicating that this is a seal that belongs exclusively to Yi Zheng.

Before the champion is determined, the name engraved below this seal is blank. After the competition, a renowned master sculptor personally carves the name and writes it for the champion.

This small seal, weighing no more than six or seven ounces, pressed heavily on Yi Zheng's palm and even more so on his heart. It represented the supreme glory and recognition of the Chinese chess world, the pinnacle that countless chess players pursued throughout their lives and until their hair turned white on the chessboard.

Of course, Yi Zheng's copy is a replica of a real antique. Although it wouldn't be worth much on the market now, it's hard to say what it will be worth in a few hundred years.

Ultimately, the value of an antique depends on several factors: its craftsmanship, its age, its historical value, and finally, the user of the artifact.

Craftsmanship is the most important factor for most antiques, and the difference between a good craftsman and a bad one is like night and day.

The degree of antiquity is also very important. You can choose between the Shang and Zhou dynasties and the Zhou dynasty. Just tell me which one you want.

Then there's the historical value—whether we can deduce things from that era based on this antique, like oracle bone inscriptions. Essentially, they're just tortoise shells, but they're incredibly precious because of the information they carry.

The last one is naturally the value to the user. The things used by ordinary people in ancient times were completely different from those used by historical figures.

Take, for example, the old sword of Emperor Xuan of Han. Theoretically, it was definitely a poorly made piece by a blacksmith from the common people, but its value cannot be compared to any other piece made by the same blacksmith. This is the added value of a famous person.

If Yi Zheng can rise to prominence and leave a significant mark on history, even surpassing all previous chess masters, his chess master seal will become the most valuable seal, surpassing all others.

Because Yi Zheng's seal is the genuine seal of the Chess Saint, and Yi Zheng is the Chess Saint!
This thought was like a shot of adrenaline injected into his veins. Yi Zheng felt an indescribable heat rush from his chest to the top of his head, and his ears were even ringing!
He suddenly understood why his fellow villager Sun Jian had gone mad when he got the imperial seal; this thing was truly a menace!

If you receive orders from Heaven, you will live a long and prosperous life!
The genius is on the left, the madman is on the right, and I am in the middle—I am the emperor!
I'm not crazy! I'm not crazy! I am the Emperor!

Yi Zheng couldn't help but laugh when he thought about this, but the people below the stage didn't find it strange. After all, isn't it normal to be happy when you win the championship?
Yi Zheng did not let out a laugh like that of Secretary-General Zhou.

Yi Zheng stood in the middle holding the medium-sized seal, while the two leaders stood on either side holding display boards with large checks for the media to take photos.

After the filming, the special guest in charge of the cultural aspect shook hands with Yi Zheng and said, "Congratulations to Yi Zheng, 9-dan, on your early fame and remarkable achievements! A strong youth makes a strong China! Seeing you all makes me believe that there is hope for Chinese Go!"
I hope you will continue your efforts and live up to the title of Chess Saint! Young people need to broaden their horizons! Don't limit your focus to domestic competitions; strive for even greater achievements in international tournaments!

"must!"

Upon hearing this, Yi Zheng nodded without any hesitation!

For almost any player, international competitions are generally considered more prestigious than domestic competitions.

Being subservient to outsiders but ruthless at home is not a compliment; it can even lead to being branded a disgrace in history. "Good! Looking forward to your excellent results!" The leader nodded in satisfaction, patted Yi Zheng's shoulder lightly with an approving smile, and then turned to leave.

However, the departure of the top leader does not mean that Yi Zheng's mission is complete.

As the absolute protagonist of the evening, Yi Zheng was the "core magnet for group photos" and "human standee" of the entire awards ceremony, with almost all the leaders wanting to take a photo with him.

The stage lights changed, and the backdrop switched to a map of China, with the names of the seven regions shining brightly.

Seven top Go players, each with a distinct style but equally powerful presence, took turns to receive their trophies. These trophies, each unique in design and created by their respective local Go academies based on their historical characteristics, were all works of art, showcasing the diverse charm of Go rooted in the fertile soil of China.

Yi Zheng couldn't help but wink as he watched Yun Linglei go on stage. "Senior brother, I told you I came here to join this family, not to destroy it."

Yun Linglei subconsciously restrained himself from rolling his eyes when he saw Yi Zheng winking at him. He had to maintain his image in public!

However, Yun Linglei was still quite happy. Although he lost, he kept his title and will be waiting for others to challenge him in the finals next year. He won't have to work so hard and start all over again.

After his title fight ended this year, Yun Linglei gradually felt his form was declining. He's getting old, and it's very difficult to start fighting from scratch again.

The award ceremony for the seven regional title recipients was held at the same time, and Yi Zheng stood by and waited for them to finish their awards before being invited to the center for a group photo.

It can only be said that although being the main character looks glamorous, it is indeed very tiring, as you have to do all kinds of work.

After finally completing all the procedures, Yi Zheng still couldn't rest, because the next step was the media interview.

Yi Zheng felt that the media had really run out of ideas, asking the same old questions every day.

Congratulations on winning the championship! What are your goals for the future? Is there anything you'd like to say?
"First, never settle for second place; second, always strive for first place; third, ensure the competition is absolutely fair and beautiful."

Yi Zheng couldn't help but complain: "Actually, I've said it many times, my goal is the Grand Slam. Right now, I'm only one-ninth of that. But I hope to win the Asian Cup next month and bring that progress to almost completion next year."

Upon hearing Yi Zheng's words, all the media outlets couldn't help but pause in surprise.

What does "almost finished" mean?
The major competitions this year and next year are the National Games, the National Championships, the Asian Games, the Asian Cup, the Asian Championships, and the World Cup. The World Championships and the Olympics will not be held next year.

If you say it's almost done, does that mean you have to win all of these competitions or just miss one or two? You need to win at least six to say it's almost done.

However, Yi Zheng did not say it explicitly, so everyone could only speculate on his meaning.

But Yi Zheng doesn't like being a riddle maker; riddle makers should get out of Gotham.

"So by next year, I need to get my Grand Slam progress to at least seven-ninths!"

(End of this chapter)