The Cinnabar Mole of a Beijing Circle Tycoon

Outside the car window, the mountain road, with its first snow melting, gleamed with a wet sheen, and the distant pines and cypresses, topped with remnants of snow, resembled a traditional Chinese ink painting.

There were still faint traces of incense ash on Shen Qingyao's fingertips, which she had accidentally rubbed off when offering incense at the Guanyin Hall.

She treasured it and couldn't bear to wipe it off.

Meng Jiangyu gripped the steering wheel, glanced at her sideways, and smiled: "I'll take you to Wangjinglou for lunch."

"Wangjing Tower? Never heard of it!"

"It's just a place to eat."

"Great!" Shen Qingyao's eyes lit up, then she suddenly remembered something. "Oh right, what did the fortune teller say the fortune slip we drew earlier meant?"

"A very auspicious fortune, indicating that you will have a smooth and healthy year, and will also receive some small blessings."

He remembered that when the fortune teller said those words, Shen Qingyao's ears turned as red as ripe cherries, and even her earlobes were pink.

As they spoke, the car entered the city, and the Wangjing Tower stood out prominently at the street corner.

Shen Qingyao glanced at the pretty hostesses at the entrance: "This is quite a grand affair. Are you sure this is a restaurant?"

"certainly!"

"You're lying! There are so many pretty girls at the entrance."

"These are staff members from Wangjinglou!"

"I'm not stupid!"

"If you were the owner of Wangjinglou, wouldn't you hire some pretty girls as waitresses?"

Yes!

"That settles it!"

This was Meng Jiangyu's first visit to Wangjinglou since its renovation and reopening.

Meng Jiangyu parked his car at the entrance, and the doorman took the car keys and went to park.

After Meng Jiangyu got out of the car, the manager greeted him with a smile: "Mr. Meng, the private room has been prepared for you."

"Mm." Meng Jiangyu nodded, glanced at the manager, opened the passenger door, and led Shen Qingyao out.

Those present had never seen anything like it before, and they were all stunned.

This is the first time a woman has appeared in Meng Jiangyu's life.

However, due to their excellent training, they did not exhibit any abnormalities and led Meng Jiangyu to the private room.

A woman's intuition allowed her to keenly sense the hostility these girls harbored towards her.

The women's restroom is a hotbed of gossip.

Shen Qingyao pretended to be affectionate and whispered in his ear, "I'm going to the restroom."

The waiter was naturally displeased and would surely complain about it behind his back.

Seeing the girl's unusual expression, Meng Jiangyu understood and cooperated, "Okay, baby!"

As soon as Shen Qingyao stood still in the toilet stall of Wangjing Tower, she heard several women's voices outside, whispering and discussing, their tone full of curiosity and speculation.

"Who do you think that girl is? Mr. Meng actually brought her to dinner himself, and his eyes were practically glued to her the whole time." A voice rang out, filled with incredulous surprise.

"Who knows? Have you forgotten what happened to Xiaoqian last time? Xiaoqian was so beautiful, she took the initiative to get close to him, and what happened? So tragically."

Another voice chimed in, tinged with lingering fear, "Back then, we all guessed that Mr. Meng didn't like women, but today's scene is truly astonishing."

"I don't think that girl is that pretty. She's far inferior in terms of figure and looks. What means does she have to make Mr. Meng look at her differently?" Someone clicked their tongue in amazement, their tone revealing their dissatisfaction.

"Hey, maybe he's good in bed." A slightly shrill voice chimed in, carrying a hint of malicious speculation.

"Come on, hasn't Xiaoqian had enough tricks up her sleeve? She didn't even have a chance to use them back then, did she?" someone immediately retorted. "Who is Mr. Meng? Can he be so easily manipulated?"

"Could it be that they drugged her?" Another guess popped up, tinged with a hint of probing.

"Are you stupid?" The voice sneered. "It's not like no one's ever tried before, and what happened? The bodyguards just ripped off their coats and threw them out, leaving them freezing outside for half the night. Don't even mention how humiliating that was. Mr. Meng hates that the most; who would dare try anything under his nose?"

Shen Qingyao, listening to these words from inside the cubicle, felt somewhat smug.

The discussion outside continued, interspersed with a few ambiguous laughs.

Shen Qingyao took a deep breath, pushed open the door, and walked out.

The matter between her and Meng Jiangyu is not for outsiders to speculate about with malice.

The waitresses outside looked terrified. "Hello, I'm Meng Jiangyu's darling girlfriend."

"You don't need to guess anymore, we're a match made in heaven, you have no chance!"

Shen Qingyao turned and walked out of the bathroom, bumping into Meng Jiangyu who was coming to find her.

A hint of worry crossed his face: "Why did you take so long?"

Shen Qingyao shook her head, took his hand, and said in a light voice, "It's nothing. I just watched a play, it was very interesting. Let's go back."

Meng Jiangyu didn't ask any more questions, but simply gripped her hand even tighter: "Okay, my darling girlfriend, let's go back."

Shen Qingyao stared at Meng Jiangyu in shock. "You knew everything!"

"certainly!"

"So you came here to stop me?"

"How could that be? I came because I was afraid you couldn't handle it, so I helped you get justice."

From childhood, I was taught that it's better to avoid trouble and not cause problems.

How could you not be attracted to a man like that?

"Don't worry, I've won big with your darling girlfriend!"

"So you're only a little white rabbit in front of me, but a big bad wolf in front of others."

"No, I've always been an innocent little rabbit."

"Okay, okay, my precious little white rabbit."

The private room is by the window, where you can see the candied hawthorn stall across the street. The bright red hawthorns are coated with a crystal-clear sugar coating and glitter in the sunlight.

Shen Qingyao looked at it and her mouth watered. Meng Jiangyu asked the waiter to buy two skewers and handed one to her, saying, "Eat slowly."

She took a small bite, the sourness of the hawthorn mingling with the sweetness of the sugar coating, and smiled with her eyes narrowed: "It's a little sourer than the ones at home, but it tastes good."

The dishes were served quickly, all of which were Shen Qingyao's favorites.

The squirrel-shaped mandarin fish was fried until golden brown and drizzled with sweet and sour sauce. The outer skin was crispy and the inside was tender. Shen Qingyao picked up a piece with her chopsticks, blew on it before putting it in her mouth, and it was so hot that she stuck out her tongue, which made Meng Jiangyu laugh out loud.

Meng Jiangyu scooped up a spoonful of rock sugar pear soup: "Drink some of this, it'll cut through the greasiness and soothe your throat."

News of what happened in the restroom had already reached Meng Jiangyu. All the waiters who were gossiping were fired and would never be hired by any high-end establishment in Beijing again.

When I got home after dinner, the sunlight slanted into the living room and fell on the rosewood Go table.

Meng Jiangyu led Shen Qingyao to the table: "I'll teach you Go. It's simple and easy to understand, and learning it will help you cultivate patience."

Pick a black stone from the chess box and place it in the center position.

Shen Qingyao leaned closer and poked the cold chess piece with her finger: "This is harder than Gomoku, right? So many squares, it's dizzying just looking at it."

"It's not difficult," he said, picking up a white piece and placing it next to a black piece.

"Go is all about surrounding territory. You use your stones to surround your opponent's stones, leaving no survivors. Then, your opponent's stones become dead stones. Whoever surrounds the larger area wins."

He patiently explained the rules of placing pieces, teaching her how to "capture pieces" and how to "make eyes".

Shen Qingyao studied diligently, her brows slightly furrowed, occasionally asking, "So, is my seed surrounded by you? Is it doomed?"

Meng Jiangyu watched as she held the chess piece between her fingers, hovering it above the chessboard, seemingly hesitant, and found it much more interesting than reading a chess score.

"Don't panic, look here," he took her hand and guided her to place a white stone, "This will create two 'eyes,' and the group will be alive."

Sunlight filtered through her hair, casting dappled patterns on the chessboard. Her eyelashes fluttered, brushing against the back of his hand, causing a slight tickle.

Shen Qingyao suddenly pointed at the chessboard and laughed, "I captured your black piece!"

Meng Jiangyu laughed loudly and ruffled her hair: "Good, our Yaoyao is really smart."

"Let's play one game first, so you can get used to the game!"

"Okay, I want the white piece!"

"Yaoyao, Black goes first, that gives them an advantage!"

"No, white looks better!"

"good!"

The first game was played very slowly. Shen Qingyao's white pieces were scattered haphazardly, but she always managed to place a "lifesaver" piece just when he thought she was about to surround the enemy.

Meng Jiangyu didn't take it too seriously, occasionally letting her have a few moves, and watching her cheer "I'm alive again" made him feel even more satisfied than if he had won the game.

"One more game!" Shen Qingyao had a general understanding of the game's flow.

"Fine!" This time I won't let you have your way.

"Then you'd better play chess with me at the same level as me!"

"That's natural."

Halfway through the game, Shen Qingyao clutched the white pieces, a thin layer of sweat beading on her nose.

On the chessboard, black and white pieces were intertwined. Her eyes were fixed on the white pieces in the lower right corner that were surrounded by Meng Jiangyu. Her fingertips were trembling with anxiety.

That was territory she had worked so hard to "occupy," and now it was being relentlessly pursued by haters, and it looked like she was about to be completely wiped out.

"Here, place your piece." Meng Jiangyu's voice was soft, the black piece in his hand hovering above the chessboard, yet he hesitated to place it.

He deliberately slowed down his pace, each step showing obvious signs of a beginner's, and even intentionally left a flaw in the upper left corner, but Shen Qingyao's attention was completely drawn to the crisis in the lower right corner, and she didn't see it at all.

"No! My piece is going to be captured!" She hurriedly placed a piece next to the surrounded white pieces, as if throwing a lifebuoy to someone about to drown, but little did she know that this move would only drag more white pieces into the mire.

Meng Jiangyu looked at her furrowed brows, a smile hidden in his eyes.

His black pieces appear scattered, but in reality, they resemble an invisible net, quietly encircling the entire chessboard.

The empty space in the lower left corner that Shen Qingyao had ignored had already been mostly occupied by his black pieces without her noticing, but she only had eyes for the "city" in front of her and didn't care about the "territory" in the distance.

"Look here."

At the end of the game, Meng Jiangyu pointed to the empty space in the upper left corner and said, "If you had paid even a little attention to this area, even just by placing one piece, the entire board would be in a completely different position now."

Shen Qingyao stared at the chessboard.

In her attempt to save those few dozen pieces in the bottom right corner, she sacrificed a large area of ​​empty space in the top left corner, resulting in her losing not only the pieces in the bottom right corner but also an even larger territory.

They are always concerned about winning or losing in the moment, but forget that playing chess requires looking at the overall situation.

"I was so busy saving those pieces..." she muttered softly, poking at the white piece in the lower right corner that had been captured, as if she were feeling sorry for it.

Meng Jiangyu put away the chess pieces, his fingertips tracing the edge of the chessboard: "Playing chess is like living life. Sometimes losing a few pieces is nothing. The important thing is to protect the whole board. The pieces that have been captured are actually helping you see where the key points to protect are."

Shen Qingyao looked up at him and suddenly remembered that during the game of chess just now, she was so anxious that she kept slamming the table, while Meng Jiangyu was always slow and leisurely. Even when she captured a few of his black pieces, he would just smile and place new pieces elsewhere.

Back then, she thought he was "incompetent," but now she understands that it's not that he doesn't care; it's that he knows what to give up and what to keep.

"One more round!" She suddenly straightened her back, her eyes blazing with renewed fighting spirit. "This time, I'm not focusing on small territories!"

Meng Jiangyu raised an eyebrow and rearranged the chess pieces: "Alright, I'll wait and see your grand strategy."

The moonlight outside the window fell on the chessboard, illuminating Shen Qingyao's focused profile.

This time, she would always glance at the entire chessboard before making a move. Although she would occasionally be caught up in local battles, her eyes showed a greater consideration for the overall situation when her fingertips hovered in the air.

It turns out that losing a game is unpleasant, but it makes you understand more than winning that true composure is knowing how not to be trapped by immediate gains and losses.

As dusk deepened, streetlights illuminated the area outside the window, and the chessboard was now a patchwork of black and white pieces.

As expected, we lost again.

Shen Qingyao yawned and leaned on Meng Jiangyu's shoulder: "I'm so tired. I didn't know Go was so mentally taxing."

"Take your time." He put away the chess pieces, his voice gentle. "The day after tomorrow is New Year's Eve. I'll take you to set off fireworks tonight."

Shen Qingyao's eyes lit up again: "Okay!"

Meng Jiangyu held her in his arms, watching the lights of thousands of homes outside the window gradually come on, his heart filled with peace.

This is probably the "smooth sailing" he seeks; it doesn't have to be grand and dramatic, just the warmth in ordinary days is enough.