Cen Huai’an stood there, his little face scrunched up in thought, clearly troubled. After a while, he asked again, “But Mom, what about school?”

“There’s a school nearby.”

He let out a tiny sigh. “Do I have to transfer again?”

Chu Xia smiled. “You can ask your dad about that.”

With that, Cen Huai’an ran back to the bathroom.

The next morning, Chu Xia woke to find the sunlight already streaming into the room.

Cen Zhengnian was gone, as usual.

She had been so exhausted from the past few days of travel and unpacking that she had fallen asleep as soon as she hit the bed, not even noticing when Cen Zhengnian had gone to bed the previous night.

The fan had kept the room cool enough that she hadn’t felt too hot while sleeping.

In the next room, Cen Huai’an was sitting at the table playing chess by himself.

The back door was open, and their two dogs, Huangzi and Heizi, were playing in the yard.

Chu Xia peeked outside and made a mental note: they needed to install screens on both the back and front doors, and there were plenty of other small things they still had to buy.

“Mom, there’s food in the kitchen,” Cen Huai’an called out.

Even while playing chess, he had been paying attention to the sounds from his mom’s room, ready to get up the moment she emerged.

When she finally did, he jumped off the chair and ran to the kitchen to bring her breakfast.

Chu Xia followed him in.

After they finished eating, she asked if he wanted to explore the area with her or stay home.

Cen Huai’an put leashes on Huangzi and Heizi and said, “I’ll go with you, Mom.”

The two of them ventured out, walking around the research institute.

The institute’s buildings were large and well-built, towering over the surrounding area.

Beyond that, Chu Xia could see rows of low, humble houses in the distance—either brick-and-tile houses or mud-and-straw huts.

These villages were a fair distance away, so Chu Xia, cautious without Cen Zhengnian accompanying them, decided not to wander too far or into unfamiliar territory.

Instead, they stuck close to the institute, stopping to ask a few locals where the nearest market was.

To Chu Xia’s relief, they discovered that there was indeed a market nearby, though it required a ten-minute bus ride to get there.

Alternatively, they could cycle.

While it wasn’t as convenient as their old courtyard home, where markets and breakfast stalls were just steps away, basic necessities were still within reach.

Feeling reassured, Chu Xia and Cen Huai’an took the bus to the market, bought some groceries, and picked up a carp to cook for lunch.

Meanwhile, Cen Zhengnian had gone to work early.

When he arrived, only his teacher, Yan Hemin, was in the research lab.

The sky was still dim outside.

“Teacher, my wife and son have arrived. Here’s the rent for the first three months.”

Yan Hemin had previously refused to take rent, insisting that he’d only accept it once the family had moved in. Now that they had, there was no excuse for him to refuse.

“So soon?” Yan Hemin smiled, accepting the money. “If you’re short on cash, you can pay me later. I won’t chase you down for it.” He winked playfully, as if sharing a secret between them.

Cen Zhengnian shook his head helplessly. “Teacher, I’m not short on money. And I don’t hide any from my wife.”

Yan Hemin laughed heartily. “Good, just like me!”

Their colleague Ye Xingsu walked in, yawning, and hearing Yan’s laughter, he asked curiously, “Teacher, what’s making you so happy?”

With a smile, Yan Hemin clapped Cen Zhengnian on the shoulder. “I’m congratulating him—his family has moved in!”

Ye Xingsu’s eyes widened with surprise. “Cen Zhengnian, you’ve been keeping quiet about this!”

Instantly, a pang of jealousy hit Ye Xingsu as he thought about his own failed matchmaking attempts.

Now, Cen Zhengnian would be going home every day to home-cooked meals, no longer stuck eating the bland canteen food.

So unfair!

Cen Zhengnian smiled at Ye Xingsu. “I didn’t keep it quiet. Teacher knew.”

Ye Xingsu: “…”

It took a full day to move and arrange everything from their old courtyard home into their new place.

Once everything was set up, their new home at the research institute felt just as comfortable as their old one.

Now, Chu Xia’s mind was preoccupied with something else: the results of her university entrance exam and the long-awaited acceptance letter.

But before that, it was time for her to take Cen Huai’an to visit Grandpa Jiang, who had arranged for them to meet a friend.

At the beginning of summer, Chuxia walked with An’an, following Grandpa Jiang out of the alley where the Jiang family lived.

They turned left, walked for a while, and then entered another alley.

Chuxia glanced at the sign at the alley entrance, and the name felt somewhat familiar, as if she had seen it somewhere before.

While she was still pondering, Grandpa Jiang had already stopped in front of a house and was knocking on the door with the brass knocker.

Chuxia’s gaze fell on the house number nailed to the outer wall: No. 26.

She stared at it for a moment, then opened her bag and pulled out a neatly folded piece of paper.

The paper was slightly wrinkled from being inside the bag for too long, but the writing was still clear.

It was the address that Guo Lin had given her earlier, which matched exactly with where she was now.

When Chuxia brought An’an to the capital, Guo Lin had asked her to visit his teacher and senior apprentice.

However, on the second day, Chuxia and Cen Huai’an were taken in by Grandpa Jiang, who then offered to teach Cen Huai’an how to play chess.

Chuxia had not visited Guo Lin’s teacher and senior apprentice but called Guo Lin to thank him and inform him that An’an’s great-grandfather was going to teach him chess, so they couldn’t visit his teacher and senior apprentice.

Guo Lin didn’t mind; he was only slightly disappointed but was pleased to hear that Cen Huai’an was learning chess with Grandpa Jiang every week, just as he did in Liangzhou.

Chuxia never expected this twist of fate—or perhaps it was destiny.

The friend Grandpa Jiang wanted to introduce to An’an might be Guo Lin’s teacher.

While her mind was swirling with these thoughts, the large red door opened, and a rough voice with a familiar Liangzhou accent rang out from behind it.

“Who is it? Stop knocking, I heard you!”

When the door opened, the man saw Grandpa Jiang and grunted, “At this hour, I thought you were too afraid to show up!”

Grandpa Jiang smiled cheerfully, not at all angry.

He pulled Cen Huai’an over and said, “Yuan De, why are you still so impatient? We’re right on time, aren’t we?”

Yuan De?

It really was Guo Lin’s teacher.

The name on the paper matched—Hong Yuan De.

Chuxia couldn’t help but think: The world is truly small, or perhaps the cultural circle in the capital is just this small.

Grandpa Jiang loved chess, and naturally, the people he knew were all skilled players.

Chuxia heard Hong Yuan De continue in a grumpy tone, “Not everyone is like you, always cutting it close. Come on in.”

As Grandpa Jiang led Cen Huai’an inside, Chuxia followed closely, noticing Hong Yuande’s scrutinizing gaze on Cen Huai’an.

Grandpa Jiang walked into the Hong family’s house as if he were at home, sitting in the living room and pouring himself a cup of tea.

He casually told Cen Huai’an and Chuxia to sit down.

Hong Yuande looked at Grandpa Jiang, his expression filled with disdain. “This is my house; how can you be so impolite?”

Grandpa Jiang’s smile became even more gentle. “With our relationship, why be formal?”

Chuxia drank her tea, watching Hong Yuande’s disgusted expression in response to Grandpa Jiang’s words, and almost laughed out loud.

As expected, Grandpa Jiang was amusing, and his friends were just as interesting.

“Where’s your great-grandson?” Grandpa Jiang asked Hong Yuande as he sipped his tea.

Hong Yuan De, sitting opposite Grandpa Jiang, casually poured himself a cup of tea and replied, “Knowing you’d be late, I told him to come a little later.”

Seeing Hong Yuande gulp down the tea, Grandpa Jiang took a slow sip of his own and remarked, “You should savor tea slowly; if you gulp it down like that, how can you taste it?”

Hong Yuande, doing the opposite of what Grandpa Jiang said, downed another cup in one go and replied, “Tea is for quenching thirst. If I drank like you, I’d be parched by now.”

Grandpa Jiang didn’t argue, knowing Hong Yuande as well as Hong knew him.

He was well aware of Hong Yuande’s disdain for pretentiousness.

“Our time is limited. If your great-grandson doesn’t come soon, we’ll be leaving.”

“You called me impatient just now; why are you in such a hurry?” Hong Yuande looked at Cen Huai’an, who was quietly drinking tea, and chuckled, “Are you really afraid of losing?”

Grandpa Jiang swirled his teacup and replied, “Yuande, you really love to joke.”

Chuxia felt the tension between the two elders and tried to make herself as inconspicuous as possible.

She quietly moved closer to Cen Huai’an and whispered, “Did your great-grandfather tell you why he brought you here?”

Cen Huai’an mimicked her, covering his mouth with his teacup and whispering, “He wants me to play a game of chess(Go).”

From the elders’ conversation, Chuxia had already guessed this, and Cen Huai’an’s confirmation put her mind at ease—it was just a friendly match between the younger generation.

Feeling reassured, Chuxia continued to sip her tea and patted Cen Huai’an’s head, saying, “When you play later, don’t be nervous. Just treat it like playing with your grandpa.”

Cen Huai’an looked at Chuxia and asked, “Mom, do you want me to give it my all?”

Whenever Cen Huai’an played with his grandpa, he always used all his skills, often exhausting himself from overthinking.

But this approach accelerated his progress, like someone constantly on the edge of a cliff, repeatedly pushing themselves to their limits for survival.

This was how Cen Huai’an learned chess(Go).

However, Grandpa Jiang always knew when to stop, calling off the game when Cen Huai’an reached his limits, allowing him to recover quickly with a short break.