"Martial Palace again?"

After the results of the draw for the first round of the 4th Fujitsu Cup. When Li Xiaoqiang faced such a result, he could only shake his head and smile bitterly. In this venue, when other people in the Go world saw the result. There are also many people who find it funny.

Speaking of which, Li Xiaoqiang just stepped into the professional Go circle. He has caused a lot of controversy, and his growth has always been noticeable. At this stage, it should be said that not many people can underestimate him. But if you think about it carefully, you will find that Li Xiaoqiang has not played many times with super-first-class chess players.

When he first debuted, he played two games with Mr. Otake Hero. However, that is obviously of the nature of "guiding chess", and this certainly does not count. He played a few official matches with Nie Whirlwind in domestic competitions. However, due to well-known reasons, those games can't really be used to really weigh Li Xiaoqiang's weight.

After excluding these games, everyone found out that so far, Li Xiaoqiang has not had the opportunity to play against super-first-class chess players. The only 2 sets, that is, the match against Mr. Takemiya in the 2nd Ring Tournament. And what about the other super-top players? Li Xiaoqiang can't meet anyone else at all.

In the first 2 games, Li Xiaoqiang lost without exception. Objectively speaking, no matter how well everyone thinks Li Xiaoqiang is, no matter how many people say things like "although defeated, they are still glorious". But Li Xiaoqiang's losses in these two games actually reflect the gap between him and super-first-class chess players. No matter what Li Xiaoqiang thinks himself, but in the eyes of others, this should be the most common concept for everyone.

Well, now, it's as if there is a providence in the dark. Of the 16 players who had to participate in the first round, only Mr. Masaki Takemiya was the only one who was truly a "super-first-class player". And Li Xiaoqiang just drew him. With such a result, it's no wonder everyone is excited.

When all draws are over. Li Xiaoqiang and Mr. Wu Gong were even invited to the front desk again, and everyone asked them to give a "pre-match speech" again.

In fact, this "Eve Festival" was attended by celebrities from all walks of life in Japan. In it. Of course, it also includes famous names in the Japanese Go world. For example, Mr. Eio Sakata and Mr. Hideyuki Fujisawa and so on. They will also appear on this occasion. In particular, Mr. Eio Sakata, who is currently serving as the chairman of the board of directors of the Japan Chess Academy. The occurrence of such activities should be regarded as his "official business".

In normal times, Mr. Sakata was originally unsmiling, and he was not as easy to get close to as Mr. Fujisawa Hideyuki. However, when he saw the results of this draw, he also seemed very excited, and he even joked with Mr. Zhao Zhixun on the other side:

"What about Jixun? Is Zhixun here today? Hahaha, come here, come to me...... Let's take a look. The two of you on stage today are very similar to me and Jihoon back then......"

"Hahahaha......"

Anyone who is familiar with Japanese Go actually knows what Mr. Sakata means. Mr. Sakata is Mr. Takemiya as himself, and Li Xiaoqiang is compared to Mr. Zhao Zhixun back then. Mr. Zhao was also very strong in the growth period when he was young, and when he was about 20 years old, it was just like Li Xiaoqiang now. He has achieved very good results in all competitions. Especially when facing players of his level, he is even more invincible.

But just when Mr. Zhao was full of ambition, when he was ready to attack the super-first-class chess players. Mr. Sakata was like a mountain in front of him. In several matches, the young Cho Ji-hoon was stopped by Mr. Sakata......

The so-called drama should be done in a full set. After hearing Mr. Sakata's jokes. Mr. Zhao Zhixun came to Mr. Sakata's side very cooperatively, and he even bowed solemnly to Mr. Sakata:

"Sir, thank you for your tempering and teaching......

Whether it's true or fake, in short, when this scene appears at the venue. The whole scene is still a bit touching. But something more interesting happened later, when the host handed the microphone to Li Xiaoqiang. Li Xiaoqiang shook his head and smiled bitterly, and the words he said once again caused the audience to burst into laughter:

"I just hope. Don't ruin my youth at the hands of Mr. Takemiya......"

"Hahahaha."

What Li Xiaoqiang quoted is actually a similar allusion to Go. However, in this era, this allusion has not yet been fully formed. The "originality" of Li Xiaoqiang's sentence. In fact, it is China's Yu Bin Jiudan. Coincidentally, in that era when there were not many Go World Championships. In the first 6 world competitions he participated in, Yu Bin was eliminated by Mr. Zhao Zhixun without exception. Therefore, after the new century, he once jokingly said such a sentence:

"My youth will be ruined in the hands of Zhao Zhixun......"

On this occasion today, Li Xiaoqiang attributed the "copyright" of this sentence to his name. But what about his results? Can Li Xiaoqiang's results be different from others?

After the draw ceremony, the players who need to participate in the first round of the tournament have also determined their opponents. Since the race was scheduled on the second day, the "Eve Festival" was not held very late. When all the necessary procedures have been completed, the players go back to recharge their batteries and prepare for the second day of the tournament.

Li Xiaoqiang, like everyone, just took a brief look at the first round of matchups, and then went back to rest early.

In the first round, Ma Xiaofei faced off against Yasuma Hachi. In his current life, Mr. Hane has not been able to become a "hero of the ring" in Japan, but his achievements in Japan have steadily improved. is currently the "throne" of Japan, and it can be regarded as the owner of a title, a proper Japanese "strong nine".

In addition, Liu Dazhui touched Wang Licheng's ninth section, the collision of two muscle sticks. Cao Dafang encountered Yoshio Ishida Jiudan, which should be a game of kung fu chess. The last Chinese player to pass the domestic selection was Chen Linxin, and his opponent in this round was Hiroshi Yamashiro Kudan.

In short, in the first round, the signing of Chinese chess players was not good. In Li Xiaoqiang's view, except for Ma Xiaofei, who may have a slight upper hand, other Chinese chess players are difficult to say of their advantages.

In contrast, the situation of the two Korean players is much better. Yoo Chang-hyuk met a European chess player, and he was basically "guaranteed" to enter the second round. And Seo Bong-so met Yuichi Sonoda of the Kansai Chess Academy in Japan. The latter, known as Japan's "Kansai Cosmic Current", also appeared in the 5th China-Japan Go Tournament. Li Xiaoqiang believes that if he relies on strength alone, he is at this time. It should be slightly inferior to Seo Bong-so.

South Korea's Cao Li is the seeded player of the tournament, so in this way, in the second round, South Korea's "Four Heavenly Kings" are likely to survive at the same time. They will all be in the round of 16.

After a night's rest, the official competition finally came. Li Xiaoqiang, along with other Chinese chess players, arrived at the arena on time. In the first round, there are a total of 8 matches, so the entire tournament is held in one hall.

After Li Xiaoqiang arrived at the arena, there was another tidbit, and he searched for the entire hall for a long time. But I couldn't find my seat. At this time, Hua Leader, who was still the head of the Chinese delegation, had experience. He patted Li Xiaoqiang on the shoulder:

"Xiaoqiang, don't run around, don't worry, there should be a staff member of the competition coming to you soon. I reckon you'll be able to enjoy the special treatment this time. Everyone else is playing in the lobby, but what about you? They will be placed in a separate game room to play chess. ”

"Why?"

"For the sake of live TV, of course. You must know that to hold such a world competition, the Japanese side will definitely arrange a live TV broadcast. But it is also impossible to broadcast all of them live, in 8 sets. Generally, only 1 or 2 live broadcasts will be arranged. To be honest, after your draw yesterday is over, the TV station doesn't have to think about it at all, and will definitely choose your game of chess for live broadcast. Because it's just this duel between you and Takemiya. It is the most interesting game of these 8 games. Hehe, I think whether it's in China or Japan, whoever chooses will choose your game, right? There should be no doubt about that......"

Things didn't go out of Team Leader's expectations. Li Xiaoqiang waited in the hall for a while. He was quickly taken to a separate game room by the staff. The game room is also filled with a variety of broadcast equipment. The match between Li Xiaoqiang and Masaki Takemiya will be broadcast live to chess fans all over Japan here.

In addition to live TV. There is also a hanging plate explanation in the Japanese chess academy. There are many Japanese chess fans, who are actually more willing to go to the scene to listen to the professional chess players' explanations. And the Japanese Chess Academy chose the same game of Li Xiaoqiang VS Masaki Takemiya.

On the day of Li Xiaoqiang's competition, Yukari Umezawa stayed at her home. She's tuning in to watch the game live. But in the process, Umezawa has been a little absent-minded. Because in the recent period, Umezawa's mood has not been very good. She was struggling, she was struggling with her future.

You must know that Umezawa is now 17 years old, and she is actually the same as all young people, she is facing a very important choice in life at such an age.

Yukari Umezawa became a "student" of the Japanese Chess Academy at a very early age. But what made her feel depressed was that she had been a "college student" for 5 or 6 years, but the sad Umezawa had not been able to pass the entrance exam for a long time. As a result, she is still not an official professional chess player.

Umezawa is under the name of Mr. Masao Kato, and his master is one of the famous Japanese "Six Supers", and her family history can be traced back to Mr. Kitani. You know, in this day and age, the Japanese Go world is completely the world under the Kitani Gate. To calculate it in this way, Umezawa can also be regarded as a "famous family". And in the last few fixed-stage exams, Umezawa has been a popular candidate for fixed-stage almost every time, but each time he is a little bit worse. It can be described as "a big hit every year".

This happened to make Umezawa depressed, and at the same time, of course she had to reconsider her future.

"Do you want to continue on the path of professional Go?"

This is a question that Yukari Umezawa needs to consider now. In fact, it was quite normal for her to think like this. If a person has been learning chess for many years and is still unable to enter the dan at the age of 17 or 8, then he must consider other ways out.

In real history, Yukari Umezawa went to study at a university in Japan in 92. It wasn't until she graduated from university that she passed the "Women's Chess Player Special Qualification Adoption Examination" of the Japan Chess Academy. Thus becoming a professional chess player.

Don't look at the name of that exam. In fact, according to our Chinese language, her so-called "special qualification adoption test" should mean "special care", right? In other words, in 96, according to her own strength, Umezawa should not have the strength of a professional chess player. Her status as a professional chess player should be that the Japanese Chess Academy sees her as a beauty, considering that the resources of female chess players are relatively scarce, so through special care, she is allowed to mix into the team of professional chess players.

Of course, it is impossible for Umezawa to know these things now. Her most important task now is to think carefully about her life path. Do you want to continue to choose professional Go? Or consider going to college.

At about 2 o'clock in the afternoon, Umezawa was still staring at the TV in a daze. At this time, the TV camera just switched to Li Xiaoqiang's thinking. When the Japanese were making Go TV shows, it should be said that the level was still very good. did not show the demented appearance of Li Xiaoqiang during the long exam. appeared on TV, and it was a very positive image of Li Xiaoqiang.

His sitting posture, his falling movements, his appearance when he held his cheeks during the long exam, and even the close-up shot of Li Xiaoqiang made Li Xiaoqiang very handsome. If you really want to talk about it, Li Xiaoqiang's growth is not bad. Although it is not up to the standard of "handsome guy", it is worthy of the audience.

What's more, because Li Xiaoqiang is essentially a mature middle-aged uncle. Therefore, he always has a calm bearing between his gestures. What's even more wonderful is that when his slightly young and immature face is combined with this calm bearing, it forms a very unique and charming temperament.

This show is good here, and the level is high here, just a few short close-ups. It shows Li Xiaoqiang's unique taste to the fullest.

For a moment, even Yukari Umezawa was dumbfounded. You must know that Mei Ze is very familiar with Li Xiaoqiang, and she has read it many times for Li Xiaoqiang to read the seconds. When she was in the game room, it was common to see Li Xiaoqiang crooked his neck for a long test, and Li Xiaoqiang's appearance in a daze made her even more impressed. Therefore, she never thought that Li Xiaoqiang's image could be so tall and he could be so charming.

Thinking of such a contrasting contrast, Umezawa couldn't help but pout, and at this moment, she almost laughed out loud.

At 3 o'clock, Umezawa changed his clothes and was ready to go out. She must now leave for the Japan Chess Academy. Today's hanging game at the Nippon Chess Academy starts at 4 p.m. And Yukari Umezawa is in charge of passing the chess game. That is, she had to go back and forth between the game room and the chess hall.

When leaving the house, Yukari Umezawa glanced at Li Xiaoqiang on TV again. At this moment, she seemed to have made up some kind of determination:

"I really didn't expect that the little monster in the past would be able to challenge the super-first-class chess player. What's more, although in everyone's perception, it is believed that he will be at an absolute disadvantage. But...... But who would dare to say that he would definitely lose? Don't dare, even before the game starts, no one dares to say that he will definitely lose. As I am now, I ...... I...... Please, don't let me down, if you can win this game of chess, then I'll ......."

After arriving at the Japanese chess academy, what can she see?

At 4 o'clock in the afternoon, in the game room, Li Xiaoqiang concentrated all his spirit on the chess game. Because he knows that the most important moment of the game is coming.

Opposite him, Mr. Takemiya also fell into a long exam. He was thinking of a way to break the enemy. (To be continued......)