Jiang Zhu was still strategizing his next move when, on the other side, Lin Ciwei had already bent down, lifted Jiang He from the wheelchair, and placed her on the sofa.
Jiang Zhu followed and sat down at the other end of the sofa.
Though Jiang He and Lin Ciwei hadn’t seen each other in a long time, there was no awkwardness between them.
They spoke whatever came to mind.
“Sister Lin, I heard you became a Magical Girl?”
“Ah, y-yes.”
Lin Ciwei let out a helpless sigh.
Her identity as a Magical Girl was kept secret in name only.
“Even you know… how many people has my mom told by now?”
“Well, we’re practically family now, so it’s only right to inform us.”
Jiang He said with a grin.
“Even you’re saying things like that.”
Lin Ciwei reached out and lightly tapped Jiang He on the forehead, her cheeks flushed but offering no rebuttal.
Jiang Zhu listened silently, his vigilance raising another notch.
Looks like her Affection Level is still way too high.
Jiang He knew when to stop and didn’t pursue the topic.
Her eyes wandered around the living room and soon became fixated on the several cardboard boxes stacked in the corner, packed to the brim.
“What’s inside those?”
“Just some little things I couldn’t bear to throw away. They were brought over from my old rental place.”
Lin Ciwei stood up and dragged a cardboard box over to the coffee table.
The box wasn’t sealed, and through the gaps in the clutter, he could see that it contained mostly odds and ends rather than daily necessities—items you wouldn’t normally prioritize when moving.
“Can I take a look at your treasures?”
“They’re not really treasures…”
Lin Ciwei averted her gaze from the siblings, crouched down in front of the box, and began rummaging through it.
On the very top lay a crystal ball.
Lin Ciwei picked it up and placed it on the coffee table for Jiang He to see.
Inside the glass sphere was a tiny snow-covered town, and when shaken, fine snow would swirl up.
“Did you really have to bring something like this when you moved?”
Jiang He teased.
“Uh… I’m like that. I can’t bear to throw anything away…”
Lin Ciwei held the crystal ball to her cheek and earnestly explained, “But I think that’s nice too. When you take it out again, you can recall the memories of that time. For example, this crystal ball was the first gift I ever received as far as I can remember, and I’ve kept it with me ever since.”
“That’s sweet. You’re so childlike at heart—no wonder you became a Magical Girl.”
Lin Ciwei couldn’t tell at that moment whether Jiang He was praising her or teasing her.
She stared at Jiang He’s ever-innocent eyes and set the crystal ball down.
She continued searching through the box and soon found a wooden case.
Pulling the case out, she saw that it was itself a chessboard, its surface pattern worn and mottled.
When she opened the lid, the pieces were stored in a small paper tray inside the case, neatly sorted by type.
Jiang He immediately recognized this antique item.
She took it from Lin Ciwei’s hands and stroked it gently.
“This looks like the Chinese Chess set we used to play with as kids.”
“Why do you still have this?” Jiang Zhu recognized the board too.
Jiang Zhu remembered that back in middle school, he had set up a stall in the park to hustle old men.
He had set up a small table at the busiest spot in the park, with a sign that read: “Challenge for ten yuan, win for fifty.”
He’d sit and wait for challengers.
Those old men, seeing a young upstart daring to issue a challenge, would sit down in defiance.
But he was sharp and had memorized many opening moves, so dealing with a few average players was easy.
Most of them would grumble and hand over their money.
Of course, he occasionally lost a few games on purpose to keep the fish interested.
If they got too upset, no one would come to play.
For a middle schooler, the income over a day was pretty decent.
But sitting there running the stall made it hard to take care of the two younger girls.
At that time, Jiang He was not yet ten, and Lin Ciwei was only thirteen or fourteen.
The two girls would squat beside him while he played the old men, but they couldn’t sit still for ten minutes.
They’d tug his hair, poke his back, and repeatedly yell in his ear, “Brother Jiang Zhu, we’re so bored!”
Helpless, he bought them a Chinese Chess set and told them to go play on the stone bench nearby.
Jiang Zhu never expected that the set he bought on a whim would still be around.
“Well… I originally brought it to college, hoping to find someone to play with,” Lin Ciwei said, placing the pieces one by one on the board.
“But no one was interested, so it just sat there gathering dust.”
“But I couldn’t bring myself to throw it away. I thought it was a precious memory, so I’ve kept it all this time.”
“Then let’s have a tense and exciting Chinese Chess match! I feel like I haven’t played in forever.”
Jiang He clapped her hands and sat up straight on the sofa.
The two jumped right into it, and the pieces were soon arrayed in battle formation.
Jiang Zhu leaned in to watch, and saw Jiang He, playing first, use both of her cannons in the first two moves to capture Lin Ciwei’s two horses.
“Horses are gone!”
Jiang He waved her arms cheerfully, holding up the two captured pieces.
Lin Ciwei smiled helplessly, her expression a mix of embarrassment and indulgence.
Jiang Zhu initially thought Jiang He was playing some kind of abstract strategy, but after watching a few moves, he realized she genuinely believed she was playing correctly.
She captured whenever she could, and if she lost a piece, she’d frantically send another charging across the board for revenge.
In no time, her pieces were scattered and disorganized, and she lost without any suspense.
Jiang Zhu had assumed they’d both be bad players, but he hadn’t expected them to be this bad.
“Sister Lin is as formidable as ever.”
Despite losing, Jiang He looked perfectly satisfied.
…That’s just because you’re bad.
Jiang Zhu kept a straight face, holding back his laughter.
“Sister Lin, how about challenging my big brother next?”
Jiang He gathered the remaining pieces on the board and turned her gaze to Jiang Zhu.
“Maybe he’s gotten as bad as me after all these years.”
“Sure, I’m pretty confident.”
Lin Ciwei also cracked her knuckles, ready to challenge Jiang Zhu.
“Bring it on.”
Finally, a chance to lower her Affection Level.
Jiang Zhu had a mischievous plan in mind.
If he humiliated her mercilessly until she lost face, her Affection Level should drop drastically, right?
They did rock-paper-scissors, and Jiang Zhu went first.
He wasted no time in setting up his opening: cannon to the center, horse out, chariot across.
Lin Ciwei, on the other hand, foolishly jumped her horse straight across the river.
After only three moves, Jiang Zhu knew it was going to be a one-sided slaughter.
…
“L-lost.”
After quickly stripping Lin Ciwei down to a single isolated general, Jiang Zhu finally ended her suffering.
The game was already decided about two minutes after it started; the rest was just a game of cat and mouse.
Right then, Jiang Zhu couldn’t resist adding one word:
“Trash.”
On the other side, Jiang He laughed gleefully.
She propped herself up on her elbows, leaned forward, and fanned the flames: “Sister Lin, aren’t you supposed to hand over ten yuan to my big brother?”
“What do you mean?”
Jiang Zhu thought his sister was mocking him about his old park hustle.
“Isn’t it always like this, big brother?”
Jiang He tilted her head and counted on her fingers.
“Sister Lin wanted to play Chinese Chess with you, but you didn’t want to. Said it would cut into your earnings. In the end, she had to pay you to challenge you. Ten yuan per match. If she won, you’d play with her for a day. If she lost, she couldn’t bother you anymore.”
“Is that true? I think I’ve forgotten…”
Jiang Zhu hadn’t expected to have done something like that as a kid.
“Yeah, both Xiao He and I remember. This is my forty-second straight loss.”
Lin Ciwei sighed emotionally, then suddenly thought of that rule.
She asked weakly, “Does that mean I can’t bother you today either?”
Jiang Zhu was uncomfortable under her sincere gaze and quickly explained, “That was when I was a kid, all right? There’s no way I’d do something like that now.”
…Is there really no way?
Jiang Zhu asked himself honestly.