Chapter 213: Chess Queen: Mom Said There's No One in the World with a Higher IQ Than Him!
Under the instructor's reminder, young Leonard could only suppress his annoyance at Beth Harmon's attempt to distract his best friend Chuck, and walked to the table at chessboard number 1, pouting as he sat down.
The other 11 players also took their seats.
Beth Harmon gave Chuck a deep look, then turned to face the 12 opponents already seated.
"She knows you, doesn't she?"
Jane couldn't help but look at Chuck.
"Maybe,"
Chuck replied calmly.
"No talking during the match,"
the instructor glanced at Jane and raised his voice slightly.
Jane smiled apologetically, then suppressed her inner curiosity and, like the other spectators, joined the crowd to watch the impressive 1v12 simultaneous exhibition.
"Shall I begin now?"
Beth Harmon asked.
"Start with board 1,"
the instructor nodded. "Then board 2, and so on, up to board 12. They'll play after you've made the opening move on all the boards."
Beth Harmon walked to board 1.
"My name is Leonard Hofstadter, and I'm Chuck's good friend."
Little Leonard sat down, looking up at Beth. As she approached, he emphasized in a very low voice, "I will beat you."
Beth Harmon glanced at him, said nothing, simply picked up a white pawn, moved it forward two squares, and then went to board 2 to begin her turn.
Jane's gaze followed Beth Harmon. When Beth reached the center, Jane noticed the chalk writing on the blackboard. A few thoughts flashed through her mind, making her want to ask Chuck, but after glancing at the instructor, she pursed her lips and remained silent. Suddenly, her eyes lit up, and she reached behind Chuck and began writing on his back: "Isn't this Beth Harmon one of the two little girls Randy mentioned in the car accident?"
"What are you doing?"
The heavyset Linda, uninterested in the chess game, her eyes scanning the surroundings, eager to see her husband, noticed Jane's actions and leaned in to whisper.
"Shh."
Jane put her hand to her mouth to shush, then silently explained through lip movements and facial expressions: "I'm asking Chuck a question."
"You can do that?"
The heavyset Linda was astonished.
Could he really know what was written by writing on his back through his clothes?
Then she saw Chuck nod slightly, and Jane, with a knowing look, continued writing on Chuck's back with her finger.
At this moment, her surprise vanished, replaced by an uncomfortable feeling of being a third wheel. In her eyes, how intimate and familiar must they be to do this?
Jane didn't notice Linda's envy, jealousy, and discomfort; otherwise, she would have definitely corrected the misunderstanding. There was no sweet intimacy here; the ability to read words written on the back was just one of Chuck's many 'superpowers.'
Moreover, the process of discovering Chuck possessed this ability was anything but pleasant; in fact, she felt similarly to Linda now, experiencing the discomfort of being a third wheel.
Being carried on Chuck's back, chin resting on his shoulder, gazing intently at Chuck's determined expression as he ran, it was indeed beautiful and sweet.
Provided that this sweetness wasn't interrupted by people turning around and making comments.
Unfortunately, there was nothing she could do. Not wanting to make eye contact, she could only bury her head like an ostrich, listlessly drawing lines on Chuck's back with her fingers.
"I heard Beth Harmon's mother is also a mathematician, do you know her?"
Jane continued writing.
"No,"
Chuck shook his head.
Jane secretly breathed a sigh of relief, then chuckled at her own wildly imaginative thought.
The fact that Beth Harmon clearly recognized Chuck and that her mother was a mathematician gave her a strange thought: could Chuck be this little girl's father?
After all, Chuck was 23 and Beth Harmon was 9; theoretically, it was possible.
Now that Chuck didn't even know Beth Harmon's mother, he certainly couldn't have been involved in some low-probability situation.
She believed Chuck wouldn't lie to her.
Because Chuck's sometimes brutally honest nature meant he wouldn't need to lie to her about something like this!
Looking back now, the most likely reason is that Beth Harmon's mathematician mother knew of Chuck and even admired him, a rising figure in the field. She likely had photos or articles about Chuck at home, which may have left a deep impression on the little girl.
After all, according to Captain Randy Disher, this poor girl lived with her single mother, sleeping in motels and traveling in a camper van. Having grown up without a father, seeing Chuck's photos and hearing about the professional idol her mother probably frequently mentioned, she developed a connection, subconsciously regarding Chuck as a father figure.
As an FBI agent who spent time with the BAU, Jane had some understanding of this psychological displacement and empathetic reaction.
Dr. Reid mentioned that this kind of thing is common in the United States because there are many single-parent families. When children ask, "Where's Daddy?", many single mothers will casually point to a male celebrity on TV and say, "That's your dad!"
Of course, this is only a small percentage. Most children from single-parent families know who their fathers are. After all, their fathers' freedom has been restricted. When the children reach important milestones in their lives, in this country with its unique prison visitation policies, the children will still have the opportunity to see their fathers on those occasions.
Of course, afterwards, those who need to return to prison will return, and those whose freedom remains restricted will continue under those restrictions.
Beth Harmon's mother often drives her daughter around in a camper van and probably rarely watches TV. It's more likely that she just casually pointed to a picture of her professional idol and said something like that.
While Jane was thinking about these random things, Beth Harmon paced back and forth with a calm and indifferent expression, while the 12 chess players' expressions changed one by one, staring intently at their chessboards.
Although Jane didn't understand chess, she quickly realized what was happening after glancing at Leonard.
Leonard's forehead was beaded with sweat, his eyes filled with struggle. He had somehow pulled out his asthma inhaler from his pocket and was breathing heavily.
For Leonard, who suffers from asthma, stress makes breathing difficult; he has to use the inhaler, otherwise he can't breathe properly.
"He's here!"
Linda's voice, tinged with suppressed excitement, rang in Jane's ears, drawing her attention. Following her gaze, she saw a tall, thin middle-aged man standing in the doorway, a confident smile playing on his lips. He waved dismissively to the instructor who tried to greet him, ignoring Beth Harmon's exciting 1v12 match, his gaze fixed on Chuck's direction, a provocative expression on his face.
"He really is thin!"
Jane's first thought went astray.
After Jane tugged at his sleeve, Chuck glanced back at the newcomer before returning his attention to Leonard and Beth Harmon's game.
Leonard frequently glanced at Chuck, his expression revealing despair and fear: 'I'm going to lose,' 'I'm going to lose to a little girl in front of Chuck,' 'How come there are so many super geniuses,' 'Will Chuck be disappointed in me?'
This anxiety and distress became even more pronounced after his teammates helplessly knocked over their kings, signifying defeat.
"You should resign."
Beth Harmon no longer needed to pace back and forth. After defeating 11 opponents, she stood in front of Leonard, calmly watching his struggle.
"No!"
Leonard shook his head: "I can still turn this around!"
"Can't you tell you've already lost?"
Beth frowned, repeating the chess etiquette she'd learned from the old janitor in the basement of the Methuen Home orphanage: "At this point, you should gracefully resign."
"I haven't lost yet!"
Leonard insisted.
"Everyone says you're the best here,"
Beth Harmon shook her head, "but I trapped you in just 15 moves, and I only need 6 more to checkmate you, and you can't see it."
Leonard's face flushed, and he couldn't help but steal glances at Chuck, but all he saw was a calm, expressionless face, offering no indication of his opinion.
Finally, just as Beth Harmon had predicted, after 6 moves, Leonard was checkmated and could only bow his head, tip his king over in resignation. Then, as Beth Harmon prepared to leave, he called out, "You really just started learning chess?"
"I've been playing for three weeks,"
Beth Harmon replied matter-of-factly.
"..."
Leonard was speechless, giving a self-deprecating bitter smile: "Okay, Sheldon is right. I should gratefully accept that gift, 'Modern Chess Openings.' I really should start learning chess from scratch."
Clap clap clap!
The instructor clapped first, and then everyone applauded Beth Harmon's brilliant performance: "Ladies and gentlemen, let's welcome World Champion Grandmaster Patrick Kloster to present the award to Beth Harmon!"
All eyes turned to the tall, thin man at the door, who smiled slightly and walked up, looking around at everyone: "What a wonderful exhibition! I'm delighted to see a rising star in the chess world here; this will bring more excitement to the chess community."
He then looked at Leonard and his friends: "Now, can anyone tell me what's most important in chess?"
Leonard and his friends exchanged glances, and after a moment's discussion, Leonard, as the number one player, said uncertainly: "To enjoy the intellectual challenge?"
"No! It's to win!"
Patrick Kloster immediately rejected this statement: "Only after winning can you talk about enjoying the intellectual challenge!"
"I already told you that,"
someone muttered.
Leonard's lips twitched. He had initially thought the same thing, but he always felt that a world champion grandmaster wouldn't say something so 'politically incorrect' in public, so he changed his mind at the last minute. Who would have thought the guy would be so blunt?
"I love the feeling of winning!"
Patrick Kloster shifted his gaze to Chuck, meeting his eyes. "And I always win in the end! So I'm filled with joy and passion every day."
He then looked at his wife, Linda, and added with a smirk, "I think my wife understands this best."
The others, unaware of the situation, laughed, thinking the world champion grandmaster was quite relatable.
But Jane, who knew the inside story, felt anger rising upon hearing these words, because she sensed a strong provocation. This wasn't being relatable; it was being deliberately threatening!
She was absolutely certain.
This world champion grandmaster had truly gone mad, arrogantly seeking to provoke Chuck.
"Next game?"
Chuck stepped forward, gesturing to Patrick Kloster.
"Excuse me, who are you?"
Patrick Kloster acted as if he didn't recognize Chuck.
"You know perfectly well who Chuck is!"
Jane retorted angrily.
"Ma'am, perhaps this gentleman is quite famous,"
Patrick Kloster smiled, "but for those of us who are solely focused on chess, we really don't know who he is. I believe his name isn't among the famous figures in the chess world."
"So, you're afraid?"
Jane suddenly laughed.
"The word 'afraid' doesn't exist in my dictionary."
Patrick Kloster's smile turned slightly cold. "It's just that if everyone wants to play against me, I don't have that much time to waste. Next week I'm participating in the World Championship Candidates Tournament in Moscow to win my second world championship trophy."
He looked at Chuck with a condescending expression. "If you can qualify to participate, perhaps we can play a game. Now let's present an award to our rising star."
"Alright!"
The instructor, sensing the tension he hadn't noticed before, quickly smoothed things over, taking the gift he had specially prepared for Beth Harmon and handing it to Patrick Kloster so he could present the award to her.
"Congratulations!"
Patrick Kloster accepted the gift and then smiled as he held it out to the silent Beth Harmon.
"I don't want the gift."
Beth Harmon didn't accept it, instead staring intently at Patrick Kloster standing before her. "I want to play a game with you!"
Patrick Kloster was taken aback, then chuckled. "Kid, don't be in such a hurry. If you keep working hard, you'll have your chance in the future. I can see you have a lot of talent, but you're not ready to play against me right now. Believe me, you won't like the feeling of losing. It will be hard for you to get over it. Just level up step by step."
"No, I want to play against you right now!"
Beth Harmon's eyes were determined.
"Why?"
Patrick Kloster frowned.
"Because only after I beat you can I play against him."
Beth Harmon said, turning her head and pointing at Chuck.
"…"
Patrick Kloster's smile froze, and his face darkened.
Jane laughed out loud, her goodwill towards Beth Harmon increasing dramatically at that moment, because Beth Harmon's gesture clearly indicated that Chuck was far superior to the world champion Grandmaster before her.
"You know I'm the world champion, right?"
Patrick Kloster squinted at the stubborn little girl.
"I know,"
Beth Harmon nodded, her expression unchanged. "But I also know you're definitely not as smart as him, because my mother said there's no one in the world with a higher IQ than him! I believe my mother!"
(End of Chapter)
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