"Kids, pfft." Xia Liang couldn't help but burst into laughter after they passed through the security check area.
"Quit your yapping," Erald Sparrow responded with a roll of her eyes.
This little interlude naturally didn't affect everyone's journey, and soon, the Land Ship bound for Yannan City began checking tickets on schedule.
The journey to the realm was long, and within the entire Material Realm, only Central City had trains that could go directly to the Magic Kingdom. Each state would have specialized tracks encircling the Central City of that state domain. After completing the circuit, the train would take all passengers out of the Material Realm and toward the Magic Kingdom.
For this reason, the team from Fangting City had to first make their way to the nearest Central City—Yannan City—before transferring to the Magic Kingdom's special train to make their way successfully to the realm.
Erald Sparrow had calculated the timing—it would take the Land Ship until the next morning to reach Yannan City, then they would transfer to the special train that very day. After a whole night and the following morning's journey, they would arrive at the Magic Kingdom the afternoon of the day after next.
Unlike her previous solo business trip to Bai'an City, since the distance to Yannan City was much farther, the group would have to spend the night aboard the Land Ship. The economy class on the Land Ship generally had two-bed cabins, which was why Lin Yun had only booked two rooms before.
Soon enough, he would have to pay the price for his earlier decision.
"I want to be in a room with Erald Sparrow!" Standing next to the bed opposite Erald Sparrow, Lin Xiaolu expressed her stance very decisively.
"It's going to be and Mom... Teacher in one room!" Bai Jingxuan was equally unyielding.
"You're already a big kid, shouldn't you be practicing independence in situations like this? Always clinging to your elders, you'll never grow up!" Lin Xiaolu accused.
"Sister Xiaolu has no right to talk to like that! You're obviously older than !" Bai Jingxuan complained.
"Heh, because I've already had ample experience with being independent, I don't need to practice this sort of thing anymore," Lin Xiaolu said smugly.
"Well, I've had that kind of experience too!" Bai Jingxuan argued stubbornly.
"No, wait, no matter how you want to argue this, this so-called 'independence'... let's not even go there," Erald Sparrow couldn't help but interrupt in an attempt to diate.
"Ahaha... Is sharing a room with really such an undesirable thing?" On the other side, Xia Liang couldn't help but feel a bit of self-doubt.
In the end, neither Erald Sparrow nor Xia Liang could stop the childish bickering between the two, and the "battle for the bed opposite Erald Sparrow" remained unresolved. In the end, both Lin Xiaolu and Bai Jingxuan were hoarse from arguing, yet neither could convince the other.
Seeing that the issue wasn't being resolved, Xia Liang eventually ca up with a suggestion.
"Although this wasn't what I had in mind... but in tis like these, do you want to settle it with this?" As she spoke, she took out a paper box from her backpack.
"What's that?" Lin Xiaolu asked curiously.
"Flying Chess." Xia Liang replied with a smile, "I originally brought it just in case we got bored on the way, but it seems like it might just be the thing to solve your dispute, huh?"
"Flying Chess?" Bai Jingxuan's eyes lit up imdiately.
"Flying Chess, huh..." Erald Sparrow looked at Lin Xiaolu's and Bai Jingxuan's reactions, pondered for a mont, "It's not a bad idea."
After all, from her perspective, she couldn't let their argunt escalate, nor could she favor one over the other to share a room with her. If she continued to diate between the two kids, having them decide the winner themselves was indeed the best solution.
As a ans to decide the winner, Flying Chess was safe and mild enough not to worry about any major issues arising.
"If I have to say sothing, I don't really mind..."
Lin Xiaolu narrowed her eyes, "But what if Erald Sparrow wins in the end? Do we play again?"
"Well, if my little junior wins, naturally there should be a reward. How about a reward of sharing a room with ..." Xia Liang began to say with a smile, but was quickly interrupted by Erald Sparrow.
"Each person wins a round and gets a point, first to reach three points wins."
Erald Sparrow crossed her arms, "If I win, for each ga won, you'll do an extra set of school howork papers after the exams back in Fangting City."
"Eh?"
"Ah?"
"Um..."
The three girls sitting opposite her suddenly showed different expressions, but without a doubt, this condition was sowhat difficult for them to accept.
But soon, after a brief mont of thought, they made their decision again:
—"Okay, then let's settle this once and for all!"
...
...
"I lost... I lost..." A few hours later, Lin Xiaolu supported herself on the ga board, her expression gloomy as she looked at the scattered ga pieces, muttering to herself.
"I was so close, just one more ga to win..." Bai Jingxuan, sitting beside her, clutching the dice and pouting, was a picture of unwillingness.
And the ultimate winner of the competition, the first to achieve three victories, was Xia Liang, looking embarrassed at this point.
During the whole competition, Lin Xiaolu was actually the first to score, relying on her nonsensically good luck at the start to take the lead swiftly, and she proudly claid her luck was unmatched. Unfortunately, that was the only ga she won.
Bai Jingxuan on the other hand, won two gas and was even the first to reach match point for herself, but sadly she couldn't maintain her good fortune until the end, falling just short of victory.
In the end, it was Xia Liang who ca from behind to break through, relying on her relatively ticulous tactical arrangent, and dice throws that didn't have too many mishaps, finally securing three points. She even almost made Lin Xiaolu cry by sending her pieces 'ho' too many tis during the ga.
As for Erald Sparrow, she never ant to win. The so-called extra test papers were just a joke; she just wanted to play with the kids in a symbolic way. Hence, she only won one ga in the middle of the match to prove she wasn't slacking off, and then never scored again.
That is to say, according to the agreent made earlier by everyone, Xia Liang and Erald Sparrow would share a cabin on the Land Ship during this ti.
"Damn it, you sly fox, it must've been because Flying Chess is your best ga that you suggested it for the competition, right?"
After getting over her dejection, Lin Xiaolu's first act of revival was to question Xia Liang's motives: "You must've planned this all along and are now laughing up your sleeve, right?"
"Exactly!" Bai Jingxuan chid in supportively.
"Well, how should I put this... if I say my understanding of Flying Chess was only limited to 'knowing the rules,' would you believe ?"
Xia Liang gave a sheepish grin, raising both hands in a gesture of surrender: "I really just thought of it as a simple leisure activity to begin with, without considering anything else."
"No way, I think the competition was unfairly decided, I demand a rematch!" Lin Xiaolu called out loudly.
"Exactly!" Bai Jingxuan echoed, shouting as well.
"Even if you say that..."
Xia Liang looked at the two sowhat helplessly: "But I did try hard to win after all..."
—"That's enough, know when to stop, don't be unreasonable, Bai i, Bo Xue."
Stretching out both hands, Erald Sparrow pressed down on Lin Xiaolu and Bai Jingxuan's heads: "Jin won, so she should receive the agreed upon reward. As for you two, a loss is a loss, you should aim to win back another ti and learn to take it gracefully, without being sore losers."
"Your next task is to go to the other cabin and get your things settled, and while you're at it, check if all the equipnt in your cabin is functioning properly, in case we need to contact maintenance."
Erald Sparrow rubbed their heads, then let go without mincing words, issuing an eviction order: "Now, grab your luggage and head to the other cabin."
Her words struck Lin Xiaolu and Bai Jingxuan like a bolt from the blue.
It wasn't just because they had lost and now Xia Liang and Erald Sparrow would be living together, but also because they both realized a harsh truth simultaneously:
—They had to share a cabin with each other.
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