Episode 3

In 1963, the Cincinnati State Chess Open was in full swing.In this arena, a girl named Elizabeth became the center of attention.However, what few people know is that behind her stands a silently dedicated mother - Alma.

In order to support her daughter's dream, Alma lied to the school to get a longer vacation for Elizabeth.They live in a room that costs $22 a day. Although it is simple, the mother and daughter's smiles are particularly bright.This simple comfort and the expectation of future life allowed Alma to let go of the burden in her heart and rediscover the hope of life.

During the competition, Elizabeth showed extraordinary talent.Although her opponents would give up when they see her, she still insists on reviewing the game and looking for her own shortcomings.Her goal is the National Open, where there are more generous prizes and a broader stage.She did not believe in evil and firmly believed that she could defeat the powerful opponent from the Soviet Union.

However, the road to competition has not been smooth sailing.Elizabeth met a special player with a level score of 1800, which made Alma sweat.Fortunately, Elizabeth won the championship without any danger, which brought a financial turnaround for mother and daughter.Although Alma proposed a 10“ commission, Elizabeth took the initiative to increase it to 15”, which was a recognition of her mother's contribution.

Subsequently, the mother and daughter began a traveling racing career.Alma took care of all the travel arrangements so that Elizabeth could concentrate on her chess studies.They even had Christmas dinner on the plane after winning the Houston Open.This was Elizabeth's first sip of wine, and she found it tasted pretty good.

However, with success comes pressure.In an exclusive interview with Xiangqi Tianxia, ​​Elizabeth was asked about creativity and schizophrenia.She thought of her mother, knowing the fragile line between genius and madness.Alma interrupted the interview just in time to protect her daughter from further harm.

As time went on, Elizabeth's fame grew.The school set up a chess club for her, and many boys regarded her as their idol.However, she found that she had no common language with those girls, so she chose to give up joining the girls' club.She preferred to spend her time reasoning about chess games rather than focusing on trivial topics.

However, fate is always full of variables.In 1965, due to Alma's illness, Elizabeth had to give up the National Open that year.The next year, when Alma's health improved, they competed again.In Las Vegas, Elizabeth met Taunes, a former player who has now become a sports reporter.Although Elizabeth was unfazed by his flirting, she knew that nothing was possible between the two of them.

In this competition, Elizabeth's only opponent is Benny Watts.He also became famous at a young age and knew Elizabeth's chess game well.This made Elizabeth feel more pressured, but she still adhered to her principles and was determined to end the final with a victory.However, she was arrogant and ultimately failed because of her greed for success.The two had the same points and jointly won the joint championship of this U.S. Open.