Go Seigen and his brother

Author: (Japanese) Kiyoshi Kiyama / Ji Liping
Publisher:
Publish Date: 2005-11-01
Features: On February 20, 1924, in a grand courtyard in Dajiangfang Hutong, Xicheng District, Beijing, a frail old man used the last strength of his life to leave a final word for his three sons standing by his bedside: "Leave calligraphy to Wu Huan," "Leave novels to Wu Yan," and "Leave Go to Wu Quan." Decades later, the Wu brothers, who received different legacies from their father, chose different life paths due to their distinct personalities and interests: The eldest brother, Wu Huan, became an official in Manchukuo, later moved to Taiwan after Japan's defeat, and then settled in the United States; The second brother, Wu Yan, joined the Communist Party of China, devoted himself to revolution and the War of Resistance, and later became a university professor; The younger brother, Wu Quan, traveled to Japan before World War II to study with top Go players and was revered by the Go community as the "unrowned king." Yet this genius Go player, who always aspired to be a bridge of friendship between China and Japan, had been living in a foreign land, burdened by the cross of the Sino-Japanese War, for his entire life. Brushing away the dust of time, the rise and fall of the Wu brothers reveal a history that is not just about the Wu family.