The Double-Chapter 79 - 72 Stunning Beauty_6
79: Chapter 72 Stunning Beauty_6
79 -72 Stunning Beauty_6
Love is truly wonderful, making everything endearing.
It makes one forget how fleeting spring and summer are, that autumn has already arrived, and winter is not far behind.
So she sang, “In the past, we parted in green spring grass, now I’m amidst snow blossoms just as dense.
Who knew that yearning could be so bitter, turning raven hair to white as it commenced.”
Her singing abruptly ceased.
The seasons change, and in the end, the singing girl’s actions seem in vain; however, the prime of life has passed, leaving one to wonder whether it was time that was wasted, or if it was time that did the wasting.
Jiang Li’s voice was pleasant, and her singing even more so.
Unknowingly, the crowd at the Inspection Field had been captivated by the crisp little tune, lost in that bittersweet dream.
Someone murmured, “What’s the name of this tune?
How come I’ve never heard it before?”
“I don’t know,” another shook their head, “It doesn’t sound like a Yanjing melody.”
Sitting not far from Princess Yongning, Shen Yurong suddenly looked up, his gaze fixed on the girl on the stage.
He had heard this song before…
It was a folk song widely known in Tongxiang, called “Midnight Four Seasons Song,” a song nearly every girl in Tongxiang could sing.
Jiang Li’s smile was faint as she sang, a song she knew as well.
Below the stage, Xiao Deyin furrowed his brow, lost in thought.
Immortal Jing Hong appeared somewhat surprised, Shi Yan remained deadpan, without expression, but Mian Ju was overjoyed, dancing with glee, even saying to Immortal Jing Hong, “This young girl is interesting.
In the zither contest, it’s always the zither that’s compared, but she sang a song instead, and it’s not half bad!”
“That’s not acceptable,” Immortal Jing Hong patiently explained, “If she doesn’t compete with zither music, then it would only be considered a clever trick, unfair to the other students.”
Mian Ju curled his lip, about to speak, when he suddenly noticed something, laughed with delight, and said, “What clever trick?
Look, even the Duke has been awakened by her song.”
It turned out that Jih Heng had at some point already opened his eyes and was now leaning on the handle of his fan, smiling as he watched the girl on the stage, his expression nuanced.
This was the first time Jih Heng had shown an attitude of “listening” from the beginning of the event.
On the other end, Jiang Yue said, “Is Second Miss planning to just sing a song and not play the zither?”
Indeed, the song was novel, but in zither music contests, the competition is about the “zither,” not the “song.”
Everyone thought that Miss Jiang the Second must have run out of tricks to think of substituting singing for playing the zither, but as they thought this, they saw Jiang Li stretch out her hands and touch the zither strings, plucking.
The first note poured out.
“Gah—” The audience was almost choked, “She’s going to play.”
“Listen, what she’s playing is…”
Before the word “what” could be uttered, another series of fluent zither notes swept past listeners’ ears, more cutting than Jiang Youyao’s, as if someone was etching them bit by bit on the apex of one’s heart.
“She’s playing ‘Hu Jia Eighteen Beats’!”
Someone recognized it and became excited, the pitch of their voice changing.
As soon as these words were spoken, faces all around changed.
“Hu Jia Eighteen Beats,” a piece not even the teachers at Mingyi Hall could play without risking ridicule, and Jiang Li dared?
How many years had it been since someone had played “Hu Jia Eighteen Beats”?
The Inspection Field suddenly became quiet.
In the silence, someone burst out laughing—it was Mian Ju, dancing with joy, completely unlike a court musician, utterly thrilled: “It’s ‘Hu Jia Eighteen Beats,’ this young girl has guts!
So valiant!”
Immortal Jing Hong helplessly said, “Sir, quiet.”
Mian Ju immediately smirked apologetically and fell silent.
And so, the only sound at the Inspection Field was Jiang Li’s zither.
“Hu Jia Eighteen Beats” tells of a woman’s homesickness, her sadness in parting, and her grand resentment.
The focus is on the word “poignant.” Not to mention the scholars, but even the noble young ladies at Mingyi Hall were in their carefree days, full of innocence and without a single care.
Even if they did harbor sorrows, they were but insignificant trifles.
How could they express a touch of “poignance”?
Even the expression of “sadness” would be difficult for them to convey.
Though the world often speaks of empathy, is empathy as simple as a mere four words?
Perhaps only a sage, one who carries the world in their heart, could achieve that.
Meng Hongjin scoffed, “Really biting off more than one can chew, this is nothing but a self-invited joke for others to watch…”
She figured that Jiang Li wouldn’t be able to play such a piece well.
If Jiang Li could play it well, wouldn’t that mean she was more gifted than the brightest talent Mingyi Hall had ever seen?
That was impossible.
But her derision gradually died down, her expression turning uglier by the moment.
Jiang Li’s fingering was highly proficient, as if she had been practicing the zither for decades. freeweɓnovel.cѳm
Her movements were exceptionally graceful, without a trace of contrivance or pretense, effortlessly light in a way that was unbelievable.
The girl sat on the Inspection Field, the breeze crisp and the daylight faint, her sleeves billowing, radiantly green, exuding ease and charm.
For a moment, the Inspection Field seemed to transform into a secluded valley, devoid of the vanity typically found in places of ambition, as if she was playing for herself alone.
