A woman with waist-length hair, smooth and silky, her graceful figure tall and elegant, suddenly appeared in the sight of most people.
Though the lighting was dim and most could only glimpse a hazy outline of her profile, there was no doubt that her beauty was stunning.
Combined with what Lu Zheng had just said, if the many customers still did not realise that Si Lingxi was the woman who had spoken earlier, they might as well go back to primary school and retake their Chinese lessons.
“I was wrong…”
“Shh!”
One person spoke up, only to be met with a barrage of angry glares from the crowd. The speaker shrank back in fear, quickly composed himself, and quietly enjoyed the performance.
…
A few minutes passed. The piece “Phoenix Welcomes the Phoenix” finally ended, and the sound of the xiao faded away.
The venue remained silent for a moment longer, until Lu Zheng returned to his seat, put an arm around Si Lingxi, and sat down with her. Only then did the chatter resume.
“My God!”
“Can a guzheng and jade xiao duet really sound this good?”
“What piece was that? The same melody but with different emotions. Incredible! Forgive my ignorance, but I’ve never heard it before…”
“Ling Jie, did you forget what that man just said?”
“My God! No way?”
On stage, the hanfu-clad young woman finally reacted. She hurriedly bowed repeatedly towards Lu Zheng’s group, her tone respectful and flustered.
“I’m sorry! Truly very sorry! It was my lack of skill that led me to show off carelessly. I will go home and practise diligently. I won’t perform publicly again until I’ve mastered it!”
“Little sister, don’t be like that. You actually played quite well. You just had bad luck.”
“Yes, terrible luck. You happened to run into real masters.”
“These two are not ordinary people. I suggest you go hug their thighs right now.”
“Don’t undervalue yourself, little sister. You played decently, but boss, maybe switch to light background music for now.”
Hanfu young woman: o(╥﹏╥)o
The fear is not in not recognising quality, but in comparison. People die from comparison, goods get discarded from comparison.
Without Lu Zheng and Si Lingxi, these customers would have thought the hanfu young woman played well, not far off what they saw on television.
But after hearing Lu Zheng and Si Lingxi’s duet, they definitely would not be able to stomach her playing for a while.
Simply put, it was torture to the ears. It sounded painful.
…
Lu Zheng returned to his seat. Si Lingxi leaned in proactively. Her phoenix eyes met his with a smile, waves of light shimmering in them, a spark faintly visible.
Lin Wan, Liu Qingyan, and Shen Ying all applauded together.
If Lu Zheng’s earlier “Phoenix Seeks the Phoenix” had made them a bit jealous, Si Lingxi’s responding “Phoenix Welcomes the Phoenix” left them unable to even feel jealous.
No choice. They simply could not do it.
However…
Shen Ying wrapped an arm around Lu Zheng and gently rubbed his arm with her softness. “This concubine wants a piece too~”
Lu Zheng raised his hands in surrender. “Everyone gets one! I’ll compose a ‘Peach Blossom’ for you.”
Lu Zheng’s current composition skills were already quite advanced. With the Book of Songs as foundation, spending a little time on an ancient piece was no problem.
Liu Qingyan smiled shyly. “Qingyan doesn’t need one. Qingyan doesn’t understand music anyway.”
Shen Ying laughingly went to tickle Liu Qingyan. The women playfully bantered in the booth, full of warmth and joy.
Outside the booth, though light music had started playing again, the customers’ discussions still centred on Lu Zheng’s table.
“So beautiful!”
“There was no background music just now. It was pure guzheng solo and then guzheng-xiao duet.”
“The emotion completely merged in. When I closed my eyes, I could almost see two phoenixes.”
“Now I finally understand the artistic conception of Chinese classical music.”
“I used to think it was all pretentious nonsense. Turns out it was because no one could reach that level.”
“They even carry a xiao with them. Definitely classical musicians through and through.”
“Too beautiful…”
“And that beauty just now was so stunning…”
“The guy was really handsome too!”
“Why haven’t they debuted? If those two formed a duo and debuted, they’d dominate everything. I’d become their fan auntie.”
“Why don’t you go ask?”
“No way, I don’t dare.”
Though Lu Zheng had been polite and courteous, Si Lingxi had acted as if no one else was there. Most customers, after hearing the music and recalling their earlier criticisms, felt ashamed and did not dare approach.
Only the hanfu young woman, now changed into ordinary clothes, saw that Lu Zheng’s group had not left yet. She finally gathered her courage and walked over.
“Hello!”
The young woman took a deep breath, then bowed again. “My name is Gu Tingting. Um, I’m really sorry about earlier…”
Lu Zheng waved it off. “No need to apologise. You didn’t do anything wrong. We interrupted you simply because we couldn’t bear to listen.”
Gu Tingting: “…”
“Um…”
Gu Tingting looked at Si Lingxi, a flash of admiration in her eyes. She stammered, “Was what you played just now ‘Phoenix Seeks the Phoenix’? I’ve never heard it before. Did you compose it yourselves? I think you both play better than my teacher…”
Gu Tingting was forcing conversation out of nothing.
Lin Wan could not bear seeing the poor girl look so pitiful. She beckoned to her. “Sit down and talk.”
Feeling Lin Wan’s kindness and seeing no one object, Gu Tingting quickly sat on the very edge of the booth.
Only then, in the dim light of the booth, did she clearly see the faces of the other two women.
Gu Tingting was instantly stunned!
At Haicheng Conservatory of Music, though there was no official campus beauty ranking, she was undeniably the department beauty in the traditional music department. With deep family learning, solid foundation, and excellence in both character and studies, calling her the campus beauty would not be an overstatement.
Yet faced with these four beauties, Gu Tingting instantly felt like an ugly duckling.
Indeed, when beauty reaches a certain level, no foil is needed. Instead, being among other beauties only makes each shine brighter in competition.
“You’re all so beautiful!” Gu Tingting blurted out in admiration.
“The little girl knows how to talk!” Shen Ying said with a cheerful laugh.
At that moment, Gu Tingting also noticed Shen Ying lying beside Liu Qingyan, yet resting her fair little feet on Lu Zheng’s thigh.
Gu Tingting: (°ー°〃)
Lu Zheng patted Shen Ying’s calf, making her withdraw her feet, then looked at Gu Tingting and asked, “Is there something you need?”
“No, nothing…”
Gu Tingting hurriedly shook her head. “I just heard such beautiful folk music and couldn’t help wanting to ask if that piece was newly composed by you?”
Lu Zheng nodded. “It’s a piece I newly arranged based on ‘Phoenix Seeks the Phoenix’. My girlfriend heard it only once and could respond with the same melody but expressing different emotions. Don’t you think her musical talent far surpasses mine?”
Gu Tingting looked at Si Lingxi, her eyes shining involuntarily. She nodded repeatedly. “You’re truly amazing!”
Then she quickly realised and apologised profusely to Lu Zheng. “Sorry, you’re amazing too! Better than my teacher, better than my mum!”
Lu Zheng nodded matter-of-factly. He could not even remember how much light of fortune he had added to himself. If he still could not surpass a conservatory teacher or a student’s parent, he might as well smash his jade seal.
After some awkward small talk, Gu Tingting finally mustered her courage and said to Si Lingxi, “C-Could I add you as a friend? If I have questions in future, could I ask you for advice?”
Si Lingxi’s phoenix eyes flickered. She gently shook her head. With Gu Tingting’s aptitude, she simply did not catch her eye. The talent was too poor.
She was about to refuse, but suddenly remembered that it was precisely because of this Gu Tingting that Lu Zheng had played “Phoenix Seeks the Phoenix” for her in public. Otherwise, with his lazy personality, who knew how long he would have kept it hidden.
Thinking of this, Si Lingxi nodded and said calmly, “Alright. But I don’t use my phone often and won’t reply to everything.”
“No rush, no rush! If you have time and choose to reply to a few, that’s fine. Even if you don’t reply, just letting me see any performances you post on your Moments would be an honour!” Gu Tingting said quickly.
Gu Tingting added Si Lingxi as a friend. With good sense, she did not try to add Lu Zheng. She bowed again and left joyfully.
The group exchanged smiles, finished the remaining snacks and drinks on the table, then stood up and left under the gaze of many customers.
…
Back home, the excited fire phoenix naturally monopolised Lu Zheng for the night.
The studious Liu Qingyan felt no jealousy. She shut herself in with a pile of medical books and studied hard.
Shen Ying and Lin Wan exchanged a glance, picked up their phones, opened King of Glory, and began venting their frustration.
…
On the internet, at the little broken station (Bilibili), a long video filmed in a dimly lit bar gradually started gaining heat.
