Behind the bamboo curtain, Yingping remained motionless and his eyes were dull, as if he had been cast there by magic. He had remained like this since he started playing the piano in Tang Dynasty, without even blinking.
Ye Changshan resisted the urge to slap him at the side. If it weren't for Yingping's warnings and instructions not to make any noise unless absolutely necessary, Ye Changshan would have turned around and shook his body with his hands.
Yiyi was quite calm, perhaps because she was used to seeing her brother acting like a fool. At this time, she still maintained her upright posture, looking straight ahead, and ignored Yingping at all.
Why is this so? Because the half of the piece Zhitang played just now was none other than the half of the piece of music that Yingping left in Zhitang's boudoir. But there was obviously no one in the room that day. Could it be that the little girl silently wrote down the music and played it to Zhitang? This music was composed to express his longing for the lingering sound. Apart from him and the little girl that day, no one else had heard it. He was naturally surprised that Zhitang played this music.
Thousands of possibilities flashed through Yingping's mind, but no matter how he guessed, he probably couldn't guess that Zhitang heard this music with his own ears in the back room that day.
However, Yingping had no time to think too much at this time. The question before him at this time was - should he follow Zhitang and play the other half of the music?
This is not just a problem, for Yingping, it is a choice!
…
Seeing Zhi Tang's dejected look, Mr. Su suddenly felt uncomfortable.
Although he didn't succeed in getting this woman, he already had a pretty good understanding of Tang's temperament. Unlike other women, Zhitang seems to be born with no interest in worldly things such as money and status. She has a set of standards in her heart that are different from ordinary people. This is also the reason why Mr. Su has been unable to attack for a long time. It is precisely because of this that the more Mr. Su doesn't get it, the more upset he becomes.
But at this moment, the longing and loss shown on Zhi Tang's expression was something he had never seen before. It was obvious that this piano music was the key that could unlock the lock deep in Zhi Tang's heart——
It's a pity that this lock is no longer in my hands!
Who wrote this music? Mr. Su couldn't help but frown slightly, and his mind gradually became uneasy.
Zhitang raised her head and looked around again. This was her last hope, hoping that the 'mute' could stand up at this time.
Xiao Yuan stood aside and looked a little anxious. She had always felt a little regretful and guilty about the "mute" running away from her that day. She always felt that it was her fault. The young lady finally found a musician who suited her needs, but she scared him away because of her few words of 'scolding'. Especially after the 'mute' escaped, the young lady's insomnia became more serious. She and the young lady were as close as sisters. How could she not be anxious looking at the increasingly haggard young lady?
Seeing that there were still no mute figures around, Xiao Yuan didn't care so much. She stood directly in the center of the pavilion and shouted to the surroundings -
"My lady said that whoever can continue the second half of this song will be rewarded heavily!"
Seeing the anxious look on the little girl's face, Mr. Huang couldn't help but feel a little funny. In his opinion, it was just a piece of piano music, why bother making it look like "a thousand gold buys a horse bone"? Could it be that he wanted to use this to promote himself.
Thinking of this, Mr. Huang said with a smile: "Oh? This song is so wonderful? I wonder how much Miss Tang is willing to pay for this song?"
"One thousand taels——"
Zhitang's voice was extremely steady, as if 'one thousand taels' was just a number to her.
"Wow——"
"hiss--"
"One thousand taels!? This... this is too much!"
The crowd began to get agitated. One thousand taels was not a small amount. Even a young man from a well-off family in Chang'an City would find it difficult to come up with so much money at once. Unexpectedly, a mortal woman in Zhidang could spend so much money and get what she asked for. It's just a piece of piano music, but its courage is far beyond anyone's reach.
Mr. Huang was speechless for a while. He wanted to make a joke, but he didn't expect to get such a reply, which made him a little confused as to how to continue.
"Everyone, you know that although Tang is a woman, you also know that 'one word can be said to be true'. Now that I have said these words today, I will not go back on it. The little girl is waiting quietly in Lanqiufang——"
After saying that, he turned around to return to the judging table.
Zhi Tang's words made everyone present look at each other in confusion. Some people secretly gave a thumbs up in their hearts and praised Zhi Tang's magnanimity; some people secretly laughed in their hearts, thinking that this is a stupid person with too much money; some people secretly shook their heads, thinking that The financial sponsor in front of me didn't want it, but instead spent his own money to ask for piano music. This... this is simply incomprehensible.
"珰——"
Just when everyone was thinking about different things, suddenly a sound of plucked strings came from the pavilion. This sound of the piano was a sudden sound, as if it contained magic power, and everyone was stunned after hearing it.
Zhitang turned around and looked behind him in surprise, his expression full of shock.
Before everyone could recover, they only heard the sound of the piano continuing to sound. What made everyone even more incredible was that although the player did not say it clearly, everyone knew exactly what he was playing - the sound of the piano was so consistent with the music played by Zhi Tang earlier. There is a feeling of water and milk blending together, completely natural!
The sound of the piano was still there, and everyone didn't even care to find out who the person playing it was, they all listened attentively. It was just then that Zhi Tang's abruptly stopped playing left everyone unfinished, and now it suddenly resumed, which was extremely surprising. What's more, this person's piano skills seemed not to be inferior to Zhi Tang's at all. In addition, the feeling of surprise at this moment was even greater than what he had just appreciated. It’s even more enjoyable when Zhitang plays it.
Everyone was silent, not daring to make even the slightest noise for fear of disturbing this person's playing. The three musicians simply closed their eyes, shook their heads and immersed themselves in the music.
The song is certainly a good one, but why is it so attractive? This has to start with the relationship between Yingping and Yuyin. Although Yingping's talent in music is far less than that of Yuyin, his piano skills have naturally improved a lot after being around Yuyin in those years, not to mention Yingping. He is not very talented in piano music.
Why does Yingping have such a deep relationship with Yuyin?
When he was at Shanmen, he had a wide-ranging conversation with Yu Yingao. Not only did he play the piano and talk about music, but they also talked from the south of the sky to the north of the earth and from the river to the river. This was one of the reasons; another very important reason was that he was in Yingping. Among so many people he has met in his life, Yuyin is the only one who is 'very similar' to him in his eyes - whether in terms of personality, thoughts or even encounters - among the poor families, it is natural that Yingping feels awe the most It is Wen Junchen, and the one who Yingping admires the most is Ji Yangyu. Needless to say, the one who makes Yingping feel closest to him is definitely Ye Changshan, but the one who makes Yingping feel the most like a "confidant" can only be Yuyin. . This is why Yingping created such a collection of piano music that expresses deep longing after the lingering sound left without saying goodbye.
Love is natural and real when it comes to the depths, which is why everyone who listens to this song feels deeply...
The hand leaves the string and the song ends...
Along with a long echo, the sound of the piano finally stopped.
Everyone couldn't help but take a deep breath, their eyes full of unfinished thoughts.
The three violinists slowly opened their eyes, their eyes glowing with light, as if they had received some kind of baptism. The musician surnamed Yu was the first to speak in praise——
"What is the sound of nature? This is the sound of nature!"
"Yes, I didn't expect that there would be such melodious music in the world, which makes us know what 'there is a sky beyond the sky' -" the musician surnamed Zeng nodded in agreement.
"The level of this song is so high that no one else can match it. I'm ashamed! I'm ashamed!"
Hearing the three musicians' high praise, all the talents present nodded in agreement - except Mr. Su, who had a gloomy look on his face.
Zhidang's body was still trembling slightly, and there was a faint trace of sweat on her back and chest.
As his chest rose and fell sharply several times, Zhi Tang suddenly opened his eyes. She forced herself to calm down, suppressed her excitement, and said to the three musicians: "My lords, what was the result of the piano competition?"
The three musicians looked at each other, and then the musician surnamed Yu said: "Don't expect me to wait for judgment. Everyone here already has the answer in their mind."
Zhitang bowed respectfully to the three judges, then turned around and walked towards the northeast corner. When she came to the bamboo curtain, she said loudly——
"Ms. Zheng's piano skills are outstanding. I know Tang is ashamed of herself. The winner of this piano skill competition must be Miss Zheng!"
There was silence for a while inside the bamboo curtain.
"Miss Zheng?"
"Oh? Haha! Miss Zhitang has won the prize! Who in Chang'an City doesn't know that this girl is so good at playing the piano and so innocent." Facing Zhitang, this 'Miss Zheng' seemed a little at a loss.
"Miss Zheng, there is no need to be modest. I know that everything Tang Fangcai said was true and sincere, and there is absolutely no falsehood at all!"
Seeing that Zhi Tang was so serious, 'Miss Zheng' laughed angrily a few times and stopped answering.
"Miss Zheng, there is one more thing I would like to ask you to answer for Zhitang."
"Um...Girl, it's okay to just say it. I'll tell you everything I know."
"Excuse me...who composed this piece? Why did Miss Zheng play this piece?" Zhi Tang summoned up the courage to ask.
"Well... well..." Faced with this question, Miss Zheng hesitated.
"Please Miss Zheng tell the truth! Because this is especially important to Zhitang!"
Seeing Miss Zheng hesitating, Zhi Tang couldn't help but raise her tone a bit.
"This... this music was created by a friend, and I heard him play it by chance, so..."
"May I ask if Miss Zheng's friend is a 'mute'?"
"Um...right! He really doesn't know how to talk."
Hearing Ms. Zheng's admission, the knot that had been tied to Zhi Tang's heart was finally untied. She breathed a sigh of relief and showed her most sincere smile in so many days. She continued facing the bamboo curtain: "Miss Zheng, Zhi Tang has an unkind request. I wonder if you can introduce your friend to me?"
"this......"
"Oh! Please don't worry, Miss Zheng, the one thousand taels of silver promised just now will be given in full!"
"No, no, no - that's not what I meant! It's just..."
"Huh? Just what?"
