"What’s wrong?" Dugu Qianye was puzzled.
"They can’t find you, so knowing we’re all in the sa yard, they co to us to find a way! We have to deal with those lovesick girls every day. You owe us for emotional distress!" Sun Kui complained, "We want to eat the food you cook!"
Dugu Qianye chuckled and said, "That’s easy to deal with. You didn’t co just to tell this, did you?"
"That’s the main issue. The secondary one is that you’ve missed the vocal music class for the past two weeks, and the teacher insisted that we bring you to the class this ti. Class is about to start, so I ca to call you."
At Empire College, not only were students taught cultivation, but they also had weekly classes on other subjects, including vocal music. Dugu Qianye rembered she had been busy reading books in the library and had skipped classes like this that were unrelated to cultivation. Now the teacher had a handle on her, and after issuing an ultimatum, she had no choice but to quickly get ready and follow Sun Kui to class.
Upon entering the classroom, the vocal music teacher imdiately spotted Dugu Qianye and called her up.
"Why haven’t you been coming to class?" asked the teacher, an older man with a stern face.
"I was at the library," Dugu Qianye answered.
"You go to the library instead of coming to class?" the teacher asked again.
"I feel that I currently need to understand knowledge related to cultivation more. Moreover, I have studied vocal music before," Dugu Qianye replied.
"Then perform on an instrunt and let’s see. If you truly are at the level where you can graduate, then we won’t pursue your previous absences and you don’t have to attend vocal music class anymore. If you’re not up to par, then you will have to copy the school rules ten tis," said the teacher.
Dugu Qianye scanned the instrunts around the classroom and chose a guqin. She sat down, placed the guqin on her knees, and tested the tuning.
The people of Class 1 gathered around her, curious to see what kind of piece she could play. Dugu Qianye closed her eyes, took a deep breath, and remained still for a long ti. Just when everyone thought she couldn’t play, she began to pluck the strings. A rendition of "High Mountain Flowing Water" slowly unfurled.
Harmonics, rolling, brushing, delaying, fingering, ascending, and descending techniques alternated on the strings. Accompanied by the undulating sound of the guqin, it was as if people could see the peaks of high mountains shrouded in swirling mists, so elusive; or as if they could hear the cold, clear brooks winding secretly among them; the gentle, icy streams running alongside pine roots. Then, as the music soared and ebbed tumultuously, it evoked the image of an angry dragon roaring. At last, the music beca peaceful, reminiscent of calm seas following turbulent waves.
The guqin was sothing she had learned in her previous life. As the young lady of an Ancient Martial Family, how could she not be skilled in musical instrunts? She once played this piece for Baili Ruyan, and now, playing it again, she couldn’t help but infuse a hint of her longing for a soulmate into the music.
The indistinct and substantial imagery, the genuine and heartfelt emotions drew everyone into the sound of the guqin, rendering them unable to extricate themselves. No one spoke, fearing they would disturb the tranquility of the mont.
It took a while after the music stopped for everyone to co back to their senses from its lasting impression.
"Good! Good! Good!" The teacher said ’good’ three tis, looking at Dugu Qianye with excitent. He bowed deeply and said, "I didn’t expect you to be able to play so well at such a young age! I am inferior to you indeed. From now on, you don’t have to attend vocal music class. However, I hope there will be an opportunity to discuss music with you in the future, and I ask for your guidance then."
Dugu Qianye was startled by the teacher’s gesture and quickly stood up to return the bow, saying, "I will surely listen respectfully to the lessons bestowed by the teacher."
Afterward, Dugu Qianye’s reputation at Empire College beca even more illustrious. Word spread that she was not only a genius in cultivation but also remarkable in vocal music, to the extent that even the vocal music teacher admitted his inferiority. Her fa soared, rivalling other talented individuals.
However, at this mont, Dugu Qianye was in a gloomy mood. Once class ended, she took advantage of a mont when no one was paying attention, mounted Xiaoyin, and sped westward towards the Yanshan Mountain Range.
Music is the most adept at stirring the heartstrings; today, as she played the tunes from her past life, they evoked the emotions buried deep within her. Longing for the parents of her forr life, pining for Baili Ruyan, the cautiousness upon arriving in this world, the desolation of being alone—all burst forth uncontrollably.
Dugu Qianye removed her Phantom Ring and revealed her daughter’s deanor.
"Sister, what’s wrong?" Xiaohuo transford into a human and grasped Dugu Qianye’s hand.
"It’s nothing, I just suddenly missed ho," Dugu Qianye answered. She took Xiaohuo’s hand and sat down on a large rock, releasing Liehuo and the others as well.
"If you miss it, just go back and visit, especially since the Mo Family is in the Imperial Capital," Xiaohuo said.
"I’m not talking about that ho, but another one," Dugu Qianye said.
"Another one? Is it Qifeng City?" Qingluan asked.
"No. Let tell you a story. In another world, there is a planet called Earth..."
Gradually, Dugu Qianye recounted her own stories, saying, "So, the from a previous life has already died, and it was Dandan who brought to this world."
"Sister, it’s so good to have t you. We really should thank Brother Dandan," Xiaohuo said, flinging himself into Dugu Qianye’s arms.
"Master, you must be missing your family from your previous life, right?" Lan i asked.
"Yes. Ruyan and I entered the Endless Void together, I think since I’ve co to this world, Ruyan must also be sowhere in this world. But I don’t know where she is now," Dugu Qianye gazed at the evening sky, where the floating clouds were stained red by the sunset. "Lan i, after leaving for thousands of years, do you miss ho?"
"I do. I don’t know whether my mother and the others are still alive..." Lan i’s voice faltered, and tears swirled in her eyes. "But accompanying the emperor and protecting him is my mission. I will not turn back from it!"
Dugu Qianye fell silent for a long ti, then took out a clay flute and began to play. "The Original Scenery of the Hotown," a tune she would blow every ti she felt hosick while on a mission. It seed like every hole of the flute was infused with the sounds of the wind, grass, flowing water, birdsong, and family calls from her holand. The deep and lodious flute notes echoed across Yanshan, revealing her current yearning without reservation.
Xiaohuo quietly laid on her lap, Xiaoyin and Liehuo laid beside her feet, Lan i sat not far from her, and Qingluan perched on her shoulder. It was a tranquil scene, and the beautiful, wistful flute music caused the woods to fall silent as well. However, this quietness was disrupted the second ti Dugu Qianye played the tune.
Lan i stood up and shouted toward the forest ahead, "Who’s there?"
Dugu Qianye put down the clay flute and also looked in that direction.
A figure leapt down from a tree and ca before Dugu Qianye, clasped his hands in greeting, and said, "I am Zi Xiao, I did not intend to disturb you all, please forgive ."
Dugu Qianye saw a young man about twenty years old, with a height of six feet, a slender fra, dressed in a long purple robe, his peach-blossom eyes blinking rapidly as he looked at Dugu Qianye.
"Why were you there?" Lan i asked with a wary face.
"I was sleeping on the tree. Your music woke , and for a mont I thought it was the music of the heavens, so I wanted to listen quietly for a while. I did not an to disturb you," Zi Xiao said.
Reviews
All reviews (0)