“I don’t know,” Wen Zhixia looked at the white plastic bag, reaching out to open the loosely tied opening, casually saying: “The silly dog sent me a gift.”
The elderly man didn’t understand why Wen Zhixia called her friend a silly dog, but he didn’t comment.
He knew Wen Zhixia didn’t have many friends here, and this friend was one of them.
“When you go back, don’t mention these two words in front of the old madam,” the elderly man paused, reminding her.
“I know,” Wen Zhixia had an elegant name, but she wasn’t very elegant herself, “I know it’s uncivilized and disrespect…”
As she spoke, she saw the gift in the bag.
It was four recording CDs.
Each one was beautifully packaged. Wen Zhixia looked at the top one, on the blue cover were two bold characters written with powerful strokes—
“Gambling Wine”
Below that was an artistic signature in black marker.
As Yan Lu’s fan, she recognized it was Yan Lu’s signature.
“Holy…”
She said half a word, realized the elderly person was behind her, and forcefully changed her words.
Quickly flipping to the next one, it was “Winter Fluff”—the Winter Fluff that had been hyped up to 200,000 yuan per copy! The Winter Fluff that Wen Zhixia couldn’t get even after asking eight hundred people! Each one had Yan Lu’s signature.
Wen Zhixia secretly said “damn” in her heart, then opened her phone—
[You got them? Why are they even signed versions?? Are these authentic?!!!]
Silly Dog: [1]
At a time like this she’s still replying “1”, what’s the point of “1”.
Wen Zhixia looked at the four precious CDs wrapped in plastic bags, temporarily forgetting about Silly Dog’s sad situation—
[You can be my dad for today]
Silly Dog: [.]
Fine, let her use periods if she wants to use periods. Wen Zhixia decided not to argue with Bai Lian for now. She put her phone aside and looked at the albums.
Belatedly, she wondered.
She couldn’t get them even with help from others, how did Bai Lian get these albums? And each one was signed too?
One day later.
At the music concert in North City.
The Bai family got three tickets, middle seats. Those who came were Bai Shaoqi, Song Min, and Madam Song. Among both the Bai and Song families, only these three could appreciate classical music.
Bai Qiming was sensible enough not to come pretend to be cultured.
There were many people queueing for ticket checks.
Most were well-known musicians from North City.
“Shaoqi, I heard your brother is confirmed to be following a Professor Jiang?” Madam Song stood beside Bai Shaoqi, chatting while queuing.
Bai Shaoqi nodded lightly, “Yes.”
Madam Song knew the Bai family valued Bai Shaoqi, partly because of Bai Shaoke. “Who’s the distinguished guest your father mentioned? Have either of you heard?”
Many students in the international class had good family backgrounds, which was also a connection.
“Don’t know,” mentioning this, Bai Shaoqi became serious, “but the Jiahao general manager personally received them. Father said it might be Dean Jian.”
If it was Dean Jian, that would make sense.
The three checked their tickets and entered.
The concert hadn’t started yet. Their seats were in the fifth row.
Also VIP seats.
As soon as Bai Shaoqi entered, she saw the first row was different from other seats—leather seats with tall backs, and behind the first row was a railing separating it from the VIP seats behind.
“That’s…” Bai Shaoqi was startled.
Having grown up in Jiangjing, Madam Song was familiar with such venues and recognized it immediately, “Guest seats, probably someone from Jiangjing came.”
Important people for the concert.
It was strange though—in previous years when Dean Jian came, North City wasn’t this lively.
Meanwhile.
Bai Lian had a ticket, but no one checked it. Old Hu directly led her in through the staff entrance.
“Too many people at the entrance,” Old Hu, having roughly guessed Bai Lian’s identity, was very respectful to her, “let’s go around through the backstage.”
Old Hu’s face was a pass, after all he was Dean Jian’s assistant and representative.
Along the way, everyone stopped to greet Old Hu.
Their gazes noticed the young woman he treated with such respect.
Although Old Hu was an assistant, he could play both pipa and guzheng, and had some fame. Having learned from Dean Jian, his skills far surpassed ordinary people.
Even Principal Luo of the Northern Music Academy would call him “Mr. Hu.”
Yet now he was so polite to a young woman?
Who was she? Others secretly wondered, but this young woman had her head slightly lowered. Though outstanding in appearance, she was unfamiliar—they hadn’t seen her before.
Passing through the backstage, a group of people surrounded Dean Jian as he was tuning a guzheng. Seeing Bai Lian enter, he greeted her from afar, “You came quite early.”
“Afraid to keep you waiting.” Bai Lian stopped, not approaching closer.
He was already very happy she could come. He didn’t say much, just waved at her, “Alright, go sit with Old Hu first. I’ll come over after finishing up with them.”
After Bai Lian left.
The group around Dean Jian looked at each other. These were all well-known teachers from North City, seeing Bai Lian for the first time, they couldn’t hide their surprise.
“Master Jian, is that… your student?” Principal Luo asked.
He knew Jian Zhongyou had disciples, including a highly talented young woman, but this person was only in Jiangjing—few had met her.
“Student?” Jian Zhongyou looked at Principal Luo, shaking his head with a smile, “You’re thinking too much. I don’t have the ability to be her teacher.”
Speaking of this, he sighed: “Her teacher far surpasses me.”
Although Bai Lian hadn’t said who her teacher was, after all this time, Jian Zhongyou knew her teacher must be an extraordinary recluse.
Why had he always wanted Bai Lian to lead the guzheng? Because he could see she had something special—an ancient inheritance.
Very likely, she was the personal disciple of a guzheng master from one of those reclusive families.
Jian Zhongyou spoke casually, but those around him were very shocked, especially Principal Luo.
Just in classical Chinese music alone, Jian Zhongyou’s influence was crucial—a modern guzheng master. His series of works including “Southern and Northern Guzheng Tunes” were in museums.
He served as an instructor at national banquets, his achievements already written in music history.
Now he actually said “her teacher far surpasses me”? Just who was this young woman’s guzheng teacher?
Outside.
Bai Shaoqi sat in the middle, with Madam Song beside her and Song Min next to Madam Song. The performance was about to begin.
The hall lights dimmed, leaving only one spotlight on the stage.
A tall figure in an evening dress appeared in the front row. Song Min watched that figure and suddenly sat up straight, his gaze fixed intently on the first row.
“What’s wrong?” Madam Song noticed his unusual behavior.
Song Min watched that blurry figure walk to the first row, his voice deepening, “I think I saw Bai Lian.”
“Bai Lian?” Madam Song paused.
Bai Shaoqi’s fingers also tensed, she turned her head: “Where?”
“First row.” Song Min saw her sit in the first row, his gaze not moving, “That middle seat.”
“First row? Then you must have seen wrong,” hearing this, Madam Song shook her head, “We pulled strings and could only get VIP seats. The first row—that’s for people like Dean Jian, the concert’s distinguished guests. Even if Bai Lian is from the Xu family, she couldn’t get a first row ticket.”
That was true.
Song Min doubtfully withdrew his gaze. That figure he just saw looked very much like the Bai Lian he saw in Jiangjing.
But…
She was also different from the Bai Lian in his memory.
Bai Shaoqi lost interest and withdrew her gaze, continuing to look down at her phone, sending a photo to the class group.
In the first row.
Bai Lian sat down, quietly waiting for the performance to begin.
People occasionally took their seats in the first row, each greeting Bai Lian before sitting down.
After arranging everything, Dean Jian came to sit on her left, “Listen well, see if you have any new thoughts.”
The opening music was performed jointly by students and teachers from the Northern Music Academy.
Four guzheng masters, plus two pipa teachers and a jade flute teacher.
It was the very familiar “Bai Yi Xing”. During the climax in the middle, the four guzheng masters played together, lightly plucking the vermilion strings. In an instant, there were sounds of war horses and weapons, yellow sand covering bones, each note crying out in the strings, touching everyone’s souls.
The opening performance ended.
The applause continued for a long time.
People nearby were saying softly, “Truly worthy of being one of the ten great guzheng pieces.”
Mentioning “Bai Yi Xing” inevitably made one think of Bai Xiangjun.
Dean Jian also came back to his senses and commented on the performance to Bai Lian, “This piece is too domineering. Their individual expressiveness isn’t enough, they can’t play out this feeling. That’s why four people playing together can bring out this momentum. The Miss Bai who created this piece was truly a once-in-a-millennium talent.”
That’s why when Bai Lian played with that strong, resonant momentum alone at the school anniversary, Dean Jian knew she wasn’t ordinary.
Bai Lian: “…”
She tilted her head slightly, not speaking.
Dean Jian was used to her silence. He thought of something else, “You’re also surnamed Bai.”
“Yes.” Bai Lian nodded.
“Who exactly is your teacher?” Being asked by Principal Luo had made Dean Jian curious about this too. Until now he hadn’t found out who taught Bai Lian.
Bai Lian had her head slightly lowered, lost in thought.
After a long while, just when Dean Jian thought Bai Lian wouldn’t answer again, she suddenly spoke, “Qin Jiu.”
“What?” Dean Jian was startled.
“Didn’t you ask who my teacher was? Mr. Qin Jiu,” Bai Lian’s wrist rested on the armrest, her fingertips lightly tapping it. She turned her head, speaking very seriously this time: “The teacher who taught me, Master Qin Jiu.”
Qin Jiu, now respectfully called the “Qin Saint.”
The Jiangjing Music Academy still burned incense in his honor.
Those who studied music or history knew Qin Jiu had two disciples.
One was Princess Huai’an, Jiang Suyi, who went far away in a political marriage and left behind the immortal “Jiangjing Imperial View.”
The other was the Bai family’s brilliantly talented young lady, Bai Xiangjun.
Heroes emerge in troubled times. Of the ten great guzheng pieces, just his own compositions accounted for three. Together with his two disciples’ “Desert Song” and “Bai Yi Xing”, they arrogantly occupied half the mountain of guzheng music.
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