Crown Sent Out
Liu Manman began to play first, while Xia Yu still maintained the initial posture.
Liu Manman's music started very slowly, like a horse's gentle trot.
As time went by, the rhythm gradually quickened, and at the same time, Xia Yu began to move, joining in the music.
Xia Yu's music was a beat slower than Liu Manman's, and even more gentle.
Shen Shengsheng's eyebrows were slightly furrowed.
What kind of feeling was this? Wind? Sunshine? Or rain?
Thinking of the name of the tune, he confirmed it was rain.
Having grasped the elements, Shen Shengsheng fully entered the state. Liu Manman's melody was a galloping white horse on the road, and Xia Yu's melody was the light rain in the sky.
The sound of the horse's hooves grew faster, and the rain grew heavier, as if they were chasing each other.
The hoof sound was crisp, and the rain was clear. In the open field, there seemed to be only a white horse running in the rain.
Shen Shengsheng felt as if he were the rider on the white horse, with the wind howling, the rain pounding, the horse's back bouncing, and the plants casting shadows.
A surge of heroism welled up in Shen Shengsheng's heart.
In his youth, he had also longed to ride a horse and wield a sword, traveling the world freely.
Now, his wish was fulfilled in the music.
A smile spread across his face as he reveled in the feeling.
However, the smile didn't last long.
He realized the sound of the hooves had reached its limit and could not accelerate further, while the rain behind it continued to grow in intensity.
In a short while, the sound of the rain drowned out the sound of the hooves, leaving only the pouring rain in the world.
The white horse slowed as the road became hidden beneath the torrent of rain.
The force of the rain continued to increase, visibility around them fell lower and lower, and the white horse slowed further.
Finally, the white horse lost its way and came to a halt, letting out a long, mournful cry.
The hooves still made a sound on the spot, but it was the helplessness of pacing in place.
The rain continued to pour, completely engulfing the white horse, leaving only the fierce sound of rain between heaven and earth.
In the end, a clap of thunder burst forth, and the music stopped abruptly.
Opening his eyes, Shen Shengsheng excitedly patted the guidance counselor's shoulder next to him: "Great!"
The guidance counselor endured the pain and agreed: "Good, good."
Though he didn't understand music, he could tell that it sounded good, especially the last note, which startled him.
Most of the audience shared the same feeling as the guidance counselor, but some were knowledgeable about music. Their hearts were initially in awe, and then they became excited.
This was a completely new piece, and they were the first ones to hear it!
In their old age, they could brag about this to their grandchildren!
Xue, who had brought her two closest friends, had one who was studying music, named Xiaoyin.
"… In the last part of the ending, after the female's zither slows down, your brother's zither actually becomes slower and slower too. But because of the previous chasing between the two zithers, it feels like your brother's zither is faster. It's precisely because the speed of the ending slows down that the final shocking string is so abrupt…"
Xiaoyin chattered on, and Xue nodded slightly in agreement.
In fact, she didn't understand at all.
If it were up to her to explain, she could only come up with hollow terms like "666."
Indeed, having Xiaoyin here was the right choice, thought Xue Xin.
Originally, Xiaoyin was relatively low profile in the class, not within Xue Xin's consideration. The sole reason for inviting her was her musical background, which could better promote her brother's talent.
Seated behind Xiaoyin were two female students from Xia Yu's class with little music knowledge. Even though they hadn't listened to the piece attentively, they were immersed in Xia Yu's elegant piano playing.
The girls excitedly discussed within their group chat, sending screenshots to the girls watching the live stream on their laptops.
Next to them, Qin Youliang and his friend sent 666 in the class group chat.
On stage, Xia Yu and Liu Manman embraced the guzheng and stepped back into the backstage area.
Before Xia Yu had a chance to put down the guzheng, a burly figure jumped towards him, attempting to pat his back.
Sensing the impending danger through mental intuition, Xia Yu swiftly dodged the hand coming to his back.
The hand's owner was Shen Shengsheng, saying "Good, good, good" while aiming for Xia Yu's back, a gesture of encouragement.
Unfortunately, he missed. The counselor regretted not being able to share the strength of Shen Shengsheng's pat, only thinking that Xia Yu might experience his pain.
Withdrawing his empty hand, Shen Shengsheng asked, "Who composed this piece?"
Because the piece was too outstanding, he couldn't determine whether Xia Yu had composed it himself.
"It's him," Liu Manman cut in.
"Where's the sheet music? Play it again for me to listen," requested Shen Shengsheng, feeling that with slight modifications, the piece could also be performed on the sheng.
The counselor looked enviously at Xia Yu, never even dreaming of such a scene where a highly skilled individual would ask for more information.
However, Xia Yu didn't want this attention as he was eager to see Xu Youxiang.
"Ask Liu Manman. I have things to do, so I'll leave first," Xia Yu quickly entered the dressing room.
Changing back into his original clothes, Xia Yu left the auditorium and called Xu Youxiang to ask her location.
At home, Xu Youxiang replied.
Xia Yu then picked up his belongings and went to An Siyao's villa.
An Siyao was still in the auditorium watching the performance. At the villa, only the maid and Xu Youxiang were present.
The security guards at the entrance recognized Xia Yu and, following An Siyao's instructions from before, let him in easily.
In the pavilion at the back of the villa, Xia Yu found Xu Youxiang sitting in a wheelchair alone.
"Where's the maid?" Xia Yu asked as he approached.
Xu Youxiang didn't answer Xia Yu.
"What's wrong?" He rubbed Xu Youxiang's head.
"Why did you come here? Weren't you supposed to perform with your junior sister?" Xu Youxiang said petulantly.
Without answering, Xia Yu took out a sapphire crown and placed it on Xu Youxiang's head.
"What's this?" Xu Youxiang asked curiously.
"Insects," Xia Yu replied.
Xu Youxiang was immediately startled. Although she knew there was likely no insect on her head, she still shook it.
Xia Yu quickly held her head steady, "I was kidding, it's not an insect."
Xu Youxiang took out her phone and aimed it at her head.
The first thing that caught her eye was the deep blue color of the sapphire.
She exclaimed in surprise, "What is this?"
"A sapphire crown, it's a gift for you," Xia Yu answered.
"This is the crown of the royal family in Area 11, right? How did you get it?" Xu Youxiang asked while admiring the crown.
"How did you know?" Xia Yu was surprised.
"I've learned about it before," Xu Youxiang casually mentioned.
But Xia Yu already knew that Xu Youxiang paid attention to jewelry. Since she paid attention to it, she must like it.
"You still haven't said where you got it from," Xu Youxiang asked again.
"I bought it from someone else, the royal family gave the crown away," Xia Yu did not mention Liu Manman.
For Xu Youxiang and Liu Manman to practice piano together and deceive the jewelry, it seems not bad. But think about it from another perspective, would you be happy if a girl deceives something you want for her to entangle with another boy for you?
Fortunately, Xu Youxiang's attention was already attracted by the sapphire crown, and she did not continue to inquire.
The two of them stayed quietly together in the pavilion.
Looking at her phone, Xu Youxiang put her phone down.
"I will often come to see you," Xia Yu said.
"Okay," Xu Youxiang responded.
At the Liu family, Liu Ronglan, who was admiring her jewelry, received a link from a friend on the Penguin app.
"Your two kids are stirring up trouble again," the friend said.
Liu Ronglan, curious, clicked on the video.