Spring tunes

"Why should I feel ashamed to have my SISTER as my study partner? Although her mother is still a concubine, our father is the Head of the Family and I advise you to never forget this fact dear cousin. Furthermore, my sister is extremely talent and was praised by ALL of our tutors, thing that I didn't hear from you"

"You! I want to see how talent a concubine daughter can be!"

"Just great, I was hoping that Grandma could hear the song that me and Yunning came up with as our music assignment. Grandmother, could you give us a little bit of your time after lunch?"

"Sure Ming'er. Now stop this nonsensical argument and start to eat. I'm sure that all my grandchildren are talented in something"

Ming Peizi glanced at his daughter that was eating as elegant as the Empress. Is she helping me to convince mother about Lady Ye or was merely a coincidence. Whatever it may be, if she used her talents for the household he would never oppose anything she did. Actually this days he caught himself indulge more and more on this daughter of his. Once she pout her lips and slightly inflated her cheeks he couldn't say no to her.

After the lunch was done, Ming Yunning was called.

"Yunning greets Grandmother, Father, Madam, Uncles, Aunts and Cousins"

"Yu'er get up, you grew up a lot since the last time I saw you"

"I may have grown up but Grandmother became more prettier than I remembered"

"What a sweet mouth"

"Tsk. Just like a concubine just knows how to boot lick"

"Cousin are you perhaps suggesting that what the Sister said it was a lie?"

Seeing her Grandmother looking at her with an angry look Ming Huan panicked

"This is not what I said. I just commented she just knows how to boot lick. But the beauty of Grandma of course grew the past years"

"Of what she said is true than is not boot-licking is it? Is just a fact that she stated"

"Okay enough you two. Shu'er didn't you said that you had a song to present to your Grandmother?"

"Second Aunt is right. Meimei, why don't we show the song we came up together and then the songs we came up alone?"

"If Grandma would be so kind to listen to our songs it will be my honor"

"Bring two pipas and the flute please"

After the servants brought the instruments, the two sister went to the front of the table. Ming Shu was with a pipa and Ming Yunning with a flute for their duo music.

"Our Master passed an assignment for us to create a song that is inspired on spring. The song that we will play we named "Blossoms""

A gentle flute sound started the song accompanied by a cheerful pipa. The listeners had the illusion to be in a vast sea of flowers.

As Old Lady Ming close her eyes she could see the flowers that had finally grew after a harsh winter unbutton while basking their new petals in the sun. Not only she was there. She was being accompanied by birds that were singing and beautiful butterflies that roomed around the flowers to collect their new nectar.

Everyone one was still emerged on their song when a different pipa melody came. Ming Shu started her solo piece. This time, the melody started on a depressing note. Because of their theme the people associated with the winter. As the song went, it depicted the harshness of the cold and how it was difficult to survive, but that the hope was not lost, you have to hang a little, the winter is almost ending. The snow started to melt and the green in the landscape started to show itself, the rivers started to flow again and the animals woke up. Seeing the changes and basking in the sun, everyone cheered for having survived another winter.

Some of the servants that were serving the family and listened to Ming Shu song had tears in their eyes. They remembered how hard it was for them when they lived in their villages. Sometimes most of them had to eat prudently in winter otherwise they would starve on the harsh season. The village would do a party to welcome the spring, because it represented for them hope. The hope that they could survive one year more.

Even some members of the family that never pass trough any hardships because they didn't know if they would have food for the next day had tear in the eyes. Although they didn't never felt that way, the music pass them the despair that together with the sun melted and give birth to hope that came along side the changes that happen in the spring.

When Ming Shu ended almost everyone had tears in their eyes. She could see her Grandmother with a handkerchief drying the tears that fell. Ming Shu looked at her sister and nodded for her to begin.

Seeing her sister signal Yunning started her pipa melody. If one could define her song with an emotion it would be happiness. Her song tried to pass the cheerful atmosphere that the spring brought. Although her melody didn't touch the ones present as Ming Shu's, because it was the perfect complement to the melody before it took everyone for the heavy mood and put them in the happiness that the song before hoped for.

When she finished everyone had a happy expression in their face. Looking at her Jiejie, she could see her sister moving her lips 'good job'.