Chapter 16 Floating Orchid Villa (3)_1

"Such a fine zither, indeed." Anya exhaled, gazing at Ye Yinzhu's eyes which were now even brighter. She could not believe that Ye Yinzhu's zither skills had reached such an extraordinary level. The tune was so remarkable that it made her feel a bit lost, even reminding her of her hometown.

Sura had heard Ye Yinzhu play the zither before, but this was the most complete performance. Without the direct impact of the zither magic, she fully immersed herself in the profound beauty brought by the zither music. The enchanting heavenly music also evoked countless memories in her, nearly bringing her to tears.

"I feel embarrassed. I haven't had much time to practice at the academy recently, I was afraid that I might be rusty." Besides giving others aesthetic pleasure, the zither music could also bring Ye Yinzhu a good feeling himself. The near-perfect rendition of "Autumn Swan" refreshed his mind and made his whole body feel indescribably comfortable. His lungs were filled with fresh air; his body seemed to fall into a special rhythm. His zither magic power naturally increased in such a state.

"Miss Anya, I didn't expect you to invite such a distinguished zither instructor. Moreover, he's still so young. It seems that if I don't come here every day, it would be a disservice to my ears! Hahaha." The robust, elderly voice once again rang out. This time, he was speaking to Anya.

Ye Yinzhu turned around to look in the direction where the elderly voice was coming from. An old man clad in a turquoise robe was approaching them. From the verses recited by the old man earlier, Ye Yinzhu knew that he must have a profound understanding of zither music. He quickly stood up and respectfully said, "Good day, sir."

The old man was tall, with a serene and imposing appearance. His clothing was simple, yet he exuded a distinctive aura like a proud old pine. His eyes flickered occasionally with a sharp, intriguing light. His long silver hair was casually draped over his shoulders.

"Virtue signifies the essence of one's character, and music signifies the elegance of virtue. The character of a person can be perceived from the tune of the zither. Young man, you play the zither so well, indicating your virtuous character. Good, good. Rarely do I see such fine young men these days." He finished speaking and patted Ye Yinzhu's shoulder in admiration. His hand was broad, warm and powerful. As he lightly patted, Ye Yinzhu felt a warm current flowing inside his body, producing a comfortable sensation - it even slightly increased his Zhu Douqi.

Seeing the old man approach, Anya didn't stand up. Instead, her face was veiled with coldness. "As expected of Mr. Old Horse, you've arrived early. It's a shame that you've ruined my pleasure," she said indifferently.

The old man revealed a bitter smile, "Fine, fine, it was my mistake. However, Miss Anya, will I still be able to hear such enchanting music here in the future? The number of zither instructors who can profoundly grasp the four significances of purity, subtlety, unadornment and transcendence is very few indeed."

Hearing the old man's praise for Ye Yinzhu, Anya finally smiled. She turned to Yin Zhu and said, "You heard him. This man is a regular customer at the Floating Orchid Villa, and he's a hard person to please. Even he appreciates you so much, I don't think it's improper to have you here as a zither instructor. You can't turn down wages earned by working."

Ye Yinzhu turned his head to look at Sura. At this time Sura was still enthralled by the zither music and paid no attention to him.

"Alright. Working here or there, it doesn't make a difference. Moreover, I'll be seeing Sister Anya often." Ye Yinzhu flashed a pure and innocent smile. Playing the zither was the best form of cultivation for him. It would also earn him some tuition and living expenses. Why would he refuse?

"You called her what?" The old man gaped at Ye Yinzhu and quickly turned to Anya. "Is he your younger brother?"

Anya said coldly, "It's none of your business. If you interfere again, you can leave. Floating Orchid Villa will no longer welcome you."

The old man's face expressed bitterness, "Can't you be a little nicer? We are old friends after all." Judging by the age, the old man could be Anya's grandfather, but his tone suggested that he greatly respected Anya.

Anya ignored him and turned to Ye Yinzhu. "Yin Zhu, how much is your wage?"

Ye Yinzhu scratched his head and exposed the blue ring on his left hand. Upon seeing the ring, the old man's body stiffened, and his expression changed slightly.

"Sister Anya, how much I earn is not important. What's important is that Sura is my roommate. Could he also stay here and work with me? We don't need much — ten silver coins a day is enough to cover our expenses."

By this time, Sura had regained her senses. Hearing Ye Yinzhu actually asking for a server's wage, she couldn't help but pinch him from behind and quickly added, "I don't mind, as long as I'm not separated from Yin Zhu. However, Yin Zhu is a zither instructor, shouldn't his wage be higher? It's not easy to find such a good zither instructor. Yin Zhu is a genius among the first-year students of the Divine Music Department of this year."

Anya didn't pay attention to Sura but just looked at Ye Yinzhu. "Silly boy, since when do zither instructors have such a low wage? Here, even an ordinary server earns a gold coin per day. I know you're gentle and you don't care about money. How about this, your wage will be ten gold coins a day. As for this young Sura, let's keep him here as a server. One more person won't be a problem."

"No, no, Sister Anya, that's really too much." Ten gold coins a day. That was ten gold coins! You should know, an ordinary family's monthly expenditure would only be one or two gold coins.

Anya smiled, "As long as I think it's worth it, it's okay. If you don't believe me, you can ask Mr. Old Horse, is your zither music worth this price?"

Before Ye Yinzhu could ask, Mr. Old Horse nodded sincerely, "It's worth it, definitely worth it. I don't think even ten gold coins are enough. How can such enchanting zither music be measured by money?"

Surprisingly, Anya didn't refute him this time. She smiled and said, "See, I'm still taking advantage of you. Let's settle for this. Since you are already here today, stay and get familiar with the environment. You'll start work in the afternoon, that's our main business hours. You're students, so if you have classes, you won't need to come in to avoid affecting your studies."

With such generous conditions, not only Ye Yin Zhu but even Sura, earning a daily wage as a waiter was unthinkable at other places. Ordinary servers would not earn that much.

Floating Orchid Villa had three floors, the first floor was a hall with ten tea tables. The second floor had six compartments, and the third floor was Anya's personal residence, which even the servers of Floating Orchid Villa couldn't enter without permission. From the outside, the three-story building looked sizable, but overall, it could only accommodate sixteen tables of customers at one time.

The lunch was abundant. Ye Yinzhu and Sura ate with all the servers. The staff in Floating Orchid Villa were all male, the chief among them being the blue-clad server who Ye Yinzhu and Sura first met.

"Big Brother Dida, Floating Orchid Villa is so big, why are there only so few tables? Can this earn money?" Ye Yinzhu asked curiously.