bookbashuk Page 121
Page 121
At this moment, a boy even younger than Cen Qiong suddenly appeared, and he couldn't help but sneer inwardly.
Is Phoenix Dance Hall so desperate for people that they just grabbed anyone to fill in?
It should be understood that the arts of music, chess, calligraphy, and painting all require diligent practice from a young age, spending a great deal of time learning and studying day after day before one can achieve something.
No matter how talented he is, his age is a limiting factor.
Of course, there are exceptionally talented child prodigies, but generally speaking, anyone under the age of twelve who can enter the ranks is already considered a child prodigy.
Someone like Cen Qiong, who is not even twenty years old and has reached the intermediate level of qin playing, could not possibly be unknown in a prefecture.
Xue Yanxiang, confident in her social standing, secretly sneered, but she wouldn't act like a villain in a third-rate novel.
Generally, it is deliberately belittled.
The two young women behind her, one in green and one in pink, were not so polite.
The woman in green said disdainfully, "Where did Phoenix Dance Pavilion find this greenhorn again? Could it be that they really couldn't find anyone else and just picked someone off the street to make do?"
The woman in pink laughed and said, "Are you afraid of losing too badly, so you sent a young and naive person to the stage to make an excuse for the crushing defeat to come?"
The female students who came with Xue Yanxiang were about to join in the commotion.
Fu Hai had already stepped towards the incense table on the left, and said at the same time, "The arts of qin, chess, calligraphy and painting are the refined pursuits of scholars and literati. Why does Master Xue bring so many lackeys to bark and disturb the peace here, ruining the elegance?"
Those female disciples were, after all, "cultured people," and when he blocked them like that, they didn't know how to refute him and just stood there.
Xue Yanxiang never showed her emotions. Bringing along "lackeys" was precisely for this kind of thing. Since this young man knew to use such words to shut her up, he did have some insight.
She asked calmly, "Who are you, young master?"
Fu Hai sat down opposite her: "I am from Anjun, and I live in Bihai Pavilion. I call myself Bihai Jushi. Today I have come to ask Master Xue for his unique skills. Please enlighten me."
Chapter 214 I was ignorant before, now I want it all.
Fu Hai couldn't very well tell these ladies and young ladies that he was the manager of a certain inn in such a setting.
So, it's perfectly normal for literati to create their own names.
For example, Lady Langyue's residence had a Langyue Tower, so she was called "Master of Langyue Tower," and people gradually began to call her Lady Langyue.
Xue Yanxiang saw that the young man who called himself Bihai Jushi was calm and composed, and naturally sat behind the zither table, gently touching the strings in a very professional manner.
Cen Qiong stepped down from the stage, her expression calm, seemingly genuinely expecting something from the young man.
She thought to herself, "Could this young man really have some background? But there's no such talent in An County. Could it be that he's not actually from An County at all?"
It should be understood that Anjun County has a limited pool of talented individuals.
But given the vastness of the world, there are countless people with extraordinary talents.
It's possible that a talented scholar who happened to be in Anjun was invited by Fengwu Pavilion.
Especially this "Bihai Jushi" (碧海居士), I've never even heard of him.
Perhaps he was originally a famous scholar from another place, who temporarily made up an identity and pretended to be from An County?
Xue Yanxiang's martial arts skills were also quite remarkable; although she had not reached the middle level, she was still at the seventh level.
Listening closely, I heard the ladies and young women of the county also whispering among themselves, wanting to know who this young man was.
Strangely, the female students at the Phoenix Dance Hall all remained silent.
She increasingly suspected that the young man might indeed be a famous scholar, but was not a local at all.
He then coldly asked, "Are you truly from Anjun?"
Lady Shehua sat in the judging seat below the stage, elegant and noble, and said: "As I said before, it is fine if the literati and scholars are from Anjun, but it would be unfair to invite people from other places."
"Anjun is a place blessed with outstanding people and resources; surely it wouldn't be necessary to ask people from other prefectures for help?"
Behind Madam Shehua, the others exchanged glances and frowned slightly.
Such refined pursuits often rely on mutual support and connections; the real social circles aren't actually that large. If they were truly local celebrities, they shouldn't be unfamiliar with each other.
But then a woman laughed loudly and said, "My Baoshuzhai can vouch for this Bihai Hermit. This young master is indeed from this county."
"It's just that I studied hard in the past, and although I have talent, it was not known to others."
Everyone else recognized the woman who had suddenly spoken.
Hearing her say that, I couldn't help but say, "I see."
“Since it was Lady Langyue who said it, then it must be true.”
"That makes sense. This young man is quite young and has never shown off his skills in public before, so it's normal."
"At his age, he dared to go on stage to compete. Regardless of winning or losing, he certainly has the courage."
Xue Yanxiang also recognized that the person speaking was none other than Madam Langyue, the owner of Baoshuzhai, a local celebrity.
Since she used Baoshuzhai as collateral, her words must be true.
It seems that this young man is indeed a rising star who has never shown his face in the past. Although he has not yet made a name for himself, since he has been noticed by Lang Yuelou of Baoshuzhai, he must have some talent.
Fu Hai looked stiffly at Madam Langyue, who was sitting in the back row, watching her with an air of leisure.
I just used Lady Langyue as an example, and I didn't expect her to be in the audience.
But it seems to be normal.
Baoshuzhai and Fengwuguan are both located on the most bustling street in the county town. She herself is a refined person, so how could she not come and see what was going on here?
A maidservant stood beside Lady Langyue, sitting below the stage, watching the young man on the stage with great interest.
She was also surprised that the third musician to stand up for Fengwu Pavilion was this kid.
All I know is that this kid is a great novelist, and even now, many people are still looking for him, wanting to beat him up.
The second edition of "The Young Hero's Adventures" has sold out 5,000 copies. Such books are already quite expensive, and in recent years, no other book has ever been so popular.
Unexpectedly, he also had a deep understanding of the art of playing the zither.
Lady Langyue certainly didn't believe that the young manager of the Dragon Claw Inn could really surpass a renowned musician like Xue Yanxiang.
However, since they were invited by Feng Nihong and Cen Qiong to help them, they must be quite capable.
At this moment, Lady Langyue really wanted to tell everyone that the hermit Bihai on the stage is actually the author of "Xia Shan Chuang Tian Guan".
But if that's really the case, at least half the girls on the field would probably rush up and beat him up.
For his safety's sake, let's forget about it.
Fu Hai forcibly shifted his gaze away from Madam Langyue.
He was afraid that Lady Langyue might suddenly say at this moment, "I can prove that he is from this county. He wrote a certain book that was published during our Lantern Festival."
Since then, he has often had Sister Butterfly and Sister Little Night play with him, and he has become a true harem official, wishing he could erase the dark history of "The Young Hero's Adventures in Heaven".
As for the Setsuna Party and Touma Party, I was young and naive back then.
Now I want them all!
Because Xue Yanxiang knew some inside information, she understood that Anjun would gradually become more important in the future.
Therefore, after establishing a foothold in Anjun, they had already conducted a survey to determine who needed to be suppressed and who needed to befriend.
Baoshuzhai controls various publishing and distribution channels, and since these channels do not conflict with its own goals, it has a lot of people to befriend.
For this reason, she also investigated the preferences and character of Madam Langyue, the owner of Baoshuzhai, and knew that she would not speak carelessly with the reputation of herself and Baoshuzhai at stake.
"It seems that Anjun is also a place where hidden talents reside!" She looked at the young man opposite her and smiled slightly. "In that case, let me test your skills, young master. I hope you will not disappoint me."
The others also looked at the young man, thinking that since Master Feng and Miss Cen would specially invite him to help, and Madam Langyue of Baoshuzhai also knew him and was even willing to vouch for him.
It seems he has exceptional talent in the art of playing the piano.
Who would have thought that our An County would have such a hidden talent?
But then the young man took out a book from his pocket: "Master Xue, please wait a moment, I haven't finished reading it yet."
Sitting behind the zither, he quickly turned the pages of the book, one by one.
Xue Yanxiang narrowed her eyes, and when she finally saw what he was holding, she felt a surge of anger... Are you kidding me?
Others began to whisper among themselves: "What is he looking at?"
"It looks like... sheet music?"
"Sheet music? Looking at sheet music at a time like this? Is he joking?"
"Is this what they call 'not burning incense in ordinary times, but praying to Buddha at the last minute'?"
"He wants to use the newly learned sheet music to challenge Xue Dajia's famous piece 'Yi Er,' which he has practiced for countless years?"
"I...I don't know what to say."
Chapter 215 Last-minute preparations and adding more chips
As we all know, even the greatest masters of the zither often need to spend several years practicing and mastering advanced pieces.
If someone is a genius, the practice time might be shortened to one or two years, but no one can start playing casually in such a situation as soon as they get the sheet music.
After acquiring "Xi Er", Xue Yanxiang practiced diligently for three years before she was able to play it perfectly.
After all, no matter how skilled one is at playing the piano, mastering this level of music requires long-term practice.
This young man actually pulled out sheet music on the spot at such a crucial moment in the competition, cramming for the music at the last minute.
This is an insult to her.
A commotion began to rise among the crowd: "Is he really a master of the zither? Who would dare to go on stage with a piece they've only learned on the spot?"
"Perhaps it was intentional, just to provoke Master Xue, to make him lose his composure in this way?"
"What are you saying? Since we're all here, how could we be provoked by such a petty trick? Isn't that ridiculous?"
"I mean, he might be thinking that he can get a jolt?"
The two young women behind Xue Yanxiang, one in a blue shirt and the other in a pink shirt, were secretly furious when they saw that the young man was clearly deliberately provoking their female teacher.