Chapter 115: A Song of Phoenix Seeking a Phoenix
"Ruoxi, hello to the young prince of the Northwest." The queen's gentle voice sounded. The beautiful girl took a step forward, facing Ye Qingyu, bowed slightly, and said softly, "Ruoxi, hello to the young prince."
Ye Qingyu had never expected to meet the Empress's niece here—Xue Ruoxi, the daughter of the Xue family. After all, the Emperor and Empress had intended to marry Xue Ruoxi to him. Seeing the girl approach and salute, he quickly returned the greeting.
"Qingyu, what a coincidence that I meet you here. I want to ask your help with something." The Queen spoke to Ye Qingyu in a soft voice.
"Your Majesty, please tell me what you want to do." Upon hearing this, Ye Qingyu understood in her heart that it seemed that she would not be able to get away immediately today.
"The emperor gave me a guqin some time ago. I want to learn a piece of music to express my gratitude to the emperor. But there is one part of the music that I can never play well. I have heard that you are proficient in guqin music, and I happen to meet you here. I would like to ask for your guidance." The queen's tone was quite sincere.
"Your Majesty, you are too polite. I am not really proficient in the guqin. How dare I show off my skills in front of you? I have just said goodbye to my uncle and plan to go to Luohua Palace to get some things and then leave the palace." Ye Qingyu declined politely, but he understood the queen's thoughts in his heart and was unwilling to agree to this matter easily.
"Hey, I know you are very busy, but it won't take up much of your time. Just consider it as doing me a favor, how about it?" The Queen's words revealed an attitude that would not allow Ye Qingyu to refuse. Although there was a hint of negotiation in her words, there was also a hint of coercion.
"This..." Ye Qingyu weighed the pros and cons in his mind, unable to refuse, so he had to agree. He subconsciously looked at Qing Yi beside him. He wanted to ask him to go to Luohua Palace to wait for him first, but looking at Qing Yi's expression, it seemed that he didn't want to leave.
Ye Qingyu had no choice but to bring Qingfeng and Qingyi to the pavilion in the Imperial Garden. Inside, a guqin had already been prepared. Its simple and elegant body exuded a faint woody fragrance. The Queen smiled and offered Ye Qingyu a seat. Qingfeng and Qingyi stood behind him, while Xue Ruoxi quietly stood beside the Queen, attentively serving her.
"Qingyu, please listen to the song I play first, and then point out the shortcomings." The queen was in high spirits and sat gracefully in front of the guqin, with her hands lightly resting on the strings.
As a melodious piano sound rang out, the queen was actually quite accomplished in music, and the music she played was pleasant to the ears.
When the song ended, the Queen raised her head slightly, looked at Ye Qingyu, and asked, "Qingyu, why did I play the middle part so abruptly? Play it again for me to hear."
"Yes," Ye Qingyu replied, calmly sitting down in front of the guqin. His slender fingers gently rested on the strings, and he began to play the same tune as the Queen. Qingyi had only a limited understanding of music. In his simple and pure understanding, guqin music could be divided into pleasant, audible, and unpleasant.
And there was no doubt that every piece Ye Qingyu played sounded good to him. He looked at Ye Qingyu intently, and saw that after Ye finished playing a piece, she would quietly communicate with the Queen, pointing out which details needed to be paid attention to when playing, and how to handle which part skillfully.
At this moment, Xiao Ye no longer had the demeanor of a martial arts master who roamed the world. Instead, he looked more like a gentle and elegant young man from a noble family, his every move revealing his refined temperament.
"So that's how it is." The Queen seemed to have understood Ye Qingyu's explanation, and a knowing smile appeared on her face. She turned to look at Xue Ruoxi and said softly, "Ruoxi, don't miss this rare opportunity. Play a piece for the young prince to teach you. It will definitely help improve your piano skills."
"Yes, aunt." Xue Ruoxi's face flushed slightly, and she responded softly with shyness in her voice.
Ye Qingyu felt secretly helpless. What exactly was the Queen's intention? She had already made the engagement clear to the Emperor and the Empress. Why was she still letting herself and Miss Xue get along like this? This was clearly a deliberate matchmaking.
Qing Yi had been admiring his own Xiaoye's talent with great interest, and seeing that even the Queen of Great Chu came to ask for advice, he couldn't help but feel proud of Xiaoye. But now that the beautiful girl had replaced her in front of the guqin, he suddenly felt something was wrong, and he vaguely sensed a subtle atmosphere.
"Aunt? She calls herself Aunt Queen? Isn't she the princess of Da Chu?" Qing Yi pondered secretly, and suddenly a light bulb went off in his head, and he remembered Xue Anlai. Didn't that idiot Xue An also call himself Aunt Queen? So that's it, she is Xue Ruoxi!
Qing Yi finally figured out the identity of this beautiful girl. Yes, her name was Xue Ruoxi, the Queen's niece. The Emperor of Chu had intended to marry her to Xiaoye, the eldest daughter of the Xue family.
"This! This!" Qing Yi's eyes changed instantly. Originally filled with admiration, they now showed a hint of caution. He no longer considered this girl pretty. He wondered how Xiao Ye would respond.
Miss Xue played "The Phoenix Seeks the Phoenix". Although Qingyi did not understand the deep meaning behind the song, how could Ye Qingyu not hear it? Even Qingfeng beside him could hear it.
Qingfeng secretly glanced at Qingyi who was standing beside him, only to see that Qingyi's face looked calm and composed, without any emotion. He wondered what would happen if this boy knew the meaning of the song played by Miss Xue?
After Miss Xue finished playing, she stood quietly beside the Queen, her face flushed and a little shy. She didn't say anything, but occasionally glanced at Ye Qingyu out of the corner of her eyes.
"Qingyu, you play the piano so Ruoxi can learn from you." The Queen ordered, with a tone that seemed to refrain from refusal.
Of course Ye Qingyu didn't want to play it. "The Phoenix Seeks the Phoenix" was originally a song for lovers to express their love. As a lady from a noble family, Xue Ruoxi played this song to express her feelings, indicating that she was in love with him. How could she respond?
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