The instruments that were selected were the sheng, guqin, bixiao, drum and pipa. The five musicians played solo in turn. The sheng music was melodious, the guqin was clear, the bixiao was desolate and the drum sounded powerful. It was so colorful that it was difficult to tell the difference.
In the end, only the pipa was left.
Xie Hongxing frowned, sat still for a moment, and raised her hand to play the strings.
The sound of the strings trembled, like an empty cup rolling down, hitting people's hearts, and then turned into a drunkard, falling in the world, listening to the pipa girl beside him plucking the strings casually.
The drunkard was in high spirits and sang along with the pipa:
Pipa music,
The sound breaks the moon in the mortal world.
Red Dust Moon,
The clear sun does not shine,
The eaves are dilapidated.
Last year, the bells and drums sang to Mount Dong,
I don’t know why I am drunk and lying down today.
Know what section,
Chang'e should be resentful,
It is difficult to achieve immortality.
Finally, he fell into a hazy sleep, his drunken words and string music came to an abrupt end, and the pipa girl shed a tear and continued the ending note.
Xie Hongxing sighed softly, and everyone came back to their senses, then applauded.
Xu Jiang couldn't hide her excitement. Xie Hongxing not only played the pipa well, but also sang beautifully; achieving both was truly remarkable. Furthermore, she used emotion to move the music, and the music to transform the scene. The scene was divided into two parts, each with its own meaning, allowing the listener to gain one of the two, which was enough.
Wu Qingye praised: "Madam Xie's singing and artistic talent are both extraordinary, which is truly admirable."
Xie Hongxing stood up and returned the greeting, saying modestly, "Master Wu, thank you for your kind words."
Several adults also nodded continuously, their faces full of appreciation.
The musicians and teachers present were also very impressed.
Except for one person, the flute player.
Losing to anyone else would be fine, but losing to a prostitute whom he ridiculed, isn't that a slap in his face?
He immediately sarcastically said, "Where did these obscene lyrics and songs come from? Are they worthy of being displayed in such a refined place?"
Everyone frowned and looked in the direction of the voice. Why was it him again?
Xie Hongxing's expression froze, and she said angrily, "Please be careful with your words, sir."
Seeing that she actually refuted him, the flute player became even more furious. He didn't care about the crowd present and sneered, "What kind of decent song can a prostitute sing? And this song is unheard of. Could it be that one of your patrons is drunk..."
Xu Jiang couldn't help herself. She grabbed her bag and smashed it against the flute player's face, interrupting his dirty words. Then she angrily scolded him, "It's said that everyone has their own opinions. I think you have neither kindness nor wisdom. Your mind is filled with lustful thoughts. That's why everything you hear is obscene."
The books in Xu Jiang's hand were not light, and she used a lot of force in a fit of rage, hitting the man's nose again, causing him to feel so much pain that he couldn't speak.
Zhong Lu stared at her in surprise. He usually saw her being polite, gentle and courteous, but he didn't expect that she had such a fierce side.
However, this hit pleased him deeply.
The others were also shocked by her blow, but after coming to their senses, they secretly cheered. Some people just watched the fun, not helping either side, hoping that the commotion would get bigger, so they could maybe even benefit from it.
Mu Cong was also a little surprised, but then he thought about it and realized that she had helped his daughter before and was a passionate person, so it was not surprising.
Wu Qingye stared at her, quite surprised. He didn't expect her to have such a temper.
Everyone had different thoughts, and Xu Jiang had no way of noticing.
She calmed down, realizing she had disturbed the gathering. She then bowed and apologized, saying, "I was reckless and disturbed everyone's enjoyment. I beg for your forgiveness."
Zhong Lu stood up and snorted, "What crime have you committed? Those who speak foul language should be punished by being spanked."
Everyone immediately agreed.
The flute player recovered and, holding his nose, asked Xu Jiang, "What right did you have to attack me?"
The person had already smashed it, and she would bear the consequences. Thinking of this, she calmed down and asked, "Then what right do you have to speak so rudely?"
"She is originally a prostitute. Am I wrong?"
"You're not as skilled as others, yet you're using your status as an excuse. How shameless! Besides, did she choose to end up in a brothel? And did you choose to be a lowly woman? Put yourself in her shoes. Since we both have no choice, what right do you have to judge her?"
The flute player was speechless for a moment, then argued, "Although I am a lowly person, I have never done anything shameful. How can I be compared to a prostitute?"
Xu Jiang snorted coldly, "If you didn't want to be defeated by her, you could have challenged her to a competition of musical performance. But you didn't. Instead, you deliberately poked at her sore spots and dug into her scars, humiliating her in public. Isn't such despicable behavior considered a despicable act?"
"I..." The flute player couldn't argue with her, and she had hit his weak spot, so he couldn't help but feel ashamed and angry. Turning around, he saw that everyone, especially the adults, were already displeased, and he secretly regretted losing face.
Right now, he was being held in a stalemate by Xu Jiang, and he couldn't get off the stage for the moment. However, if he apologized to that woman, it would be even more embarrassing, and he was unwilling to do that. The two were contradictory, and he was at a standstill.
Wu Qingye had seen enough of the drama and came over to stand between the two men to act as a peacemaker. "You two are both at fault in this matter, so each of you should take a step back and let it go."
The truth had been made clear, and Xu Jiang decided to stop. She bowed to Wu Qingye and agreed, then fell silent.
Seeing that Xu Jiang was being blamed because of her, Xie Hongxing moved to stand in front of Xu Jiang, holding back tears and said: "This matter started with me and has nothing to do with Madam Xu. If there is any fault, it is mine. I apologize to you." As she said this, she was about to salute the flute player.
The flutist took a half step back. Dr. Wu had already spoken, and if he really accepted the gift, it would be an insult to him.
The woman playing the Xiqin stepped forward to stop Xie Hongxing, angrily saying, "He was disrespectful in the first place, what does that have to do with you? If anyone needs to apologize, he should apologize to you."
"That's right, whoever starts the trouble is wrong."
"Besides, we are all from the lower class. Who are we looking down on here?"
The musicians also began to speak up for Xie Hongxing. The girl playing the zither also stood up and said, "If you want to join our music school, you have to rely on your own abilities. What's the point of bullying others?"
The flute player was too embarrassed to stay any longer when he saw that he had aroused public anger. He bowed to the officials and hurried to leave, but Xu Jiang stepped forward and stopped him.
He glared at her and gritted his teeth, "What else do you want?"
Xu Jiang untied her purse from her waist, took out a piece of silver and gave it to him, saying, "I hit you, and it was my fault. Take this silver and see a doctor."
He touched his nose, which was a little swollen. Then he snorted, grabbed the change and left.
The matter was settled. Xu Jiang turned around and was about to apologize to everyone again, but she was almost hit in the face by the book that Wu Qingye handed her. She looked again and saw that the book in front of her was Jiang Gu's collection of poems.
"Thank you very much."
She quickly took it, then looked at Mu Congye, who nodded slightly at her.
Xu Jiang's forehead bulged. What does this mean?
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