11 Chapter 11
The little junior sister's sudden "declaration of selling herself" scared several people from Qingyun Sect. They surrounded her and tried to persuade her for a long time. The eldest senior brother even wanted to carry the little junior sister and run away. In the end, after much persuasion, he managed to temporarily dispel her terrible idea.
"Why are you acting like you're facing a formidable enemy?" The younger sister rolled her eyes rudely. "The Hehuan Sect isn't such a scary place, is it?"
Over the years, she has been recuperating and practicing in the mountain gate. She simply heard some words about the evil woman of the Hehuan Sect being not a good person, and had no idea about the notorious "bad deeds" of the Hehuan Sect outside.
The brothers and sisters were always a little embarrassed to talk about this kind of evil deeds, so in the end they could only speak vaguely: "Anyway, we can bring you to watch the game, but you are not allowed to complain to Master! And you are not allowed to sneak off to the Hehuan Sect!"
"Oh, I see!" The little sister said perfunctorily and reluctantly, then turned around and stared at the big screen intently.
Senior brothers and sisters: ...
With this attitude of hers, did she really listen to what was just said?
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On the big screen, those contestants who had been losing momentum finally showed excitement and cheer because of the appearance of the first qualifier. The following contestants came up one after another and were eliminated one after another.
Because most of the auditions are actually very boring, Ning Shu skipped most of the uninteresting parts during post-production by speeding up the process, replacing the spirit shadow stones, etc., leaving only the more interesting or eye-catching shots.
Therefore, the subsequent content is not boring, and there are often eye-catching contestants. Some of them successfully stay and some are unfortunately eliminated, which causes constant controversy among the audience outside the screen.
"Didn't that girl sing very well? Why was she eliminated?"
"I can only say that the singing is okay, but there's really no reason to stay..."
"That's right, these contestants behind are not as good as Liu Pianpian."
"Of course. I'm a famous courtesan in the city that never sleeps, okay?"
"How boring! Why isn't there anyone more interesting..."
Just as everyone's excitement aroused by Liu Pianpian gradually subsided and the rhythm of the program became more stable, Ning Shu picked up the information on the table and read out the name of the next contestant loudly: "Next, please welcome the next contestant..."
There was a noticeable pause as she read out the name, and then she casually read out the contestant's name: "Shangguan Huaijin!"
Zixiao quietly poked his head out from the side: "Did you make a mistake somewhere?"
Ning Shu shrugged and handed over the list in his hand: "These are the names written by the contestants themselves. Unless they are crazy, who would give themselves a pseudonym like Shangguan?"
Just like what was set in many old novels, the guys with the surname "Shangguan" in this world are not ordinary passersby. In fact, they are one of the top five cultivation families in the world of cultivation, owning countless spiritual veins and secret realms.
Some of the children in such families even disdain to go to the major sects to learn from masters and practice. As long as they are good enough, there will naturally be great masters in the family who will personally teach them the skills.
Even if your talent is a little bit worse, it doesn't matter. If you go to those big and powerful sects to become disciples, basically everyone will be a self-funded student who can be directly "recommended" and there is no need to wait for the sect selection with those common people.
Why would a second-generation immortal who had enjoyed a smooth career since birth choose to audition for a notorious sect like the Hehuan Sect? Ning Shu was completely baffled, and exchanged bewilderment with Zi Xiao and Bai Xuan, who were sitting on the judging panel.
They were not the only ones who found this strange. When the surname "Shangguan" came out, even the audience sitting in the hall went crazy.
"What did the young master say just now? Did I hear it correctly?"
"I think I heard it too. The contestant's surname is Shangguan..."
"Someone from the Shangguan family? Why would they come to the Hehuan Sect?"
"Ah? Is this allowed? If the elders of the Shangguan family knew about this, they would be so angry that they would faint."
"This... is truly a misfortune for our family..."
"Stop arguing! Look, the young lady from the Shangguan family is coming out!"
As soon as he finished speaking, a woman in a moon-white gauze dress came out from the backstage. She also had a lilac-colored blouse draped over her upper body. The neckline was embroidered with delicate and fine plum blossoms in silver-white thread. Her long black hair was combed into an exquisite and dignified tassel bun. The pearl and jade hairpins swayed slightly as she walked slowly. Her lotus steps moved lightly, and her every frown and smile swayed gracefully.
She looked like a lady from a noble family. Her every word and action seemed to be guided by very standard etiquette. She looked dignified and noble without being pretentious or arrogant. She was different from all the women who had appeared in the studio so far.
If I have to describe it, it's like a crane suddenly appearing among a group of gorgeous peacocks.
"I support this girl..." Someone in the audience blushed. They were conquered by Miss Shangguan's beauty before they even saw her talent.
"Huai Jin greets all the seniors." She knelt down and performed a bow that Ning Shu had only seen in costume dramas. Her movements were smooth and graceful, completely different from those cultivators she had seen before who bowed with fists clasped.
Although the Hehuan Sect is considered to be a wealthy and powerful sect, the atmosphere in the sect has always been relatively relaxed and casual, and Ning Shu has never been forced to learn any etiquette or rituals, so this is indeed the first time she has seen this type of lady from a noble family in all the years she has traveled through time.
So this is even more strange, isn't it? Why would such a gentle and quiet lady come here?
After thinking about it for a long time, Ning Shu still couldn't figure it out, so she asked directly: "Hello, Miss Shangguan, why did you come to participate in our program?"
Perhaps it was because she had seen a bit of the world, but Shangguan Huaijin had always been very calm. Even now, standing alone on such a prominent stage, she didn't seem a bit reserved. Her bright eyes curved slightly, and the corners of her mouth raised in a gentle smile.
"I'm sorry, it's due to some personal reasons that I don't want to mention here. But I really want to join the Hehuan Sect. Please give me a chance, sisters."
At this point, her eyebrows slightly furrowed, as if she was considering how to convince the people in front of her: "Although I don't have much wealth, I do have some knowledge of music, chess, calligraphy and painting. I am willing to do some small things for you sisters, such as playing the piano or writing. Also, I have a clean background and never cause trouble..."
No, whether your background is clean or not, whether you cause trouble or not are really the smallest matters that no one cares about. Ning Shu looked at Shangguan Huaijin who was still distressed and sighed softly.
Although he still couldn't figure out why this young lady with a strange style was standing here, Ning Shu adhered to the principle of not wasting time on topics and did not send her away. Instead, he asked her in a nonchalant manner, "What talent are you going to perform?"
"My fellow immortals, I have some knowledge of the art of playing the zither, and I've come here today to play a tune." Shangguan Huaijin said as he gently pulled down a black pendant from the hem of his skirt and placed it horizontally in front of him. The black wooden pendant slowly grew larger, and eventually turned into an instrument similar to a guqin, floating in the air.
Ning Shu looked at the zither with some curiosity and found that although the shape was similar, this zither was slightly different from the guqin in his memory. The most obvious difference was that it had a lot more strings, dozens of them at a glance, making it more like a se than a guqin.
When Ning Shu mentioned the zither, he could not help but recall the poem engraved in his DNA: "The brocade zither has fifty strings, each string and pillar reminds me of my youth."
At present, the Chinese zither that has been handed down has only 25 strings, but why does the zither in the poem have 50 strings? There is a legend that Fuxi listened to Su Nu playing a 50-string zither. Because the sound of Su Nu's playing was too sad, Fuxi burst into tears after listening to it, so he changed the strings to 25.
Of course, on Earth that's just a myth, but this is a magical world of cultivation, isn't it? The legendary fifty-stringed harp really does exist! It would be a shame to travel here if you don't listen to it!
Ning Shu's eyes lit up with anticipation. She sat up straight, adjusted her dress, and then solemnly gestured to Shangguan Huaijin, "Please start your performance."
Just how sad is the sound of a fifty-stringed zither? Why did Fuxi burst into tears upon hearing it? Let me hear it!
The studio suddenly darkened, leaving only a soft white light in the center of the stage. Shangguan Huaijin sat down with his hands on the piano. His figure was light and thin, as if he was standing under the moonlight and was as cool and quiet as before.
The sound of the piano gradually rises, and when you first hear it, it sounds like the gurgling of a cold spring or a shallow stream, making you vaguely feel the cool night breeze beside the stone pond under the moon.
Suddenly, the sound of the piano changed, and a woman's sad sobbing voice suddenly rang out in the bamboo forest, like a complaint, like weeping, like longing, accompanied by the setting moon and the cry of crows, which brought out countless feelings of separation and parting in people's hearts.
Ning Shu thought of the earth she could no longer return to and her parents with gray hair. Those relatives and friends she had been concerned about for a long time were also separated by two lifetimes. She couldn't help but feel sad and her eyes turned red.
Finally, the pianist's slender fingers gradually retracted, and the lingering and high-pitched music gradually became lower, as if the crying woman in the bamboo forest also left sadly. The lingering sound of the piano was like the gurgling of a stream, gradually fading away and disappearing in the night wind of the bamboo forest, leaving only the reflection of a cold and desolate waning moon in the cold pond.
When the song ended, Ning Shu came back to her senses from the sound of the piano, and was shocked to realize that her eyes had been wet with tears without her realizing it. She quickly lowered her head to wipe away the tears from the corners of her eyes. When she looked up again, she found that Zixiao and Baixuan beside her also had sadness on their faces that they had not yet concealed.
The audience outside the screen reacted differently. Those who were not familiar with music simply heard that it was a slow and sad song, but there were also monks who could understand the sound of the piano and were reminded of the sad things in their hearts.
"Eh? You're crying after hearing this? Is this true?"
"Wow... I thought of my wife... because she's just a mortal, she can't stay with me forever..."
"Alas, I think of my mother who passed away many years ago. After she left, I no longer have any relatives..."
"It's lonely at the top. We cultivators are destined to embark on a lonely road..."
"This young lady plays the piano so well... Woo... I think she's the best among all the contestants... She understands me... Woo woo woo..." The monk, whose cheeks were flushed, wiped his tears and said, "She is my soulmate..."
"Wang Zhicai, I don't agree with what you said. It's obviously Miss Pianpian who performed the best!" A monk next to him retorted unconvinced.
"Zhang Daoquan! Why are you everywhere? That's because you don't know how to appreciate! Miss Shangguan's piano skills are superb, and her artistic conception is elegant, far superior to those gaudy dances!"
"What did you say? Say it again?"
"Stop arguing! What about your promise to stick to your original intention and not be deceived by the witch of the Hehuan Sect?"
"Miss Pianpian is not a witch!"
"Ms. Shangguan is not a witch!"
【Author’s words】
The fan circle war has begun to take shape [狗头]
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