Tan Ruoyan's pupils suddenly contracted.
Why did Xiao Qingyin suddenly ask Xinyue to play the zither?
Did she guess something?
No, that can't be. She only came to see one performance; how could she possibly discover the secret she's kept hidden for so many years?
She took a deep breath and tried her best to calm herself down.
"Miss Xiao, you're joking. Even if you wanted to hear it, I wouldn't dare let her play it. Wouldn't that be an insult to your ears?"
Xiao Qingyin chuckled: "I've never heard music that's offensive to the ears. Let her play as much as she wants, I don't mind."
Seeing that this tactic was ineffective, Tan Ruoyan turned her head to look at Situ Zhi, her eyes welling up with tears.
“Sister, you’ve already become a painter and no longer practice the zither, so why are you making things difficult for me? Father will be heartbroken if you do this.”
Situ Zhi said expressionlessly, "How am I picking a fight with you? I didn't even say a word just now."
Tan Ruoyan looked aggrieved.
"Everyone knows about your relationship with Miss Xiao. If it weren't for your request, why would Miss Xiao insist that I play the zither?"
I know you resent Dad for favoring me and Mom all these years, but he's determined to do it this way, so what can we do?
Please let us go, okay?
Only then did the other musicians realize that the girl standing to Xiao Qingyin's right was Princess Changning.
Those familiar with the feud between Princess Yongfu and the Earl of Shunyi immediately showed sympathy for Tan Ruoyan.
It's so pitiful to have such a domineering older sister.
Situ Zhi sneered: "You're rambling on and on, but you just won't play the zither. Are you afraid of exposing your poor zither skills?"
Tan Ruoyan was shocked: "Sister, what are you saying? I was admitted to the orchestra with integrity, how could my piano skills be bad? Are you having another episode and can't tell the truth from the lies?"
As far as she knew, Situ Zhi was extremely sensitive to people saying she was sick, and she would go crazy every time she heard it.
If we can make her lose control, she can get away unscathed today.
Unfortunately, she was destined to be disappointed.
A month ago, her words might have provoked Situ Zhi.
But now, she has long since dispelled the fog in her heart and become firm and confident.
"Stop making excuses. If you really have the skills, bring the instrument over. I won't ask you to play the whole piece, just a section will do."
Tan Ruoyan was on the verge of tears.
"Sister, must you humiliate me like this?"
As the music ended, Ning Dajia, the orchestra's leader, walked in.
"What's wrong?"
She looked sharply at Tan Ruoyan, Xiao Qingyin, and the other two.
Immediately, a musician told her the whole story.
Ning Dajia was an extremely protective person. After hearing the musician's report, his gaze towards Xiao Qingyin immediately turned somewhat unfriendly.
“Miss Xiao, our musicians are not the singing girls in teahouses. If you want to hear music, please go elsewhere.”
Xiao Qingyin smiled slightly.
"You misunderstand. I'm not here to cause trouble. I suspect that musician Tan is a fraud and I want to help the orchestra verify his credentials."
Ning was puzzled: "What does 'forgery' mean?"
Xiao Qingyin pointed at Tan Ruoyan and her maid and said, "The one who performed on stage just now was Tan Yueshi's maid, not Tan Yueshi himself."
What? !
Ning and the musicians were all stunned.
Their gazes all turned to Tan Ruoyan and her maid.
Although they were similar in build, their facial features were quite different. You could tell at a glance that they were two completely different people. How could that maid possibly stand on the stage in place of Tan Ruoyan?
This suspicion is far too far-fetched.
Ning Dajia's face was frosty: "Miss Xiao, you need to provide evidence before you speak."
Xiao Qingyin was just waiting for her to say those words.
"Of course I understand."
She looked at the maid who had just put her hands behind her back and smiled, "Are your hands itchy? When I went up on stage to present flowers just now, I put some medicine on your hands. This medicine will make your hands itchy and painful, and you'll have to scratch until your bones and flesh are torn apart before the pain stops."
The maid's expression changed drastically.
Xiao Qingyin then turned to Ning Dajia and asked, "If it was musician Tan who went on stage, why didn't she have any medicine on her hands?"
The musicians were dumbfounded.
Ning Dajia was speechless for a moment, and could only look at Tan Ruoyan with questioning eyes.
Tan Ruoyan was filled with hatred.
She thought Xiao Qingyin presented the flowers because she liked the music, but she didn't expect it was to expose Xinyue for taking her place on stage.
The medicine in Xinyue's hands is definitely going to be wasted.
I won't be able to play the piano for her anymore.
Her career as a musician was surprisingly short.
She clenched her fists, her face filled with humiliation.
“Miss Xiao, my servant and I have never offended you. Why are you so cruel to Xinyuexia and even frame me? Is it for my sister’s sake?”
She turned to look at Situ Zhi: "Sister, please let me go, okay? If you still hold a grudge about me playing the zither better than you, I... I'll stop playing the zither altogether. Please don't hurt the people around me."
By the end, her voice had choked with emotion.
The other musicians felt a pang of sympathy when they saw her forced to swear an oath never to play her instrument again.
The way he looked at Xiao Qingyin was like he was looking at a demon.
Ning Dajia glared at Tan Ruoyan, "You'll stop playing the piano just because someone framed you? Take your words back right now."
Tan Ruoyan was in tears: "Xinyue and I grew up together, we're like sisters, I just can't bear to see her suffer the pain of being separated from her own flesh and blood..."
Xiao Qingyin interrupted her.
“Since you care about her so much, then play a piece on the piano. If you can play the piece you just performed, ‘Yangchun Baixue,’ I will help her detoxify and even kowtow to you to apologize.”
Tan Ruoyan choked.
Is this person a devil?!
They've already forced her out of the entertainment industry, what more do they want!
Zuo Miaomiao teased, "Why is Master Tan hesitating? Don't your sister's hands deserve your pain to play a tune? Is being your sister so worthless? No wonder Sister Zhi doesn't even want to be your sister."
Tan Ruoyan's face paled even more.
She raised her hand to wipe away her tears and said resolutely, "You knew I couldn't play because my hand was injured, yet you still forced me to do it. You wanted to kill me, didn't you? Congratulations, you got what you wanted."
After saying that, she rushed towards a pillar not far away.
Ning Dajia cried out in alarm, "Stop her!"
The musicians closest to Tan Ruoyan rushed forward immediately, but just as they were about to grab her, their legs suddenly gave way and they all collapsed to the ground.
With no one stopping her, Tan Ruoyan rammed her head into a pillar and fell to the ground.
"Musician Tan!"
Ning Dajia ran over in shock.
But Xiao Qingyin beat her to it.
Xiao Qingyin was the first to arrive at Tan Ruoyan's side. She could tell from her pulse that the woman was faking unconsciousness. She sneered and sealed several acupoints on Tan Ruoyan's body.
Tan Ruoyan was startled; she had miscalculated!
Just as he was about to rush to Ning Dajia's side, he discovered that he could not speak, open his eyes, or move his hands and feet; only his consciousness could move.
She immediately regretted it.
Pretending to faint in front of Xiao Qingyin is practically handing yourself over to her!
That's incredibly stupid.
But it was too late to regret it.
She could only listen to Xiao Qingyin say to Xinyue, "Your master has already fainted and will not disturb you from telling the truth. You are so talented, so you probably didn't intentionally give her a substitute for the zither. If you have any grievances, just tell me, and I will help you seek justice."
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