Chapter 4 Chapter 4 How audacious you are, actually trying to seduce Cui Jue! ...
Chapter 4
In the past two days, Su Li has been staying in Mudong Pavilion obediently, not going out of the main door or the secondary door.
Su Li didn't want to attract attention. After all, her target was not those young men from aristocratic families of appropriate age. She came only for Cui Jue.
Su Li was still thinking about how to get close to the eldest prince when Qiu Gui brought her good news.
"Madam, I heard that the eldest master will attend Mr. Xie's private school tomorrow and will give Mr. Xie a famous paulownia wood instrument, the Jiaowei Qin, as a gift."
Su Li had heard that Mr. Xie Daolin was an excellent zither player, and the music he played was like the sound of flowing water in the mountains, lingering in the air.
I heard that Cui Jue is an excellent zither player, and that he learned the art from the famous master, Mr. Xie.
Many young men from prominent families entered the Cui family's private school just to learn piano from Master Xie.
Unfortunately, Su Li knew nothing about playing the piano. She could memorize and learn books, but musical sense was something she was born with. She had been picking a piece of dogtail grass and whistling it since she was a child. At most, she could hear a sound, so how could she play the piano?
Even if he wanted to use his musical skills to get close to Cui Jue, he would probably be unable to do so.
Su Li gritted her teeth and said, "We have to get our stuff ready. Let's go out and buy a piano."
Qiu Gui said yes repeatedly.
Su Li flipped through the "Preface to Qin Fu" and learned that the ancient guqins handed down from generation to generation all have their own names, such as the "Lüqi" played by Sima Xiangru, the famous "Jiaowei" played by Cai Yong, and the famous guqin that Cui Jue will present to Mr. Xie tomorrow.
An ancient guqin is worth a fortune, and Su Li didn't have much gold and silver to spend, so she just used up enough to buy a good guqin made of fine phoenix wood.
In the evening, Su Li brought back the guqin.
The sun sets over the distant mountains, the setting sun is blood-red, and the crimson afterglow spreads across the courtyard, making the pomegranate flowers on the trees even redder.
Su Li set aside a table and placed the guqin on it.
She was surrounded by the rosy glow, her graceful eyebrows lowered, and when she raised her hands, the red pomegranate beads on her earlobes gently tapped her upper jaw as she moved, which was quite charming.
Although Su Li is not good at playing the piano, she at least knows how to play music.
The top of the zither faces right, and the pegs hang down on the table.
Su Li plucked the strings with her fingertips while pressing them with the fingertips of her left hand. Her posture was neat and there was no mistake at all.
Qiu Gui was surprised: "Madam, you also know how to play the piano?"
Su Li was vague for a moment: "I just copied others, I understand a little bit."
"What music would you like to play? 'White Snow' or 'Three Variations on the Plum Blossom'?"
"Let me try the sound..."
Su Li ignored her and took action directly.
With a light touch of his fingertips, the sound of the piano became piercing and the pitch rose, startling a group of black crows sleeping on the branches.
Su Li: “…”
Qiu Gui: "..."
Seeing her wife hanging her head in frustration, Qiu Gui coughed softly, "Just practice more. Everyone starts from scratch. My wife, you have to believe in yourself!"
Su Li also encouraged herself: "Okay!"
After half an hour, Qiu Gui gently tried to comfort her, "How about...we just practice holding the zither? After all, there will be many noble ladies attending tomorrow's class, so it won't be our turn to perform in public."
Su Li agreed deeply: "Qiu Gui is absolutely right."
-
The Shuyue Pavilion was deserted, as quiet and deserted as ever.
Without Cui Jue's order, the servants who were sweeping the floor did not dare to walk through the courtyard.
Cui Jue dragged his "sick body" to the court today, reported his work in public, explained the war situation, and then received the emperor's grace to return home to recuperate.
After finally avoiding the "warm care" of Princess Chonghua who drove over, Cui Jue was able to return home and have some peace and quiet.
Although the man had bathed and changed his clothes, it was still early. He did not lean lazily in the study like he did last night. Instead, he dressed neatly and sat on a bamboo mat under a pine tree, playing the piano.
Tomorrow he will present this Jiaoweiqin to his mentor. Before giving it away, Cui Jue wants to try out the tone.
The breeze blew Cui Jue's wide robe backwards, outlining his thin waist that was bound by a slender green jade belt. His long robe fluttered, winding along the ground, as gorgeous as a blooming lotus.
Cui Jue became interested and was about to pluck the strings.
Suddenly, there was a sudden sharp sound from the plain.
The sharp sound of the piano, like a torrential rain, startled countless ravens in the trees.
It was the sound of a piano coming from outside the yard.
Extremely...unpleasant.
A cold wind blew through his hair. Cui Jue's eyes were cold, and his thin lips were tightly pursed. After a long while, he called Wei Zhiyan over and asked, "Who is playing the piano outside?"
Wei Zhiyan investigated and came back to report: "Master, it is the young lady Su from last night."
Cui Jue checked her.
The young lady of the Su family, named "Su Li," was a descendant of a declining aristocratic family in Lanhe County, and was not considered a lady from a prominent family. However, she was indeed related to her second cousin's wife's family, which was why she was always favored by Mr. Cui.
Cui Jue pulled the corner of his lips, his eyes were cold, and he rarely sneered for a moment.
Soon, the mockery in the man's eyes disappeared, and Cui Jue regained his gentle expression.
Cui Jue put away his guqin and asked softly, "When did the guards at Shuyue Pavilion become so lax, allowing strangers to take advantage of the situation and enter?"
This is really unfair to Wei Zhiyan.
Madam Su was playing the piano in her yard, and she didn't come to the door of Shuyue Pavilion specifically to play the piano. How could he, who was in charge of everything, really stop Su Li from practicing the piano?
Wei Zhiyan's words were filled with grievance: "My Lord, it was our elder who lent Mudong Pavilion to Madam Su for temporary residence. We were too close and disturbed the Master just now."
After hearing this, Cui Jue frowned for the first time.
He had no idea that his grandfather would actually be so protective of a young lady from another family... If you think about it carefully, his second uncle passed away, and his second cousin died of illness at a young age, the second branch of the family would be extinct. It was natural for his grandfather to be more concerned about the Lanhe Cui family.
Cui Jue had no need to bother with this Miss Su.
Thinking of the gift he gave last night and the piano he played to provoke her today, Cui Jue noticed something different.
Miss Su is ambitious. She prides herself on her stunning beauty and seduces others one after another, hoping that the young men from noble families who are staying in the Cui Mansion will be seduced by her beauty and become her slaves.
Such tricks are crude and dull, and are common.
Cui Jue was already accustomed to it.
He never cared about these useless things, and today he didn't intend to make an exception and stop it, so as to embarrass Su Li.
However, if noble ladies wanted to attract the attention of others, they would mostly use their skilled piano skills to play some pleasant and pleasing music to make friends.
Someone like Su Li, who is so uneducated and untalented, dares to show off in public...
He is the most shameless person in the world.
It's really unique.
Cui Jue suppressed the urge to "destroy the zither in Su Li's hand", the coldness in his eyes faded away, and he became the calm and peaceful man again.
He stood up with his zither in his arms and returned to the inner room in an elegant manner, no longer forcing himself to be tortured by Su Li's zither music.
-
Although Su Li was a widow, she needed to disguise herself as an unmarried young lady when she came to her family's home this time. Therefore, she wore the same hairstyle and pearl hairpins as before her marriage.
Su Li had the opportunity to escape from that suffocating marriage, and she actually felt a little relieved. Even when she was choosing the hair accessories for the scented wooden makeup box, she had a faint smile on her face.
Qiu Gui rarely saw Su Li show such tenderness of a little girl, and her heart was moved.
Thinking back carefully, during the years when Su Li was waiting to get married and staying at home, not only her words and actions, but even the smile on her face had to be perfectly controlled.
Like a puppet controlled by Zhou.
How pitiful.
"Madam, what kind of bun do you want to wear today?" Qiu Gui asked.
Since you are an unmarried lady, there is no need to tie your hair up.
Su Li doesn't like others to get close to her, so she leaves almost all the matters in the bedroom to Qiu Gui.
Therefore, Qiu Gui also learned various skills, not to mention hairdressing and clothing making, she was also good at cooking.
Although Qiu Gui was tired, she enjoyed it.
On the one hand, she is the one who makes all the decisions, which shows that her master trusts her.
On the other hand, Qiu Gui is ambitious. She wants to be the first maid in Su Li's room and doesn't want other maids to replace her.
Su Li picked up two jujube flowers made of pink and green velvet.
"It's summer now, and the jujube flowers in the yard are blooming beautifully. Just comb your hair into a bun, then put this on, and finally braid a few small braids and twist in two Yaohuang silk ribbons..."
Su Li rarely had the leisure to teach Qiu Gui how to comb her hair. When she was at the Su family, she often had to go to the Cui family to please her mother-in-law.
I visited many guests, but I couldn’t see my fiancé.
The second wife took pity on Cui Ming's health and did not let Su Li get close to her son, fearing that Su Li, a girl from a declining aristocratic family, would have the intention of seducing a man and deliberately drag Cui Ming into an affair before the marriage, making her son's condition worse and worse.
After all, during that time, the Second Lady was still thinking about looking for a better partner while still having one. If the women of the aristocratic families hadn't been worried that their pampered daughters would become widows if they married into the Xiao Cui family and refused to marry, the Second Lady would have thought of breaking off the engagement with the Su family and finding a wife for her son from a powerful family that could help the Xiao Cui family.
In order to please the Cui family's mother-in-law who said one thing in public but did another in private, the stepmother Zhou worked very hard and tried her best to exploit Su Li.
Su Li's personal wishes are not important, her preferences are not presentable, and she doesn't even have the power to choose her own clothes.
Su Li must follow the Second Madam's preferences. She cannot wear red, orange, white, or green. She must avoid this taboo and that taboo.
After finally waiting for the wedding day, Cui Ming left in such a hurry that he didn't even invite any guests. Su Li was brought in by a wedding car and the wedding was hastily performed in the main hall.
It’s a pity that there is no way to save the situation, and even a wedding cannot save Cui Ming.
Su Li's husband died.
The whole house was filled with wailing and chaos, with funerals and happy events all mixed together.
Su Li sat upright on the wedding bed, not daring to move, afraid of her mother-in-law's vicious gaze and Zhou's curses of disappointment.
For a moment, her head was buzzing and she couldn't tell the difference between the joy and funeral music played by the flute.
Qiu Gui felt sorry for Su Li, but Su Li only felt tired, absurd, ridiculous, and a sense of relief.
Even when she was forced by her mother-in-law to come to the Da Cui family in Jianye, Su Li regarded it as a gift from God.
Finally one day, she flew out of the high wall and gained a moment of freedom.
Su Li was very happy and cherished it very much.
Thinking of this, Su Li picked out a green skirt with sycamore branches and put it on. It was very bright and charming.
However, Su Li's springy outfit caused a huge uproar when she arrived at Cui's private school.
The noble ladies in the school, seeing that there was a new face at first sight, and also seeing that she was wearing a dark blue dress that resembled beautiful water and bright mountains, all looked at her with contempt, snorted coldly and avoided her.
Su Li didn't understand.
Until a young girl waved at her and called out in a sweet voice: "Cousin Su, here!"
Just now, Su Li was rescued.
The car curtain was opened, and a bright girl of about twelve or thirteen jumped out with her skirt lifted, and ran towards Su Li in small steps.
The noble ladies seemed to be afraid of the identity of the visitor and reluctantly withdrew their hostile gazes.
The young lady in a lilac dress walked up to Su Li and said to her soft expression, "Cousin Su, my name is Cui Shunying, and everyone in my family calls me Si Niang."
The young lady was so bold, outspoken, lively and cute that Su Li was stunned for a moment.
Su Li thought about it and finally remembered that Cui Jue's father passed away early, and Cui Jue was the only legitimate child, but he also had two young illegitimate daughters.
According to the order of seniority of the grandchildren, they are Sanniang Cui Shunhua and Siniang Cui Shunying. Sanniang got married early, while Siniang Cui Shunying is still unmarried.
In other words, this is Cui Jue's fourth illegitimate sister, and can be considered Cui Jue's closest family member.
Su Li greeted her: "Hello, Si Niang."
Cui Shunying went to dine with her grandfather yesterday and happened to see Su Li giving a gift to Cui Weng. What girl who grew up in the Cui family was not smart? Seeing her grandfather treat Su Li politely, her attitude towards Su Li also became much kinder.
Today, I saw that Su Li was indeed as beautiful as a flower. Cui Shunying liked beautiful women, and she had a better impression of her.
Cui Shunying held Su Li's arm affectionately, glanced at the noble ladies who were bullying others, and said with a smile, "Sister Su, do you want to know why they all look at you like this?"
Su Li humbly asked for advice: "I do have doubts."
Cui Shunying wanted to make friends with Su Li, but she didn't want her to be as close to her brother as others did.
After all, Cui Jue would represent the Cui family's prestige in the future, and his wife would surely be a gentle and virtuous woman from a wealthy family. Su Li, who came from a humble family, was devoted to Cui Jue, but her pursuit would be in vain.
Besides, whether Cui Shunying could live a good life in the future or not, she would have to rely on her brother's support. She didn't want to bring trouble to the family and make her brother dislike her and become more distant from her.
Thinking of this, there was a hint of warning in Cui Shunying's words.
She pretended to be joking and said playfully, "Because my eldest brother likes to wear blue robes the most, all the ladies of marriageable age who come to the Cui family to play will avoid wearing blue clothes, so as not to wear the same clothes as my eldest brother and be misunderstood as seducing him."
"Sister Su, they saw you wearing green today, and even came to visit on the day my brother presented his zither... They thought you were so bold as to try to seduce my brother!"
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