He Jiuniang glanced at her, twitched the corner of her mouth, and said, "Do you think I can run away?"
"you……"
The man was naturally very unhappy, but after opening his mouth, he didn't dare to continue speaking.
Judging from the expressions on the faces of the Prefect's wife and Madam Li, they knew they had bitten off more than they could chew. He Jiu Niang was not as easy to bully as they had imagined.
If she said a few more words and offended someone, her husband would inevitably be suppressed in the officialdom.
He Jiuniang ignored her and turned to Miss Li, who had been asked to perform from the beginning, and said slowly, "Miss Li, the piece you just played should be 'High Mountains and Flowing Water,' right? To be honest, you didn't play it very well. If it weren't for your young age, I would have criticized you."
"Fortunately, you have good taste and know to let me give you a demonstration. Now you'd better listen carefully."
As she spoke, He Jiuniang beckoned, and Yueyan and Yueshu found a zither and placed it in the center of the hall. He Jiuniang gracefully walked forward, sat down, plucked the strings to test the sound, and then her fingers danced across the strings, and the melodious music drifted into everyone's ears.
The piece "High Mountains and Flowing Water" depicts the grandeur, magnificence, and depth of the mountains in its high-mountain section, while the flowing water section showcases a myriad of variations, including babbling brooks, a mighty river, and a surging waterfall. The entire piece is grand in scale and profound in its imagery, giving the listener a sense of being there.
The piece is quite complex overall. Ms. Li played a simplified version and even made a few mistakes, the kind that only someone knowledgeable in music could hear.
He Jiuniang played the most complex piece, with all ten fingers constantly in motion. As the music shifted from powerful to gentle, and then back to powerful again, everyone's eyes were glued to He Jiuniang's hands, dazzled by the sight.
Their feelings shifted from disdain to shock, and now to a series of exclamations: "It's all over, it's all over, it's all over..."
In other words, even if He Jiuniang didn't care about these things, and really stepped forward to show everyone her skills, she would completely overwhelm everyone.
Most of the people present today have some skills, but only a little, and they only know the basics. Compared to someone like He Jiuniang, they are really just small fry.
The problem they are facing now is that He Jiuniang is not only very capable, but also has a higher status than them. What should they do?
As the music ended, He Jiuniang withdrew her hand, looked at the stunned Miss Li, and asked, "Did you understand? Did you learn it?"
Miss Li didn't dare to speak. She understood that the player did indeed play much better than her, but learning from her was impossible.
The female tutors she hired could only play this simplified version of the piece, and they said the complete version had been lost. But He Jiu Niang played it. Could she be the inheritor of this musical score?
If He Jiu Niang is truly the inheritor of this musical score, wouldn't performing such a piece in front of her be blatantly humiliating her?
Thinking about it, her eyes instantly welled up with tears.
"Clap clap clap..."
The first to applaud was the prefect's wife. She had recovered from her initial shock and, in an attempt to make amends for her previous foolish actions, now wore a fawning expression.
"So it turns out the Lu family's younger sister is the real expert! What we just did was nothing compared to her!"
Almost immediately, the winds shifted in He Jiuniang's favor. The ladies and young women who had just been dismissive of her were now fawning over her, as if they weren't the ones who had just spoken ill of her.
He Jiuniang didn't buy it and didn't even pay attention to those people. She just smiled insincerely and said to everyone, "Today's banquet was truly an eye-opener. I had a lot of fun. In a while, I will also hold a banquet in my mansion to formally get to know all of you ladies. Please do me the honor of coming to Xishui Garden then!"
Creek Garden!
Apart from the prefect's wife and Qin Yu, who already knew, everyone else's eyes widened instantly upon hearing those three words. Some families who were fortunate enough to live around Xishuiyuan were surprised to find that no one lived there, and their expressions were quite interesting.
He Jiuniang watched their reactions with satisfaction, feeling that she had truly nailed the act today.
Actually, she didn't want to pretend, nor did she want to have such an unpleasant falling out with everyone, but they insisted on provoking her, so she had no choice but to fight back.
But that wasn't all. After observing everyone's expressions, He Jiuniang took out two small cards and handed them to the Prefect's wife and Madam Li respectively. She said gently, "You two ladies like Lu Hei Ya so much, yet you still have to make the servants queue up early. It's such a waste of time. From now on, take these cards with you, and you won't have to queue up. You'll also get a discount or a small gift."
The two ladies were stunned. Looking at the small card with the words "Lu Hei Ya" printed on it, they were confused again. Was this Mrs. Lu very familiar with the owner of Lu Hei Ya?
Oh right, they both have the surname Lu, could they be relatives?
Madam Li was utterly disgusted. She had just mocked others for being unsophisticated and never having tasted the delicacies of Jingzhou City, but it turned out that she herself was the clown!
"That's all for today. I have some things to do, so I won't stay any longer. The food was delicious, and the people were very fun. Goodbye."
After saying that, she left gracefully with her two maids, her steps light as the wind, the breeze fluttering her hem, leaving everyone with a light and ethereal silhouette.
"Mrs. Qian, are you still not going to tell us the truth now? Does she live in Xishuiyuan?"
Madam Li spoke irritably. Although she knew she had offended the prefect's wife today, she didn't want to struggle anymore. She might as well give up. She had already offended the worst person, so what did she have to be afraid of?
"Yes, Madam Qian, please tell us, what is the background of this Madam Lu? It's one thing to be so disrespectful, but to be allowed to live in Xishui Garden! Xishui Garden is the best residence under His Highness's name!"
The people living around Xishuiyuan are all wealthy and powerful, so you can imagine how powerful the people living there must be.
“I told you from the beginning that this banquet was held for her. Why can’t you understand my good intentions?”
The prefect's wife sighed, looking very aggrieved.
Madam Li immediately rolled her eyes and said, "Since Madam Qian knew Madam Lu's identity, why did she still offend her? In such matters, you should remind us!"
Everyone felt that Madam Li's words made sense; they were fearless because they were ignorant, but Madam Qian was deliberately violating the law. What was she after?
Hearing this, the prefect's wife felt even more aggrieved: "I was just trying to joke with her, I didn't expect her to get so angry..."
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