Went Fishing

Fang Mingyi was somewhat excited, looking at Chu Qingzhi with eyes as if he had found a precious gem. “Miss, you have a discerning eye. I originally intended to gift this music score to someone, but it didn’t feel right, so I never gave it away.”

He had asked about ten people to review the music score, and Chu Qingzhi was the first to accurately judge the intended scene for the music. Impressive, truly impressive!

Chu Qingzhi looked down at the music score, “This style of music score, it must be your first attempt at composing something like this, right?”

Fang Mingyi nodded eagerly, “Yes, the music I composed before was meant for banquets and such scenes. Half a year ago, while traveling along the border, I witnessed a majestic scene of armies arranged on a mountaintop. It inspired me to compose a military music score.”

Chu Qingzhi spread out a new sheet of paper, took up a brush, and began revising the music score.

The piece was somewhat long, and it took her a while to finish revising.

Chu Qingzhi put down the brush and handed the new music score to Fang Mingyi, “See if this works?”

Fang Mingyi had been watching Chu Qingzhi revise the music score. After taking the revised score and thoroughly reviewing it, he found it to be perfect, “Miss, please wait a moment, I’ll fetch a guqin and play it.”

Chu Qingzhi nodded. “Please.”

The guqin was in the carriage. Fang Mingyi fetched it, placed it on the table, and began to play according to the new music score.

The sound of the guqin attracted the children and some idle villagers…

The children gathered around the swing pavilion, watching with great interest.

The adults stood farther away from the swing pavilion. High culture like music, chess, calligraphy, and painting was a different world for them. Having the chance to experience it was already wonderful.

After the piece finished, there was warm applause, “Beautiful, beautiful!” Hearing everyone’s cheers, Fang Mingyi changed his view of the villagers. It was not that they only knew how to do rough things, but that they had no choice but to do this for the sake of their livelihood. If they had the conditions, they could also do those elegant tilings well. Otherwise, they would not have specially come to see him play the guqin.

“Thankyou, everyone!”

Xu Guannan, upon hearing Fang Mingyi say thankyou, glanced sideways again. His friend had looked down on the villagers. He didn’t expect FangMingyi would actually thank the villagers.

It seemed this experience had profoundly changed him.

Fang Mingyi stood up, gave Chu Qingzhi a deep bow of gratitude, “Thank you, Miss, for helping me revise the music score. Otherwise, I might have been trapped by it for my entire life.”

Chu Qingzhi smiled, “It was nothing.”

Fang Mingyi went back to the carriage and returned with a guqin case, placing it solemnly in front of Chu Qingzhi, “Miss, I’d like to gift you this Jiaowei Guqin.”

The Jiaowei Guqin is one of the four famous ancient Chinese guqins. Its value is well known without question.

Chu Qingzhi declined, “It’s too precious.”

Fang Mingyi insisted, “Only someone of your caliber can bring out the true sound of this guqin. We… simply are not worthy.”

Xu Guannan was shocked to see the Jiaowei Guqin.

This guqin was Fang Mingyi’s treasured possession, usually not even shown to others, yet he gifted it to Chu Qingzhi upon their first meeting.

Oh no, could it be that his friend has other intentions towards Chu Qingzhi? Chu Qingzhi opened the guqin case, took out the guqin, placed it on the table, and played the newly revised music score.

Her fingers were long, slender, and fair, with round and plump fingertips.

Playing the guqin, her fingers danced like performing a finger ballet. Not to mention the sound of the guqin, just her hands alone were particularly pleasing to watch.

Several magpies flew over, followed by kingfishers, cuckoos, and swifts, all landing on the branches.

The wolves ran over, squatting beside Chu Qingzhi, with Da Bai lying on the other side.

Dogs, cats, chickens, and ducks from the village all ran to the courtyard entrance.

Foxes from the mountains also came, hiding in the corners to listen…

Everyone was astonished.

Chu Qingzhi gently pressed her hands on the strings, and after the piece ended, she remarked, “This guqin is indeed a rare and fine instrument.”

FangMingyi came back to his senses, “Miss, you are the best guqin player I have ever seen.”

Chu Qingzhi smiled, “You flatter me.”

Then, they started discussing matters related to the guqin, conversing for a long time until Fang Mingyi felt it was impolite to stay any longer and then left.

Chu Qingzhi sent him off, returned to the swing pavilion, put away the guqin, went upstairs, and placed the guqin at the bottom of the wardrobe.

This was her treasure trove, now nearly full.

In the fields.

A woman in her forties brought a young boy to Chu Rong’s presence.

The woman was somewhat angry and questioned, “Chu Rong, isn’t this a bit too much?”

Chu Rong was confused, not even knowing what had happened, “Cousin, what do you mean?”

“Why did you drive my son away?”

Chu Rong glanced at the boy, “I don’t know.”

The boy defiantly shouted, “I didn’t do my homework, and Ge Lihua wanted to send me away. I begged her for a long time, but she didn’t change her mind.” Chu Rong was puzzled by the boy’s reaction, “We said before starting the school that not doing homework meant you couldn’t attend. Asking you to leave was not wrong.”

The boy countered, “But Xie Zeliang also didn’t do his homework. Why didn’t you send him away?”

Chu Rong thought for a moment, “There must be some special reason. Right, you should know why. Why can he stay, and you can’t?”

The woman interrupted, “No matter why he stayed, now you are showing partiality, and I can’t accept that.”

Blaming others without looking at oneself, Chu Rong was somewhat speechless, “Cousin, in terms of family relations, you and I are closer. If there’s any partiality, it would be towards you. But I want to ask, why didn’t he do his homework?”

The woman slapped the boy, scolding, “You good-for-nothing, why didn’t you do your homework?”

The boy didn’t think he was in the wrong, only feeling wronged, “I went fishing yesterday.”

After a moment, he added, “Ge Lihua said Xie Zeliang was allowed to stay because he was serving the sick, which was understandable.”

Chu Rong asked the woman, “Do you understand why now?”

The woman slapped the boy several times, “You useless thing, not doing your homework and going fishing instead. Now that you’re driven away, you deserve it!”

After scolding him, she pleaded with Chu Rong, “Cousin, considering your nephew is still young and doesn’t understand much, please forgive him this once.”

Chu Rong was in a dilemma. If he forgave him this time, what if everyone else followed suit and stopped doing their homework?

“Cousin, perhaps you should take the child back. If he likes fishing so much,

why don’t you dig a pond for fishing?”

The woman didn’t know how to respond, “Chu Rong, we’re relatives, can’t you spare some feelings?”

Chu Rong said, “Cousin, we have already shown a lot of consideration by letting your child attend classes and providing a free lunch. This is all because we are relatives. Would outsiders do the same?”