by N/A
“We’ll go. There’s nothing else to do anyway. It’s not a bad idea to go see those gifted scholars compete,” Du Xiaoli said and placed the face towel back into the basin. She breathed in deeply and remarked, “ Today’s weather is great!”
Everything became pleasant to look at when her mood was good!
Compared to the cheery atmosphere on Du Xiaoli’s side, Prince Ren’s manor was shrouded in a gloomy ambiance. When the matter of him killing two concubines was spread outside by someone, it instantaneously ruined Prince Ren’s image. The file room in the manor had been set alight, and many important documents such as the account books had been burned to ashes. Most importantly, Han Minghong discovered that he really couldn’t have sexual intercourse anymore! No matter how ‘it’ was appealed to, ‘it’ stubbornly remained unwilling to stand up.
That was not all. He had been called into the palace and was chastised by the Emperor and Empress Dowager. With such a rumor floating around, it would reflect badly upon the entire imperial family! The Empress Dowager directly forbade him to set foot outside his manor for a month. During this month, he was prohibited from attending all events. If he dared act otherwise, he would be stripped of his princely title!
In the past, the Empress Dowager would always dote on Han Minghong. For her to rage like this, she must have been immensely angered by Han Minghong.
However, even if the Empress Dowager didn’t place him in confinement, Han Minghong wouldn’t have gone out during this period of time anyway, given his current mood. As a man that was unable to make his ‘little brother’ rise, what face did he have left to go outside?!
Consequently, Han Minghong—as expected—had no interest in anything else. Anyone who cared to notice would realize that during this period of time, there was an unprecedented number of physicians entering and exiting the manor.
Nevertheless, this all happened later on.
The Academy Competition was still ongoing. When Du Xiaoli arrived at the site, the competition had already started for some time. She randomly found a seat and sat down. Looking at the stage, the contestants were all writing down their works in concentration.
On one side of the stage, Du Xiuheng was competing against a person from Northern Yuan. His brows were tightly furrowed. He must’ve met a difficult situation in their game of chess.
The drawing competition commenced in the afternoon. Du Xiaoli also went to the site to have a look. All the contestants participating in the competition had strong foundations in art. There was little disparity in the final scores.
Originally, the Men’s Talent Competition was supposed to go on for three days. Nonetheless, because the calligraphy competition and drawing competition were placed on the same day, two days were enough to finish the competition. Then on the second day, the Women’s Competition would start.
“Princess Yu.”
Du Xiaoli visited Beiling Yu’s room before Beiling Yu headed to the competition site. Seeing that the other was already prepared, she said, “Princess, before you head to the competition site, let me check the condition of your body first.”
“Alright, then I’ll trouble you,” Beiling Yu replied with a smile.
Du Xiaoli took her pulse. After confirming that there was nothing wrong with her, she let her go to the competition.
“Miss, why are you so considerate toward Princess Beiling Yu?” Xia Yuan asked Du Xiaoli a bit puzzledly while they were on the way to the competition site.
“She grew up in the imperial household, yet she still managed to retain an innocent personality. If she were to die prematurely, wouldn’t it be a pity?”
When the two of them arrived at the competition site, the competition had already started. The competition being held this morning was the calligraphy contest. This contest was not much different from the one in the men’s competition; all the contestants had to create a piece of work on site. However, the women’s calligraphy contest differed slightly as it had a slightly longer time limit.
Du Xiaoli observed some people that she had already taken notice of previously. For example, Zhao Zhirui from Northern Yuan. It was said that she was the most talented woman in Northern Yuan. She was proficient in the four arts. Especially
when it came to calligraphy and painting, it could be said that she was unmatched in them.
Lu Junqi was also a strong competitor. Not only were her dancing skills unparalleled in the world, but her calligraphy was also pretty good.
The person who surprised her was Fan Min. Du Xiaoli’s impression of Fan Min was limited to how the latter had led the crowd to mock her outside of the Academy. Who knew that Fan Min was also a calligraphy expert!
When afternoon came, the results for the calligraphy contest were announced. Zhao Zirui from Northern Yuan won first place, Lu Junqi won second place, and Fan Min won third place. There were no particularly outstanding calligraphies from Northern Qi, so none of the top five contestants were from Northern Qi.
Du Xiaoli didn’t attend the drawing contest in the afternoon. After all, she wasn’t competing, so there was no need for her to go to every contest. However, she headed out early for the music contest on the second day. The reason was that Fu Yalan was competing today.
As per usual, the contest was held in two rounds. Contestants would be assigned a piece of music to perform in the first round, and during the second round, the contestants were allowed to freely perform a piece of music.
Before Fu Yalan went onto the stage, Du Xiaoli accompanied her the entire time. The two of them watched the contestants who went first. From time to time, they would lower their heads and discuss with each other the skills of the person playing on stage.
Du Kexin was ahead of Fu Yalan by a few people. Showcasing her skillful techniques, she managed to smoothly secure a spot for herself in the finals. Du Xiaoli noticed that when Du Kexin was leaving the site, the latter tossed her a smug smile.
“Isn’t it just entering the finals? Just what is she flaunting?!” Fu Yalan was right beside Du Xiaoli and spoke angrily when she saw Du Kexin’s expression. “I just don’t understand. You're both daughters of Prime Minister Du, yet how can the two of you be so different?!”
Hearing Fu Yalan’s words, Du Xiaoli smiled. They were both Prime Minister Du’s daughters? As if!
There were only twelve people participating in the afternoon’s finals. Knowing that Fu Yalan had entered the finals, Meng Jiangzhuo, Ji Liuxia, and Han Mingxiang all came to support her. For this round, Du Kexin chose to perform the piece that she had played during the Mid-Autumn Banquet. Compared to last time, she played the piece even more remarkably this time around. Despite that, perhaps it was because she had never considered integrating her own emotions into the song… but no matter how well she played, it always felt like something was missing, like a person missing a soul.
Ch. 092.6 – Punishing Prince Ren (6)
Please read: Unfortunately due to a lack of funds, the sponsor has asked for the releases to be reduced even further.
The release schedule will now be 2 a month. So sorry about this everyone.
The song that Fu Yalan chose to play was something she had been practicing in secret. It was a piece she had asked Du Xiaoli to write, but when would Du Xiaoli ever be in the mood to compose a song? Thus, Du Xiaoli chose a classic guzheng [1] piece from her previous world,《Alpine Stream》[2], and transcribed it for Fu Yalan. When Fu Yalan received the music score, she was so delighted that she skipped all the way when she returned home to practice it.
《Alpine Stream》was a classical music piece that had been passed down through generations with thousands of years of history. Regardless of the rhythm or the feelings being expressed in the song, they had all been proven to endure the test of time. When Fu Yalan finished playing, everyone was still savoring the lingering feelings, completely immersed in the tune that spoke of a friendship akin to the relationship between lofty mountains and flowing waters.
Du Xiaoli and the other four were the first
to clap their hands. Their applause caused the rest of the crowd to snap out of their daze. Immediately, the entire site was drowned in enthusiastic applause.
Standing on the stage, Fu Yalan smiled knowingly the moment she saw her sisters in the corner cheering for her. They might have no idea about it, but when she performed this song, they were actually the people she thought of. The camaraderie in her song referred to the friendship between them.
After a reminder from Meng Weiren, the judges off-stage finally remembered to give out their scores. Without a doubt, Fu Yalan’s score was the highest.
After Fu Yalan’s performance of 《Alpine Stream》, the following contestants could only be written off as mediocre. None of them received very high scores. When the contest ended, Fu Yalan won first place in the music competition by a landslide. Du Kexin came in sixth place.
In the evening, Du Xiaoli notified Du Yunhan and left Sui Yuan Club with Xia Yuan. The horse carriage rattled as it traveled on the road. This continued all the way before the carriage finally stopped upon its arrival in front of Blizzard Pavilion. When Du Xiaoli entered the pavilion, Meng Jiangzhuo and the other four were already inside.
It turned out that Ji Liuxia and the others had rented the entire place out in order to celebrate Fu Yalan’s winning the championship.
“Yalan-jiejie’s performance was amazing today!” Ji Liuxia said and poured a cup of wine for everyone. “Here. To congratulate Yalan-jiejie for winning first place, let’s have a toast!”
The wine cups clinked against each other, and everyone happily downed their cup of wine.
“Truthfully, it’s all thanks to Xiaoli for giving me this song. Otherwise, it would have been hard for me to obtain first place in a contest of this caliber,” Fu Yalan said humbly.
“The song isn’t an easy piece to play, but you were able to perform it to such an extent after only a short period of time. You really are amazing!” Du Xiaoli said with a smile after refilling everyone’s wine cup.
“Alright, stop being so modest, you guys. Xiaoli’s song is excellent, and Yalan-Jiejie performed it well. Both of you are amazing, haha!”
“Come, let’s eat. I specially ordered these. They’re the restaurant’s newest dishes. I heard that they are delicious. Let’s eat before they get cold.”
“...”
Everyone ate and drank to their heart’s content during the meal, but because they couldn’t stay out too late, they all returned to their respective homes after eating. Du Xiaoli purposefully left last. Once Ji Liuxia and the others were gone, Du Xiaoli went back inside Blizzard Pavilion and saw Fu Wansan the moment she walked in. Then when no one was paying attention, she slipped into his room.
During the mealtime, Fu Wansan had used the excuse of delivering wine to send her a hand signal, telling her to stay behind. Thus, she returned secretly.
“Uncle Fu, did something happen?” Du Xiaoli asked after entering the room. Then when she saw the people in the room, she questioned puzzledly, “Why are you here?”
“Miss Du, we had no choice but to come here to find you,” Fairy Shui Qing said with an anxious face.
That was right. The people waiting for Du Xiaoli in Fu Wansan’s room were Fairy Shui Qing and a disciple of Water Moon Paradise. They knew Du Xiaoli would be eating here tonight. Thus, they secretly came to find Fu Wansan, saying they were looking for her due to some urgent matters.
Du Xiaoli walked to the table and sat down. She asked, “Are there some urgent matters?”
“Yes,” Fairy Shui Qing said, “The matter of you using Sound Arts has been spread outside. Now everyone in the Jianghu world knows that Wind Blowing Snow has reappeared. Although they do not yet know who possesses it, waves have already begun to stir n the Jianghu world.”
“I already know this,” Du Xiaoli said.
“Miss Du has never stepped into the Jianghu world before, you don’t know the strength of the forces in Jianghu. Since they know of Wind Blowing Snow’s reappearance, then it’s only a matter of time before they discover it’s with you. Although you are the daughter of the prime minister, it is impossible for you to contend with the Jianghu forces by your own means,” Fairy Shui Qing explained. “However, it would be different if you became the head of Water Moon Paradise. Certainly, there are not many forces that can compete with Water Moon Paradise.”
“This matter—I’ll think about it,” Du Xiao Li responded after a moment of thought. “You came to find me just to say this? We seem to have already talked about this before.”
Fairy Shui Qi shook her head and said: “There’s more. Everyone in Jianghu knows that only disciples of Water Moon Paradise can use Sound Arts, so a lot of attention has gathered on us. In order to ensure your safety, we will announce to the outside that we’ve found a successor for the position of Sect Master, but we won’t divulge any names. Additionally, some incidents have risen within Water Moon Paradise because of this matter, so I must return to take care of them. However, I’ll leave some people here in the capital to await your orders.”
“Um, I don’t think there’s a need for that?”
“Miss Du, although you have not yet decided to be our Sect Master, the rules of Water Moon Paradise must be followed. You are able to play the Phoenix Flute, so to the people of Moon Water Paradise, you are our Sect Master regardless of whether you acknowledge it. We must ensure your safety,” Fairy Shui Qi stated firmly.
“...”
Rendered helpless by Water Moon Paradise’s stubbornness, Du Xiao Li gazed at Fairy Shui Qi silently before ultimately agreeing to their proposal about protecting her. However, they must not interfere with her daily life.
It was pretty late when Du Xiaoli walked out of Blizzard Pavilion. She felt a bit worn out because of what happened in there. Originally, she thought she would finally be able to rest after returning home. Yet who knew that when she returned to Sui Yuan Club, there would actually be someone else waiting for her.
Please read: Unfortunately due to a lack of funds, the sponsor has asked for the releases to be reduced even further.
The release schedule will now be 2 a month. So sorry about this everyone.
Ch. 093.1 – Let Her Compete! (1)
Upon seeing Du Xiaoli, Qiao Zhu quickly came over and said, “Mistress. You’re finally back.”
“Qiao Zhu, were there any troubles?” Du Xiaoli asked when she saw Qiao Zhu pacing to and fro in the distance.
Qiao Zhu replied, “There’s no trouble, but Eunuch Shan is waiting for you inside. He’s been there for quite a long while now.”
“Eunuch Shan? What is he here for?” Du Xiaoli asked as she walked into the courtyard. Before she even reached the reception room, she heard the sound of Eunuch Shan talking to someone. Then when she stepped inside, she saw that—aside from Eunuch Shan—Du Yunhan and Han Mingyi were also present.
The three of them were talking amongst themselves when they saw Du Xiaoli walk in. Before she could even speak, Eunuch Shan said, “My little ancestor, you’re finally back! This humble one was almost worried to death.”
“Um, I went outside for a while as I had some matters to attend to. Had I known Eunuch Shan was waiting, I definitely would’ve returned sooner,” Du Xiaoli said apologetically with a bow. “Does Eunuch Shan have some business here?”
“Indeed, and it’s a big matter that needs to be taken care of by Du Xiaoli,” Eunuch Shan said this and then took out an imperial edict. He gave it to Du Xiaoli and stated, “This is a secret decree from the Emperor.”
A secret decree from the Emperor didn’t need to be read aloud as an announcement.
Du Xiaoli accepted the secret decree. She quickly skimmed it over before raising her head in shock, exclaiming, “The Emperor wants me to participate in the dance competition?!”
“Yes. This was a decision that the Emperor just made tonight,” Eunuch Shan replied.
“But I didn’t sign up or express that I want to participate in the dance competition. Why does the Emperor want me to take p
art?” Du Xiaoli didn’t understand.
“The matter is like this…”
It turned out that earlier today, an envoy brought Zhao Zhen into the palace to meet Han Mingze. Originally, this matter had nothing to do with Du Xiaoli. Nonetheless, as Zhao Zhen was about to leave the evening banquet, he—perhaps intentionally or otherwise— mentioned the competitions and learned that the dance contest, the final event of the competitions, was being held the next day. Consequently, he brought up how he’d heard that Du Xiaoli had defeated Lu Junqi. Then he mentioned to the Emperor that there was a young lady in Northern Yuan whose dancing skills surpassed even those of Lu Junqi. Zhao Zhen stated that this young lady had long heard of Du Xiaoli and wanted to compare her skills against Du Xiaoli’s. He even said that the young lady had stated she was confident in winning against Du Xiaoli.
***
“My younger cousin has always been a little too proud. Ever since she invented a new dance, she’s become even more unbridled. This one has warned her previously not to embarrass herself as the ladies in Feng Ming all know how to sing and dance. As a result, she actually said something as outrageous as... if the young lady cannot defeat her in dance, then the men of Feng Ming would also lose to Northern Yuan on the battlefield. This one’s younger cousin is accustomed to being pampered since she was young. I too wish for the future Princess Consort Ding to participate in the competition this time. Perhaps if my younger cousin were to lose once, it would serve as an experience to temper herself. Otherwise, she’ll continue to think of everyone as being below her, even daring to treat the fates of Northern Yuan and Feng Ming as a joke.”
On the surface, Zhao Zhen was making a request toward Feng Ming, but his tone clearly showed his opinion leaned toward his younger cousin’s. Although he didn’t say it directly, his words and sentences seemed to imply that Feng Ming was inferior to Northern Yuan. He even elevated the significance of the dance contest into a comparison between the two countries, particularly with that line he claimed was said by his cousin. If Feng Ming were unable to win over Northern Yuan in this dance contest, then it’s tantamount to saying that their troops were also inferior to Northern Yuan’s and that Feng Ming would sooner or later be overtaken by Northern Yuan.