Inside Tianzi Room 1, Li Hanguang sat in front of the table, brewing a pot of Spiritual Tea.
Ji Mingyue had already set up the Star and Moon Zither and was playing it with all her attention.
If Li Hanguang were to take a good look at her, he would be able to see the tension and expectation in her eyes.
It was as if she was a student waiting for her teacher to praise her for completing her homework.
A few minutes after Ji Mingyue started playing, Li Hanguang frowned. "Wait. Stop."
Ji Mingyue stopped her fingers immediately and glanced at the man nervously. "Senior, is there something wrong with my music?"
"Yes. You used to play this tune better," Li Hanguang nodded. "There are a few problems I can hear. One, the zither you're using does sound better compared to your original one, but it doesn't harmonize well with you. To any musician, their instrument is like a sword to a swordsman. Just because the instrument is more expensive doesn't mean it's the right one for the musician. What's important is the relationship the musician has with their instrument. You still need more time to get used to the zither you're using just now, or else you can never be one with it."
Ji Mingyue nodded earnestly like a good student listening to her mentor.
If others were to see the scene, their jaws would definitely drop as Ji Mingyue was known to everyone else as the master of the zither. Her talent in music was at least a few levels above her peers.
There weren't a lot of people alive who could instruct her.
"Second," Li Hanguang continued, "you are way too tense right now. For a zither master, their heart has to be as calm as the river, and their music as soft as the gentle wind. Emotion is one of the biggest taboos when playing the instrument. Because of your nervousness, you've made mistakes in the middle of the first note, the end of the third note, and the beginning of the fifth note. These are mistakes that you shouldn't be making."
Ji Mingyue bit her lip after hearing that. This time, she had not performed as best as she could.
The reason she chose to play using the Star and Moon Zither was because she wanted to impress Li Hanguang. She'd never expect that her performance would drop because she wasn't used to the new instrument.
And because of this, she was nervous and disappointed.
These emotions only affected her performance even more.
Due to all these various factors, she wasn't even half as good as she usually was.
Sigh, I should've used my usual zither instead...
…
After taking a deep breath, Ji Mingyue put on a serious expression and asked, "Senior, should I use my usual zither and play it again?"
"No need." Li Hanguang smiled. "Why don't you take a rest first and try again once you've calmed down?"
Li Hanguang could tell that even if Ji Mingyue were to play on her other zither, ten out of ten times she would not perform like she usually did.
With his thorough examination, he could tell that the biggest problem Ji Mingyue had at that moment wasn't because she was unfamiliar with the Star and Moon Zither, but because she was flustered.
Both the Ethereal State of Mind and the Peaceful State of Mind had one requirement, and that was for the mind to remain calm.
To perfectly perform the Water Melody, the performer had to be one with the story that the song was telling.
It told the story of someone who missed their home, their family, and their friends.
Ji Mingyue's country was devastated by war and was ultimately destroyed. Most of her family members were either dead or lost.
The person who'd saved her, Li Hanguang, had locked himself up in training for three whole years.
Three years of loneliness.
Three years of emptiness.
Three years of sadness.
All she could do for the past three years was express her yearning for him through her music.
That was how she was able to understand the true meaning of Water Melody and performed it to perfection. She even used this chance to realize the Third Stage of the Peaceful State of Mind.
It was an unexpected result.
The one that Ji Mingyue reached wasn't the Second Stage of the Peaceful State of Mind, but one stage higher than that.
The reason she'd only revealed that she was at the Second Stage was because she was flustered at having received the hairpin gifted to her by the senior she adored.
Now that the senior she'd longed to meet was sitting in front of her, all of the emotions that she'd kept locked away for the past three years made her heart race.
It was impossible for her to focus on playing the zither. All she wanted to do at that moment was to flirt with Li Hanguang.
And the man in question had seen through everything.
He couldn't help but sigh.
Sometimes...being attractive is super troublesome... Is there anyone out there sharing the same pain?
"I see..." Ji Mingyue sounded a little sad. She couldn't believe that after three years, her skill did not improve.
"Cheer up. Have some tea." Li Hanguang set a cup of Mind-Stilling Tea in front of her.
Ji Mingyue raised her head and the first thing she saw was Li Hanguang's pale and perfect face.
He was even more handsome than he was three years ago. She could feel her heart melt at the sight of his smile.
"T-thank you..."
In all these years at the Embracing Moon Brothel, Ji Mingyue had seen a lot of handsome men. Yet, she still blushed when she saw Li Hanguang.
After a moment of silence, the lady quickly changed the topic. "S-senior, thank you for your gift."
Li Hanguang turned to look at Ji Mingyue with a huge question mark over his head.
Ji Mingyue carefully touched the hairpin, tying her hair up. "H-how do I look with this hair stick?"
"The hairpin looks normal, but you look gorgeous." Li Hanguang smiled.
"Stop joking with me," Ji Mingyue laughed. "How can the hairpin you picked for me look normal? I think it's perfect."
Li Hanguang was completely taken by surprise. "This hairpin is not from me, though..."
Ji Mingyue's eyes widened when she heard that.
"I did prepare a present for you," Li Hanguang continued. "But I haven't had the chance to give it to you yet."
Ji Mingyue's eyes opened even wider.
That makes sense. There's no way Senior has such bad taste to give me this ugly hairpin! That Jiang Shengxie! I'll make you pay!
…
While Ji Mingyue was cursing Jiang Shengxie in her head, the door to Tianzi Room 1 was kicked open.
They could feel an intense sharp sword's will coming from outside. Followed closely behind this chilling will was a man's roar.
"Which idiot dares to ask Ji Mingyue out? How dare you step into Tianzi Room 1?"
A slender man walked into the room.
Anger was etched all over Jiang Shengxie's face.
He could never stand people offending Li Hanguang and was intolerable to those who'd betrayed him.
How dare that b*tch betray him after he'd saved her? If he hadn't been there at that time, she would've been another nameless corpse on the street by now! He'd sacrificed everything so that he could focus on researching something that would save a lot of lives, and this is how you repay him? By attending to another man and even using Senior Li's private room?
Jiang Shengxie raged in his head.
It was like a wife cheating on her husband when he was sent overseas.
It was a sin that was punishable by death,
When Jiang Shengxie heard the zither being played in Tianzi Room 1, he had completely lost his cool and come straight to the room to cut the cheating lady down.
…
As soon as he charged into the room, the first thing he saw was the man he had called an idiot.
His senior, Li Hanguang, was staring back at him with a helpless expression.
Next to him was Ji Mingyue. She was gripping the hairpin tightly in her hand as she glared angrily at the man who'd just barged in.
Eh? D-did I do something wrong? I think I did. Holy! I'm dead!
Jiang Shengxie regretted his actions immediately.