Six young women danced gracefully out from behind the screen, one after another, all moving on the tips of their toes. Huo Xiaoru was not among them, yet the moment Hu Xiaotian saw their steps, his mind rang with a buzz! Her lovely figure, long sealed away in his memories, suddenly flooded his thoughts. He was certain that Huo Xiaoru was in the Kang Capital.
Xima, seated to Hu Xiaotian's right, noticed the change in his expression and found it rather puzzling. Could a song and dance really move him so deeply? This was also her first time seeing anyone dance on tiptoe. An accomplished dancer herself, Xima was deeply interested.
Wanyan Liexin glanced at Hu Xiaotian with a smile. "What do you think of this dance, Your Highness?"
You've certainly asked the right person, Hu Xiaotian thought. Huo Xiaoru choreographed this pointe dance under my inspiration. He praised it aloud. "Fine music, fine dancing, and fine dancers! Just as the verse says, 'Such music belongs in heaven alone; how often may mortals hear its strains?'"
Wanyan Liexin exclaimed, "I've long heard of your great talent, Your Highness. You certainly live up to your reputation. Even a verse you pluck at will leaves one breathless with admiration!"
Hu Xiaotian grew inwardly wary. Could the scene before him really be nothing more than coincidence? He had asked about Xue Shengjing yesterday, and Wanyan Liexin had merely said he had never had any contact with him. Then why was this performance taking place now? Had Wanyan Liexin deliberately arranged it? And where was Huo Xiaoru? If she had already come to the Kang Capital, why would she refuse to see him? A thousand thoughts crowded his mind.
Xima said, "The songs and dances of the Central Plains truly have a flavor all