Hiss-
The guests' hearts jolted. This brat was far too arrogant!
Ji Yun's expression darkened instantly. "Brat, what do you mean by that?" he asked in a low voice.
Gu Chen smiled faintly, a hint of unruliness in his eyes. "Nowhere to put it? How about you move that piano? It's too much of an eyesore."
Ji Yun burned with rage. If he had not needed to maintain his composure, he would have flown into a fury long ago.
He gave a cold laugh, his voice tinged with mockery. "It seems you're quite confident in your playing?"
Gu Chen shook his head gently, his tone calm. "I only know a thing or two. Besides, you played terribly just now. My skills are ordinary, but compared to yours, I'm still a little better. How about I give you a demonstration?"
"Arrogant!"
Ji Yun finally lost his patience and shouted, "Gu Chen, what can those hands of yours, used to working in the fields, possibly play? Are these refined things yours to defile?!"
Gu Chen paid him no mind and shook his head gently. He first put the guzheng on top of the piano, then sat down in front of it. Slowly, he reached out and placed his hands on the keys.
At the sight, everyone's eyes lit up, for they had noticed Gu Chen's hands! They were translucent, long and slender, as exquisite as carved crystal and jade! How were those hands used for working in the fields?
Clang-
By then, Gu Chen had begun to play. Starting with the first note, the music surged through the hall like a tide. The wild notes, with their stirring, soaring rhythm, immediately seized everyone's attention.
The hall gradually fell silent, everyone lost in the beautiful melody, utterly entranced.
When the piece ended, silence reigned all around. All that remained were the stunned looks on everyone's faces.
At that moment, a middle-aged man stood up, his voice trembling. "That was Liszt's transcendental étude, 'Mazeppa.' It's an extremely difficult piece, from the dense atmosphere at the beginning to the brilliant double notes later on. Its expressiveness is astonishing, and it's known as the 'brilliant double-note étude'!"
The speaker was Li Yi, none other than the president of the Zhou City Music Association.
Although few people present understood piano music, Li Yi was an authority! Even he had said as much, which showed just how extraordinary Gu Chen's performance had been. Even he had been shaken!
Li Yi stared at Gu Chen with burning eyes, as though he had spotted a priceless treasure. "Young Master Gu, if you develop your talent, you'll surely become a great pianist. No, you're already at the master level! I'd like to ask, you're so young-just how long have you been practicing?"
"Not long. Two days," Gu Chen said with a shrug. "But I'm not very interested in the piano."
"Two days? You've got to be joking!" Ji Yun said through gritted teeth. He had practiced hard for two months to reach the expert level, yet Gu Chen had taken only two days?
Everyone else also looked at Gu Chen with contempt, clearly disbelieving him. Gu Chen, however, merely smiled faintly and offered no explanation.
He was the Divine Emperor, after all. He had already attained profound mastery of music in his previous life, so playing these pieces now was as easy as turning over his hand.
"That piece wasn't played for Eldest Miss Zhou. It was a gift especially for Young Master Ji Yun," Gu Chen said, raising an eyebrow, his tone teasing.
Everyone sucked in a sharp breath. This brat's arrogance knew no bounds!
Ignoring their reactions, Gu Chen placed the guzheng on the soundboard, closed his eyes, and lightly touched the strings. He did not play immediately, instead gathering his emotions. Two seconds later, the guqin sounded its first note.
-Clang!
It was the sound of weapons clashing, piercing and startling. Everyone frowned. They had still held some expectations for Gu Chen, but now it seemed this was not as good as the piano piece.
Soon, however, they changed their minds. Gu Chen's fingers danced rapidly across the strings, and scene after scene filled with a murderous chill appeared before their eyes: deserts, columns of beacon smoke, weapons, armored warhorses...
Billowing clouds of dust, ceaseless cries, blood-soaked corpses and bones, fierce faces amid countless flames... As Gu Chen played, a stunning scene of a battlefield on the yellow earth slowly unfolded. Compared with Ji Yun's piano piece, Gu Chen's guzheng music was even more immersive. Everyone was drawn in, as though each had become a soldier in the scene, a part of it!
Then the melody shifted, and a pastoral landscape unfolded like a scroll: armor was laid aside, soldiers returned to the fields, and the whole village celebrated. But the warrior had grown old, and his parents had passed away. Kneeling before his wife's bed, his eyes were full of unfamiliarity. His six-year-old son rode a wooden horse, as though telling of endless vicissitudes.
The piece was not long, lasting only six or seven minutes.
Yet it had taken everyone through a shock to the soul. It was as though it would take the length of several centuries to fully savor it.
"A performer of the highest order, a performer at the soul level!" Li Yi suddenly fell to his knees, his eyes brimming with tears.
The sounds of ancient music could not only bring pleasure, but also stir deep reflection.
After Li Yi spoke, a spell of silence passed before thunderous applause erupted all around, continuing for a long time. Whatever their status, at that moment they all looked sincerely at Gu Chen, their eyes full of admiration and gratitude.
This baptism of the heart made them feel as though they had taken a journey of the soul.
Amid the applause, Ji Yun's expression grew increasingly dark. The middle-aged man beside him said coldly, "We're leaving."
"What's wrong, Father?" Ji Yun asked, panic written across his face.
"Haven't you embarrassed yourself enough?" the middle-aged man snapped.
Before the piece had ended, the middle-aged man swept his sleeves and left. Ji Yun's expression flickered unpredictably, but in the end he could only grit his teeth and follow him out.
Without realizing it, everyone had been drawn along by Gu Chen's music, and countless eyes brimmed with tears. How many of those present had come from elsewhere, built themselves up from nothing, and endured countless schemes and plots to get where they were? Yet in this dream, the pastoral scenery that haunted their dreams was out of reach. Only those cruel, shattered scenes struck their hearts hard.
The sound of the guzheng was like a fine rain washing over their hearts. After experiencing that struggle and pain, they felt as though they had grasped the many facets of life in an instant.
But soon, Gu Chen's melody shifted, and his voice also grew sharp. "What I played just now was merely a practice piece. What comes next is my true gift to Miss Zhou Xue'er!"
As he spoke, the music suddenly changed from tender to fierce. A scene appeared in everyone's minds: the waiting woman had turned into a vicious shrew. She had not only conspired with a local bully to frame her husband upon his return from military service, but had even murdered him!
How could this be?
Even Li Yi's expression changed drastically! The turn was far too abrupt, yet Gu Chen handled the music with ease.
The image of the vicious woman in the music made everyone feel it as though they were there, grinding their teeth in anger. Then Gu Chen brought the music to a close and smashed the guzheng to pieces. "This 'Bitch Song' is for Miss Zhou!"