Lin Yingxin was stuck in a dilemma. She was not willing to stand up and ruin the reputation that she had painstakingly built for years. At this point, she had already realized that it was impossible for her to use Wen Xinya to bring herself a greater reputation. Even the jimsonweed would not bring her any benefits.
I’ve clearly been duped and taken advantage of by Xia Ruya. Right from the start, Xia Ruya had been fooling me and making use of me to deal with Wen Xinya just so she can redeem herself and salvage her reputation. She made me give up the reputation that I had painstakingly built over the years, just to let her reap the benefits.
The thought of it made her grit her teeth angrily as her resentment towards Xia Ruya filled her heart, threatening to explode within her. However, there was no turning back for her now that she had already gotten herself involved.
If she were to defy Xia Ruya’s orders, the latter would definitely not let her off. Although she had only known Xia Ruya for a short period of time, she knew that Xia Ruya was terrifying and ruthless. She was just a weak girl who came from a humble family and was pursuing an education all alone in Capital city. Unlike Xia Ruya, she did not have a powerful family to back her up. Although Xia Ruya did not enjoy a good reputation in Capital city, she was still in a better predicament. Besides, Xia Ruya was acquainted with the owner of Boya Pavilion, who constantly helped her out. By now, she already knew that Xia Ruya was not to be trifled with.
She could imagine the deserts that she would get if she were to offend Xia Ruya.
What agonized her the most was that she was not in a good state of mind today, for she did not seem to be able to control her emotions at all. Her mind was in a whirlwind and she wondered… if she could really defeat Wen Xinya under such circumstances.
Lin Yingxin remained seated and Xia Ruya shot her a cold and menacing gaze. She said smilingly, “Speaking of Miss Wen’s talents, we’ve yet to witness her performing on the zither. Do we have the pleasure and fortune of witnessing your impeccable talent today, Miss Wen?”
She then subtly glanced at Lin Yingxin with a threatening gaze. She had already given Lin Yingxin the opportunity to step forth, and if Lin Yingxin were to refute, she would definitely ruin the latter.
Xia Ruya’s gaze was way too terrifying, so much that Lin Yingxin was momentarily dumbstruck. However, her body was quick to react and she immediately sprung up from her seat. “Everyone knows that out of the four arts, I’m the best at playing the zither. I got rather interested after finding out today that Miss Wen is talented in this specific art too. Miss Wen, will you give us the chance to compete with each other?”
At this point, there was no turning back for her.
Lin Yingxin had secretly researched on jimsonweed and found out that those who were well-versed in medicinal techniques would be able to control the duration of toxic effects of the jimsonweed by adjusting the amounts. Since it had been a long time since Wen Xinya had ingested the spiked tea and snacks, but had yet to show any signs of being poisoned, she reckoned that the poison had already been spread within her body. Once the effects took place, Wen Xinya would lose and Xia Ruya’s plan would work.
Wen Xinya cast a sweeping glance at Xia Ruya before looking at Lin Yingxin. She said coldly, “Since Miss Lin, the winner of the previous gala, is interested in exchanging tips and sparring with me, I definitely wouldn’t dare to turn you down.”
She still had no idea what Xia Ruya and Lin Yingxin had up their sleeves. Since she did not know what thoughts Xia Ruya was harboring, she could not afford to be careless.
The mood instantly became livelier.
During the previous gala, Lin Yingxin managed to impress the judges with her performance of the song “Snow in Spring” and won herself the title with her impeccable tea-brewing skills. Everyone knew how proficient Lin Yingxin was in playing the zither.
On the other hand, Wen Xinya managed to earn the praises of the judges by commenting on Miss Fang’s zither performance and was then known as a zither prodigy. However, everyone felt a little disappointed to not have been able to witness her performing on the zither.
Hence, everyone was thrilled to hear Lin Yingxin’s suggestion.
At the same time, they also wanted to know which one of the two winners was the more talented one.
Lin Yingxin took the lead and made her way onto the stage, washed her hands and took a seat before the zither. She then plucked the strings and tuned them a little before beginning to perform.
She was playing the very song that had shot her to fame, ‘Snow in Spring’.
There were several renditions to the song, with the most famous one being the pipa version that arose during wartimes. However, with the passing of time, several changes had been made to the song by the greatest musicians of ancient times who had refined it to perfection.
Lin Yingxin was indeed an expert at the zither. As soon as the first note sounded in the air, there seemed to be a sudden chilliness in the air, as if it were wintertime. The second note was like pine and cypress in the snow. The variations in the warmth of the notes made the song seem like a soul-cleansing ritual.
The ladies were all immersed in the melodious music.
Even Wen Xinya was no exception.
At this juncture, Lin Yingxin had already played four to five notes and her emotions were getting all mixed up. She could not stop thinking about Xia Ruya’s scheme as well as the menacing gaze that she had shot her. Feelings of fear, terror, and fright overwhelmed her and put her on the verge of breaking down.
She also suspected that she was the one who had ingested jimsonweed instead of Wen Xinya.
After the song ended, she heaved a sigh of relief as her hands turned sweaty and her body grew weak.
Everyone applauded excitedly.
Du Ruoxin sneered. “Seems like the previous winner of the gala doesn’t deserve her title at all.”
Wen Xinya did not make any comment.
At this moment, Lin Yingxin rose from her seat and said, “Miss Wen, please!”
Wen Xinya slowly made her way onto the porch and took a seat in front of the zither before repeating the steps that Lin Yingxin had taken.
She began performing ‘Ten-sided Ambush’ two minutes later.
Ten-sided Ambush depicted the ten-sided ambush that the Han troops had employed during the war to defeat the Chu troops and conquer Wujiang.
Wen Xinya used her immaculate and superb skills to narrate the story while conveying all of the intended feelings and emotions of the song through variations in speed, rhythm, and pitches.
Wen Xinya used different techniques such as swipe, row, play, pick, wipe, and dial, during the eighth stanza, to bring out the climax of the song where the two armies were going toe to toe against each other and fighting their hearts out. She also aroused feelings of nervousness and anxiety amongst the audience with her excellent and complex techniques.
Next, there was a change in the note and the sounds of chasing horses, yelling and weeping came to a halt.
The music stopped abruptly.
Silence filled the air while everyone else was still immersed in the mood that Wen Xinya had created with her incredible performance of ‘Ten-sided Ambush’. During the most melancholic part of the song, which was during the ending, everyone seemed to have been able to imagine the sorrow of the story’s character, who had wept and killed herself for love.
