Chapter 457: Chapter 449: You Awakened a Resentful Soul
“ntioning the Ding family, Qin Liuxi didn’t hide anything and quickly described their disgusting behavior with a few words.”
Master Tang’s brows furrowed as he said, “It’s just a candied fruit shop that has just recently opened. Why is the Ding family so shortsighted? If I rember correctly, didn’t Ding Shouxin used to respect your grandfather as his teacher?”
“It was just lip service; if he truly respected the teacher and valued the teachings, would he have avoided the Qin family once they fell from grace?” Qin Liuxi said indifferently.
Master Tang felt even more displeased upon hearing this and said, “It’s natural to seek fortune and avoid misfortune, but that doesn’t an one should act so shalessly. As a re Magistrate, to indulge his family like this, his true nature is apparent.”
Seeking fortune and avoiding misfortune is acceptable, but that should not extend to kicking soone when they are down. Not to ntion that they had once borrowed strength from that family, and now when the family is dependent on a shop for their livelihood, they still think of taking it away; it’s far too excessive.
“Maybe they’ve gone mad from poverty?” Qin Liuxi sneered.
Master Tang asked, “Do you need to do anything?”
Qin Liuxi shook her head: “There’s no need; I’ve already done what needs to be done. If they want my things, they also have to see whether they have the fortune to get them.”
It was she who had made the arrangents for Mrs. Wang, and hence it was hers.
Master Tang’s heart skipped a beat, but seeing that she wasn’t the slightest bit troubled by this, and thinking of her abilities, he felt relieved. Still, he said, “Since you also call teacher, do not be shy to ask for help if you can borrow the strength, and don’t always bear the burden of karma on your own.”
“Alright.”
Qin Liuxi agreed cheerfully, but Master Tang knew her character well—she wouldn’t trouble others with matters she could solve herself, fearing taking on more debts of karma.
He said no more on this subject. Thinking of Magistrate Ding and Prefecture City, he decided he had to send a letter to a friend there, thoroughly exposing his family’s true colors. And oh, he needed to write and enquire at Governor Xiao’s as well, he couldn’t let him be too comfortable; it was necessary to throw a wrench in his plans.
anwhile, Yan Qishan also heard from his students about the ‘good deeds’ Qin Liuxi perford in front of the Ding family, as well as the rumors currently surrounding them.
“This girl is quite the chaleon,” Yan Qishan clicked his tongue in admiration. “And this Ding family, their greed is unsightly. For a small shop, they’re willing to tarnish their own reputation, how foolish.”
They set their sights on a shop that had just opened for business, coveting it for the bit of silver it’s worth—their greed is no better than that of starving dogs fighting over food.
“It’s precisely they who ‘stole a chicken only to lose a handful of rice,'” Jiang Wenliu comnted indifferently.
The Ding family, already being a fourth-rank official family, yet so superficial—they don’t even consider the consequences of their actions. Although such things aren’t rare, they are still from Li City and have received favor from others. Regardless of whether the Qin family is guilty of anything, such behavior will attract criticism once word spreads.
To jeopardize one’s reputation over a shop is the epito of foolishness.
Then Yan Qishan said, “Since the Ding family lacks moral integrity to such an extent, you should stop associating with Ding Yongliang. Not to ntion, that girl is a student of Master Tang; we should maintain a distance.”
Jiang Wenliu replied, “I never intended to form close ties in the first place.”
Yan Qishan nodded and picked up an ancient zither, wrapped in silk fabric, from the crate—a simple yet refined piece. Removing the silk, he touched the naturally ford Fla Flower at the end of the zither, clicked his tongue in praise, and then carefully put it back.
The sound of the zither was clear and bright, a fine instrunt indeed, one he had acquired from an auction house.
From the bottom of the box, he took out a case of high-grade vermilion, which he had procured during a visit to a friend in Yu County. He had planned to save it as a pignt, but now he felt its use could be more significant.
“Let’s go.”
“…
“Take a look, what is this prize?” Master Tang watched with interest as Yan Qishan returned once again.
Yan Qishan handed the box to Qin Liuxi: “I’ve found a box of top-quality vermillion from Yu County, this should be quite suitable, right?”
Top-quality vermillion, naturally, it would be suitable.
Qin Liuxi took it and opened the box for a closer look. A smile curved her eyes as she looked up, “Very good… Huh?”
Yan Qishan noticed her expression change, and couldn’t help saying, “What? Do you think this gift isn’t valuable enough?”
“I never cared about the gift. It’s your problem.” Qin Liuxi drew a thread of yin energy from his body and frowned, “I’ve just removed this yin energy from you, why have you beco contaminated again after one trip? Mr. Yan, did you bring sothing to the academy?”
Everyone was stunned. Contaminated again?
Master Tang’s face also grew solemn, “Zhongqing, you might have obtained sothing with sinister energy without realizing it.”
Yan Qishan thought carefully, but there didn’t seem to be anything wrong with his belongings.
Qin Liuxi stood up, saying, “Let have a look.”
Yan Qishan and Jiang Wenliu had co only for a visit, carrying not much luggage – all things they had collected along their travels. If Qin Liuxi wanted to look, then let her look.
Entering the room and scanning around, Qin Liuxi’s gaze fell on a chest; she walked over to it, “Here.”
Jiang Wenliu felt sothing amiss; his teacher had just taken that box of vermillion from here.
He stepped forward and opened it, saying, “These are all common items.”
But Qin Liuxi picked up a piece of silk as long as an adult’s arm, revealing an ancient zither beneath as she lifted the cloth. She gently caressed the body of the zither, feeling its aura, then casually plucked its strings.
Under her fingertips, the sound of the zither was deep and distant, with a lingering and subtle resonance, like a woman softly whispering, sobful and plaintive, agonized and full of sorrow.
When Yan Qishan and the others heard the lody, they all felt sowhat dizzy, their eyes glazed over, as if they saw a woman sitting at a desk playing the zither. The music was prolonged, weeping mournfully, causing them to feel pity, along with a hint of resentnt and hate, as if they wanted to grab sothing and vent their frustration.
Squeak.
Suddenly, a harsh zither note jolted them back to their senses, their faces paling slightly.
“What happened to ?” Yan Qishan furrowed his brows.
Master Tang said, “Just now, you looked like a wild cat on the verge of madness, your face was sowhat ferocious.”
“How can that be?” As a refined scholar and a gentleman, how could his face appear ferocious.
Qin Liuxi pressed down on the zither strings and said, “It is the obsession within the zither that has turned into resentnt. When the lody resounded, it brought out the dark side within you. Didn’t you feel anger and resentnt in your hearts just now?”
Yan Qishan placed a hand over his chest; he indeed felt that way. Looking at the delicate ancient zither, he could sense sothing was off with the instrunt, and he couldn’t help swallowing, “I won this zither from Jiuxuan Auction Hall in Yong State. I thought it was delicate and had a beautiful sound, so I took an interest in it. But when I played it, it didn’t do this.”
Qin Liuxi carefully examined the body of the zither where at the tail, there was a pattern like a fla flower blooming in a dark red, and within it, a vivid and bright crimson.
She wet her finger with a bit of water and touched it, her fingertip tinged with red – it was blood.
“Is this blood from when you played the zither?” Qin Liuxi looked at the ancient zither full of yin energy and said, “You’ve awoken the resentful soul sealed within the ancient zither.”
Yan Qishan: “?”
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