Before long, the carriage of the Pingyang Marquis Mansion sped out of the mansion and headed towards a certain place in the city, which was exactly in the direction of the residence of Mr. Shanyin, Bai Jun.
Bai Jun was extremely famous in Shengjing. Since she returned to the city with the Wangs' merchant caravan, the news of "Mr. Shanyin" coming back had spread throughout Shengjing. And the first one who rushed to pay a visit was the Prince of Xuan, who was extremely obsessed with music.
At this moment, in the Bai Mansion, the Prince of Xuan was pestering Bai Jun to play the zither for him.
"Mr. Bai, please play a tune for me! I haven't heard you play the zither for a long time. There's like a little bug in my stomach, drilling and drilling hard. It's so uncomfortable!"
Bai Jun gave a faint smile and ignored him. Instead, she lowered her head and wiped the zither in her hand on her own.
The Prince of Xuan felt awkward for himself and murmured in a low voice, "Mr. Bai really resembles Miss Su the Fourth."
The hand wiping the zither paused for a moment. Bai Jun pretended to ask casually, "As far as I know, there's only one family surnamed Su in the whole Shengjing. But I remember that the Marquis of Pingyang only has two daughters. Where did this Miss Su the Fourth come from?"
Speaking of this, the Prince of Xuan became interested. He leaned towards Bai Jun and said, "This Miss Su the Fourth is a remarkable lady!"
"Oh? How so?" Bai Jun looked up at the Prince of Xuan.
"Sir must have heard of the name of General Su Qing, the great general who guards the border. This Miss Su the Fourth is General Su's only daughter. Since General Su was enfeoffed as the Duke of Yong, she moved from Mobei to Shengjing with General Su."
Bai Jun had already heard about this from others when she was in Chenzhou.
"Then what's so remarkable about her?" Bai Jun asked.
"I once heard someone mention that this beloved daughter of General Su was born stupid and knew nothing about the world. When the Queen Mother held her birthday banquet, she..."
The Prince of Xuan was extremely enthusiastic as he recounted the events at the birthday banquet to Bai Jun. Since he was on the scene at that time, he described it in great detail. Learning that the zither piece that Su Qingyu presented to the Queen was extremely similar to Su Yuanyuan's style, Bai Jun's hand holding the zither tightened, and her breathing became a bit heavier.
Although she wasn't on the scene at that time, from the Prince of Xuan's words, she was sure that the piece Su Qingyu stole was Yuanyuan's!
As a music teacher in the Imperial College, how could she not see Su Qingyu's real level? She was just a person who knew how to play tricks and wanted to replace her as the music teacher in the Imperial College?
It was really wishful thinking!
"...That Miss Su the Fourth sang out that incomplete piece on the spot, and it was a revised one. Sir, tell me, isn't she a remarkable lady? You know, it was said that she was a fool!"
Bai Jun was stunned for a moment and asked urgently, "Really? Did she really revise the piece completely on the spot?"
"Would I lie to sir?" The Prince of Xuan smiled. "After that, a few days later, the Yan family's young master had a musical duel with the second young master of the Duke of Yong's Mansion. Yan Wenqi bullied the second young master of the Su family, who came from Mobei and didn't understand music well, and even invited Miss Qiu Han to help him."
"After Miss Su the Fourth arrived, she resolutely stepped onto the stage to compete with Miss Qiu Han. Guess what happened?"
The Prince of Xuan deliberately left a suspense, hoping that Bai Jun would guess. But since Bai Jun already knew the details, she didn't answer. So he had to continue on his own. In the end, he sighed,
"This Miss Su the Fourth is really gifted in music. If Su Yuanyuan were still alive, it's hard to tell who would be better between them."
Hearing such remarks again, Bai Jun frowned, and her impression of this "Miss Su the Fourth" worsened a bit.
Making up her mind, she said, "Since even the prince speaks so highly of her, I'm a bit interested."
When the Prince of Xuan heard this, his eyes lit up, and he clapped his hands and said, "I've got it! Sir, I have a wonderful idea. I wonder if you'd like to hear it?"
Bai Jun came back to her senses and said, "Please go ahead, Your Highness."
"I've been planning to hold a zither appreciation banquet recently and want to invite all the noble ladies in the capital to attend. Miss Su the Fourth is also on the list. If sir is interested in Miss Su the Fourth, why not test her at the banquet to find out her true level? What do you think, sir?"
After the Prince of Xuan finished speaking, he looked at Bai Jun nervously.
Actually, he didn't know that his suggestion hit Bai Jun's heart right on the mark.
She also wanted to see what kind of abilities this woman had to be compared with her closed - door disciple.
Her eyes darkened. Bai Jun said, "Just as Your Highness said. On that day, I will surely come to support Your Highness."
"Really?" The Prince of Xuan was overjoyed that Bai Jun would agree. He immediately jumped up from his chair. "I'll go back and send out the invitation cards right away. Sir, you must come then!"
Because he was too excited, the Prince of Xuan accidentally tripped over himself when he left and almost fell to the ground. But after he got up, he continued to run forward.
Looking at this scene, Bai Jun couldn't help but smile wryly, and then sighed softly.
After returning to Shengjing, memories of the past with Yuanyuan came back everywhere, which made her even more sad.
Her eyes fell on the beloved zither in her hand. Bai Jun suddenly had an idea. Since Yuanyuan was dead, why not go to the Pingyang Marquis Mansion to ask for that Jiaowei zither back? She didn't want such a precious zither to be ruined by those people in the Pingyang Marquis Mansion.
Just as she was thinking, a servant walked in quickly from outside and said to Bai Jun, "Sir, the Marquis of Pingyang and his family are here to pay a visit. They said they have something urgent to see you."
Bai Jun's eyes turned cold.
She was just about to settle the score with these people, but unexpectedly, they came to the door. It was just in time.
Putting the beloved zither back on the shelf and covering it with a dust - proof silk satin, Bai Jun said, "Please show them in."
Before long, the figures of the Marquis of Pingyang, Lady Tong, and Su Zeqian appeared in the yard of the Bai Mansion and walked towards the warm pavilion. In the Marquis of Pingyang's hands, there was a long object wrapped tightly in black cloth.
The closer they got to the warm pavilion, the more nervous the Marquis of Pingyang became.
Mr. Shanyin was well - known for her cold, proud, and eccentric temper. Her way of doing things was quite similar to Su Yuanyuan's. They were both willful. Otherwise, they wouldn't have become master and disciple.
Finally, when they stepped into the warm pavilion, the three of them saw the woman reclining on the couch. The Marquis of Pingyang moved his lips. Before he could say a word, his eyes met a pair of cold eyes like ice on a cold day. The words he hadn't spoken got stuck in his throat and he couldn't get them out.
Knowing that the Marquis of Pingyang was too proud to speak up, Lady Tong propped up her weak body and stepped forward. She bowed slightly to Bai Jun and said,
"We've come to visit today to ask Mr. Shanyin to do us a small favor. We hope that Mr. Shanyin will help us out for the sake of our past friendship. After it's done, the Pingyang Marquis Mansion will surely offer a generous reward."
Bai Jun said coldly, "But you know what? Looking at your faces makes me want to vomit. I even think it would dirty my hands to help you."
Su Zeqian was impulsive by nature. He said, "But if sir doesn't want to help, why did you agree to see us?"
"Shut up! You're the executioner who personally pushed Yuanyuan into the fire pit. What right do you have to stand here and talk to me?" Bai Jun looked at Su Zeqian, her eyes filled with deep - seated hatred.