As Su Qingyu continued to play, the dissonant notes appeared more and more frequently. However, for those who were not proficient in music, these flaws were negligible. The whole piece still sounded ethereal and beautiful.
Su Yuanyuan noticed that by the end of the performance, Prince Xuan could barely contain his impatience. He kept stealing glances at Queen Wang, looking as if he wanted to say something but held back.
Finally, Su Qingyu plucked the strings with her ten fingers and ended the performance with a resounding note. The lingering melody filled the air, and it took a moment for the audience to come back to their senses.
Prince Huai, sitting beside Prince Xuan, was the first to respond. "Bravo! No wonder she's known as the most talented lady in Shengjing. This piece is so pure and refreshing! Mother, in my opinion, this celestial music should be the best birthday gift today!"
Queen Wang was also very pleased. She nodded slightly and said, "This piece is indeed ethereal and pleasing to the ear. It has put me in a wonderful mood. Your Majesty, what do you think?"
The emperor just smiled. "As long as the queen likes it."
The queen narrowed her phoenix eyes slightly and looked at Su Qingyu below. "Su Qingyu, you've done well with your gift. You deserve a reward. What would you like from me?"
At the banquet, Lady Mo and Wei Linlang exchanged a look. They both thought that Su Qingyu was probably going to take this opportunity to ask the queen to revoke the punishment she'd received earlier.
It was so frustrating that they'd finally managed to make this woman pay a price, only to have it reversed so soon.
Su Qingyu bowed gracefully and said to the queen, "It's already a great honor for me to attend Your Highness's birthday banquet and play for you. How could I dare to ask for a reward? As long as Your Highness likes my performance, that's the greatest gift for me. I wish Your Highness eternal youth and prosperity."
Su Qingyu had a specific purpose in performing at the birthday banquet today.
The position of the music teacher at the Imperial Academy was currently vacant. The previous teacher was Mr. Shanyin, the most renowned lutenist in the Great Chu. But after the death of someone important, Mr. Shanyin had resigned, leaving the position unfilled.
For the past six months, the Imperial Academy had been trying to recruit a new music teacher, but so far, no one in the Great Chu could match Mr. Shanyin's skills.
So, Su Qingyu had set her sights on that position.
After playing the piece, she was full of confidence, thinking that her words had been flawless.
Maybe the queen, in a good mood, would not only offer her the position but also revoke the punishment for pushing the fourth young lady of the Duke's Mansion into the water. It would be a win - win situation.
The compliment about eternal youth indeed made the queen smile. "What a sweet - talking girl. You really know how to make people happy. I remember, the Imperial Academy..."
Hearing the words "Imperial Academy", Prince Xuan finally couldn't hold back. He suddenly stood up, left his seat, and bowed to the queen. "Mother, please wait. Allow me to ask Miss Su a few questions before you make a decision."
The queen knew that Prince Xuan was proficient in music. She raised her eyebrows and said, "Approved."
Prince Xuan turned to Su Qingyu and asked, "Miss Su, I remember you said this piece was composed after you woke up from a dream one night. Is that right?"
Su Qingyu replied, "Yes."
"That's good," Prince Xuan said, looking at Su Qingyu. "I just listened to the whole piece and noticed that there were a few parts that sounded a bit choppy, which didn't fit the overall style of the piece. Could you please play it again on the spot?"
Su Qingyu's face stiffened. She didn't explicitly refuse but said subtly, "Your Highness Prince Xuan, there are still many people waiting to present their gifts."
Prince Xuan said, "Alright, I won't waste others' time. I just want to ask Miss Su, since you're the composer, when you practiced this piece repeatedly and found the mistakes, why didn't you correct them? How could you present an incomplete piece to Mother?"
Prince Xuan's question shocked Su Qingyu greatly. A cold sweat quickly broke out on her palms.
What? There was actually something wrong with this piece!
She had found this piece in a treasure box in that person's room. How could such a carefully - kept piece be incomplete?
No, it couldn't be. If the queen found out that she had played a flawed piece, the queen would surely be unhappy!
Sure enough, the smile had disappeared from the queen's face on the phoenix throne. She no longer looked happy.
Su Qingyu tried hard to maintain her composure and said to Prince Xuan, "Your Highness Prince Xuan, this piece was played by the celestial beings in the sky. I just restored it completely."
What she meant was that even if there were mistakes, it was the celestial beings who made them, and it had nothing to do with her.
But Prince Xuan was not satisfied with her answer. He said, "As a lutenist, when you find something wrong with the score and the performance is blocked, you should correct it immediately."
After a pause, he said, "Even when Mr. Shanyin composed on the spot, if he found something wrong in the middle, he would stop and revise it until the whole piece flowed smoothly. This is the greatest respect for the audience."
Mr. Shanyin was not only the most renowned lutenist in the Great Chu's court but also the music teacher at the Imperial Academy. His skills could only be matched by Su Yuanyuan, the second young lady of the Pingyang Marquis Mansion, his direct disciple.
Although the second young lady of the Pingyang Marquis Mansion had a bad reputation, her musical skills were truly outstanding.
Prince Xuan, who was always straightforward, blurted out naturally, "Even his disciple Su Yuanyuan could do it!"
Inspired by this thought, Prince Xuan's eyes lit up. He quickly said, "I finally understand why this piece sounds so familiar. Its style is very similar to other pieces composed by Su Yuanyuan before! If she were still here, she would surely play this piece more beautifully!"
The sudden mention of this somewhat distant name in such an occasion was like a thunderbolt out of the blue, stirring up different emotions in different people's hearts.
Among them, Su Zeqian at the banquet reacted most strongly. He knocked over the teacup beside him, and the tea spilled on his sleeve. In front of his eyes, the figure of that girl fluttering away like a fallen leaf reappeared.
In the middle of the hall, Su Qingyu's eyes suddenly turned cold, but she looked extremely aggrieved. "Your Highness Prince Xuan, do you mean to accuse me of stealing my younger sister's piece? But my younger sister passed away half a year ago. How could I possibly steal her piece?"
Prince Huai, who was infatuated with Su Qingyu, couldn't bear to see his beloved being humiliated at the banquet again and again. He immediately spoke up to defend her. "Fifth brother, you can eat whatever you want, but you can't talk recklessly. Without evidence, you can't just slander Qingyu for stealing someone else's piece. Have you ever thought about the consequences for her?"
Prince Xuan never expected that mentioning this name would cause such a big misunderstanding. He defended himself, "Fourth brother, I didn't say that Miss Su stole Su Yuanyuan's piece. Moreover, Miss Su and Su Yuanyuan are sisters from the Pingyang Marquis Mansion. Isn't it normal for them to have similar musical styles?"
The queen was in a terrible mood. She had kindly allowed Su Qingyu to perform, but it had only led to more disputes.
She scolded coldly, "Enough. Since the Pingyang Marquis Mansion has presented their birthday gift, please step down. Don't delay others."
Anyone with eyes could see that the queen was extremely unhappy.
Now, not only was Su Qingyu unlikely to receive a reward from the queen, but her chance to have the punishment revoked was also ruined.
At the banquet, Su Yuanyuan, nestled in Lady Mo's arms, almost burst out laughing.
If there was anyone in Shengjing worth befriending, it was Prince Xuan, the music - lover. He was extremely fond of music and had no interest in politics at all. He was indeed the purest among the princes.
To make Su Qingyu look even more ridiculous, Su Yuanyuan opened her red lips slightly and began to sing the piece "Refining the Rosy Clouds" that Su Qingyu had just played.