The outer teaching house was located in Chang'an and Luoyang, while the inner teaching house was located directly in the Daming Palace, not far from the Taiye Lake, past the Qinghui Pavilion. Changsheng was right. The teaching house was indeed full of plum trees, all red plums, in full bloom at this time. The red of the plums was not eye-catching, and at first glance it only made people feel amazed, not tacky.
Xie Wangzhi followed Changsheng as he walked under the plum tree, brushing off the plum petals that had fallen on his shoulders or hair. He couldn't help but look back at the door once more: "It's really beautiful."
"Right? You've seen plum blossoms growing on branches, picked and put in a vase. What else is there to see?" Beautiful scenery is always there. Changsheng is not as surprised as Xie Wangzhi. "Go in first, warm yourself up, and come out later."
Xie Wangzhi nodded, reluctantly looking away, and continued to walk in. Changsheng took her through a side door and into a small room. The room was cleaned tidy, and various musical instruments were neatly placed, waiting for the people in the music studio to use.
As soon as she entered the door, a hurried female voice suddenly came out from the other side: "Changsheng!"
"How dare you come back? Mr. He gave you a new song and asked you to tune the guzheng, but you ran out and disappeared for three to five days." A woman in her early twenties came over quickly. She was dressed like a female prostitute in a music studio. She had beautiful hair and a pretty face, but when she got angry, her eyebrows stood up, as if she wanted to pluck Changsheng like a weeping willow. "Where's the song you composed yourself? You said it years ago, why haven't I... yet..."
She just stretched out her hand to pull Changsheng's ear, and her sight shifted, and she saw Xie Wangzhi beside her. She froze for a moment, and then immediately withdrew her hand. The woman bowed to Xie Wangzhi politely, and when she bowed her head slightly, the ends of her hair fell beside her ears, gentle as flowing water.
"Excuse me, young lady. My name is Heming." She raised her head slowly, looking extremely dignified and graceful. There was no trace of the angry look on her face that showed when she had just hit Changsheng. It was as if she had become a completely different person in an instant.
Xie Wangzhi was stunned: "..."
"I learned konghou from Mr. He. This is Heming. According to outsiders, she is my senior sister." Changsheng was already used to Heming's changing expression like turning pages of a book. He touched the tip of his nose and explained to Xie Wangzhi, then said to Heming, "I have tried Mr. He's new song; only half of the song has been composed, so I will put it aside for now."
Heming obviously didn't believe it: "Really?"
"What's the point of lying to you?"
"…Okay." Heming looked Changsheng up and down, "If you had been less noisy when you were a kid, I wouldn't think you're lying to me now."
She sighed and turned her gaze to Xie Wangzhi, "Who is this young lady?"
Xie Wangzhi really didn't know how to answer. He blinked blankly. Before he could speak, he heard Changsheng's indifferent voice: "It's my friend. He came to the music studio to play for a while."
"Friend?" Heming was even more unconvinced.
Life in the palace was not so easy. Those who were born in poverty and had to go to the music school to learn skills would still fight against each other. She didn't believe that this prince with the blood of Longxi Li would bring his friends to the music school. But the young lady in front of her looked young, well-behaved, with clear and blank eyes, and she didn't seem to have any ulterior motives. It seemed that she really trusted her friends and was taken away to another place after being deceived.
"Okay." Heming felt that Xie Wangzhi was deceived by Changsheng, but she was too lazy to care. "Then take him with you, don't lose face for the music school in front of others."
She came to see Changsheng just for the two things just now. Just make it clear. There was no need to keep it in the way. Finally, she remembered something, smiled at Xie Wangzhi, turned around and left.
Seeing Heming walk out gracefully, Xie Wangzhi remembered that he forgot to reply earlier, which was really a bit rude: "... ah, I forgot to greet her."
"It's okay. We don't care about that. It's annoying to have to greet everyone." Changsheng didn't care. He walked to a shelf against the wall and started searching. "This is where music scores and musical instruments are kept. They can't be exposed to water. I have nothing for you to drink."
"It's okay, as long as it's warmer than outside." Xie Wangzhi rubbed his slightly frozen hands, looked around, and suddenly thought of something, "No, Changsheng, this is where the musical instruments are kept, I'm not from the music studio... Isn't it bad to come in so rashly?"
"What's wrong with that? I'm here. Besides, it's just a musical instrument, not something shameful to show." Changsheng couldn't find the book he wanted, so he whispered, "It hasn't been moved for a long time... I hope it won't be moved to another place."
“…What are you looking for?”
"List."
Xie Wang was shocked and quickly explained: "... No need! I believe you, you really don't need to find it for me. It was my fault to doubt you before. I was suspicious and suspected my friend just because I heard what others said... It was my fault..."
She was simple-minded and far from being old enough to play tricks with others. Changsheng had taken the initiative and forced her to touch the cartilage on her neck, which made her feel guilty for "just thinking that the boy was a eunuch". Moreover, Heming appeared in the middle of the process. She was obviously a female prostitute in the music school. Heming and Changsheng were quite familiar with each other, and she also mentioned "Mr. He", which further confirmed that Changsheng was indeed a musician in the music school.
Now that Changsheng said this, Xie Wangzhi thought about it and felt that it was because she suspected him and hurt his feelings that he had to take out the list. But she didn't know how to explain it. She said something nonsense and her face turned red again. She felt anxious and ashamed, but a slightly old book was handed to her.
Changsheng brushed off the dust on top, turned to one of the pages, and said calmly: "Take a look, it will make you feel at ease."
After he said that, Xie Wangzhi had no choice but to take the notebook with both hands.
The book was of moderate thickness, the paper was slightly yellowed, and the edges were frayed, showing that it was quite old. The page that Changsheng turned to had few names recorded, starting with "He Jing", and Xie Wangzhi guessed that it should be the "Mr. He" mentioned earlier. There were several branches-like lines drawn under He Jing, and the people recorded were all named but not surnamed. The familiar ones were Heming and Changsheng.
Xie Wangzhi brushed over the word "Changsheng", as if she was gently caressing the boy who was recorded that year through the paper. She lowered her eyes: "Don't you have a surname?"
"For people in the music school, unless they have a good family background or have made a name, they can keep a surname. For the rest, why do they need a surname? Just a name is enough." Changsheng said calmly, "Isn't it the same for palace maids?"
Indeed, if she hadn't been in the Shangshi Bureau, where she had the opportunity to get a title as a female official, Xie Wangzhi, let alone her roommates Lou Hanyue and Yao Yupan, would definitely not have been able to keep the names they brought from their families. If she had been unlucky at the time and was assigned to the Shangyi Bureau, and then served in the various palaces, she would probably have just changed her name to something catchy, and the past ten years in the palace would have passed like this.
It was always sad to mention it. The colder Changsheng's tone, the sadder Xie Wangzhi felt. She closed the book, still holding it with both hands, and returned it upright, saying seriously: "I'm sorry, I shouldn't have doubted you, it's my fault."
"It doesn't matter. It's true that I didn't explain it clearly, and it's wrong. Don't worry about it." Changsheng really didn't think much of it. He didn't have any expectations for Xie Wangzhi. He just wanted her to be safe and happy. As for other things, he didn't bother to think about them. He took the book, put it back, and said casually, "Do you want to hear me play music?"
Xie Wangzhi didn't like music very much, but she couldn't refuse such a good intention, so she hesitated: "... Is it okay?"
"Why not?" Changsheng turned back and gestured with his hands, "I can play all the instruments on this side."
“… all of them?” Xie Wangzhi looked at the shelf and was shocked.
"I've been in the music school since I was four or five years old, so it's been ten years now. I can't say I'm proficient, but I can play a passage." Changsheng smiled, "Choose, I'll pretend I can even if I can't."
Xie Wangzhi was amused and suddenly relaxed. She was still curious at her age, and stared at the shelf for a while, her eyes fell on the konghou at the bottom. The vertical konghou was large, occupying the entire layer, the head of the instrument was carved into a curved and smooth shape, with a phoenix head carved out as decoration, painted in gold, and inlaid with jade.
It turned out to be a phoenix-head konghou. Xie Wangzhi remembered what Heming had said before: "I remember, you can play the konghou?"
"Yes, I play the konghou." Changsheng looked over and saw the phoenix-head konghou. "Do you like this?"
"I can't say I like it. I can't play it." Xie Wangzhi said honestly, "But I want to hear you play it."
"Okay, I'll choose it once. I really know how to do it."
The phoenix-head konghou was heavy, so Changsheng didn't dare to move it directly. Fortunately, there was a base with rollers under the konghou. He gently controlled it and carefully moved this Western musical instrument out. The phoenix-head konghou had to be played by holding it, so he moved the konghou to the center of the room, sat down directly, and gently placed his hands on the strings.
"This is a vertical qin, brought from outside. I don't usually use it. I only take it out when I play Indian or Pyu music." Changsheng plucked the strings lightly, trying out the sounds one by one. "Listen, are they different?"
Xie Wangzhi didn't understand this, but after hearing Changsheng say this, it seemed that this was indeed what he meant. The sound of the phoenix-head guzheng was soft and melodious, and one could hear an exotic feeling that was different from the prosperous Chang'an.
She nodded: "What song do you want to play?"
"I composed it myself, and I haven't named it yet. But..." Changsheng paused and smiled, "Forget it, there's only half of it, you can try it first."
"good."
Xie Wangzhi nodded, and the music started.
Logically speaking, a foreign instrument like the phoenix-head konghou would always have foreign meanings when played, and she thought that she would hear the meaning of India or Pyu as she did when she tried to play it before. However, when Changsheng played it seriously, the song was more like a Han Chinese qin music, calm and peaceful, with something unspeakable hidden inside, which made people want to cry for no reason.
Changsheng half-hugged the konghou, his eyes slightly lowered, his fingertips brushed across the fourteen strings, playing a tune that only he knew. Light shone in from the doors and windows, brushed over the phoenix head, illuminated the gold and jade, and finally fell on him. He sat in the halo, his long black hair flowing over his clothes, with spots of light curling on the ends of his hair.
He lowered his head slightly in the middle of the song, his expression was calm, his profile was clear, and his long eyelashes were dotted with the light shining into the room, which danced gently on his eyelids when he blinked. The light was warm, but it was cold when it fell on him. Changsheng sat there, saying nothing, playing the music in silence, like a cold and beautiful jade sculpture, or a mural that had been around for thousands of years.
Xie Wangzhi looked at him blankly, and suddenly his nose felt sore.