Chapter 333: Learning the Zither
Chapter 333: Learning the Zither
Suisui and the others were happily chasing cranes.
Cranes: ...!
You bunch of lively fathers!
The flock of cranes ran with a month's worth of exercise in a single day.
And they still hadn't finished running.
This is deadly!
Is there anyone who can control these cranes?
Don't the cranes' lives matter?
The arrival of Fenxuan Shang saved the group of white cranes that were almost exhausted from running.
He had a gentle tone and was talented; it didn't take long for him to take Suisui and the others to listen to the zither.
Fenxuan Shang played it himself.
Fenxuan Bin fainted and fell asleep after drinking the calming soup.
The children were scared, and Princess Qi was worried, so she asked Qiu Gugu to send someone to invite Doctor Liu back to the city.
At this time, Fenxuan Bin was still sleeping, Suisui and Fenxuan Rui sat there, listening to Fenxuan Shang's zither music, and were almost mesmerized.
In fact, Fenxuan Rui was not the type to sit still.
But the Third Prince played so well!
Fenxuan Rui felt that the zither music was also very pleasant.
Moreover, his sister was listening with sparkling eyes.
After watching this, Fenxuan Rui, as an older brother, couldn't help but reflect on whether it was not good that he didn't want to practice the zither before.
Now that his sister likes it, he can't play a complete song.
He must practice the zither! He used to find it too bitter to continue practicing.
But now, with the motivation of his sister's love for music, Fenxuan Rui felt that he could do it again.
When the song ended, Fenxuan Rui squeezed in beside Fenxuan Shang with a smile: "Third Brother, teach me, I'm also very talented. The old teacher said so, I just can't sit still."
Suisui was curious and envious; she also wanted to learn, but she was too shy to say so.
Fenxuan Shang turned his head and saw the children's longing. He waved to Suisui, "Suisui, come to your third brother here."
With no outsiders present, Fenxuan Shang's demeanor became even gentler.
Suisui obediently walked over and sat on the other side of Fenxuan Shang.
Fenxuan Shang raised his hand and lightly touched the zither strings: "This is actually easy to learn. We need to memorize it first..."
Fenxuan Shang was very serious about teaching the two children.
Fenxuan Rui had a foundation; he had learned before but had given up halfway due to his restlessness.
Because of his young age, the prince's mansion had not forced him either.
So now that he was playing again, he still remembered some of the basic knowledge, and he picked it up faster.
Although the zither music he played was a bit stiff and awkward, at least he could play.
Suisui, on the other hand, had absolutely no foundation, and she had to work hard to memorize the basic knowledge that Fenxuan Shang taught her.
After memorizing, she still needed to practice.
Suisui: ...!
It's too difficult; it's really too difficult!
I can't learn it; I just can't learn it!
Suisui's eyes were red with tears, and she felt overwhelmed.
When Fenxuan Shang saw that Suisui's eyes were red, he was also startled.
He couldn't help but reflect on where he had gone wrong in his teaching.
Not wanting to see the child cry, Fenxuan Shang asked gently, "What's wrong, Suisui? Tell Third Brother. Don't panic, don't be afraid, Third Brother is here."
Fenxuan Rui had just been scared by his own terrible zither playing, and he almost cried.
But he was resilient and didn't cry.
When he heard that his sister was about to cry, he was startled and quickly poked his head over, "Sister, what's wrong? Is there something you can't learn? Don't worry, I'm here, I'll accompany you to learn."
Encouraged by her two brothers, Suisui regained her enthusiasm for learning.
Fenxuan Shang played the guzheng (a Chinese zither), which required relatively less finger flexibility, so even though Suisui was young, she could learn to play.
As the evening glow spread across the land and meandered along the winding mountain roads, Suisui finally managed to pluck out a simple melody amidst the clouds.
And indeed, the guzheng is relatively easy to learn, but to play it well and make it sound pleasant, one needs to accumulate a lot of time and practice.
Nowadays, Suisui is at the beginner level, and her playing is very stiff and awkward.
However, for her, being able to pluck out a sound is already great.
In the past, she never had the opportunity to see such an instrument.
So, when Suisui tried to pluck out a tune, she was so happy that she clapped her hands in delight: "It sounds so good, Gege, Third Brother, I did it!"
The little girl was so happy that she wanted to jump up and cheer.
Fenxuan Rui was also happy to see her like this.
Although he played with a cold and stiff sound,
However, as long as his sister played well, that was enough for him.
"My sister, the best in the whole capital!" Fenxuan Rui happily clapped his hands.
Princess Qi had long heard that Suisui was learning the guzheng from Fenxuan Shang.
Since the child was still young and her body had not fully recovered, Princess Qi didn't expect much from her in terms of other talents.
Now, seeing Suisui's interest, Princess Qi began to reflect on whether she had been too lenient with her expectations for the child.
Thinking of this, she called for Qiu Gugu and began inquiring about the best qin players and instrument makers in the capital.
...
She prepared to gather all the necessary musical instruments first.
Later, she would find a talented teacher to instruct Suisui.
Qi Wang managed to leave the palace before the gates closed, followed by...
Crown Prince Fenxuan Ting.
The Crown Prince came of age this year and was a handsome and mature young man.
After Qi Wang's visit to the palace, he and the Emperor indulged in various speculations and analyses.
The Emperor, aware that Princess Jiaoyang's matter was a thorn in the Empress's side, found their analysis reasonable, mainly because...
That spot used to be where the former Emperor indulged his favorite concubine.
It was highly possible that Princess Jiaoyang's marriage to the Su family in Cangzhou was orchestrated by that faction.
If the favorite concubine's faction colluded with the Su family, they could have hidden Princess Jiaoyang's remains there.
However, the Emperor couldn't easily leave the palace, burdened as he was with a slew of state affairs.
Hence, he dispatched the Crown Prince instead.
The Crown Prince and Qi Wang rode their horses and returned just before dusk.
By the time they arrived, Suisui had already finished dinner and was listening to Fenxuan Shang telling stories.
Fenxuan Bin had woken up once in the evening, crying and fussing until Doctor Liu managed to soothe him back to sleep.
After he fell asleep, the doctor also burned some calming incense to ensure the child had a peaceful rest.
Since Suisui and Fenxuan Rui hadn't witnessed the critical findings, they didn't carry much fear or anxiety.
After examining Fenxuan Bin's pulse, Doctor Liu assured that the child was fine and left Fenxuan Shang to comfort the other two children to sleep.
It must be said that Fenxuan Shang indeed had a way with children, likely owing to his experience in caring for his younger brother, Xiao Jiu.
So, calming the two children posed no challenge for him.
Although Suisui had only spent an afternoon learning the guzheng with him, she already felt a sense of dependence on him.
So, while she might not have obeyed Fenxuan Shang's every word, she was still willing to listen to his stories.
The children had played all day and even dug for a while in the afternoon.
After their evening bath and once their hair was towel-dried, the soothing voice of Fenxuan Shang lulled Suisui to sleep amidst the clouds.
Fenxuan Rui stayed awake a little longer, curious about the day's events.
However, fearing that his questions might upset his sister, he refrained from asking.
Second Watch of the Night
(End of Chapter)
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