Don't Say You're Heartless (Modern Edition)

20 On stage

Yang Qiong had watched the movie 'The Smiling, Proud Wanderer' before, but it had been a long time. She had forgotten many details, and this time, rewatching it, she noticed some new things. Having experienced the deceit and swordplay in the palace, suffered injuries, endured torture, killed and saved people, although she was still the same person, her mindset had changed. Now, looking at the martial world again, and the people in it, she couldn't help but admire how well the movie was made.

Shen Qiuhua watched very intently, especially when Qu Yang and Liu Zhengfeng were playing 'A Laugh in the Vast Sea' on the boat— she didn't even blink.

"It turns out this kind of martial spirit was what was missing," Shen Qiuhua sighed after watching the movie.

"Can you play it?" Yang Qiong thought this might be a bit of a challenge for her. After all, she was a woman from a secluded background; where would she find the martial spirit?

"Let's try tomorrow," Shen Qiuhua said. Without a guqin at hand, talking about it was useless.

The next morning, Shen Qiuhua went upstairs to play the guqin while there were no classes. Her fingers touched the strings, and scenes from the movie played in her mind, frame by frame. Her fingers seemed to have a mind of their own, and the music she played was no longer gentle but wild and unrestrained.

Yang Qiong leaned against a table, listening to the piece with a smile and said, "I'm really impressed. How can you play with such feeling?"

"I don't understand the martial world, but days of swordplay and deceit are familiar to me. The country laughs, the misty rain is distant, the waves wash away how much of the mundane world... The martial world is like the harem, with endless strife. Even someone as exhausted as I am will eventually fail. So..." She looked at Yang Qiong, "Thank you for appearing, giving me a chance to escape the palace and come here. All that happened in my past life is like the waves washing away the dust." After saying this, she lightly moved her fingers and played the piece again, with an even more intense fervor than before.

"A real talent!" Yang Qiong was left speechless by her insight.

That day after school, Shen Qiuhua and Teacher Bai's rehearsal was completely disrupted. The difference in their momentum became immediately apparent. Teacher Bai was puzzled, "Why have you suddenly changed, Little Shen?"

"I had some new insights after watching a movie yesterday," Shen Qiuhua smiled. She no longer felt it was necessary for the two of them to rehearse together today.

"Oh? Watching a movie is so useful? I should go home and watch one too. Let's rehearse again tomorrow," Teacher Bai said, clearly not an amateur. She knew the problem was with herself and decided to work hard at home.

"Did she just leave like that?" Yang Qiong asked, looking at Teacher Bai's departing figure.

"What else could she do? One can only say Teacher Bai is a professional. If you were in her place, you probably wouldn't have thought of practicing at home," Shen Qiuhua rubbed her fingers, which were slightly red and swollen from the hard strings.

Yang Qiong walked over, helping her rub her fingertips and said, "Don't look down on me too much, okay?"

Shen Qiuhua ignored her, "Let's go downstairs, it's noisy here."

"Let's stay a bit longer." With so few people around, Yang Qiong didn't want to leave so soon.

Shen Qiuhua sighed, "I have a lot of homework to grade."

"I'll help you."

"Whether you know how to grade or not, how will I know how well the students have grasped the material after you grade? You can't help with this, just go back to your office." As they spoke, they had already left the comprehensive practice classroom.