Chapter 65: Talents Are About Telling Stories

  From the moment she heard Yang Wen Hua speak, Qing Jin felt a sense of foreboding. Seeing Yang Wen Hua's seemingly inquiring tone now, but his gaze on her was full of playful intentions, she couldn't help but sigh inwardly.

  It's either good fortune or bad luck, but bad luck can't be avoided! Looking at her and Yang Wen Hua, they really don't get along. From the moment they met in their past life, they were always competing with each other, causing discord between their families. Now, although they've managed to avoid a direct confrontation, they've encountered this situation instead. If she still had some sense of superiority as a transmigrated woman before, then after seeing these noble ladies' impressive display of martial arts skills, that last bit of superiority has vanished. And hearing Yang Wen Hua's words that brook no refusal...

  "What, Second Miss Gu is unwilling to give face to the sisters present? I happened to hear that Second Miss Gu was exceptionally talented at a young age and had a great reputation, and two years ago she was even known as a famous talent in the capital!" Just as Qingjin was thinking about this, Yang Wenhua on the main seat spoke again with deep meaning.

  If it weren't for the inopportune occasion, Qing Jin really wanted to roll her eyes at Yang Wen Hua. Occasionally heard? Are you sure you didn't investigate carefully?

  With this in mind, Qing Jin's face showed a humble smile as she spoke to Yang Wen Hua: "Miss Yang is overpraising me. As for what is renowned far and wide, that was just something I said when I was young and foolish, trying to come up with new words and forcing myself to be melancholic. How could I dare call myself a talented woman? It's the modesty of all the sisters present here. I'm ashamed that I didn't get to know all of you sooner, and my trivial skills can't compare to the true talents of all the sisters!"

  Upon hearing Qingjin's words, Yang Wenhua on the main seat couldn't help but frown slightly. Didn't the investigation say that Gu Qingjin was arrogant and looked down on everything? How... However, she quickly reacted and spoke to Qingjin: "Does Second Sister Gu mean to not give face to all the sisters present?"

  "No, Sister Yang, my second sister didn't mean it that way." Before Qingjin could speak up, Qingyao, who was sitting next to her, immediately stood up and said to Yang Wenhua, "I'm right, aren't I, Second Sister? We're willing to show everyone what we've learned!"

  Seeing Gu Qingyao jump out, although she didn't know what Gu Qingyao was thinking, Qingjin nodded in agreement. "Fourth sister is absolutely right, I certainly don't have any intention of refusing. However, it's been a long time since I've written poetry, so please let Fourth Sister represent our Anji Houfu and showcase her talent to the sisters present. Second sister, may I take some time to think?"

  Upon hearing Qing Jin's words, Qing Yao was momentarily stunned, but her eyes soon sparkled with a captivating light. She wanted to nod, but thinking of something, she looked in Yang Wen Hua's direction.

  "What does Miss Yang think? May I let my fourth sister go first?" Qing Jin asked politely to Yang Wen Hua on the main seat.

  "Of course!" Yang Wenhua nodded in agreement without hesitation upon hearing Qingjin's words.

  Seeing Yang Wenhua nod, Qingyao walked out of her seat. She was dressed in white, elegant and refined like a fairy, walking gracefully to the ancient zither that had been prepared long ago, sat down, and placed the zither flat. Taking a deep breath, her jade fingers began to move on the zither, plucking slowly. The clear and melodious sound of the zither rose, like a mountain stream or white snow in spring. It was evident that this was a result of years of diligent practice. After Qingyao finished playing, she slowly walked out of her seat and curtsied slightly to the noblewomen.

  I didn't expect Gu Qingyao to have such good piano skills. Everyone's gaze turned to Gu Qingyao, and at this time, Yang Wenhua, who was sitting in the main seat, spoke up: "It seems that the Anji Hou Mansion is indeed a hundred-year-old family, Qingyao sister's piano art is really not ordinary, but I don't know what shocking skills Gu Ermei will bring to us after Qingyao sister has shown us such beautiful music?"

  "Thank you, Miss Yang, for your praise of my fourth sister. To be honest, I didn't expect her piano skills to be so superb either. This has put Qingjin in a difficult position, as she doesn't have the same level of skill as Fourth Sister. And besides, Qingjin is usually quite lazy..." Qingjin gazed slyly at Yang Wenhua.

  "Gu Er's sister won't say she doesn't have any special skills, will she?" Yang Wenhua said.

  "Yang sister is straightforward, but Yang sister really said it right. With the pearls of many sisters in front and my fourth sister's superb piano skills behind, it's not that Qingjin is humble, Qingjin's skills are definitely not comparable to those of others."

  Upon hearing Qingjin's words, Yang Wenhua's eyes flashed with a look of surprise. No one had ever admitted to being inferior in front of everyone before. This Gu Qingjin was indeed unusual. "What Miss Gu is saying, surely you don't mean that you're unwilling to show off your talents for us?"

  Yang Wenhua thought Qingjin was going to push away the performance and immediately blocked off Gu Qingjin's retreat.

  Qing Jin heard Yang Wen Hua's words and immediately spoke up: "Of course not, Qing Jin promised to do it. She just wanted to give everyone a heads up in advance. Qing Jin is quite ordinary in every way. Originally, she wanted to compose a poem, but it's been a long time since she last wrote one, so for the moment, she's a bit unprepared and her thoughts are blocked. How about this? Qing Jin usually likes to read unofficial histories and miscellaneous notes. Although they're not exactly something to show off, everyone here is a good sister, so Qing Jin will tell you all a story instead! You've probably all seen enough of music, chess, books, and paintings; how about Qing Jin tells you an interesting story?" Qing Jin finally revealed her true intention.

  Upon hearing Qingjin's words, the noble ladies present all began to discuss and debate, but they were mostly young girls who were curious about new things. After discussing, they all turned their attention to Yang Wenhua, after all, Yang Wenhua was the host of this banquet.

  Yang Wenhua saw that everyone was looking at her, and after a moment of contemplation, she spoke to Qingjin: "Sister Gu Er is indeed clever, but I've never heard of showcasing one's talents by telling a story... However, since Sister Gu Er has said so, and it's her first time attending our banquet, I won't embarrass her. So, Sister Gu Er, I'll represent the sisters in allowing you to tell us a story. But don't try to fool us, this story must be one that none of us have heard or seen before, and it has to be interesting. What do you say?"

  Qing Jin smiled faintly at Yang Wen Hua's words, and since the people present hadn't heard many of her stories, she naturally had a lot to share, so she began speaking to Yang Guang Hua: "Qing Jin has accepted Sister Yang's words."

  "Then let's start with Gu Er's sister!"

  Upon hearing Yang Wen Hua's words, Qing Jin smiled and nodded slightly. But what story should she tell? Although she had agreed readily enough, when it came to actually telling a story, she had heard and seen many before, but considering the grand backdrop, there were many stories that couldn't be told. She sifted through them in her mind, wanting one that was both pleasant to hear and would interest the noble ladies present. What should she tell?

  Thinking back to university days, after lights out, the topic that everyone loved discussing the most, our dormitory's elder sister once said, women care about nothing more than clothes, accessories, cosmetics and gossiping about men. Clothes, accessories, cosmetics don't have much story to tell, but men? This is a feudal society that emphasizes separation between males and females, talking about this topic, unless she was out of her mind, wanting to die, which is also ruled out. Wait, actually doesn't another meaning of men refer to love?

  Throughout the ages, stories of love have been told one after another. However, if I were to tell this story as well, it would be somewhat inappropriate. Just then, Qing Jin's gaze inadvertently fell upon a porcelain vase placed beside the pavilion.

  A flash of inspiration, and I remembered it - Qing Hua Ci! The sky is a deep blue, like the smoke and rain that I'm waiting for you in. At that time, Qing Jin really liked Jay Chou's songs with stories, liking the faint melancholy and sorrow in the lyrics. When "Qing Hua Ci" came out back then, she even specifically searched on Baidu about the story behind "Qing Hua Ci", and had read a story like this on Baidu before.

  "Alright then, Qingjin will tell all the sisters a story about blue and white porcelain!"

  "Qinghua porcelain?"

  "Are there any more pleasant stories about Qinghua porcelain?" someone asked skeptically.

  Qing Jin smiled silently, gazing at Yang Wen Hua. When Yang Wen Hua saw Qing Jin's gaze, he lightly cleared his throat, and everyone immediately fell silent. Yang Wen Hua then spoke to Qing Jin: "Then little sister, start telling the story of this blue and white porcelain!"

  Qing Jin nodded slightly, and began to tell a story she had once heard: In the distant past, deep in the mountains, there was a town called Qing Hua Town... This place had a special kind of clay... Only the porcelain made from the clay dug up in Qing Hua Town had a glaze that was white with a hint of blue. The color of the glaze was a bright blue-green, and it was very stable, so people from all over came to the town to buy its porcelain... And among all the kilns in the town, the Zhou family's kiln was the most famous, whoever could buy their porcelain was considered to have gotten the best dowry for their daughter. The legendary Tian Qing Hua porcelain was said to be the treasure of the Zhou family's kiln. It was said that if a woman could get one before she got married and placed it in her boudoir after marriage, she would always be cherished and protected by her husband, no matter how far he went, his heart would only belong to her.

  As expected, after finishing this sentence, those aristocratic girls who were still sneering and disdainful all quietly listened to Qingjin tell the story. Seeing this reaction, Qingjin smiled in her heart. Young girls in their youth always yearn for beautiful love, not to mention noble girls in ancient times who had no entertainment.

  Then, after seeing everyone's gaze gather around, Qingjin revised the story in her heart and began to narrate this beautiful and romantic love story.

  Legend has it that in this winter, the Zhou family kiln had been waiting for a long time to produce a batch of sky-blue porcelain. This kind of porcelain must be fired in the oven and come out at the moment when it is raining outside... It hadn't rained for a long time this year, but on this day, suddenly the sky was filled with misty rain, and the heavens were low and overcast...

  Thank you for the pink tickets from Little Princess +o+, thank you for the four anniversary cakes from Rainy Ting's courtyard and the two anniversary cakes from Perfect Little Fish...