roccoschili Chapter 198 I was loved for no apparent reason
Chapter 198 I was loved for no apparent reason
Duke Anguo, who had been silent all this time, suddenly spoke, which scared Madam Ji.
"Child, come here."
Duke Anguo waved to Jiang Tunan, and Jiang Tunan walked to his side obediently. Duke Anguo asked someone to bring a chair and pulled Jiang Tunan to sit beside him.
"Did you compose this piece?"
Jiang Tunan shook his head like a rattle.
"No, no, I don't have that ability."
Duke Anguo nodded slightly and said,
"You played very well. Don't listen to what others say. There is no distinction between high and low instruments. The only distinction is the heart of the performer."
Jiang Tunan nodded as if she understood. Why did she feel that the Duke of Anguo seemed to treat her differently all of a sudden?
"Dad, that's not what I meant..."
Madam Ji said unnaturally, but Duke Anguo snorted coldly.
"Don't think I don't know what you're thinking."
Guillen pulled his wife's hand and whispered,
"Say less."
Duke Anguo looked up into the distance.
"When I was just ten years old, my father died of illness. My mother refused to remarry, and we depended on each other for survival. Later, when I was eighteen years old and became a scholar, I thought I was finally going to live a good life, but my mother also died of illness."
"Later, I went to Beijing, won the second place in the imperial examination, became an official, and married your mother. People say that officials in Beijing are rich, but honest officials in Beijing are poor. Lian'er was not in good health when he was young, and he had to ask doctors to buy medicine every now and then. At that time, your mother was very smart, and Lian'er was only this tall. As the wife of the vice minister of the Ministry of Justice, she had to sell embroidered handkerchiefs to supplement the family income."
"The rice jar at home was never full, and I could wear a piece of clothing for five or six years. Most people in Kyoto flattered the powerful and looked down on the weak. They all looked down on my background, and I never had any chance of promotion."
"Later, Xinhui was born, and there was one more mouth to feed in the family. Life became increasingly tight. Later, your mother died early because of a disease she contracted when Xinhui was born."
"Everyone around me said that I was unlucky with my family. My parents died first, and then my wife. Lian'er was seriously ill at the time, and I thought my life was over."
“Just when I was about to give up, I saw Xinhui in her cradle, which gave me the courage to keep going.”
"Now, I have a happy family with many children and grandchildren, Lian'er has become the Minister of Justice, and Xinhui has married a good family..."
Madam Xiao looked apologetic and was about to stand up when she was stopped by Duke Anguo.
"Sit tight."
Jiang Tunan sat next to Duke Anguo and dared not utter a word, as if he had gotten into trouble.
"This girl plays the erhu very well. You can't hear it because you haven't had any major setbacks in your life. But you can't stand up and point fingers at other people's sufferings."
"I also understand some of the things. This girl was not treated well by her grandmother at home. She almost died of illness on the way after finally escaping. Fortunately, Huaimin was loyal and righteous, so she survived."
"At this point, she is already the daughter of the Ji family. You should treat her well. If she has any bad habits, you should teach her a lesson. Why should you be so rude to a little girl?"
Jiang Tunan: Why am I suddenly loved?
"I won't say harsh words in front of the younger generation, but you all need to know what's going on."
After Duke Anguo finished speaking, he looked at the younger generations again.
"And you guys, not to mention the hardships, you were all born with a silver spoon in your mouth, and you always look sad every time you go on a spring outing. If that's the case, we don't need to organize these activities anymore, lest you find it annoying."
As soon as these words were spoken, everyone knelt down and apologized.
"It's my daughter's fault. It's my daughter who made my father angry."
Madam Xiao knelt down with a guilty look on her face. Madam Ji did not dare to say a word. Ji Yiheng glared at Ji Yichen behind him.
"I'm talking about you."
When Jiang Tunan saw that everyone knelt down in unison, he immediately ran to the back and knelt down with them.
"Have I gotten into trouble?"
Jiang Tunan asked Ji Lingyue fearfully, but Ji Lingyue shook his head.
"It's not your fault. We have always let our grandfather down."
Duke Anguo looked at the people kneeling in front of him with a somewhat sad expression.
"I'm not scolding you, I just want you to remember where you came from. You should never forget your original intention. The scenery of Kyoto is charming. You must not become the kind of people who laughed at and looked down on me."
"The stupidest thing in the world is to judge people by their appearance."
Duke Anguo said a few more words and asked everyone to stand up. Ji Lingyue saw that the atmosphere was a little heavy, so he spoke softly,
"Aren't you going to perform? Xiaonan just finished her performance, so it's my turn now. But I'm better at painting. Zhule, go get my painting."
The maid Zhule brought Ji Lingyue's painting, and Ji Lingyue showed it to everyone.
"I've seen the painting of green mountains and green waters that my uncle collected before, and Lingyue really liked it, so I dared to copy one myself."
When Xiao Mingrui heard the picture of green mountains and green waters, he was obviously stunned for a moment, then he quickly looked at his father, and then looked at Jiang Tunan behind him.
"Lingyue's painting skills are getting better and better. With time, even the original work will be better than his."
Xiao Huaimin looked at the familiar painting and felt a little emotional.
"Thank you for the compliment, uncle."
Ji Lingyue bowed to express his gratitude, but Duke Anguo shook his head.
"It's just that your uncle loves you and said nice things to you against his conscience. I think you can only imitate 50% of the original work."
Ji Lingyue pretended to be unhappy and said coquettishly to Duke Anguo,
"Grandfather, are you sure you won't give me any face?"
Guillen joked,
"Look, this girl has also learned to deceive herself."
Everyone laughed after hearing this, the atmosphere at the banquet eased a lot, and Jiang Tunan breathed a sigh of relief.
As expected, I shouldn't have come. When I was performing, I didn't think too much and just wanted to play famous songs, which ended up making everyone unhappy.
In fact, what Mrs. Ji said was not reasonable. It was her own fault for not having good vision. She could not blame others.
As he thought about it, Jiang Tunan became depressed. He always brought trouble to the Xiao family unintentionally, and he had more tasks to do in the future, so he was afraid that trouble would continue.
Now that I have a little money and have entered a girls' school, most people don't dare to cause trouble for me, so I might as well find a house and move out as soon as possible.
It is rare in this era that the family atmosphere of the Xiao family and the Ji family is so good. I should not be the one who destroys it.
"What are you thinking about?"
Xiao Mingrui sat down next to Jiang Tunan without knowing when. Jiang Tunan's eyes were dazed for a moment, but soon returned to normal.
"Nothing, just a little sleepy. I'm full, that's all."
Jiang Tunan yawned and was about to walk away when he heard Xiao Mingrui speak again.
"You don't have to blame yourself. Duke Anguo is not so angry because of you. It can only be said that today is a breaking point."
“That’s because of me.”
Jiang Tunan muttered quietly.
"What did you say?"
Xiao Mingrui didn't hear clearly what Jiang Tunan said, and wanted to ask Jiang Tunan to say it again, but Jiang Tunan ran away before he could open his mouth.
"Brother is accompanying you, just dance."
It turned out that Ji Yiheng was pulling Ji Lingyue to dance. Ji Lingyue looked terrified.
"I won't!"
"I want to see it!"
Jiang Tunan took advantage of the chaos to hug Ji Lingyue. Xiao Mingli, Xiao Mingxu and others gathered around them. Xiao Mingli had a smile on his face.
"I remember that when my cousin Lingyue was little, she loved dancing in front of everyone. Why has she become so reserved now that she's grown up?"
Ji Lingyue: The memory of death suddenly attacked me.
Everyone was playing and laughing together. Xiao Mingrui smiled knowingly and walked towards the crowd.
Madam Ji and Madam Xiao went to rest in the carriage. Ji Lian was a little drunk beside them. Xiao Huaimin looked at the children playing in the distance with loving eyes. Seeing this, Duke Anguo whispered,
"At least she grew up safely."
Xiao Huaimin felt bitter and poured himself another glass of wine.
“It would be nice if he could see what Nan Nan looks like now.”
Xiao Huaimin was drunk and leaned back in his chair in a daze. The young people laughing in the distance looked different in his eyes.
He tilted his head to look at the painting that Ji Lingyue had placed next to him. In the dim light, he seemed to see again the young man in gorgeous clothes defending the image with righteousness.
[Don’t despise the poor youngsters, there will be a day when the dragon will pass through the phoenix, and the cage will finally come out after the mountains and rivers turn around...]
"Since I left you, we still meet again in the long pavilion or short pavilion. We still remember the ups and downs of the rivers and lakes, and the many times we capsized..."
A girl's singing voice was heard, and Xiao Huaimin squinted his eyes and looked towards the source of the sound.
In the distance, Jiang Tunan was spinning around with Ji Lingyue. Although Ji Lingyue had a shy expression on her face, she was happy in her eyes. Luo Yunqing was accompanying them with a smile on his face.
"Reading a painting is like traveling with you, with clouds and wild cranes coming and going, and the moon shining brightly over the three rivers..."
"When he passes away, his paintings will still be there, and he will remember his good times with a smile..."
[Brother Xiao, I don’t know when I will return. I give you this painting. I wish the green mountains remain unchanged and the green waters flow forever. I hope you can ride the wind and waves and realize your ambition.]