Teacher Si and the students of Shuaixing Hall had been brewing the atmosphere for an entire afternoon, which was entirely disrupted by the few sharp snaps of Zhao Rong’s broken guqin strings.
In the eyes of some students, what was supposed to be an elegant event of "arriving in high spirits and leaving satisfied" had just dissipated, truly a mood-killer.
Si Wuxie stopped the movement of his hands, tilting his head towards the source of the snapped strings. He listened quietly for a moment, then smiled and shook his head, remaining silent.
Yu Huaijin glanced at Teacher Si and rose to approach Zhao Rong.
Jia Tengying stared blankly at his new roommate.
Not far from Jia Tengying, two female students were sitting upright. One of them couldn’t help but burst out laughing when she saw Zhao Rong clumsily break the strings.
"Jia Tengying, this must be your new roommate, hahaha, did he also run off from the middle of nowhere like you? Can’t even play the guqin," the girl said with a chuckle, unable to contain her mirth.
The girl was tall and her scholar’s uniform made her look rather "sturdy," although not in the plump way Jia Tengying appeared in his cotton-padded jacket under his scholar’s robe, or perhaps she was simply full-figured?
The female student’s face was plump, slightly overweight, with wandering eyes that were lively and spirited, especially her wide mouth that grinned widely, very expressive.
She looked at Jia Tengying with a smile, although her words were pressing, they mostly carried a teasing tone.
The girl sighed, "Ah, Huaijin has another thing to worry about. You really don’t give him a break."
Jia Tengying remained silent, looking down at the ancient guqin that his senior had given him, gently caressing the instrument.
"Xiao Hongyu, stop it," said the other female student quietly next to the exuberant girl, tugging at her friend Xiao Hongyu’s sleeve and subtly glancing at Jia Tengying’s expression.
Xiao Hongyu turned her head to look at her timid-looking companion and nodded, "I know, Li Xueyou."
Xiao Hongyu restrained her laughter, glanced at Jia Tengying and snorted, "Ah, it’s no fun. Finally meeting someone from the same kingdom at the Academy, and he turns out to be such a bore."
Jia Tengying didn’t respond; although they were from the same kingdom below the mountain, their statuses were worlds apart.
"Hongyu..." Li Xueyou called out again, and only then did Xiao Hongyu turn back, continuing to watch Zhao Rong with interest from afar.
Jia Tengying looked up at Li Xueyou. She had delicate features, a slender figure, standing gracefully. She was, however, timid and fragile beside Xiao Hongyu, making her figure seem even more slender and delicate.
Li Xueyou, along with Xiao Hongyu and Yu Huaijin, were the only three female students in Shuaixing Hall.
At that moment, Li Xueyou seemed to notice Jia Tengying’s grateful gaze. She smiled faintly but didn’t turn her head, continuing to quietly stand beside Xiao Hongyu, paying attention to what was happening with Yu Huaijin.
Just then, a male student with a gentle appearance finished playing a piece. Zhao Rong’s string-break hadn’t affected his performance.
The effeminate student took out a white cloth and while wiping his cherished guqin, glanced over at Zhao Rong and shook his head, remarking lightly:
"Ah, I’m afraid we have another Fan Yushu. In our last monthly exam, Fan Yushu did us a favor by taking his leave on time. He happened to be absent and didn’t drag us down, securing a first place for Shuaixing Hall. But now, look, one Fan Yushu comes back, and he’s brought another with him. I have my doubts about the next exam."
Xiao Hongyu nodded slightly at his words.
So did some of the surrounding students.
"Wu Peiliang, who are you talking about?"
The ephemeral student’s words had just reached Fan Yushu’s ears. He had been gloating over Zhao Rong’s mishap but hearing someone mock him made Fan Yushu defiant. Yu Huaijin could bully him, after all, and he wouldn’t dare to retort.
"Whomever I’m saying drags us down, that’s who I’m talking about," Wu Peiliang’s lips curled.
This time, Fan Yushu didn’t rush to retort. He looked at Wu Peiliang, then suddenly smiled and said:
"Peiliang, I truly already have a fiancée; please give up that desire of yours. Alas, we cannot be, don’t try to attract my attention anymore. I am a man you’ll never obtain... If only we could have met sooner, I’m sure you looked even lovelier before, it’s just a pity you met me during your prime."
With a soft sigh, Fan Yushu’s tone was full of regret, particularly emphasizing the word "lady."
Wu Peiliang’s hand on his guqin clenched tight. His face flushing with anger at the teasing eyes around him, he blurted, "Fan Yushu, who are you talking about? My name is Wu Peiliang!"
Fan Yushu watched Wu Peiliang’s changing expressions with amusement, finding that this method was indeed a tried-and-true way to provoke him. "Whose effeminate," I said.
Wu Peiliang glared with bulging eyes, "You, you, the decline of scholarly manners, the decline of scholarly manners!"
Fan Yushu met him with a smile, "Hey, no need to rush. Don’t get excited, Peiliang. Take it slow so you don’t get worked up to death."
Just as their argument was heating up, Yu Huaijin suddenly turned around and looked in their direction.
Wu Peiliang was about to blurt out a retort but promptly swallowed his words. He glared hard at Fan Yushu, then bowed his head without further regard, continuing to wipe his ancient guqin.
The other students who had gathered to watch also dispersed tactfully, no longer remaining in a group. After all, it was Teacher Si’s class, and although Teacher Si never "looked" at them, let alone managed classroom discipline, everything was self-regulated. Nevertheless, the overall learning atmosphere in Shuaixing Hall was very good, especially with the renowned Yu Huaijin from the Six Halls present.