"I…I see."
At this time, Long Xu Nian had just presented some precious herbs. She noticed Nan Hua and Nan Xin were staying at the back. The corner of her lips curled up. "Miss Nan, do you have something to show too?"
The attention immediately fell to the two Nan sisters.
Nan Xin was feeling a bit frightened as she turned to look at Nan Hua and immediately said, "First Sister, how about if you play a music for Her Highness? We've been practicing zither together in the past."
When did they play together?
Nan Hua was staring at Nan Xin with her usual indifferent look but Long Xu Nian naturally would not miss this chance. "First Miss Nan, could you allow us to listen to your performance? I'm sure that you will be able to do well for Her Highness, right?"
'Double team?'
Lowering her eyes, Nan Hua curtsied lightly. "This one is untalented but if Her Highness wishes to hear my play, I'll play. This one* just hope that Her Highness will not be angry at the performance later."
Princess Yue was not interested in what these girls perform. Many of them couldn't be compared to the professional she had been hearing and seeing ever since she was young in the palace. But seeing the look on Long Xu Nian's eyes, she nodded.
"Don't worry, this Princess will not punish you just because your play is not up to standard."
The other girls also flattered the princess, saying that she was benevolent. They also asked her to be forgiving since Nan Hua was still fairly young.
Because Nan Hua didn't bring a zither on her own, the princess lent her one of hers. It was made out of good quality and even from a distance looked pretty good. Nan Hua tried the sound a bit but didn't really understand much.
Before long, her small fingers began to play the music. There were barely any songs she knew from this era, so she copied the play from another girl before her. it was a common song that depicted the scenery.
Since it was quite suitable, Nan Hua didn't mind using this.
However, her play was indeed average.
It was worse than the other girls around but they couldn't say that it was bad either. The notes were mostly correct and some were only slightly off, which could be attributed to her not being skilled enough. And with her young age, how could she perform so well?
Princess Yue's face was calm but Long Xu Nian was sneering.
In fact, Long Xu Nian was gloating. 'And here I thought that she's the role model but it turns out that such a simple song can falter her. She's worse than what I thought. It should be easier to deal with her before I got married.'
But of course, if Long Xu Nian knew that this was Nan Hua's first time playing this song, she might think otherwise.
Ting!
The song finally ended. Nan Hua looked at Princess Yue and her expression was still as indifferent as ever. It was as if there was nothing that could disturb her. She curtsied. "Pardon my poor play, Your Highness."
"You're still young and naturally can improve better." Princess Yue didn't mind in the slightest bit.
At the back, Nan Xin smiled sweetly as she stood up. "Your Highness, how about if I play a piece for you?"
"You?" Princess Yue furrowed her eyebrows but she didn't refuse. She nodded her head elegantly and pointed towards the zither. "In that case, let's all listen to Second Miss Nan's performance."
Nan Hua could see that Nan Xin was smiling smugly, confident with herself. However, Nan Hua could care less about it. She knew very well that if she performed too well, she would only attract more attention to herself but if she played too poorly, she would also attract attention.
In that case, be average, be ordinary.
As she sat down on her place, Nan Xin also began to play the piece that she had prepared. The way Nan Xin played was completely different with Nan Hua. She used her body language and expression to express the music, making it more pleasing to watch her rather than watching Nan Hua.
Despite being younger, Nan Xin was playing exceptionally well. Many girls sighed while some were eyeing her with jealousy. It was clear that they were thinking that Nan Xin was lucky to have such a good talent.
"Your Highness, I'm done." Nan Xin curtsied.
Princess Yue nodded. She was more satisfied with this performance. "You may stay behind to learn how to make the tea later."
Nan Xin beamed. "Thank you very much, Your Highness!"
After that, Nan Xin returned to her seat. Her eyes when she looked at Nan Hua was filled with mockery and gloating. It was clear that she was using Nan Hua to make her performance better.
After hearing a subpar performance, her play sounded better than what it was supposed to be.
Nan Hua didn't have any reaction but those who knew her would realize that her eyes turned slightly colder. She might be indifferent to others but those who wanted to use her… hehe, they should be prepared to face her retaliation.
Long Xu Nian naturally wanted to make things more difficult for Nan Hua but there were no other chances for her to do anything. The rest of the time was spent to flatter Princess Yue or watched Princess Yue and Shangguan Die targeted each other.
It was very monotone.
Nan Hua was watching from the back and when it was time to end the tea party, Princess Yue asked for those who performed better to stay behind. She would teach them how to make the tea.
"The others may see the ingredients first before you leave." Princess Yue waved her hand and the servants moved at rapid speed. Tables were prepared and the necessary herbs were placed on top of the table in high efficiency.
Looking at the row of herbs, Nan Hua naturally realized that there was no poppy inside.
'So I'm also targeted?'
There was no need to ask who would possibly target her as Nan Hua could guess it. But it would be hard for her to do anything without attracting attention right now.
"The others, please leave." Long Xu Nian waved her hand towards the entrance.
Some girls expressed pity but there were also others who seemed relieved instead. After all, some of them have worse tea brewing skill and didn't really want to show off that poor skill in front of others.
"Second Miss Nan, over here."
"Yes." Nan Xin walked closer to the table. She was feeling excited because she could get the chance to learn with Her Highness even though her usual skill was quite poor. But when she got closer, there was a sudden pain on her knee.
Before she knew it, her body lunged forward.
"AAaaaaaaaa!"
"Second Miss Nan!"
Bang!
Hitting the table, Nan Xin then fell to the ground. The herbs, utensil, and the water that was prepared carefully shook and some of them fell. Not only that, the water also splashed against the nearby herbs.
The girls all gasped in surprise while some were looking at Nan Xin with pity.
They knew that this action of Nan Xin had thoroughly angered Princess Yue. Just one look and they could see that Princess Yue's face had darkened considerably. It was clear that she didn't have any plan to let Nan Xin off.
"Your Highness, this.. I…" Nan Xin panicked as she tried to stand up. Her eyes noticed the mess almost immediately as her heart sunk. She knew very well that she wouldn't be able to get away safely.
She then turned to look at the other girls. Her eyes landed on Nan Hua immediately but the latter was already near the entrance. Was it possible for Nan Hua to be the one to instigate her?
But the pain on her knee was too sudden.
"Second Miss Nan, could you please explain this behavior?" Princess Yue asked icily.
Shangguan Die laughed loudly. "Second Miss Nan, if you don't wish to learn with Princess Yue, you can always say it. There's no need for you to act pitiful and fall in such exaggerated manner."
"I didn't! I lose my footing…"
The other girls who were not selected were tactful enough to leave the scene. They were already close to the entrance and naturally didn't have any intention to stay behind and watched the drama ongoing. Who knew whether Princess Yue would suddenly implicate them when they were about to leave.
They already performed badly, was there any need for them to leave worse impression?
While the girls were scurrying to leave, Nan Hua was clearly among them.. There was no change in her expression as she walked out of the Western Courtyard as if everything that happened before was unrelated to her.