Chapter 716: Not Saying You Won't?

Because she was in Juzan Pavilion and by Ji Yuan's side, Zao Niang felt completely at ease entering an unguarded state of absorption while reading.

The sights and sensations Zao Niang experienced while reading "The Phoenix Seeks His Mate" revealed a vastness and beauty she had never imagined. This sublime beauty felt so natural, with her eyes, ears, and heart resonating together. In her unique identity as a spiritual root of heaven and earth, she seemed to transform into the Wutong tree in the sea, observing the phoenix sing and dance alongside Ji Yuan, as if moving and resting in harmony with the phoenix, becoming part of its graceful performance.

Ji Yuan quietly poured himself honey tea, enjoying the tranquility of the courtyard. Even when he casually took out the "Sword Intent Calligraphy" and set it aside, the little characters on it were perceptive enough not to immediately cause a ruckus. Instead, they all flew off the calligraphy, gathering behind Zao Niang to watch her read "The Phoenix Seeks His Mate."

As characters whose true form was text, they were always very sensitive to such special books, particularly those written by Ji Yuan, which attracted them even more.

Meanwhile, in the afterglow of the setting sun, Hu Yun led the way, accompanied by Jin Jia, walking out of Tianniu Ward.

At this hour, Shuangjingpu in Tianniu Ward was one of the two busiest times of day. The women of the ward, who usually chattered endlessly around the two large wells and the stream that flowed through the ward, suddenly grew much quieter, all staring at Hu Yun and Jin Jia as they passed by.

Truth be told, Hu Yun had always used various methods to avoid human gaze before. Today was the first time he appeared before so many people in his self-chosen human form, and he was still a bit nervous. However, with so many women in Shuangjingpu staring intently at him, he felt a little proud, thinking his appearance must be quite attractive.

Once Hu Yun and Jin Jia passed Shuangjingpu, the area behind them immediately burst into chatter, far louder than before.

"Hey, that young man who just passed by is so handsome!"

"Yes, he looks even more delicate than a young girl."

"Which wealthy family's young master is that?" "Young master? No, I think it's a young lady disguised as a man!"

"Oh, and the guard behind him, he's so burly, like an iron tower!"

"Yes, he looks like a sturdy fellow!" "Hahahaha..."

"What nonsense are you talking..."

"Look at that young master, his face was red as a pig's liver just now. He must be a novice, hahahaha..."

"Maybe it is a young lady after all, with such a mighty bodyguard, tsk-tsk..."

"Hahahaha..."

"Quiet down..." "They can't hear us from this far."

The women of Shuangjingpu usually chatted and joked like this. With Hu Yun and Jin Jia having walked far away, they naturally spoke without any reservations. However, while Hu Yun's and Jin Jia's hearing wasn't as extraordinary as Ji Yuan's, it was far beyond that of ordinary mortals. They heard almost everything of the teasing comments and discussions behind them.

Jin Jia, naturally, showed no reaction, but Hu Yun's face flushed crimson, and his pace quickened considerably.

He had heard Mr. Ji mention before that the gossiping ability of a group of market women gathered together was extraordinary. Hu Yun had occasionally observed and overheard them in the past, but this time, being the subject of their discussion, he truly experienced their power.

Once they were far from Shuangjingpu, in a secluded alley almost out of Tianniu Ward, Hu Yun immediately waved his hand and, with a subtle transformation, slightly altered his appearance. However, based on his inner feelings, he was reluctant to change this appearance too much. It was already an inner image he had occasionally formed during his cultivation, and his future transformation might closely resemble it.

"Jin Jia, do I look a bit more masculine now than before?"

Hu Yun looked up and asked Jin Jia, whose shoulders were almost level with his own height. Jin Jia, who had been looking straight ahead, merely glanced sideways at him upon hearing the question, a look that easily conveyed disdain. Seeing this, Hu Yun couldn't help but rub his forehead.

"Alright, I get your point... Little Paper Crane, do you think I look better now?"

"Chirp!"

"You're the best, and you have good taste!"

However, the Little Paper Crane then kept gesturing forward with its two wings, occasionally drawing a shape, and then pointing towards the west.

"Chirp chirp chirp!"

"Right, right, right, business first! It'll be dark soon!"

In small county towns like this, shop closing times were usually quite random. Often, shopkeepers decided for themselves, opening if there were customers and closing if there weren't. Taking advantage of the remaining daylight, Hu Yun and Jin Jia jogged towards the street.

The county now had no shortage of bookstores and shops selling scholarly items. Soon, they spotted a bookstore, and without much thought, Hu Yun rushed in with Jin Jia.

"Shopkeeper, do you have any books on music?"

The bookstore shopkeeper was tidying the shelves inside, clearly preparing to close. Hearing the voice, he turned around to see a handsome young gentleman with a strong man at the entrance.

"Music? I don't have many books on that. Let me look for you, customer."

Bookstores, of course, mainly sold popular books. Books like what Hu Yun was asking for were rarely stocked. After searching for a long time, the shopkeeper only found one zither music score, and it was just the score, without instructions on how to compose music.

They went to several bookstores in a row. Some shops had no music-related books at all, their stock mostly consisted of Yin Zhaoxian's books. At the fifth shop, the shopkeeper searched for a long time inside and finally found one book, which he handed to Hu Yun, who had been waiting at the counter for a while.

"Just one?"

"Yes, customer, just this one. Perhaps you could try another shop."

"Oh..."

Hu Yun took the book, paid, and looked down. To his surprise, it was the same as the zither music score from the first shop, both titled "Zhu Song Qu."

Outside the shop, he handed the book to Jin Jia first. Feeling he wouldn't be able to complete Mr. Ji's task today, he looked at Jin Jia, who was carrying rice paper and books, but couldn't find the Little Paper Crane.

Outside the street-side market, the Little Paper Crane flapped its wings and flew towards a certain spot.

"Chirp!"

Sun Yayya looked up at the sky upon hearing the sound, her face immediately showing surprise.

"Little Paper Crane!"

"You're here, so is Mr. Ji nearby too?"

Sun Yayya, holding her vegetable basket, looked around for Ji Yuan. She didn't see him, but quickly spotted the more noticeable Hu Yun and Jin Jia.

"Hahaha... Sun Yayya!"

Hu Yun greeted Sun Yayya as he ran.

"You are...?"

"Haha, I knew you wouldn't recognize me!"

Hu Yun stood with his hands on his hips, looking a bit smug. He could tell that Sun Yayya was also a cultivator, but she couldn't see through his illusion.

"I'm Hu Yun, and this is Jin Jia. Mr. Ji sent us out to buy books on music, rice paper, and a purple bamboo flute!"

"Mr. Ji is really back?"

Sun Yayya's face lit up with surprise at the news.

"Yes, Mr. Ji just arrived. By the way, Yayya, books on music are so hard to find. Do you know where I can get some?"

Sun Yayya, holding her vegetable basket, thought for a moment and said,

"Elegant music is hard to find, but places that sell musical instruments might have some leads. Did you buy the flute?"

Hu Yun shook his head.

"Mr. Ji wants one made of purple bamboo. Just now, I found a musical instrument shop and a general store, both said they sold purple bamboo flutes, but those flutes had no spiritual essence whatsoever. I wasn't sure if Mr. Ji would scold me for buying them, so I even wanted to run back to Niukui Mountain to find a good bamboo from the purple bamboo forest there."

As he spoke, Hu Yun took out a flute from a basket Jin Jia was carrying and showed it.

"Did you ask the shopkeeper about books then?"

Hu Yun shook his head.

"They only have basic music scores. Mr. Ji wants to learn how to compose music, which is different."

"Mr. Ji wants to learn to compose music? I can do that!"

The moment Sun Yayya said this, Hu Yun and the Little Paper Crane immediately fixed their gaze on her. Even Jin Jia, who was usually indifferent to most matters, looked down at her.

Without hesitation, Sun Yayya was immediately pulled back by Hu Yun. On the way, they briefly stopped at the Sun family's residence to drop off her vegetable basket and inform them, then headed directly to Juzan Pavilion.

"Mr. Ji!"

Sun Yayya called out, a little excited. Ji Yuan merely looked up at her, Hu Yun, and the others, and nodded.

"You've arrived?"

"Yes!"

"Mr. Ji, I've bought everything. I found the best rice paper. The purple bamboo flutes were all of inferior quality; only these two are slightly better. All the books are just music scores, but Sun Yayya says she knows music and can teach you!"

Hu Yun gestured to Jin Jia to put down the bamboo basket he was carrying, and quickly summarized their findings.

"Uh... I only know a little..."

Sun Yayya felt a bit embarrassed, but Ji Yuan seemed quite pleased.

"That's perfect then. Come sit over here. Yes, have some tea. I'll try first, and you can correct me later."

Ji Yuan poured tea for Hu Yun and Sun Yayya. As for the Little Paper Crane and Jin Jia, who couldn't drink tea, one flew onto a shoulder, and the other stood to the side. Then Ji Yuan took out one of the purple bamboo flutes.

Ji Yuan understood the posture for playing the flute. After positioning his hands, he brought the flute to his lips.

"Woo... Oom... a soft sighing..."

After trying out a few notes and gaining a sense of it, the next moment, a beautiful melody flowed from his flute. Hu Yun was stunned, and Sun Yayya nearly dropped her teacup.

'Didn't they say Mr. Ji didn't understand music and needed to learn? And I was supposed to teach him...'

Sun Yayya's face quickly turned crimson like a fire jujube, utterly mortified. But soon, the profound and melodious flute notes captivated her, drawing her deep into the music, unable to extricate herself. Not just her, but Hu Yun, Jin Jia, the Little Paper Crane, and even Zao Niang and the little characters who had been immersed in their book, all had their minds drawn in by the flute's sound.

'Such beautiful flute music...' 'It's wonderful!'

'Is this "The Phoenix Seeks His Mate" played by Mr. Ji...'

Ji Yuan was indeed not classically trained and couldn't write music scores. However, his mastery of tone quality was unparalleled in the world. After simply experimenting with the sounds the purple bamboo flute could produce and the effects of breath length and intensity, he relied on his intuition and directly played "The Phoenix Seeks His Mate."

The music was like fine wine, intoxicating all who heard it. If Juzan Pavilion didn't possess its own tranquil isolation, the entire Ning'an County might have fallen into a silence, listening only to the flute's melody...