361-365

Chapter 361: Meeting the Mysterious Old Man at the Music Academy

“Continent O?” When Jun Shiling heard this news, he thought for a moment and decided. “I’ll go with you.”

“…” Xia Wanyuan smiled helplessly. “Jun Shiling, I’m going to participate in the competition. Why are you going?”

“I’m going to a meeting.” Jun Shiling said matter-of-factly.

What Xia Wanyuan did not know was that during the five days and five nights she had been buried in the cave, Jun Shiling had experienced five days of wind and sun on the mountain peak. No one knew what his heart had experienced.

At that time, he had sworn in his heart that no matter what happened in the future, he would not be separated from Xia Wanyuan for more than a day.

Since Jun Shiling had decided, he began to inform Lin Jing about the schedule.

Although Xia Wanyuan was helpless, she had just confirmed her relationship with Jun Shiling. When the two of them were intimate, she was very happy that Jun Shiling was willing to accompany her.

According to Cai Qin’s tone, Xia Wanyuan felt that the difficulty of this music competition should be very high, so she did not tell Tang Yin and Li Heng what she was going to do.

She was afraid that if everyone had hope, it would not be good to lose it in the end, so she used the excuse that her wound was a little problematic and she needed to rest.

Over the past few days, Li Heng had been especially enthusiastic about filming Xia Wanyuan. In fact, he had already exceeded the filming volume, so Li Heng generously approved of Xia Wanyuan’s leave.

Xia Wanyuan was still looking forward to this trip to Continent O. After all, she had only seen the customs and cultures of that different region on television and on the map. In her previous life, she had never even left the territory of the Great Xia Dynasty, let alone to such a distant place.

“Mommy, do you know what day it is tomorrow?” Xiao Bao, who had finally completed his study mission, went into the house to look for Xia Wanyuan as usual and accurately pounced into her arms.

“What day is it?” Xia Wanyuan raised an eyebrow and pretended to be confused.

“Tomorrow is my day.” Xiao Bao’s chubby face rubbed against Xia Wanyuan’s palm. “Mommy, can I receive a gift tomorrow?”

“Of course.” Xia Wanyuan pinched Xiao Bao’s face and stroked his hair.

After receiving Xia Wanyuan’s affirmative answer, Xiao Bao was overjoyed. He ran to Jun Shiling smugly and said, “Daddy, I have a gift that Mommy prepared for me!”

Jun Shiling: The final countdown for quality education begins.

The next day, on Children’s Day, Xiao Bao received the Gundam model he had been longing for. He was so happy that he gloated in front of Jun Shiling for a long time. “Hmph, bad Daddy, you don’t allow me to buy it, but my Mommy will give it to me!”

However, the next second, when he saw the plane Jun Shiling had given him, Xiao Bao’s smugness immediately turned into a fawning “Daddy, I knew you were the best!!”

With the long-awaited gift, Xiao Bao became much easier to talk to about Xia Wanyuan leaving the manor for a few days. He did not cry or kick up a fuss and obediently followed Uncle Liu to the courtyard to look for Great-grandfather.

——

The distance from China to Continent O was still very far. Even with the speed of the plane, it would take more than ten hours. Xia Wanyuan leaned against the window and looked at the clouds outside.

A small box was suddenly handed to her.

Xia Wanyuan took the box. Inside was a very exquisite necklace.

“Happy Children’s Day.” Jun Shiling smiled at Xia Wanyuan.

“I’m not a child. Why do I have a Children’s Day gift?” Xia Wanyuan took out the necklace. Jun Shiling took it and helped her wear it.

“You’re a child. A child should have a gift.” Jun Shiling opened his arms and hugged Xia Wanyuan.

“Thank you.” Xia Wanyuan stroked the necklace around her neck. It was beautiful, and she liked it very much.

“Just one thank you?” Jun Shiling’s tone rose.

Xia Wanyuan looked up and kissed Jun Shiling on the cheek.

“I like this gift very much.” A smile appeared in Jun Shiling’s eyes. “Sleep for a while. It’s been too long. I’ll call you when we eat.”

Although Jun Shiling had accompanied Xia Wanyuan to Continent O, he was much busier than her.

The Jun Corporation also had a large market share in Continent O. With Jun Shiling’s arrival, the management of Continent O seemed to have found their backbone and wished they could block Jun Shiling in the meeting room 24 hours a day.

Xia Wanyuan seemed much more relaxed. The hotel they were staying in was very close to Olly’s most famous music school, so Xia Wanyuan went to the school to take a walk.

This music school had a long history, so it retained many medieval architectural styles in Continent O. High Gothic buildings, relief sculptures that could be seen everywhere, and pure white marble churches.

Xia Wanyuan strolled around and felt that although this foreign style was different from China’s style, it had its own unique charm.

In the Music Academy, the beautiful sound of students practicing their instruments could be heard everywhere.

Xia Wanyuan could tell that these instruments were different from the ancient zither she had practiced, but they were still very pleasant to listen to. She followed the winding path and looked at the sculptures on the side of the road. Unknowingly, Xia Wanyuan walked into a pure white church.

There was no one in the church. A casually-dressed, white-haired old man was frowning as he sat in front of a piano and played an especially pleasant song.

Xia Wanyuan was momentarily attracted by the melody. She sat on a chair and listened quietly.

Xia Wanyuan did not know how to play the piano, but that did not stop her from knowing the quality of the music. The tune played by this old man in front of her was truly a top-notch piece.

Xia Wanyuan closed her eyes and felt it. However, when it reached the second half of the melody, it began to become obscure and even stuck in one place. The old man had tried many times, as if he was trying to figure out how to smooth this transition.

However, the old man played it more than ten times. This small segment was still very abrupt.

Xia Wanyuan opened her eyes and hummed a tune that the old man had just played, filling in a part that the old man could not cross.

The old man in front of the piano was originally at a loss. When he suddenly heard this humming, his eyes lit up. He immediately turned around and saw an extremely beautiful Asian woman.

According to Xia Wanyuan’s humming tone, the old man played the melody on the piano. As expected, there was no longer that disharmony and abruptness.

After finally resolving his trouble for many days, the old man was immersed in the joy of finally completing a piano song. He could not help but play the song three times from beginning to end before he finally revealed a satisfied smile.

By the time he remembered to thank this Asian woman, the church was empty.

The old man was a little dazed. Was there really someone sitting here just now, or was he hallucinating?

That night, the world-class music master released his closing work.

When asked how he had composed such a great song, the master pressed his palms together.

“I’m grateful to God for sending Goddess Muse to give me guidance."

Chapter 362: I Want You to Enter the Competition

All the subordinates in the world had extremely good eyes when it came to receiving superiors.

Before Jun Shiling arrived, the people of Continent O had prepared a presidential suite for him. As usual, it was the simple and dark style that Jun Shiling liked.

When news came from the airport that Jun Shiling had a woman by his side and that he took good care of her, they immediately changed Jun Shiling’s presidential suite to a rose-themed super large bed.

When Jun Shiling arrived at the airport, he sent Xia Wanyuan to the hotel and went straight to the company. He did not go up. When he returned to the hotel after finishing his work,

The moment she pushed open the door, she saw that the room was covered in roses that had turned into a carpet. Layers of red muslin swayed. Xia Wanyuan was wearing a negligee, revealing a section of her collarbone that was as white as jade. She was lying on the bed reading.

Jun Shiling went to the bathroom to change and wash up. Then, he lifted the blanket and got into bed.

Seeing Jun Shiling walk over, Xia Wanyuan reached out to him out of habit. This was a habit that Jun Shiling had developed for Xia Wanyuan over the years.

Jun Shiling reached out and pulled her into his arms. “What are you looking at?”

Xia Wanyuan leaned into Jun Shiling’s arms and handed him the book in her hand. “Study music. I feel like I don’t know anything. I might disappoint President Cai.”

“No, music doesn’t differentiate between countries. You play it very well. They will feel it.” Jun Shiling’s grip on Xia Wanyuan gradually tightened. “What did you eat just now? Why does it smell so good?”

“I ate a chocolate. It’s a little too sweet.”

Jun Shiling could tell that it was not only sweet, but also strawberry-flavored.

“Let me try.” Jun Shiling turned around and leaned on Xia Wanyuan, tasting the remaining strawberry fragrance in her mouth little by little.

Xia Wanyuan was especially obedient tonight. She was so obedient that she did not resist at all. She was like a sweet cotton candy that made one involuntarily drown in it.

After a while, Jun Shiling buried himself in Xia Wanyuan’s neck and said in a hoarse voice, “I want you. Can I?”“I’m okay.” Just as Xia Wanyuan finished speaking, Jun Shiling’s entire body tensed up. He wanted to move further, but Xia Wanyuan stopped his hand and looked at Jun Shiling innocently. “But I’m on my period today.”

“…” Jun Shiling clenched his fists. “No wonder you were so cooperative today. You did it on purpose, right?”

Xia Wanyuan did not speak, but the smile in her eyes revealed everything.

Jun Shiling could not help it. He hugged Xia Wanyuan for a long time before turning around and hugging her. He placed his warm palm on Xia Wanyuan’s stomach to warm it. “Sleep. Goodnight.”

“Good night.”

——

The World Music Competition was still considered a relatively fair world competition. The semi-finals were decided by voters chosen by nearly a hundred music colleges. In the end, according to the rankings of the votes, the top ten people were chosen to participate in the final match.

When Xia Wanyuan arrived at the waiting area for the semi-finals, she realized that most of the people were above 30 years old. There were also younger people, but there were very few.

When Xia Wanyuan arrived, everyone’s eyes were filled with surprise. Although there were many outstanding people in the art industry, it was rare to see someone so outstanding.

Most importantly, she was actually an Asian. It was unknown if she was from Korean or Japan.

As for China, they did not think in this direction. After all, in recent years, the number of people from China who could enter the semi-finals could be counted on one hand. Their presence was too low.

Some foreign students who had come to join in the fun wanted to see who famous people were in this world competition, but they realized that there were competitors from China on the official semi-finals list.

No one in China had been able to enter the semi-finals for many years. The foreign students were very excited and took a photo of the participants and sent it back to China.

Originally, not many people in the country paid attention to this matter, but when a marketing account revealed that the Xia Wanyuan on this participant list was the celebrity of the entertainment industry, Xia Wanyuan, this directly triggered a heated discussion.

Chapter 363: Change of Nationality

[ No way? Doesn’t Xia Wanyuan only know how to play the zither? How can she enter the World Music Competition? ]

[ What do you mean by that? What’s wrong with the zither? This is our country’s culture, okay? It’s not worse than others. Why can’t we enter? ]

[ I guess this is as far as I can go. After all, foreign countries have quite a big prejudice against our country’s music. ]

[ Who knows what method Xia Wanyuan used to enter the semi-finals? Does she think we don’t know how difficult it is to enter the music competition? ]

In the end, only everyone guessed. After all, the semi-finals were not open to the public. Everyone discussed for a long time only based on the name list. Many people were even unwilling to believe that Xia Wanyuan could actually enter the semi-finals.

——

In the waiting room, because there were more people and they had waited for a long time, everyone gradually began to chat.

A young man with an Asian face saw Xia Wanyuan sitting alone, so he leaned over and spoke in fluent English. “Hello, may I know where you’re from? Korea or Japan?”

From the moment Xia Wanyuan arrived in the modern world, she knew that this was an era of global integration. English was more important to daily communication than arrogance.

At first, she followed Xiao Bao’s introductory textbooks to read, but later, she followed the English edition that Jun Shiling had given her to read. There were no problems with Xia Wanyuan’s daily reading.

“I’m from China.” When Xia Wanyuan spoke English, her voice was extremely pleasant to listen to, like the sound of rings clinking.

“China?” The man was first stunned by Xia Wanyuan’s voice. Only then did he realize which country Xia Wanyuan was talking about. He immediately spoke Chinese with a strange expression.

“You too?”

“I used to be.” The man nodded. “But Chinese music is really not that deep, so I changed my nationality and wanted to pursue better music.”

Xia Wanyuan nodded. Although she did not understand how this man could change his nationality, it was understandable that he wanted to learn foreign music more conveniently.

However, this man did not talk about music. Instead, he proudly introduced himself to Xia Wanyuan, his tone revealing his disdain for China.

Xia Wanyuan had originally wanted to chat more with him after hearing him speak Chinese, but he actually began to nag at her about how bad China was, how lousy its music was, and how country was.

Before the man could finish speaking, Xia Wanyuan interrupted him. “I’m not interested in what you’re saying.” Then, Xia Wanyuan looked at the score in her hand.

“…” The man was rejected and felt a little embarrassed. “You’re too young and insensible. When you change your nationality, you’ll know how good it is to be abroad.”

Xia Wanyuan looked up at the man with undisguised disgust in her eyes. “Can you go away? You’re very noisy.”

“Pfft.” No matter how beautiful Xia Wanyuan was, the man could not continue chatting with her after being despised by her. He immediately flicked his sleeves and left.

Xia Wanyuan glanced at this person’s back and commented, “Crazy.”

Time passed little by little, and the number of people in the waiting room decreased. By the time Xia Wanyuan’s name was called, basically all the participants in the semi-finals had already performed.

In the evaluation hall, more than a hundred judges sat together and took the opportunity to discuss the contestants.

The contestants in front were still not bad, but those who came later were basically average. Everyone looked at the list. There was still the last Chinese person who played the ancient zither.

There was probably nothing worth watching. Many people had already begun to pack their things.

Chapter 364: Taking Super High Scores in the Competition

“Next, let’s welcome contestant # 106, Xia Wanyuan, to the stage.” As the host’s voice sounded, an astonishing and beautiful woman walked out of the stage.

The judges, who were originally uninterested, were shocked by Xia Wanyuan’s appearance.

This woman from China was really too beautiful, but why was she so young? It was really strange that she had entered the semi-finals at such a young age.

Some people even suspected that there was some inside story behind this competition.

“Hello, everyone. My name is Xia Wanyuan, and I’m from China. Next, I’ll bring the ancient zither to play.” Xia Wanyuan spoke fluent English and was unrestrained on the stage.

The staff moved Feng Xiqin, who Xia Wanyuan had brought over, onto the stage.

The judges present were basically all people who were familiar with world music. They naturally recognized that this was an extremely ancient instrument in China.

The violin and piano were popular worldwide. Although everyone knew that there were ancient instruments, even the Chinese themselves were unwilling to learn them, let alone foreigners.

Now, everyone had even less hope for Xia Wanyuan. After all, they had never heard of any special achievements in Chinese zithers.

China was relatively famous in the world for a song called “The Moon in the Spring”. Everyone’s impression of China’s traditional instruments was sad and low.

Hence, Xia Wanyuan did the opposite. When she was strolling at Olly Music Academy yesterday, she looked at the blue sky and white clouds on the campus and listened to the church bell. She had a preliminary impression of Olly. She composed this impression into a song.

A low cry suddenly sounded in the silent hall. It was like the sound of a church bell, as if it had come from afar.

The agitated judges stopped when they heard this voice.

Xia Wanyuan gently waved her hand. The dignified aura of the ancient zither, mixed with Xia Wanyuan’s gentle melody, actually had a unique attractiveness.

Everyone seemed to be led by the zither as they passed through the flowers that were everywhere and stepped on the lawn that was filled with dew. They could even feel the warmth of the sunlight passing through the church’s dome.

Unknowingly, everyone was brought into this peaceful and beautiful realm.

After the song ended, the hall was actually silent for a long time. Only when the host came up to remind everyone did they react.

Then, thunderous applause sounded in the hall.

Wearing a long dress, Xia Wanyuan stood quietly on the stage, enjoying everyone’s praise.

In the end, other than some judges who hated Chinese people very much, basically everyone gave close to perfect scores. In the end, Xia Wanyuan’s results were quite impressive.

After leaving the hall, the young man stood at the door.

Seeing Xia Wanyuan’s cold expression, the young man guessed that she had definitely failed the selection. The other people with higher scores were all overjoyed when they came out.

“Hey, beauty, it’s okay if you fail. China’s cultivation method is really backward. It’s not your problem. I’m a student from the America Music Academy. Leave a phone number. Perhaps I can introduce my mentor to you and let you study in America.” The young man handed over the phone.

Xia Wanyuan frowned. “You don’t deserve it.”

With that, Xia Wanyuan left without even looking at him. She felt dirty at the sight of such a person who had to defame her country after changing nationality.

The young man behind her was stunned by Xia Wanyuan’s words. “Pfft, if not for your looks, I wouldn’t have bothered with you.”

Chapter 365: The Princess Enters the Finals! She’s Slapping Face!

After knowing that Xia Wanyuan was participating in the World Music Competition, many international students and reporters in Continent O rushed over.

Seeing Xia Wanyuan walk out with a cold expression, everyone snapped photos and posted them back home.

[ From her expression, I guess her results are bad. ]

[ Isn’t it very normal? She only knows how to play a few ancient zither songs. What are the fans talking about? Isn’t her face being slapped now? She can’t even enter the music competition. ]

[ Since Xia Wanyuan can enter the semi-finals, doesn’t it mean that she has the ability? ]

[ Who knows what method she used to enter? Haha, your country’s music is so low. She can actually enter the semi-finals. You guys actually don’t find it strange. ]

[ The SB in front keeps calling ‘your country’. Then why do you still use our Chinese language? A traitor can’t stand up after kneeling for too long, right? ]

Basically, no one thought that Xia Wanyuan would pass the semi-finals, even if it was Xia Wanyuan’s fans who tore at the anti-fans’ throats.

The country was in an uproar, but it did not affect Xia Wanyuan’s mood at all.

The results of the semi-finals would be released the next day. Xia Wanyuan was about to return to the hotel when she received Jun Shiling’s message.

“I’ll wait for you at the back door of the theater.”

Xia Wanyuan turned around and walked to the back door of the theater. As expected, Jun Shiling’s car was parked by the road.

“Are you here to pick me up?”

“No, I’m here to be an audience.” Jun Shiling smiled. “You played very well.”

Although Jun Shiling was busy, he still tried his best to squeeze out time to watch Xia Wanyuan’s performance.

Xia Wanyuan was a little embarrassed by Jun Shiling’s praise. “Aren’t you busy today?”

“I’ll be busy in the afternoon. I’ll bring you to eat.” Reaching out, Jun Shiling pulled Xia Wanyuan into his arms and instructed the chauffeur, “Let’s go.”

The car drove Jun Shiling and Xia Wanyuan slowly through the bustling Central Street, as if to take care of Xia Wanyuan’s curiosity. Every time they passed a magnificent scene, the speed of the car would become especially slow.

Through the car window, Xia Wanyuan looked at the exquisite scenery outside that was completely different from China. Her eyes were filled with curiosity.

Jun Shiling watched quietly from the side and did not ask why a person who had come to Continent O at least ten times would naturally show such a novel expression when she saw the scenery of Continent O.

Gradually, the car arrived at the suburbs and passed through a tall tree. In front of him was a towering ancient castle. It looked ancient and solemn. It must have been ancient.

Jun Shiling brought Xia Wanyuan over. The golden-haired, blue-eyed servant in a uniform immediately stepped forward. “Young Master, Madam.”

Entering the interior of the ancient castle was a Western style of court that Xia Wanyuan had never seen before.

“Is this the style of Continent O?” Xia Wanyuan could not help but be curious.

“Not really. Some places have other styles. I’ll bring you to take a look when the time comes.” Jun Shiling pulled out a chair for Xia Wanyuan to sit.

“Let’s celebrate your entrance to the finals in advance.” Jun Shiling picked up his red wine glass. “This is wine produced by Olly’s most famous winery. You can try it.”

Xia Wanyuan picked up the wine glass and took a sip tentatively. It didn’t have a very stimulating taste but had a very mellow fragrance. Xia Wanyuan clinked glasses with Jun Shiling and drank it directly.

“Sigh.” While Jun Shiling helped Xia Wanyuan cut the steak, she had already drunk a glass of wine. Thinking of how Xia Wanyuan had looked when she was drunk the last time, helplessness flashed across Jun Shiling’s face.

——

While Jun Shiling was eating dinner with Xia Wanyuan, the rankings for the finals of the music competition had already been released. To everyone’s surprise, after the officials of the competition finished tabulating the results themselves, the list of the finalists was announced.

Everyone looked at the list. Most of them were famous music masters in the world, and there were one or two young newcomers. However, the most surprising thing was that third place on the list was a musician from China that they had never heard of in the world.