"What's wrong with you?" Yun Qian sensed something unusual about Xu Chang'an.

"Nothing." Xu Chang'an walked over to Yun Qian and said softly, "Move your fingers a bit, use some skill, and try plucking the strings again."

"Got it." Yun Qian looked into her husband's eyes, feeling that he seemed a bit different now, though she couldn't pinpoint what exactly had changed.

"Ding."

With Xu Chang'an's guidance, the sound Yun Qian produced by plucking the strings this time was much clearer than before.

It was quite interesting.

Yun Qian thought.

Xu Chang'an quickly snapped out of his entrancement, shaking his head with a sigh.

"That's just... how appearances matter for people."

There's no helping it, even if it's just a façade, the girl still looks good like this.

If she truly mastered the zither skill...

Just imagining Yun Qian playing the zither made Xu Chang'an's heart flutter.

Better not ponder it.

Xu Chang'an didn't expect that, despite being able to endure so much in real life and in dreams, he had no resistance to Yun Qian simply sitting by the guqin.

If the girl weren't so fragile, he'd probably indulge himself once and carry her inside.

In a rare moment, Xu Chang'an didn't want to be reserved, but the girl couldn't handle it.

——

After plucking the strings for a while, Yun Qian's fingertips began to turn red, so Xu Chang'an wouldn't let her continue.

As expected, Yun Qian said, "I want to learn the zither."

"So you are interested." Xu Chang'an mused, "I thought you were only focused on eating just now."

Yun Qian's eyes twitched slightly before she said, "I like snacks, and I'm also interested in the zither."

"Is that so." Xu Chang'an looked down to examine Miss Yun's fingers; her hands were naturally suited for the seven strings, long and beautiful.

He wasn't surprised by Yun Qian's sudden request; he had thought about it for a long time.

The sound of silk and bamboo isn't just for pleasing the audience; it's essential in developing a girl's personal temperament. Xu Chang'an certainly hoped Yun Qian would learn the zither to refine her taste.

"I can teach you."

Xu Chang'an held Yun Qian's hand, his fingers sliding across her palm as he wrote the character for "zither" before saying seriously, "But I won't be teaching you. The senior sisters on Muyu Peak are more suitable... Moreover..."

"I don't want to learn from them." Yun Qian interrupted Xu Chang'an.

Like practicing calligraphy, if it wasn't him teaching, there wouldn't be any point in learning.

"Understood." Xu Chang'an was not surprised. He cleaned and stored the guqin in its case before turning around to say, "Learning from me won't happen now; we need to wait until things in cultivation settle down."

Yun Qian agreed, thinking cultivation was indeed important.

——

In the courtyard after lunch.

A soft mat was laid on the ground, and Yun Qian sat on it, her hands resting on her slightly rounded belly, exuding a lazy aura.

"Miss, you should eat a bit less." Xu Chang'an said helplessly.

"I've got some strength now." Yun Qian stretched and blinked, "I want to listen to the zither."

Some things inevitably follow once the initial step is taken.

"You've already listened to a lot today." Xu Chang'an said with a smile.

"Because you love it, I like it too." Yun Qian leaned against him, and the couple enjoyed the warm afternoon sun together.

After pondering for a moment, she asked, "Why do you want me to learn the zither?"

"..." Xu Chang'an was momentarily stunned and sighed, "Did you see through it, Miss?"

Yun Qian nodded.

Yes.

Yun Qian's interest in the seven strings ultimately stemmed from Xu Chang'an wanting her to like it, so she did.

"There's actually no particular reason." Xu Chang'an looked down at the sachet on his waist and said, "Miss, do you remember the long sword I used from the teacher?"

"I remember." Yun Qian nodded. It was her treasure, of course she remembered.

"I'm a sword cultivator, so naturally I want you to learn the zither." Xu Chang'an's fingers ran through Yun Qian's long hair, like combing through the fur of a sunbathing Li Hua cat, and he smiled, "Miss, you've read so much of what I write, don't you know what I'm thinking?"

Yun Qian loved his indulgence; her thoughts drifted for a long while before she said, "Sword Heart and Zither Heart?"

Hearing Yun Qian's matter-of-fact words, a sense of frustration welled up in Xu Chang'an's heart.

He couldn't guess Miss Yun's thoughts, but she saw right through his intentions.

"It's indeed Sword Heart and Zither Heart." Xu Chang'an sat down and patted his leg, offering his lap as a pillow.

Yun Qian lay down, closing her eyes.

Xu Chang'an pressed his fingers against Yun Qian's ear, gently massaging to relax her, as he said, "I noticed Miss is interested in swords, but they are ultimately sharp objects; I don't want you learning that... So the zither is a good choice."

After all, they are a natural pair.

"I know the term Sword Heart and Zither Heart, but what does it mean?" Yun Qian hummed.

"Two volumes of Dao Scripture and a three-foot sword, a cane and a seven-stringed zither." Xu Chang'an's eyes revealed nostalgia as he thought of how he had longed for these things in his past life.

"Sword Heart and Zither Heart, as the books say, refer to a person with both passion and courage." Xu Chang'an continued, "In music, there are also comparisons where a sword is played as a zither, the blade serving as strings, and the sword hum as the zither sound."

He picked up a bundle of grass beside him, twirling it in his hand for a while, then crafted a floral shape with the grass before making a gesture of withdrawing the sword, his movements fluid and aesthetically pleasing.

Accompanied by the faint hum of the sword echoing with the wind, like the lingering sound of a zither melody.

For Xu Chang'an,

Without a zither, a sword was merely a weapon; without a sword, a zither seemed like a helpless sigh.

The sword, too, was to protect the lady.

The zither, he hoped she would admire.

The zither and sword aren't necessary; it's the lady that truly matters.

"I dare not say we'll roam the world together; that's unlucky." Xu Chang'an gently poked Miss Yun's face with his finger and said, "A zither's seven strings and a sword's three feet... Miss learning the zither adds a bit of realm."

"Is that so." Yun Qian didn't comment.

"..." Xu Chang'an thought the lady was indeed very clever.

He had only spoken half of the truth.

Romance is part of it.

The most important thing, Xu Chang'an had been pondering these days, was that the seven-stringed zither was the most suitable for Yun Qian's cultivation.

First, he couldn't bear to see Yun Qian get hurt, so weapons simply weren't an option for her to learn.

And among the Six Arts for Women on Muyu Peak, zither, chess, calligraphy, painting, singing, and dancing...

Calligraphy was ruled out; she always mimicked his handwriting and refused to change, unable to carve her own path.

Chess cultivation involved inner realms, and one misstep could lead to weakness and vomiting blood, which he couldn't bear.

Singing and dancing he couldn't teach, so he couldn't help the lady in the early stages of cultivation.

In the end, upon reconsidering everything, only zither skill seemed to be the most suitable, relatively smooth in cultivation, promoting self-cultivation and refining one's temperament.

Even if Miss Yun's talent proved lacking, in the future she could still play the zither to add a buff for him.

Moreover, Xu Chang'an wasn't setting Yun Qian's path in stone for the future; it was just an initial direction before 'Open Source,' and they could always change later if needed.

And because of this thought, he had sought to borrow a zither from Qinling, hoping to spark Yun Qian's interest and prepare her in advance.

He hadn't expected that the lady's thoughts would be so keen, immediately identifying that his aim was to get her to learn the zither.

But having his motives seen through didn't matter; achieving the desired outcome was what truly counted.

She was genuinely interested.

"Miss." Xu Chang'an called out softly.

"Hmm?" Yun Qian turned over, facing his stomach.

"In the future, I'm mainly a sword cultivator." Xu Chang'an helplessly turned Yun Qian over to face outward before continuing, "There's a term 'transforming sword into zither' in Chaoyun, referring to the harmony of zither and sword, celebrating righteousness, and promoting the martial and literate ways; 'drifting zither and sword' suggests destitution, highlighting the significant status of zither and sword in people's minds, they are equals and complementary, inseparable."

"I'm feeling sleepy listening." Yun Qian yawned.

"Let me finish." Xu Chang'an blinked, "Zither and sword, one soft, one hard, two facets of a person. Since I'm a sword cultivator, what do you think you'd be good at learning, Miss?"

"The zither." Yun Qian turned back around.

"Is that so." Xu Chang'an flipped her around again, thinking although drawing out hidden motives was sly, it certainly worked.

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