After being sentenced to death, she came to her senses.

Gu Yuqing actually came to the tea party, but why was no one else there?

However, her attention was already diverted, so it was normal that she didn't see him.

"Miss, what should we do now?" While Fang Xiaoran was pondering, Ziju turned around and asked softly. Only then did she come back to her senses and calmly walk towards the carriage. "Then I shall respectfully comply."

If you can ride in a carriage, you don't have to walk; who would want to suffer without doing something hard?

Fang Xiaoran boarded the carriage directly, her movements fluid and effortless, requiring no assistance from Ziju.

Seeing that her young lady had already boarded the carriage, Ziju could no longer refuse and hurriedly followed. Xiaoshitou reached out his hand to her, and although she hesitated, she still handed it over. Then Xiaoshitou pulled her onto the carriage.

Inside the carriage, Gu Yuqing was playing with the magpie in the cage. When he saw Fang Xiaoran walk in, he put the cage aside and said with a smile, "Sit down."

Fang Xiaoran sat down gracefully, looking at the second young master of the Gu family with some surprise.

He wore a moon-white brocade robe, his hair tied in a high ponytail without even a hair crown, making him look lazy and casual. Looking at the entire tea party, he was probably the only one who was so dashing and unrestrained.

"Did Young Master Gu also attend the tea party? Why didn't I see him?" Fang Xiaoran asked with a light smile.

Gu Yuqing shrugged and replied indifferently, "I did go, but I was kept playing chess. By the time the last game was over, the tea party was almost over. It's a pity I didn't hear Miss Fang playing the zither."

As he said this, he deliberately glanced at the zither in Fang Xiaoran's arms. Fang Xiaoran asked suspiciously, "Is Young Master interested in Tao Zhuo?"

"Let me try?" Gu Yuqing suddenly leaned closer. Fang Xiaoran paused for a moment, looking at his handsome face so close to hers, then immediately distanced herself from him. "Here?"

He really knows how to test a piano in a carriage.

He raised an eyebrow and glanced at her. "Yes, it's here."

Fang Xiaoran sighed, unable to think of a reason to refuse him. She simply took the zither out of its case and handed it to him. Gu Yuqing took it with a smile, placed the zither on his lap, held the head of the zither with one hand, and plucked the strings with the other.

A piercing piano note rang out, sounding like a knife scraping across the strings, making the listener inexplicably irritable.

The key point is that he didn't think there was anything wrong with his playing. On the contrary, he was quite immersed in it, and the rhythm between his fingers quickened, like an invisible sharp blade stabbing back and forth into the heart, repeatedly tormenting every listener.

Fang Xiaoran finally understood: some people can play the zither in a way that is pleasing to the ear and soothing to the soul, while others can kill.

Why bother with all that complicated sheet music, Ninth Princess? Just let him play it. He'll probably pass away as soon as he finishes playing the three sections.

The music was so horrible that even when Ziju covered her ears with both hands, it couldn't stop the torment on her soul. Xiaoshitou even sealed off his five senses on the spot to prevent the demonic sound from disrupting his foundation.

Fang Xiaoran, having reached her limit, pressed down on the trembling strings to stop the chaotic, demonic sound.

If this continues, not only will they be affected, but everyone on the street will be impacted.

"Hmm?" Gu Yuqing, who had been stopped by Fang Xiaoran, raised his eyes in confusion and asked, still wanting more, "What's wrong?"

"It's nothing. I just remembered that when I played this zither, a palace maid looked pained, and I thought there might be something strange about this zither." As she spoke, she hurriedly took back Tao Zhuo, put it back in the zither case with lightning speed, and then hugged it tightly to her chest, as if afraid that it would be taken away again.

"Ah, this." Gu Yuqing turned to look at her leisurely, his eyes deep, like an unfathomable cold pool. "It should have nothing to do with the guqin. It's a problem with the score. I heard that there is a genius guqin player in Qingchuan, Zhaozhou, who composed ten pieces that can bewitch people's minds and make them go mad."

These ten pieces share a common name: Tenfold Demonic Sound. Each piece is more terrifying than the last. If they fall into the hands of someone with profound inner strength, they can control thousands of troops with a single zither. However, the Tenfold Demonic Sound has long been lost. The Ninth Princess's score is clearly a modified version, and its power is not as strong.

Fang Xiaoran frowned. "Why does the Ninth Princess have this kind of musical score, and why does she actually let all the guests come forward to play it? Most of the people present are from high-ranking and noble families. Isn't she afraid of causing trouble?"

"That's of course the problem of the person who presented the music; what does it have to do with the princess?"

Indeed, it's just a matter of finding a scapegoat; it's not difficult for the Ninth Princess.

But the question is, who exactly is she targeting?

A person who can play the entire piece must have a certain level of inner strength, but it cannot be too profound, otherwise they will be unaffected like Fang Xiaoran. The key is that the person must also have sufficient piano skills, otherwise, judging from the complexity of the piece, they would probably only be able to play the intro before giving up.

"Who are you probably thinking Ninth Princess is targeting?" Suddenly, a soft laugh came, and Fang Xiaoran looked up sharply. She saw Gu Yuqing staring at her intently, a faint smile hidden in his eyes.

"Who is it?" she asked almost instinctively, but the answer she received was, "I don't know. I'm also curious about who Ninth Princess is targeting, but it's definitely not me, nor is it you."

Does he need to say this?

Fang Xiaoran sighed helplessly. It didn't matter who it was, it had little to do with her anyway.

Just then, the carriage slowly came to a stop, and Xiao Shitou's voice came from outside, "Young master, we've arrived."

Upon hearing this, Fang Xiaoran pulled back the carriage curtain and glanced around. They had already arrived at the gate of the Fang residence. How could they have moved so fast? She hadn't even noticed the passage of time.

"Young Master Gu, it would be best if you didn't play the zither so casually in the future." After saying this, Fang Xiaoran picked up her zither and jumped off the carriage. Gu Yuqing raised his eyelids and smiled slightly. "Alright, then I'll only play for you from now on."

Fang Xiaoran: "..."

After the carriage slowly drove away, Ziju whispered, "Miss, won't people gossip if you get into the Marquis's second son's carriage like this?"

"Would there be less criticism if I didn't get in the carriage?" Fang Xiaoran smiled and walked through the gate with a calm expression. As soon as she entered, she saw Fang Xiaoqi walking towards her. Fang Xiaoqi first looked her up and down, then chuckled and said, "I was wondering why you came back so late, sister. So you went to meet the Second Young Master Gu. Well, you two are engaged after all. But for an unmarried girl to ride in the Second Young Master Gu's carriage so openly, aren't you afraid of being criticized? Sixth sister, you're a bit too impatient."

Fang Xiaoran looked at her with interest, "Impatient?"

"If you're not in a hurry, why are you doing this, sister? Actually, you don't need to worry. Young Master Gu has been disabled since childhood. Which girl would want to marry him? Of course, if he weren't disabled, you wouldn't be qualified to marry into the Marquis's family. Thinking about it carefully, the Marquis's wife probably knew that there was something wrong with the child in her womb, so she deliberately arranged this betrothal with my mother. But speaking of which, you two are really a perfect match. One is a rough country girl, and the other is disabled. It's best to keep them locked up and not let them harm others."

"Snapped!"

Before she could finish speaking, Fang Xiaoran slapped her across the face and stepped forward to grab Fang Xiaoqi by the neck, lifting her up forcefully. "If these words were to reach the Marquis's residence, do you think they would let you off?"