Chapter 314: Chapter 312: In His Youth, His Love for Shen Zhaozhao Was Unrequited
Yan Zheming stared at Shen Yinning with great interest.
As expected of Shen Xingye’s younger sister, she truly was different from others.
He raised his voice deliberately, making things difficult: "Are you the most beautiful woman in Great Zhou?"
This was not an easy question to answer.
If she admitted, it would go against the modest virtues of the Central Plains people, coming across as arrogant and frivolous.
If she denied it, she would lose face in front of the Yan people.
Shen Yinning met his gaze and replied, "Our Central Plains are vast, rich, and full of talented people. There is an old saying, ’There is always someone better, and skies beyond the skies.’ Therefore, it’s clear there could be women more beautiful than I am hidden somewhere out there. I dare not claim to be the first. However, since today revolves around a competition between two nations, it’s only right to determine a winner. May I ask, in the opinion of the Crown Prince, between me and your nation’s Lady Tangwei, who is more deserving of the word ’beauty’?"
Yan Zheming gripped his wine cup tightly.
A woman, gentle and compliant.
He had heard that women of the Central Plains were particularly docile and graceful, even described by scholars as "tender as water."
But the young woman before him, though seemingly humble, was inherently arrogant and unruly. She enjoyed competing and fighting with others, and her phoenix eyes held a defiant challenge, like flames burning fiercely—it was impossible to ignore.
Such a retort, razor-sharp, was by no means ordinary.
If he answered that Shen Yinning was more beautiful, it would be akin to undermining his own nation’s esteem while bolstering the other side’s spirit.
But if he claimed Gan Tangwei was more beautiful...
The truth was evident to all present. Today, in the Golden Hall, Shen Yinning was undoubtedly the most beautiful woman.
The opinions of the world are diverse, and beauty subjective. Yet, her beauty was absolute—radiant, bold, and striking. Merely standing there, she resembled a blazing sun, as if her light could scorch one’s gaze.
Since stepping into the Capital, Yan Zheming had never been put at such a disadvantage.
His expression darkened slightly as he heavily set down his wine cup. "Dance!"
This signaled a competition in dance between the two nations.
This time, Gan Tangwei did not perform a Central Plains dance. Instead, she chose a Yan Country dance.
Yan dances evolved from rituals of worship, with every movement embodying strength—like embracing the steppes and snow-capped mountains, like praising the sun and rain, like praying to the gods for abundant crops and clean water in the coming year.
Nature, life, reproduction, death...
Gan Tangwei brought the winds of the northern land to the Central Plains.
The exotic allure of the Yan dance captivated even the courtiers of Great Zhou.
Yan Zheming wore a small smile.
While Gan Tangwei excelled in piano, chess, calligraphy, and painting, it was in dance that her true talent lay.
He knew that the Central Plains prided themselves on poetry and etiquette, but when it came to dance, he had always believed their dance paled in comparison to that of his own nation.
He could not imagine what Shen Yinning could possibly bring to surpass Gan Tangwei.
Lu Yu’s face was not looking very encouraging.
He had only seen Shen Yinning dance many years ago. At that time, she was still a little girl, inexperienced, performing a shaman’s ceremonial dance during a deity procession. Those movements were rigidly dictated by tradition, leaving no room to gauge her skill.
Could she really outshine Gan Tangwei?
If she failed, the dignity of him as the Emperor of Great Zhou would be utterly trampled into the ground!
The courtiers looked toward Shen Yinning with complicated expressions. With such brilliance preceding her, they obviously held no high hopes for her.
Shen Yunxi, however, seemed quite amused.
She chuckled mockingly, "I thought she was so capable, making my brother go personally to invite her. Turns out, she’s nothing more than an embroidered pillow—pretty to look at, but utterly useless!"
Lu Ying coldly retorted, "Losing to Yan Country—does that make you happy?"
Shen Yunxi froze, then hastily waved her hands. "I am not happy! I... I just..."
She couldn’t finish her sentence.
In truth, she didn’t care about the rivalry between the two nations at all.
Even if Great Zhou lost to Yan Country, what did it matter? After all, she was the noble Crown Princess Consort, and whether Great Zhou lost or even ceded half its territory, she would remain exalted, clothed in silk and living in luxury.
What truly delighted her was seeing Shen Yinning suffer misfortune.
But she couldn’t say that out loud—it would make her seem indifferent to the nation’s fate, unworthy of the title of Crown Princess Consort.
Lu Ying’s gaze shifted to Shen Yinning.
All those present had seen Shen Zhaozhao dance during a deity procession on the Lantern Festival night. Back then, she had performed a ceremonial dance, rigid and conventional, revealing no exceptional skill.
They had never seen Shen Zhaozhao’s true dancing.
Lu Ying suddenly asked, "Besides the ceremonial dance, have you ever seen her practice other dances?"
Shen Yunxi shook her head honestly. "No, I haven’t."
Though she and Shen Yinning had lived under the same roof in the past, she had observed that Shen Yinning would never reveal her diligent side to outsiders.
Shen Yinning was the sort of person who pursued perfection in secret while feigning indifference in public. Even if she read all night long, she’d nonchalantly claim she had spent the night playing board games with her maids. Then, when the teacher tested her the next morning, she would answer flawlessly.
That was how deceitful and insufferable Shen Yinning was!
Recalling her childhood, Shen Yunxi’s expression turned somewhat complex.
As a child, she had genuinely believed that Shen Yinning didn’t study at all, so she followed suit in slacking off. In the end, she was the only one left behind.
Shen Yinning, on the other hand, mastered every art and skill effortlessly.
Lu Ying said, "But I’ve seen her."
He had seen Shen Yinning practice dancing.
In the back garden of the Yu residence, on a snow-blanketed hill, in the bamboo forest after a rainfall, and under the midnight moon.
The young girl tied her ponytail high with a yellow silk ribbon, her figure supple and graceful. Her leg stretches resembled tender bamboo and fresh willows in spring. As she spun, her skirt swayed as light as moonlit frost. Barefoot, with her silk trousers casually rolled up to reveal a slender, fair calf, she bent gracefully like a swan in the Imperial Palace.
In the shadows, he had watched her, marveling at how a girl could possess such a flexible and resilient waist.
Shen Yinning’s dance was the first one the young Lu Ying had genuinely watched from start to finish.
Shen Yunxi’s expression stiffened as she glared at him suspiciously, "Your Highness saw her dance in private? Could it be she deliberately seduced you? My cousin is the slyest temptress—don’t be deceived by her appearance!"
Lu Ying tugged at the corner of his lips silently.
After all, in his youth, his feelings for Shen Zhaozhao had been a one-sided affection.
In the Golden Hall, Shen Yinning addressed the piano master, "Please lend me the pipa."
The five-string pipa had a luxurious, melodious tone.
The piece she played was called "Anan," a composition more popular in the north with Buddhist solemnity and a touch of empathetic sorrow.
Only nineteen years old, the youthful girl was at an age for being spirited and charming. Yet, clutching the pipa as she danced, her scarlet dress spun freely, and she looked as vibrant and lively as a fawn.
As the melody crescendoed, the Buddhist tones became more pronounced.
Her raven-black blouse tempered her youthful readiness, blending flawlessly with the music’s somber elegance. The deep green silk shawl draped over her arms resembled ink-painted clouds in a scroll, swirling and floating as she twirled.
Flowing ribbons in the wind, a reversed pipa stance, a goddess ascending to the heavens.
It was as if a mural from Dunhuang had come to life. Within reach, it seemed worlds away; in a fleeting moment, it became eternal. The restrained subtlety of the Central Plains danced harmoniously with the fervent freedom of Tianzhu. The transience of Buddhist transcendence and the timeless seclusion of Taoism collided, creating a vision of floating weightlessly in the wind, of reaching an immortal state.
In that moment, beauty itself materialized completely.
As the final note faded.
Shen Yinning slowly knelt and performed her closing salute.