The younger generation, starting from where the wind blows...

Chapter 310 Once you're on the chessboard, you must be prepared to be a sacrifice.
Counselor Ms. Sun called Pei Shi three times in a row, but Pei Shi did not answer.

When the other party finally stopped calling, Pei Shi looked up at Jiang Nansun.

"I'm sorry, I'm afraid I'm not in the mood to teach you how to play the piano today."

Jiang Nansun stepped forward, took Pei Shi's hand, and comforted her:
"You go and take care of your own things first. It won't be a problem for me to be delayed for a day or two."

Pei Shi shook her head.

“Nan Sun, what I mean is that I may not be able to continue teaching you to play the piano in the future, and I will refund the tuition fee in full to Uncle Jiang.”

Jiang Nansun suddenly became anxious.

"Why?"

She wasn't initially very enthusiastic about learning the piano; it was Pei Shicai who truly became interested in it.

Now that Pei Shi has suddenly stopped teaching, Jiang Nansun feels like she's been "started with a fling and then abandoned."

“Pei Shi, I know you might need some time to deal with the theft of the song. It’s okay, I can wait. If a week isn’t enough, two weeks will do, even a month!”

Pei Shi gently patted Jiang Nansun's hand: "Actually, the reason I agreed to be your violin teacher was partly because Uncle Jiang's offer was very generous, but I also had my own selfish reasons."

"After you acted in 'Old Boys,' you became very famous online. I originally wanted to invite you to play a duet with me on this song, 'The Devil's Lament,' record a video, and post it online to promote the song by leveraging your fame."

Pei Shi poured a great deal of effort into the piece "The Devil's Lament".

Now, the song has been performed and released by Xia Chengsi and Xia Na, who have taken away the most precious "first time".

This was a huge blow to Pei Shi.

Pei Shi is now disheartened. She no longer wants to continue teaching Jiang Nansun to play the violin, and she is even questioning whether she should continue to pursue violin playing herself.

Pei Shi didn't know how long her depressed state would last, so she didn't want to delay Jiang Nansun any longer.

With Jiang Nansun's talent, he would make rapid progress if he found another teacher.

After Pei Shi finished explaining, Jiang Nansun was stunned.

Before she could react, Pei Shi's phone rang again.

Jiang Nansun thought it was another call from counselor Pei Shi.

Unexpectedly, Pei Shi picked up her phone, glanced at it, and immediately answered the call.

Ke Ze's slightly anxious voice came from the other end of the phone.

"Shishi, why didn't you answer Teacher Sun's call? I was so scared, I thought something had happened to you."

"I--"

"Teacher Sun told me about Zhu Jie stealing your song and selling it to Xia Na. She called you because she wanted you to come back to school to discuss how to handle this matter."

"Did Zhu Jie admit to this herself?"

"Yes, Shana didn't know that you wrote this piece; she was also deceived by Zhu Jie."

"Shana is innocent, do you believe that?"

"I--"

"You know very well that Shana is definitely involved in this matter, but you also want to advise me like everyone else: since things have come to this, why not just let it go?"

"Now Zhu Jie is insisting that she acted on her own initiative and that it has nothing to do with Xia Na. What good is it for me to have doubts?"

On the other end of the phone, Ke Ze's tone was tinged with helplessness.

"I won't let this go easily. You have no idea what Shana stole from me!"

Pei Shi said resolutely.

From the very beginning, "The Devil's Lament" was composed with the intention of one day being able to perform it with Koze.

Now this piece of music has been "desecrated" by Shana, losing its sacred status in Pei Shi's heart.

"Okay, okay, don't get agitated. I'm on my way to the college office right now. Why don't you go back to school first, and we'll talk when we meet, okay?"

"I'm still teaching my students, let's talk about it later."

Before Ke Ze could react, Pei Shi hung up the phone.

Jiang Nansun looked at Pei Shi, hesitating to speak.

Pei Shi raised her head and said with a wry smile, "What, even you want to persuade me to give up?"

Jiang Nansun quickly shook his head.

Although that's what she really thought.

Given the current situation, even if Pei Shi insists on making a big fuss, she can't really do anything to Xia Na.

Moreover, the Xia family certainly wouldn't let Pei Shi really escalate the situation.

Since the school has asked Ke Ze to act as an intermediary, the Xia family will likely take some action next.

Just as Jiang Nansun was thinking this, Pei Shi's phone rang again.

This time it was a call from an unknown number.

Pei Shi hesitated for a few seconds before finally answering the phone.

A middle-aged man's voice came from the other end of the phone.

"Excuse me, are you Ms. Pei Shi?"

"What's your business?"

"I've been asked to speak with Miss Pei."

Upon hearing this, Pei Shi immediately realized that the other party was from the Xia family.

It has to be said that Xia Chengsi is really meticulous. In order not to give anyone cause for criticism, he even uses a middleman for negotiations.

Even if Pei Shi records the call, it won't be of any use.

"What to talk about?"

"I can offer Miss Pei a price that will absolutely satisfy her for the piece 'The Devil's Lament.' In addition, we will publicly apologize to Miss Pei, and then the matter will be settled."

"Apologize?"

Pei Shi gave a cold laugh.

She knew very well that the apology the other party was offering was just a way to shift the main responsibility onto Zhu Jie, and then give a half-hearted admission of "oversight".

It was less of an apology and more of Shana further humiliating herself.

Sorry, but money really can buy you anything!

The other party's voice continued, "These are just the basic conditions. If Miss Pei has any other requests, please feel free to make them, and we will try our best to meet them."

Pei Shishen resisted the urge to hang up the phone and took a deep breath.

"I want Zhu Jie expelled from school!"

Pei Shi believed that when Xia Na bribed Zhu Jie, she must have promised that no matter how much trouble she caused, she would do her best to ensure that Zhu Jie would not be fired.

Since you're willing to be a pawn in the opponent's hands, you should be prepared to be discarded.

The man on the other end of the phone must have consulted Xia Chengsi before giving a reply.

"can!"

"Also, Xia Chengsi must immediately remove the video of him playing my piece."

"Miss Pei, are you really not going to reconsider my initial suggestion? Since it has already happened, what difference will taking the video down make?"

"Because I find it disgusting. Even if I never play the music I wrote again, I will not let it continue to be defiled! Tell Xia Chengsi that if he doesn't immediately take down the video and issue a public apology, I will absolutely not let this go!"

After saying that, Pei Shi slammed down the phone.

This time, Pei Shi simply turned off her phone.

After that, she squatted down on the ground and burst into tears. Jiang Nansun could only squat down as well and gently comfort Pei Shi.

On the other side, the middle-aged man immediately reported to Xia Chengsi after finishing the call.

Shana happened to be right next to her.

Xia Na was already a little unhappy when she heard Pei Shi demand that Zhu Jie be expelled.

When Xia Na heard that Pei Shi wanted Xia Chengsi to take the video down, she immediately objected.

"Brother, you know how hard we worked to film that video today. I absolutely refuse to let it be taken down like this!"

Xia Chengsi ignored him and instructed the middle-aged man to do as Pei Shi asked.

Shana stood up angrily.

"elder brother!"

The middle-aged man, being quite perceptive, quickly left.

Xia Chengsi looked up at his sister and said, "We can record another video later, and I'll pay for it."

Shana stomped her foot in anger.

"Brother, do I care about money?"

“I know you care about Ke Ze, so you should do as I say. Call Ke Ze right now and tell him that we are going to take down the video and apologize to Pei Shi publicly. Also, tell him that Pei Shi refused our request to buy the song and ask him to persuade Pei Shi.”

Shana stared wide-eyed at Xia Chengsi with disbelief.

"Brother, are you still thinking of buying that song?"

Xia Chengsi shrugged noncommittally and asked in return:
"Weren't you still thinking of playing this piece on the piano with Ke Ze?"

"That's why Pei Shi definitely won't agree." Xia Na almost revealed that Pei Shi had composed this piece specifically for playing with Ke Ze.

"It's man-made."

Xia Chengsi insisted on buying "The Devil's Lament," partly because of his own selfish motives.

He really loves this piece of music, and it would be wonderful if Pei Shi would sell it.

Shana did as she was told and immediately took out her phone to dial Keze's number.

On the phone, Xia Na shifted all the blame to Zhu Jie, angrily stating that she was also a victim.

To prove her innocence, Shana said she used her family connections to pressure the school to severely punish Zhu Jie.

It would be best to fire him directly.

After his explanation, Ke Ze began to doubt whether he and Pei Shi had truly misunderstood Xia Na.

Otherwise, why would Shana be so angry and want to kill Zhu Jie?

As for Shana's offer to buy "The Devil's Lament" at a high price as an apology to Pei Shi, Ke Ze agreed to help, but Pei Shi's phone was switched off, and he couldn't contact her now.

I can only wait until I go to school tomorrow to find an opportunity to talk to Pei Shi about this.

Meanwhile, Pei Shi gradually calmed down under Jiang Nansun's persuasion.

Originally, he intended to say goodbye and leave, but Jiang Nansun was worried about Pei Shi's current condition and insisted that Pei Shi stay at his home for one more night before leaving.

Pei Shi couldn't refuse Jiang Nansun, so she had no choice but to agree.

Pei Shi then mustered her spirits and began teaching Jiang Nansun to continue practicing the zither.

Jiang Nansun really wanted Pei Shi to teach her to play "The Devil's Lament," but she knew it wasn't the right time.

To distract Pei Shi from thinking about the stolen music, Jiang Nansun deliberately kept Pei Shi practicing the piano until very late.

After Pei Shi went back to her room to sleep, Jiang Nansun sat in front of the computer and chatted with Zhu Suosuo on QQ about what had happened that day.

Zhu Suosuo was furious after hearing about Pei Shi's ordeal.

"If this happened to me, I definitely wouldn't be able to swallow this anger either, but as an outsider, I can only say that Pei Shi's best choice is to sell the song to Xia Chengsi, at least she can get some financial compensation."

After reading the message from Zhu Suosuo, Jiang Nansun quickly typed a reply:
“Yes, that’s what I advised Pei Shi as well. Although her adoptive mother treats her and her brother as her own children, they are not her biological children after all. The two siblings are living under someone else’s roof, so achieving economic independence is the most important thing.”

Zhu Suosuo quickly replied:

"Now that you mention it, I'm a little envious of Pei Shi. If I were her, I would definitely take this opportunity to make an exorbitant demand and squeeze a huge sum out of the Xia family, since this money is what the Xia family should compensate her for anyway."

When others said this, Jiang Nansun would inevitably make a sarcastic remark or two.

But Jiang Nansun was not surprised at all by Zhu Suosuo's words.

Pei Shi and her younger brother were adopted by Yan Shengjiao, a situation very similar to Zhu Suosuo's, who was fostered by her uncle's family from a young age.

The only difference is that Pei Shi fell in love with her half-brother Ke Ze, while Zhu Suosuo had no feelings for her cousin who was not related to her by blood at all.

“Pei Shi definitely won’t sell it, and she probably won’t play this piece again in the future. It’s really a pity. Pei Shi originally planned to invite me to play a duet with her and record a video to post online.”

The message Jiang Nansun sent out was filled with regret.

Zhu Suosuo replied irritably:

"My dear lady, can't you see that they're just trying to ride your coattails?"

"Pei Shi herself admitted that she was trying to ride on my popularity, and I was willing to let her ride on my popularity. To be honest, I really like this piece of music, and I really regret not secretly writing down the score."

"What's so difficult about that? Just record the video of Xia Chengsi and Xia Na playing together, and that's it!"

"It's too late. I just finished practicing the piano and went to Youku to look for that video, but it's already been taken down."

Zhu Suosuo sent a shrug emoji.

"Then there's no way."

Jiang Nansun immediately replied with a sighing emoji.

Zhu Suosuo then replied, "Actually, there's another way."

Jiang Nansun's eyes lit up, and he quickly typed, "What method?"

"Answer me first: are you disappointed that this piece of music was shelved, or are you disappointed that you couldn't play it with Pei Shi and post the video online?"

Jiang Nansun was still in a daze after reading the message sent by Zhu Suosuo.

Zhu Suosuo then sent another message:
"You must tell the truth!"

Jiang Nansun thought for a moment, then typed a reply:
"A little bit of both."

Zhu Suosuo replied instantly:
"Just tell me which regret is greater."

This time, Jiang Nansun took a little longer to consider the matter.

"I guess it's because we couldn't play a piece together with Pei Shi and post it online. Do you think I'm being vain by saying that?"

Zhu Suosuo didn't reply immediately this time, mainly because she had a lot to type.

"If I looked like you, had your good family background, and got into such a good university, I would be a hundred times, a thousand times more vain than you!"

Upon seeing the message from Zhu Suosuo, Jiang Nansun immediately breathed a sigh of relief.

This is what a true best friend is like!

"You haven't told me how you can help me make up for my regret."

This time, Zhu Suosuo replied to the message very quickly.

"If you regret not being able to play with Pei Shi, why don't you find a new piece and invite Pei Shi to play it with you?"

Jiang Nansun frowned as she typed a reply:
"Where am I supposed to find new songs?"

This isn't some roadside cabbage.

Just as I was thinking this, Zhu Suosuo's message came back.

"Yang Muye! Didn't he still owe you a favor since you agreed to play the school beauty in 'Old Boy'?"

(End of this chapter)