"Luo Tang plays beautifully."
Su Jingchu put down the pipa, clapped his hands, and walked towards Gu Luotang, smiling, "Luo Tang, how about we play a piece together, High Mountains and Flowing Water?"
"Great, we haven't heard you two play this piece together in a long time..."
The surrounding people immediately started to cheer. After all, it was worth the trip to witness these two celestial-level figures in the Hanfu circle perform together.
However, Gu Luotang's eyes flickered towards Wan Yunting. She bowed slightly to Su Jingchu and apologized, "I'm sorry, Brother Su. I was handling medicinal herbs today and accidentally injured my finger. I'm a bit uncomfortable now."
"Injured? Let me see..."
Su Jingchu immediately put on a worried expression and reached out to take Gu Luotang's left hand to check her finger, "Which finger is it?"
"I'm fine..."
Startled by him suddenly grabbing her small hand, Gu Luotang quickly withdrew her hand from Su Jingchu's grasp. She glanced nervously at Wan Yunting and said softly to Su Jingchu, "It's just a little painful, I can't play the zither well. Perhaps another time."
Su Jingchu frowned. From Gu Luotang's gaze, he could tell that all she cared about was that man!
However, this scene caused a young lady in a red Tang-style Hanfu in the crowd to widen her eyes. Seeing Su Jingchu nervously grab Gu Luotang's hand, she pouted angrily, feeling very displeased!
"Hey, People's Anti-Drug Hero, aren't you going to perform a show for us?"
Wang Jiawen, standing beside him, began to provoke. With his hands clasped behind his back and an arrogant tilt of his head, he looked at Wan Yunting, who was sitting there eating melon seeds with Qi Miaomiao, and taunted with a light laugh, "Could it be that you have no talents to display?"
Instantly, everyone's gaze focused on Wan Yunting. Before he could speak, Qi Miaomiao, beside him, disdainfully said to Wang Jiawen, "If my Brother Yunting were to show his talents, it would make you so ashamed you'd want to find a mouse hole to hide in."
"You speak as if he's so amazing."
Wang Jiawen naturally scoffed and sneered, "Then let him show us something, why don't you."
"Yes..."
Su Jingchu's other followers also chimed in. Everyone looked at Wan Yunting, pointing and whispering.
"Brother Yunting, write some calligraphy and let them see," Qi Miaomiao said, turning her head.
Wan Yunting continued to eat his melon seeds, too lazy to engage with Wang Jiawen's deliberate provocation. However, seeing the expectant gazes of Gu Luotang and Qi Miaomiao, Wan Yunting noticed a decorative Han sword hanging on the opposite wall. He pointed at it and asked, "Is that sword real?"
Everyone's expressions froze, and they all turned to look at the sword hanging on the wall. Yang Jinghan nodded and said, "It's a real sword, but it's a decorative piece."
"It's real, that's good enough."
Wan Yunting stood up, clapped his hands, and walked over. He directly took the sword from the wall. The long sword was unsheathed, revealing itself to be an eight-faceted Han sword. He hefted it in his hand. The sword was about 1.2 meters long and weighed around 15-16 jin. The eight-faceted blade had exquisite patterns. Although it appeared decorative, if sharpened, it would be a lethal weapon.
"How about I perform a sword dance for everyone?"
Wan Yunting held the sword in his right hand, turned his wrist, and spun out two sword flowers, saying to the crowd.
"Sword dance..."
This time, everyone was amazed and excited. After all, they were all ordinary people who hadn't practiced martial arts. Within the Hanfu circle, they had never seen anyone who could perform a sword dance, or even seen one before.
"Okay, Brother Yunting, dance for us. I've never seen a sword dance before," Qi Miaomiao immediately clapped happily, and even Gu Luotang looked expectant.
"Alright, then I'll demonstrate the Wu Liang Tai Chi Swordplay for everyone."
Wan Yunting, holding the Han sword, came to the center of the spacious second-floor living room. He asked people to move the nearby tables as well, to clear as much space as possible. Everyone was filled with anticipation, wondering what kind of sword dance he would perform.
Immediately, Qi Miaomiao said, "Senior Sister, Brother Yunting is dancing the sword. Can you accompany him with some music?"
Gu Luotang smiled and nodded, "Then I'll play High Mountains and Flowing Water."
"Great, that's a famous piece."
Wan Yunting became energized. Gu Luotang smiled and sat back before the guqin. Su Jingchu, standing nearby, raised an eyebrow.
Earlier, Gu Luotang had injured her finger and couldn't play the zither well. Yet now, as Wan Yunting was about to perform a sword dance, she was eagerly preparing to accompany him. How could this not make Su Jingchu feel gloomy and annoyed?
Xu Wenhao, Yang Jinghan, and Chen Shuyu, who were beside them, saw this and exchanged glances. They naturally dared not say anything.
Wan Yunting, clad in a flowing ancient-style Hanfu robe, held the sword in his right hand. He turned his head to Gu Luotang, who was sitting before the guqin, and smiled slightly, "Here we go."
At this moment, Gu Luotang's eyes were fixed only on the man before her. She smiled gently, nodded, and her jade fingers began to pluck the strings. A clear and melodious zither sound rang out...
Swoosh!
The next moment, Wan Yunting's expression turned serious. A sharp glint shot from his eyes, and his entire aura instantly changed. The eight-faceted Han sword in his hand, with a rotation of his right wrist and his footwork, thrust forward, actually emitting a sword cry. The surrounding spectators heard it clearly and widened their eyes in astonishment, watching him begin his movements in sync with Gu Luotang's music...
"Three Rings Enclosing the Moon, Void Stance Embracing, Advancing and Crossing Swords...!"
Wan Yunting's aura was imposing. The eight-faceted Han sword in his hand moved with him. He even recited the incantations loudly, his voice resonant and powerful. Coupled with his tall physique and ancient-style Hanfu attire, his long sword danced like a dragon and phoenix, effortlessly, with skillful mastery, displaying a myriad of postures and transformations. Everyone present watched, dumbfounded. Some young ladies couldn't help but exclaim, "Wow, so handsome..."
"It's absolutely amazing, I've never seen a sword dance before, I have to film this..."
Many young ladies and gentlemen excitedly took out their phones to film Wan Yunting dancing.
Even Su Jingchu and Wang Jiawen were stunned. They watched Wan Yunting, accompanied by Gu Luotang's music, make his long sword emit crisp, pleasant sword-singing sounds in the air. Unlike the graceful, soft sword dances performed on television, his movements were...
Wan Yunting's Wu Liang Tai Chi Swordplay was more like the practical sword techniques used by ancient martial arts heroes in actual combat. Every sword thrust that broke the air was powerful and resonant. Combined with his fluid movements, strong yet graceful posture, the rustle of his sleeves, and his clear incantations, it made the surrounding crowd feel as if they were witnessing the male protagonist from a wuxia television drama. Qi Miaomiao beside him exclaimed excitedly, "So handsome!"
Gu Luotang, while playing the zither, kept her eyes on the man dancing. It was her first time seeing him dance as well, and she was deeply captivated by his sword dancing posture and his heroic demeanor. Her heart was filled with excitement.
"As expected of a People's Anti-Drug Hero, his skills are impressive." Xu Wenhao and Yang Jinghan, among others, watched mesmerized and praised him greatly.
Even an ordinary person who didn't understand martial arts was conquered by Wan Yunting's swordplay.
This made Wang Jiawen's face turn extremely grim. He had originally wanted to embarrass Wan Yunting, but he never expected that Wan Yunting's performance would so thoroughly humiliate him.
Su Jingchu, standing nearby, squinted. Although he wore a fake smile on his face, his heart was extremely dark. Especially when Gu Luotang accompanied Wan Yunting's performance with High Mountains and Flowing Water, and the crowd praised them, saying, "They are simply a match made in heaven..."
How could Su Jingchu not feel consumed by jealousy?