Mu Xi’s heartbeat grew even faster.
She could clearly feel every stroke and every press of Ling Yue’s fingertips.
That feeling… was very strange, even somewhat shameful.
It was clearly just hand care, yet it made her feel an extremely uncomfortable touch… especially when she thought of that Dream last night… in the Dream there seemed to be this same burning heat.
Mu Xi’s cheeks flushed uncontrollably again, even the base of her ears began to burn.
She wanted to pull her hand back, but did not dare, and could only sit there stiffly, letting Teacher Ling Yue’s fingers carefully apply and massage her hand, wrist, and even every finger.
Time seemed to stretch infinitely in this moment.
In the air, only the faint breathing of the two remained, along with the subtle sound of Ling Yue’s fingers rubbing against skin.
Mu Xi kept her head down, not daring to look at Ling Yue again, her gaze able to fall only on her own carefully tended hands.
“Your hands… are very suited for playing the piano.”
Her fingertips were just lightly tracing the knuckles of Mu Xi’s slender index finger as Ling Yue’s voice suddenly sounded, breaking the suffocating silence.
Mu Xi instantly froze, not daring to make any small movement.
She subconsciously wanted to pull her hand back, but just as her fingertip moved, Ling Yue pressed it back with what seemed casual but was in fact irresistible force.
That warm feeling spread all the way along her fingertips, burning Mu Xi’s cheeks, and even the base of her ears that had just lost their blush took on a crimson hue again.
Facing Teacher Ling Yue’s words that carried a note of praise, she choked for a long while, and finally could only squeeze out in a small voice: “…Thank you, Teacher.”
Her voice was as faint as a mosquito’s hum, and even she herself felt a little embarrassed.
Ling Yue seemed not to care about her embarrassment.
The corner of her lips curved into an extremely faint arc.
In those cold, clear eyes, Mu Xi’s carefully tended hands were reflected, and her gaze was so focused it was almost infatuated.
She no longer spoke, only continuing the motions of her hands.
Her fingertips, carrying fine ointment, slid over the back of Mu Xi’s hand again and again with extreme patience, kneading every joint, not even sparing the tiny details at the edges of her nails.
That feeling… was too strange.
Mu Xi’s heart beat like a drum, thumping against her chest.
She could clearly feel that Teacher Ling Yue’s fingertips were no longer merely applying and massaging; there was clearly a kind of… playfulness in those movements.
Yes, playfulness.
The fingertips would deliberately scratch lightly at her palm, causing an indescribable itch; they would use the pads to rub the contours of her finger bones; they would even gently part her fingers and insert their own fingertips into the spaces between hers, slowly sliding and rubbing.
Every touch was like carrying a weak electric current, making Mu Xi’s whole body tingle, and an indescribable shame surged into her heart again.
Fragments of that absurd Dream from last night flashed uncontrollably in her mind; in the Dream there seemed to be the same intimate touches that left one at a loss.
She suddenly closed her eyes, and her long silver eyelashes trembled slightly from tension.
‘No, I can’t think about it anymore!’
She told herself that Teacher Ling Yue was only helping her care for her hands; perhaps Teacher was simply this meticulous by nature, and she was overthinking it.
Moreover, Teacher was a respected elder, someone who had once extended a helping hand when she was in her darkest despair, and she should not use such thoughts to speculate about Teacher.
Mu Xi forced herself to calm down and took a deep breath.
‘Yes, that’s it.’
She even began to think self-destructively: ‘Isn’t it just a pair of hands? If Teacher likes them, then let her look her fill and touch her fill. Anyway… anyway, it won’t cost a piece of flesh.’
Holding such thoughts, Mu Xi simply stopped resisting and stopped letting her thoughts run wild.
She only lowered her head, focused all her attention on the hand held by Ling Yue, and felt the complex touch brought by those slightly cool fingertips.
Time passed slowly in this almost eerie silence and focus.
She did not know how long had passed, perhaps ten minutes, perhaps longer, when Ling Yue finally seemed satisfied and gently released Mu Xi’s hand.
“All right.” Her voice returned to its usual cold clarity, “Let us begin reviewing your lessons.”
Mu Xi felt as if she had been granted amnesty.
She hurriedly pulled her hand back and hid it behind her, as if those hands were some scalding hot potato.
She raised her head and met Ling Yue’s calm, rippleless eyes, and her heart skipped again.
The two came to the piano.
“First, play the one you are most familiar with, <Prayer Under the Moonlight>.”
Ling Yue stood beside the piano, arms crossed over her chest, her posture elegant and distant, as if the person who had just been unable to let go of her hands was not her at all.
Mu Xi steadied herself and sat on the piano bench.
Her fair, slender fingers gently landed on the cold black and white keys.
The familiar touch helped her recover some of her composure.
She took a deep breath and began to play.
The piano music sounded smoothly, every note precise and correct, and her fingering was not the least bit unskilled.
She had practiced this piece countless times and knew it by heart long ago.
However, as she played, she felt that sharp gaze from beside her.
That gaze was as if substantial, tightly locked onto her, making it impossible to ignore.
As soon as she thought of the hand-care process that made her blush, and Teacher Ling Yue’s gaze so focused it was almost infatuated, Mu Xi’s heart could not calm down.
Though her fingertips remained agile, her breathing unconsciously quickened, and her cheeks burned uncontrollably again.
She tried hard to ignore that gaze and to immerse all her mind in the music, but the more she thought that way, the less she could do it.
Her eyes began to drift, her body grew somewhat stiff, the emotion that should have been invested in the music became intermittent, and the expression on her face was even more hollow and tense.
“Stop!”
A cold, clear reprimand suddenly rang out, interrupting the piano music.
Mu Xi’s fingers froze on the keys.
Her heart suddenly clenched, and she looked up at Ling Yue with some bewilderment.
Ling Yue’s brows were tightly knitted.
Her incomparably beautiful face was now covered with a layer of frost, and her gaze was sharp as a knife, stabbing straight at Mu Xi.
“What are you playing?!”
Mu Xi was startled by her severe tone and subconsciously defended herself: “I… I did not play any wrong notes…”
“It is true you did not play any wrong notes!”
Ling Yue’s voice rose a few degrees, carrying undisguised disappointment and severity.
“But what about your emotion? Your dedication? <Prayer Under the Moonlight> is gentle, carrying a trace of sorrow and hope. It is not for you to strike the keys like a puppet! Look at your expression now, stiff and hollow! Are you playing the piano, or completing a task?”
The cold words lashed at Mu Xi’s heart like a Whip, making her eyes redden instantly.
A strong sense of grievance surged into her heart.
She had clearly tried very hard.
It was Teacher who just now… just now treated her that way and unsettled her!
How could Teacher now blame her instead?
Tears welled in her eyes, almost about to fall uncontrollably.
She bit her lower lip, stubbornly refusing to let the tears flow.
But just then, a thought flashed through her mind like lightning.
What was wrong with her?
Teacher Ling Yue was right.
She had only been reprimanded a few words by Teacher, yet she actually felt wronged, even wanted to cry?
When had she become so fragile?
Was it because she had been “protected” too well by Ye Lan in the Silent Language Building?
With no worries about food or clothing, aside from losing her freedom, there was almost no difficulty or danger she needed to face.
Such days were indeed too comfortable, so comfortable that she had almost forgotten she was once someone who had weathered storms.
She had indeed… become weak.
Thinking of this, Mu Xi suddenly woke up.
She realized that Teacher Ling Yue’s reprimand just now was not merely criticism of her piano skill, but more like a warning, a wake-up call.
Teacher Ling Yue was reminding her not to indulge in comfort.
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