Rebirth, but baby, where are you?

Chapter 58

Qin Siyu clenched her hands into tight fists, her bloodshot eyes staring deadly at the cold-faced Ning Shen, before finally turning her hateful gaze to the utterly calm Qin Huanxi. Her white teeth bit down hard on her lower lip, and her originally beautiful, eye-catching face became somewhat twisted, her eyes full of unwillingness.

She had always been close friends with Ning Shen’s niece, Ning Ziyi. Ning Ziyi would certainly never deceive her, and she wasn’t some ignorant fool either. Qin Yu’s behavior during those first few days after he returned, the way he looked so haggard and thin, clearly having suffered tremendous shock.

Combined with what Ning Ziyi had told her, Qin Yu must have been together with Ning Shen before. Later, for some unknown reason, they broke up, and only then did Qin Yu return to T City. Unfortunately, Qin Huanxi was right about one thing. She indeed had no evidence.

What kind of evidence could there be for such a thing? Even Ning Ziyi couldn’t produce proof that Ning Shen and Qin Yu had been together. Moreover, she had long heard about Ning Shen’s temperament. Moody and unpredictable, he was definitely not someone to provoke lightly. Ning Ziyi had no reason to secretly photograph him with Qin Yu.

Qin Siyu slowly unclenched her fists. She had been too hasty. But if she didn’t do something soon, the Qin family would truly fall into Qin Huanxi’s hands, and she would become even more destitute.

She truly couldn’t accept it. Every day, watching the news media praise Qin Huanxi, every word and sentence declaring that Qin Huanxi was the future head of the Qin family, lauding his genius as a violinist as unparalleled in the world.

Walking through T University’s campus, all she heard was discussion about Qin Huanxi. His extraordinary achievements at the concert had long become the school’s supreme glory. The bulletin boards were covered with photos of Qin Huanxi at the concert and news interview summaries. The Black Diamond had become inextricably linked with Qin Huanxi.

The childhood Amati, now the Black Diamond. Grandpa was always like this, keeping the best for Qin Huanxi. The Qin family clearly had more than just one violinist, so why should everything belong to him just because Qin Huanxi had shown slightly more talent than others since childhood?

“Enough!”

Just as Qin Siyu was about to argue further, Old Master Qin’s hoarse, flat rebuke stunned her into silence. She looked anxiously and uneasily at the old man on the sofa. That wrinkled, aged face had already lost its smile. There was no anger, only faint tranquility, though the disappointment in his eyes was clearly visible.

“Grandpa…” Qin Siyu stared blankly at the old man. Suddenly overcome with grief, she wept as she accused: “Grandpa, why are you always like this? No matter how hard I try, in your heart, I can never compare to Qin Huanxi. Whether it’s me, Brother Congan, or any of the other younger family members, when have you ever truly looked at us? You haven’t, not from beginning to end. You only have eyes for Qin Huanxi. Yes, he’s a genius, none of us can match his talent, but that’s no reason for your favoritism. Are we not working hard enough…”

“Qin Siyu!” Qin Huanxi suddenly interrupted her softly, his cold gaze fixed on the hysterical Qin Siyu. “You can vent any dissatisfaction on me, but likewise, this is no reason for you to be disrespectful to Grandpa. Now I only want to ask you one question: what is your ultimate goal in practicing violin so diligently?”

Qin Huanxi stared steadily at the instantly stunned Qin Siyu, his lips curving slightly: “Fine, you can’t answer? Then let me answer for you. You and I have never been the same. No one’s life is smooth sailing without any negative emotions. I too have thoughts of not wanting to practice and escaping reality. But now we’re adults, don’t you understand yet? In your heart, the violin has always been just a tool for winning favor and attracting attention. Have you ever truly loved and understood the violin with genuine sincerity?”

“Qin Huanxi, don’t be so shameless with your big words. You speak so easily, but that’s because Grandpa has given you everything…”

“Miss Qin!” This time it was Mo Shaoheng who interrupted Qin Siyu. His expressionless face made Qin Siyu tremble all over. “Huanxi once said something to me: for an outstanding performer, while owning a famous instrument is certainly important, what’s more important is love and understanding for it. If one merely pursues its prestige and reputation, then even possessing it would only produce soulless melodies. Today, for Old Master Qin’s sake, I won’t pursue your offensive words against Huanxi, but if there’s a next time…”

Mo Shaoheng’s icy stare made Qin Siyu’s body involuntarily sway, and she staggered back a step.

“I’ll leave it at that. I hope Miss Qin will cease her endless discourteous behavior toward Huanxi.” Mo Shaoheng said coldly and indifferently.

Qin Huanxi lowered his head slightly, but the corners of his mouth curved upward. He had never known that Mo Shaoheng could speak at such length, had never known that words he’d casually spoken would be remembered word for word by Mo Shaoheng, had never known that Mo Shaoheng would defend him so unreservedly.

Qin Huanxi steadied his emotions and glanced at the silent, head-down Qin Yu, then sighed: “Qin Siyu, you always complain about Grandpa’s unfairness, but have you ever thought, if Grandpa truly didn’t care about you, when I was unconscious, why would he have let you replace me in the birthday banquet performance?”

“So what? In the end, didn’t Grandpa still revoke my qualification?” Qin Siyu glared at Qin Huanxi with swollen red eyes.

Qin Huanxi caught sight of Old Master Qin sighing and shaking his head. He said flatly: “I once said that educating you was Second Uncle and Second Aunt’s responsibility and obligation, nothing to do with me. But today, when you showed disrespect to Grandpa in front of Uncle Mo and Mr. Ning, as your cousin, there are some things I must remind you of. Even if I had already recovered then, Grandpa initially had no intention of having me perform at the birthday banquet. How could you not understand how much hope Grandpa placed in you? He entrusted such an important performance to you, yet you disappointed all of Grandpa’s expectations. Your hatred toward me, your resentment at my recovery, tell me, what did you take Grandpa’s birthday banquet for? What did you take your so-called love for the violin for?”

Qin Huanxi’s eyes became extremely cold as he continued: “When you’re complaining and blaming your elders for being unfair to you, why don’t you think about Little Uncle? What did Little Uncle do wrong to deserve your endless insults and abuse? When you accepted the famous teachers Grandpa arranged for you, what did Little Uncle possess? He’s the one who truly has nothing. When you treat love and diligent practice as ways to show off and gain fame, when you use the violin as a tool for winning favor and showing off, you’ve already lost the qualification to become an excellent violinist. Your actions are nothing but desecration of the violin.”

The hall fell into oppressive silence. Even Qin Siyu stopped sobbing, staring at Qin Huanxi in a daze.

Qin Huanxi continued unmoved, his voice cold: “Some things I must say even in front of Grandpa. I, Qin Huanxi, have never been magnanimous. Whether in the past or future, I will never swallow my anger for anyone’s sake. I will definitely make them utterly disgraced with no chance of redemption!”

Qin Huanxi’s icy gaze fell on Qin Congan’s face, taking in his momentary panic and pallid complexion. At this moment, his mind repeatedly conjured the despair and pain of both the original soul and his previous life when death descended.

The original soul and Qin Yu were two extremes. The original soul possessed exceptional natural talent; his excellence and achievements were beyond others’ reach. So did that make him a target for jealousy? Did he deserve destructive attacks from the envious? Should he bear the fury of failures?

Old Master Qin sighed deeply, his voice hoarse: “Siyu, you’re tired. Go back and rest properly.”

Just as Qin Siyu was about to step forward and argue, someone grabbed her wrist. She turned to see Qin Congan.

Qin Congan shook his head at her, then said to the old master: “Grandpa, please don’t be angry. I think Siyu just spoke thoughtlessly in her urgency. I’ll take her back to rest right now. Please rest assured, Grandpa, I’ll definitely counsel Siyu properly.”

Old Master Qin nodded: “Thank you for the trouble.”

Qin Congan’s gaze swept over Mo Shaoheng and Ning Shen, his face apologetic: “I apologize for making Mr. Mo and Mr. Ning witness this. Congan apologizes to both gentlemen on Siyu’s behalf here. I hope Mr. Mo and Mr. Ning won’t blame Siyu.”

With that, Qin Congan nodded slightly in acknowledgment and led the reluctant Qin Siyu away from the hall.

As Qin Siyu left the hall, she turned back to glare fiercely at Qin Huanxi.

Qin Huanxi narrowed his eyes slightly, recalling the investigation report Mo Shaoheng had given him initially. The coldness in his eyes flashed momentarily.

Ning Shen leisurely held his teacup, but his burning gaze never left Qin Huanxi’s face, taking in his complete bearing and carrying it deep into his heart.

At this moment, the butler quietly entered the hall, his expression grave as he said softly: “Master, dinner is ready.”

He had witnessed everything that happened in the hall and was even more disappointed in Qin Siyu. Managing a great family that had been glorious for nearly a century was far from as easy as it appeared on the surface. The decline of a great family was much more tragic than that of an ordinary family.

There were many outstanding descendants, but truly few could support a great family. Even the former Qin Huanxi, no matter how high his talent or brilliant his achievements, was far from sufficient to support a great family.

As the current family head, the old master had to carefully select the next family head and ruthlessly focus on cultivating one descendant. But Qin Siyu would never understand this principle. If the old master truly favored someone, how could Qin Siyu have her current position? How could he tolerate her unreasonable behavior?

Unfortunately, human hearts were ultimately insatiably greedy. Fortunately, the Qin family still had Qin Huanxi. As long as Qin Huanxi was there, the Qin family would not decline.

Qin Huanxi stood up first, walked to Old Master Qin’s side, and helped the old man up: “Grandpa, let’s go to the dining room first.”

Old Master Qin gently patted the back of Qin Huanxi’s hand. His aged face gradually showed a smile. He was old and could no longer teach them. The future of the younger generation could only depend on their own fate. He only hoped they wouldn’t end up too disgracefully.

He wouldn’t blame Qin Huanxi for being ruthless. Qin Siyu was right about one thing. He couldn’t continue being so partial, tolerating the younger generation’s repeated mistakes. Otherwise, who would seek justice for Qin Huanxi’s nearly lost life? It was his tolerance and forbearance that had cost him the original Qin Huanxi.