Chapter Three: Do Not Listen a Third Time

Chengjun's smile held. "An old family crest. Father enjoys theatrics." After he left, Xingyao drew a line through the word *father*. That afternoon, Gu Chongshan summoned the family. The old man sat at the center of the drawing room. His left hand had curled after his stroke, but his voice could still subdue everyone present. At his birthday banquet, he announced, he would reveal a new will. Whoever could make Xingyao complete the assigned composition on the Nightingale would gain the voting rights of the Gu family trust. For once, Cheng Manyi lost her smile. "A child's recital will decide an empire?" "Not a recital." Gu Chongshan looked at Shen Yan. "It will show who can make her obey." "Xingyao is not a bargaining chip," Minglan said.