32. Sisters at heart, she cared not for Bear One, but cherished her time at the piano.
Well, as for that.
Sun Yuman thought about herself and realized she was much luckier than Chen Xuan. At the very least, she had always been able to do whatever she wanted since childhood, with her parents at most frowning a little.
But it was hard to claim outright that Chen Xuan’s parents weren’t good to her either. The cost of putting a child through the National Conservatory of Music was one thing, but that gold flute headpiece worth over 200,000 yuan—how many parents would be willing to buy that for their child?
There was nothing she could say about this, and she had met Chen Xuan’s parents before; they were genuinely good people.
“Sigh.”
“If you ask me, you’re not wrong. Your parents are just looking out for you,” Sun Yuman said, gently hugging Chen Xuan and patting her on the back. With tender encouragement, she continued, “Uncle and Aunt have already compromised to some extent. So don’t overthink it. Just focus on living and working peacefully here in Rong City for now. I believe that once your father truly sees you happy and content, he will change his mind.”
She paused and then smiled, “Besides, isn’t Rong City your home too? My mom even told me yesterday to call and invite you over for dinner tonight, but I told her you were busy.”
Chen Xuan broke into a tearful smile. “Or maybe you were the one busy going out tonight?”
“Come on, Xiaomi, if you say that, I’ll be heartbroken. Sure, handsome guys are important, but in four years of college, when have I ever put romance above friendship?”
Chen Xuan had just started to say, “I know,” not noticing the mischievous grin at Sun Yuman’s lips, when suddenly she felt a chill across her chest and let out a sharp scream.
Sun Yuman pressed down forcefully, protesting the unfairness of it all. Why is it that some people keep developing after twenty-two, while others are stuck at their junior high figures?
Chen Xuan wasn’t about to back down. She retaliated in kind, and after succeeding, quickly put her index and middle fingers to work with a rapid vibrato.
“Xiaomi!!!”
Their two very different figures tumbled together on the sofa, caught up in playful chaos.
The living room seemed to transform into their old college dormitory, echoing with the memories of their youthful days.
...
Night fell.
Moonlight spilled through the window onto the bed, casting a hazy, dreamlike beauty.
One bed—half for you, half for me.
“Xiaomi, have you really given up on going abroad?”
“I suppose so. I’m not sure.”
“Have you ever thought about what kind of life you want in the future?”
“I just hope my parents stay healthy. As for myself, I don’t care about wealth or luxury. No matter where I am, even if I live simply, as long as I can spend my life with someone I love, that’s enough.”
“Tsk tsk, you’re quite the dreamer.”
“Is that really so hard?”
“You, my dear, are overdue for a romance.”
“Why make love sound so scary?”
“Oh, you young people. Listen, Xiaomi, let me be serious for a moment. Last time you didn’t like the artist I introduced you to, but this time it’s a lawyer—a PhD who just returned from France, a really good guy. Our families have been friends for years, know each other well, and he’s never had a girlfriend. What do you think?”
“These things are all about fate.”
“Fate, fate—if you keep hiding away at work, surrounded by nothing but kids and parents, how long do you intend to wait? Why not change jobs? My dad asked the other day if you’d consider joining Yudong Lab...”
“Xiaoyu.”
Chen Xuan gently interrupted Sun Yuman.
“Thank your dad for me, but I want to prove myself through my own efforts. Otherwise, what’s the point of going out on my own? And I really enjoy working at Blue Sky. Back when I was a student, I never realized that being a teacher and performing a concert to the end were two entirely different things.”
Sun Yuman understood. “Well then, I wish you success. But as for love, I advise you not to wait too long—otherwise, by the time my kid is running errands, you’ll still be single.”
Chen Xuan replied, “Alright, alright. I’ll let you know when I’m ready. Now, let’s sleep.”
Sun Yuman said, “Just don’t take too long. Goodnight, goodnight, goodnight~”
That night, Chen Xuan slept soundly.
The long conversation with Sun Yuman only strengthened her resolve.
She felt that today marked a new beginning.
Li An, too, slept well—if not for the nightmare.
He must have been too exhausted lately; he dreamt of suddenly being saddled with another hundred thousand in debt.
He woke up in a panic, groggily checking his phone, only to find it was a false alarm.
He took the opportunity to pay off 2,500 yuan on his Huabei credit line for the month.
After paying another 2,600 next Wednesday, he’d be down to 70,500.
That would be 10,000 less.
Keep pushing forward.
“Eighty thousand, get up! No more sleeping!”
“Meow~”
Wash, eat, and set out.
Another sunny day.
On the bus, Li An searched for the sheet music for “Blue Bird” online and sent it to Wang Meili.
“Sister Meili, could you please print two copies for me? Thanks.”
...
“Morning, Xiao Li.”
“Morning, Teacher Liu.”
“Good morning, Teacher An.”
“Good morning, Teacher Nana.”
Exchanging greetings from the elevator to the front desk, Li An didn’t see Wang Meili, so he made his way through a few children to the west side of the teaching area.
At the classroom door, he ran into Chen Xuan. She was also wearing a plain white T-shirt today, her hair pulled into a high ponytail at the back of her head, looking lively and full of youthful energy.
“Morning,” Chen Xuan greeted first with a smile, then led a little girl into Piano Room 4.
Li An watched her slender figure, blinking thoughtfully. The flute case she carried today was one he hadn’t seen before, and it certainly didn’t look cheap.
“Morning,” he replied, then chuckled to himself and entered Classroom 3.
Right away, he saw two copies of the “Blue Bird” piano score on the piano, still smelling of fresh ink.
He ran his fingers lightly over the keys; even though it was an anime insert song, it deserved the respect of every line and dot on the score.
It was truly beautiful, but of course, it depended on who played it.
Today, he planned to test Liu Fengrui.
At 8:55, the adorable Xiao Bei pushed open the door and walked into the classroom.
She curiously approached Li An. “Teacher, what are you playing?”
Li An didn’t stop his hands, his eyes fixed intently on the score. “Xiao Bei, get ready to turn the pages for me.”
Xiao Bei quickly reached out, tense and ready.
Li An brought his hands down forcefully, six fingers striking the keys like pillars of stone.
“Clang!—”
With that rousing chord, “Turn!”
[Song Kun’s teacher-student index has risen to 31]
“Naruto, huh.”
Hearing the voice from behind, Li An’s fingers gradually slowed as he glanced toward the door.
Xiao Bei had forgotten to close it when she entered, and now three children—two boys and a girl—stood at the entrance.
When the teacher looked over, the skinny boy holding a clarinet blurted out the words and ran off.
The three kids scattered, and Li An recognized the last chubby boy to leave as Song Kun.
Just then, Deng Yingnan appeared at the door holding a small notebook. Li An stood up, ready to greet her.
Deng Yingnan smiled and nodded at Li An before heading toward Piano Room 4.
“This piece is called ‘Blue Bird.’ It’s from a segment of Naruto, I think,” Li An answered Xiao Bei’s earlier question. “Do you watch Naruto?”
“No, teacher. I like Bear Big.”
“Bear Big is great,” Li An replied reflexively, immediately annoyed at his own silly remark.
Xiao Bei’s eyes lit up. “Teacher, you like Bear Big too?!”
With a smile, Li An bent down, looked Xiao Bei in the eye, and said seriously, “But what I like most is seeing Xiao Bei working hard at the piano, even at home.”
Xiao Bei seemed immensely encouraged, nodding vigorously, sweat beading on her forehead.
Li An patted her head, gathered up the “Blue Bird” scores, and switched on the air conditioner.
“Class begins.”
——
According to the system’s backend, Xiao Bei had practiced piano for a total of seventeen hours this week.
Li An was still three hours away from his next upgrade.