Ye Xi sprang to her feet almost as if she had been launched into the air.

He quickly put his hands behind his back, like a primary school student caught doing something wrong.

That crazy energy from before has completely vanished.

All that remained was the awkwardness instilled by years of strict family education.

In front of a professor of Yu Yan's caliber,

Playing the piano haphazardly is not only impolite, but also a desecration of art.

Moreover, that thing she just played...

It wasn't even a proper piece of music; it was just using the piano as a punching bag.

Yu Yan walked in silently, wearing those soft-soled leather shoes.

Her gaze, behind her tortoiseshell glasses, first swept across the piano keys.

He glanced again at the still-vibrating strings, and finally his gaze fell on the two young faces.

Ye Xi's lips turned pale. She opened her mouth, about to speak.

"I."

A lazy voice broke the silence.

Lin Que stepped out of the shadows by the door and stood in front of Ye Xi.

He casually pulled up the zipper of the red vest, which was still warm from his body, with an indifferent expression.

"I saw this piano and it looked really high-end. I couldn't resist pressing a couple of keys."

Lin Que scratched his head and laughed like a country bumpkin who had never seen the world.

"These expensive things are really different; even a simple press makes such a big noise."

Ye Xi suddenly looked up, staring at Lin Que in disbelief.

That's such a clumsy lie.

Anyone with even a little knowledge of the subject knows that what just happened, though chaotic,

But the control of that force and the explosive power of the fingers,

It's definitely not something an amateur could do.

Yu Yan remained silent.

She turned her head and gave Lin Que a deep look.

Are you sure it was you who played that?

"hold head high."

Lin Que nodded shamelessly.

"I have no sense of rhythm, I'm just strong."

"He is indeed very strong."

Yu Yan walked to the piano and gently stroked the bass keys that had just been struck.

"The syncopation in the high register is handled as finely as chopping dumpling filling."

The chords in the bass register sounded like they were about to tear the soundboard apart.

It was completely chaotic, with no rhythm whatsoever; it was nothing but noise.

Ye Xi lowered her head even further, her cheeks burning.

Every criticism felt like a denial of her efforts over the past decade.

"but."

Yu Yan didn't respond to his words, but instead walked to the piano.

She frowned slightly, as if brushing away any remaining dust from the piano keys.

His fingers slowly traced the bass keys that had just been struck hard.

A full three seconds of silence followed, the atmosphere in the lounge so tense it was almost suffocating. Just when Ye Xi thought a storm was about to break, Yu Yan's tightly furrowed brows inexplicably relaxed slightly.

His tone was neither happy nor angry, but carried a hint of感慨: "It's a bit chaotic, all noise."

But...it sounds pretty satisfying.

Ye Xi suddenly raised her head.

"Nowadays, even the top students in professional schools, play the piano too 'mediocrely'."

Yu Yan sighed, his fingers tapping unconsciously on the piano lid.

"Each one is like a precise machine; if the score is marked 'strong,' then he exerts force."

He stopped when he saw the weakness.

The technique was flawless, but you couldn't tell if the person inside was alive or dead.

"But that part just now..."

Yu Yan narrowed his eyes, seemingly savoring the string of violent notes he had just heard outside the door.

"I heard an anger that wanted to break through something."

The outburst after being suppressed to the extreme, though unpleasant to hear, is a cathartic release, and therefore very satisfying.

The piano wasn't originally created for exams; it was meant to produce sound for people.

"If you can't even express anger, what's the point of playing Rachmaninoff?"

When Yu Yan mentioned "Rachmaninoff," he emphasized the words.

Ye Xi's heart clenched suddenly.

That was the piece she was going to play that afternoon.

Rachmaninoff's Piano Concerto No. 2.

A piece widely recognized in the industry as highly difficult.

It is also a famous work on the recovery of depression.