Chapter 69 Chapter 69 A Concert Dedicated to Sarah...
The fashion show doesn't start until tomorrow night. Jeon Seong-ae spent the whole day in her hotel room writing songs for her new album, and then Lee Joo-hyuk arrived.
"Oppa, what do you want to buy? Do you have to ask me to pick it out?" Quan Xingai was dragged by Li Zhuhe to go out shopping.
"Buy a violin. I have a girlfriend who studies classical music, and I want to buy her a gift." Li Zhuhe made up a love story without thinking. After all, Quan Xingai loves gossip the most.
"Oh my! Do I know her? Oh, I probably don't know her. Is she pretty? Do you have a photo?" Sure enough, Xing Ai became interested.
"Let's go. We talked about it on the way. There are many antique musical instrument shops in the Marais district. Come with me to take a look." Li Zhuhe said.
Jeon Seong-ae looked out the window at the dusk, thought for a moment, grabbed a coat, and followed without much hesitation. Gossip and shopping were both possible; how could such a good opportunity be missed? Li Joo-hyuk arrived in a car. The French driver mumbled something incomprehensible. As soon as Jeon Seong-ae got in, he began to chatter and ask Li Joo-hyuk about his mysterious partner. But the guy was so tight-lipped that she couldn't get any information out of him.
"Don't just gossip about me, what about you?" Li Zhuhe asked back.
"Me? What can I say?"
"Is Zhilong not good enough? Why don't you agree to a relationship?" Li Zhuhe asked with a smile.
"Why do you like to ask this question? I'm open to all possibilities. Maybe we will be together, maybe not." Quan Xingai smiled and just shrugged.
"Why are you speaking official language to me? Opening up all possibilities? Does that mean being together is also included in the possibilities?" Li Zhuhe raised his eyebrows.
Quan Xingai sighed. She knew Li Zhuhe would definitely ask this.
"Maybe, we'll be together, but honestly, I don't know when." That was all she could say. Honestly, she really didn't know. While she'd made up her mind and still loved him, she hadn't actually considered how to reveal her identity. Would she just rush over and say, "Hi, you guessed it, I'm Sarah. Surprised?" or, "Sorry for hiding it for so long. I really am Sarah..." or, "Oh yeah, I'm Nuna, so what?"
Although Zhilong seemed to have doubts, doubt and confirmation are two different things. Asking her to prove that she is herself, this... ah...
"Looking at your expression, are you so embarrassed? Tsk tsk, forget it, let Zhilong solve this problem." Li Zhuhe smiled.
After getting off the car, the two of them went to several music shops. Xing'ai helped Li Zhuhe's legendary development partner pick out a few nice violins. The music shops in the narrow alleys of the Marais district seemed to exude an ancient atmosphere, with violins of various sizes hanging on the walls. Quan Xing'ai was holding an antique violin from the UK in her hand. It was an antique violin with a honey luster, the corners of the violin were round and elegant, and the tiger stripes on the back looked like leaping flames under the light.
"This one is good. The E string is bright, the A string is soft, the D string is elegant, and the G string is strong. It also looks like it has a sense of story. Classical musicians will like it at first sight." Quan Xingai tried the sound and nodded continuously.
"Then this one." Li Zhuhe didn't hesitate.
"Decided so quickly? Why don't you look at a few more potential prospects?"
"Let's take this one. I saw that the tone of this guitar was quite nice when you were testing it." There was no target for development at all. This guitar was originally an excuse for singing. After buying it, he planned to give it to Quan Xingai. Li Zhuhe saw that it was almost time, so he paid the money neatly.
"Okay, but this one is really good." Quan Xingai shrugged, picked up the guitar and followed Li Zhuhe out of the music store.
"I didn't expect there is such an alley of musical instruments in the Marais district. It seems that the air is filled with the atmosphere of classical music. Xingai, I see that you look completely familiar with this place after coming in?" Li Zhuhe chose this place specifically after checking the information. Quan Zhilongding's private concert hall is just around the corner.
"Oh, I looked it up on the Internet." Quan Xingai made up an excuse.
"Why are there no concert halls when there are so many music stores?" Li Zhuhe continued with this topic.
"Yes, it's right around the corner. It's a private concert hall. They seem to hold private concerts occasionally, but I've never been there. I'm told it's very old, dating back to the 15th or 16th century."
Li Zhuhe was secretly delighted. This was exactly what he wanted. "Where? Why didn't I see it?"
"Come on, I'll take you to see it." Quan Xingai waved his hand and took the lead and walked towards the destination automatically.
"Okay, let's go and take a look." Li Zhuhe lowered his head and smiled. Sometimes he felt that Quan Xingai was really interesting.
"Hey, the door is open? Why are there daisies at the door? I should call Zhilong to come and take a look." Quan Xingai walked to the door of the concert hall and shouted in surprise.
This is a building converted from an old house in the 16th century. The main entrance is just a heavy oak door with no markings. Only the tall window panes can let in the dim light from inside. Small daisies are planted on the ground at the door, swaying in the wind.
The oak door opened and Quanxing Ai stepped in curiously. Behind the door was not a spacious hall, but a dark corridor that was only wide enough for one to turn around. On the wall were several faded Baroque music manuscripts inlaid in glass. The air was filled with a faint smell of dust mixed with pine resin, carrying a sense of ancient history. At the end of the corridor was still decorated with a bunch of daisies.
"Come in and take a look. Aren't you curious about the daisies all around?" Li Zhuhe's voice came from the door.
Quan Xingai was already feeling very strange, and turned to look at Li Zhuhe with a frown.
"Oh, by the way, take this with you. Isn't this a concert hall? It would be more appropriate to bring a violin." Li Zhuhe put the antique violin he had just bought back into Xingai's hand, smiled and walked out, closing the door behind him.
Quan Xingai is now 100% sure that these daisies are indeed that guy, right? What is Quan Zhilong going to do?
Pushing open the second tapestry covered with dark green velvet, and then pushing open another narrow door, the space suddenly opened up, yet strangely wrapped up. It was indeed an ancient concert hall.
The low dome was covered in a deep blue, almost black, sound-absorbing fabric. Beautiful wall sconces nestled in the exposed, ancient stone walls, their light softened by tinted frosted glass, illuminating only the abstract paintings hung below. There was no stage in the space; instead, a dark, thick Persian rug covered the floor, surrounded by a haphazard assortment of chairs: Bauhaus-style armchairs, Louis XV wing chairs covered in faded brocade, and unadorned wooden stools.
This random combination flows towards the only light source in the center of the carpet, a beautiful and gorgeous bronze chandelier, which generously pours warm light onto a grand piano with a deep ebony luster.
At the piano is Kwon Ji-yong.
He was wearing an extremely formal suit and even a gorgeous graffiti bow tie that was quite his personal style, with a dazzling gem in the center. As the only audience member arrived, his hand hovered over the center C key without pressing it, and the surrounding lights seemed to subtly dim.
Quan Xingai was shocked by his solemnity. She walked to the first row and picked a Louis XV-style chair to sit in. She wanted to see what Quan Zhilong was going to do. Quan Zhilong looked serious, raised his head, closed his eyes, and took a deep breath before starting to play.
Fingers flew, and suddenly, a rich, velvety piano note rang out. This piece? This sad melody wasn't any master's masterpiece. It was a note that belonged exclusively to All Star Love, to Sarah. It was a piece she thought no one had ever heard, and now, from that huge golden soundboard, from the depths of the resonance box, it poured out in all directions.
The melody echoed in the stone chamber like a sigh. The magic of space lies in its domestication of sound, stifling any scream that might escape.
The song "All Star Love" beats like a drum, "dong, dong, dong"—beating against her chest. How did Quan Zhilong know this song? Oh, yes, she played the violin before, and it was even posted on YouTube by Neon. It got quite a lot of views, quite good.
Thinking of this, she seemed to be less nervous. She leaned back in her chair and listened to Quan Zhilong play this sad song on the piano. The short 5-minute song seemed to bring them into memories. In this ancient concert hall, the rough stone walls were like the most loyal sounding board, gently wrapping and amplifying the core texture of the sound: warmth, mellowness and power, and then sending it back to Quan Xingai's chest with incredible clarity.
Soon, Quan Xingai couldn't laugh anymore. After FOR G, Quan Zhilong didn't stop and continued to play another song. Quan Xingai couldn't deceive herself. How could he know this song? Then one after another, Quan Zhilong played for half an hour, all melodies she had written in the months after the breakup.
She never told anyone, there was no way anyone would know...
But Kwon Ji-yong played it out, played it completely and in full. She clenched her fists, feeling the shame and guilt of being seen through, stripped naked and placed in the center of the stage. Ahhhhhhhhhhhh.
Speculation was one thing, but having the truth revealed in public was another. She had to remain calm, she had to keep her composure. Hadn't this guy known about it long ago? She was still racking her brains trying to figure out how to confess. So how did Quan Zhilong know these songs?
Oh, yes, she seemed to have written it in a notebook. So where is that notebook? Wasn't it cremated with her? No? Quan Xingai was already lost in thought.
Quan Zhilong finished playing, turned around and saw Quan Xingai lost in thought.
"Ah, Jeon Seong-ae--" Quan Zhilong said unhappily.
The romantic and sad atmosphere was destroyed by his baby voice, and the sixteenth-century stone chamber became a place of accusation for a childish ghost.
"Ah--why are you pinching me!" Quan Xingai felt a pain on her cheek. When she came to her senses, she saw Quan Zhilong squatting in front of her, staring at her, with one hand pinching her face.
"You can even be distracted by this?" Quan Zhilong said in disbelief.
"..." Quan Xingai felt inexplicably guilty, then raised her chin again, "Oh, your performance was so beautiful, I almost fell asleep."
"Baby Sarah."
"Mo?"
“…”
The familiar address brought about an eerie silence between the two. Quan Zhilong gradually smiled, while Quan Xingai pursed her lips in annoyance.
"You, you, you, what are you saying? I don't understand..." Quan Xingai's voice gradually became lower, and he became less and less confident as he spoke.
"You know, when I realized I liked you, I was actually troubled for a long time because I couldn't tell whether I loved Xing Ai or Sarah. You two are so similar. I was afraid that I was just treating you as a substitute for Sarah."
Quan Xingai looked at Quan Zhilong quietly.
"Actually, I struggled a bit. I thought, let it go. If you don't accept me, then forget it. I found that I couldn't do it, so I made up my mind to only think about you. You are Xing Ai, not Sarah, and then..."
"Then what?" Xing Ai couldn't help but ask.
"Then I slowly realized that this little fool really gave away a lot of clues. You couldn't tell when you wrote Korean, and there were differences in English, but the details of your writing habits were the same. But when it came to writing Japanese, your handwriting became almost identical."
"Ah - a gift from Vivi." Quan Xingai slapped her forehead. She was such a fool.
Quan Zhilong laughed happily, "Unfortunately, I was too busy later. I released the team's songs and started to get busy with my own work to build a team. That's why you escaped for a long time and became someone else's screen partner. But I also have to thank this drama, otherwise how could I be sure that you are my baby."
"You're so corny, what's that? I don't understand..."
"Don't hide, little fool. The expression on your face when you flicker and don't dare to look at me is exactly the same as Sarah's. Xingai was born an orphan. Although she has been a trainee since junior high school, she may have learned guitar, but how could she play various classical instruments such as violin and piano? And you can tell from the long hours of training. You can fool other people in the company, but you can't fool me, not to mention... I have this." Quan Zhilong took out the familiar notebook.
Quan Xingai's eyes widened. "Ah, it's really with you. Where did you find it?"
"Then do you admit it? Nuna?" Quan Zhilong looked into Xing Ai's eyes seriously and asked her softly.
Oh no, this damn fox turned back into a dog again, with long bangs hanging in front of his eyes, but unable to hide the expectation in his eyes. He really looked like he was about to cry, with red eyes.
"You know, when I received the news in 2016, I thought it was fake news. How could it be possible? Then I saw the news broadcast all over the world covering the accident. The hospital announced that the rescue had failed, and your agency, Warner Records, officially published your obituary. I felt like I was falling into an icy cave. In that moment, I couldn't hear anything. I had tinnitus all day and couldn't do any work. That was the first time I didn't care about work, future, or career. I bought a ticket and flew to Los Angeles directly, but I could only be friends. There were not many people in this world who even knew that we were in love..."
Nuna, I miss you so much. Every day for these 1095 days, I would think of you without any warning, until - I met a girl who looked just like Nuna. The first time she saw me, she raised her eyebrows and looked like a bad girl, and she said, "My name is Sarah." I thought it was just your way of attracting me, but I didn't expect it was really you. I am an atheist, but now every day when I see you, I want to thank God.
Quan Xing'ai's tears could not be held back and flowed out. She lost her life in just a moment, but for those who loved her, it was a lifetime of sadness. She had never seen Quan Zhilong so sad. Recalling that difficult time, it seemed as if all his vitality and hope were gone.
"I'm sorry, it's me, Zhilong. Thank you for your hard work." She stroked Quan Zhilong's face with a smile, then gently hugged him in her arms.
"Thank you, thank you for coming back, thank you for the miracle. I once thought that I would never fall in love with anyone again after I was over 30 years old. Now I find that I will always fall in love with you. No matter what you become or what kind of soul you have, I will always love you."
Quan Xingai was deeply moved and shocked. She had heard Quan Zhilong talk about how similar he was to Sarah more than once. She didn't think much about it at that time, but now she knows his struggle and efforts behind those words. It is hard to imagine how much struggle he went through when he chose to forget Sarah and start a new relationship, but later found out that it was just a joke of fate.
Xing Ai was originally Sarah.
"So now you understand why I always call you Zhilong and not Oppa?" Quan Xingai patted Quan Zhilong's head and made a joke. It was obviously a comedy ending, why make it so sad.
"But now Nuna is really younger than me, 10 years younger. I will be your oppa for life." Kwon Ji-yong looked at Xingai, and the little brackets at the corners of his mouth were filled with a happy smile.
"Now you're holding a concert just to expose me, and you still want to be my senior?" Quan Xing'ai said with a puffed expression. "Also, where did you get this notebook? No wonder you suddenly showed up to visit the studio in the middle of the blind date shoot, looking so weird. You must have been plotting something like that before, right?"
Quan Xingai had a lot of questions and started to drag Quan Zhilong to "check the account book" to settle the accounts.
At this moment, Quan Zhilong's heart felt fulfilled, and his anger had really, really returned to him.
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