Envy Fish
The audience below the stage whispered among themselves, full of curiosity. One of the judges asked curiously, "So, contestant, what piece are you going to play?"
Meng Chou, unfazed, stood center stage and answered firmly, "It's a song about love and memories, inspired by someone very important to me."
As he spoke, he looked down at Yu Xi in the audience, his spirited expression radiating confidence. The stage spotlight illuminated his high nose bridge, casting a shadow, and every gesture he made exuded an indomitable will.
As if by telepathy, Yu Xi met Meng Chou's gaze in that instant, then quickly looked away as if fleeing, not daring to linger for even a moment.
Meng Chou's answer whetted the judges' appetites. Over the years, they had lost count of how many competitions they had judged. The same old tunes would eventually lead to mental fatigue.
They were curious about what kind of music Meng Chou would bring.
"Then begin your performance!"
Amidst the curious gazes of the crowd, Meng Chou gracefully took his seat, his fingertips lightly pressing the black and white piano keys, and two familiar notes entered Yu Xi's ears.
Making the same movements as she had made then, with the same carefree abandon, it was as if the music had come to life, flowing through my heart and imbuing it with warmth and love.
Yu Xi stared wide-eyed at the people on the stage. This piece, composed by Meng Chou, gradually pulled her back from the audience to the school's music room.
The white curtains fluttered in the wind, pattering against the corner of the window. The girl leaned against the corner by the window, her hairs brushing against her cheeks in a disobedient manner, making her feel itchy.
She was quietly holding the book, completely absorbed in it, and didn't even notice the variations that Meng Chou was playing.
"Little Fish, what do you think of this piece of music? Isn't it much better than the previous one?"
Yu Xi was reading the climax of the story when, without looking up, she said, "Hmm, it's good."
"How about I play this piece for the competition?" Meng Chou flipped through the sheet music, tilting his head to look at her, only to see her casually reply, "It's fine, I think it's okay."
The music stopped abruptly. Meng Chou stood up, strode towards her, and snatched the book from her hands. "Since when has a book been ranked above me?"
"Please talk to me, okay?"
Just as Yu Xi was about to get angry, his slightly humble and pleading voice drifted into her ears. When she looked up, Meng Chou's pitiful and aggrieved appearance struck her heart. Ironically, she was quite fond of his coquettish and softly begging-for-forgiveness manner.
With her anger largely subsided, she simply bypassed Meng Chou and went straight to the piano where he practiced. She casually played two simple notes and smiled, saying, "Sometimes the simplest things are often the best."
Although the notes were randomly struck, Meng Chou memorized them firmly. His playing, devoid of rhythm and without any constraints such as timbre, strongly expressed freedom and resentment.
After Yu Xi finished speaking, she turned to look at him with a smile. The hem of her navy blue pleated school uniform skirt spun in the air, like a blooming morning glory. She winked playfully at Meng Chou, "Go play that song hidden in your heart."
Meng Chou stood there stunned, his heart pounding as he stared blankly at Yu Xi.
For Meng Chou, who had been practicing the master's compositions repeatedly, almost without making a single wrong note, striving for perfection, such a suggestion was undoubtedly an unprecedented attempt.
But music itself is a form of creation.
"Thank you, Xiaoyu, I understand." Meng Chou said with emotion. With a creak, the door sill turned, and Meng Yun pushed the door open and entered.
In fact, he had arrived long ago. He was standing not far from the window, watching the two chatting happily. He hid in the shadows and kept watching them. Although his heart was secretly churning with turmoil, he smiled calmly and gently on the surface.
"Looks like I've come at the wrong time."
He put his schoolbag aside, brushed past Meng Chou, and went straight to Yu Xi, saying, "I didn't expect you to like the piano so much too."
"No, no, no, I just wanted to find a place to sneak a peek at a novel." Yu Xi held up the book she had snatched from Meng Chou's hand. "This is perfect."
Few people in their school study piano, and the school's open practice rooms would have been completely abandoned if it weren't for Meng Chou and Meng Yun practicing there.
Most art students choose dance and are unwilling to learn instruments like the piano, as advancement is slow and requires a long time to learn.
Thus, the music room became a secret base for the three of them.
It opens at 9:00 AM and is locked by school administrators at 5:00 PM. During this time, everyone can come and go freely.
Meng Chou would regularly come to the music room to practice for an hour at 4 p.m. when self-study started. At this time, Yu Xi would always follow behind him, either carrying a few exercise books or comics and novels, doing exercises and reading books while listening to the piano music.
During self-study time, teachers tend to turn a blind eye to these things and do not enforce any regulations.
One is playing the piano, while the other is quietly leaning against the corner, writing and looking around.
This is what a peaceful and serene life looks like.
Before Meng Yun started learning piano, he would always use the excuse of picking up test papers or delivering homework to walk through the corridor outside the practice room and pretend to casually glance at Yu Xi, who was not studying in the classroom.
I made up many excuses just to catch a quick glance.
Gradually, when he saw the two of them sitting side by side in the music room, Meng Chou was trying to teach Yu Xi to play a simple piece of music. The distance between them was very close, and their heads were close together.
Their fingertips touched almost imperceptibly as Meng Chou guided her hands onto the black and white piano keys. Yu Xi followed his instructions, listened to the piece she played, and happily looked up, "I never thought I could do that."
In an instant, the girl's delicate face filled his eyes. As the distance closed, Yu Xi could clearly hear his breathing. Neither of them looked away, lingering on the love in each other's eyes.
From this angle, Meng Yun, looking out the window, would think they were kissing.
Meng Yun gripped the exam paper tightly, leaving marks on the thin paper. Unable to withstand the heavy force, it finally tore.
From that moment on, he resolved to learn the piano and surpass Meng Chou.
—
The people on stage will blend all the time they experienced in the practice room into the piano music, as if those times had never gone away, but were simply collected in a song.
As the notes drifted by, the audience was transported back to their unforgettable memories of their student days. Even the judges closed their eyes, completely immersed in the piano music played by Meng Chou.
Yu Xi smiled and whispered, "If you really do as I say, aren't you afraid of losing?"
The music drowned out her voice, and her deskmate sitting next to her asked, "Xiaoyu, what did you say?"
Yu Xi waved her hand, and then heard her deskmate exclaim, "How can there be such a heartwarming melody? It almost made me cry."
As she spoke, she rested her head on Yu Xi's shoulder and buried her face in her arms, saying, "No wonder you're a genius; you're so good at playing the piano too."
"Don't really cry, just wipe your snot on my clothes." Yu Xi teased her with a smile, gently pushing her away.
"I won't!"
"What if? Who was it that said they were incredibly moved?"
Yu Xi dodged her leaning, and her deskmate pressed her advantage, rubbing against her clothes, "If you say that again, I'll really rub my snot and tears all over you."
As the music ended, the lingering notes echoed in the air, and the audience remained completely silent, still immersed in the music. After a long while, someone suddenly clapped, and the applause rose like a tide, lasting for a long time.
The displeasure on Meng's father's face lessened somewhat; Meng Chou's talent in composing music calmed his anger.
"It's a very warm and loving piece of music. Can you tell me its name?" a judge asked.
Meng Chou stood up and bowed to the audience and the judges' platform. Then he slowly said, "This piece is called 'Envy of Fish,' a piece that is hidden in my heart."
"No sheet music is needed, there are not many restrictions, it's just a simple expression of love and emotion."
"Here I want to thank the person who inspired me, my classmate. I'm sorry I can't tell you her name. But one day, I will announce her to the world."
He was practically about to blurt out Yu Xi's name, his words practically blaming her for having such a great 'classmate'.
"Is that your girlfriend?" someone shouted bluntly.
Meng Chou smiled without saying a word, "Forgive me for not being able to comment."
The little incident ended quickly. The judges discussed among themselves and finally gave her a high score of 9.7, 0.1 points lower than Meng Yun's score.
"First of all, your composition is original, which is excellent. It demonstrates your ability to create music in a short time. Secondly, your composition is very moving and can draw people into the music. Finally, since the competition requires the presentation of famous works by renowned artists, I'm sorry we can't give you a higher score."
Meng Chou listened attentively and smiled calmly, "The championship is not as important to me as she is. I just hope that the people I love and the people who love me can be happy."
After he finished speaking, he bowed again to take his leave, then walked gracefully backstage without looking back.
The applause rang out again, lasting and resounding, like the sound of rain outside the window.
After Yu Xi sobered up, she completely emerged from her memories. She got up and opened the window of her cabin on the cruise ship. It was raining, and the river was dotted with ripples. The reflections of the neon lights were blurred on the shimmering surface of the river.
The coolness brought by the moisture made her close the window without lingering.
Yu Xi glanced around but still couldn't find Chen Miao. The phone screen showed 4:50. The long night was exceptionally quiet.
While I was in a daze, I received a message notification from WeChat. It was from Gu Yuan, the president of the company that claimed to have been plagiarized.
Yu Xi was furious when she saw the message from him. She closed her eyes, took a deep breath, and opened it, only to be filled with doubt.
Gu Yuan: [Jin Xuexiao didn't plagiarize. I know those public opinions must have been hard to bear, right?]
What's he doing here? Is he feeling sorry for the rabbit dying?
Yu Xi ignored him, and another message popped up: [I admit that I orchestrated this whole incident. I just wanted to discuss a business deal with President Yu.]
[I wonder if Mr. Yu is interested.]
Yu Xi replied simply and directly: [No.]
Gu Yuan: [Mr. Yu, aren't you curious what kind of business I want to discuss with you?]
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