Chapter 33
That evening, Li Ye and Zhou Yuan finished their homework together, and Li Ye even accompanied Zhou Yuan to practice the piano. Neither of the adults from either family came back.
Although they had indeed told them in advance that they were going out to eat and would be back late, this was still too late, and they hadn't even made a phone call. Li Ye's family has a landline, so why didn't the two adults call back to let them know? Even Zhou Yuan was a little worried.
Li Ye: "How about I make a phone call?"
Zhou Yuan: "Who should I call?"
Li Ye glanced at Zhou Yuan's already packed schoolbag and violin case, and figured he probably wanted to go home. "They went out to eat together, so it's fine to call anyone."
Picking up the landline, Li Ye thought for a moment and chose to call Teacher Li: "Hello, is this Dad?"
Luckily, the call was answered almost immediately, and the person who answered was the person in question.
Teacher Li probably realized that it was too late and she hadn't replied to her family yet, making the children worry. She apologized first, and then explained why she hadn't gone home yet.
Teacher Li: "We were delayed by some unexpected events, but we'll be home soon. Don't worry, we're all fine."
"Is Zhou Yuan with you now? His parents are with me. Do you want to make a phone call?"
Zhou Yuan: "No need."
After confirming that Zhou Yuan wouldn't participate in the subsequent conversation, Li Ye began whispering with Teacher Li over the phone. First, they needed a brief understanding of the unexpected event that had kept them from going home until now.
The story is quite convoluted. It all started with Ms. Li's unexpected promotion. In the finance industry, when abilities are roughly equal, if you don't have connections, you can only rely on seniority. That's exactly what Ms. Li has been doing all these years.
Unexpected events can happen at any time. Recently, many nepotism issues at her workplace were purged, and Ms. Li received a promotion and a raise as a result. However, this did not dampen her spirits, and she wanted to treat people to dinner.
Because she had just been promoted and wanted to keep a low profile, Ms. Li thought it over and decided to invite Teacher Li and her neighbors to a dinner party.
Since we were going to drink at the table, we didn't bring the two kids along. They're big enough to go to and from school on their own anyway, so it's not a big deal for them to eat junk food once in a while.
Nothing happened at the dinner table. The accident occurred during the break after the meal. The four adults were chatting and laughing around the table, enjoying themselves.
Suddenly, a car came straight at the restaurant from an unexpected route. Since they were in a position where they could see the street scene, the four of them quickly got up and moved to the side to avoid it.
Almost immediately, the car crashed into the restaurant's glass wall, shattering the reinforced glass and scattering shards all over the floor, along with an overturned table and a spilled mat.
The restaurant owner, his wife who was at the front desk, the affected customers, and onlookers surrounded the area several times before the driver finally staggered out of the car.
The driver planned to go to the hospital for a check-up first, and then discuss compensation with the restaurant. At that moment, another car appeared, repeating the same scenario along the same route towards the restaurant.
With a loud bang, the two vehicles collided at one point, thankfully without causing any fatalities. However, this incident has now made the situation much more complicated, as it's difficult to determine responsibility immediately.
They were among those affected; the table that was overturned at the beginning was one of them. Fortunately, no one was injured, their belongings were undamaged, and their clothes weren't even soiled. The main problem was that they were frightened; they narrowly escaped being hit by two cars.
The restaurant owner has been arguing back and forth with the two car owners. The owner's wife is trying to maintain order in the restaurant and is even too busy to handle the bill. The waiters are blocking the doorway to prevent people from entering or leaving. This standoff has continued until now.
Of course, the police arrived to enforce the law soon, and that's when Teacher Li on the phone said it would be over soon, and then she went home safely.
Li Ye: "Then be careful on your way back."
After hanging up the phone, Li Ye and Zhou Yuan exchanged a smile and both relaxed, relieved that no one had been hurt.
As he saw Zhou Yuan to the door, he suddenly turned around and said, "I've had some time to play games lately."
Li Ye was turning on the hallway light so Zhou Yuan could get home later when she paused for a moment before realizing what Zhou Yuan meant: "Ah, Ms. Li is indeed quite busy lately, adapting to her new job, and won't have time to deal with our little antics. Your mother won't have time to look after you either?"
Zhou Yuan: "Lead the team out to compete."
Li Ye blinked: "Being a teacher is a very busy job, Teacher Li also goes on business trips occasionally."
The next day, Li Ye didn't dwell on what happened at school the previous afternoon and went to class as usual until he was called away by his homeroom teacher after school.
Like a little chick following behind the teacher, Li Ye initially had many wild thoughts, such as whether his consistently poor grades would eventually lead to him being relegated to a regular class.
But as the homeroom teacher walked into the elementary school section, Li Ye finally felt relieved. Even if she was eliminated, she would only be able to report to the junior high school section. What would that be?
When she saw that Zhou Yuan was still in the classroom office, her still somewhat confused little mind was wondering what kind of competition would require both her and Zhou Yuan at the same time.
After successfully bringing the two children to the same office, the music teacher, who was sitting there, didn't know how to start the conversation. It was her friend from the same class, who was also Li Ye's homeroom teacher, who spoke first: "Li Ye, Zhou Yuan, there's something I'd like to ask you about?"
"Would you like to perform on stage at the school anniversary celebration in a month?"
Zhou Yuan was also puzzled before asking the question. It was normal for the music teacher to call him out alone, especially since there was an upcoming school anniversary performance.
But the teacher in the office didn't speak as usual, but just asked him to wait. Then Li Ye came and interrupted Zhou Yuan's guess, and the conversation drifted to the idea that the orchestra's practice should not be disturbed by outsiders.
The two people being asked the question were somewhat at a loss. Li Ye, who knew very well that this had nothing to do with her, was the first to react: "Teacher, I don't know any talent performances. Did you call the wrong person?"
Despite saying that, Li Ye didn't even move his toes, and all four people present knew very well that no one had made a mistake.
Having prepared themselves mentally, the music teacher began with difficulty: "Boys, I have some good news for you. You will be performing at the school anniversary celebration in a month."
"The two of you will be on a show together; it's already been arranged."
Li Ye could tell that neither of the teachers looked too upset, so this was probably decided directly by a higher-up, or they just couldn't figure out how to get in touch with her.
"Teacher, how should I perform?"
What solutions will the adults offer now? Li Ye was very curious, as she knew absolutely nothing about performing on stage.
When the most difficult part to say came out, the music teacher returned to her usual calm and composure: "The program is for a violin and cello ensemble. Has Li Ye studied the cello before?"
Li Ye: "I've never learned any musical instruments."
The homeroom teacher chimed in, "Her extracurricular activity is painting."
The situation had reached its worst point, but thankfully there was still a way out. The music teacher continued, "Would you like to learn the cello?"
Zhou Yuan frowned, while Li Ye looked conflicted: "Teacher, is a one-month crash course in cello really enough?"
"It's alright, learn as much as you can. Zhou Yuan, you two will be partners and practice together from now on. Take good care of Li Ye."
Li Ye's tone alleviated the teacher's concerns, and the focus of the next step was to work on the boy.
Fortunately, Zhou Yuan simply relaxed his previously furrowed brow and reluctantly agreed to the teacher's arrangement, saying, "I understand."
After everyone was happy, Li Ye and Zhou Yuan were taken to the music classroom furthest from the orchestra's practice room. The room was empty except for an unused cello.
This classroom was familiar to Zhou Yuan. Every time he was chosen to perform a solo, his teacher would bring him to this classroom and tell him that he could practice here.
Starting today, for the next month, one more person, Li Ye, will be practicing here, without affecting Zhou Yuan's habits.
Li Ye was the one who was least used to it. She didn't know anything. The music teacher came up and taught her how to hold the violin. Didn't she have any theoretical foundation at all?
Forced to practice open string exercises for an entire lesson, Li Ye felt his time was being wasted and was full of questions. Since the two little ones were going home together again today, he decided not to hide anything.
"Was it like this when you first started learning the piano? I feel like the process is wrong."
Zhou Yuan glanced at Li Ye, who knew nothing but dared to spout nonsense, and said, "No, I'll take care of you."
"Are you sure that's what the teacher meant?" Li Ye narrowed his eyes as if trying to see through Zhou Yuan's thoughts.
Zhou Yuan just felt that Li Ye might have misunderstood the teacher's idea. After watching the lesson from the side, he roughly guessed what the teacher's solution was. He didn't tell Li Ye, since the result would be the same anyway.
"Yes, I'll teach you." Li Ye will definitely explode then, and Zhou Yuan wants to be her neighbor for many years to come, so he doesn't want to make things get out of control.
With a strange premonition, Li Ye didn't want her family to know that she was learning this. "Then I'll go to your house to do my homework, and you can teach me about cello."
"Let's make this clear first, you can't tell your family, not your family or my family."
Zhou Yuan didn't plan to teach anyone to play the violin at home, "We only have a violin at home right now."
"I mean, I'll teach you basic music theory so you can at least read sheet music."
Li Ye was sure he'd be fine, so he nodded happily. Then he heard Zhou Yuan complaining from the front: "We can't finish the game now."
Li Ye ignored him and ran to a nearby shop to buy two sizzling grilled sausages. He gave one to Zhou Yuan, who was lagging behind, saying, "Here, tuition fee."
Zhou Yuan took the still-dripping sausage with a hint of disdain. "Not even a month's supply."
Li Ye didn't think this would be enough to win over Zhou Yuan. "Today's portion."
"What tuition we receive next depends on Teacher Zhou's performance."
Holding the food in his hand, Li Ye walked slower and slower, and finally pulled Zhou Yuan to stop, waiting until they finished eating the sausage before continuing their journey.
He would return to Zhou Yuan's house. As he said, Zhou's mother was leading a team to participate in a competition, and only Zhou's father was at home. He was also stunned when he saw Li Ye following Zhou Yuan into the house.
"Welcome, welcome! You're doing your homework at our house today? Tell your uncle what you want for dinner."
Li Ye quickly refused: "I'm going home for dinner tonight. I came here to urge Zhou Yuan to do his homework properly."
Zhou Yuan, whose grades had declined due to his addiction to games, gave Li Ye a subtle glare and gained a new understanding of the scope of her earlier statement that adults were not allowed to know about this matter.
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