Chapter 24, Song 24...
The temperature here is high, it's already spring, and the rapeseed flowers are in full bloom. Tourists are taking pictures everywhere. If you walk a little further away and go deeper, there are finally fewer people.
Qu Jiaying was in a good mood, smiling as she watched the butterflies fluttering among the flowers. No wonder Le Yi could perform the pastoral song so well; if she had lived here since childhood, she probably could have played it just as well.
This time, Qu's parents didn't allow her to bring her violin on the trip. They said the trip was for relaxation and they hoped she could let go of everything.
Qu Jiaying's hands were itching to play the violin, but she didn't have any instruments.
Le Yi helped Qu's father find a few good angles to take pictures of Qu's mother before catching up. He took out his harmonica, and Qu Jiaying was overjoyed.
"You brought this too! I haven't played it in ages."
Le Yi handed it to her: "Every time I go out to play, I want to play the piano, so I think you might feel the same way."
Qu Jiaying chuckled softly, tried blowing a few times, and looked for the feel and pitch.
Vivaldi's "Spring" from the Four Seasons began to play, light and bright. Qu Jiaying smelled the scent of grass, gazed at the yellow flowers covering the hillsides, and felt her mood flutter as her hair danced in the breeze.
Qu Jiaying's hair drifted across Le Yi's face. He gently brushed it away, gazing quietly at her joyful expression. Indeed, she was most captivating when she was playing.
Le Yi then played Johann Strauss II's "Voices of Spring Waltz," and Qu Jiaying chuckled and started dancing haphazardly. She had wanted to do this for a long time; every time she heard a waltz, she wanted to spin around.
Le Yi couldn't help but laugh, which caused him to sing off-key and break his pitch several times.
Qu Jiaying glared at him, telling him to keep playing until he finished.
"Your pitch is terrible!" Qu Jiaying said disapprovingly. Although her breath control was unstable, her pitch was still fine.
"After all, I play the piano and don't need to calibrate myself, so learning the violin is quite difficult for me." Le Yi unscrewed the water bottle, took a couple of sips, then casually poured some water on the harmonica and wiped it a few times with a tissue.
Qu Jiaying stared at Le Yi's actions. She had just finished playing the instrument and then gave it to him, and it seemed that she hadn't cleaned the reed. She hesitated for two seconds before giving up.
Playing the harmonica made her lips chapped, so she took out some lip balm and applied it.
Le Yi reached out his hand: "My mouth is so dry, can I borrow it for a moment?"
Qu Jiaying hesitated for two seconds before handing it to him.
Le Yi twisted open the colorless lip balm with a faint lemon scent, applied it, and was about to return it to Qu Jiaying when she seemed to remember something, so she took out a tissue and wiped the spot where he had used it.
Qu Jiaying stared at his movements and pursed her lips.
To be honest, she didn't want to let her curiosity run wild anymore. Even if she wanted to know why Le Yi didn't want to participate in the competition, she couldn't ask. Opening up was the best way to get closer to someone.
Qu Jiaying was unsure if she had changed. In the past, she was never curious about others. She didn't know if this was a good thing, and it often bothered her.
Regardless, this trip gave her a deeper understanding of spring, and as soon as she got home, she started practicing various spring-themed pieces.
Qu Jiaying was slightly more satisfied with herself before she stopped to eat some of the fruit her mother had prepared for her dinner. She then checked her phone for unread messages.
Xiang Min sent her several messages, asking if she was home.
Qu Jiaying was no longer angry and typed a reply to him.
"Come out for a moment," Xiang Min sent immediately.
Qu Jiaying casually put on a cardigan and went downstairs. Passing by the blooming wintersweet, she reached the entrance of the community and saw Xiang Min standing under the dim streetlights, wearing a coat.
The fragrance of wintersweet is rich; it's truly a blissful spring night.
Looking at Xiang Min from afar, Qu Jiaying often felt that he was very distant, which is why she still couldn't help but ask him questions under Cai Rui's command.
However, Qu Jiaying also knew that given their relationship, she shouldn't ask too many questions, especially since she herself didn't want to develop the relationship further.
Xiang Min lowered his head slightly, took off his scarf, and tied it around her waist: "Be careful not to catch a cold."
Qu Jiaying looked up and smiled, "You're back so early?"
“Well, there’s not much to do at home, so coming back early means I can practice the piano,” Xiang Min said.
Qu Jiaying's last bit of anger dissipated; she still appreciated people like herself.
"I'm sorry..." Xiang Min said softly and sincerely.
"It's all in the past, and I also had my faults," Qu Jiaying said in a relaxed tone.
"Are you still coming to my place?" Xiang Min asked.
This was unexpected for Qu Jiaying. She had thought they would become ordinary friends, which would save her some trouble.
“You…” Qu Jiaying didn’t know what to say, “I…”
“I know what you’re thinking, that you don’t want things to be too complicated, but this is how I get more creative inspiration,” Xiang Min confessed. He said that he hadn’t been very comfortable staying at his uncle’s house these past few days. He often thought of Qu Jiaying, the way she stood in the center of the stage playing the violin, the way she sat in the first chair in the rehearsal room leading the quartet, and the way she looked when they embraced.
Qu Jiaying was both happy and annoyed. Although becoming a muse made her happy, she always felt that she was just a tool.
"Aren't you worried that I'll have a problem with you because you're so honest?" Qu Jiaying asked.
"I guessed that this was possible, but this reaction is also what I need." Xiang Min remained frank, saying that he could probably tell Qu Jiaying anything except things related to his mother.
Qu Jiaying sighed helplessly. What could she say about him? Arrogant, self-centered, and willful, but she herself was no less so.
"As a friend, I really admire your personality," Qu Jiaying said with a smile.
“Then…” Xiang Min spoke again.
Qu Jiaying added, "But I can't stand relationships that aren't just friends." She glanced at him sideways, "Is this the kind of reaction you need, right?"
Xiang Min smiled gently. Qu Jiaying always surprised him, which was why he was so fascinated by her.
After the start of the school year, the "three missing one" quartet band resumed normal rehearsals.
Xiang Min's candor actually brought him closer to Qu Jiaying. They often chatted after rehearsals, and Qu Jiaying was very curious about his creative work.
Yan Zheng was annoyed and pulled Le Yi aside, whispering, "How did they make up?"
Le Yi grinned and said, "That's a good thing."
Yan Zheng clicked his tongue: "Didn't you travel with Jia Ying?"
Le Yi wiped the dust off the violin with a soft cloth and laughed heartily: "Looking at it this way, the crisis of our band's disbandment is eliminated."
The topic was unexpectedly changed, and Yan Zheng's expression was subtle. However, Qu Jiaying still wanted the four of them to continue working together, so she wouldn't choose any one of them. That would be fine, wouldn't it?
Qu Jiaying has been in great shape lately. Yang Jingyi introduced the "Three Missing One" quartet to a performance at a campsite, where they chose spring-themed pieces, which Qu Jiaying performed very well.
The school symphony orchestra's rehearsals are going smoothly. Conductor Cai Rui has selected a new piece, Debussy's "La Mer," which will be performed in May.
Yan Zheng also has other news: conductor Cai Rui will be collaborating with the provincial symphony orchestra, and the two orchestras will perform at the same concert in May.
"My dad and his team were playing some of the classic pieces from the Yellow River concert. He's sent me several messages with a lot of complaints about Cai Rui's conducting," Yan Zheng said with a wry smile.
“Cai Rui’s interpretation is indeed quite novel, which may be a challenge for Uncle Yan. Alas, ‘The Sea’ is also quite difficult to grasp, and the soloist has not yet been decided.” Qu Jiaying sighed. Although she has made a lot of progress, she has not yet reached the point where she can perform every piece well, especially Impressionist pieces like Debussy.
“I will help you.” Yan Zheng took out Debussy’s biography.
Qu Jiaying chuckled and said, "Senior Ruan Qi has Lü Yueming, and I have you. As long as I take on the solo role, it proves that you are better than Lü Yueming, and Uncle Yan can't say anything more."
Yan Zheng stared at her blankly, then smiled softly and said, "I will still rely on myself."
Qu Jiaying learned about Debussy's life from Yan Zheng. His father had been a sailor, so he also had a deep love for the sea. This song, "The Sea," absorbed Eastern styles and was created under the influence of Katsushika Hokusai's ukiyo-e print "The Great Wave off Kanagawa."
Qu Jiaying no longer rejects reading, but what she learns and what she performs are still two different things. In the end, what impressed her the most was Debussy's infidelity, which led to his girlfriend's suicide and his wife's attempted suicide.
Yan Zheng was extremely frustrated; after teaching for so long, all he had remembered was the gossip.
When Xiang Min took over, he mainly talked about the experimental scales, modes, and harmonies that Debussy used, and how Debussy used musical notes to express the light and shadow of the waves.
Le Yi's method was to take Qu Jiaying to an art exhibition. Although there was no ukiyo-e print, there were many paintings and sculptures of the sea.
Le Yi, Yan Zheng, and Xiang Min all performed "La Mer" for Qu Jiaying. Their versions each had their own characteristics, but they all captured Debussy's style.
Despite her diligent practice, Qu Jiaying still couldn't grasp the essence of the game, constantly making the same old mistakes. Her playing was mechanical, devoid of emotion, and failed to express the ever-changing waves of the sea. She still couldn't capture Debussy's feeling.
Although she became the chief, it doesn't mean she's better than Ruan Qi.
Ruan Qi is able to portray that hazy, dreamlike quality.
To Qu Jiaying's utter surprise, Ruan Qi went on strike and refused to work.
Qu Jiaying was furious. She could accept that she was not as skilled as others, but she could not win without a fight, otherwise she would not be able to improve.
Is Ruan Qi really going to give up?
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