Chapter 29, Song 29...
The day before the command department assessment, Yan Zheng was so nervous and anxious that he couldn't sleep. He tried to find out if anyone was awake in the "one short" group chat.
As a result, Qu Jiaying, Le Yi, and Xiang Min all replied.
"Why aren't you all resting? What time is it? Jiaying, you have a performance tomorrow," Yan Zheng replied, his words contradicting his true feelings.
"I was just practicing the piano. There's a piece by a senior from the composition department with really awkward fingering, and I haven't mastered it yet," Qu Jiaying said.
Le Yi was revising sheet music for students preparing for a competition. He wasn't very good at it, so he asked Xiang Min for help. The two of them have been busy until now.
Xiang Min eventually invited Le Yi to his residence, and unexpectedly, Le Yi was the first person to spend the night there.
Yan Zheng quietly got off the iron bunk bed, went to the balcony, and started a phone call.
Le Yi complained, "These days, parents make their kids participate in competitions that have no real value, just to win awards, even though their kids can't even play a complete piece."
Xiang Min yawned and said sarcastically, "The chords need to be simplified, but not too simple, otherwise we won't win any awards. It's quite a challenge, hehe."
Qu Jiaying was also furious: "You composition department people are all so weird. The fingering is so painful to write, and the music is so awful. Is it all for the sake of so-called experimentation and avant-garde? Xiang Min, you are not allowed to write like this next year or the year after!"
The weather turned really hot at the end of May, but the temperature dropped a bit at night. A cool breeze blew Yan Zheng's hair around. He lowered his voice and chatted with his friends with a light laugh.
No one said anything to him like "It's okay, you'll definitely be fine," because they all understood his pride and trusted him enough to believe he would be alright and didn't need any encouragement.
Yan Zheng's mood was like a gentle breeze that gradually stopped.
However, the daytime heat carried over into the night.
Yan Zheng was very concerned about the intimacy between Qu Jiaying and Xiang Min.
Little did Xiang Min know that he was also very concerned about Qu Jiaying's attitude towards Yan Zheng.
Is it because they grew up together? That's why she treats him differently and shows him more care than she does to others.
That day, Qu Jiaying, despite having a cold, finished her performance and waited until Yan Zheng's father finished his performance. She then had a special talk with him backstage, and Yan Jingzhen changed his mind, agreeing to postpone the performance for a while and give Yan Zheng a chance to perform before making a final decision.
Xiang Min was right there when she saw Qu Jiaying, pale-faced and earnest, trying to persuade Uncle Yan Jing. She was incredibly determined and stubborn.
Qu Jiaying's persistence and self-assurance give her an incredible aura, making others unconsciously follow her lead, even elders.
Xiang Min is fascinated by different facets of Qu Jiaying.
However, this rare gentleness of Qu Jiaying is only shown in Yan Zheng.
Le Yi also received a portion, but he did not.
However, Le Yi's reactions were often strange. Xiang Min couldn't figure out his thoughts. Occasionally, he would react in the same way as them, but most of the time he didn't show anything. Yesterday, when he was asked to stay overnight, he must have seen the women's slippers that hadn't been put away, as well as some toiletries in the bathroom, all of which were left behind by Qu Jiaying. But Le Yi didn't ask any questions.
Xiang Min himself understood why he often competed with Yan Zheng. Part of the reason he liked Qu Jiaying was because she was being pursued by other people, which further stimulated his creative desire.
Xiang Min smiled wryly to himself. It was no wonder that Qu Jiaying treated Yan Zheng better. His own feelings for Yan Zheng were not as pure as they were for Yan Zheng; they were mixed with too many other things.
So right now, before Yan Zheng went on stage for the assessment, Qu Jiaying handed him a light blue handkerchief.
Yan Zheng folded the paper and put it in his breast pocket. Qu Jiaying patted him on the shoulder: "According to the order of the draw, you'll have to wait a little longer. I'll go up and perform first."
Dozens of students from the conducting department, ranging from second-year undergraduates to doctoral students, all had to take the exam. Yan Zheng was in the middle of the group, while Qu Jiaying, as the principal of the school symphony orchestra, had to perform from beginning to end. Fortunately, Cai Rui did not assign too many pieces and only gave each person a little time. They did not need to conduct an entire movement, so they could finish all the exams in one day.
Yan Zheng looked at the piece he had drawn—Chopin's Piano Concerto No. 2 in F minor, a piece Chopin wrote for his unrequited love.
The theme is love, which Yan Zheng isn't particularly good at.
Yan Zheng also sought advice from Lü Yueming, which led Lü Yueming to learn that Yan Zheng and Qu Jiaying had dated before. Therefore, Lü Yueming was particularly puzzled as to why Yan Zheng's expression of love-themed works was so shallow.
He clearly understood and fully grasped the composer's intentions, but the effect was still not good.
“You lack passion. Unleash your emotions and don’t rely solely on reason to interpret the work,” Lü Yueming said.
Yan Zheng was flipping through the score of the Piano Concerto No. 2 in F minor. He had practiced all of these scores in advance, but this was the one he was least familiar with.
When it was Yan Zheng's turn to go on stage, he looked down at the handkerchief on his chest. Qu Jiaying was right; the two of them were indeed very similar, lacking individuality and unable to express their emotions.
If either of them had understood this better, wouldn't their current awkward relationship be different?
Speaking of which, this is a song written for his first love. Yan Zheng thought back for a while, but he wasn't sure exactly when he fell in love with Qu Jiaying.
Was that the first time he saw her play the violin? But he was too young then, and hadn't quite grasped the concept yet; he simply thought her violin skills were excellent and the music was beautiful.
That must have been the time spent together before each competition, but he couldn't remember which specific time it was.
Was it the time we shared ice cream at Teacher Xia Xiaolei's house, or the time we fought over the sunnier and larger room at the teacher's house to practice the piano, or the time we worried about and wished each other well during the competition?
But ultimately, it was his final concealment, his cowardice, and his inferiority complex that led to the breakup.
What makes him think he can still stand by her side?
He has long since lost his right to do so.
Yan Zheng looked at Qu Jiaying in the principal position with a sense of relief, indicating that the strings and piano should go together, so that this movement would end with a somber chord.
The audience erupted in applause. Cai Rui nodded silently, while Yan Zheng took out a handkerchief to wipe the sweat from his forehead, a gesture that later became his signature move.
After Yan Zheng stepped down from the command platform, Qu Jiaying smiled and said, "Congratulations in advance."
"I should be thanking you," Yan Zheng said softly. He should have shaken her hand, but instead he took half a step forward and gently embraced her.
Qu Jiaying reached out her free hand, patted his back, and asked, "Then can you promise you won't leave?"
"Of course, I still need to teach you how to perform." Yan Zheng let go of her and walked off the stage with a light laugh.
Qu Jiaying was indignant on stage. Did he think he was such a good actor?
No, he really knows how to do it. This hug caused such a stir in the audience that it didn't stop until the next conductor came on stage.
To be honest, this is Qu Jiaying's second collaboration with Yan Zheng. Compared to others, most of the conducting students lacked style, their interpretations were average, and their conducting lacked distinctiveness. The most outstanding was Lü Yueming, whose interpretations were very unique, but his conducting movements were not particularly outstanding.
In contrast to Lü Yueming, Yan Zheng's interpretation is closer to that of the composer. Although his conducting gestures are not exaggerated, they are captivating. His twelve years of piano study and six years of orchestral experience make him seem as if he and the symphony orchestra are one.
Qu Jiaying also knew the importance of this point. The conductor is the one who understands the performance effect the most. They used pauses, encores, and physical performances.
Although Yan Zheng did not explicitly state it, his perfect conducting this time was all thanks to Qu Jiaying. He did not want the quartet, which was missing one member, to disband. The orchestra's practice was very helpful to Qu Jiaying, enabling her to understand the coordination of different parts of the symphony orchestra more quickly.
The performance itself is also very effective; how to attract everyone's attention in a noisy bar or a spacious venue is part of the performance.
After the assessment, Yan Zheng passed with a high score. His father, after hearing about it, relented and, seeing the results, completely agreed to let him make the decision according to his own ideas.
Yan Zheng urged the quartet to practice and urged Xiang Min to find suitable performance opportunities.
"I really can't understand you. How come you're not excited at all about getting first place?" Xiang Min sighed.
"This is what I should do after all my hard work," Yan Zheng said.
"Then you can rest for a while first," Le Yi said, puzzled.
“Even if we look for performance opportunities now, it’s impossible to arrange them immediately. We still need to practice. Besides, you’ve finished your exams, but we haven’t,” Qu Jiaying said.
Qiu Xue pushed open the door to the rehearsal room: "You're all here! The orchestra is having a gathering tonight, you're all coming!"
Le Yi quickly asked, "Can we go too?"
"Of course!" Qiu Xue hurried off again to notify the other musicians who hadn't replied.
"Let's discuss the performance later. Let's go to the party first." Qu Jiaying glanced at the group messages and saw that it was a farewell party for members of the band who were about to graduate.
“That’s right. Commander Cai Rui said that Yan Zheng would be Lü Yueming’s assistant after he graduated,” Qu Jiaying sighed.
"I won't go," Xiang Min said.
Is it because Cai Rui will be in charge?
Qu Jiaying responded awkwardly.
Le Yi hesitated for a moment, but still decided to go along.
Qu Jiaying specially went home to change into a long dress. The party was held at a hotel, and the atmosphere was particularly lively.
Because Qu Jiaying came with Yan Zheng and Le Yi, rumors about her had already spread throughout the school. Usually, apart from practicing the piano, she didn't interact much with her classmates, so everyone finally found an opportunity to tease her face to face.
Just as they were about to start making a fuss, Yan Zheng sternly stopped them: "Is this funny?"
The other party laughed awkwardly, and Le Yi quickly smoothed things over by pulling Yan Zheng away.
Qu Jiaying was also somewhat surprised. Based on her understanding of Yan Zheng, he disliked this kind of thing, but he wouldn't really stop it.
“I know it’s unlikely we’ll get back together, but I want you to know that I’m no longer the timid person I used to be,” Yan Zheng said softly. “Maybe it’s too late, but I still want to apologize to you. I should have told you back then that I gave up playing the violin.”
Qu Jiaying listened to this belated confession and apology, and slowly smiled.
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