Chapter 53, Song 53...
After the performance, Qu Jiaying chatted happily with the orchestra members backstage while packing her things. This was her last performance with the school symphony orchestra, and she was very reluctant to leave.
People gradually began to walk out.
"Senior Qu! Keep it up! I'll buy a front-row ticket to support you at your next solo concert!"
Qu Jiaying laughed and said, "Okay, I'll be waiting for you guys to cheer me on."
"What are you talking about! It should be the senior students reserving tickets for us."
"Then you have to reserve tickets for my show too," Qu Jiaying said with a smile.
Passing by Cai Rui's office, he heard the noise, came out and encouraged everyone for a few more words before letting Qu Jiaying leave.
After Qu Jiaying came out of the backstage door of the concert hall, she was about to walk towards Le Yi when Yan Zheng, Xiang Min, and several girls called her name and came over.
Qu Jiaying looked over blankly. Yan Zheng took her violin case and explained in a low voice, "They must be your fans. Today's performance is open to the public, so they came."
Qu Jiaying said with delight, "Thank you, have you been waiting long?"
"No, no, today's performance felt especially good, I even shed tears at the end."
Qu Jiaying was even happier. In the past, she was far away from the audience. They would just clap and there was no further interaction. She also did not take the initiative to communicate with the audience. Today, she felt really good. Although the weather was very hot, she could still feel a gentle warmth in her chest. She smiled and took the pen to sign her name.
"You look so beautiful today! Is the dress from the brand that Liu Han and Xiao Xing endorse? Because I saw you in their promotional pictures too."
"Yes, that's right, the fabric is very comfortable." Qu Jiaying then asked curiously, "How did you find out about me? From Xiaoxing?"
"Yes, that girl got to know you from Qiu Xue's channel. She asked Qiu Xue backstage, and that's how we found out we could come today. As for me, I saw it in a music review."
Qu Jiaying was even more surprised and delighted. She smiled and said, "So you knew about me two years ago?"
"Yeah, you don't have enough information. When will you have social media accounts? Will you participate in this year's competition?"
Qu Jiaying couldn't help but laugh out loud. They cared even more than her parents. She quickly said, "I have my graduation performance in a couple of days. You can come and listen if you have time. The competition is almost ready. I'll consider the social media account thing. Thank you for coming today."
Yan Zheng helped them take a group photo, while Le Yi and Xiang Min stood to the side.
Le Yi was filled with mixed feelings. In fact, he and Qu Jiaying had not yet found the most suitable way to perform, and the problem lay with him.
He always relied on inspiration, but Qu Jiaying valued Xiang Min's methodology more. Qu Jiaying also taught him some techniques, such as flow meditation, and counting the things he saw, heard, and smelled when he was anxious.
Qu Jiaying needed to learn how to express her emotions, and she progressed rapidly after learning it. On the other hand, he needed to learn how to maintain rationality, but he could never control himself.
He doesn't consider himself stupid; he's just unwilling to overcome that hurdle. But without overcoming it, "The Demon King" can't be performed as well as Qu Jiaying.
Le Yi sighed softly, glanced at Xiang Min beside him, and said in a low voice, "Congratulations, 'Green Night' is very good."
"Thank you." Xiang Min was a little surprised, and his attention was diverted from Qu Jiaying to him.
"Could you tell me about your thoughts on performing and composing? How do you manage to balance reason and inspiration at the same time?" Le Yi asked.
Xiang Min chuckled and said, "I'll tell you when we get back."
After meeting these listeners, Qu Jiaying changed her mind. She used to not want to have social media accounts because she felt that there were too many noises from the outside world that would affect her. But as she participated in music festivals with Xiaoxing, cooperated with Ms. Pei's company for publicity, and filmed videos with Qiu Xue, her worries also decreased.
Having her own account allows her to get closer to her fans and hear their voices.
However, Qu Jiaying still felt that she couldn't handle so many things on her own. A few days later, Yang Jingyi, who had been studying under Qu's father for almost a year, came to her and offered her her services: "I can help you manage the account. I can do it on all platforms, both domestic and international."
"Don't help me just because of my dad," Qu Jiaying said.
Yang Jingyi said angrily, "Shouldn't we be closer friends? If Teacher Qu weren't your father, I wouldn't have chosen him as my mentor."
Qu Jiaying quickly reassured him, "It's my fault, it's my fault, we're even better now."
"How could you not trust me to do things?" Yang Jingyi said.
"The bar must be busy too, right?" Qu Jiaying asked.
Yang Jingyi smiled and shook her head, saying, "The business is doing much better; Chen Li has hired some people."
Qu Jiaying then agreed, but she did not agree to Yang Jingyi's idea of not accepting money.
"I can't give you much either. If you don't take the payment, I won't let you do this anymore," Qu Jiaying threatened.
Yang Jingyi clicked "Receive Payment" with a mix of amusement and exasperation.
On the other hand, Le Yi also gained some new insights after exchanging ideas with Xiang Min.
Just as Le Yi was about to go back to practice the piano, Xiang Min suddenly asked, "What are you planning to do after graduation? Do you have any plans?"
Le Yi shook his head: "Right now, I just want to focus on participating in the competition with Qu Jiaying. I don't have any other ideas for the time being." He has been feeling lost for almost two years, so he's not in a hurry to find his direction now.
Xiang Min has never been confused about the future, nor does he have any plans, because he only wanted to finish writing this poem, "Green Night." But now that he has finished it, he has begun to think about the future.
He doesn't know what kind of music he'll write in the future.
He wasn't particularly attached to his job and hadn't decided what kind of job he wanted. He recorded a demo and wrote a resume carefully. He also talked to senior students like Wang Zhou about their employment situation. Those with average skills became teachers, while those with stronger abilities joined orchestras. In fact, most of them went on to further their studies. He didn't know much about their employment situation.
Among them, Wang Zhou chose a different path, but Wang Zhou said that the company arranged for him to make a viral internet song, and Xiang Min knew that it was not what she wanted to do.
She relayed Xiang Min's confusion to Qu Jiaying through Le Yi, but she didn't have any good advice to give Xiang Min.
After graduating last year, Qiu Xue worked full-time making videos, and she returned to her previous more entertainment-oriented style.
Qiu Xue found her direction in making videos. She wanted to promote classical music to more people and let them understand the fun and beauty of classical music. She chose to promote it in an entertaining way.
Wang Zhou was also dissatisfied with his job. The company had well-known singers like Xiao Xing making money, but that wasn't enough. In order to cater to the current development of the industry, a department was set up to produce viral online songs, and Wang Zhou was assigned to it.
Qu Jiaying recounted: "Wang Zhou said that the production process for this type of song is to first make the most catchy demo, then distribute it online and let cover singers take orders. If a song does well, the song is improved, and the most suitable singer in the company is found to sing it. Then, different types of singers use it as background music. So many songs have never been heard in their entirety, only a few seconds or tens of seconds of short videos."
Le Yi, who hadn't understood this in such depth, exclaimed in surprise, "Is that so?" His understanding of pop songs was still like David's, where he would write a complete song for the singer, rather than just writing the chorus.
Qu Jiaying sighed helplessly, "But do you know what's the funniest thing?"
Le Yi shook his head blankly.
Qu Jiaying continued, "The most popular songs are actually produced by singers and their teams with distinctive voices."
"What about the method you just mentioned?"
"It can become popular, but it won't break out of its niche."
Le Yi asked curiously, "Does Wang Zhou still plan to continue doing this job? If it were me, I would have changed jobs."
“Qiu Xue also hopes he can change jobs, but Wang Zhou feels that Qiu Xue’s income is still fluctuating quite a bit, so he wants to wait a bit longer,” Qu Jiaying said.
Le Yi nodded in understanding.
"You understand?" Qu Jiaying asked, looking puzzled.
"Don't you think it's great?" Le Yi was surprised. His father couldn't do this, but Qu Jiaying's father was very supportive of her mother's work.
"Isn't Wang Zhou being overly protective? Since Qiu Xue said so, it proves she's not the problem, and she also thinks he's unhappy at work. So why is he still being so stubborn? Is he feeling self-righteous because he's sacrificed so much? Or does he feel he's the pillar of the company and has to take responsibility? But no matter what, the two of them need to communicate and cooperate with each other," Qu Jiaying said indignantly.
Le Yi sensed something was amiss. Although she and Wang Zhou had a good relationship, it wasn't to this extent. He asked softly, "Has something happened?"
Qu Jiaying let out a breath and said, "Ruan Qi is also going to participate in the competition. After I asked about her schedule, we chatted for a few more minutes."
Le Yi gazed at her gently and calmly, listening attentively to her story.
“Ruan Qi and I are both only children. Her parents supported her going abroad, and even if she didn’t become a soloist, they hoped she would stay overseas. But she said she needed to consider Lü Yueming’s future plans and still intended to return to China.” Qu Jiaying’s chest tightened with emotion. “She’s so talented…”
Le Yi burst out laughing.
Qu Jiaying glared at him. She was feeling upset and angry right there, so why was he grinning like that?
Le Yi quickly stopped smiling, looked directly into her bright eyes, and said seriously, "You are all the same. You are worried about the outcome of the competition, which is why she said some discouraging things, and you can empathize with her. I laughed because I finally understood that you were expressing your worries."
"Don't I often communicate my thoughts with you?" Qu Jiaying asked, puzzled.
“That was just an idea for ‘The Demon King,’ not for the competition. You didn’t tell me about your anxiety and nervousness, so I didn’t know. That’s why I kept revising the details. The graduation assessment you participated in with ‘The Demon King’ the other day didn’t go very well either. It’s all because you took the competition too seriously. It’s not your fault. This competition is quite high-profile. The finals will be accompanied by the National Symphony Orchestra, and the champion will get to do a year-long national tour with them. It’s normal for you to feel pressure,” Le Yi said.
"You think I care that much? You even had a panic attack during the competition," Qu Jiaying said irritably.
“Even if my eldest sister doesn’t mention my second brother, I’m just as nervous and anxious,” Le Yi said with a light laugh.
Qu Jiaying couldn't help but laugh.
After a while, Qu Jiaying asked again, "Was Ruan Qi just saying discouraging things?"
"Um."
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