King of Classical Music 28

Huaxia was a rising star in the classical music world. In recent years, this art form that originated in the west was growing popular, but it was nowhere as big as it was in Europe. Magazines and newspapers like 《Music Hall》 and 《Sound of Music》 were generally only circulated with the people already involved with the circle.

Li Yue Yue’s favorite pastime was to watch movies. She felt happy watching a good one every day, and every Friday before work, she would stop by the newsstand to purchase a copy of that week’s 《Entertainment Frontier》 to lick* the face of her favorite idol.

*For more details, read Rebirth of a Supermodel

But today, just as she was about to pick up《Entertainment Frontier》from the stand, her sight was not immediately drawn to the picture of her idol on the cover. Instead, her eyes involuntarily fell on a small image on the cover of a different magazine.

It wasn’t big enough. The main focus of the cover was a violin, and the picture was placed at the lower right corner. This square photo that was only 10 cm in size made Li Yue Yue unable to move her eyes away. She stared at it for a long time and suddenly pointed at the magazine and said, “Boss! Boss! Which star is this? How can he look so good?! I want this magazine!”

The owner picked up the magazine and looked at it for a while then handed it over to Li Yue Yue. He laughed and said, “This is 《Sound of Music》, it’s a classical music magazine. No stars here, young miss.”

When she heard this, Li Yue Yue eyes widened, “He’s not a star?! How is that possible, he’s so beautiful he must be a star!”

With that, Li Yue Yue ran away excited with the magazine clutched in her arms, leaving the puzzled booth owner to pick up a copy of 《Sound of Music》 and stare at it for a long time. The more he looked at it, the more he felt, “He really does look like a star. Don’t say. . . did 《Sound of Music》 really invite a star this time?”

Entertainment magazines were generally the best-selling ones in the newsstand. The owner thought of Li Yue Yue’s reaction just now and made a decision he himself could not believe: Put 《Sound of Music》 in the most eye-catching spot!

So, in one day, before it was even evening, 《Sound of Music》 that usually only had okay sales was unexpectedly sold out. The owner who had earned money narrowed his eyes, and from then on, he made the decision to purchase more classical music magazines.

That was something to talk about later.

Around this time, Qi Mu’s period of leisure had begun. He only needed to report to the orchestra two or three days a week. He didn’t know all that many people in B City, and that reacquainted him with the long-lost feeling of loneliness and idleness.

Every morning, he got up early and ran a few laps around the community, bought some dishes to cook some simple meals for lunch and dinner, and practiced the violin. He practiced in the morning and afternoon, wanting to get himself familiar with this body and playing the violin with it. For the past two months, Qi Mu practiced without rest.

Qi Mu hadn’t done this type of ten-hour-long practice in years. Back when he first learned how to play, this was how he began. It was the most bitter period for him, but it was also crucial for his foundation. Once he got into the Conservatory, he systematically learned professional skills, so he no longer had to keep up with his foundation as much.

The violin he had taken back from Zheng Wei Qiao had terrific lines, and it produced a charming sound. Qi Mu was reluctant to let it go, it was such a good violin. Sometimes, he would think: if this imitation was already so good, how much better would the real thing in that bank be?

If he could get that Xiao Gongzhu Edith, he wouldn’t dare to even think about selling it like the original had. Instead, he wanted to hold it while standing in the place light gathered and perform with it.

“Back to Golden Hall. . .” Qi Mu muttered and then laughed softly, “This is truly a great challenge.”

Want to get Xiao Gongzhu back?

You can, but first, you have to go back to Europe and show your strength.

This was the test given by the elders to the original, and now, it had fallen to him.

With that pressure motivating him, Qi Mu focused more on his practice for the next few days. He wanted to be able to play the songs he was most familiar with in the past.

Perhaps the apartment’s insulation was that good, or Qi Mu’s decorations for the specially renovated violin room were too good. But, he had played the violin for ten hours a day every day, yet the beautiful sound never left the room. Not even a single note!

Similar to how Qi Mu never heard the sound of the piano from next door.

Qi Mu spent most of his time in the violin room. At the time, he was unaware that while he practiced his violin, just a wall over, a man played a nine-foot Steinway grand piano in front of the floor-to-ceiling window, his fingers dancing across the keys.

The elegant Steinway could produce the most beautiful sound. It was proficient at expressing both sad and happy songs, and even solemn ones. Compared to Qi Mu’s diligence, this man was simply lazy beyond saving. More often than not, he would lay on the sofa flipping through scores.

His scores were different from Qi Mu’s. Generally, conductors printed their scores on sheets of A3 paper. The details for the string instruments, the brass, the woodpipe, and the percussion, everything would then be written out in great detail.

Every conductor had their own style and, similarly, they had their unique way of seeing music. For example, the chief conductor of the Vienna Philharmonic Orchestra, Mr. Erberk Dorenza. His music scores were always packed with notes, so they were often used as a reference by instructors in various academies.

And when those same conducting instructors heard the name “Min Chen” or “Auston Bertram,” they would share a difficult expression.

Because. . .

This man’s music scores were always pristine——they were blank——Totally! Blank!

Whether it was a short sonata, or a long symphony, a two-to-three page score, or even a dozen, or twenty to thirty pages, Min Chen’s music scores were always clean. Maintaining their white and smooth surface, they looked as if they had just been printed.

Daniel once asked Min Chen curiously, he had never written anything on his music scores, could he remember the orchestra’s mistakes? The answer was of course, yes.

Bai Ai was excellent. But even they, when rehearsing new songs, would have places where there was friction and occasionally experience a few bumps along the way. Mr. Dorenza would take note of it on his score so they could go over it again. But to Min Chen, it became, “You don’t remember them?”

In this regard, Min Chen had never wanted to fall behind others.

Maybe because one neighbor was too lazy while the other one was too diligent. Even though they practiced every day, they never heard each other’s music.

Min Chen, even if he had absolute pitch and a good sense of sound, he naturally couldn’t hear things that weren’t transmitted. Likewise, Qi Mu who too has the absolute pitch could not hear the piano his neighbor played only ten minutes everyday——who told him to be in the practice room at that time?

The communication between people in modern society was getting less and less!

Don’t be separated by a wall. Go over to the door and have a chat. It would be great.

These two people who had been “living together” for a month were still unaware that they had a neighbor!

. . .

As the night grew darker, the dim moonlight was blocked by the city’s glittering lights, and gradually the mood hid behind thick clouds. The tall 26-floor building with excellent insulation completely isolated them from the bustling city’s noise. None of it entered the apartments.

Qi Mu wiped down his wet hair with a towel, drying it as he walked over to his computer to type in a URL. In the second, a black and white page appeared on the screen.

Qi Mu stared at the handsome man in the page’s background for a long time. In the end, he smiled helplessly and said to himself, “This month’s theme. . . is him?”

The site, “Blue Danube” was based in Austria and it was one of the most formal classical music forums in Europe where many professionals gathered. It was said that even Mr. Erberk Dorenza had an account there.

Every month, the forum would change its theme and use an element from the theme as the background and in the layout. Qi Mu remembered that when he last logged in, the theme seemed to be 《A Night on Bald Mountain》 by Mussorgsky. Unexpectedly, when he logged in this time, it had changed to Min Chen.

It was not like there had never been people chosen as the forum’s theme, but in the past ten years, Qi Mi could remember that it had happened less than five times. But Min Chen. . . after “Bertram Night,” this was now his second time on the list.

Qi Mu smiled and didn’t think too much more on the matter. He directly logged into his account and start browsing. Most of the content on the website was just information on where some world-class orchestra would be performing, or where some solo musician was going to hold their own concert. Other than that, there appeared to be little news.

He thought a bit, then typed in “Luo Yu Sen” in the search box.

There weren’t many links that appeared, but the first one surprised him a little. He clicked to have a look.

The handsome youth’s eyebrow furrowed a little. He looked at a reply on the post, a little doubt flashed in his pale eyes, and he whispered, “Luo Yu Sen is. . . not faring well?”

Qi Mu remembered that when he last closed his eyes in that lounge, Luo Yu Sen bluntly said “You’re in someone’s way”  and since this “someone” was able to hire Luo Yu Sen to teach him a lesson, they were naturally not simple. But surprisingly, Luo Yu Sen seemed to have not benefited.

This is quite unbelievable.

Looking at the dense English words on the screen, his frown gradually eased. With a sigh, he turned to look at the sky that was dyed red by the city lights.

“Although you are now miserable, do you think. . . this will be enough?”

Hatred caused by death wouldn’t be influenced by anything.

Qi Mu would always remember the last moments before his death. His whole body felt as if he was on fire, and he had despaired. He wanted to climb up, to reach for that door, but there was no strength left in his body, his fingernails were broken, and his heart was in agony.

That pain was worse than death.

That bright sheen in Luo Yu Sen’s eyes when he left him there will never be forgotten. What he wanted was not for this scum to be just miserable and looked down upon in Vienna, but really——

He wanted to drive this scum directly out of Vienna!

Translator(s): Kuro
Editor(s): Bet