King of Classical Music 45

The prestigious S City Symphony Orchestra was the first to be established in Asia. They were undoubtedly the best classical music performers in Huaxia for the past century, since they were founded.

The orchestra had performed in various, prestigious halls around the world like Carnegie Hall in New York, Concertgebouw in the Netherlands, one in Vienna, Austria. They were even the first Huaxia performers to play on stage at the Berlin Philharmonic Hall.

Once he received the invitation, Qi Mu immediately packed up and took a plan to S City the very same day. The last time he had been in S City, it was on tour with the B City Symphony Orchestra. This time, when Qi Mu stepped onto the prosperous land, his heart quivered.

He had been to many places in his past life. Huaxia was naturally one of them. Every time he came here, he always felt as though he was inexplicably returning to his roots. Like he belonged to this land, that he was meant to grow and live here.

Many people thought that the US Green Card was challenging to get. But in recent years, it was Huaxia’s Green Card that foreigners dreamed of.

Huaxia was a large country with a history spanning over five thousand years. They had broad and tolerant minds, but they also had a mindset of “hiding their shortcomings.” Want to become a Huaxia national? Yeah, dream on. Huaxia would never recognize dual citizenship!

Qi Mu learned a lot about Huaxia’s culture from his adoptive parents and his Chinese was also excellent. They often said: “Different race, different heart.”

Qi Mu could only fully comprehend those words when he applied for Huaxia nationality numerous times in his past life.

He spent half his life preparing the materials to apply for it, and yet, in the last month of review, he died and was reborn directly as a Huaxian.

Zhu Wen Jun mentioned before that this was the one hundredth anniversary, and all the musicians they invited would be Chinese. The orchestra was naturally the S City Symphony, and the musicians were almost all geniuses under the age of thirty.

Qi Mu could understand this feeling. It was true that the development of classical music started late in Huaxia when compared with the west, but their rise was not slow either. Many Huaxians were in prominent positions in several different world-class orchestras around the world.

Qi Mu felt deeply that the older generation of musicians, and even artists, had the desire to spread classical music throughout Huaxia. This idea was confirmed within the first five hours of his arrival in S City.

“I think that 《First Symphony in E Minor》 Qi Mu performed with New Ai was excellent. Why don’t we select a similar piece that’s written by one of our own, instead of Paganini?” Cheng Ting Wen wore glasses and her curly hair skillfully tied up. Her expression was both professional and serious. “The style we want to showcase is different from Paganini’s!”

As one of the music directors, Cheng Ting Wen was also a famous cellist. She might look like a beautiful woman on the outside, but she had a keen instinct when it came to classical music.

Another music director slapped the table. “Did you even see the violin competition last year? He’s good with Paganini’s and his ability to perform it is perfect. In this aspect, we should showcase our skill level to those foreigners. Do you have a better choice than Paganini’s?”

Cheng Ting Wen refuted, “If you want to show skill and difficulty, is Prokofiev’s 《Piano Concerto No. 2》 that Wang Zheng is playing not enough?!”

“The majority of people attending that day are professional musicians, Cheng Ting Wen, not amateurs that play outside! This is our hundred year anniversary. The music style is good, and Paganini’s is the only one that is sophisticated enough for this. What are you not satisfied with?!”

. . .

Seeing these music directors argue to the point that they were rolling up their sleeves, Qi Mu was humored and distraught. He thought Huaxia musicians would be more reserved and not show their emotions so easily. He didn’t expect that when it came to music, musicians all over the world were like this. . . short tempered and without manners.

In S City’s conference room, Qi Mu and the other members of the orchestra persuaded them for a long time. Eventually, Zhu Wen Jun made a decision and didn’t give them an opportunity to think about it.

“The last two songs Qi Mu will perform are going to be Min Chen’s 《Violin Sonata in D minor》 and 《Liang Zhu》. It is settled.” The handsome middle-aged man looked at his wife and said kindly, “Ting Wen, see, both are in tune with the theme, right? And they’re both the works of a Huaxian.”

Cheng Ting Wen hummed and agreed.

Zhu Wen Jun looked at the man on the other side of the room and said helplessly, “Lao Qi, ah, 《D minor》is not that difficult, but are you okay with 《Constance March》?”

The middle-aged man called Lao Qi nodded reluctantly.

Zhu Wen Jun let out a relieved sigh. He looked at Qi Mu who was sitting opposite him. “Xiao Qi, ah, sorry for making you see this joke. Your Auntie Cheng, Uncle Qi and I grew up together, so this is normal. Don’t be surprised.”

Watching the two musicians arguing until their necks were flushed with anger already made it hard for Qi Mu to restrain his laughter. He dutifully fixed his expression and nodded earnestly, “Okay, Uncle Zhu.”

Zhu Wen Jun naturally knew that Qi Mu was suppressing his laughter and he felt helpless. But he still had to say, “As you heard, you will perform after Wang Zheng, and you will be the last. You worked with 《Liang Zhu》 when you were a child, so I don’t worry about it, but how’s your 《D major》?”

《D major》 was that one Zheng Wei Qiao mentioned before. . . the nightmarish one. The first movement was called 《Constance March and had a variety of complex tremolo, jumps of the bow, and notes spanning from G to E string repeatedly. It was all challenging to a musician’s skill and endurance.

Qi Mu hadn’t touched this piece for a long time, so he honestly replied, “I haven’t played it for a long time, Uncle Zhu. But there is still just over a month to prepare. Give me three days, I’ll master it again.”

Zhu Wen Jun asked, “Three days? Is that all you need?”

Qi Mu smiled up at him then solemnly nodded, “Yes.”

Getting an affirmative answer from Qi Mu, Zhu Wen Jun smiled gently and said a few words of encouragement. He then discussed the song selection with Cheng Ting Wen. Qi Mu, led by his assistant, returned to the hotel arranged for him by the S City Symphony Orchestra.

When the original left S City a few years ago, he went with a bad attitude. He sold his house, so when Qi Mu returned, he had no choice but to live in a hotel.

His room had a view of the Huangpu River and today’s weather was unusually good. Qi Mu could see the oil tanker sailing along the river with just a glance. Qi Mu put away his luggage and took out his violin case. He then went to the S City Symphony headquarters not too far away.

The headquarters was a small three-story building over a hundred years old. It was one of the oldest buildings in the city. Qi Mu entered and went to the music room marked with his name. He thanked the girl that guided him to it then closed the door and was alone.

Placing the case on the table, Qi Mu took out the bow and rubbed it down with rosin. Before he could start tuning, he suddenly heard a familiar ringtone. It was the 《E Minor》 that the B City Symphony Orchestra had performed. Qi Mu was surprised when he saw the name on his screen and quickly answered, “Hello, Min Chen?”

A magnetic voice echoed over the phone line, “Yes, it’s me. Are you not home?”

Qi Mu was stunned and asked without thinking, “Are you at my door?”

Qi Mu smiled helplessly at the affirmative he received then put down his bow and said, “I flew to S City today. Did you know about the S City Symphony Orchestra’s Centennial Celebration? It will be held next month. It was decided they were going to showcase some young musicians, so I received an invitation. . .” Speaking of, Qi Mu suddenly remembered, “By the way, you should have also received an invitation, right? I forgot about that.”

Holding the phone with one hand, Qi Mu set his score on the tripod then looked down at the familiar name on the score. He said with a smile, “It’s a pity you can’t participate. It’s a rare centennial celebration after all. Do you know what score I’m looking at right now?”

He listened to the answer from the other side then laughed, “I’m looking at your 《D major》. I’ll be playing it next month. This piece is quite difficult, so I wanted to. . .”

The youth’s pleasant voice filled the quiet room. After speaking for a few minutes, he suddenly remembered, “Why did you call me? I thought you returned to Berlin and wouldn’t be back for a while.”

There was a long silence over the line, and just as Qi Mu thought the man wouldn’t answer, he suddenly heard Min Chen sigh, “It’s nothing. Just. . . I just found out you weren’t home. I’ll be going back to Berlin tomorrow. There’s something I have to do.”

Qi Mu nodded with confusion and just happened to see a small moth flapping its wings in front of the score. He automatically waved his hand to drive it away and turned to close the window at the corner of the room. Behind the music room was a small garden of flowers. It was common for bugs to wander in if the window wasn’t shut.

When Qi Mu closed the window, a sudden thought flashed through his mind, and he asked on reflex, “Did you call me. . . because you found another bug again?”

Min Chen: “. . .”

Qi Mu realized this joke wasn’t funny and said, “I’m just kidding, don’t mind me.”

Min Chen: “. . .”

After exchanging a few more words, Qi Mu hung up the phone. He first read the whole score then whispered helplessly, “It’s really not easy.” He began to practice the piece.

What he didn’t know is that in a well-furnished high-end apartment in B City, a man was staring silently at a bug the size of his fingernail on his porch.

This staredown lasted for five minutes. Finally, he closed the door and turned to walk away without hesitation.

Where was he going?

A hotel, of course!

Don’t you see that big bug on the floor?!!!

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

Kuro:

The ending was full of me LMFAOing while translating. Ah, Min Chen just replaced Xi Ze as No.1 ML in my heart. Min Chen is love, Min Chen is laifu!