{"id":9814,"date":"2019-12-09T12:00:48","date_gmt":"2019-12-09T17:00:48","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/betwixtedbutterfly.com\/translations\/?p=9814"},"modified":"2019-12-13T12:39:05","modified_gmt":"2019-12-13T17:39:05","slug":"kocm123","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/betwixtedbutterfly.com\/translations\/kocm123\/","title":{"rendered":"King of Classical Music 123"},"content":{"rendered":"\t\t
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The assessment, which was held twice a semester, was one of the most important events in the Paris\u2019 National Conservatory of Music.<\/p>

For the past two assessments, Qi Mu wasn\u2019t nervous at all, since Akkad constantly gave him pieces to practice and didn\u2019t give him time even to review his performance. But this time, Akkad stopped their lessons a week before the assessment.<\/p>

Under Qi Mu\u2019s confusion, Akkad explained, \u201cSeven, you didn\u2019t have any shortcomings that I need to point out. What you lack the most now is experience. Later, your skills will be polished step-by-step and your perception of music will grow more profound. So… You will probably surpass me.\u201d After a pause, Akkad shook his head. \u201cNo, not probably. It should be, sooner or later, you will<\/em> surpass me.\u201d<\/p>

Being held in such high regard, Qi Mu couldn\u2019t stop himself from saying, \u201cProfessor, I\u2019ve always admired you. You\u2019re the violinist I revered the most. I don\u2019t think I could ever be at your level…\u201d<\/p>

\u201cLittle Seven.\u201d Akkad put aside the score he held and looked up at Qi Mu. Scanning his face attentively, he went on, \u201cI\u2019ve always believed that the world of classical music belongs to the younger generations. As my student, how could you be so unsure of yourself? This is probably your last assessment and you yourself will decide your assessment piece from your repertoire. I want to know… What kind of piece you will choose.\u201d<\/p>

After the short conversation, Qi Mu started searching his repertoire for the assessment.<\/p>

Later on, Qi Mu asked Akkad if the repertoire given to him was only to enhance his confidence.<\/p>

Akkad said that there were other reasons, but then again, he really wanted to see what his lovely student would choose. He wanted to see if he knew his own strength.<\/p>

Of course, the piece Qi Mu chose didn\u2019t let Akkad down\u2014\u2014<\/p>

\u300aSpring Sonata<\/a>\u300b.<\/p>

Beethoven\u2019s \u300aViolin Sonata in F major\u300bwas written in his early years, it was quite different from the intense flavor in his later works. Because the first section of the piece depicted a vibrant spring scenery, it was called \u300aSpring Sonata\u300b by the later generations.<\/p>

This piece wasn\u2019t very difficult, especially when compared to his previous pieces during the last two assessments. But, Akkad was satisfied with his choice and gave Qi Mu a whole week to practice.<\/p>

Music can be classified in two ways; skill and expression.<\/p>

For the former, Akkad believed Qi Mu has no obvious shortcomings. Even if he reached a bottleneck, it was a bottleneck that most people wouldn\u2019t even reach in their life.<\/p>

Regarding the latter, it just so happened that Lance, Akkad\u2019s good friend, had arrived in Paris from Vienna a few days earlier to visit. As a violinist with delicate passion and firm control on the emotions he displayed, Lance expressed his surprise when he saw the aggression in Qi Mu\u2019s music start to fade. It had dissipated so much so that his music began to clear.\u00a0<\/p>

Though \u300aSpring Sonata\u300b seemed \u201cordinary,\u201d it was rich in nuance. It was perfect.<\/p>

To get a better understanding of the piece, Qi Mu enlisted Langston from the piano department to help him.<\/p>

\u300aSpring Sonata\u300b was a piano and violin ensemble, after all. If it were just violin alone, Qi Mu would have a hard time mastering it in such a short time.<\/p>

Seven days passed quickly as he practiced. By the time Qi Mu was finally ready for the assessment, it was already the day before the event.<\/p>

Half a year had passed since he came to the college. Qi Mu even remembered the first time he arrived, pulling his luggage and stepping inside the gate. He remembered how Akkad deliberately made things hard for him in the audition.<\/p>

… Eight months had passed. Those were already things of the past.<\/p>

On the evening of the day before the assessment, Qi Mu and Akkad carefully cleaned the violin room. Of course, it was Qi Mu who did the cleaning, Akkad just made more garbage\u2014\u2014eating chocolate.<\/p>

Eight months had passed and Akkad still enjoyed eating chocolate. Qi Mu didn\u2019t like sweets much, but under Akkad\u2019s influence, he started to eat a piece every day.<\/p>

When asked why he liked chocolate so much, the maestro would always reply, \u201cBecause I\u2019m from Turin!\u201d<\/p>

That night, after Qi Mu finished polishing the last glass, Akkad handed him a piece of chocolate. Qi Mu didn\u2019t take it. Instead, he smiled and said, \u201cProfessor, I already had one this morning. You can have that one for yourself.\u201d<\/p>

Holding a delicate box of chocolates in his left hand, Akkad shook his head. His tone serious, he said, \u201cSeven, do you know\u2026 Why I like chocolate so much?\u201d<\/p>

Qi Mu blinked, his lips slightly parted. Reflexively, he wanted to answer, \u201cBecause you\u2019re from Turin?\u201d but, seeing his mentor\u2019s deep, clouded eyes, he only shook his head. Finally, he said, \u201cI don\u2019t know.\u201d<\/p>

Akkad pointed at the vast sky outside the window.<\/p>

Qi Mu had wiped the floor-to-ceiling glass window clean, leaving no blemishes. Looking out, Qi Mu could see the moon quietly floating in the endless night sky. The moon was bright, like a halo, paling the stars that appeared.\u00a0<\/p>

\u201cI like chocolate because\u2026 It\u2019s like the moon. It can drive out all the darkness.\u201d Akkad\u2019s voice was low and hoarse, but he went on, \u201cLittle Seven, I\u2019ve been through a lot of things in my 70 years of life. I lived until I reached this position, but I\u2019ve gone through a lot of painful experiences, as well. Since life is so hard\u2026 Then why can\u2019t we make it a little happier?\u201d<\/p>

Seeing him so morose, Qi Mu didn\u2019t know how to respond.<\/p>

\u201cYou\u2019re fine. You put some sugar in your coffee. Auston has always liked his coffee black, no sugar. There are two types of people that take their coffee like that. The first is someone who\u2019s had a smooth life without any storms. Their heart is sweet enough that they don\u2019t need any sweetener. The other\u2026\u201d<\/p>

\u201cThey prefer to swallow the bitterness into their stomachs. They\u2019re not good at expressing their feelings. They will share their joy with you, but not their pain. Such people will have a hard life when they\u2019re with someone who doesn\u2019t understand them.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>

Akkad smiled, then continued, \u201cLittle Seven, I don\u2019t want you to be like Auston. But, when you\u2019re together, I want you to try to understand him more. Love is never just one person\u2019s affair. I missed it in this life and you\u2026 Don\u2019t be the same.\u201d<\/p>

Qi Mu nodded heavily.<\/p>

The thought that Akkad’s love for sweets was due to the bitterness in his life has never crossed Qi Mu\u2019s mind. Then again, the maestro came from a poverty-stricken family. With no prestigious background, he had been able to climb his way up until he gained the reputation he currently has. He had experienced unimaginable hardships.<\/p>

Compared to his mentor, Qi Mu felt that he was lucky. At least\u2026 He had a lover now. He wasn\u2019t like Akkad, whose lover had a grave illness, yet still chose to hide it from him and in the end, it made him unable to see her final moments.<\/p>

Qi Mu\u2019s heart was heavy, thinking of her untimely demise. He distracted Akkad with a few different conversations, drawing him from the deep throes of his mourning before taking his violin case and leaving.<\/p>

Once he was home, Qi Mu immediately gave Min Chen a call. He didn\u2019t answer but returned it not long afterward. Hearing Christole\u2019s and Daniel\u2019s voice in the speaker, Qi Mu realized, \u201cYou\u2019re still rehearsing?\u201d<\/p>

Bai Ai\u2019s world tour was starting in two weeks, so Min Chen had been very busy with the preparation.<\/p>

The man\u2019s deep, rich voice flowed through the speaker. \u201cYes, there was a little problem tonight and we were delayed for a bit.\u201d After a pause, Min Chen remembered, \u201cTomorrow is the third assessment, right?\u201d<\/p>

Turning on the light in his room, Qi Mu said, \u201cYes, it\u2019s tomorrow. I did tell you I\u2019m playing \u300aSpring Sonata\u300b, right? Unfortunately, the review won\u2019t be recorded, otherwise I would send one to you.\u201d<\/p>

Aside from the fact that \u300aSpring Sonata\u300b really suited the current version of him, Qi Mu also chose it because of a record he received the previous week.<\/p>

Before leaving Paris, Min Chen told Qi Mu that he would ask Daniel to send the recording of his recital to him. Daniel was efficient, and Qi Mu received the recording three days later.<\/p>

In the private piano recital, nearly all of the pieces were Chopin\u2019s, but a few were Beethoven\u2019s. Only \u300aSpring Sonata\u300b was quite unique; it was not a simple piano piece.<\/p>

When Qi Mu listened to the piece, he felt as if he could see a pair of thin hands, flying across the black and white keys, depicting the liveliness of spring.<\/p>

Right now, he was no match for the man. But if it was this piece, Qi Mu believed…<\/p>

He could play at the same level.<\/p>

They didn\u2019t talk for long that night, as Bai Ai was still rehearsing. Min Chen was sorry that he couldn\u2019t come and listen to Qi Mu\u2019s last performance at the college since he would be rehearsing. But, he encouraged Qi Mu, saying he will perform more beautiful symphonies on the next tour.<\/p>

After they hung up the phone, Christole stared at the calm, composed man under the stage in surprise. He said, \u201cMin, you gave the orchestra a day off tomorrow\u2026 Isn\u2019t that why everyone is so peppy, rehearsing this evening?\u201d<\/p>

When Bai Ai\u2019s members heard this, they all started to whisper\u2014\u2014<\/p>

\u201cWhat?! We don\u2019t get a day off tomorrow?!\u201d<\/p>

\u201cImpossible\u2026 We\u2019re supposed to have all of tomorrow off.\u201d<\/p>

\u201cWe\u2019re going on a tour soon. If we don\u2019t get a day off now, we won\u2019t have any time for it later!\u201d<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t

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Listening to the members \u201cwhispering,\u201d Min Chen\u2019s face was expressionless. He gently nodded and asked, \u201cDid I say that you won\u2019t get tomorrow off?\u201d<\/p>

Christole smiled helplessly, \u201cBut, just now, didn\u2019t you tell Angel… That you\u2019re rehearsing tomorrow?\u201d<\/p>

\u201cShhh\u2026\u201d The man placed his slender index finger against his lips, and their corners curled upwards. \u201cDo you know\u2026 What a surprise is?\u201d<\/p>

Christole: \u201c…\u201d<\/p>

Well,<\/em> he thought, Angel might not be surprised tomorrow. Instead, he would be…<\/em><\/p>

Frightened.<\/em><\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t

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Translator(s): Kuro
Editor(s): Empress
Proofer(s): Ayn<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t

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Ayn:<\/strong><\/h4>

I feel this chapter was more emotional, maybe because Akkad finally opened about his past, although only a bit? And I hope MC is able to properly surprise QM. <\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t

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