135. The Stage and the Musician Amidst the Hustle and Bustle of Mortal Life

"Speak."

Qin Yong was genuinely worried that Li An wouldn't make any demands.

"For the remaining months of the second half of the year, I'd like one fixed day off every week."

Li An had already planned to discuss this with Qin Yong once the break ended.

Because of his upcoming competition preparation, he needed one day a week to devote himself entirely to focused piano practice.

Perhaps he wouldn't strike a single musical note during that entire day, but he desperately needed such a day to sit before the piano and settle his mind, even if it was just for contemplation.

With the new position, the new semester, and the new identity all arriving at once, his life in the latter half of the year was bound to become even busier.

He was not a professional concert pianist; he did not have the luxury of remaining anchored to the piano all day long.

Yet, having decided to enter this competition, he was determined to give it his all.

Qin Yong found Li An's second request quite reasonable. For one, teachers in this industry rarely enjoyed regular weekend breaks anyway, and secondly, Li An had long since surpassed the category of an ordinary teacher in his mind.

"Alright."

Qin Yong leaned back and nodded. "Do you have any plans lined up for the second half of the year?" he asked, feeling a touch curious.

Li An explained, "I plan to participate in the Xinghai Cup National Piano Competition at the end of the year."

Upon hearing the words "Xinghai Cup National Competition," a flicker of surprise crossed Qin Yong's eyes.

"You're going to enter this competition?"

Li An extinguished his cigarette butt and pursed his lips. "I want to give it a try."

A brief silence followed.

"Why not try the Hong Kong International Piano Competition?"

Qin Yong couldn't understand why Li An would choose to enter a competition notorious for behind-the-scenes manipulation. Given his understanding of Li An, the man couldn't possibly be unaware of the state of domestic piano competitions.

"I honestly don't have that kind of level."

Li An wasn't just being self-deprecating; he knew his own capabilities. While players of his caliber weren't a dime a dozen domestically, the gap wasn't massive either.

Besides, his initial motivation for entering this competition was self-evaluation, as well as an opportunity to observe and learn.

If he couldn't even make it past the third round of a competition at this tier, then going to an Asian-level arena like the Hong Kong International Piano Competition would most likely result in being eliminated in the first round.

Did travel expenses, lodging, and registration fees grow on trees?

Without reaching the core rounds, going there would amount to nothing more than a sightseeing tour, completely out of the question for anything else.

If he just wanted to be part of the cheering section, an internet connection at home was more than enough.

"We'll talk about that if the opportunity arises later."

Li An smiled.

Qin Yong pondered for a moment. "How about this: I'll give you a day and a half off per week. After all, you're essentially representing Blue Sky at the competition as an in-service teacher. Prepare well."

The phrasing was remarkably smooth, but Li An only cared for the first half of the sentence.

"Thank you, Brother Yong. Just give me a month to sort out the teaching materials."

-

Everyone has their own ambitions. How Li An chose to handle things was his own business, and Qin Yong had merely thrown the suggestion out on a whim.

Reflecting on it later, he realized everyone's personal circumstances differed, and Li An truly was an exception.

He had practically never encountered a teacher employed at a commercial art training institution who would even harbor the desire to enter such a major professional competition.

Art competitions within the realm of classical music were sometimes overly abstract and carried a certain class-based attribute.

Most of the contestants he was familiar with were financially secure young dreamers. Whether those people were chasing the ultimate limits of art or something else entirely, he declined to comment.

Compared to so-called artistic dreams, he found the statement "I just want to truly figure this piano thing out" far more persuasive.

While battling for a livelihood, Li An never forgot to pursue his path of self-improvement.

Li An was indeed an exception.

For both personal and professional reasons, he wanted to give Li An a helping hand, but figuring out the appropriate way to do so was tricky.

Granting him an extra half-day off was the best he could do for now.

He would observe how things developed.

Keep it up.

-

A day of work concluded amidst piano practice.

With mid-September approaching, the sky outside turned dark by as early as six o'clock.

It was Friday, so he didn't need to go to Blue Whale. Stopping at the intersection on his way home, Li An asked Chen Xuan what she wanted for dinner.

"Hot pot?"

Li An made the suggestion, having heard Chen Xuan complain about craving hot pot not long ago.

To his surprise, Chen Xuan rejected it. "You want to slack off the very next day?"

Li An laughed. "Then let's go grocery shopping."

The green light turned on, and the two of them walked arm-in-arm against the evening breeze toward the supermarket across the street.

After a round of shopping, they returned to the doorsteps of their two little homes.

Today, they chose unit 2501.

As soon as the door opened, Bazhuan widened its eyes at the entrance, recognized her, tactfully retreated two steps, and then strutted back on cat-like paws.

It sniffed Chen Xuan's little white sneakers.

Li An didn't know whether Bazhuan still remembered the young woman who had once carried it to get its shots, but the moment he saw Bazhuan stand up and prepare to plant its front paws against Chen Xuan's slender white shins, he barked out a warning: "Bazhuan!"

Startled out of its wits, Bazhuan scrambled in a panic, turning to bolt toward the bedroom. As it tried to round the corner into the room, its rear legs lost traction.

With a loud *thump*, half its body slammed into the doorframe, and in the next second, it vanished from their sight.

Watching this scene, Chen Xuan was both amused and exasperated. She scolded, "Why did you scare it? People online say that's how little cats try to show affection."

As a feline enthusiast, Chen Xuan had once been just a cat away from becoming a proud pet owner.

"Its claws are sharp; it'll scratch you."

Chen Xuan uttered a couple of "ohs" before reminding him, "You should clip its nails regularly."

Li An hadn't been meticulous about such things before, but things were different now. "I'll look up how to clip a cat's nails tonight."

With that, he slipped into his house slippers, washed his hands, and prepared to cook.

At that moment, Chen Xuan spotted a pair of pink slippers by the doorway. "Huh?" she voiced in suspicion.

Hearing her, Li An looked over and explained, "The delivery arrived just the day before yesterday."

Saying this, he stuck out his foot. "Mine are the exact same style. If you don't believe me, check my shopping history—I bought two bars of soap as well."

"What are you nervous for?"

Chen Xuan chuckled as she kicked off her white sneakers and stepped right into her new slippers.

Then she hung her bag on the hook attached to the side of the doorframe. Hanging on the adjacent hook was Li An's shirt.

That row of hooks was something she had put up herself when she was helping tidy up this place back then, thinking that Li An didn't have enough clothes hangers.

Now, seeing her bag hanging right alongside Li An's shirt—who could have imagined it?

At that moment, she felt a wave of domestic warmth washing over her.

She was happy.

Tying her hair back, she trotted over to the kitchen. "What do you need me to do?"

Li An sorted out the ingredients for dinner, dividing the ones they wouldn't need right away into three separate bags.

"Let's put these in your refrigerator first."

Chen Xuan nodded. "Okay."

Toting the three bags over to 2502 to store them in the fridge, Chen Xuan took the opportunity to change her clothes.

When she returned, Li An was already slicing the meat. "And then?"

Li An looked up and couldn't help taking an extra glance—her loungewear was awfully short. "Go play. If it gets too warm, go into the bedroom and turn on the AC. Dinner will be ready in half an hour."

"This sleepwear looks nice."

He didn't forget to offer a compliment.

Chen Xuan rolled her eyes. "This is an oversized T-shirt."

With that, she sauntered off, swinging her gleaming bare legs... heading in the direction of Li An's bedroom. "Guess I'll go take a tour then."

Li An smiled and shook his head.

So reserved.

Teacher Li, who still didn't understand the difference between an oversized T-shirt and pajamas, treated every single strip of meat he sliced today as if he were measuring it with precise musical beats.

The childish, stubborn side of a man often manifested precisely in moments like this—refusing to admit defeat.

*You say my cooking is mediocre? I refuse to accept that!*

Separated by just a single wall, Teacher Chen's gaze had already landed on the small black leather notebook resting on the bedside table.

Judging by its worn exterior, it likely contained quite a few notes.

Curiosity was curiosity, but she wouldn't open it without Li An's permission, even if she was already his girlfriend.

Next, her eyes drifted to a delicate little box nearby, and she smiled inwardly, wondering if he hadn't even opened the Qixi Festival gift she gave him.

Finally, she surveyed the surroundings. The clean and tidy environment didn't look like it had been hastily cleaned up. Through the half-open wardrobe door, the clothes and trousers on the shelves were neatly folded and stacked.

The power strip on the other side of the bed was screwed firmly to the wall, with the excess cord coiled up neatly—nothing like the messy tangle where she usually charged her phone.

Stepping out of the bedroom, Chen Xuan couldn't possibly have been in a better mood.

She figured she would never have to fret about losing her keys or phone charging cords ever again.

Looking back at the busy figure in the kitchen, Chen Xuan thought to herself that a boyfriend like this ought to be kept safely locked up at home.

What should she do next?

Chen Xuan returned to 2502 to fetch the silver flute that had accompanied her through the first stage of her art examinations.

"Do you want to take requests?"

She assembled the instrument, stood by the window near the piano, and played a couple of scales to warm up.

"Two Tigers," came a voice from the kitchen.

Very well, sir.

Chen Xuan raised the flute to her lips, parting them slightly to form a tiny aperture.

Then, a single breath flowed with the movement of her fingers.

The silver flute produced a playful, bouncing staccato melody that drifted into the kitchen.

Her rendition of "Two Tigers" sounded rather adorable, genuinely resembling two little tiger cubs playing about.

Accompanied by Chen Xuan's playing, Li An chopped the green peppers on the cutting board, pounding out a rhythm of an eighth note followed by two sixteenths.

As if playing along on purpose, the moment Chen Xuan heard the rhythm Li An provided, she immediately shifted the theme's rhythm into triplets.

Would he take up the challenge?

The instant Chen Xuan altered her phrasing, the rhythm of Li An's knife strokes changed right along with it.

*You change, and I'll change right back.*

After a few rounds of this musical tug-of-war, Li An's wrist, gripping the kitchen knife, began to tire.

He was a piano teacher, not a chef.

Looking at the finely minced green peppers on the cutting board, he could only conclude that tonight's shredded pork with green peppers was being upgraded to diced peppers with shredded pork.

He turned around, washed his hands, wiped them twice on his apron, and walked over to the piano in the living room to sit down.

The prep work was finished.

During the time it would take for the rice to finish steaming, if she wanted to play, he would gladly play along with her.

Catching the rhythmic motif left hanging by the flute, Li An's hands slammed down fiercely.

A brilliant, dazzling double-octave passage instantly dragged the music from its previously bright, cheerful major key into a melancholic minor key.

Under the weight of the resounding piano chords, the little lion Simba in the musical theme seemed to grow up overnight, shedding innocent romance through the storms of life to project the commanding return of a true king.

Chen Xuan was hardly one to show weakness. Leveraging the acoustic atmosphere Li An had created, her fingers flew across the keys in a flurry of virtuosic variations.

In the compact space, the majestic, thunderous piano sparred fiercely with the sweet yet sharp tones of the flute.

For a moment, the two instruments were evenly matched.

Just like the battlefield of the sofa the night before.

Driving a children's toy car straight onto a Formula 1 racetrack.

Of course, that equilibrium only lasted for a few breaths.

How could a woman's strength truly conquer a man's?

Just as a flute, being a monophonic instrument, could never hope to rival the sheer volume of a polyphonic piano.

The ending was just like last night, too.

The moment the flute completely gave up its resistance, opening itself up utterly from the inside out, the piano abruptly ground to a halt.

Li An inhaled sharply and raised his hands, preparing to strike that final chord laden with every emotion.

Suddenly, the red light on the rice cooker illuminated.

Followed by—

"Beep, beep, beep—"

"Beep, beep, beep—"

Li An blinked, and Chen Xuan looked over as well.

The living room seemed to snap back from a magnificent celestial stage into the hustle and bustle of ordinary human life.

Outside the window came the sounds of voices and traffic from Yudong Avenue, accompanied by the mournful autumn dirge of September cicadas.

Inside the window, the flute remained just a flute, and the brand logo on the cheap piano looked as though it were veiled in fog under the dim, warm light.

Catching the aroma of cooked white rice drifting from the kitchen, the two of them exchanged a smile.

The feeling just now had been simply wonderful.

It was an impromptu stage performance, unpolished and unrehearsed, spontaneously birthed from the trivialities of daily life and a sudden flash of inspiration.

"Do you still remember what you were playing just now?"

"I forgot. How about you?"

"I forgot too."

The two of them burst out laughing.

There was no regret in their laughter, for they could already faintly sense that this, perhaps, might well become their everyday routine in the future.

"Go stir-fry the dishes quickly, I'm starving to death!"

Chen Xuan urged Li An to hurry up with the cooking; she certainly didn't want a repeat of yesterday's late meal.

Placing the flute back on the piano, she subconsciously glanced out the window.

Suddenly, she yanked her oversized T-shirt downward. "Li An!"

She had spotted two children pressed against a window in the building opposite, looking right in their direction.

If she could see over there, did that mean the people over there could see her too?

Li An rushed over. "What is it?"

After hearing her out, Li An chuckled. "All the windows in Wanhe Mansion use one-way reflective glass." He had already checked with the property management office about this detail.

"Are you sure?" Chen Xuan asked doubtfully.

"Certain, absolutely certain."

Was Li An the kind of person to let himself be at a disadvantage without being sure?

Chen Xuan peered outside again; without curtains, she still felt uneasy in her heart.

With that, she went back and pulled a pair of comfortable-looking loungewear pants on beneath her oversized T-shirt.

"Aren't you hot?"

Li An teased, surprised to find Chen Xuan far more conservative than he had imagined.

Chen Xuan retorted, "Why do you look so disappointed?"

"Cooking, time to cook."

Laughing it off, Li An headed back to the kitchen.

-

Diced pepper and shredded pork stir-fry, smashed cucumber with garlic, mapo tofu, and steaming hot white rice.

This was Chen Xuan's third time eating at 2501. Sitting at the exact same table, yet unlike the previous two times, today's three dishes and two bowls tasted distinctly like home.

It evoked a deep, profound sense of belonging and freedom from within her heart.

After dinner, she proactively offered to wash the dishes, but Li An firmly chased her out of the kitchen on the grounds that a musician's hands must never touch dirty plates.

Watching Li An bent over the sink, busy at work, she asked, "Li An, have you ever thought about becoming a concert pianist?"

Li An straightened up and wiped the sweat from his brow.

A moment later, he smiled.

"I thought about it when I was a kid."

With that, he bent back down to resume his chores, the pots and pans clattering once more in harmony.

At that moment, a sudden wave of heartache washed over Chen Xuan.

She quickly turned away.

Yet looking at the empty piano bench by the wall, all of Li An's performance moments on stage flashed vividly through her mind as if rushing forward at once.

Re-evaluating that light, breezy remark from moments earlier, it now felt as heavy as a lead weight, pressing down on her until she could barely catch her breath.

Perhaps out of tenderness, perhaps tinged with a tiny trace of grievance.

When midnight arrived—the hour of parting—Chen Xuan did not refuse Li An's request.

She went back to 2502 to remove her makeup, wash up, change into a pair of safe shorts, and return to 2501 clutching a pillow.

-

That night.

Bazhuan lay outside the bedroom door, staring at the territory that once belonged to it, now occupied by an outsider.

It licked its paws from time to time.

Beneath the dark ceiling, everything felt entirely natural.

Chen Xuan had never experienced the profound sense of security and grounding that came from being held from behind.

"I'm sorry."

She turned her head slightly. "Hmm?"

She heard him say softly by her ear, "Last night I wanted to stay at your place, but I was afraid you wouldn't be ready to accept it."

Chen Xuan's shoulders trembled. After experiencing so much the previous night, she had desperately needed Li An to stay by her side.

Neither of them was a high school student anymore; they didn't need to report back home, nor were they bound by a curfew, yet Li An had still left.

"I'm sorry, Xiao Mi."

When those words echoed by her ear once more, the lingering trace of grievance in Chen Xuan's heart was completely magnified. She turned around and playfully bit down on Li An's shoulder.

The piercing pain made Li An's whole body shiver, but he only smiled and gently stroked the back of her head.

Until the emotions deep within Chen Xuan's heart completely melted away.

The moment ninety-nine percent of love turned into a hundred, this was destined to be yet another enchanting and unforgettable night.

-

Regrettably, the red light on the rice cooker in the kitchen remained brightly lit.

Ninety minutes later, Bazhuan couldn't bear to watch any longer. It turned around, leaped onto the piano in two bounds, and curled up to sleep.

Perhaps it, too, harbored dreams of becoming a pianist.