Chapter 10

When he got home, Yang Jingxing was scolded, especially by his mother, who was really serious this time: "How many times have I told you not to hang out with Liu Miao and the others all day! You're not three or four years old anymore."

Yang Chengyi also supported his wife but laughed: "He'll be eighteen next year, don't make him like Jia Baoyu, seeking sorrow and trouble for no reason, which is of no benefit to the country or the family."

Xiao Shuxia gave her husband a stern look and continued to lecture her son: "A good man should have lofty aspirations. You've been back for so long, and I haven't seen you contact any of your schoolmates. You should make more friends who are cultured and refined!"

Yang Chengyi changed the subject: "Your teacher called me today to confirm the parent-teacher meeting. Let's discuss it as a family first. Be optimistic, let's say you can score 500 points, what school do you want to apply to?"

Yang Jingxing looked at his parents cautiously and said: "I want to prepare for both options, and try to apply to a music college."

Yang Chengyi laughed in anger, and after a while, he asked: "Do you really think you're that good-looking?"

Xiao Shuxia also laughed: "You still want to be a pop star! No wonder you play the guitar until midnight. You have no ambition!"

Yang Jingxing said seriously: "If you ask me what my dream is now, it's to study music. I don't want to be a pop star, and I'm not seeking sorrow and trouble."

Yang Chengyi put his hand in front of his wife to stop her from lecturing and looked at his son curiously: "When did you have a dream?"

Yang Jingxing said: "If a person has no dreams, what's the difference from a salted fish?" This was a phrase his father used to scold and mock him.

Yang Chengyi sneered: "When did you start dreaming about studying music? Your singing sounds like a rooster's."

Yang Jingxing said: "This is the age when dreams are born."

Xiao Shuxia said to her husband: "That's what you said, full of romanticism, a new idea every day."

Yang Chengyi didn't completely deny it: "It's better than having no ideas at all." Then he said to his son: "Others start learning piano or violin from a young age. You started playing the guitar in middle school and only stuck with it for two or three months. Whatever you do, you need perseverance and determination."

Yang Jingxing said: "I want to try. I won't give up my academic studies, but I want to try!"

Then, the three of them started discussing, recalling the past, looking at the present, and envisioning the future. They talked for two or three hours. In the end, the couple agreed to let their son try and support him. They were happy that their son had a dream, but they were worried that the dream was to study music.

The next afternoon, Yang Jingxing went to Xia Xue's house to meet up with Liu Miao. The two girls really wore their school uniforms, except for the different colors of their shoes, they were quite symmetrical. Black short socks were also quite popular in Shangpu.

The two girls giggled because Yang Jingxing was also wearing his school uniform. This was the one he wore in Europe and then brought back home. Black pants, white short-sleeved shirt, with good tailoring and material. The collar and pocket had youthful details, and the small tie was black and half-hanging.

In the glaring sunlight, the three of them stood together. After the two girls finished laughing, they felt a bit embarrassed. Liu Miao tugged at Yang Jingxing's tie: "Not bad."

Yang Jingxing said: "Let's pretend we're in high school together."

Xia Xue said: "It looks better than the boys' uniforms."

Yang Jingxing also said: "You girls look better than the boys."

They had planned to go boating, and Yang Jingxing was about to call a taxi, but Liu Miao said they should walk. Even if they took a shortcut, it would take about an hour, and Yang Jingxing was worried that Xia Xue's feet wouldn't hold up.

"Walk slowly, I'm actually better now," Xia Xue was willing to walk.

So the two girls held an umbrella and walked on the left, and the three of them slowly headed for the reservoir.

After a few steps, Liu Miao couldn't resist taking Yang Jingxing's small camera, running a few steps ahead to take pictures of him and Xia Xue. After taking one, she looked at it and came back to show Xia Xue, then let Xia Xue take a picture of her.

The two girls giggled as they compared their photos, and they seemed quite satisfied except for the significant height difference. Yang Jingxing also took pictures of the two girls, taking several and not wanting to delete any.

When they passed a small supermarket, Yang Jingxing bought a lot of snacks and drinks, and then decided to take a taxi to the reservoir because the girls wanted to find a good view quickly.

The taxi went all the way to Qingying Bridge. This cable-stayed bridge had been completed for three or four years, connecting two relatively narrow peaks on both sides of the reservoir. It was about 30 to 40 meters above the water, over 200 meters long, and surrounded by clear water and green mountains. There wasn't much traffic on the bridge because few people drove around the reservoir for leisure. Standing on the bridge, you could see the dam a few hundred meters downstream, the clear water upstream, and the undulating mountains, making it a scenic spot.

With no one around, the three of them slowly walked from the north end to the middle. The wind on the bridge blew Xia Xue's bangs apart, and the two girls' ponytails fluttered.

Yang Jingxing asked the two girls to stand together with the mountains in the background and took many close-ups. When it was Yang Jingxing's turn, Liu Miao wanted him to hold a cigarette and put his hands in his pockets in a cool pose, but Yang Jingxing refused, and Liu Miao was very unhappy.

Yang Jingxing argued: "That wouldn't match you two."

Liu Miao pouted and asked Yang Jingxing to set a timer for a group photo. So the two girls gave him a V sign on the back of his head.

After looking at the photo, Xia Xue asked for a retake: "I had an itch on my back and didn't smile well."

Liu Miao laughed, but Yang Jingxing quickly snapped a photo. Liu Miao was very unhappy when she saw it, saying it made her look like a madwoman, but Xia Xue and Yang Jingxing liked it.

Yang Jingxing said: "When taking a group photo, say 'cheese.' Once, a male and female eggplant were being intimate, and suddenly they both sneezed. Then the two eggplants started cursing: 'Damn, who's taking a group photo again?'"

Xia Xue laughed and shook her shoulders, and Yang Jingxing quickly snapped another photo.

Liu Miao sneered: "Boring, not funny."

Laughing and joking, they walked to the south end of the bridge and met Xie Yan, a classmate of Liu Miao's. Xie Yan was in the same class as Liu Miao in junior high and was considered a friend. She knew Yang Jingxing but hadn't spoken much to him because she was more introverted back then, not very good-looking, and from a modest family.

Xie Yan and her group of five young people, two girls and three boys, included one boy whom Yang Jingxing remembered. They played basketball together in junior high, and he was a year older and ten centimeters shorter. This guy had changed a lot, with tattoos on his arms.

After exchanging greetings, Xie Yan looked at Yang Jingxing and laughed dryly: "You're getting taller. All in school uniforms?"

Another woman in her twenties with fishnet stockings chuckled: "So romantic."

The tattooed man clearly remembered Yang Jingxing and initiated a conversation: "Haven't seen you play basketball in a long time."

"I don't play much anymore," Yang Jingxing looked at the bag of snacks in his hand and took out a bag of sunflower seeds to give to the man: "Sorry, it's not much."

The tattooed man laughed and took it: "Thanks." Then he introduced Yang Jingxing to the people around him: "Yang Jingxing, he could take on three in junior high."

Yang Jingxing shook his head in shame. That was a shameful past, where he could take on three because the others barely dared to fight back. This incident was because of Xia Xue, who lowered her head and didn't say anything.

The more outgoing Xie Yan asked to see the photos Liu Miao had taken. After looking at them for a while, she didn't comment much, just said a few words and left.

Liu Miao chuckled: "She was so afraid of you in junior high."

Yang Jingxing said: "I'm not doing well now, so she's not afraid anymore."

Xia Xue laughed.

After walking for a while, they reached the reservoir dock. Yang Jingxing rented a swan boat with a closed top, the kind you pedal with your feet, and the three of them went out on the water. People on the shore were surprised at how fast the swan boat moved and could hear the girls' excited laughter, but soon the boat slowed down.

Yang Jingxing stuck his head out and shouted to the shore: "Boss, your boat is broken."

The boss quickly came over in a boat to pick them up, finding Liu Miao still laughing uncontrollably and Xia Xue panting, her face red.

Yang Jingxing accused the boss first: "Boss, your boat isn't sturdy."

The boss stared at Yang Jingxing for a while before complaining: "You pedaled so fast! How could it not break? How could it be so fast!?"

Indeed, the transmission mechanism couldn't withstand Yang Jingxing's strength and broke down. They had to switch to another boat, and Yang Jingxing didn't dare to scare the girls anymore.

They ate snacks and chatted on the water for an hour. It was already five o'clock, and Yang Jingxing had to go home for dinner. On the way back, Liu Miao pulled Xia Xue into a boutique to choose hair ties and clips. Liu Miao insisted on taking more photos, even though they had already taken many. So the three of them took a bunch more and selected the best ones from the already beautified photos.

Liu Miao stuck a magazine cover-style photo in Yang Jingxing's wallet. The three of them stood side by side, the two girls on either side, looking quite real.

"Don't tear it, I'll check when you come back," Liu Miao warned.

Xia Xue compared the photo to Yang Jingxing's real appearance and laughed: "So white."

The mother's phone calls started to urge, and Yang Jingxing promised to send the photos to the girls online and hurried home. During dinner, Xiao Shuxia announced that the trip to Quhang on the 24th would be moved to the 20th because the Quhang Grand Theater would start a Kunqu opera performance on the 21st, and her favorite performer, Zhang Zhihong, would perform "The Peony Pavilion" in three acts!

Xiao Shuxia was very excited and looking forward to it: "Your aunt has bought the tickets, you all have to go with me!"

Yang Chengyi still wanted to escape and said to his son: "You want to study music, go with your mother, I really don't have time, I'll go on the 25th." Yang Chengyi was actually more educated than his wife, but since she fell in love with Kunqu opera, he had to admit defeat. Although Xiao Shuxia had only been in love with Kunqu for four or five years, she had seen hundreds of performances and often went to Quhang and Puhai. When she visited her son at school, she would also choose times when there were good performances. However, Xiao Shuxia had a specific focus, liking only the female lead roles, possibly to make up for not having a daughter.

Xiao Shuxia didn't care about her husband's feelings: "You must go!"

Yang Chengyi pleaded: "I don't have time to accompany you in your colorful world."

Xiao Shuxia pointed with her chopsticks: "You're just a broken well and a ruined wall! This time, none of you can escape, I have to improve your taste."

After dinner, Yang Jingxing was called into the study by his father. Yang Chengyi usually didn't talk to his son in the study, and if he did, it was a very formal and serious matter. At this moment, Yang Jingxing didn't dare to be playful with his father. The last time they talked in the study was when Yang Jingxing was in his first year of high school and said he wanted to return to Jiuchun, unwilling to stay in Shangpu anymore.

The study was well-decorated, with a large chandelier and only one executive chair. Three large bookshelves were filled with books, including literary classics, business and finance encyclopedias, and philosophy and history. Yang Chengyi had read most of these books and was now a book lover, definitely more cultured than his son. On another wall was a calligraphy piece by Yang Chengyi himself, which was quite good, and he called it the "Yang style."

Yang Jingxing had grown up, and Yang Chengyi had constantly tried to make him follow in his footsteps. Reading literature, studying philosophy, learning calligraphy... Unfortunately, Yang Jingxing was really not up to the task. However, Yang Chengyi's appearance was quite ordinary, far inferior to his son. When he could attract the beautiful and famous Xiao Shuxia in a free love relationship, it must have been because of his talent.

Yang Chengyi sat in the executive chair, his right hand on the desk, and asked his son to stand in front of him, using a tone like he was in a meeting with subordinates: "You want to study music. First, tell me, what is music? What's your understanding of it?"

Yang Jingxing thought for a moment: "I think music is used to express emotions, it can influence moods, and good music can cultivate one's thoughts... Music is the most beautiful language, the most direct way to express feelings."

Yang Chengyi nodded: "A philosopher, Nietzsche, said that life has no value without music. What do you think?"

Yang Jingxing laughed dryly: "That's a bit extreme."

Yang Chengyi continued: "There was a man from Deqing in the countryside on my construction site. He was fifty years old and couldn't even sign his name on the payroll, but he would hum songs when he got his wages. In the countryside, whether it's a wedding or a funeral, they always play music. Do you think that's music?"

"Of course, it is!" Yang Jingxing answered quickly.

Yang Chengyi nodded again: "You said you want to study composition. Besides professional knowledge, what else do you think is needed to compose good music? Your little bit of intelligence? Like you can pass exams without effort?"

Yang Jingxing could only bluff: "Understanding life, I guess. Art comes from life."

Yang Chengyi sneered: "What do you understand about life?"

Yang Jingxing quickly said: "My understanding of life now is that life should be understood and felt with heart."

Yang Chengyi finally raised his eyes and nodded: "No matter what, you've made a positive and proactive decision about your life, and your mother and I should be happy..."

The father and son talked for a long time. Xiao Shuxia opened the door once and quickly retreated. When Yang Jingxing went upstairs with his father's encouragement, it was almost nine o'clock, and he hurried to send the photos to Liu Miao and the others online.

Both girls left messages. Liu Miao asked why he hadn't come yet and if he had been scolded. Xia Xue said she was reading a book and asked Yang Jingxing to send her a text when he came online.

After compressing and packaging over a hundred photos, Yang Jingxing called Liu Miao and sent a text to Xia Xue.

Liu Miao said online: "Xue Xue is reading a book, I'll text her."

Yang Jingxing said: "I texted her."

Liu Miao: "It's uploading so slowly, send one first, a photo of the two of us."

Yang Jingxing selected one and used a drawing tool to add a mustache to Liu Miao, then sent it.

Liu Miao sent a series of angry emojis: "I had such a good day, don't ruin my mood."

Yang Jingxing quickly sent the original and said: "When I see something too beautiful, I can't help but ruin it."

After a while, Liu Miao sent a kissing emoji: "The photo is nice, I'll reward you."

Yang Jingxing said: "Let's go again tomorrow, I'll stay up all night to study photography."

Liu Miao sent a series of blushing emojis.

Xia Xue came online soon after, and Yang Jingxing had to chat with both girls. But with his current typing speed, he could make a fortune as a typist.

Xia Xue said: "I was just writing in my diary, not finished yet. I'll finish after looking at the photos."

Yang Jingxing: "Haha, I'm the main character."

Xia Xue: "Of course."

Xia Xue: "But don't draw a must