Chapter 48

After He Hongchui had finished explaining to Qi Qingnuo, he suggested, "You can learn from Yang Jingxing. Don't treat homework purely as homework; the traces of homework are too heavy... Look at how he used two modulations in this theme, one close and one distant, which is very good and immediately brings out the emotion."

Qi Qingnuo admitted, "I don't dare to modulate; the effect is very poor."

He Hongchui said, "As long as you pay attention to the logic of modulation, it generally won't fail. Go back and take another look."

Qi Qingnuo nodded and said to Yang Jingxing, "Goodbye." She slung her backpack and walked off in big strides.

He Hongchui was truly amazed by Yang Jingxing's reading and learning speed. He had already understood the research and related works on polyphony from various historical periods, and could even talk about the new theories of the 20th century, which were not part of the music college curriculum. Fortunately, He Hongchui himself was well-versed and could still keep up, discuss, and provide guidance. Today, Yang Jingxing wanted to discuss micro-polyphony with him, which was a rather avant-garde topic. He Hongchui explained his understanding of micro-polyphony to Yang Jingxing, who, as usual, nodded in agreement.

This discussion lasted for an hour, and He Hongchui finally suggested, "You can consider writing something complete, applying what you've learned."

Yang Jingxing refused, "I don't think I'm qualified yet; there's still so much to learn."

He Hongchui said gently, "Actually, you need to practice constantly to achieve a breakthrough in both playing the piano and composing. Writing more is practice; don't expect your first work to be groundbreaking; it's impossible."

Yang Jingxing chuckled, "You're right; I might be aiming too high."

He Hongchui smiled, "Don't be too eager in your studies; going too fast can be counterproductive."

Yang Jingxing nodded, "I'll pay attention."

During lunch, Yang Jingxing, Yu Xinting, and An Xin met Qi Qingnuo at a small stir-fry stall. They nodded to each other and smiled.

Yang Jingxing introduced Qi Qingnuo to Yu Xinting, "Let me introduce you, senior, this is Qi Qingnuo."

They got to know each other. Yu Xinting was only a few centimeters shorter than Qi Qingnuo but seemed much smaller.

Qi Qingnuo asked, "What did you order?"

Yu Xinting replied, "Twice-cooked pork, eggs with tomatoes, and Kung Pao chicken."

Qi Qingnuo said, "Let's share; I ordered fish-flavored shredded pork."

Yu Xinting welcomed her, "Sure."

Yang Jingxing warned Qi Qingnuo, "You're at a disadvantage."

Yu Xinting chuckled, "He eats a lot."

Qi Qingnuo wasn't afraid, "The game isn't over yet... You don't look like you're starving him, do you?"

Yu Xinting said seriously, "No, I've even gained weight."

Qi Qingnuo laughed, "I want to lose weight!"

Two dishes were ready first, and Yang Jingxing said, "You go ahead and find a seat."

Qi Qingnuo said to Yu Xinting, "You carry the dishes, I'll get the rice... Sir, four bowls, please." She carried one bowl in each hand, then brought her arms together, letting Yang Jingxing place the other two bowls between her arms, and called, "Chopsticks, An Xin, can you get the chopsticks?"

When Yang Jingxing returned with the two dishes, he found the three girls hadn't started eating yet and asked, "Are you all trying to lose weight?"

Qi Qingnuo said, "Sit down quickly, it's a showdown between the Composition Department and the Piano Department, no, mixed doubles!" She and An Xin sat on one side.

The competition wasn't intense. Although Yang Jingxing could eat a lot, he only needed a little food to finish a bowl of rice. Among the three girls, An Xin was the most refined, followed by Yu Xinting, who lost to Qi Qingnuo.

While eating and chatting, Qi Qingnuo asked Yu Xinting, "Do you know any good drummers?"

Yang Jingxing asked, "Are you short of one?"

Qi Qingnuo said, "The drummer is graduating and has less time, and we also need a second erhu player. There aren't many suitable ones in this year's freshmen."

Yang Jingxing suggested to Yu Xinting, "Why don't you try?"

Yu Xinting shook her head, "I can't... I only play drum games!"

Qi Qingnuo said, "We're performing at the small playground on Singles' Day. Come and support us if you have time."

Yang Jingxing said, "I'm qualified."

Qi Qingnuo laughed, "Qualified VIP box, couples sit on the ground."

After lunch, Qi Qingnuo invited An Xin and Yu Xinting to visit Room 306 in the North Building in the afternoon but told Yang Jingxing, "No boys allowed."

Yang Jingxing protested, "I object."

"Objection overruled, goodbye."

Speaking of Room 306, it was a source of pride for the female students of the music college, so An Xin and Yu Xinting were eager to visit. They agreed to go to the North Building in the afternoon, while Yang Jingxing was going to report to Li Yingzhen.

At 2 PM, Yang Jingxing and the two girls met Qi Qingnuo at the entrance of the North Building. Qi Qingnuo was with two other girls, and the boxes they carried seemed to contain a pipa and an erhu.

Qi Qingnuo welcomed Yu Xinting first and then said to Yang Jingxing in a half-serious tone, "Stay here, you really can't go in."

Yang Jingxing said, "Can't I listen from downstairs?"

Yu Xinting explained, "He's here for a class, in the small classroom on the second floor."

A long-haired girl with chestnut-colored hair asked, "Are you Li Yingzhen's student?"

"Yes."

The long-haired girl was angry, "It's you! I saw you last year, right? You didn't respond when we called you from upstairs. Were you cool?"

This girl actually had a gentle and shy appearance.

Yang Jingxing apologized, "The teacher was there, I didn't dare to respond. Luckily, otherwise, it would still be no boys allowed."

Another girl with shoulder-length hair said, "Your ears are pretty good. You played our piece, and we even suspected you of sneaking in to steal the score." She had small eyes and freckles on her face, but she wasn't unattractive.

Yang Jingxing said, "The piece was good; I memorized it after hearing it once."

The long-haired girl said, "Really good? Saturday at 6 PM, small playground."

Qi Qingnuo said, "I've already invited him, stalker."

The long-haired girl lightly tapped Qi Qingnuo's thigh with her instrument case, "You're the bigger stalker!"

The shoulder-length hair girl scolded, "Can you be a bit more reserved in front of the juniors?"

Yu Xinting and An Xin giggled and introduced themselves. The long-haired girl was a major in erhu, named Liu Siman. The shoulder-length hair girl was named Wang Rui, majoring in pipa.

Liu Siman, who had already seen Yang Jingxing before, still made a surprised face, "So this is what Yang Jingxing looks like, better than I expected."

Wang Rui asked, "Hey, do you have a girlfriend?"

Yang Jingxing respectfully said, "Seniors, I'm going to class."

Wang Rui called, "Play a piece for us after class!"

Li Yingzhen hadn't arrived yet, so Yang Jingxing looked at the orchestra's score and studied Beethoven's composition methods. Soon, a female voice from the balcony upstairs called, "Downstairs, play a piece." It wasn't Liu Siman's voice, but they could hear her laughing.

Yang Jingxing played "Until the End of the World" in a rock version. The prelude was ordinary, but the chord accompaniment after the main theme was a pleasant surprise, invigorating the spirit.

After Yang Jingxing finished, he didn't hear any applause. After a while, he saw the classroom door open a crack, and it was Yu Xinting.

Yu Xinting cautiously looked around the classroom and happily called to those behind her, "He's not here, he's not here!"

A group of ten girls rushed in, including Yu Xinting and An Xin.

Yang Jingxing proudly said, "No boys allowed, but I saw you all."

Qi Qingnuo said, "Three more haven't arrived yet."

Liu Siman scrutinized Yang Jingxing, "I didn't see it coming. Did you arrange the music yourself?"

Yang Jingxing honestly said, "I saw your performance in the old concert hall last September. I was very excited and followed the trend."

The group of girls was somewhat proud. A girl wearing a trendy cap suggested to Qi Qingnuo, "We can do this too; it should have a good effect."

Qi Qingnuo didn't comment, "Alright, you've seen it, go back."

Yang Jingxing refused, "I haven't met them yet."

Qi Qingnuo was open-minded, "You can meet them."

Yang Jingxing was fortunate today, meeting so many talented girls. Besides Liu Siman and Wang Rui, there were five more.

Yu Feifei, majoring in yangqin, was about 1.62 meters tall, with a ponytail, a slender face, and fine eyebrows.

Guo Ling, majoring in huqin, was a bit taller than Yu Feifei, a bit overweight, and had short hair, but not as neat as Qi Qingnuo. She had big eyes and a big mouth with small tiger teeth.

Chai Litian, playing the flute, had a similar build to Yu Xinting but not as delicate a face. Her eyes were slightly triangular, but she smiled sweetly.

Cai Fuxuan, the electric guitarist, was the tallest among the girls, probably 1.75 meters, but quite slim. Her tight jeans didn't even stretch. She had an oval face, a ponytail, and a fringe, and was a beauty, but her earrings and bracelets were a bit exaggerated.

Gao Pianpian, playing the guzheng, wasn't very tall, about 1.65 meters, with curly hair, but it looked a bit vulgar, and her clothes weren't very fashionable. Her face, though not very beautiful, was quite standard and would become more appealing over time.

The three who didn't come were the drummer, another erhu player, and a sanxian player. As they were talking, Li Yingzhen appeared at the door, and Yang Jingxing quickly said, "Professor Li, you're here."

The ten girls quickly paid attention, and a few greeted her.

Li Yingzhen wasn't angry but asked, "What are you all doing here?"

Qi Qingnuo said, "We can't afford the tickets to New York... We won't disturb you, we'll leave."

The group of girls quickly left.

Li Yingzhen didn't criticize Yang Jingxing. She watched him practice for two hours and still pointed out some areas for improvement. No one, no matter how good, had a perfect performance, and Yang Jingxing was no exception. What you think is good, others might not.

Yang Jingxing played Mozart downstairs, and he could hear the electronic keyboard playing "Until the End of the World" upstairs. Ha, Qi Qingnuo still couldn't remember it well.

After a while, he heard a jazz drum solo, which was terrible, with a messy rhythm. It must have been Yu Xinting, and it only lasted half a minute. Then Room 306 started working on the piece Yang Jingxing had heard downstairs before. It was probably written by Qi Qingnuo. The current version was quite different from the previous one, no longer overly relying on the atmosphere created by the electronic keyboard and electric guitar. The traditional instruments were given more prominence, but not enough.

Yu Feifei's yangqin was good, but the arrangement didn't give her much room to shine. Guo Ling's huqin was still conservative, lacking innovation. Chai Litian put in effort, and her flute sounded strong and powerful. Cai Fuxuan's electric guitar solo was strong, but she didn't work well with others. Gao Pianpian's guzheng was still traditional, and a critical listener would find it out of place.

However, the group of girls still deserved praise. It took a lot of effort and time to reach their current level, and they had made some breakthroughs in traditional Chinese music, which wasn't as simple as adding electric guitars, keyboards, and synthesizers.

After Yang Jingxing finished his task, Room 306 continued. He called Yu Xinting to say he was leaving.

Yu Xinting praised the others on the phone, "They're all so amazing!" This girl, having practiced the piano for so many years, might not have had the chance to play with others.

Yang Jingxing said, "You're amazing too."

Yu Xinting was disappointed, "It's a pity they don't need a pianist."

Yang Jingxing said, "That's not necessarily true."

Yang Jingxing went to borrow instruments from the school. The administrator was surprised when he saw his student ID, "Yang Jingxing, why are you borrowing an erhu?"

Yang Jingxing said, "To learn." Then he borrowed a self-study book on the erhu from the library and went home to practice.

Yang Jingxing didn't plan to become an erhu master, but as a composition student, he needed to understand various instruments. The deeper his understanding, the more it would help his composition. The range, expressive techniques, and emotional colors of the instrument.

From 5 PM to 2 AM, Yang Jingxing skimmed through a 200-page self-study book. His erhu skills were now good enough to wear sunglasses and tell fortunes on the street.

Hunger drove him to go out for a late-night snack. The shop at the entrance of the neighborhood offered barbecue and stir-fry. The owners were a couple, with a younger sister helping out.

The younger sister was a girl around 17 or 18, not very pretty, wearing dirty old sandals, with oily hands and face. When she refilled Yang Jingxing's rice bowl for the fifth time, she asked, "Are you that hungry?"

Yang Jingxing said, "Your rice costs money."

"Not really, eat as much as you want... Are you a music college student?"

Yang Jingxing asked, "How did you know?"

"I guessed." The girl was a bit proud.

They chatted for a while. The girl was quite interested in music, enjoyed listening to and singing songs, and wondered if writing songs was a very difficult and impressive task. She said, "Sometimes when I hear a new song, after the first line, I feel like I can sing the next line, and often I can sing it just like the song."

Yang Jingxing said, "Sing one for me to hear."

The girl wasn't shy and started singing immediately, her voice not small, and Yang Jingxing was the only customer. She sang a popular love song.

Yang Jingxing listened carefully and praised, "You sing very well."

"Really? Are you serious?" The girl was very happy.

Yang Jingxing nodded, "I am."

The girl said softly, "I'll buy you a beer."

Yang Jingxing said, "No need... If you want to learn, I can give you some books to read first."

The girl was a bit hesitant, "I only finished junior high school, can I understand them?"

Yang Jingxing said it was no problem. However, when Yang Jingxing left, they didn't even know each other's names.

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