Chapter 45

......

C'est le temps qui s'enfuit qui s'en fout~

C'est la vie qui me prend dans son poult~

C'est le coeur qui avoue~

Entre nous~ Entre nous~

......

Ears don't lie.

Although he found the provocative behavior of the girl in the small strap on stage very annoying, he had to admit that her jazz singing was a notch above Hao Yuan's.

Compared to Hao Yuan's androgynous voice, Yu Xiran's voice was softer and more appealing. Her professional training was solid, and when the rhythm changed and required flexibility, her voice was much more powerful than Hao Yuan's, like a rubber band that could stretch very long.

Moreover, her precise rhythm division was also better than Hao Yuan's.

More importantly, Yu Xiran's coordination with the band was very默契 (默契 means默契, but in this context, it's better translated as "seamless").

In jazz, the singer's improvisation is the most valuable.

Jazz itself is an improvisational music, with no fixed form, purely based on the performance on the spot.

Yu Xiran's improvisational stretching of the song and her seamless coordination with the band were far beyond what Hao Yuan could achieve after just a few rehearsals.

After just a short segment, the audience was captivated by Yu Xiran's voice.

Most of the people who came to Shuichuanshi that night were jazz enthusiasts, and they had a certain level of appreciation for jazz.

The difference in skill was evident on stage.

Initially, many people thought it was too much for people like Shen Tailong to come to someone else's store to cause trouble.

But after hearing Yu Xiran's song, they were more or less moved. It seemed that this was the jazz they truly expected for the night.

Hao Yuan loved jazz deeply. Although her singing skills were limited, her ability to appreciate it was quite strong.

The moment Yu Xiran started singing the first melodic phrase of the familiar French song "L'amour," Hao Yuan felt a chill down her spine.

An expert knows at a glance.

The strength of this girl's singing was truly beyond Hao Yuan's expectations!

This was clearly a performance of a higher level!

Lu Shishi's expression also became increasingly gloomy.

When she first encountered these people and heard the sarcasm in Shen Tailong's words about their jazz skills, Lu Shishi knew they were there to cause trouble.

She didn't expect them to succeed.

What was supposed to be a great night to boost the café's popularity and reputation had turned into a night of embarrassment, which deeply saddened Lu Shishi.

The waiters, including Li Nan and Du Yang, listened to Yu Xiran's singing with strong aversion, but even so, after half a song, they had to admit that the girl who came to cause trouble had impressive singing skills.

These waiters, influenced by the jazz music played in the café, had developed a certain level of appreciation for jazz.

Although Yu Xiran's jazz singing wasn't as good as the classic jazz masters on vinyl, compared to Hao Yuan, she was clearly a notch above.

Li Nan felt increasingly embarrassed as he listened. Being humiliated in his own home was a terrible feeling.

Moreover, the girl's voice was so captivating, both enjoyable and humiliating, creating a conflicting mindset that made the waiters silent.

In a corner, Lu Chen, after being provoked by Yu Xiran, initially wanted to boo her.

But once Yu Xiran started singing, Lu Chen realized she was a highly skilled singer, and they were well-prepared to cause trouble!

Unlike Lin Zaishan, who was a professional, Lu Chen had spent a considerable time in the music industry and could distinguish good voices and performances.

While he wasn't very knowledgeable about jazz, he found Yu Xiran's singing very precise, and her coordination with the band was flawless, leaving no room for booing.

Breathing heavily, like a fat tiger waiting for an opportunity, Lu Chen continued to look for flaws. His gaze gradually shifted from Yu Xiran to Shen Tailong, who was playing the drums.

Lu Chen was an expert in drumming, having played for over 20 years. After leaving Lin Zaishan, he still loved playing drums to vent his emotions.

For over 20 years, he had never put down his drumsticks, and his skills had become increasingly refined.

Lu Chen's ability to judge drumming was even stronger than Lin Zaishan's.

He didn't need to look at techniques; just by listening to the most basic rhythm and feel, he could judge a person's drumming skills.

Compared to Yu Xiran's skilled singing, Shen Tailong's drumming lacked depth.

Although his drumming was smooth and rhythmic, Lu Chen felt that Shen Tailong's drumming lacked soul, indicating he was not a professional drummer but a temporary player.

Damn it.

He really wanted to boo the drummer; his skills were too average!

But Lu Chen didn't do it. Unlike Shen Tailong, he wouldn't use cheap tricks. He would only boo if the other party made a major mistake.

Lin Zaishan, holding Bepa, listened to the Zifei band calmly, enjoying the music rather than being disturbed.

Even if they were enemies, he would still appreciate good music.

Of course, this appreciation was limited to the music.

After Yu Xiran finished "L'amour," the audience began to applaud the Zifei band.

Hao Yuan and Lu Shishi's friends, after hearing such a performance, felt embarrassed to boo. They were more cultured and wouldn't act as rudely as Shen Tailong. If they were outperformed, they could only silently endure.

"The second song of the Jazz Night—'C'est la vie'! The two uncles in the corner, you don't know what C'est la vie means, right? Let me tell you: this is life!"

With Yu Xiran's arrogant declaration, Shen Tailong's snare drum and Wang Xiaofei's piano bass started the colorful jazz introduction, creating an extraordinary atmosphere!

To the dynamic rhythm, Yu Xiran proudly sang the second song of the Jazz Night, "C'est la vie."

Each time she sang "C'est la vie," she would look at Lin Zaishan's corner with a condescending and pitying gaze, which was truly annoying.

"What the hell!"

Lu Chen couldn't take it anymore. The repeated provocations were too much. If he didn't retaliate, his 20 years of drumming would be for nothing!

Sun Yuzhen also found the girl extremely annoying. She had seen obnoxious girls before, but never one as obnoxious as Yu Xiran.

The two uncles didn't even pay attention to her, yet she still provoked them. Was she a masochist?

They were provoking Lin Zaishan, a super music genius!

Provoking Lin Zaishan in any other way would be one thing, but using music to provoke him was asking for trouble!

Sun Yuzhen secretly glanced at Lin Zaishan, wondering if he would teach the girl a lesson.

She knew Lin Zaishan's temperament. After a good meal, he was most motivated to sing.

Would this uncle sing a song and send the girl's face to the moon?

But she saw Lin Zaishan gently stroking the blue cat's back, sitting calmly with a slight smile, showing no signs of anger.

Sun Yuzhen was really worried for Lin Zaishan!

If she had Lin Zaishan's musical talent, she would have already taught the girl a lesson!

However, the girl on stage did sing well.

Sun Yuzhen, who studied at Dongyi University's Media Department, had French as her second language. Her French listening and speaking skills were strong. She could not only appreciate the jazz music played by Zifei but also understand what Yu Xiran was singing.

French pronunciation was very suitable for jazz, with a strong rhythm. Listening to Yu Xiran sing "C'est la vie" repeatedly, while Lin Zaishan remained unmoved, Sun Yuzhen sighed. Perhaps, this was life.

After the second song, more people in the café applauded the Zifei band.

"Thank you for your applause! Tonight, we're not here to show off our skills. We just want to tell everyone what a true Jazz Night is! L'amour bar will have our rock concert tomorrow night. Rock is our true love! If you like our music, please come to L'amour! We will bring you the best music! The café owner's face is green, ha ha, we won't take up more of your time. The next song, and the last one for tonight, is 'Zi Fei Yu'! Rock style! Enjoy!"

The drumming started again, the scale changed dramatically, shifting from improvisational jazz to a rhythm with strong beats.

Without the bass, the drumming was a bit monotonous.

But with the piano and electric guitar joining in, a significant atmosphere was still created.

Yu Xiran's attitude towards singing changed noticeably. Her slender neck shook forcefully with the powerful beats, her head moving like a drumstick, striking the air, her hair flying, and her rebellious demeanor was quite convincing.

When she started singing again, Yu Xiran's voice was completely different from the jazz, more direct and hard.

It was clear she enjoyed the state of forgetting to take her medicine while singing rock.

After listening to jazz all night, the audience in the café was suddenly hit by the powerful rock music, and many felt their blood boil, finding it very satisfying.

Some audience members even stood up to listen and cheered for the Zifei band during the climax.

This made the staff of Shuichuanshi café very embarrassed.

Lu Shishi was extremely unhappy. The other party was openly promoting their event in her café, which was worse than putting up posters! It was shameless!

But now that the other party had the upper hand and the audience was captivated by their music, she couldn't stop them.

She couldn't lower herself to their level and become as uncultured as they were.

Tonight was a complete failure, and she had to accept it.

Hao Yuan was also discouraged. She was more concerned about who the idiot was who had put the poster on the L'amour bar's bulletin board. They had to be fired! This action had ruined their carefully prepared Jazz Night!

"Is this even called rock?"

After listening to half of "Zi Fei Yu," Lu Chen made a dismissive comment.

He might not understand jazz, but he had more authority to speak about rock than the Zifei band.

The composition of "Zi Fei Yu" was decent, but what was the lead singer singing? Just shaking her head a few times and calling it rock? She lacked power where it was needed. This was not a female rock voice at all! Her voice was better suited for soft ballads, and singing rock was a desecration!

And the drummer, was that even a drum beat? It was too weak! He was just a drum stand-in, with no style of his own.

Drums are the soul of rock music!

The short-haired man's poor drumming brought the song down to a failing grade.

After Yu Xiran finished the song, nearly half the audience applauded their performance.

"See you at L'amour tomorrow!"

After causing trouble, Yu Xiran and the others were very satisfied and were about to leave the stage.

Lu Chen finally couldn't sit still. He took a few big steps, blocking their way, and sarcastically said, "Is this what you call rock? Inviting people to your bar? Are you kidding?"

"What do you mean?" Shen Tailong asked, looking at Lu Chen sideways.

"I don't mean anything. You think their jazz is trash, but I think your rock is even worse! Especially you, what kind of drumming is that? Did you learn in a primary school band? Please stay away from drum kits in the future. This high-end instrument is not for you! Go back to your primary school band and play the snare drum."

Lu Chen was very skilled at using words to mock others. He had always been a talkative person, and his words made many people laugh.

Shen Tailong's face turned green, clenching his fists, wanting to fight Lu Chen. But he was wary of Lu Chen's large build and didn't dare to really fight.

Yu Xiran, trying to save face for Shen Tailong, grabbed the drumsticks from Shen Tailong's hand and threw them to Lu Chen, "If you're so good, show us!"

"Fine, I'll show you what real drumming is!"

Like magic, the drumsticks spun several times in Lu Chen's fat hands, and both sticks spun in one hand! This incredible control of the drumsticks immediately silenced Shen Tailong and the others—this fat guy was a drumming expert!

Lu Chen was indeed an expert, and a super expert.

For over 20 years, he had loved playing drums, reliving his youth. The drumsticks were like his fingers, connected to his heart.

"Is Chen good enough?" Sun Yuzhen asked Lin Zaishan nervously, seeing Lu Chen confront the other party.

"He toured the country with me 20 years ago. What do you think?"

Originally, he wasn't very confident about Lu Chen's drumming skills, as it had been a long time since he played. But after seeing the drumsticks spin magically in Lu Chen's fat hands, Lin Zaishan was reassured. This fat guy had never put down the drums, and his enthusiasm for starting a record label showed he had never given up on his rock dream.

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