Chapter 41
There was a saying in Huaxia that went, "pi
Due to the mistake in promoting the event, theHong Kong Sea Music Festival had 20-30% fewer visitors than in previous years.However, since everything had already gone wrong, weren't they due to be luckyat least once?
First, they used the New Ai's recruitment drive,then the news that Min Chen was present triggered an onslaught of people. Then,the young Chinese violinist that performed with the New York PhilharmonicOrchestra, and phenomenally successful concert.
When the festival came to an end, many peoplelooked back on the ten-day event, andmost of them thought something along the lines of: "Actually. . . this year'sfestival was much more interesting than any other I've attended."
Naturally, Qi Mu didn't know this. He took thefirst flight back to B City the afternoon after the festival was over. Landingin B City, Qi Mu inhaled the fresh air of Huaxia and said wistfully, "This iswhat I'm most familiar with after all!"
Min Chen: ". . ."
Having left the warm climate in the south, theDecember chill in the north was enough to make the air feel like ice. The coldwind blew across the street like an iron knife. It was late at night, andtraffic was sparse. By the time Qi Mu reached home from the airport, it wasalready early in the morning.
Since tomorrow was Christmas, Qi Mu invited MinChen to his house as thanks for looking after him the past few days. Min Chenwas surprised to receive the invitation, but he nodded and agreed.
For westerners, Christmas was like the ChineseNew Year. Qi Mu had grown up in Europe and stayed there all his life. However,his adoptive parents were Chinese, so he never placed much importance onChristmas, and they instead celebratedthe Chinese New Year.
When he was still a child in the orphanage, thecold dean would give them chocolates, at most, but other than that, he hadnever attributed anything special to the date.
This time, he invited Min Chen over because heknew the man wasn't returning to Europe for Christmas and might feel lonely butalso to thank him for his care at the same time.
Qi Mu had thought of a simple dinner. He didn'tknow that a wall over, in the living room large enough to raise a whale, thealways indifferent Min Chen was looking through various ties, tie clips, andcufflinks spread across the sofa with an unusuallysomber eye.
Standing before these dazzling items that wouldmake it difficult for anyone to make a decision, the handsome man stared calmlyfor ten minutes then closed his eyes and randomly pointed in a direction. Likeso, he selected a long, dark blue tie, a tie clip with a white diamond at itscenter, and a pair of sapphire cufflinks.
When it was time, Min Chen swiftly sorted outhis attire and picked up the white lilies he had specially delivered thismorning and exited his door. He impassively walked next door and rang thedoorbell.
Soon after, the sound of footsteps came frombehind the door.
"Creak——" The door opened.
Min Chen: ". . ."
The pretty woman standing in the doorway: ". .."
After a moment, Min Chen glanced at the numberon the door. Confirming that he hadn't gone to the wrong place, the elegant manfrowned.
Before he could speak, a familiar voice camefrom further inside, "Sister-in-law, who is it?"
The woman smiled and turned back to reply, "Xiao Qi, come see. . . if this is that friend you mentioned?"
Qi Mu come from the kitchen in a white apron.Seeing Min Chen, QI Mu unintentionally laughed and said, "Min Chen. . . it's just a simple dinner at home. You didn'thave to wear such. . . formal attire."
Outside, thehandsome man wore an elegant black suit. Every corner of his clothingwas ironed, looking freshly purchased. Even his hair was slicked back and fixedin place with hair gel. It almost felt like he could step on stage the nextmoment, pick up a baton, and begin a performance.
Min Chen was silent, and Qi Mu did not wait for a reply. He saw the bouquet of white lilies in the man's arms and was stunned. He suddenly thought of something, and a trace of guilt flashed in his eyes. Hesaid helplessly, "I'm sorry. I should have told you clearly yesterday so youwouldn't worry too much."
Qi Mu's words left Min Chen in a daze, but thelost look in his eyes was suddenly swept away.
Min Chen stared at Qi Mu for a while then histhin lips curled upward slowly, and helaughed softly, "It doesn't matter. I was the one who thought too much."
The woman stuck in the middle: ". . ."
"Honey, why are you still standing at the door?Why don't you go see what Qi Mu made. . . and how it tastes. . ."
"Aaaahhh!!! Min Chen!!!"
There was loud thud, and the things Zheng Wei Qiao had purchased at the supermarket fellto the ground. They quickly tidied up and went into Qi Mu's apartment.
Once all the food was on the table, Zhao Yue, Zheng Wei Qiao's wife, laughed and said while she served the soup, "Xiao Qi's cooking is delicious. I thought I would need to help out more today, but it looks like I was worried for nothing."
Zhao Yue wasn't in the music circle. While shelooked gentle, she was, in fact, a savvy and decisive lawyer. Although herhusband was in the music industry, she knew nothing about it, so when she sawMin Chen, she didn't recognize him.
Of course, to Zhao Yue, this was just a simplemeal, and everyone had gathered tocelebrate. Because Zheng Wei Qiao had told her beforehand that Qi Mu'sperformance at the music festival was reported on in several internationalmedia, she only thought about celebrating that with Qi Mu today.
Like Qi Mu, the Zheng family didn't put muchimportance on Christmas. Thus, at the table, onlyone man was wearing formal attire, appearing solemn, completely out of place.
This was Zheng Wei Qiao's first time being incontact with Min Chen. Although Qi Mu always said the man wasn't as harsh as helooked, having a dinner together with such a giant in the industry. . .it made him a bit uncomfortable.
Fortunately, he was only somewhat half in thecircle right now. If he was still a violinist playing in an orchestra, hedidn't think he would even dare breathe.
The atmosphere was rather stiff once dinner started, so Qi Mu took the initiative to liven things up. As a lawyer, Zhao Yue was savvy with words, so she often made jokes here and there. Once dinner was over, Zheng Wei Qiao quietly pulled Qi Mu aside and gave him a red envelope, then he said, "Xiao Qi, ah, later. . . don't make me eat with Mr. Min again."
For the Zheng couple, Qi Mu was still a kid inhis early twenties, so they often gavehim pocket money.
Qi Mu quickly returned the envelope to Zheng Wei Qiao and helplessly said, "Zheng-ge, Min Chen is truly a good person. Really, get to know him a little, and you'll get along with him. He has a good temper."
Who would expect that Zheng Wei Qiao, known for his calmness, would suddenly burst into tears, "Xiao Qi, ah. I'm not being prejudiced against him or anything, it's just. . . The sight of Mr. Min makes me remember when Teacher would punish me by having me practice 《Constance March》 for a month! I still can't forget how terrible that song was, even after eight years. I'll always remember that nightmarish month whenever I see Mr. Min's face. . ."
Qi Mu: ". . ."
《Constance March》was the first movement in 《ViolinSonata No. 9 in D Major》. This symphony waswritten by Min Chen when he was twenty-one. There were four movements in thewhole composition and among them, the violin section of the first movement wasthe most difficult to perform. Some professionals even secretly called it"Hell."
Min Chen was a pianist after all. So compared toPaganini's Caprice No. 24 "Devil's Movement," there were some areas of 《Constance March》 thatwere lacking. Particularly in the technical aspect. But, for a violin songwritten by a contemporary musician, no one doubted that this was the mostdifficult to play.
Watching Zheng Wei Qiao's expression of "havingjust seen a ghost," Qi Mu didn't try to persuade him anymore. After he saw thecouple off downstairs, Qi Mu returned to his apartment and unexpectedly foundMin Chen. . . Clearing! The! Table!
Qi Mu's eyes flew wide open in surprise, and he forgot to close the door. "Why are youclearing the dishes?!"
This patient whose obsession with cleanlinesswas very steep pinched the edge of aplate and picked it up. Qi Mu's sudden yell caused him to fumble a bit, and his finger ended up brushing against abrown sauce. Min Chen's face immediately turned black and he stiffened.
They went to the kitchen together, and Qi Mu started washing the dishes. He saidprofoundly, "Thank you so much for today, Min Chen. I really didn't expect youto stay and help me clean up. I certainly didn't expect you to pick up thedishes."
Min Chen who stood beside him drying a plate butactually doing nothing: ". . ."
Qi Mu sighed, "It's amazing that you actuallycarried them. . ."
Min Chen: ". . ."
How to say it. . . it wasn't as though the plate hecarried was explosive, right? Well, it had to be an illusion.
Translator(s): Kuro
Editor(s): Bet
Kuro:
Oh god, translating this chapter was torture formy poor delicate nerves. I got secondhand embarrassment from Min Chen all thetime! He's such a sweet and caring man, I want 10 of him (borrowing Bet'swords).
Translating will be hectic once I start the new job, so please bear with it while I find a way to fit translating into things. Thank you, Bet! For shouldering the weight of translation over the past week, and in the future too.
Bet:
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