Chapter 86
King of Classical Music 86
After Qi Mu finished cleaning the last of the trash, he tied a knot in the plastic bag and raised his hand to wipe the sweat from his forehead . Satisfied, he observed the clean living room .
Min Chen’s house was on the top floor of a high-class apartment building . Qi Mu wondered if he was born with obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD), because the moment he entered the apartment, he found . . .
The decorations in this place were identical to the ones in Min Chen’s apartment back in B City!
There were some minor differences, of course . After all, the two houses couldn’t have the same layout or height . Apart from that, even the angle of the sofa was the same as the one in B City . OCD . . . was really beyond the realm of comprehension .
Qi Mu smiled helplessly, and when he looked up, he saw Min Chen coming from the kitchen with two glasses of water . He wore an apron to prevent his clothes from getting dirty, but his expression was as calm and indifferent as ever .
This made Qi Mu laugh out loud, leaving Min Chen puzzled .
After cleaning all the garbage, Qi Mu sat on the soft sheepskin sofa and asked, “ . . . I’ve found you’re . . . a little obsessive-compulsive, right, Min Chen?”
This was the result of their long acquaintance and good relationship . Qi Mu couldn’t ask such a thing half a year ago . But now, he spoke naturally and felt nothing wrong with it .
Seeing Qi Mu laugh with his eyes curled into crescents, Min Chen smiled, “You found out?”
Qi Mu immediately bowed in a “confession” gesture . “I don’t dare say a word . ”
They talked for a while, and Qi Mu remembered something . Putting his glass on the table, he turned to look at the man at his side . His expression serious, he said, “Actually . . . Min Chen, I saw the review written by Master Leonid the other day . I didn’t expect him to evaluate me that high, it made me feel a little . . . flattered . ”
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At the name “Leonid,” Min Chen squinted and asked, “He wrote a review about you?”
Qi Mu didn’t know whether to laugh or cry . Shaking his head, he said, “Tell me the truth . Don’t pretend you didn’t know about it . ” The review was published in 《Philharmonic》 . Qi Mu didn’t know about it until Akkad mentioned it . After a pause, Qi Mu went on, “My professor felt it was strange . . . He said——”
“How could that old Leonid remember you enough to find you and write a review about you? Little Seven, hang on a bit . I’ll go ask, that guy is too lazy to write . . . ”
Without Qi Mu saying it, he hinted blatantly .
I already know about the bet .
Under the bright light, the cold man raised his eyebrows . He calmly asked, “So . . . What happened?”
“ . . . ”
Defeated by his calm expression, Qi Mu helplessly raised his hands in surrender . “I didn’t expect you to make a bet with Mr . Leonid, but . . . Min Chen, thank you for taking care of me . Even my professor said he wanted to thank you . ”
“How are you going to thank me?”
Min Chen directly ignored his teacher’s thanks, asking only for his . Feeling as if a lump in his throat rendered him speechless, he thought carefully for a while . Finally, he tentatively spoke, “…How about I cook for you? My craftsmanship has improved lately . Now that we’re in Vienna, I’m afraid it’s a bit difficult to eat authentic Chinese cuisine . ”
Min Chen didn’t say a single word . Qi Mu remembered, “Oh right, I forgot . You’re going back to Berlin tomorrow . . . ” Regret lingered in his voice .
Min Chen smiled slightly, then said, “There will be other opportunities in the future . ”
Qi Mu was stunned . “What did you just say?”
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Min Chen shook his head . “Nothing . ”
Qi Mu: “???”
The man’s dark eyes stared at the youth’s face for quite a while . He chuckled at Qi Mu’s puzzled expression . “Do you like Chopin’s music?”
The topic changed so quickly, it took Qi Mu a moment to nod . “I love Chopin’s 《Mazurkas》 and 《Nocturnes》 a lot . I have a collection of them . ”
Min Chen raised an eyebrow . “Whose?”
“Of course it’s yours . . . ” As soon as he spoke, Qi Mu abruptly stopped . He smiled helplessly . In a weak tone, he went on, “Well, there were many pianists in the world who recorded a complete set of Chopin’s works but . . . I like yours the best . Especially Nocturne No . 2 《in E flat minor》 . It’s quite suitable for bedtime . ”
In fact, before he met Min Chen, he never expected the man was . . . such a person .
In his imagination, Min Chen was a calm and elegant musician . Being able to play such beautiful music, he had to have a gentle but firm heart . It was inconceivable . . . for him to fear a but the size of a nail .
Well, he was afraid of bugs .
If he let Min Chen’s fans know, he couldn’t imagine what they’d think .
Min Chen set his glass on the table, not noticing the young man’s dilemma . The moonlight shone through the window and into the room . Particularly bright and clear, its light bounced against the edge of the cup, reflecting a silver streak .
The man’s handsome face showed an almost imperceptible smile, he asked, “Do . . . Do you want to listen to the live version?”
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Before entering the room, Qi Mu never knew . . . another large space existed beside the living room .
In the 100 m2 room, there was nothing aside from the black grand piano in the center . The floor-to-ceiling window allowed moonlight to fill the room, casting pale luminescence across the light brown floor .
Steinway’s 9ft grand pianos were a favorite for concert halls . Only this one could have such clear sound . It was the only one that could fully display a pianist’s skill .
But now, this treasure was shelved in an apartment, like the sword of a sleeping king . It waited patiently for the king to pull it out of its scabbard .
Qi Mu felt like he stumbled upon a refined conception .
The materials in the room were top-notch . It created the clearest tune and the best insulation resonance . Such a room decorated with only one piano was unique, leaving Qi Mu breathless .
When Min Chen opened the piano’s cover, Qi Mu stood at its side . Before he realized it, he was sitting on the piano stool!
The chair was big enough for 4 people, so with 2, it didn’t feel crowded . Qi Mu was surprised when he heard a low voice in his ear . “There isn’t a chair in this room, so . . . just sit here . Standing can be exhausting . You can listen better while you sit . ”
Qi Mu nodded . After a moment, he asked, “Are you going to play Nocturne Op . 9 No . 2 《in E flat minor》?”
Min Chen didn’t answer . A sound like flowing water answered Qi Mu’s question . Qi Mu had never sat on a piano stool while listening to a pianist perform, let alone the man called the “King of Piano . ”
Chopin’s Nocturne Op . 9 No . 2 《in E flat minor》 was a gentle piece . It wasn’t difficult, and there weren’t any flamboyant techniques . However, while the melody was simple, it wasn’t as easy as it seemed .
As Qi Mu said before, among musicians who performed Chopin’s works, he liked Min Chen’s the most, especially this particular 《Nocturne》 . In his previous life, as long as he had the time, he would play it on loop and listen while relaxing .
Now, the pianist played in front of him .
Min Chen’s hands were slender, his knuckles prominent, and his nails were round . They were trimmed without the slightest defect, much like their owner with OCD .
With those hands pressing the white and black keys, the grand piano turned into a child . It sang the most beautiful melody, led by this man . It was too perfect to be real .
How did the live version compare to the CD?
Qi Mu experienced it to the fullest then .
If the 《Chopin’s Complete Works》 he purchased was the best performance at an amateur level, then . . . The 《Nocturne》 he listened to now was the best on a professional level .
Those precious hands danced rapidly across the keyboard, each note filled with endless subtlety . It was so moving anyone who heard the performance would be intoxicated with it .
Qi Mu finally realized . . .
This was Min Chen .
And, though he had made a lot of progress, Qi Mu was nowhere close to this man .
Only he could turn this 《Nocturne》 into such perfection . Only he could make such a simple melody have a stable, profound connotation .
As the last soft note echoed in the quiet piano room, Qi Mu couldn’t help but smile . He clapped as he said, “Bravo!”
——First trick in abducting Xiao Qi: Play piano! ——Limited user: Min Chen