49: I choose you

Tao Yan originally thought this guy would still show off his skills and pick another highly difficult piece.

But unexpectedly, the piece he was so focused on was still this one.

"If I Could Shine?"

Song Shulu looked at her students with confusion.

"Teacher, this piece comes from an anime; it is a duet for violin and piano."

"Anime..."

Song Shulu was clearly a little disappointed, but since she had already allowed Shen Qian to perform, she couldn't stop him now.

After briefly familiarizing himself with the music, Shen Qian picked up the violin.

Ever since his violin skill reached the Master Level, he no longer needed to deliberately memorize sheet music; he just needed to glance at it, and the score would be imprinted in his mind, unforgettable.

"Are you ready, Friend A."

As he slowly closed his eyes, the pure love he had believed in back then seemed vivid before him.

But what about now?

He didn't think pure love was bad; love was sacred and beautiful, and two people in love were certainly happy together.

But the world changes too quickly.

And human hearts change even more.

Even if they loved each other fiercely before.

It doesn't prevent them from falling out of love later.

Even if they swore eternal vows moments ago.

It doesn't prevent them from hurting each other.

Love is a magnificent thing.

But love is also fleeting; it is only valid at the moment of loving.

Shen Qian's performance ended, and the audience remained silent for a long time, especially Song Shulu. She loved music, particularly classical music, which she saw as profound and pure, like using music to tell a story.

Unlike language, music is universal; as long as people have emotions, music can convey the intended effect.

As for popular music, the emotions usually float on the surface, and trying too hard to convey them through notes often results in something neither here nor there, which is why she rarely listened to pop music.

But today, she realized that the problem wasn't with pop music; it was with the performer. The reason classical music carries profound emotion is that the transmission differs based on each performer's technique.

Just now, she heard the purity of love in Shen Qian's violin—a madness of eternal devotion—and also the sadness of love—a suffering of unfulfilled longing.

Mixed in were all sorts of minor emotions.

She had never been so captivated by popular music as she was today.

Tao Yan was also stunned. She had genuinely thought that this junior wanted to play this piece to initiate a little flirtation with her and try to bind himself to her.

But after truly listening, she understood how shallow she really was.

No wonder Shen Qian had been so angry before; he must have felt that she had defiled the piece.

The extent of her previous resentment toward Shen Qian was matched by her current shame.

"Teacher, I've finished performing. This is the piece I want to perform at the Freshman Welcome Gala, and now I need to find a student to play with me."

Everyone's eyes collectively turned to Tao Yan. They knew that usually, when something like this came up, Tao Yan would be the one performing.

"Everyone, no need to look at her. She has explicitly rejected this piece, so everyone has a chance."

"What do we need to do? How about I have everyone play a piece, and you listen to them one by one to see who is the best fit for you."

"No need for such trouble. Please raise your hands. Not in surrender, just hold them up so I can see them."

The crowd was puzzled. Shen Qian looked over the hands one by one, and finally, his target locked onto one girl.

The girl's appearance was not outstanding; where the average attractiveness was 5 points, she probably only rated 4.5.

Her height wasn't tall, and her figure was just average.

She was the type of person who, if placed in a crowd, wouldn't be noticed unless someone looked closely.

However, her hands were covered in bandages, and there was also medicated plaster on her arm.

"I choose her."

Shen Qian was extremely decisive. The girl herself was somewhat incredulous, and Song Shulu was too, because Shen Qian had chosen the student with the worst talent among all of them.

"Is this some kind of complement? A genius and an idiot?"

Song Shulu thought, but she couldn't advise against it; after all, saying so would severely hurt the girl's self-esteem.

"How about you choose someone else? I can't do it. I have the worst talent here."

The girl's voice was soft, and she didn't look up when speaking.

"I know. Not only is your talent the worst, but you're also the stupidest.

That's why I want you."

Shen Qian's sudden sharp tongue slightly stunned everyone present. They had expected Shen Qian to say comforting words like 'talent isn't important.'

But this person directly stated that she had poor talent and was stupid, without any mitigating transition.

The only twist was that Shen Qian insisted on her.

"I... I really can't."

"Alright, I know you can't do it. Do you have any other requests? If not, we'll go rehearse.

Teacher Song, you should have a piano here, right?"

"Of course."

"Then could you arrange a room, one with a piano, preferably where no one will disturb us?"

"Okay."

Although she didn't hold much hope, what if? This boy was a genius. How could ordinary people gauge the world of a genius?

"I really can't!"

The girl wanted to continue refusing, but the boy had already grabbed her hand. Against Shen Qian's strength, the girl's struggle was meaningless.

The door to the music room closed, and Shen Qian led her to the piano.

"Come on, play it once for me to hear."

"I really can't."

"Yes, yes, yes, you can't. I already know you can't. Can we try something new? I'm asking you to play it once."

The girl reluctantly sat down at the piano, her fingers quickly dancing across the keys, and the piece was finished quickly.

"See? You can play it, can't you? Alright, this is good enough. Maintain this level, and we'll go on stage at the Freshman Welcome Gala."

"Wha—what! This is enough? How can this be? You're being too perfunctory."

"You keep saying you can't do it. I believe you can't, so I can assume that your current state is your best state. Since you've reached your best state, what more can be asked?"

"But that's the Freshman Welcome Gala! All the new students in the school will be watching!"

"So what? Don't stress too much. I just purely dislike that Tao Yan person. She's always so condescending and arrogant. I deliberately chose you over her. Let's see what she has to be haughty about now."

"You chose me just to spite Tao Yan?"

"Otherwise? Look at you: ordinary looks, ordinary height, ordinary figure, and you even injure your fingers and get Tenosynovitis while playing the piano. I could tell you were an idiot just by looking."

The girl raised her hand, intending to slap Shen Qian.

But the next second, he not only grabbed her palm but also held down her head.

Their lips met, startling her into widening her eyes.

[Kissing a girl he had just met less than an hour ago. Action meets scumbag criteria. Reward being issued...]