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    After a round of apuse, melodious music carried throughthe concert hall.


    In the box Qi Mu was in, the acoustics rang clear in his ears.


    Whether it was the tambourine, the timber drum, the triangle,the trumpet, or the oboe, the British tube, or even Christi''s violin, he could hearthem all distinctly.


    Before, Qi Mu had guessed this box to have the best location,but when he heard the vibrant echo of the multiyered symphony, he affirmedhis previous conjecture.


    No. . .


    Perhaps he had confirmed it when that man entered the box.


    Wherever Min Chen went, it would naturally be the best.


    Schumann''s 《Vienna Carnival》 yed on stage, and its magnificentperformance was so powerful it intoxicated the audience and drew them into thecarnival experience.


    While the music yed, no one spoke. Although Qi Mu was surprisedto see Min Chen, he did not talk to the man beside him.


    There were six seats in the box. Three in the first row andthree in the second. Akkad had chosen the leftmost position when he entered,and Qi Mu sat beside his teacher. He hadn''t thought there would be someone elsein the box with them.


    When Min Chen sat beside him, the concert had already begun,and Qi Mu could only smile at him for there was no time for words.


    During the thunderous apuse after the first song, Qi Mu whisperedas he pped, "I didn''t expect Bai Ai''s first show of the season. . . to be inParis."


    The young man''s voice was deliberately low, almost masked underthe roar of the audience''s apuse. The box''s lighting was dim, Akkad reminiscedabout the exhrating rendition of 《Vienna Carnival》, sohe didn''t notice the other two beside him.


    Min Chen''s gaze flitted to the side, and he answered just asquietly, "Daniel said the orchestra shouldn''t do the same thing all the time. Hedecided we''d do something different this year. The second show will still be inLondon."


    Qi Mu nodded and asked, "Didn''t you. . . could it be on thephone the other day, when you asked if I needed a ticket, it was for this?!"


    A smile shed in Min Chen''s dark eyes, and he hummed an affirmative"En."


    Qi Mu: ". . ."


    So, even though he refused the invitation before, he still endedup at the scene with the other man?


    Min Chen didn''t seem to notice Qi Mu''s tangled expressionand pped his hands. The family emblem engraved on his left hand''s ring caughtin a ray of light, but he frowned as he pondered. After a while, Min Chennarrowed his eyes and asked, "Little Seven?"


    "Yes?" Qi Mu subconsciously answered.


    Min Chen: ". . ."


    It wasn''t until after his reflexive reply that Qi Mu noticedit wasn''t his teacher calling him.


    Qi Mu covered his mouth with his hand and coughed twice. Hewhispered, "Teacher Akkad calls me that. He doesn''t know Chinese and my name isa bit of a mouthful. Did he tell you my name? I don''t care if you use it, youcan call me Qi Mu."


    Min Chen: ". . ."


    After a long time, a low-pitched noise came from Min Chen''sthroat in reply.


    The apuse had subsided and the second song began. Qi Muturned his attention back to the state and did not see the indifferent man besidehim lick his lips and swallow unpleasantly.


    <em>Fortunately. . . he doesn''tknow what I did.</em>


    ——Min Chen secretly thought.


    Under the dim lighting, no one realized the man who hadalways been cheeky now had red ears. He coughed. No strange behavior here.


    A two-hour concert was impossible to y through from startto finish without rest, so there was a fifteen-minute break in the middle. QiMu wanted to exchange greetings, but Akkad unexpectedly argued with Min Chen aboutthe orchestra''s personnel configuration.


    Akkad had never been a conductor, he was once theconcertmaster for the Dresden Symphony Orchestra before he moved to theNational Conservatory of Music.


    He worked as a concertmaster of three world-ss symphoniesfor decades of his musical career. Even if he had nevermanded an orchestra,he couldment professionally on the positioning.


    Akkad believed the second violin group was a bitrge forthis concert. Once he learned Min Chen decided the staffing, the two argued witheach other.


    In the end, Akkad was convinced by Min Chen''s three reasons,but by then, the break was over and Schumann''s 《Abegg Variations》 had begun.


    Therefore, Qi Mu had to sit back and continue listening.


    Robert Schumann was a famous German pianist andposer ofthe 19^th century. His works were almost exclusively piano pieces.The entire world thought only the piano could disy these musical piecesperfectly.


    There was a time where no adaptation of Schumann''s songsinto orchestral form could be found without a piano ensemble. To find a concertof five of his songs without even the hint of a piano like Bai Ai did tonight,this was a first.


    After the concert had officially ended, Akkad stood andapuded enthusiastically without being stingy about his praise. "Min, I thoughtyou would perform as a pianist this time, but I didn''t think. . . you wouldn''tbe on stage at all!"


    Min Chen nodded and replied bluntly, "I might go up durinter performances, but for the first show, Daniel said. . . to be innovativeand creative."


    That provoked Akkad''s eyebrow into rising. "The adaptationof these songs don''t tell me that Daniel Duke kid did it. He wants to let allhis hair fall out, it''s impossible." After a pause, he added, "Well, if he hasn''tlost it all already, his blond head should be bald by now."


    "Pffft. . ."


    Min Chen looked over when Qi Muughed, and his own lipscurled into a smile. "It''s my and Charles'' adaptation. Christi helped some too.In fact, what did Daniel do. . ." He deliberately drew it out, and when Qi Muturned to look at him curiously, he was appeased.


    Min Chen met his gaze and said, "He brewed coffee, hm. . . it didn''t taste all that good."


    Qi Mu almost choked on hisughter.


    Akkad didn''t seem to own a humorous cell in his body. Henodded then, as if recalling something, asked, "Wait a minute. If you''reneither conductor nor pianist. . . why is your name on the poster at theentrance? Yours was the biggest?!"


    At this sudden usation, Min Chen blinked a little andfrowned in contemtion. "Because. . . I am the music director?"


    Akkad snorted. "You don''t introduce the orchestra, what kindof director are you?" His tone was disgusted, and hiszy re at Min Chenwas more than enough to express his disdain for "this man that had his namedprinted on the poster and pinned up."


    Min Chen did not care about Akkad''s contempt and nodded, hisresponse nd, "Oh, then it''s probably because. . . I am handsome."


    Qi Mu: ". . ."


    Akkad: ". . ."


    "Auston! I didn''t know you were such a narcissist!"


    The corners of Min Chen''s lips curled, and he raised hishead, "You only just found out?"


    Akkad: ". . ."


    Wanting to get angry at this poisonous man, Master Akkad neededto practice some more. . .e back after another 500 years.<hr ss="wp-block-separator">


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