Chapter Eighty-Eight: Come On! The Stars Are All I Think Of (Third Update, Please Subscribe)

The acquaintance He Zhixing spotted was a man in his fifties.
The elder wore his hair in a small braid and a striking outfit utterly unlike He Zhixing’s traditional suit, giving him a very fashionable look.

“Haha, Lao Zhao, what brings you here?” He Zhixing greeted him warmly.

The old man was named Zhao Shu, a professor at the Central Conservatory, and a master of composition, music, and piano. He was also one of the highest-ranking artists in the entire nation.

He Zhixing had not been acquainted with Zhao Shu at first. They had only met the last time the national television station filmed the large documentary The Forbidden City, when the production drew upon history, culture, and a great deal of musical elements.

Unexpectedly, they had hit it off at once.
Within a few months, they had become close confidants.

Seeing He Zhixing, Zhao Shu smiled and said, “This time, some children are holding a music event and asked me to come as a guest. Just now I noticed there was a literary exchange nearby, so I wondered whether you might be here. I didn’t expect you really would be.”

The two chatted for a moment.

He Zhixing asked, “Do you still remember that song The Dragon Scales of Heaven and Earth I gave you last time?”

“Of course I remember.”
Zhao Shu nodded. “I went back and studied it. Both lyrics and melody are extraordinarily refined. It’s a rare gem. Whoever could create such a song has remarkable mastery. I’m rather regretting now that I didn’t go meet the creator of the piece last time.”

He Zhixing burst out laughing. “Your luck is good. I brought him here this time. Want to meet him?”

Zhao Shu’s eyes lit up. “Where is he?”

“Right here.” He Zhixing turned and called, “Xiao Wang, come over here quickly. Let me introduce you to a senior.”

No one answered.

Not a trace of Wang Mo could be seen anywhere.

“Where did that kid go?” He Zhixing muttered, then saw that the entrance to the literary exchange had been packed tight by twenty or thirty students.

What was going on?

He and Zhao Shu exchanged a glance and walked toward the door.

Soon, the students noticed them approaching.

“Professor He.”
“Professor Zhao.”
“…”

Every student who saw them quickly stepped aside, afraid of blocking the path of the two distinguished men.

He Zhixing asked one of the students, “What are you all crowding around here for?”

The student hurriedly replied, “Professor He, there’s someone inside the classroom playing the piano, and he’s incredibly skilled. So we all gathered here. Everyone’s wondering whether some piano teacher from a music conservatory has come by.”

“Oh?”

Before He Zhixing could speak, Zhao Shu, standing beside him, let out a soft exclamation. “Incredibly skilled? How skilled?”

At that moment, Wang Mo in the classroom had just finished his second piece, which was why no piano sound was coming out.

The student answered, “Most likely performance level.”

Nearby, He Yan chimed in, “No, far beyond performance level. I feel his level is even stronger than my own music teacher’s.”

At those words, Zhao Shu’s previously calm expression changed at once to one of surprise.

He knew He Yan, because she had once come to him for advice on piano matters. As for He Yan’s teacher, Zhao Shu knew that person even better and understood exactly what level they were at.

Now He Yan was actually saying that the pianist in the classroom was even better than her teacher. How could he not be astonished?

Zhao Shu recalled the pianists he knew and muttered to himself, “No one said anyone like that would be coming here today.”

Just as he was muttering, the piano in the classroom began again.

This time, Wang Mo was playing a famous piano piece from Blue Star, Secret Beneath the Moonlit Night.

Difficulty: five stars.

It could be said that even He Yan would feel uneasy about performing this piece.

Yet at this moment, Wang Mo played it almost effortlessly.

Smooth as flowing clouds and running water, it made one feel as though they were standing in a tranquil night, with silver moonlight spilling across a rippling lake, rising and falling with the rhythm of the music.

Beautiful.
Dreamlike.

Zhao Shu’s expression froze instantly, but his hands could not help trembling slightly.

He listened intently, his gaze becoming utterly focused.

Only when a measure ended did he collect the faintly dazed expression on his face and sigh, “At this level, he’s absolutely a performer of the highest caliber.”

But at this moment, Zhao Shu’s heart only grew more puzzled.

Every piano performer had their own style.
In China, Zhao Shu could usually tell the style of almost any performer who had reached such a level.

Yet after listening for a minute or two, he could not figure out who this person was.

“Damn it.”

Zhao Shu was starting to grow anxious.

No longer caring about appearances, he pushed through the crowd and strode quickly into the classroom.

Behind him, He Zhixing followed as well. Though he knew nothing about piano, Zhao Shu’s reaction led him to vaguely suspect that the pianist was no ordinary person.

Once Zhao Shu entered the classroom, he saw an absurdly young and handsome boy seated before the piano, playing with complete concentration.

“Who… is this person?”

He had originally assumed that anyone with such skill must be at least in their thirties.

He had never expected someone so young.

What he did not see was that behind him, after He Zhixing caught sight of the boy, his eyes flew wide open.

He nearly cried out in shock.

Wang Mo?

He had never imagined that the pianist drawing so many people to watch, even enough to bring Zhao Shu running over, would actually be Wang Mo.

But after thinking about it, He Zhixing felt it made sense.

After all, he knew Wang Mo had astonishing talent in composition, so being able to play the piano was only natural.

However, skill in one field does not easily reveal the depth of another, and he had no idea that Wang Mo’s level on the piano far exceeded anything he had imagined.

Otherwise, Zhao Shu would not have been so shocked.

Soon, Wang Mo finished the second movement of Secret Beneath the Moonlit Night.

Listening from so close, Zhao Shu was now certain that the young man before him had indeed reached the level of a professional performer in piano mastery.

At that moment, besides shock, there was also deep confusion in Zhao Shu’s heart.

“When did our country gain such an extraordinary pianist?”

A young performer with such talent could, if he advanced further, even become an international master.

Zhao Shu kept emphasizing performer rather than pianist for a reason.

A performer and a pianist were not the same.

A performer was generally someone suited only to playing and interpreting piano pieces.
A pianist, by contrast, was a composer who possessed both performance talent and the ability to create piano works.

For example, Zhao Shu himself could be called a pianist, because beyond his exceptionally high level of performance, he also had the ability to compose piano pieces independently.

That said, although Zhao Shu’s talent in piano composition was considered top-tier in China, it was rather ordinary on the international stage.

This was normal enough. Because of environmental factors, China had produced a few international performers, but over the years it had never produced a single world-class pianist.

Wang Mo’s performance continued.

The more Zhao Shu listened, the more certain he became of the young man’s level and talent. “Extraordinary skill. Extraordinary talent. With a seedling like this, if guided carefully for two or three years, China will very likely produce another international performer.”

As he thought on, his heart grew more and more excited.

Only when the performance of Secret Beneath the Moonlit Night came to an end did Zhao Shu take a deep breath and step forward.

He wanted to know, at the first possible moment, the young man’s name, background, teacher, and more.

At the seat, Wang Mo had not noticed Zhao Shu’s arrival at all. By now, he was completely in the zone.

After three piano pieces, the passion in his heart had been fully ignited.
The more he played, the more he wanted to play.
He could not stop.
He simply could not stop.

Suddenly, a thought flashed through his mind: “Last time the system gave me a piano piece called All I Think Of Is the Star River. Since today’s the day, I might as well go all the way and play that one too. Let me see what this piece is really like.”

No sooner thought than done.

Wang Mo set the sheet music aside.

With a turn of his mind, the score for All I Think Of Is the Star River appeared in his consciousness.

His hands rested on the piano.

The next second, a melody never before heard in this world drifted out.

Fluid, lively, and heart-stirring...

Zhao Shu, who had been approaching, abruptly froze in place, numb all over.

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The End of the Chapter