Ideals are full, but reality is thin.
Mu An contacted a circle of people, and in the end, only Gong Youbai said she would come.
Mu Yu'er was busy learning the piano outside and couldn't rush back, while Lin Zichan, Liu Ziqian, Gong Nanyan, Gong Jinyao, and Mu Wanrou were all busy with work and couldn't make it.
Bai Yi, Hong Yi, and Ning'er were out shopping and seemed uninterested in it.
Tong Ziran was temporarily unreachable, and no one knew what was going on.
To prevent any accidents, Mu An used the [Unlimited Distance: Heroine Locator] to locate the girl's position and had a master-level shadow guard secretly go to protect her.
In the end, he found out she was still at home, just locking her room door, seemingly having a tantrum with her family.
It was estimated that she wouldn't be able to come now, so he had to give up.
"So, it seems I only need three tickets?"
Calculating to the end, Mu An smiled.
One for himself, one for Su Zhirou, and one for the little girl Youbai.
But in the end, Shen Ling'er still took a small stack of tickets and placed them in the man's palm, at least ten or so.
The girl had a serious expression and called it.
"Better safe than sorry."
Mu An's lips curled up slightly.
I can only say that sometimes he quite likes the other party's 'rich family' behavior.
"How has your piano practice been lately? Do you need me to guide you a bit?"
With the idea of reciprocity in mind, Mu An also planned to give a 'return gift.'
If he remembered correctly, the other party had also participated in the piano competition at the music hall last time.
However, with a genius girl like Mu Yu'er who crushed her peers, she could only settle for second place!
And the word 'guide' did not mean that the man did not understand humility.
In fact, Mu An really did have that kind of ability.
Strictly speaking, there really wasn't a master in this world who understood the piano better than him!
"Is it really okay?"
Hearing this, Shen Ling'er's beautiful eyes brightened a bit more.
To be able to communicate musically with a master like him was such a rare opportunity!
Even her teacher, her grandfather Shen He, praised him from time to time after witnessing Mu An's performance.
Words like 'a once-in-a-century piano genius' and 'the world's strongest piano master'... he was not stingy with his compliments!
It should be noted that her grandfather was an internationally top-tier pianist, with high standards and vision, and he rarely praised others.
Even she had received his praise only a handful of times!
And Mu An was the exception among exceptions!
[From the girl's expectation and admiration emotional fluctuation +19, congratulations, you have received the reward [Proficiency +2900]!]
"Of course!"
Mu An smiled.
Since there was no plot happening today, he was naturally happy to comfortably brush up on the heroine's emotional rewards!
"Well... I've been practicing that original song of yours, An Ge, since the competition..."
The girl clenched her delicate fist against her chest, her expression seeming a bit nervous.
"Which one?"
Mu An was taken aback for a moment.
He recalled that he had only publicly performed two original piano pieces so far.
One was the competition piece 'To Mu Yu'er' dedicated to Mu Yu'er, and the other was the piece 'Castle in the Sky' given to the girl as a birthday gift.
Of course, under Mu Yu'er's 'soft persuasion,' he had also written many well-known pieces, but they were temporarily unknown to others.
"Castle in the Sky!"
Shen Ling'er's voice was crisp as she directly stated the title.
This answer did not surprise Mu An.
'To Mu Yu'er' was classic, but the piece was relatively simple overall.
So, it was only natural that 'Castle in the Sky' would be chosen by the girl as her practice piece.
Little did they know.
The reason Shen Ling'er chose this piece was not because it was slightly more difficult than the former.
Rather, the girl had already tried and found that she could not play the 'deep confession' that resonated with Mu Yu'er.
Or rather, that piece seemed tailor-made for Mu Yu'er herself; others playing it did not evoke the same profound feeling.
She would not go... to humiliate herself.
Furthermore...
She wanted to see if she could get a little closer to his heart by continuously practicing 'Castle in the Sky'?
[From the girl's complex emotional fluctuations +25, congratulations, you have received the reward [Parallel World Selected Pop Songs *5]!]
"Alright, then I look forward to your performance!"
Mu An continued to smile and gentlemanly made a 'please' gesture towards the girl.
Su Zhirou was not very interested in music and had not really explored this field.
Naturally, she did not understand why Shen Ling'er looked at Mu An with an almost worshipful gaze.
Of course, she occasionally heard from Mu Yu'er that her brother Mu An seemed to have... high musical accomplishments?
…..
On the other side.
Shen Ling'er was fully prepared, sitting at the piano with a devoutness akin to a pilgrimage.
Her back was straight, and her slender, delicate hands gently rested on the black and white keys, as if caressing her lover.
The expression on her pretty face showed an extreme seriousness that had never been seen before.
It was just that a cup of milk tea was placed on the expensive piano worth at least ten million, which seemed a bit... out of place?
"Ding—"
When the first note sounded.
The world seemed to change in an instant.
The decorations in the music room seemed to lose their color, the scene shifted, and the space spun.
An endless expanse of blue sky suddenly appeared before everyone's eyes.
A gentle breeze, seemingly from nowhere, stirred the lush green grass, tousled the hair of the three people, and gently moved the few lazy white clouds in the sky.
Unknowingly, the tense and weary hearts began to relax.
There was time to stop and admire the scenery along the way, to see the mountains, the water, the flowers, the birds, and the people around...
At this moment, freedom and unrestrainedness seemed to be materialized.
Even if this was just a temporary rest, it was still a potion that could heal the soul.
When the dream ended, people would return to reality and continue living a life where only they knew the bitterness and joy.
The future was uncertain, and everyone was on the road.
But one must know that living itself is a miracle.
If one can still maintain their passion after recognizing life, then life will have its own unique colors...
Unknowingly, when the piece ended.
The lingering sound still echoed, refusing to dissipate.
And in Shen Ling'er's hopeful gaze, Mu An unhesitatingly applauded, expressing his admiration for her.
Because he had heard 'her' from the girl's piece!
When a piece of music incorporates one's own emotions, then regardless of how others judge it in the end, at least for the performer, it is already a perfect score!
"You played very well! I really liked it!"
"Thank you!"
The moment she received the man's recognition, all of Shen Ling'er's tension and anxiety were swept away, revealing a faint smile.
The sweat she had shed while practicing seemed insignificant at this moment.
[Your recognition is the greatest affirmation for the girl, emotional fluctuation +30, congratulations, you have received the reward [Fortune +30]!]