Entertainment: A whirlwind marriage with a fairy-like mother at the start!

Yu Le turned around, looked at those eyes that were red and swollen from crying, but now shone with an astonishing brightness, and nodded lazily.

"Okay. But I won't sing, you will."

Liu Qianqian was taken aback.

"I?"

"What else? You're the one going on stage, not me." Yu Le handed the guitar back to her. "I'll teach you."

Liu Qianqian held the still-warm guitar, her little hands looking somewhat helpless.

She can sing, and she can play the guitar, though she's only learned a little bit, let alone sing and play at the same time.

"I...I can't play it well." Her voice was barely audible, and her newly ignited confidence wavered again.

"Who said you played badly?" Yu Le yawned, looking completely matter-of-fact. "The chords for this song are very simple. I'll simplify it for you. You just need to strum along with the rhythm. The focus is on singing, not playing."

He pulled up a chair, sat down, picked up a piece of paper, and quickly drew a few simplified guitar fingering diagrams.

"Come on, this C chord, the simplified version, only three fingers are needed."

"This G chord, we'll use this one too."

"Just repeat these few times, remember the order."

His teaching method is simple and crude; he doesn't teach music theory, only focuses on quick results, emphasizing speed above all else.

Looking at the few hastily drawn fingering diagrams, Liu Qianqian placed her small hand on the neck of the violin with some skepticism.

"No, hold your fingers upright, but don't touch the strings next to them."

"Change! Yes, don't use your brain, just go with your gut feeling."

"Relax your wrist when you strum, and imagine it's Wang Man, whom you hate, and slap her."

"Pfft."

Liu Xiaoli, who had been watching nervously from the sidelines, was amused by this bizarre analogy.

Liu Qianqian's face flushed red, but her tense shoulders did relax a lot.

Following Yu Le's instructions, she awkwardly plucked the strings, producing a still clumsy and hesitant sound.

After practicing for more than ten minutes, her fingertips were already red from pressing the keys, and she still couldn't get several chord transitions smooth. She was so anxious that her eyes welled up with tears again.

"No... I'm too stupid..."

"Not stupid," Yu Le said calmly. "Just not at peace."

"Don't use your brain to memorize chords, don't use your eyes to look at the fretboard..."

Liu Xiaoli listened in stunned silence.

These fallacies and heresies are so convoluted, yet they somehow seem to make some sense? Is this man really just a spineless coward who wants to give up?

Liu Qianqian stared blankly at Yu Le, at his eyes that seemed to see through everything.

She took a deep breath and closed her eyes.

In an instant, the gloating looks from my classmates and Wang Man's arrogant face flashed through my mind.

On what grounds?

Why should my efforts be negated by her with just one sentence?

A stubborn streak of defiance surged up from the bottom of her heart. She opened her eyes again and pressed her fingers firmly on the strings once more.

This time, she didn't look at her hands, but gazed ahead and spoke softly.

"Each time—I find strength amidst hesitation and loneliness—"

The piano playing was still awkward, and a few notes were even out of tune.

But that clear yet slightly stubborn voice infused the song with a unique sense of youthful innocence and brokenness.

Yu Le leaned back in her chair, a slight, almost imperceptible upward curve to the corners of her mouth.

Children can be taught.

That evening, in this small house, an old guitar and a girl's slightly immature yet incredibly determined singing voice echoed repeatedly.

The welcome party is scheduled for Friday night.

These past few days, Liu Qianqian has been rushing home after school every day, not even having time to eat, and immediately starting to practice with her old guitar.

She didn't say a word even though her fingers were blistered.

When her voice became hoarse, she would suck on a herbal loquat leaf and continue practicing.

Yu Le didn't care about her. She cooked every day as usual and left the food at her door, letting her eat it or not.

Liu Xiaoli was heartbroken and tried several times to persuade her daughter to rest, but Yu Le stopped her each time.

"She chose this path herself, and only by giving it her all can she avoid having any regrets."

........

Friday, Beijing Film Academy Auditorium.

The backstage area is in complete chaos.

Makeup artists ran around carrying their suitcases, student council members shouted into walkie-talkies, and the air was filled with the smell of cheap hairspray mixed with sweat.

Liu Xiaoli's palms were sweating with nervousness. She helped her daughter tidy her slightly messy bangs and then squatted down to check if there were any wrinkles in her skirt.

"Sissi, don't be nervous, take a deep breath..."

Liu Xiaoli herself became incoherent.

In contrast, Liu Qianqian, who was about to go on stage, was unusually quiet.

She was wearing a simple white shirt, faded jeans, and canvas shoes.

Among a group of brightly dressed "peacocks," it looked like a drab little quail that had wandered in by mistake.

She was clutching the old guitar tightly in her arms, sitting on the corner of the airline case, head down, and no one knew what she was thinking.

"Hey, isn't this Liu Qianqian?"

A slightly high-pitched female voice pierced the surrounding noise.

Several girls in sequined performance costumes walked over and surrounded a girl in the middle like a star.

Wang Man.

She wore an expensive custom-made gown, her face was covered in exquisite stage makeup, and the diamond necklace around her neck dazzled in the dim backstage lights.

Wang Man glanced down at the guitar in Liu Qianqian's arms and sneered.

"I heard your long, awful play got cancelled? What, are you planning to go busking now?"

Her henchmen immediately joined in the laughter.

"Where did you find this guitar? The paint's all gone, how can it still make a sound?"

"Just to make up the numbers? I think they'll just embarrass themselves."

Liu Xiaoli's face flushed with anger, and she was about to stand up to argue when a hand pressed down on her shoulder.

Yu Le appeared behind them without them even realizing it.

Today, he had changed out of his loose casual clothes and put on a slightly more formal dark shirt, making him look much more upright.

But he was still chewing gum, and his lazy attitude hadn't changed at all.

"Who is this?" Wang Man frowned as she looked at the unfamiliar man.

Yu Le didn't look at her, but instead took out a box of Wrigley's Spearmint gum from his pocket, took out one piece, and handed it to Wang Man.

"Want one?"

Wang Man was taken aback and instinctively took a half step back: "Are you crazy?"

"Let's cool down and freshen our breath." Yu Le lazily glanced at her.

"Your breath is so foul. If you open your mouth again, I'm afraid the whole school will be knocked over by the stench. It'll have a bad influence."