A band, or a battleground?

Qiu Mengxue: "Sing Blue Lotus one more time, and then let's call it a day."

Ning Qianyu agreed, "Yes, I'm a little hungry too, I haven't had dinner yet. Let's finish up early and go eat together."

Qi Yuan pointed to himself: "Am I having dinner with you guys too?"

The three girls exclaimed in unison, "Of course!"

Qi Yuan put down his pen and paper, stood up and said, "Okay, let's sing Blue Lotus one last time, and then we'll end it here."

Sigrún has taught at the Iceland University of the Arts as a part-time lecturer since and was Dean of the Department of Fine Art from -. In – she held a research position at Reykjavík Art Museum focusing on the role of women in Icelandic art. She studied fine art at the Icelandic College of Arts and Crafts and at Pratt Institute, New York, and holds BA and MA degrees in art history and philosophy from the University of Iceland. Sigrún lives and works in Iceland.

Dinner after the street performance was at a small noodle shop on the basement floor of the mall.

The four of them each ordered a bowl of noodles and chatted as they ate. However, the conversation mainly revolved around the three girls, while Qi Yuan, engrossed in his phone and slurping his noodles, barely participated in the conversation.

He is learning about the world.

The original owner's memories were mostly details of how he fought and brawled, and his understanding of the world was somewhat vague. But Qi Yuan, at this moment, was observing and examining the details of this world from a more mature perspective.

He discovered that, compared to his home world, the history of Earth in this world had changed dramatically over a hundred years ago. Strange oligarchs and a president had emerged in the United States.

Since the butterfly effect of the 19th century, a whole host of unfamiliar figures have appeared on the historical stage. Even the stars of the arts have all been replaced. But those before that, whether it's Li Bai and Du Fu in the East or Shakespeare in the West, have remained unchanged.

Compared to the original world, the arts and culture scene in this world seems much weaker. It's not just about Chinese pop music, but also movies, TV dramas, variety shows, and even foreign entertainment works.

For example, the Grammy Awards in the United States still exist, but after looking through the list of winners over the years and listening to a few songs, Qi Yuan felt that they were much worse than the original ones.

This greatly encouraged him, as there was a lot of room for copying!

However, the two worlds do have something in common. Besides equally advanced technology, China's football team is still not very good…

Before he knew it, Qi Yuan had finished the noodles in his bowl. He had ordered a large portion, bigger than the bowls of the three girls next to him, but he was only about half full. Compared to the programmer nerd he was in his previous life, his appetite was much greater in this life.

Qi Yuan understood this easily. More muscle meant more energy expenditure, so he needed to eat more. Even sitting still, his muscles were constantly consuming energy.

He took out a tissue to wipe his mouth, and when he looked up, he saw that the three girls had all quieted down and were staring at him.

Qi Yuan then asked, "What are you looking at?"

Jiang Yi said, "We were just discussing whether you could join our band and become the new lead singer."

Qi Yuan smiled slightly. He understood, of course, that after the song "Blue Lotus," they were hoping he would write more good songs, so naturally they wanted to win him over.

However, the original owner's past misdeeds still made people somewhat wary.

“Many people in bands like to fight,” Ning Qianyu said bluntly. “Are you going to continue picking fights in the future?”

Qi Yuan shook his head: "I'm not really interested in those things anymore, they're too childish and boring. Making music is much more interesting."

Ning Qianyu laughed: "It's good that you're not interested. So, do you want to learn a musical instrument, or become a lead singer?"

Qi Yuan looked at the original lead singer of this girl band.

Qiu Mengxue frowned slightly, staring at him, hesitant to speak.

Qi Yuan asked, "Are you worried that I'll get into a fight and cause trouble?"

Qiu Mengxue shook her head.

Qi Yuan then said, "So you're asking if I can write songs that are about the same level as Blue Lotus?"

Qiu Mengxue pouted and said, "Writing songs isn't like doing homework, it's much harder. Besides, songs of this caliber aren't something you can write easily. Do you think you're a music god?"

Qi Yuan smiled but remained silent.

Having graduated from university so many years ago in his previous life, he wouldn't dare say he was confident in writing high school assignments. But he could certainly write a whole bunch of songs that truly stood out.

While they were performing, Qi Yuan had already written the lyrics for two songs, one by Xu Wei and the other by Pu Shu, both of which were old songs he was most familiar with in his previous life.

Seeing his confident look, Qiu Mengxue pondered for a moment and then said, "Then let's make a deal. You'll be a new member of our band from now on. You'll be the lead singer for any song you write yourself."

Qi Yuan readily agreed: "Okay, but you have to teach me how to sing."

Qiu Mengxue was taken aback: "Do I need to teach you?"

Qi Yuan spread his hands: "As you all probably know from when I sang Blue Lotus earlier, my singing is just average, and I have a hard time hitting high notes. If I write more songs with more high notes in the future, it will be difficult for me."

Ning Qianyu said, "No, how did you come up with a song that even you can't sing?"

Qi Yuan: "I can't help it. These melodies are like visitors from outer space, suddenly appearing in my mind."

Ning Qianyu blurted out, "You really are a genius!"

Qi Yuan waved his hand: "Also, I have another question. What's the name of our band? Does it have a name?"

Ning Qianyu suddenly felt a little embarrassed: "Yes, there is, but after you join, the name might be a bit..."

"The band name was Qianyu's idea, it's called..." Jiang Yi was interrupted halfway through her sentence when the person involved suddenly covered her mouth.

Ning Qianyu's face flushed slightly: "Don't say it!"

Unfortunately, all she could do was cover her mouth.

Qiu Mengxue said expressionlessly, "Exploding Fallen Angel."

Ning Qianyu stopped covering other people's mouths and slammed her head against the edge of the table repeatedly, as if she were kowtowing and begging for forgiveness.

Qi Yuan: "You can't even hold it in anymore, can you?"

Sigrún has taught at the Iceland University of the Arts as a part-time lecturer since and was Dean of the Department of Fine Art from -. In – she held a research position at Reykjavík Art Museum focusing on the role of women in Icelandic art. She studied fine art at the Icelandic College of Arts and Crafts and at Pratt Institute, New York, and holds BA and MA degrees in art history and philosophy from the University of Iceland. Sigrún lives and works in Iceland.

006 That's great!

After that name was uttered, Ning Qianyu couldn't lift her head, and Jiang Yi and Qiu Mengxue also covered their faces and sighed.

Qi Yuan was quite curious: "I can understand one person being a bit of a chuunibyou (a person with delusions of grandeur), but this is a band name, how did you two agree on it?"

Qiu Mengxue sighed, "We've never told the audience what the band's name is. I figured we weren't planning on revealing it anyway, so I didn't bother arguing with Qianyu."

Jiang Yi quickly added, "Last year, when the three of us first got together to start playing in a band, we discussed the issue of a band name, but we all had different opinions and no one could convince anyone else. Then Qianyu's attitude was very firm, and Mengxue and I thought that since we hadn't signed up for any official performances and wouldn't be releasing any songs, whatever name we chose would only be known by the three of us."

Qi Yuan: "So you two just gave in?"

Qiu Mengxue and Jiang Yi nodded in unison.

Qi Yuan then looked at the girl who had touched the table with her head: "Qianyu, what about you? Do you still insist on having this name?"

Ning Qianyu finally raised her head, her face full of murderous intent: "You are not allowed to mention it again! Since the band members have all changed, we definitely need to choose a new name."

Qi Yuan laughed and said, "Alright, alright, let's not talk about that anymore. Let's just think of a new band name. Do you guys have any ideas?"

The three girls fell into deep thought.

Then Ning Qianyu and Jiang Yi raised their arms at the same time.

Jiang Yi: "Summer in the small square!"

Qi Yuan: "?"

Ning Qianyu: "Cavendish Arsenal!"

Qi Yuan: "??"

Qiu Mengxue sighed, "Let's wait a bit. We don't necessarily have to decide on a band name tonight. How about this, Qi Yuan will start practicing singing with me tomorrow, and then you two... no, we can think of one together when we have time. There's no rush to decide on a band name anyway."

Sigrún has taught at the Iceland University of the Arts as a part-time lecturer since and was Dean of the Department of Fine Art from -. In – she held a research position at Reykjavík Art Museum focusing on the role of women in Icelandic art. She studied fine art at the Icelandic College of Arts and Crafts and at Pratt Institute, New York, and holds BA and MA degrees in art history and philosophy from the University of Iceland. Sigrún lives and works in Iceland.

After finishing their meal, Ning Qianyu rode off on the electric tricycle, carrying Jiang Yi and Qiu Mengxue.

She originally wanted to give Qi Yuan a ride, but Qi Yuan said that he lived not far from here, and that the truck bed was going to be full of musical instruments, so it would be too crowded to carry three more people, so she gave up on that idea.

Qi Yuan walked alone towards home.

In his memory, the place the original owner least wanted to go was his own home. His mother disappeared when he was still young; according to his father, she ran away.

Qi Yuan's father works as a debt collector.

This industry was already in a gray area, and his father's company used even more ruthless methods. And the rule of law in this world isn't bad, so almost a year ago, his father and his entire company were shut down.

Two days ago, the verdict was announced: his father, who was a debt collector at the enforcement level, was sentenced to seven years in prison.

It was precisely because of this outcome that the souls from the other world were given an opportunity to take advantage.

Now, following the dark route from his memory, Qi Yuan entered that old and dilapidated neighborhood.

This is darkness in a physical sense, because the streetlights near the residential area are dim and flicker occasionally, as if the circuit is unstable. The streetlights inside the residential area are even more dim, with only one lit every few lampposts, and you could easily trip over the broken bricks if you weren't careful.

Qi Yuan walked into the apartment building, climbed the stairs, went up to the second floor, and took out his key to open the door...

But just then, he noticed a figure crouching at the door.

Qi Yuan was stunned.

The other person was also startled, quickly stood up, took out their phone to look at the boy's face, and exclaimed with delight, "Qi Yuan, right? You've finally come home!"

In the darkness, the face was not visible, but the person's figure was somewhat thin, and the voice sounded quite young, probably in their twenties or thirties.

Is this considered being cornered at home?

However, Qi Yuan felt that in terms of combat strength, he was definitely stronger. After all, his opponent was empty-handed and unarmed.

He immediately asked, "If you're not buddy, who are you?"

"Oh, I'm a community worker, my surname is Zhao, you can just call me Brother Zhao. I need to talk to you about something."

In this body's memory, the phrase "I need to talk to you about something" is usually a line I use when I'm picking a fight. Hearing it now, I can't help but find it a little funny.

However, Qi Yuan remained vigilant and asked, "Are you a community worker? Where are your credentials?"

"You're quite cautious. Okay, can you see clearly like this?"

The other person took out their identification, shone it on their phone, and showed it to him. The identification showed the name Zhao Shanfu and the position of 'Community Assistant'.

Qi Yuan nodded and asked, "So it's Brother Zhao. May I ask what brings you here?"

Zhao Shanfu quickly explained, "Your father has already been sentenced and imprisoned, and we understand that your mother is also not here, and you are not yet a minor. Of course, the community cannot ignore a minor, so we plan to help you contact a guardian."

"My guardian, isn't that my mom?"

"Yes, just asking, do you have your mother's contact information?"

"I didn't."

"Ah..." Zhao Shanfu scratched his head, "Didn't your dad tell you before he went to court?"

Qi Yuan said simply, "He said so. My mom ran away a long time ago and can't be found."

Zhao Shanfu was in a dilemma for a moment.

Qi Yuan smiled and slowly said, "I'd like to know, my father broke the law, but he's already in jail. So, do I still need to bear any joint responsibility?"

Zhao Shanfu said, "That's definitely not necessary. Your father's problem is mainly about violent debt collection; he himself doesn't have any debt issues, so it shouldn't involve you. But the problem is, you're only fifteen or sixteen years old; you need a guardian..."

Qi Yuan countered, "But I can't get in touch with my mom. You're from the community; you should have more information, right? How come you can't reach my mom?"

Zhao Shanfu looked troubled: "Logically, there should be information registration, but I checked before I came and couldn't find it."

"Really can't find it?"

"Really, I'm so sorry, I..."

"That's great."

Upon hearing Qi Yuan's words, Zhao Shanfu was taken aback: "Huh?"

"Yes, I don't want to contact my mom, and you don't need to look for her either, if it's for my own good. I'm in high school now, and I've always taken care of myself. What if we bring her here and things don't go well, and it interferes with my studies?"

"what?"

Zhao Shanfu quickly said, "But how will you manage your living expenses and food if you're just a child?"

“My dad opened a bank account for me in my name, and there are a few thousand yuan in it. I usually cook for myself, or eat out for things like rice bowls or fried noodles, and this money is enough for me for a long time. As for tuition, I've already prepaid my high school tuition. As for university, there are scholarships available, right?”

"Yes, there are..."

Qi Yuan shook the keys in his hand: "Sorry to have made you come all this way for nothing, I didn't even bring a glass of water. Would you like to come in and sit down?"

Zhao Shanfu subconsciously shook his head: "It's already past ten o'clock, and you have school tomorrow..."

"Yes, I have to go to school tomorrow, so let me walk you downstairs."

Then Qi Yuan escorted Zhao Shanfu to the entrance of the apartment building, waved with a smile, and then turned and went upstairs.

He certainly didn't want to bring that cheap old mother back.

If her father is unreliable enough, how reliable can the other one be? She's finally given a second chance at life, and she even holds the golden key to the entertainment industry in her hand, so of course she wants to be free and independent.