Lu Qing hadn't expected that his sister had already made up her mind to prove herself and make him take her more seriously.
At this moment, he was in a state of ethereal disorientation, light-headed and walking with a breeze.
"No."
"No, no, no."
"What's wrong with me?"
When the elevator reached the ground floor, the slight swaying motion jolted him slightly, bringing him back to a semblance of clarity.
"Just because I saw the 'Midnight Appreciation' performance, am I about to relapse into my old habits?"
Lu Qing felt a chill run through him as he self-reflected:
"No. Absolutely not. Teaching my sister to play the piano is fine, but I absolutely cannot get drawn into it myself."
"This is a critical phase for preparing my new book. Not to mention any other factors, just breaking my writing rhythm would be too much for me to bear."
He couldn't let the stimulation of "music" affect the progress of his "career."
Once his "career" was disrupted,
"life" would completely fall apart,
and his sister's illness would never be cured. After all, even taking care of her had become a joke.
"I must ensure that I make a profit while doing my job properly. Otherwise, I'll fall back into the past, and the outcome will inevitably be the same, exactly the same."
This isn't good.
This is not good.
It's better to focus on "career" and "studies" for now.
The path is already set, isn't it?
Normal people should focus on "serious matters," right?
Not working means no money.
Not studying means no qualifications.
No qualifications mean no good job.
No good job means no money.
— A "dead end."
"So, hobbies..."
Even "passion."
Even "original intention."
Must be kept sealed away to prevent my life from falling apart completely.
"I am someone with no room for error."
"I cannot chase my lifelong passion freely."
"Moreover, something like that has already happened once before, so I absolutely cannot repeat the same mistakes. I must not forget the lessons of the past. I must not."
Lu Qing took a deep breath, striding confidently out of the complex.
...
"Grammy Music Center" was a music store located near Tianhe Platinum Apartments, primarily offering music education and secondarily selling instruments.
As a result, the walls of the store were adorned with a variety of "junk."
Lu Qing glanced around and saw a row of plywood guitars priced at 1200 RMB, with a cost of just 300;
five solid-top guitars priced at 2000 RMB, with a cost of 500;
and a single all-solid Chinese guitar priced at 3680 RMB, with a cost of 800, displayed in a showcase like a treasure.
"Tsk."
He glanced at the children in the side classrooms, holding these instruments and taking lessons with part-time amateur teachers.
Lu Qing didn't have the time to feel sorry for them, only silently praying:
"May you awaken soon and, within the limits of your circumstances, abandon these magical instruments and follow the right path."
...
"Hello, are you here to buy an instrument or sign up for lessons?"
At the front desk, a short-haired female receptionist inquired.
"Do you have any connection cables?"
"Connection cables?"
"Yes, guitar cables, 3 meters long, 6mm diameter, straight plug."
Lu Qing's expressionless statement left the receptionist slightly bewildered.
"Uh, we do have cables, but I'm not sure if they're the ones you're looking for. Let me call a professional teacher to help you."
The female receptionist was starting to sweat.
"Okay."
Lu Qing watched as she rushed into the innermost classroom, where folk guitar songs like "North Mountain North" and "Chengdu" were being played, to fetch a "professional" guitar teacher.
Soon, a tall, bald man with a grin walked out of the classroom, calling out to Lu Qing:
"Young man, buying a cable?"
"Yes."
Lu Qing nodded.
"See those on the wall? We have 10 RMB, 15 RMB, 30 RMB, and one for 50 RMB, all unopened. Which one do you want?"
The bald man asked.
"..."
Lu Qing strolled through the 30-square-meter shop.
His gaze swept over all the low-quality guitars on the wall, finally settling on a small stage with a few second-hand guitar amplifiers.
Among them was an orange, entry-level tube amplifier, with a matching 3-meter cable plugged into it.
Without hesitation, Lu Qing pointed to the cable:
"I'll take that Orange one. How much is it?"
The bald man: "???"
"Brother, that's my own cable, and it's not new, it's already been opened..."
"Well, I remember the market price is 160 RMB, and the wholesale price is even lower. I'll pay you the original price. Take that Orange cable off and sell it to me. You can buy a new one yourself."
Lu Qing didn't want his sister to use low-quality cables and couldn't wait a day to order a new one from Jingdong, so seeing the Orange cable, which was of decent quality, he decided to take it immediately.
"..."
The bald man and the female receptionist exchanged glances, both realizing that this guy knew what he was talking about.
"Alright, I'll pack it up for you. Anything else?"
"Yes. Throw in a few picks."
He said, his gaze fixed on a few brand-new Dunlop Tortex picks on the coffee table at the front desk.
Generally, the right hand of an electric guitar rarely plays like a classical guitar, except for advanced techniques like slap and tapping. Usually, a pick (plectrum) is used for playing. So, having a guitar without picks isn't ideal.
The cheapest picks (like Alice) are often just a few cents each, sold in large boxes, and easily replaceable, making them consumables.
Lu Qing wanted to give his sister something better, like the Tortex picks, which cost 6 RMB each, to make her practice more comfortable.
Quality is guaranteed, and they are durable and wear-resistant.
"Sure, we'll give you one."
The bald man was quite generous. Seeing that Lu Qing had his eye on his own picks, he took a blue Tortex pick from the table and handed it to him.
"One isn't enough. Give me two more."
Lu Qing wasn't being greedy; he just knew how easily picks could get lost.
What if his sister was practicing at home and misplaced one? That would be disastrous. He needed to eliminate all possibilities of her not being able to practice smoothly. Until he could place another big order on Jingdong to buy everything she needed and have it delivered home, he had to be prepared.
"..."
The bald man winced a little, feeling the pinch.
But he still took a handful of picks from the box and handed them to Lu Qing, though this time they were Alice picks, not Tortex.
"Brother, we really can't afford to give away any more Tortex picks."
"Okay, that's fine."
Lu Qing didn't argue further. He took the colorful Alice picks, pulled out his phone, and prepared to scan the payment code.
The bald man unplugged the Orange cable from the unpowered amplifier on the small stage and handed it over, coiled up.
He casually asked, "By the way, how many years have you been playing guitar?"
"Not many."
"Haha, I can tell you seem pretty knowledgeable. Why don't you play a tune? If you're good, and if you're interested, you could even work part-time as a teacher here. We're still pretty short-handed since we just opened."
The bald man, with a mischievous grin, extended an "olive branch" to Lu Qing.
"?"
Part-time?
Teaching?
Teaching those kids?
Lu Qing almost laughed.
Such music stores often hire college students or unemployed people as part-time guitar teachers, charging 80-120 RMB per lesson, with the store and teacher splitting the earnings 50-50, or in some cases, 60-40, with the store taking the larger share.
Lu Qing thought to himself: I used to earn 500 RMB per lesson teaching online composition. Why would I ever consider working at a place like this, teaching kids to play guitar?
In his eyes, this place wasn't part of the "education industry,"
but rather the "service industry."
"Thanks, but no thanks."
He said firmly.
After scanning the payment code and receiving the Orange cable, his gaze fell on a wooden guitar standing on the sofa—
Merida's "Winter" model from the Four Seasons series.
The guitar was adorned with intricate carvings and inlaid decorations.
"It's quite a looker."
He thought to himself.
He glanced at the bald man, who still looked quite eager.
"Come on, business or not, let's keep things friendly. Play a couple of tunes, just for fun."
The bald man said, "Let me see what level you're at. (You must be pretty good to want such an expensive cable.)"
"..."
Lu Qing clicked his tongue.
He felt a bit helpless.
You're the one who asked me to play, okay?
It's not like I wanted to.
He told himself this,
his fingers already unconsciously trembling slightly,
stimulated by some deep-seated excitement in his DNA.
“Then let's do it.”
“Keep it simple and play the winning piece from the 2019 Neon Fingerstyle Guitar Competition, the legendary Kim Young-soo's masterpiece, ‘Like A Star,’ to get back into the groove.”
As Lu Qing spoke, he walked toward the flirtatious-looking Medina guitar, leaving the bald man dumbfounded.
……
……
d intelligence to keep the plot moving, and sometimes even the protagonists are forced into absurdly dumb decisions. Why does the A-list celebrity heroine in urban romance novels ditch the top-tier movie star and become a lovestruck fool for a pockmarked male lead? Why do the leads in historical tragedy novels keep dancing between love and death, only for the blind healer to end up suffering the most? And Gu Wei never expected that after finally landing a villain role to stir up trouble, she’d pick the wrong gender! No choice now—she’ll just have to crush the protagonists as a girl!
ap a wealthy young lady? Or else I'll be eliminated by the system? Ye Feng, who awakened the Kidnapper System, originally wanted to live a peaceful life but never imagined he would become a kidnapper of young women. However, after some time, he discovered that all the girls the system ordered him to kidnap were far from ordinary. "Big brother Ye Feng~ You've kidnapped my heart, and now you're not allowed to leave me ever again~" "Ye Feng~ You kidnapped me back then, now it's my turn to capture you♡" "Little Feng, you're mine! You can only be mine!" "Ye Feng, none of them deserve you. Only I love you the most♡" ... This is madness, they've all gone mad! Wait, what? Why are all the girls I kidnapped yanderes?!
ive and Ruthless] Before his transmigration, Ye Xuan was playing a game called "Severing Emotions to Attain the Dao." The game's core wasn't about leveling up by fighting monsters, but about conquering various "bad women" with wicked personalities and cold, fickle natures. There was only one method to conquer them: stay unwaveringly by their side, then die at a critical moment, driving them to madness after losing the protagonist. The higher their level of regret, the higher the player's score. To dominate the server, Ye Xuan conquered all the bad women. In the early stages, he showered them with boundless tenderness, only to choose to sacrifice himself for them later, making them weep bitterly and drown in regret. Among them were: Xia Lengyue, the unfaithful immortal wife who chased after powerful men and discarded her husband like trash. Ye Qingcheng, the Demonic Venerable of the Joyous Union Sect, who appeared pure and innocent but was, in reality, promiscuous. Wu Lingxiao, the Empress of the Great Xia Dynasty, who lusted after men and loved maintaining a harem. Bai Qiangu of the Endless Demonic Sect: a bloodthirsty mass murderer. However, when the protagonist transmigrated into the game world, he made a horrifying discovery. Eight hundred years had already passed. The bad women he had conquered had now each become deities and revered ancestors. Faced with the endless stream of toxic women coming for him, Ye Xuan could only rely on his god-tier acting skills to carve a path of survival through this world of treacherous women.
young master of the Shen family—a figure of immense power and wealth beyond measure—and awakened the "Destined Ultimate Villain System"! His starting scenario? Running into his icy fiancée who shows up with a mountain-descending divine doctor to break off their engagement. The divine doctor arrogantly taunts: "What does your Shen family have besides a bit of stinking money? You're not even worthy of tying Qingxue's shoelaces!" Shen Fei just smiled. He completely defied the usual script: "Fine, I agree to break off the engagement. Also, notify the finance department to withdraw all investments from the Su family." Minutes later, with its capital chain severed, the Su Group teetered on the brink of bankruptcy! The once aloof and proud ice queen CEO was thrown into utter panic. That very night, she went to Shen Fei's villa, casting aside all dignity to beg and plead desperately... From then on, in this world teeming with Sons of Destiny, Shen Fei embarked on a path of extreme dimensional suppression! A mountain-descending divine doctor? Peerless medical skills? Shen Fei: "Reporting you for practicing medicine without a license! I'll gladly take your ancient medicinal cauldron and twin sister assassins." The Crooked-Smiling Dragon King? Commanding a hundred thousand soldiers with a single order? Shen Fei: "Illegal assembly and suspected treason! Let a fleet of attack helicopters sanitize the area and teach you what the state apparatus really means!" A reborn tycoon? Knows all the golden opportunities of the next decade? Shen Fei: "A trillion in capital to reverse and pump the stock market, making you blow your margin and jump on the very first day of your rebirth!" What Chosen Ones? What bearers of Heavenly Fortune? In Shen Fei's eyes, they're all just chives (i.e., suckers/marks) waiting to be harvested! Shen Fei: "Sorry, but as the Destined Ultimate Villain, I don't play by the rules of honor. I only play the game of dimensional suppression."
