A Young Woman's Heart

"Take a break... work and rest should be balanced!" Hua Yinyin chimed in.

"Taking a break before it even starts?" Mo Xiaoxiao chuckled as she put down her schoolbag, and Li Wanyan followed her in.

Qiu Yi was following at the very end.

"Hey, it's getting lively here!" Qiu Yi waved. "Ahem, as the band's instructor, I'm here to lend a hand. Let me see if there's anything I can do for you. By the way, Mo Zhuyou, are you just starting to learn the drums? I studied drums for two years, so I'll teach you!"

“We already taught it this morning and at noon, but it would be even better if Teacher Qiu came.” Wang Jiale placed his pink and white bass on the table next to him and sat down at the desk that had been set up as a conference table.

Li Wanyan wasn't really involved here, but she was used to going to and from school with Mo Xueyao, so she found a corner to sit down and started doing her homework.

"Would you like some snacks? I bought some mung bean cakes at the supermarket yesterday." Mo Xiaoxiao took out two boxes of mung bean cakes from the paper bag. They were enough for everyone to share as snacks.

"Okay, let's eat!" Mo Zhuyou sat up straight happily.

"Hey, are you really not going to practice anymore?" Wang Jiale muttered.

“But Lele still sat down, didn’t she?” Hua Yinyin sat down next to Mo Xueyao. “Xiaoxue, sit down, sit down, rest for a while before starting again.”

"Is it quite comfortable?" Qiu Yi rubbed his chin. "Can I sit down?"

"Please sit down~ Wanyan—would you like to come over?" Mo Xiao smiled at Li Wanyan, who was sitting in the corner.

Li Wanyan slightly raised her head and glanced in this direction: "No, thank you."

"Wanyan, come and sit down, there are still empty seats!" Mo Xueyao called out loudly, "Let's chat together, and we can give feedback on our performance later."

"We have mung bean cakes, but no tea to go with them." Qiu Yi turned and walked towards the door. "I'll go get an electric kettle. What kind of tea do you like?"

"It's all right."

"Hmm, either way is fine—"

A short while later, Qiu Yi came in carrying an electric kettle and a bag of tea leaves.

The bag contained several kinds of tea, and the electric kettle was not the round shape commonly seen in this era.

At this time, electric kettles and gas kettles are generally the same; the only difference is that one is plugged in.

But the one Qiu Yi brought was long and cylindrical, more like the large beer mugs you see in bars. And unlike a regular electric kettle, which you have to turn off yourself after the water is boiled, its switch automatically trips.

After the tea was brewed, the box containing the mung bean cakes was finally opened.

Mo Zhuyou, who couldn't wait any longer, was the first to grab a piece: "Mmm...so enjoyable..."

"The quiet time after school," Mo Xueyao leaned leisurely against the wall, glancing sideways at the playground outside the window.

There were still some people on the playground, or more accurately, gathered on the basketball court. They were mostly boys. These basketball enthusiasts wouldn't miss such a good opportunity to leave school early on Friday.

"If only I could drink tea all the time..." Mo Zhuyou sighed.

"Hey, you still need to practice! Don't be so lax!" Wang Jiale snapped, making everyone laugh.

……

Chapter Twenty-Six: Practice After School

As the sun gradually set, its originally bright light turned somewhat dim and yellowish.

The boys who were playing basketball on the playground have all left, leaving behind only a desolate and lonely scene.

The fallen yellow leaves give it a real autumn feel.

A black cat was patrolling on the wall, gently wagging its tail from side to side.

Actually, the sunset is also beautiful; it has a sense of melancholy, as if everything is about to end.

Like the final glimmer of light at the end of life, this beauty that is destined to end stirs the heart, yet it cannot help but be appreciated again and again.

Happy things are certainly more enjoyable, but it is often those memories tinged with sadness that are truly unforgettable.

Humans are complex creatures; they often seek out happy moments within their sorrowful memories.

It's like tasting sweetness in bitter tea; although the sweetness is faint, it makes it all the more precious.

Qiu Yi was teaching Mo Zhuyou how to play the drums, while the others lazily sat at the table to rest.

Not wanting to waste any more time, Wang Jiale picked up his bass and began to play a classical piece with a touch of melancholy in his deep voice.

An orange leaf, blown by the wind, landed on Mo Xueyao's face. She picked it off, examined it carefully in the setting sun for a while, then let go and let it drift away into the distance.

"Wow! I've suddenly got an idea!" Hua Yinyin, who had been resting her chin on her hand in a daze, downed the last of her tea in one gulp. "Hmm... a slightly melancholic melody, la la la... hmm..."

Hua Yinyin immediately entered a creative state, writing a large number of musical notes on the draft paper that Mo Xueyao could not quite understand.

"So, have you come up with any good ideas?" Wang Jiale stopped playing his bass and asked with delight.

"Hmm, wait a minute, don't talk to me!" Hua Yinyin wrote and revised at the same time. "No, this is too difficult. It needs to be simplified... Hmm... Write out the complete score first, and then change it to simplified notation..."

Wang Jiale watched from the side. Although she had studied musical instruments for a few years, she didn't have any creative ability. In fact, it had only been a few years, and it was already quite good that she could play existing pieces well.

After all, very few people are exceptionally gifted; usually, one has to study an instrument for more than ten years, like Hua Yinyin, before they can compose their own music.

"Um, I don't quite understand..."

"I'll teach you later, Xiaoyao." Wang Jiale patted his chest. "My basic skills are pretty good, you know!"

"Um……"

"It's okay, it's okay. I'll write out the sheet music later. It's something like 'do la mi fa sou,' it's very simple. But if the sheet music is simple, the playing effect will be much worse."

"Hmm... I'll write it first."

When inspiration strikes, a piece of music is quickly completed. Hua Yinyin makes some minor modifications and then writes it out in simplified musical notation.

Most people can understand sheet music, at least they can tell which note corresponds to the number one, two, three, four, and five.

The musical staff, on the other hand, is all patterns, and people who haven't studied it properly really can't understand it.

"Teacher Qiu, how is it?" Hua Yinyin excitedly handed the sheet music to Qiu Yi, who was personally demonstrating how to teach Mo Zhuyou to play the drum. "Take a look!"

"Hmm? A piece you composed yourself?"

"Impromptu!"

"Let me see... um..." Qiu Yi hummed softly according to the sheet music. After singing it once, he pointed out a few places where the transitions were not smooth. "If I revise it like this, it should be about right. The sheet music isn't difficult, and everyone should be able to learn it. The requirements for the drummer aren't high either. As for the drummer, all you need is..."

This is a very slow and soothing piece, perfect for a snow music band with many beginners.

"Is that about right?" Hua Yinyin copied the revised piece of music onto another blank sheet of paper. "I think with more practice, everyone should be fine."

"Hmm, this piece is good."

“So—” Hua Yinyin held up a piece of white paper with musical notation written on it, “Let’s think of lyrics!”

"How can you think if you can't understand the sheet music..."

"Huh, can't even read sheet music?"

"Hmm... I can only roughly tell what the pitch is, but I don't understand what the symbols on them mean," Mo Xueyao said somewhat awkwardly. She had never paid attention to this kind of thing before, and it didn't matter whether she passed music class or not, since it wasn't a major subject at all.

"This is very simple. It's like using tildes and exclamation marks when writing an essay. The meaning is very clear. For example, this..."

"Stop, stop, stop! Let's think of lyrics first!"

"How can I come up with lyrics if I don't even know what the melody is like?" Mo Xueyao said irritably.

"That's true... Hmm... How about I play it once and you guys get a feel for it?"

"Great!" Mo Zhuyou, the only one who hadn't rested and had been practicing drums for half the day, was the first to raise her hands in agreement. "It's a good opportunity to take a break..."

"Alright~ please listen carefully!" Hua Yinyin picked up her pipa and immediately got into the zone, as if she had detached herself from her usual self.

Hua Yinyin truly exudes the elegance of a classical beauty when she plays the pipa. She sits slightly to the side, holding the pipa, her bright eyes half-closed, and slowly begins to play.

It started with a rich pipa sound, which gradually transitioned to a guitar sound, but it didn't feel out of place at all.

The melody of this piece is slow and leisurely. When Mo Xueyao closes her eyes, she seems to see an old farmer sitting on the ground under an apple tree with fallen leaves, with a golden wheat field that has already been harvested in front of him. He is enjoying a rare moment of leisure.

Although it has a strong autumnal feel, there isn't much sadness; instead, there's a great deal of joy from the harvest.

This also proves that when people see the same scenery in the same season, their mood is completely different.

Mo Xueyao saw desolation, while Hua Yinyin 'saw' the leisure after a bountiful harvest.

The piece doesn't have a particularly obvious climax; it's mostly quite gentle, like a leaf slowly falling.

"How's it going? Can you feel it now?"

"Hmm, I think I'm starting to get the hang of it..." Mo Xueyao stood in front of her electronic keyboard. "Let me give it a try."

"You can't possibly play it after only listening to it once, right?" Wang Jiale said at first, but then his mouth remained agape in surprise.

Hua Yinyin, however, was not surprised. Instead, she looked smug, as if she were the one who could play the instrument after hearing it only once.

When the piece ended, Mo Xueyao played it perfectly on the electronic keyboard, with only a few notes being slightly higher or lower, but overall it was correct.

"Amazing..."

"Playing purely by feel, that should be right, right?"

"That's about right. If I were to write sheet music for the electronic keyboard, it would probably look like this too." Hua Yinyin nodded. "Oh dear, sheet music is still much more convenient. It's a pity that Xiaoyao and Youyou can't read it. Youyou is a little better than Xiaoyao; at least she can understand simplified sheet music..."

“I’ll give it a try too!” Wang Jiale picked up the sheet music, not wanting to be outdone. But she made several mistakes while playing the sheet music. She finally managed to play it in one go, but it was still a bit of a struggle.

The bass has a relatively low pitch, so you can't play it exactly according to the simplified score written by Hua Yinyin. It can only be used as a reference. You have to make your own variations on how to play it.

That's the hardest part.

"Yinyin, could you write out some sheet music for me... with bass?"

"I've already written them out for you." Qiu Yi proudly handed over the papers. "Here you go. Mo Zhuyou and Mo Xueyao's are in numbered musical notation, and the others are in standard musical notation. I guess I'm still a useful teacher after all?"

"Hmm, not bad, not bad, it's somewhat useful!" Hua Yinyin patted Qiu Yi's shoulder forcefully, which made the latter unsure whether to be happy or sad.

In the following time, everyone tried out the piece on their own.

By the time everyone was finally able to get the hang of it, Mo Xueyao had already played it very skillfully.

The sky was gradually darkening, and the last rays of the setting sun were about to disappear.

"It's almost dark, let's do one last thing together! Before, we've all been practicing in our own places, let's see how it goes now!"

"How can you improve so quickly..." Mo Zhuyou lacked confidence.