At 3 a.m., the landmines in front of the station

After making up his mind, Su Che offered a few more words of comfort to his good friend and then turned and left the dormitory.

Walking along the campus paths, he picked up his phone and began to address each issue one by one.

"UU, do you know much about Haiyin? Do you know anyone in the composition department?"

UU replied almost instantly; the background noise in the voice message was very loud, suggesting it was in a concert hall or similar setting.

"Haiyin Conservatory of Music? No! The teachers I know are mostly from the Central Conservatory of Music... and some international masters... How about I ask them for you?"

"........."

Su Che rubbed his forehead. "No need, then no need."

"Hey! What are you doing, stopping me like this! I'd be happy to help you! Wait until I'm on stage before I tell you!"

UU sent me a meme of a witch's hat with her mouth wide open in a threatening gesture, and then immediately went off to perform.

"..."

Su Che was helpless.

He did overlook the fact that UU's network of connections is international, and her circle is not limited to Tianhai.

Although I could ask her for help, it would be a long and complicated process, and it wouldn't be something that could be done in a few words. It would also make me indebted to many people.

"I've already finished paying off the rent, so I'd better think about other people."

With that in mind, he set his sights on another target—

Ling Yao.

Hi, I'm Su Che, add me.

The friend request was sent, and the next moment...

"!?"

The girl, who was diligently practicing the piano in Studio 61, suddenly shuddered, thinking she was hallucinating.

She had been hoping to receive his friend request on the night of the last live performance, but unfortunately, he was mostly busy that night, and it was Mid-Autumn Festival, so he had no time to think about her feelings, which was normal.

Ling Yao had thought the note had been thrown away long ago, but who knew that after so many days, he had actually made contact with him!

Such delayed gratification is like a roller coaster, first plummeting to the trough and then instantly reaching the peak, making the girl feel incredibly excited.

"Senior, I'm here! I've been waiting for you!"

She stopped practicing the piano and going to school, holding her phone with her eyes glued to the screen, staring at Su Che's "typing..." message, afraid of missing any message.

"...Yes, the last collaboration was very pleasant, but I've been very busy and didn't contact you right away. I hope you don't mind." Su Che apologized and raised his hand.

"No way, senior! I'll do anything as long as you're willing to add me!"

Ling Yao was completely engrossed in the moment, unable to resist the temptation from her senior.

She also wanted to do as Yui suggested and try to remain reserved.

But that's how people are. When they meet someone they like, something inside them will get the better of them. Neither Zhang Cong nor she can control their emotions like cold-blooded animals.

"Um. Actually, I wanted to ask you about your teacher."

Su Che got straight to the point, his thinking very clear—

He wanted to find out information about Master Cat, and incidentally, subtly inquire about Haiyin.

Master Cat is all-powerful; he knows even the principal of his own school in Tianhai. So it's impossible that he doesn't know Haiyin's professors or teachers.

Anyone who knows a composition major can easily find out the truth about "Xiang Xuechuan," the female fraudster, and thus confirm whether she is a real student of the Shanghai Conservatory of Music.

Also, the reason I contacted Ling Yao was because she could act as my mouthpiece and ask her teacher on my behalf, which would save me a lot of trouble.

At this moment, Su Che's schemes were fully in place. He knew he was using Ling Yao to achieve his goals, but Ling Yao felt that being used was a happy thing, and immediately wanted to share all the information—

"My teacher...! Please wait a moment, he's in the recording studio right now. I'll talk to him from a distance."

Ling Yao had a good awareness of preventing eavesdropping, although she didn't know that the entire recording studio's audio system was controlled by Lu Shi's control panel...

One minute later.

The girl lowered her voice, and the surrounding ambient sounds seemed to include the sound of wind, suggesting that she was in a place like a balcony or corridor.

"Which part of the content would you like to know, senior?"

"Regarding his name, the situation of his studio, his usual activities, and... some of his special habits."

"Okay, okay, let me think about it."

Ling Yao sorted out her thoughts and explained one by one: "Teacher's surname is Lu, and I don't know his full name. Everyone calls him Master Lu or Master Lu. Currently, he only has two students, Senior Sister Miya and me."

The studio is usually very quiet. Occasionally, people who seem to be famous will come to record, and of course, there are also very old musical instrument masters who come here to exchange ideas.

Master is usually only in the studio during the day, and he only appears after 10 a.m. He leaves around 3 p.m. He never stays long unless there is something important to do, leaving even earlier than his senior sister...

As for his habits, he likes to smoke, attend various music exhibitions to buy rare and amazing instruments, and collect a large number of fine instruments... Even though he already has no room left, with nearly 50 electric guitars in his storage room, he still keeps buying and buying, until even the humidifier cabinet is not enough..."

"?"

Su Che's pupils suddenly contracted.

For no other reason than that this intelligence, combined with this surname, is far too dangerous.

Clearly, all the information Ling Yao provided was valid, and a sense of déjà vu washed over me.

However, Tianhai city is so large that there are countless people with the surname Lu, so further confirmation is needed.

What does he look like?

Su Che asked the crucial question.

"Looks...?"

Ling Yao pondered the characteristics of his master.

“I usually don’t dare to look my master in the eye… but he’s probably in his forties, with a middle parting, likes to wear leather jackets, and his outfits are all black, occasionally with a white shirt underneath, and he wears a tie. He probably prefers black, white, and gray…”

Holy crap.

"Then...then he rarely played the piano in the studio. Once, a master came to visit, and my master picked up the piano and showed off his skills briefly...I was stunned at the time...because he was proficient in both electric and acoustic pianos, bass and fingerstyle, and he played back and forth with that 80-year-old xylophone master, and they even put their arms around each other's shoulders...like kindred spirits."

Ling Yao said enviously.

"..."

"His way of playing the piano is quite unique; it doesn't seem like he's just playing an instrument... to me, it's more like he's 'communicating' with the instrument."

"comminicate?"

"Yes. His teaching philosophy has always been 'treating the instrument as a friend,' so I think he practices what he preaches. He seeks responses through the instrument; in his own words, he 'listens to her voice.'"

"."

Case solved.

Su Che suddenly understood.

Based on all the intelligence gathered, Su Che could now basically confirm—

"Miya's master, Ling Yao's master, this mysterious man is most likely her father who has been missing for many years."

He had always lived in seclusion in Tianhai, hidden in the riverside street, close to himself.

Studio 61 was located not far from him at all, which is why he could seem to be everywhere, always appearing at "Grammy Piano Shop" and "just happen" to run into Gu Zhi, "just happen" to hand her his business card, and establish a connection between them.

It was 11 a.m.

Su Che stopped and looked up at the sky.

Thoughts, like tangled threads, quickly became chaotic.

The information provided by Ling Yao was of great help, allowing him to connect many unsolved mysteries one by one and analyze the underlying principles that had puzzled him for so long.

For example, why did he agree to the kitten's capricious demands?

For example, why would he offer help to me in a seemingly insignificant way?

Whether it's paying tuition for the kitten or arranging various seemingly normal coincidences, Su Che has reason to suspect that his goal is to monitor and control him.

Even on the day of the Mid-Autumn Festival Live performance, the man I hallucinated in the audience below the stage might actually be him.

He was hiding in the crowd.

Su Che clenched his fists.

I stood still in front of the bench by the roadside.

He wasn't as happy as he had imagined after finding the key clue.

Even if he went to 61 Studio right now and could most likely catch the old guy, he would feel that doing so would be like surrendering, which would be childish and ridiculous.

"All I can do is punch him a couple of times, there's nothing else I can do."

“I didn’t come with any achievements that would prove him wrong; I don’t play the piano as well as he does.”

“My own team is not yet formed, and I am incapable in terms of wealth and career. It seems that if I go there, I will only be raging in a state of impotence, which is not enough to demand an explanation from him or make him apologize to me.”

"He's a man who doesn't value responsibility at all. To him, my existence is probably superfluous. If I'm superfluous, then I shouldn't challenge him without the ability to do so."

I must at least win the Mosse Cup, and then use this championship certificate to tell him that his choice was wrong, and that his ideas and theories are completely untenable. Only then will I have the confidence to beat him up.

Otherwise, I might not even be able to beat him.

Su Che's face turned ashen at the thought.

He felt utterly lost.

There are still many doubts, but his only feeling right now is exhaustion.

I'm mentally exhausted and physically drained.

Ling Yao seemed to sense his state and immediately sent another message to inquire:

"Senior, what's wrong? Are you feeling unwell? Why aren't you saying anything... Should I come over and check on you?"

Opportunity always favors the prepared.

Su Che had originally wanted her to help him inquire about Xiang Xuechuan, but after what had happened, he had no interest in that anymore. He would have to go home and calm down before helping with Lao Zhang's problem.

He sat down on a bench on campus, staring helplessly at his phone screen. In the chilly autumn wind, he didn't even have the strength to move his fingers to type a reply.