They all have hidden attributes!

"Chengjun is too considerate, which makes him prone to philandering."

Tachikawa complained, but her tone immediately softened: "The Shiraishi family sent a message saying that she went back to her family home and hid there at noon."

"So they did run away. Thank you, Sister Xing."

"I'm happy to be able to help you."

Hearing her say that, Takahashi Makoto pictured Tachimi Yuki, as always, with a gentle smile on her pure face.

After becoming captivated by Uesugi Maya's cooking, is the next step a gentle trap set by the young lady?

Let's just surrender.

He hung up the phone with a sigh in his heart, then turned his gaze to the closed door of the rehearsal room. His phone started buzzing; it was Tachibana Yuki sending him the address of Shiraishi's house.

Chapter 74 Wanting to Educate Haki Night

When Makoto Takahashi pushed open the door to the rehearsal room, Maya Uesugi and Reiko Kashima were standing together, holding printed sheet music and discussing how to revise it.

"Am I the only one who hasn't studied music theory?" he asked, trying to lighten the mood.

"Music theory isn't difficult; I suggest you learn it too."

Uesugi Maya turned to look at him and asked, "How is it?"

"They ran away."

Takahashi Masashi wanted to persuade the two to go with him to find Shiraishi Junka, but Uesugi Maya didn't give them a chance to speak.

She crossed her arms expressionlessly and said sarcastically, "The only value of someone who only knows how to avoid conflict with silence is to teach me what cowardice is."

Simply put, a band doesn't need people who have no value, which is one of the core principles of Maya Uesugi's band management.

“Unstable factors, eliminated,” Kashima Reiko said in a low voice.

Makoto Takahashi couldn't defend Junka Shiraishi; compared to unauthorized alterations of the score, skipping rehearsals was indeed a more serious destabilizing factor.

Who knows if she might suddenly disappear a few minutes before the live stream? There is definitely that risk.

"Is it okay if there's no keyboardist?" Makoto Takahashi asked.

If neither of them needed Shiraishi Junka, he had no intention of going to the Shiraishi family alone, as it would be awkward and he would have no legitimate reason to do so.

If Uesugi Maya wanted to bring her back, she would definitely go against everyone's wishes, and it wouldn't be a problem for her to visit the Shiraishi family alone.

Thinking of this, Makoto Takahashi looked at Maya Uesugi with a hint of admiration.

"No problem. We'll change one song, and rearrange the other two. I'll hire a substitute guitarist for the live performance."

Uesugi Maya said with a cold face and a stern posture, "Let's begin rehearsals now."

Makoto Takahashi picked up the bass, put on the strap, and sat on a high stool to begin the afternoon's ensemble performance.

Without a keyboardist, the three of them worked together much better, with almost no misaligned notes. The only problem was that Makoto Takahashi had never heard Maya Uesugi sing before.

She is the lead guitarist and lead vocalist, and vocals are undoubtedly an important part of the song, but Maya Uesugi has never shown any intention of practicing with the melody, which makes Makoto Takahashi curious about the reason.

Surely you can't be unable to open your mouth?

At 6 p.m., after Kashima Reiko's pre-set phone alarm went off, Uesugi Maya announced the end of today's rehearsal.

"See you tomorrow, Senior Lengzi."

After saying goodbye to Kashima Reiko, who volunteered to stay and clean the rehearsal room, Takahashi Makoto walked down the corridor with Uesugi Maya and headed towards the academy gate.

Summer days are long and nights are short. The orange-red afterglow slowly permeates the clear sky like a rising tide. The girls from the wind band club walk in groups of three or five from the direction of the student council along the quiet tree-lined path.

Makoto Takahashi and Maya Uesugi, carrying their violin bags, walked slowly through the courtyard in front of them. The scene was quite subtle, causing many girls to lose their sparkle.

"Where to?" Takahashi Makoto asked.

"supermarket."

"Go to the supermarket to perform and sell tickets?"

"Grocery shopping." Uesugi Maya gave him a disdainful look, took out her phone, and checked the shopping list she had written during her break.

If there's a street performance at night, there won't be time to prepare food, right?

If forced to choose between buying tickets and watching Hell Girl's cooking, Makoto Takahashi would undoubtedly choose the latter, even willing to buy 40 tickets out of his own pocket, just as he was willing to take a taxi to take Haruna Nekoya home.

Besides, an artist whose painting sells for 1000 million US dollars doesn't need to care about such a small amount of money.

"Why do you carry a violin bag when you go grocery shopping?" Makoto Takahashi asked, puzzled.

After rehearsal, seeing Uesugi Maya packing her guitar into her case, he assumed she was going to a street performance that night, which was why she brought her heavy bass.

"Practice at home."

When will you start selling tickets?

"tomorrow."

Uesugi Maya stared at the road ahead, saying calmly, "I forgot to bring the speaker today."

In Makoto Takahashi's view, Maya Uesugi forgetting to bring the speakers for the performance, and Reiko Kashima saying at noon that she didn't sleep well last night, are both low-probability events that are almost impossible.

He suspected that Maya Uesugi lacked the courage to perform on the streets, but he had no evidence.

As soon as they stepped out of the college gate, the two stopped at the same time.

Junka Shiraishi, who missed the afternoon rehearsal, stood under the streetlights that had been lit early in the morning. The dim light enveloped her, giving her a delicate and fragile feeling.

Upon seeing Makoto Takahashi, she hurried over. Just as she was about to speak, she lowered her head under Maya Uesugi's cold gaze: "I'm sorry, I will rehearse as scheduled tomorrow."

On the street near dusk, the overly soft voice, coupled with a hint of timidity and weakness, made Takahashi Makoto feel as if he were facing a harmless little rabbit.

However, Shiraishi Junka is also charming and sexy, and the feeling of being able to manipulate and ravage her at will is an irresistible temptation for any man.

“NiceFold doesn’t need you anymore,” Maya Uesugi said coldly.

“Wait, Maya, I think we can talk to each other.” Takahashi Makoto shook his head at her.

In his view, this was undoubtedly the best opportunity to communicate, especially since Kashima Reiko was still at the academy; the four of them should sit down and have a good talk.

Seeing that Uesugi Maya was about to refuse, Takahashi Makoto immediately added, "You don't want to write an original song that defeats Sachi-nee but then be unable to perform it, do you?"

Having a psychological fastidiousness is actually quite easy to manage. Compared to writing songs for outsiders to perform, Uesugi Maya would definitely prefer to have bands she approves of perform them.

"Tsk." Uesugi Maya frowned unhappily, remaining silent with a cold expression.

Makoto Takahashi understood her personality; if she didn't object, it meant she agreed. So he took out his phone and called Reiko Kashima, inviting her to go to the cafe in the shopping street together.

After Kashima Reiko met up with them, the four of them went to a coffee shop in the shopping street, ordered their food, and sat down in a secluded corner where they could talk.

Shiraishi Junka clung to Takahashi Makoto's side, thus securing the seat next to him, leaving Kashima Reiko to sit across the table from her.

Uesugi Maya has a psychological aversion to germs, so she stood to the side with her arms crossed, offering her seat to her violin bag.

After the waiter brought over three cups of coffee and a glass of water, Makoto Takahashi coughed lightly, glanced at the three of them, and spoke in a gentle tone:

"With four days until the first live performance, I think it's necessary for us to sit down and resolve some issues."

"First question, does the band need a keyboardist?"

Maya Uesugi's gaze toward Junka Shiraishi was filled with hostility, and she said decisively, as if saying more was pointless: "Vote. Raise your hand if you think it's necessary."

Makoto Takahashi immediately raised his hand.

"One vote." Maya Uesugi sneered.

He turned to look at Shiraishi Junka, the timid senior who was drooping her head, studying latte art, probably trying to find artistic inspiration from it.

Well, she probably just doesn't dare to express her opinion.

Makoto Takahashi reached out and grabbed Junko Shiraishi's slender wrist, holding it to his face: "We have two votes now, Maya. If this continues, Sachi-nee's prediction that the band will disband within a few days will definitely come true."

He knew very well that Maya Uesugi and Reiko Kashima were currently only in a working relationship, and that they would eventually have a conflict, at which point the band would only have two people left.

Maya Uesugi wouldn't easily give up the possibility of defeating Yuki Tatsumi, so Makoto Takahashi continued to accompany her in forming a band, finding new members, and then disbanding it, falling into a vicious cycle.

Makoto Takahashi's idea was that instead of tormenting her repeatedly, he should make Maya Uesugi remember once and for all that she had something she could never do alone.

At the same time, it can let Uesugi Maya know that he is a friend she can trust.

“Three votes,” Kashima Reiko suddenly said, raising her hand.

If she had to choose between Maya Uesugi and Makoto Takahashi, she would undoubtedly choose the latter.

“Something that one person could not do has happened,” Makoto Takahashi said.

"Heh." Uesugi Maya sneered, casting a look at him that seemed to say, "Let me see what you're up to."

“I didn’t mean anything by it. I just think that NiceFold should be a community with a shared future. Besides, no one wants the band to break up, so we should communicate better and reduce misunderstandings and friction.”

As soon as Makoto Takahashi finished speaking, the other three had different expressions, but none of them objected.

Uesugi Maya needs a tool to defeat Tachimi Yuki, and she also needs Takahashi Makoto.

Reiko Kashima wants to do what she likes and also wants to play in a band with Makoto Takahashi.

Shiraishi Junka came entirely for Takahashi Makoto. After running away, she returned and insisted on sitting here, which already shows her feelings.

After a moment of silence, Maya Uesugi picked up her coffee, took a sip, and stared sharply at Junka Shiraishi: "If we're going to solve a problem, let's start with the person who has the biggest problem."

"Then let's start with you, Maya."

Makoto Takahashi immediately changed his tone and asked her, "I've never heard you sing before. Even if this live performance is purely instrumental, you can't possibly perform purely instrumental music when you're performing at the Tokyo Dome, can you?"

"Let's talk about this again tonight," Uesugi Maya said, avoiding the topic.

"Let's talk now."

Makoto Takahashi stood up and invited her, "There's also a supermarket in the shopping street. Let's go buy some groceries now."

After saying that, he instructed Kashima Reiko: "I'm entrusting Junko to you, Reiko-senpai. Don't let her run away again."

“Okay.” Kashima Reiko nodded.

Seeing Takahashi Makoto's resolute attitude, Uesugi Maya walked towards the door expressionlessly.

“Put your instrument case on your back,” Makoto Takahashi said.

"We're going to the supermarket to buy groceries."

“The shopping street is very crowded at this time, and the young ladies of Tsurumizawa are not short of money, so street performances are just right. Equipment can be rented from nearby shops.”