They are in the music show, but I am a stranger to them

"After all, if you don't even have the courage to face your former teammates, then you can't expect Li Xi to be of much help, right?"

"……what?"

However, when Aine said this, Shiina Riki felt as if he had been stabbed in the heart. He immediately stopped all his movements and turned around like a ferocious lynx. He said with his teeth bared towards Aine’s back:

"What did you mean by that? What do you mean I don't even have the courage to face my former teammates? What do you mean I can't help much?"

“Don’t be complacent just because Deng was the first to bring you into the band. You don’t even know what our band was like.”

"Oh? What does it look like?"

Aiyin raised her eyebrows when she heard that. Her first concern now was whether Takamatsu Deng was Qi Ge's sister. This had already been verified. So for Aiyin now, the second thing she was concerned about was undoubtedly Chen Qi's past.

If I knew about Brother Qi’s past, perhaps I would be able to understand what the “knot in his heart” is that is bothering Brother Qi.

In this way, not only can I help them get back together in the future, but maybe... my position in Brother Qi's heart will suddenly be no less than Se Deng's?

Let me make it clear first, Aiyin is not reluctant to let Chen Qi leave, nor is she jealous because she knows that Brother Qi has such a lovely sister. She is not that petty.

Aiyin thought that this was just a very common competitive mentality among girls. She just wanted to know that in Qi Ge's heart, as both were sisters, and if they spent the same amount of time together, was she cuter or was Takamatsu Deng cuter?

Under Aiyin's deliberate provocation, Li Xi, who was most susceptible to this, returned to his seat with a cold face. Li Xi looked Aiyin up and down, and when he noticed the piano bag next to Aiyin, he spoke coldly:

"Since Deng invited you to join the band, your guitar skills must be quite impressive."

“But, this wasn’t a big deal in our past bands.”

"In the old days of Crychic, only those who held multiple positions could be considered true leaders. So tell me, Chihaya Aine-san, what else can you do besides playing guitar? Lyrics? Composition? Arrangement?"

“Ritsuki, that…Aine-chan, she really can…”

However, when Takamatsu Deng saw that Riki and Aine were about to quarrel again, he once again intervened in time to interrupt the argument between the two and carefully explained to Riki:

"Lixi, actually, it was after listening to Aine-chan's original song that I made up my mind to form a new band."

"Ah? Her original song?"

However, the news he got from Takamatsu Deng made Riki feel unusually unbelievable. His heart began to sink, and he subconsciously cast a surprised look at Aine.

Original song. This word can be said to make Li Xi react more than Aine's provocation before. Nowadays, Li Xi can't help but recall the person who is almost entirely responsible for the creation of the band when he hears the original song...

The figure that she could never catch up with no matter how hard she tried… the person who had never turned back to look at her, and in the end, she never heard him say a word of explanation.

Is this fate? Even without him, will there still be someone like him who will come to the band and eventually take his place?

Am I destined to be unable to shoulder the responsibilities of a band and to always be an inconspicuous hard worker?

All kinds of thoughts flashed through Lixi's mind the moment she heard that Aiyin had the ability to compose original songs. Lixi gritted her teeth slightly, and suddenly a very familiar emotion surged in her heart, an emotion called "reluctance".

But under Li Xi's gaze, Chihaya Aine, who should have been the person who did something worth bragging about, froze for a moment when she mentioned her "original song". She quickly waved her hand and smiled awkwardly:

"This, this is nothing to brag about, and Tomorin doesn't need to praise me like that."

"Well, after all, creation also depends on inspiration. I can create a slightly better song when inspiration strikes occasionally... But I'm not really good at composing music or writing lyrics..."

How could Aiyin dare to admit it? What could she do to admit it? She only learned guitar from Brother Qi, and it took her a month to learn it, but she didn't think Brother Qi could teach her how to write lyrics and compose music in the same amount of time.

And if I admit it, what if Li Xi throws all the lyrics and music arrangements of the band to her? !

Could it be that I should ask Brother Qi for help again? Aiyin really couldn't bring herself to ask for this...

Therefore, when it comes to writing lyrics or composing music, I must bite the bullet and never do it!

"——That won't do. There aren't many people in a band who can write lyrics or compose music. If you can do it, it's totally unreasonable for you not to help."

However, Aine's resigned attitude, which was completely different from what he had expected, made Shiina Riki slightly stunned...

She had thought that Aine was just like that guy, leaving all the original creation of the band's songs to herself, and just letting them do their own jobs in the band...but that wasn't the case?

It seems that Chihaya Aine is a little more humble than that guy.

No, or rather, Chihaya Aine’s level... compared to that guy, is more like a normal person, a normal genius.

At least, he is not the kind of person that I need to look up to.

Although it was a bit unexpected, such a result was acceptable to Lixi.

Li Xi just flicked the hair beside her ear, concealing the joy of relief in her heart, and said casually:

"However, what you said is not wrong. We are a band, a whole. We are not someone's backing band. We just need to follow the rhythm of the protagonist. For things like creation, we really need to divide the work among everyone."

"It just so happens that I have also learned a little bit about composing music, so I'll leave the lyrics to Deng. If you have any inspiration, feel free to let us know."

"Hey? Li Xi? What you meant just now was..."

However, when Gao Songdeng, who was standing by, heard Li Xi say "We are a band", he reacted belatedly, and there was a hint of surprise in his tone, and he asked Li Xi expectantly and carefully.

This time, Li Xi did not disappoint Gao Songdeng again, but nodded heavily and replied:

"I'll join, Deng, but my purpose is different from yours. I can help you, but not to pass on some sound to him, but to prove the ability of our band."

"I will prove to that guy that I will never lose to anyone, whether it's him or Xiangzi. I will let them see our own glory."

"Lixi - thank you!"

Gao Songdeng was overjoyed and never expected that Li Xi, who she thought was the most difficult to convince, would agree to join her new band so quickly. She immediately bowed to Li Xi to express her deep gratitude.

This bow was not only because Takamatsu Deng was excited that she and Li Xi could resolve their past grievances, but more importantly, she felt that she was getting closer and closer to her brother.

"In this case, we already have three people in the band." Gao Songdeng also stretched out his fingers and counted them one by one:

"Aine-chan is the lead guitar, Riki is the drummer... so, we also need a keyboard player and a bass player, right?"

"We don't necessarily need a keyboard player." After hearing Deng's mumbling, Li Xi took the initiative to say to Gao Song Deng: "Many bands also have two guitarists, one for rhythm and one for lead. Our new band can do the same."

"And more importantly, the lights, the missing bass and guitar, we already have someone selected, right?"

"Lixi, you mean..."

Li Xi's words also made Gao Songdeng realize who she was talking about. Li Xi nodded solemnly, confirming Gao Songdeng's thoughts, and said softly:

"If your first goal is to get the sound to Qi, then Su Shi and He Mu should come to help."

"I remember that they are both at Tsukinomori Girls' School. They should be easier to contact. Let's go and convince them, and then, we can start training right away!"

When she said the last two words, for some reason, Shiina Riki even had a hint of long-awaited excitement, and slightly strengthened her tone. Obviously, she had been suppressing her emotions for a long time, and she had to seize this opportunity to hold her head high.

However, Aiyin on the side was a little confused. She didn't know what happened. The band that had not even started yet suddenly seemed to have solved the problem of members and could start training right away?

Did they successfully form a new band? It didn't seem that difficult.

But for some reason, Aine felt a little uneasy... Especially when she noticed that Shiina Riki was unable to hide his excitement and the sense of urgency about training, which made her inexplicably less confident.

Can I really keep up? How strong was Qi Ge's band?

Chapter 26: Mu and Xiangzi's dialogue again, Nagasaki Suyo's memories

Outside of Tsuki no Mori Girls' College, in a coffee shop not too far away, Wakaba Mutsu, who looked as delicate as a puppet in a dress, had already ordered two cups of black tea and was waiting for the person she had made an appointment with to arrive.

"Bang."

Finally, with the ringing of the shop door, the person Mu was waiting for finally arrived. Toyokawa Shoko was still wearing the same clothes as when they met last time, carrying her schoolbag, and was still as calm as a young lady under the greetings of the shop assistants, and soon came to Mu's side.

"Mu, what do you want to talk to me about today?" Xiangzi just sat down and wanted to get straight to the point and said to Mu:

"I'm a little bit in a hurry, and you said something that was not clear in Line. Why?"

"...Qi, I'm worried about you."

However, Mu had no intention of chatting with Xiangzi about family matters, and she also directly explained the reason why she wanted to see Xiangzi this time. While taking in Xiangzi's slightly changed expression, she continued to ask softly:

"Xiang, why did you hide from Qi last time? You made Qi think that the song he wrote hurt you."

Mu's voice was very soft, but for some reason, every word she said made Xiangzi feel the emotion of "questioning".

After a long silence, Xiangzi said to Mu in a low voice with apologetic tone:

"…I'm sorry, Mu, but I did get a little emotional at the time."

"But, I wasn't hurt by Chen Qi's song. At that time... I just suddenly realized that I still couldn't help Chen Qi, so I was feeling depressed."

Of course, no matter how Xiangzi explained, she did run away at that time. And Xiangzi knew very well that she was not hurt by Chen Qi's creation at that time, but rather, it was Chen Qi's responsibility to bear all the responsibilities alone that was too dazzling to her...

Xiangzi once thought that now that he had lost everything and had to shoulder the burden of a family and ideals, he could understand Chen Qi's feelings. But it was not until the live performance of "Stars" that Xiangzi realized that he was still far from it.

Chen Qi had only known the band's members for less than two days, but his awareness supported him and made him take responsibility for the performance that should have been a failure.

And the final result also proved that Chen Qi, who took on all the responsibilities for the performance, almost single-handedly ended this live show, which should have failed, with the best possible ending.

He had no obligation to do so.

He had many ways to avoid that live performance, such as simply covering a few popular songs or asking her to go on stage with him to help. He could have chosen more conservative options to protect himself.

But he did not do any of that. Instead, he chose to end the band and took full responsibility for the performance with absolute awareness.

This also made Xiangzi involuntarily think of the future and his planned "professional band".

Xiangzi knew very well that with his current financial strength, even if he really organized a band with strength comparable to that of a professional band, a public live performance would be a gamble and he could not afford any mistakes.

If an accident happened, her dream would be shattered like glass, and she herself... would fall into a real abyss from which there is no escape.

And when that time comes, will I still need Chen Qi to help me bear all of this?

No, absolutely not.

She had to pay for her ideals. She had already let Chen Qi down once, and she absolutely couldn't do it again this time.

She also couldn't drag Chen Qi into the same bottomless quagmire as she was in.

"...Xiang, you need to tell Qi these words yourself."

After listening to Xiangzi's thoughts silently and after a brief silence, Mu finally understood Xiangzi's approach.

This Mutou, who had previously refused to give Xiangzi even Chen Qi's contact information, spoke up this time, and said to Xiangzi calmly:

"I can ask Qi to come out and meet you, Xiang."

"…No need, I can handle this all by myself."

However, faced with this opportunity, Xiangzi silently chose to give up after careful consideration.

Xiangzi put down the teacup in his hand. A trace of tiredness between his brows was almost covered up by his proud eyebrows at the moment it appeared, and he was unwilling to reveal even the slightest cowardice.

"Mu, you and Chen Qi don't have to worry about me. The only thing I can do now is to accumulate enough funds for my ideal... Enough funds so that even if I fail, I won't drag anyone down."

"Before this, Mu, please don't tell Chen Qi anything about me."

Mu: "If Qi doesn't know, he will only be more worried."

Xiangzi: "But if Chen Qi knew what I was doing... he would be worried too."

A hint of bitterness flashed across Xiangzi's face. She knew that if Chen Qi knew about her current work intensity and the fact that she had to balance her studies, Chen Qi would definitely not sit idly by. He would definitely try his best to help her and reduce her burden even a little bit.

"But, Mu, you should know better than me, right?"

"Qi has been very tired in the past six months... He may need rest more than me."

"So, please, Mu. Don't tell Chen Qi about my plan. I want to go to see him with my chest held high after everything is fully prepared, okay?"

Xiangzi's last words sounded a little bitter, but she finally swallowed all the bitterness - just like the person she had always wanted to be, she wanted to take on her own responsibilities just like him.

However, it is really tiring to bear everything alone. Xiangzi had only made up his mind for less than a day when he already felt the burden of fatigue.

But, I cannot be seen as weak.

If he couldn't even maintain his last bit of self-esteem, Xiangzi didn't dare to imagine how he would behave in front of Chen Qi.

By then, she might no longer be able to hold her head high and stand by his side as an equal "confidant".

Xiangzi knew very well that she was neither Deng nor his sister, and she could not depend on Chen Qi without any psychological burden. This was her bottom line.

Even if I was exhausted and fell down, I couldn't be greedy for that man's broad shoulders. I had to keep gritting my teeth and maintaining the mask of self-esteem, and keep working hard until the end.

……

Mu: […These are what Xiang is going to do. Qi, I have already told you everything.]

[Xiang, if this continues, she will break down. Qi, what should we do?]

As soon as Xiangzi left, Mu returned to Yuezhisen and sent all the conversations between him and Xiangzi to Chen Qi.

It’s not that Mu doesn’t want to abide by the agreement with Xiangzi, but Mu is more willing to trust Chen Qi’s judgment.

Because Chen Qi’s starting point of consideration is definitely Xiangzi himself.

Not long after Mu sent the message, she felt a little regretful... because she knew that with Chen Qi's personality, it was impossible for him to abandon Xiangzi all alone, and with Chen Qi's current financial strength, it was impossible for him to help Xiangzi.