Teacher Daxiang, please teach me how to play Kasuga Shadow!

She is still a minor!

Li Xi wanted to explain that what happened between her and Deng was not what happened at all, but then she thought, why should she tell this to a stranger?

And...what does it mean to hold a grudge?

She just felt that forming a band would only continue to hurt Deng, especially with these two unclear people. Her behavior was not wrong at all. Is protecting her good friend also a mistake?

"Let's forget about what happened today. Don't let me see you again!"

After saying those harsh words, Li Xi turned around and left without even looking back, not intending to waste any more time on these two strangers.

Because, I can't argue.

"Ayano...you're amazing."

"Let's go." Ayano rolled her eyes at her, turned around and walked towards the station in a bad mood.

"The little lamp?"

"She can't possibly not go to school, you can just ask her in class tomorrow."

"Yes..."

Aine nodded obediently, then a bright smile appeared on her lips. She ignored Ayano's death stare and hugged her shoulders, refusing to let go.

As he walked, he kept saying, "Ayano is the best."

", "Ayano, your house is very big, I will stay at your place tonight" are some strange words.

This scene was seen by a brown-haired girl who had just crossed the road.

The girl named Nagasaki Suyo raised her eyebrows slightly, stopped in the crowd, looked at the people who were leaving, and wondered what she was thinking.

----------

"There will be a special car to pick you up tomorrow, please rest assured."

"Do you have any questions?"

"call……"

Shoko Toyokawa was once again thankful that she had not encountered a difficult customer. If she had encountered the kind of shrew-like customer who did not speak up and kept making a fuss like last time, she might really have to... continue to endure it.

There's no way around it. That's how customer service is. She can't ensure that every caller is a normal person.

Some people vented their emotions, while some people felt that every word she said was a lie, although Xiangzi herself also felt that as an ordinary part-time customer service representative, she would inevitably lie for her company.

She naturally didn't like this job.

But Xiangzi had no other choice. She couldn't get over that hurdle in her heart. She thought she had nothing left and only dignity could keep her alive.

Because of her dignity, she can maintain her original heart and not be completely lost.

But because she tried so hard to maintain her dignity, she seemed to have lost her original direction.

Shoko Toyokawa walked in the fog, the dim light in her hand illuminating the unclear road ahead and her heart which had not yet completely cooled down.

'Can you teach me?'

As Xiangzi was packing up and preparing to leave work, he suddenly remembered the strange girl he met at school during the day.

She still remembered the name, Mizushima Ayano.

A person who made her feel very frustrated. He was able to compose such a beautiful tune without even learning music theory.

Even playing the piano is achieved through simple memory and imitation. This kind of talent... If she could have utilized it and practiced well when she was young, she might have become a world-class pianist, famous both at home and abroad, right?

Of course, Xiangzi had actually considered Ayano's proposal a long time ago.

Being a piano tutor for others is much better than working as a customer service representative here, both in terms of the compatibility of my hobbies and the speed of making money.

But the advantage of customer service is that no one can see her face, so her current miserable situation will not be discovered by acquaintances she knew before.

It’s different for a piano tutor. There aren’t many people who are both rich and have the free time. She will be easily recognized by others, and then at some unexpected time, everyone will suddenly know that she was once a rich lady, but has fallen to the point of teaching piano at people’s homes.

Ridiculous dignity...

Shoko Toyokawa looked at the road sign not far away and realized that she had unknowingly walked towards her hometown.

Of course, that place no longer belongs to her, but in the future...

Oh, she can’t see what happens in the future.

But...if it's that girl, the one who seems to have no connection with her previous social circle and whose personality doesn't seem like the talkative Mizushima Ayano, maybe it's not impossible to agree to her request?

“…What on earth am I thinking about?”

With a self-deprecating smile, Shoko Toyokawa shook her head and turned to walk towards another station.

However, when she just reached the intersection, she saw a somewhat familiar figure.

Long brown hair, purple eyes, and an expression as calm and elegant as during the day. Except for an unidentified pink creature sticking out beside her, that figure must be the Mizushima Ayano she met in the piano room.

Chapter 5 Xiangzi, are you happy playing the piano?

Mizushima Ayano naturally also saw Toyokawa Shoko on the slope.

However, her expression did not change much. To Ayano, Shoko was just someone she had met once, so when their eyes met, she just nodded slightly without any other movement.

"Hmm? Ayano-chan, do you know that girl?"

Aine, who was holding Ayano's arm, saw her friend's eyes looking at a girl not far away, with a hint of doubt in her eyes.

However, since there were outsiders around, she couldn't act too aggressively. Although she was reluctant to let go of Ayano's arm, which gave her a sense of security, she had to let go of it and stood aside as if nothing had happened.

——If you ignore her little hands that kept scratching her face out of embarrassment.

"So we know each other."

"I know her... Is she in your class?" Curious Aiyin kept gossiping.

"No."

"Is this so..."

Just when Aine was wondering when her Ayano had developed such high sociability, a girl named Toyokawa Shoko had already walked up to the two of them.

Xiangzi nodded slightly, a faint smile on her lips, looking very friendly. With her simple and elegant outfit, she looked like a young lady.

Damn it, Aine always feels an inexplicable sense of oppression from this guy...

"Hello."

"Ah hello."

"..."

ah? Is this gone?

Well, Aiyin is relieved now. Her Ayano has not fallen in love with someone else. Looking at this formulaic way of communicating, it doesn't seem like they have a close relationship.

Buddy.

It's more like a casual acquaintance who you know exists and can't ignore when you meet him.

However, Aine also felt a little regretful, because she really hoped that Ayano could be more cheerful and interact with more different people.

Then one day you will find what you love through communicating and getting along with others.

Although Ayano is good in every way now, she still gives off a sense of being an old woman with no desires or demands. Except when she is with me, she will act a little comfortable and like a real person. Most of the time, she is just a beautiful background that everyone in the school looks at from afar.

In fact, there is nothing wrong in making more good friends. After all, no matter how good those people are, they can't threaten her core position as a childhood sweetheart.

"This is the second time we've met."

"……Um?"

Seeing that Ayano had no intention of leaving with the pink-haired girl beside her, but instead said this inexplicably, Toyokawa Shoko, who was about to leave, suddenly froze in place.

Second meeting?

Oh yes...she did say when she left during the day that she would talk about teaching piano next time they met.

But isn't that an excuse at one glance and a polite refusal at the other?

Shoko Toyokawa was a little unsure what Mizushima Ayano, who didn't seem to talk much, was thinking. She didn't even know if she was playing a deliberate joke on her.

But looking at the girl's expression, it doesn't seem like it.

Toyokawa Shoko had some words on the tip of her tongue. Just when she was about to seriously discuss this issue that she had never taken seriously, she noticed the curious look from the pink-haired girl next to her, and she took back the words.

"Aine, can you go back first?"

"Huh?" Aine was suddenly dumbfounded.

No, why do you want to chase her away?

"Here are the keys." Ayano fished out a keychain from her pocket and placed it in Aine's palm. "Go back and help me cook. If there's an explosion or fire in the kitchen, remember to call the emergency services. Don't worry about your property, just make sure you're safe."

"no……"

Aine was a little confused about what had happened all of a sudden. When she turned to look at the blue-haired girl with twintails who was suspected to be the culprit, she could only see the side profile of the person who had turned away.

There is an affair!

However, her long-standing habit made her choose to trust her friend. When she took the key, she raised her chin in the direction of Toyokawa Shoko.

"..."

“No!” Aine, who was halfway up the slope, suddenly turned around and shouted at Ayano below, “I’m not a kitchen killer!”

"Ha~"

Ayano smiled and watched the girl leave until she disappeared from her sight.

"...I thought you knew I had rejected you that day."

"Really? Then why didn't you just leave, but stood here waiting for me?"

"what?"

The good impression that Shoko Toyokawa had just formed on Ayano Mizushima in front of her began to show signs of breaking down.

Very annoying! This guy is really annoying!

"So do you have this plan to teach me piano?"

Ayano walked towards the direction where Xiangzi was about to leave, and Xiangzi looked at her back speechlessly. After thinking about it, he decided to follow her.

"Why does it have to be me?"

Xiangzi's eyes were a little wary. She had no idea about Ayano's background. Although she had no intention of deliberately making things difficult for her, this feeling of insecurity made her feel a little uneasy.

"Because you seem to be very good at playing the piano, at least better than me, and you're in the class next to mine, so it's convenient and saves me a lot of trouble."

Maybe you can even save money.

"There are so many people who are better than me, more professional than me, or better at teaching than me."

Toyokawa Shoko walked beside Ayano, but didn't look at her profile. "Besides, I'm just a student. I have a lot of things to do, so I don't have much time to teach you."

"Really... Well, forget it then."

"..."

Shoko Toyokawa looked at Ayano who suddenly stopped and she felt like she was going crazy.

Is there something wrong with this person's brain circuit? !

Can't you insist a little longer... Maybe, maybe if you insist a few more sentences, say something that can give her a legitimate reason, such as "This is not teaching, this is music exchange", then maybe she will agree?

"Sorry to bother you, Toyokawa-san. If there's nothing else, I'll leave."

"……etc."

"Anything else?"

Ayano, who had just turned around and was about to walk back, tilted her head and asked calmly.

"I..." Xiangzi pinched the folds of her skirt with her right hand hidden behind her back, her face slightly lowered as if she was thinking about something difficult. "Actually, you can go to the piano club at school first, and then learn some music theory on the Internet."

"Ah... that's too much trouble."

Ayano raised her head, looked at the sky above her head, and said in a lazy tone, "Actually, I don't really want to learn the piano that much, so let's just leave it at that."

"That's it?!"

Toyokawa Shoko started to frown when she heard the drawn-out "too much trouble". Finally, she heard that this extremely talented girl would fight for such a small matter.