When Min Chen just started speaking, there was noise in the background of the call, and Qi Mu could faintly hear Daniel’s laughter. After a while, Min Chen seemed to have gone away to find a secluded place. Only the man’s soft breaths and the hiss of electrical current could be heard from the phone’s speaker.
Qi Mu stopped playing the piano. With a soft smile, he asked, “Is the celebration over?”
Min Chen gently nodded. “Well, I’m going to send the others home with Daniel and Christole. Today is New Year’s Eve, and they are going home for dinner and reunion.”
After hearing this, Qi Mu leaned on the edge of the piano and curiously asked, “The rest of Bai Ai’s members have gone back… What about you? I remember hearing Daniel say that your parents lived in Berlin, do you want to go back?”
Only a dim wall lamp was lit in the music room, but the moonlight filtering in from the French windows was even brighter than it was. Qi Mu only listened to Min Chen’s gentle “Um,” and waited for him to continue, “After sending the others back, I will also go home.” After a pause, he added, “Did you not spend the New Year Countdown with Lance?”
“Mr. Lance never goes to bed after 11 o’clock, so I didn’t want to disturb him. By the way, guess what I was doing just now? Well… I will allow you to ask for a hint.”
Min Chen raised his eyebrows and took the opportunity to prompt him. “Where are you?”
A smile flashing in his light-colored eyes, Qi Mu calmly said, “I am in the music room.”
Min Chen thought for a moment and said, “You’re not practicing the violin.”
Hearing this, Qi Mu was stunned. Subconsciously, he asked, “Why do you say I’m not practicing the violin?”
“You answered the phone in only a second. I think… You’re not practicing the violin.”
Qi Mu shrugged helplessly when the man discovered his trap and avoided the topic. “Well, guess what I’m doing?”
After a lengthy silence across the line, Qi Mu thought that he wouldn’t answer. He only heard the man’s voice affirmatively a.n.a.lyzing, “The phone is very close to you. There are only two possibilities: first, you are holding it in your hand; second, you had it at your fingertips.”
Hearing this, a surprised smile lit Qi Mu’s face. “Continue, Min Chen-Holmes.”
“There’s nothing else in the music room, and you don’t like playing with your cell phone. So…”
Min Chen trailed off, and Qi Mu’s curiosity was suspended. He couldn’t believe it. The man could guess that he was playing the piano just then.
But, the next second, Min Chen chopped the nail and sliced the iron on his path. “Just now, you were standing in front of the window, holding your mobile phone, just about to call me.” After a pause, he calmly added, “You miss me.”
Qi Mu: “…Shameless?”
Min Chen: “…”
Calling Min Chen always made Qi Mu feel like he met a whole new person. For example, someone who was really arrogant, and someone who was narcissistic to a point.
Considering that the thick faced, narcissistic man was the conductor who had just produced a brilliant symphony onstage, Qi Mu really felt that G.o.d had made a mistake. He’d thrown some talents that shouldn’t belong to the man at the wrong target.
Qi Mu took his cell phone and continued to chat with the shameless man. When Min Chen needed to send the Bai Ai members away, he hung up the phone.
Within minutes, Qi Mu received a text message.
Min Chen: 【Go to bed early, don’t wait for the countdown. Happy New Year ahead of time… Next year.】
With a smile, Qi Mu said: 【Happy new year, our next year together.】
Despite that, what happened all day made Qi Mu excited. How could he sleep so easily? When he heard the big clock in the center of Vienna ring 12 times, there was a burst of cheering throughout the city, even on the 27th floor.
He couldn’t help sending another text message before midnight. 【I can’t sleep. Why didn’t you ask me whether I pa.s.sed the recruitment meeting for Wei Ai today?】Then, Qi Mu put down his cell phone.
Just as he was antic.i.p.ating the man to reply the next morning, his cell phone suddenly hummed and started to vibrate. Qi Mu picked it up in surprise.
Min Chen: 【I believe in you. Go to sleep quickly, and I’ll go to Wei Ai tomorrow. 】The simple sentence, “I believe in you,” calmed Qi Mu’s restless mood. Looking at the short text on his cell phone, he could practically see the man in the dark, solemnly replying to the text message.
The young man’s lips curled upwards. He said, “Good night,” and soon fell into a deep sleep.
In the dark, quiet bedroom, on the wide, 2-meter bed, only a thin young man lay on one side. Alone, he slowly slipped into his sleep. Although he was the only person, he didn’t feel lonely. Still, he tightly hugged the pillows on either side of him, sleeping sweetly.
The next day, Qi Mu took Dorenza’s invitation letter and immediately listened to Wei Ai’s New Year’s concert. Instead of leaving through the gate like other audiences, Qi Mu went backstage of the Friends of Music a.s.sociation building under the leadership of the staff. He entered a preparation room that was both familiar and unfamiliar.
He was familiar with it because it was the last place he saw before he died, and unfamiliar because of the people in there who had faces lit with welcoming smiles. Everyone hid behind Dorenza to smile at him, but did not dare to cross the “terrifying moat (of Dorenza)” by even half a step.
Just after a grand concert, Dorenza didn’t even wear his tuxedo, so he stood directly backstage to welcome Qi Mu.
As soon as they met, he gave Qi Mu a big hug and smiled as he said, “Little Seven, it’s great to see you here! From today on, we are a family. When we met with the orchestra members yesterday afternoon, everyone in Wei Ai saw your video from the recruitment meeting. We almost all pa.s.sed your recruitment decision. On behalf of everyone, I want to welcome you!”
As he spoke, Dorenza gave Qi Mu a warm hug. But, before he released his hand, he heard Anthony cough twice and say, “Dorenza, when do we need you to represent us? It’s a great pleasure for Little Seven to come to our big family. Let’s welcome him together!”
“Yes, Dorenza, I’m looking forward to today.”
“Yes, yes, Little seven, I thought you were a lovely child ever since I spoke to you at the last celebration!”
“Little Seven, it’s good that you can join us. I really like your 《The Dance of the Goblins》, and the third movement of the 《D Major》 yesterday was also very, very good!”
……
Originally, Dorenza wanted all the members of Wei Ai to give Qi Mu a big hug as a way to welcome him into the Wei Ai family. Who knew that under the leadership of his “bad demonstration”, the Wei Ai members who “didn’t need him to represent them” came forward one after another, each one needing an individual welcome hug.
Qi Mu hugged the lovely, gentle members, then looked at Dorenza, who was also helpless.
If there was a good tempered conductor, he was it.
If you were in Wei Ai…
You had to hold Little Seven?
The conductor’s cold, piercing eyes have long been looking through my heart, okay!
After formally meeting with the orchestra members, Qi Mu followed Dorenza and Tuckman, the orchestra’s agent, to Wei Ai’s conference room to get his offer of appointment.
Generally speaking, the formal appointment time was one to two years, depending on the specific strength of the musicians. After all, sometimes the orchestra developed too fast, and the musicians couldn’t keep up with its rhythm, so they could be mercilessly abandoned.
In order to pursue the best music, everyone could only keep improving and striving for more.
Qi Mu originally thought that he should get a one-year employment contract. After all, he just joined the orchestra, and even got the position of deputy chief. In a few months, he was likely to be promoted to chief. Such a cautious and important matter should make Wei Ai’s senior management think more about it.
But what Qi Mu didn’t expect was the handwritten marks on the letter of appointment reading, “18 months”!
Not two years, not one year, but 18 months!
In such a medium time, Qi Mu was not given a two-year employment contract because he was still young and didn’t have enough qualifications. The other reason was that Dorenza took into account the excellent strength of the child’s violin and his unlimited future.
On the first page of the contract, the name Eberg Dorenza had been signed on the left, with a s.p.a.ce on the right for Qi Mu to sign it.
Qi Mu looked at the handwriting a few more times in disbelief. His eyebrows creased slightly. Glancing up at the smiling Dorenza, he asked, “Mr. Dorenza, it’s really 18 months?”
You know, when Christole, Bai Ai’s violin chief signed the contract with Bai Ai, he only got an employment term of one year, and he also got the appointment letter for deputy chief!
On the contrary, although Qi Mu was signing for the appointment letter of deputy chief, there was a small line left at the bottom——
『The transfer of relevant personnel shall be decided by voting at the orchestra general meeting. 』
It was very likely that Qi Mu would be removed from the position of vice chief, to become… chief!
Listening to the young man’s tentative words, Dorenza chuckled, “Little Seven, please believe your eyes. This is the timeline that all members of the orchestra have unanimously decided to pa.s.s. You can turn to the back of the employment letter, and there are four or five pages with each member’s autograph.”
After hearing his speech, Qi Mu quickly turned back. Sure enough, after the detailed agreement, there were several pages with the signatures of all the members of the orchestra. Wei Ai was a democratic and fair orchestra. Naturally, such a major matter must be recognized by the members of the orchestra.
By that time, Qi Mu couldn’t believe it anymore and understood what happened.
“Mr. Dorenza, thank you for your trust, thank you for the trust of the orchestra.”
“I will try my best not to let everyone down!”
That night, Qi Mu took the thick agreement and carefully looked over it. He read every word, and was moved by the inclusiveness and openness of the orchestra.
Wei Ai had given him trust, and naturally, he had to pay it back!
The next day, Qi Mu sent his signed agreement to the Friends of Music a.s.sociation building.
When the three-day New Year’s holiday ended, the handsome, beautiful man stood in the s.p.a.cious entrance. He carefully traced the lapel of his jacket with his fingertips. His eyes were full of confidence, and his delicate, ink-dyed eyebrows were full of expectations for the future. His posture was straight and elegant, drawing everyone’s gaze.
After confirming that he was ready, Qi Mu picked up the violin box and opened the door.
In a flash, the golden sunlight filled the room, symbolizing a beautiful tomorrow.