Chapter 5 - Dong Yong"s Xiao Qi
In the early morning of Vienna, the sun had just begun to rise. Under the blue sky, people were leisurely bustling along. Both sides of the road were flanked by beautiful tall Chinese parasol trees [1]. The autumn season covered the ground with large leaves, making it look like a golden blanket from afar.
[1] Also known as Wutong (梧桐树木) according to Wiki. Interestingly enough, Wiki also notes that its wood is used for making several types of Chinese instruments.
As Luo Yu Sen came out of the taxi, he was overcome with a wave of people trying to speed across the traffic lights. He cursed to himself as he stood with his violin case on the side of the road, waiting for the light to change.
It had been a week since Luo Yu Sen was released from the police station. Lu Ziwen"s cause of death had been determined to be an acute asthma attack. Luo Yu Sen had a fight with him before, even causing him injury, but in the current medical field there had never been an asthma attack due to fighting [2].
[2] It"s implying that even though Luo had a fight with Lu, they can"t say his fight and the attack co-relate because such a thing has never happened before.
Moreover, Luo Yu Sen had been in tears as he wailed to himself, "Why did I leave the room so soon?" and "Why didn"t I see Lu Ziwen"s condition worsening?" He cried so hard that the police could only release him. There was no evidence that he was the directly related to this accident.
According to Luo Yu Sen"s testimony and the time of death issued by the forensic, shortly after Luo Yu Sen left the lounge Lu Ziwen had an acute asthma attack. Without his medication, his asthma attack became too fierce and he had no way of calling for help. Eventually, he lost consciousness and it led to his death.
"Beep beep—"
The sound was coming from a speeding taxi in front of Luo Yu Sen. He took a step back in fright, almost falling to the ground when suddenly he felt like he was being held. Feeling like his soul left his body, Luo Yu Sen turned his head and saw a blond-haired blue-eyed man staring back at him with a smile as he asked, "Young man, are you okay?"
Luo Yu Sen nodded but he did not thank him. He took advantage of the light and quickly walked across the road, opening and entering the doors of a red European building belonging to the Vienna Symphony Orchestra. Behind him, he did not see the blond man slowly smiling as he gave a thoughtful look at the closed doors.
After a long time, the blond man turned around and left. He walked across the road towards the base of a large Chinese parasol tree. With a laugh he said: "This Luo Yu Sen seems to be… very ordinary. Min, aren"t you thinking about it too much? The police also said he just happened to be in Lu"s lounge and left before his attack."
Under the golden tree, a man with a striking appearance raised his head slightly as he calmly looked towards the trees full of falling leaves. He wore a black outfit whose brand could not be seen, but its excellent craftsmanship concealed his n.o.ble aura. He just stood by the side of the road looking at the tree"s leaves as cars pa.s.sed by behind him.
Realizing he was being ignored the blond man was crying and laughing as he said: "Min, you said you were coming here to check him out. Now you"ve met Luo Yu Sen… d.a.m.n it, why do you Huaxia people have such hard to read names… Why haven"t you spoken since meeting him?"
As a single dried up yellow leaf floated slowly to the ground, Min Chen subconsciously reached out to grasp it. He looked at the leaf that was no longer full of life for a long time. Suddenly, he said: "Daniel. Huaxia has an old saying known as - a curious coincidence [3]."
[3] 无巧不成书 – A metaphor for a lucky occasion. For example, "What a curious coincidence, speak of the devil and he will appear." Something along the lines of that.
Daniel looked at the Min Chen surprised, somewhat puzzled.
"But this… is it really a coincidence?"
The cold and chilly autumn wind completely drowned out the sigh of the man. After a long time, a black Bentley slowly pulled out of the block. The people of the streets still bustled along; only the swaying leaves of the Chinese parasol trees would know what kind of conversation transpired.
At the same time in Huaxia, half a world away, it had just turned noon.
When Zheng Weiqiao learned from his friend that Qi Mu actually got the chance to join the B City Symphony Orchestra, he was somewhat surprised but somehow he also feels this was as expected. Although he knows that Qi Mu was the only one who had not been evaluated by the jury, he somehow knew…
Qi Mu would succeed.
Zheng Weiqiao had not heard Qi Mu play his violin in a long time. He also understands that he has not played in a long time either. The level of Qi Mu ws no longer the same, but he was still confident. He believed in the young man that confidently stated "if B City Symphony Orchestra did not choose him, then it would be nothing out of the ordinary," was definitely not lying.
That being said, but when Zheng Weiqiao drove down to Qi Mu"s house he knocked on the door for a long time he never got a response. He waited for a while before finally calling, only to hear Qi Mu"s surprised voice from the phone: "What? What is Brother Zheng doing at my house? I"ve already at the orchestra."
"……"
How is it that…
This big child won"t listen to his mother figure?! [4]
[4] The original line was " 孩子大了，不听娘话的错觉了？！" I kept getting"娘话" corrected to "娘化" when I was looking it up, so I a.s.sume that"s the right term? It"s… some sort of anime slang I can"t make heads or tails of. I think ZWQ is implying he’s QM’s mother figure…?
When Zheng Weiqiao arrived at the B City Symphony Orchestra, he had just entered the practice room when he saw a well known "stubborn old man" handing a cup of his home-brewed coffee to Qi Mu. As the good-looking young man tactfully rejected him, the people around him laughed as a group.
This atmosphere…
Was annoyingly harmonious.
Hold on, shouldn"t it be that everyone rejects the sudden intrusion from the "genius prodigy"? Then make his life difficult and deliberately exclude him, making him so uncomfortable that he was filled with undying resentment?!
Why was this so different from what he imagined?!
Zheng Weiqiao did not feel good at all.
Qi Mu looked up and saw Zheng Weiqiao standing at the entrance, only to watch Zheng Weiqiao"s complexion turn green. Finally, he heaved a sigh and looked at the "aged old man." Qi Mu could not help but wave with a smile, and raised his voice to call out: "Brother Zheng, I"m over here."
Zheng Weiqiao pa.s.sed by and said a few words to senior members of the orchestra instead. He sat down beside Qi Mu and asked: "Qi Mu… Why didn"t you wait for me today and left straight for the orchestra?"
Hearing this, Qi Mu lifted his pretty eyes to look at Zheng Weiqiao and asked surprised, "Brother Zheng, didn"t you say you were writing the ma.n.u.script for "Music Hall [5]" today? I didn"t want to bother you. It"s also very convenient for me to come here by bus. There"s a station in my neighborhood, so you don"t have to worry about me traveling."
[5] I looked up "音乐殿堂" and"走进音乐殿堂：音乐高考指南"came up. I think it"s basically a guide for entering music programs and such? I"m not sure.
"…" Who is worried about you traveling! He"s afraid you"ll be eaten alive by this skulk of old foxes!
Seeing Zheng Weiqiao"s face with a hesitant expression, Qi Mu searched his face for a moment before he understood what the other person was thinking.
Qi Mu was born in Europe, and has only been to Huaxia a few times during the orchestra"s global tour. Therefore, he naturally was not familiar with the people in Huaxia"s music industry. He was an orphan, and n.o.body knew who his parents were. It could have been two Chinese people who sneaked over to Europe just to throw him away on the side of the road. If it wasn"t for someone getting up early and finding him, he would have frozen to death from the cold winter air.
Growing up in an orphanage, the most important thing to know was how to read faces, how to endure, and how to threaten people a little. At the age of 7, Qi Mu lived in an orphanage peacefully because he was good at reading people"s faces.
Later, when he was adopted by an elderly couple who hadn"t had any children for many years, he gained the opportunity to learn the violin and enter the European music scene. He concealed his talent, and even kept a low profile. The words Luo Yu Sen spoke were not wrong; he did not have any family background or anyone backing him, only relying on himself to survive in Vienna. It was engraved deeply into his nature to give people the best impression of himself so he could have good relationships with others.
However, compared with the arrogant and difficult old foxes in Vienna, these Chinese seniors were really amiable.
Qi Mu silently thought this in his heart.
"Brother Zheng, you don"t have to worry. I"ll handle this myself," Qi Mu said with a smile. "Right, don"t you have to submit the ma.n.u.script today? How is it?"
Zheng Weiqiao looked at Qi Mu oddly for a long time, before finally sighing and said, "You are still young. The teacher entrusted you to us. You don"t have to worry about other things, just practice the violin and work hard. This is what teacher would have wanted."
Hearing this, Qi Mu didn"t know whether to laugh or cry.
Zheng Weiqiao really tried to be kind in Qi Mu"s mother"s place. He really had the courage to be his teacher for the day, but be his father forever [6]… Cough, or maybe more like his mother. People as kind as Zheng Weiqiao were really rare. Compared to Luo Yu Sen, the difference was like heaven and earth.
[6] 一日为师终身为父 - An idiom. It has to do with China"s respect for their teachers; it means that even if this person was your teacher for only a day, you should regard them like your father for the rest of your life.
Qi Mu and Zheng Weiqiao exchanged a few more words. Their words were drowned out when Du Sheng, the lead violinist of B City Symphony Orchestra, entered the practice room.
Du Sheng was Huaxia"s most outstanding violinist, and even had a reputation worldwide. Qi Mu once heard his performance in the Golden Hall. Du Sheng was known for skills and rich performance; his rendition of Mendelssohn"s "Violin Concerto in E Minor," really made Qi Mu open his mouth in praise.
When the conductor is not here, the concertmaster was the one in command of the orchestra. Du Sheng stood on a podium in front of the orchestra and tuned the 1st violins, then turned to tune the 2nd violins. Currently sitting in the 2nd violin"s vice"s seat was a handsome young man. Du Sheng"s gaze stopped at Qi Mu briefly, before he began tuning.
After the tuning the entire orchestra, Du Sheng did not move to pick up his violin. Instead, he smiled and looked at Qi Mu: "Today, we have a new member in our orchestra - Qi Mu. He will take over for Lao Zhang as the vice-violinist for the 2nd violins. Don"t think because of his age that you can bully him. I"ll have you know that Old Tan values Xiao Qi; if Old Tan catches you bullying him, don"t count on me for help!"
When everyone heard Du Sheng’s joke, they all laughed.
The vice-violinist of the 1st violins said smiling, "Teacher Du, you don"t need to tell us that. How could we dare bully Xiao Qi? Xiao Qi is too clever and sensible, it"s too late for us to hurt him. When I first saw him, it was like I was seeing my dear son who just graduated from college." The vice-violinist was a woman over the age of 40.
Hearing these words, Zheng Weiqiao’s eyes widened: Clever and sensible… Do we know the same Qi Mu?
A tuba player from the orchestra laughed and teased, "That"s right; Xiao Qi is so handsome, how could we bully him? Hey Xiao Qi, my daughter"s almost 28 this year, when are you going to move into my house?"
"Hey Old w.a.n.g, you"re so shameless! My daughter"s turning 20 this year, she"s a better match for Xiao Qi! Go away!"
……
Teasing voices echoed in the practice room, right up until Tan Zhenghui entered. Hearing "Xiao Qi" "Xiao Qi" sound incessantly in his ears, the old man wrinkled his brow and gave a cold snort that silenced the whole room.
Du Sheng stepped down from the podium, allowing Old Tan to take his place. Old Tan had just stepped up when he frowned, and asked: "What Xiao Qi Xiao Qi? Where is Xiao Qi? Is Dong Yong here [7]?"
[7] Dong Yong (董永) is a TV show character from Tian Xian Pei (天仙配), or Fairy Couple. Very basically, the youngest of seven fairies travels to the mortal world and falls in love with a man named Dong Yong. Instead of using the Qi in Qi Mu"s name (戚) like the orchestra does, Old Tan uses the Qi for seven (七).
After a moment of silence, there was a sudden burst of laughter.
Qi Mu shook his head, not knowing whether to laugh or cry. But little did he know…
Xiao Qi-ah, Xiao Qi. From now on, you"ll be resigned to let this name will follow you through life.
TL Notes:
- I can"t believe I had to look up types of trees for this chapter. I… don"t know anything about trees apparently lmao. The "Plantae" kingdom that the Chinese parasol tree falls under is a common tree type for like… trees you see on the streets and in neighborhoods, I think.
- The blond man (Daniel) has previously appeared before: he was the man who accompanied Min Chen to the funeral.
- Crying and laughing seems to be used a lot… I"m not going to bother adding notes after the idiom is used.
- Just to be clear, when it talks about Qi Mu"s past in an orphanage, it"s actually Lu Ziwen"s past.
- When tuning, the orchestra usually tunes to the oboe. The oboe plays a starting "A" note, then the group tuning plays their note. Rather than being told to, the musicians themselves make adjustments. From my (very mediocre) high school experience, adjustments can be made in various ways such as turning the tuning pegs in a string instrument, or adjusting the mouthpiece/barrel of a woodwind instrument by pulling it out a bit. I believe bra.s.s instruments have a sliding tube they can adjust too.
There"s more complicated stuff like "concert keys" and stuff, but I"ll just leave that out.
- Both the t.i.tle and the nickname part both use the Qi for seven.
- Also apparently I"m still getting"副首席" wrong omgggg. It"s "vice-violinist" but that"s not really a role. I thought it was just some weird translation and overshot Lu Ziwen"s importance oops. Anyways, I went back and fixed stuff so previous chapters should be fine. It"s not a huge deal really, Lu Ziwen is just important than I thought LOL (not in my heart tho).
I"ve also made this note in previous chapters that although vice-violinist is not a role, the term going to start being used. It"s basically just one step down from "lead violinist". Sorry for the error, but this is the only one that"s been consistently popping up. Now that it’s been addressed it ??? should be smoother sailing from here on out??? Probably?
- please no more modern media terms my mtl skills are too poor
me, in the intro: vienna!!! where is min-, luo what are you doing here.
me, as the blond was talking to someone under the tree: !!!!!!!!
aaaaaaaa min chennnnnnnn
it"s been roughly 4 weeks since I"ve seen him (since I tl this weekly).
min chen… is like my future son-in-law… I can"t help but be happy seeing him…
Also a note that in two weeks (the week of April 22nd to April 28th) there won"t be any updates. I"m busy with something, but I"ll also be taking time that week to reread my translations. There will be an update next week though!! See you then!!!
unedited bcus we regret our mistakes a week later like men.
it’s 2am where i live so that means it"s time to get off the pain train and sleep.