A mixture of dread and trepidation seized Ling Ke as he sat at the back of the multi-purpose hall watching all the spectacular performances and wonderful rapport between the teammates. Each performance was accompanied by loud applause, which only heightened Ling Ke’s uneasiness.

The person-in-charge would announce the results after the performance has ended and those who did not perform well would immediately be eliminated.

There were a pair, a girl and a boy, who were performing a song. However, the continuous mistakes in the girl’s singing led to the pair being eliminated. This was despite the fact that the boy had actually performed quite well. The boy was indignant. “I feel that this compet.i.tion is really unfair.”

The person-in-charge whom Jiang Ying had called “Teacher w.a.n.g” raised his eyebrows. “How is it unfair?”

The boy fumed, “I would not have been eliminated if I had a less inferior partner.”

The girl seemed to be feeling guilty. Her head was bowed down and tears were welling in her eyes.

The students were whispering softly to each other. Most of them were sympathetic to the boy. They felt that he had been impeded by the girl’s mediocre abilities. Teacher w.a.n.g told one of his colleagues to talk to the girl who looked like she was going to cry. That colleague happened to be the men that was going to interview Ling Ke but went to the toilet.

“Don’t be nervous, let’s chat for awhile.” Li Xuan said gently to the girl.

The girl originally s.h.i.+ed away from him. Yet, miraculously, after a few words of exchange, she started to relax and towards the end, they were already chatting happily like old pals.

Li Xuan walked down the stage after five minutes. The boy had witnessed the whole process. He was both envious and embarra.s.sed, but Teacher w.a.n.g had not finish his evaluation on their performance.

Teacher w.a.n.g tapped the table with his pen. There was a shadow of a smile on his face. “Did you see that? A host is not just someone who is good at performing, but rather someone who is good at interacting with his teammates. You were the one who was unable to cooperate with the girl and bring out her potential. Not only did you not help you, you even managed to worsen her feelings of anxiety. Did you think that her inferior performance would emphasize your talented self? No, it simply emphasizes your selfishness. That is the reason why I chose to eliminate you. Is there still any problem?”

The age of the oldest partic.i.p.ant was only fourteen/fifteen years old. They were stunned by Teacher w.a.n.g’s ruthless criticism

All of the partic.i.p.ants were talented individuals. They were either pampered by their family, or wors.h.i.+ped by their schoolmates due to their talents. Being chosen to enter this compet.i.tion had further boosted their sense of superiority . They had never met with such harsh reproval before.

The boy’s face had already reddened to the likeliness of a tomato. He stormed out of the hall angrily before slamming the door behind him.

Teacher w.a.n.g sighed. “Such an impertinent fellow. No doubt, he has been pampered.”

Just at this moment, Ling Ke heard a few girls gasped in surprise.

He turned around and saw that another boy had entered the hall

He was dressed in casual clothes and was holding a violin in his hands. His cold gaze swept through the crowd.

Ling Ke was startled. Upon seeing the person’ face, he was stupefied.

…Qi Feng?

The girls’ surprise came from the person’s handsome appearance. Despite the fact that most of the students chosen in this compet.i.tion were beautiful, their beauty could not be compared to Qi Feng – not because of Qi Feng’s superior appearance, but also because of the strong aura that he was emitting.

Most people who did not have much experience standing in front of a crowd would be nervous to enter the waiting hall.  This included Ling Ke. From the moment he had stepped into the broadcasting studio, he was already feeling tense. Every meeting with a new person would make him stiffen further.

However, the boy who had walked in did not. He was very calm. Even under so many pairs of eyes, he was not even the slightest bit affected. Many students felt oppressed under the aura Qi Feng was giving out. They could not help thinking: A strong compet.i.tor had arrived!

Compared to them, Ling Ke was even more surprised. His mouth was agape as he stared at that familiar figure.

That person was indeed Qi Feng. Even though they have not seen each other for one and a half years, but for the past four months, Ling Ke had been constantly browsing through his webpage – “Feng’s Island”.

There are many people in this world who looked alike, but Ling Ke did not believe for a second that there was anyone who could look like Qi Feng.

Jiang Ying stood up and immediately gestured for Qi Feng to sit beside her.

This scene seemed to answer the students’s doubt. The audience were even noiser. This was obviously another person who had entered the compet.i.tion because of his connections.

The poor guy who had just left after being eliminated…it was not even one minute and he had already been long forgotten because of Qi Feng’s presence.

Teacher w.a.n.g shouted for everyone to quieten down, before calling out the next group.

The judges were sitting at the first row. As there were no seats in front, Qi Feng was able to put his violin aside and stretch his legs as he stared at the performances indifferently.

Ling Ke was sitting at the back. He was both happy and nervous. At the same time he could not help wondering why Qi Feng was here.

Did he come here to partic.i.p.ate in the compet.i.tion? Yes, he knows how to play the piano…but why did he only come here now?

Remembering Jiang Ying’s att.i.tute towards himself previously, Ling Ke could not help guessing wildly…maybe Teacher Jiang and Qi Feng know each other? Then Jiang Ying told Ling Ke to continue staying here so that he could pair up with Qi Feng? However, both of them play the piano…

Ling Ke suddenly remembered that Qi Feng had brought in a violin.

He stared at Qi Feng’s back. He was surprised. Qi Feng even know how to play the violin.

As far as he know, Qi Feng knew how to was adept in all types of weird sports, as well as in the area of art, Chinese chess and poetry; not to mention the piano and now…even the violin…wtf, how did this person had so much time to play so much stuff?

This was simply too ridiculous!

Realizing that he will be performing together with Qi Feng, Ling Ke’s heart started beating faster.

…Will Qi Feng recognize him?

He unconsciously touched his nose. To be honest, his appearance had not change much.

Most people started growing at the start of middle school. In fact, most of the people around Ling Ke had been growing so fast, they seemed to be sporting a different appearance each day. His cla.s.s even had a guy who grew so much in the time span of a month that he probably a chance of beating the record of the growth of a bamboo. Sadly, Ling Ke had not yet reached his growth spurt. He had only grown a measly three centimeters since graduating from elementary school.

Upon thinking about this, Ling Ke could not help feeling frustrated.

There were not many people left. After another twenty minutes, most people’s performance had ended.

Except for Ling Ke’s.

Teacher w.a.n.g turned around and asked, “Where is the student without the partner? You can come up here now.”

Ling Ke felt everyone looking at him as he nervously walked to the front. He did not dare to look at Qi Feng in the eye, but from the periphery of his view, he could see Qi Feng and Jiang Ying standing up together. This further confirmed his suspicions about their relations.h.i.+p.

As Ling Ke walked towards them, his mind was still in a mess. He thought about what face he should make if Qi Feng recognize him. Should he take the initiative to introduce himself just like how Qi Feng talked to him?

However, when he raised his head to look at Qi Feng, he was met with a pair of blank eyes.

Yes, the person looked at him as though he was seeing him for the first time. His eyes did not even show the slightest hint of recognition and curiosity. In fact, he did not even seem to be interested in knowing him.

Ling Ke felt a sense of emptiness. His original antic.i.p.ation and nervousness had faded away instantly.

–Qi Feng had long forgotten him.

Even though Ling Ke had already been mentally prepared for this, he was unable to bring himself to accept this cruel reality.

Especially since he had been feeling so anxious about whether Qi Feng would or would not recognize him…

Ling Ke was in a daze as he stood in front of Qi Feng. He heard Jiang Ying’s voice rang out in front of him. “Since one of you is playing the piano and the other the piano, it will be a good combination. I will give you both three minutes to perform. The piece you play is up to your choice.”

Qi Feng did not bother speaking to Ling Ke. He simply grabbed the violin before turning towards the stage.

This was totally different from Ling Ke’s first impression of him. In his memories, Qi Feng was a warm and friendly person, whose bright presence could light up the atmosphere instantly. However, the Qi Feng in front of him was cold and apathetic. It was like he had totally changed into a new person in the span of one and a half year.

However, the most annoying thing was not Qi Feng’s att.i.tude but rather his height.

Ling Ke had seen Qi Feng’s photos and he knew that Qi Feng had grown taller. But only now when he was standing in front of Qi Feng, could he really feel the difference in their height.

Qi Feng was taller than him by half a head!

Even though they were almost about the same height just a year and a half ago…

Now Ling Ke did not only feel that he was inferior to Qi Feng mentally, he also felt inferior physically…

There was a piano on the stage. Ling Ke immediately sat in front of the piano and gave Qi Feng an equally cold gaze.

He know that his att.i.tude was because of Qi Feng’s apathy towards him, but he could not hide the vexation in his heart.

Qi Feng did not mind him. “What are you playing?”

There was a tinge of antic.i.p.ation in his voice.

Ling Ke could not help lowering his voice. “Beethoven’s <>>

Qi Feng nodded. “I will do the accompaniment as you play.”

His voice was flat.

Ling Ke took a deep breath to calm himself down, before he started playing the piano.

A mellifluous melody weaved through the air. After a while, Qi Feng also started playing the violin. Ling Ke was a bit startled by this sudden addition and his nervousness caused him to press a wrong key.

Qi Feng also stopped playing and looked at him emotionlessly. “Again?” Ling Ke blushed. He did not dare to be distracted again.

The melodious tune produced by Qi Feng’s violin blended harmoniously and naturally with Ling Ke’s piano music; just like milk that gradually diffuses into the coffee and integrates itself into the rich brown color.

Ling Ke was fascinated. This was the first time that he had played the piano with an accompaniment, and it sounded surprisingly good.

However, this sense of joy was immediately suppressed.

He was discontented. Extremely discontented.

Qi Feng already doesn’t remember him. So, why is he the only one unable to let go of the past?

Just like an…idiot.

He suddenly felt very thankful that he had not spoken to Qi Feng through his QQ account, and even more relieved that he had not accidentally called out the person’s name when they met just now.

The harmonious music continued to play in the air, but Ling Ke’s heart was in a mess.

He could not think straight. Without bothering to notify Qi Feng, he had switch abruptly to another piece.

Qi Feng’s instantly stopped playing. He stared questioningly at Ling Ke, before asking with some hesitation, “Schumer <>> ?”

Ling Ke raised his eyebrows. He was awed by Qi Feng’s ability to recognize the piece immediately. However, since he had also learned the piano, it was not something really surprising.

The piece was considered Grade 10 level. Just four months ago, Ling Ke was playing the piece at least ten times a day. Hence he had already mastered this piece such that he even had the confidence to be able to play it perfectly with his eyes close.

The piece started off at its climax. The complex techniques involved in the piece allowed him to have no qualms and release his suppressed emotions.

He looked at Qi Feng as he played furiously. His gaze filled with childish provocation.

—-Hey, I am playing so fast; can you catch up to my speed?

—-Didn’t you already forget about me?

—–Do you think two can’t play this game? I shall also pretend I don’t know you! In fact, I don’t think I have ever seen you before!

Qi Feng immediately poised his violin and started to chase after Ling Ke’s speed.

Ling Ke was startled. Wanting to shake off the other person, Ling Ke started playing even faster.

Qi Feng gave up on the consecutive short notes and instead chose to play long notes, such that they were able to smoothly complement those fast notes coming from the piano. As Qi Feng’s music relentlessly followed after Ling Ke’s music, the two melody were eventually able to harmoniously merge together into a single mellifluous tune.

Ling Ke’s heart started thumping wildly. He was both excited and terrified. There was also a sense of inexplicable defeat.

Why is it that Qi Feng is so good at everything; Why is there someone so perfect…

Ling Ke could no longer be willful. Because he could not stop playing, his piano melody was completely enveloped by Qi Feng’s violin melody such that both could only progress together. He had already forgotten where he was and what he was playing and could only rely on his instincts to continue this melodious harmony.

He gradually started to calm down.

He was not sure whether it was the piano music or their consummate rapport that had calmed him down.

Just like the calm after a raging storm..

He gradually recovered his composure.

Sweat was dripping from Ling Ke’s forehead. His thoughts was jumbled; his fingers trembling from the immersive performance.

The last note was concluded by Qi Feng. He even performed a high level technique.; his posture elegant as he lashed out the high note.

Qi Feng put down the violin. He was a little out of breath. Seeing Ling Ke who also seemed to be breathing heavily, his lips curved upwards. “Your skills aren’t bad.”

“…”

After a moment of silence, the audience erupted into thunderous applause. Their superb technique and perfect rapport had already proven their capability to the audience.

Jiang Ying looked at her colleagues, and as though reaching some consensus, smiled at them and applauded. “That was great.”

However, much to her surprise, she had barely finished her sentence when Ling Ke suddenly stood up.

“Teacher Jiang, I am sorry, but I have decided to drop out.”