章節 525: Chapter 525: Those Who Step on Others Are Always Stepped On
"Step, step, step..."
"It's the piece 'Blue Love'!"
As the golden-haired Anthony pressed the piano keys to play, Elina's close friend, Martha, whispered softly, her tone tinged with a hint of envy.
If only Anthony were playing this piece for her...
Elina, however, remained unmoved. She was deeply influenced by her father, Sir Carter Howard, who was known for disliking rules and restrictions, and who valued freedom above all. As a British nobleman, his unconventional views were not openly criticized by other nobles due to his high status.
Elina had similar beliefs because of her father's influence, so she didn't like being coerced. The current situation had a hint of coercion to it, which made her impression of Anthony even worse.
She had already discovered Anthony's true nature as a playboy in an unexpected moment, which made her resistant to his advances. However, due to etiquette and upbringing, she had not shown her displeasure.
Now that this situation had arisen, Elina once again judged Anthony harshly.
Considering that Anthony was a classmate and a member of the piano club, Elina didn't leave in a huff but quietly waited once more.
The piece "Blue Love" was adapted by Paul Mauriat and released in 1967, becoming one of the world's most popular love piano pieces.
Xia Yu also played this piece and had a good skill level.
Hearing Anthony's performance, Xia Yu couldn't help but shake his head in disappointment. Although the piece sounded good to ordinary people and even professional pianists might not notice issues, Xia Yu had quite a bit of experience and could identify several problems in Anthony's performance.
The performance was lackluster, and Xia Yu was not interested in the intricate relationships involving Anthony.
Feeling somewhat bored, Xia Yu began to look around. Perhaps because everyone loves beautiful things, Xia Yu's gaze inevitably fell back on Elina.
With a smile, Xia Yu observed Elina.
Women's intuition is very strong, especially for exceptionally beautiful women.
Sensing someone watching her, Elina turned her head and met Xia Yu's gaze.
When she saw a foreign boy looking at her with admiration and then smiling at her when she noticed him, Elina decided not to dwell on it and returned a polite smile to Xia Yu.
After Elina turned away, Xia Yu also shifted his gaze back to the stage, slightly shrugging as if self-deprecatingly acknowledging that he had been caught peeking.
However, this scene was fortuitously noticed by a third person, Anthony. While playing, he was looking at Elina with affectionate eyes but saw her "exchanging glances" with Xia Yu, which made him quite displeased.
Anthony knew that Elina had not smiled at him many times! He shot a deep glance at Xia Yu, who was looking back at him and shrugging with a mocking smile.
This made Anthony's anger flare up, but since he was still performing, he had to suppress his temper.
Xia Yu was unaware of all this; if he had known, he would definitely feel wronged.
Xia Yu turned his gaze back to Li Xi, only to see her listening intently but with a slightly strange expression, her brows furrowed and face showing signs of distress.
Just as Xia Yu was about to ask her what was wrong, Anthony's performance ended, and he stood up to bow to the audience.
Immediately, there was a burst of enthusiastic applause. Anthony tilted his chin somewhat smugly, seemingly enjoying the moment.
When he saw the decibel meter on the table reach ninety-one decibels, his smile widened even more. He looked at Elina with deep affection, while Elina turned her gaze away to other directions.
Soon, the host excitedly announced the result, and the atmosphere became even livelier. Anthony, full of pride, walked briskly towards Elina.
"Xi Xi, what was wrong with you just now?"
Xia Yu asked Li Xi.
Li Xi smiled sweetly and said, "I felt that his playing wasn't very good. Your piano playing is the best. When we get home, could you play it for me? I haven't heard you play the piano for a long time. Play that piece 'Dream Wedding'!"
As she spoke, Li Xi remembered the events that happened and a charming blush appeared on her cheeks.
Xia Yu immediately smiled, pinching Li Xi's nose affectionately and said, "I know my wife's piano playing is the best. I'll play it for you when we get home!"
At that moment, the plump man clapping in front of Xia Yu, who could understand Chinese, turned around with a somewhat rough voice and said to Xia Yu, "Hey, boy, if you think you play better than that gentleman, you can go up too. That gentleman was so brave; you can prove your skill to your girlfriend. Go for it!"
As he spoke, the plump man winked at Xia Yu and made a gesture of encouragement.
The plump man's enthusiastic attitude made Xia Yu dumbfounded, then he found it both amusing and annoying.
However, since the plump man's words were meant in good spirit, Xia Yu politely replied in English, "No, the current atmosphere isn't suitable. I'd prefer to play at home."
The plump man looked at Anthony, who had walked to the side, and at Elina and others, and nodded regretfully.
The plump man's loud comments were unfortunately heard by Anthony. He glanced at Xia Yu and Li Xi, and was captivated by Li Xi's figure, unable to resist looking twice.
Xia Yu frowned, stepped in front of Anthony to block his view, and gave him a cold glare, making Anthony unhappy. Thinking of the recent events, Anthony was very irritated and wished he could deal with Xia Yu.
However, Elina was still more important, so Anthony withdrew his gaze and started to fawn over Elina.
"Xi Xi, let's go."
Seeing that Anthony no longer looked over, Xia Yu said to Li Xi.
"Hmm!"
Li Xi nodded obediently, holding Xia Yu's hand. As they took a few steps, Anthony stealthily stepped on Xia Yu's foot while praising Elina.
"… Elina, do you know those two people just now?"
"No? Well, I thought you knew them. They seemed to be piano experts. He even said he plays better than me. How is that possible? He looks like an Asian, and Asians don't understand piano music…"
Hearing this, Li Xi became displeased. Anthony's playing was already inferior to Xia Yu's, and now he had stepped on Xia Yu for no reason, which was intolerable!
Although Li Xi was very gentle by nature, even the gentlest person has a breaking point, and Xia Yu was Li Xi's breaking point.
She stopped and said to Anthony in English, "You didn't play well. My boyfriend plays ten times, a hundred times better than you!"
Li Xi's angry words surprised Xia Yu. He looked back at Li Xi's angry expression and frowned at Anthony, who appeared awkward.
Elina glanced at the awkward Anthony with slight disdain. Talking behind someone's back and getting caught by the person's girlfriend was poor character!
Seeing Elina's expression, Anthony became anxious. Seeing Xia Yu and recalling Xia Yu's earlier mockery and the "glances" with Elina, he disregarded noble etiquette and anxiously said to Elina, "Elina, let me explain. They were talking behind my back first. They're just bragging. They look younger than me and are from the musical wasteland of Asia. How could they know?"
"Anthony Ballin, please calm down. Have you forgotten etiquette? We shouldn't have prejudices against others."
Elina frowned and reminded him by calling his name directly.
"I apologize for my companion's behavior. Please forgive us!"
Elina said apologetically to Xia Yu and Li Xi.
"It's okay!"
Elina's apology surprised Xia Yu. He looked at Elina with higher regard and thought she was such a polite girl, then he smiled and said.
Xia Yu looked at Li Xi, who was biting her lip and looking at him with a somewhat apologetic expression for her impulsiveness.
Xia Yu was touched. He tightened Li Xi's small hand and gently said, "Wait for me a moment!"
After speaking, Xia Yu glanced around, noticing that everyone's attention was on them and Elina and Anthony.
Xia Yu first gave Elina a slight smile, then his smile faded. With a cold expression, he said to Anthony, "My girlfriend is right. Your performance was indeed mediocre."
Then, as Anthony was about to explode, Xia Yu walked out of the crowd and headed toward the stage, under Elina's somewhat stunned gaze.
"Wow!"
"How interesting…"
Xia Yu's actions attracted everyone's attention, and there was a burst of astonishment from the crowd. Especially Xia Yu's yellow skin surprised everyone.
The plump man, one of the instigators, who had witnessed the whole event, now held his head in disbelief, feeling that the situation was beyond his expectation.
"Oh my god, I really didn't mean it…"
The plump man muttered to himself, looking at Xia Yu's back.
"But this is quite strange, isn't it…"
The plump man shrugged and shook his head, then turned his gaze back to the stage.
Xia Yu's sudden appearance on stage left the host at a loss. He hesitated, wanting to approach but saw Xia Yu shaking his head, and then Xia Yu directly sat on the piano bench, his fingers gently touching the keys, closing his eyes to prepare.
Seeing this, the host could only awkwardly leave.
The room fell silent
. The sound of Anthony's recent performance was still echoing in the hall, and Xia Yu's sudden appearance made everyone quite curious about what he would do next.
Xia Yu started playing a tune, and the melodious sound of "Dream Wedding" began to fill the room.
The atmosphere became serene and beautiful. Xia Yu's elegant and precise playing style made everyone feel like they were in a dreamlike world. The long and powerful melody resonated throughout the hall, calming people's restless hearts.
The audience was mesmerized, and even Elina, who had just been arguing with Anthony, looked at Xia Yu with amazement. She had heard the piece before but had never heard it played so beautifully.
Anthony's face grew increasingly dark. The more Xia Yu played, the more intense his feelings of frustration and embarrassment became. He had never expected that Xia Yu, whom he had looked down upon, would play the piano so remarkably!
Gradually, Xia Yu's playing brought the performance to its peak. The high-pitched notes seemed to break through the constraints of time and space, evoking a beautiful and touching moment.
When the last note fell, Xia Yu finished the performance.
For a moment, the hall fell into a deep silence, and then there was a wave of thunderous applause. The audience was captivated by Xia Yu's performance, and their enthusiastic claps and cheers echoed throughout the hall.
Elina stood in shock. She had never seen such a perfect piano performance before. Her admiration for Xia Yu reached its peak.
Anthony was completely humiliated. He stood motionless, feeling a mix of embarrassment and anger. He had initially mocked Xia Yu and underestimated his piano skills, only to be embarrassed in front of everyone.
Elina looked at Xia Yu with gratitude and admiration, while Xia Yu simply smiled and walked back to Li Xi's side.
Li Xi smiled at Xia Yu, her eyes full of love and pride. She held Xia Yu's hand tightly, feeling incredibly happy.
Elina approached Xia Yu, her expression a mixture of admiration and apology. "Your performance was truly amazing. I didn't expect you to be so skilled. I apologize for my earlier misunderstanding."
"It's alright. I'm glad you enjoyed the performance."
Xia Yu smiled at Elina, shaking her hand gently to show his politeness.
"Well, this situation is truly interesting. What a fantastic performance!"
The plump man, who had instigated the incident, came over and praised Xia Yu enthusiastically. Xia Yu thanked him and smiled, feeling a bit awkward but also satisfied.
As the audience's applause subsided, Xia Yu and Li Xi left the hall hand in hand, while Elina and Anthony remained behind.
Elina looked at Anthony, who was still feeling embarrassed and said, "Maybe you should improve your skills and work on your attitude. Today's incident was a lesson for all of us."
Anthony was silent, reflecting on his behavior. He realized that stepping on others would eventually lead to being stepped on himself.
每周推薦票狀態
-- 推薦票
榜單 
-- 推薦票