"Don't ask me when I'll cross the mountains and plains to be by your side... because that day is today..." Lu Xiaoshu's final heartfelt hum earned applause from a few customers in the coffee shop.
Yang Yi also smiled slightly, clapping for them.
"Thank you! Thank you!" Lu Xiaoshu and Miao Chuan pressed their palms together, bowing to the "audience." Initially a bit nervous, they were pleasantly surprised by the affirmation, their youthful faces beaming with happy smiles.
"You sang really well!" a childish voice chimed in.
Lu Xiaoshu and Miao Chuan looked down to see a delicate, adorable little girl. Dressed in a gauze skirt and pants combo with a long top, the girl was a perfect match of clothes enhancing her and her enhancing the clothes—bright and charming. They knew she was the boss's daughter, so they scratched their heads and smiled sheepishly.
Even getting praised by a kid!
"Our Xixi rarely compliments people, so your song must be pretty good! What's it called?" Yang Yi affectionately ruffled his daughter's hair before looking up and asking with a smile.
Xixi felt both happy and shy at being praised by her dad in front of strangers. She giggled, pulled down his big hand, and twisted away to run off. Xiaoguai and Duoduo followed closely behind.
The little gray ears that had been curiously poking into the bar and nibbling at Yang Yi's pant leg perked up at the commotion, then scurried out to catch up with the others.
"The song is called 'Today,' and A Chuan wrote it," Lu Xiaoshu quickly replied.
"A Shu helped with the composition—he's really strong at arranging. A company once wanted to hire him just for that," Miao Chuan added, praising his companion.
Yang Yi, while brewing their coffee, smiled slightly and said, "Oh, really? Why didn't you go?"
Lu Xiaoshu looked a bit embarrassed. "I didn't want to just do arranging. I still prefer singing."
"Mm, your voice is quite good," Yang Yi nodded. "It'd be a shame not to sing."
In truth, Yang Yi was a bit envious of Lu Xiaoshu's voice—it could handle almost any folk song and wouldn't sound worse than the original! Just like how many people enjoy Zuo Li's versions, a young male singer's clean voice is still more appealing than a weathered uncle's!
"The problem is I'm ugly," Lu Xiaoshu said helplessly. "I sent demo tapes to record labels before, and they asked me to try out, but when they saw me in person, they shook their heads and said this face isn't fit for a star..."
Indeed, Lu Xiaoshu was very ordinary-looking—not particularly ugly, but definitely not handsome. In contrast, Yang Yi could have been considered a ruggedly handsome guy in the past, while Lu Xiaoshu wouldn't be seen as handsome in any era.
Miao Chuan was similar; the two probably shared the same plight...
Yang Yi didn't like comforting adults—he felt grown-ups should have their own resilience—but he still managed to say, "It's okay. The path of music has never been smooth. Stick to your dreams and keep going; I believe you'll succeed!"
"Thank you!" Lu Xiaoshu and Miao Chuan both nodded.
Yang Yi had finished his task and brought out two cups still wafting white steam: "Santos, my treat. Try it!"
Santos was much more expensive than Mocha. Lu Xiaoshu paused for a moment but then nodded casually, smiling, "Alright, thanks, boss!"
"Oh, by the way!" Yang Yi stopped them, smiling slightly. "I have a small, unpolished suggestion about your song—feel free to ignore it if it doesn't work for you. Consider changing that long, somewhat showy melody at the end. I think a clean loop of two or three notes, creating an effect of lingering sound, would be better."
This suggestion immediately plunged Lu Xiaoshu and Miao Chuan into deep thought. True music fanatics, they forgot to respond to Yang Yi, standing dazed with their coffee before heading to a booth, sitting face-to-face in contemplative silence.
Yang Yi shook his head, unconcerned.
Over there, it took a while for Lu Xiaoshu and Miao Chuan to snap out of it.
"A Chuan, it seems the boss has a point," Lu Xiaoshu said, his fingers moving in the air above the table as if plucking guitar strings.
"Mm, it's not your fault. When I wrote it, I wanted to make the emotion more intense toward the end, so there's a bit of a rock element," Miao Chuan nodded.
"Hey, drink the coffee before it gets cold," Lu Xiaoshu said, helping Miao Chuan open the sugar jar to add some. "But I'm pretty surprised. I didn't expect the boss to know so much about music. I wonder if he writes songs—I'd love to chat with him!"
The shop was now playing a record again, the surround-sound hi-fi system delivering the pure instrumental melody to perfection. Some customers were so captivated they didn't want to leave!
"Probably not?" Miao Chuan took a sip of coffee, his eyes lighting up.
The Santos coffee had a great mouthfeel—bitterness and acidity were just right. Yang Yi sourced the freshest beans, leaving a lingering fragrance on the palate, with a natural freshness reminiscent of lemon, grape, and apple!
Miao Chuan continued, "People who enjoy listening to music don't necessarily write it! But I think the boss is someone with a musical dream. His encouragement earlier was really well said!"
"Mm!" Lu Xiaoshu was busy savoring the coffee, knowing a thing or two about it—sniffing, tasting—too occupied to talk.
...
That evening, Yang Yi drove with Xixi to pick up Mo Fei.
After a few days apart, he missed her dearly.
But just as Yang Yi was gazing at Mo Fei with deep affection, she caught his look and couldn't help bursting into laughter, then doubled over, clutching her stomach, unable to stand up.
This left Yang Yi utterly baffled. He even touched his face—no rice grains stuck there?
"Is Mommy's tummy hurting?" Xixi leaned in, looking at her mom with concern.
How could they know? Mo Fei was laughing because she remembered the comic photo Yang Yi had sent her that morning as usual.
It was still the "shapes of love" series, but this time the little white figure was cheekily sticking out its butt, with a heart shape floating behind it: "Even a fart is shaped like love!"
That morning, she and Mo Xiaojuan had been in stitches, nearly laughing themselves into cramps!
After picking up Mo Fei, Yang Yi did his usual disguise, making her look still pretty but not recognizable as Mo Fei.
"Ugh, I still don't like Mommy's look!" Xixi pouted at the end. "Mommy is prettier the other way!"
Mo Fei lifted her chin slightly, looking at Yang Yi with pride, her eyes telling him: "See? I'm naturally beautiful, good-looking on my own!"
But Yang Yi, looking into Mo Fei's eyes, remembered something. He opened the car's glove compartment and pulled out a pair of glasses that looked like ordinary reading glasses with thin frames, putting them on Mo Fei: "There, now no one will recognize you! I guarantee, even Mo Xiaojuan wouldn't know you if she stood right in front of you!"
"A bit ugly, these glasses," Mo Fei couldn't help criticizing, even though they were non-prescription.
"They're meant to look plain and ordinary! If you wore those flashy bug-eye sunglasses, more people would stare, wondering if you're a celebrity," Yang Yi explained seriously.
Fine, such a straight guy...