Chapter 49: Artistic or Handsome

Teacher Wang, sitting on the piano bench, looked to be in his early thirties with neat, short hair. Seeing Li Yan enter, he motioned for him to take a seat. "You're the one who wants to learn the beginner version of *Twinkle, Twinkle, Little Star* Variations in three days?"

Li Yan nodded. "Yes, absolute zero foundation, but I'm pressed for time and need a crash course."

Teacher Wang smiled as well. "A crash course isn't hard, but we'll only keep the simplified melody and a few variations; don't expect anything too complex. You'll need to spend enough time every day practicing fingering, coordinating both hands, and keeping a steady rhythm."

Teacher Wang first taught Li Yan the basic positions on the grand staff: the right hand corresponding to the keys CDEFGAB, and the left hand playing simple chords.

Although Li Yan had no prior foundation, he was young after all, and with some basic knowledge of guitar and music theory, he possessed a certain musical ear and a quick mind.

Teacher Wang demonstrated the simplified melody of *Twinkle, Twinkle*, explaining as he played, "We'll use the right hand for the main melody first, and then add a little left-hand support."

Li Yan sat on the piano bench, cautiously steadying his hands and attempting to press the keys.

During the first few attempts, he missed the pitches, so Teacher Wang tapped his fingertips with the tip of a pen to correct him or made marks on the sheet music.

Li Yan practiced slowly over and over again, and in just half an hour, the backs of his hands began to ache slightly.

Seeing this, Teacher Wang patted him on the shoulder. "Don't rush, take it slow. Practice with hands separate today, and we'll try combining them tomorrow."

After an hour of practice, seeing that Li Yan was grasping things fairly well, Teacher Wang knew that achieving the goal of "being able to play a complete variation version" in three days would be impossible without practicing at home.

"Can you still practice when you get back? Do you have a piano at home?"

Li Yan shook his head. "No, but I plan to buy one."

Of course, Li Yan knew that it was impossible to spend all three days cooped up in the tutoring center; he had to practice at home, so buying a piano was a necessity.

Teacher Wang thought for a moment and pointed to a Yamaha electronic keyboard nearby. "Why don't you buy a digital piano or an electronic keyboard to practice on first? We partner with the music store next door, and their prices are quite reasonable, perfect for beginners. You don't need to invest in a real piano right away; you can get a pretty good electronic keyboard for under tens of thousands."

When Li Yan asked about the price range, Teacher Wang explained, "They range from three thousand to tens of thousands. If your budget is flexible, around twenty thousand will get you a very nice Yamaha digital piano. The key action is close to that of a real piano, and it comes with headphone functionality so it won't disturb the neighbors."

That afternoon after class, Teacher Wang personally took Li Yan to the neighboring music store, where various brands of digital pianos and electronic keyboards hung on the walls.

Seeing Teacher Wang bring someone in, the owner enthusiastically introduced, "This Yamaha CP series is just over thirty thousand. The touch sensitivity and key feel are simulated quite well, and it also has three pedals."

Li Yan casually tested the key resistance and felt it was indeed much more realistic than low-end electronic keyboards, plus the appearance was simple and elegant.

"I'll take this one." Not knowing much about specific models, Li Yan immediately swiped his card to pay.

The owner smiled and said, "Thank you! We'll have it delivered to your home and installed shortly."

Teacher Wang nodded with satisfaction nearby. "With this digital piano, you can practice at home every night. There's still a chance to pull this off in three days."

Of course, Li Yan knew that Teacher Wang definitely received a commission, but Li Yan didn't mind; it was a matter of no consequence.

Carrying the receipt and warranty card provided by the music store, Li Yan returned to the Tianyin Tutoring Center for two more hours of lessons, during which Teacher Wang seized the opportunity to get him to master the right-hand melody.

By six o'clock in the afternoon, Li Yan planned to head home to receive the electronic keyboard.

Before leaving, Teacher Wang didn't forget to instruct, "Come back tomorrow morning, and I'll continue teaching you the left-hand accompaniment and the preliminary variation sections."

Li Yan took a taxi home, his fingers feeling somewhat tired.

In his mind, he replayed the brisk melody of *Twinkle, Twinkle* and the simple variation motifs demonstrated by Teacher Wang over and over again.

He wasn't entirely confident about whether he could succeed within three days, but at least his equipment and environment were all set, so he could only do his best.

When he got home, it was already half past six. The music store staff and the property concierge were waiting downstairs.

Li Yan led them up to his apartment, watched as the staff installed the piano, and after a brief period of tuning, the job was successfully completed.

As the concierge and the music store staff departed, Li Yan looked at the electronic keyboard installed in a corner of the study, and then glanced at the eclectic collection of books left behind by the landlord on the bookshelf.

Only now did the study finally acquire a somewhat literary atmosphere.

Not bad.

Li Yan had eaten a rather substantial lunch and had little appetite in the afternoon. After taking a shower, he sat down before the electronic keyboard once more.

For the sake of skills and good looks, he still needed to work hard!

A bit clumsy, lacking any heavenly tones, and somewhat messy.

This, of course, was the normal standard for a beginner.

Yet Li Yan's posture was still striking just the right notes of poise.

To an untrained eye, one look at his posture might prompt the thought: Ah, a master!

Never mind whether he could play the piano or not; the posture simply had to look dashing.

...

From a little past six all the way until past nine, it was tedious and exhausting.

It was tedious because he received no particularly positive feedback; no complete melody rang out.

It was merely that his fingering had become slightly more fluent and a little less stiff.

As for the exhaustion—sitting on the piano bench for a long time, pressing his fingers endlessly against the keys, his body naturally grew weary.

Li Yan felt that this pace was actually quite acceptable; while there was indeed difficulty in successfully playing the piece within three days, it wasn't as high as he had imagined.

After all, the system's requirement was merely a complete performance, not a graceful one.

As long as he didn't stumble and stutter, it would do.

Li Yan let out a breath, stood up from the piano bench, finished the last drop of whiskey, and walked toward the bathroom.

Notifications from WeChat and QQ had already piled up with many messages.

However, Li Yan had no time to attend to them; right now, naturally, his own task was the most important.

As for the messages, without looking, he knew quite a few freshmen were coming to chat with him.

After all, the red envelopes Li Yan sent out in the QQ group weren't given away for nothing; every time he dropped one, it was worth one or two hundred, and he could send several a day.

For college freshmen, this was already quite generous indeed.

As for the four people who had added him on WeChat, including Wang Wanjun and Liu Qi, plus the other two girls, Liu Xiaoran and Wang Lin—

Upon seeing the latest post in Li Yan's WeChat Moments, even if they didn't quite understand it, they certainly recognized the English letters "Ferrari" on that document.

A Ferrari?

What was this? A Ferrari purchase agreement?

That car sales contract was displayed clearly on the screens of the four girls as they opened Li Yan's WeChat Moments.

Wang Wanjun didn't feel envious. Although her family background wasn't well-off, facing matters that clearly exceeded her own cognition, Wang Wanjun felt no particular yearning in her heart.

Even though most of Wang Wanjun's high school classmates thought she was an otherworldly fairy who didn't touch human food, Wang Wanjun knew herself—what kind of fairy had to take on summer jobs to save up living expenses?

Fortunately, a classmate had introduced her to a summer job at a tutoring center, which was vastly better than working in a restaurant.