### Chapter 384: Echo of Sound
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#### Six Days Ago
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Ding-dong!
Gan Yan Yu pressed the doorbell.
The door opened, and standing there was a middle-aged woman who, upon seeing Gan Yan Yu, broke into a surprised smile.
“Gan Yan Yu?”
“Do you know me?” Gan Yan Yu was quite bewildered.
“Of course!”
The woman looked rather weary, but managed to squeeze out a smile.
“I’ve always been paying attention to that person in the cello competition this year… I, of course, watched it.”
Both knew who this “person” referred to, so they didn’t need to say any more words.
After walking inside, the woman went to pour tea for Gan Yan Yu.
After asking if she could sit on the sofa, Gan Yan Yu sat down, placing her hands neatly on her legs.
She took this time to look around the room.
The house was clean and tidy, clearly well-kept. The living room only had a few pieces of furniture besides the main sofa and TV; it appeared like a regular household. From the shoes outside, it seemed the woman lived alone.
However, the most eye-catching thing in the living room was the cello hanging on the wall.
Gan Yan Yu raised her head and gazed at the cello for a long time.
Until the woman handed over the hot tea, she hastily accepted and murmured a soft “thank you.”
Gan Yan Yu took a sip and then carefully placed the cup on the table with both hands.
“How is he doing?” the woman asked suddenly.
Gan Yan Yu looked up, and the woman’s weathered face revealed an intense and eager look.
“He’s doing very well,” Gan Yan Yu blurted out immediately, as if trying to hide her own confusion.
In fact, what did she truly know?
Just a story about a young man from Beijing who wandered around.
It was pure sympathy for the lady sitting across from her that made her blurt it out.
“He’s playing with me and my partner,” Gan Yan Yu sighed, visibly relieved.
“We’ll take good care of him.”
Gan Yan Yu paused. Taking a deep breath, she continued,
“Has he never come back?”
“Never once,” replied the woman.
As Gan Yan Yu’s expression froze in shock, the woman looked up to the living room.
“In this city, old Bai and I ran businesses our entire lives, only to end up with nothing in the end. Bai Wei’ang didn’t want Junze to follow in our footsteps,” she began, her voice carrying a heavy regret. “He wished Junze would stay here and be a teacher, lead a quiet life.”
Perhaps they hadn’t communicated properly; perhaps Bai Wei’ang was too extreme, eventually pushing Junze away.
Listening to this, Gan Yan Yu’s frown deepened.
She turned and looked at where the woman was looking. Suddenly, memories from ten years ago came flooding back.
On that day,
the father and son argued intensely.
The young Bai Junze loudly expounded his dream of becoming a cellist to his father, describing a beautiful dream.
His father, however, cursed at him furiously.
He held Junze’s cello high, then slammed it violently onto the ground.
“Crash!”
The cello shattered.
Bai Junze’s eyes became hollow; he ignored his father and ran out the door, starting his lonely journey.
During this journey, Junze suffered greatly, facing immense loneliness and mental torture.
Even after two years, winning the provincial championship and advancing to the finals, he still hasn’t returned home.
“I understand,” the old woman continued. “Junze hates us, hates his father. If staying at home means only pain, maybe going out is better.”
Gan Yan Yu, biting her lip, recalled her own family.
Maybe their family had similar conflicts before.
“That awful man was hard to handle. He was such a despicable person,” she added, her gaze shifting upward, “That’s why his bad karma caught up with him.”
Gan Yan Yu looked up and saw a picture of an elderly man on the wall.
“Old Bai never recovered after Junze left.”
“He worked hard to glue the broken cello together with tape. Every day he’d sit there, muttering, ‘When will Junze come back? He needs to know we’re sorry, he can do anything he wants.'”
At that moment, while the woman was cursing, the corners of her deeply wrinkled eyes began to water,
“In the end, he kept saying those things until he passed away, never seeing Junze.”
Without a word, Gan Yan Yu stood up.
Before leaving, the woman gave her the taped-up cello.
“This is useless to us. If you don’t mind, take it.”
Gan Yan Yu took the cello seriously. She looked at it and strummed the strings gently—it was surprisingly solid compared to its appearance.
Then, Gan Yan Yu left.
—
At that moment,
On stage.
Bai Junze caressed his cello, murmuring softly.
“What a b*stard, how could you d*e first?”
“Why wouldn’t you tell me until the end?”
There was a tenderness in Bai Junze’s eyes, rare for him. Just then,
Mao Weiang was finishing his solo performance.
The audience, still entranced by his playing, finally noticed Bai Junze taking the stage.
He placed the cello in front of him. This sudden action caused quite a stir among the audience:
“What’s wrong with that cello? It looks terrible!”
“Why’s it covered in so much tape? Can it even play?”
“Bai Junze always loved decorating his cello with colorful lights. Why use something like this?”
“Is he okay? He usually looks energetic!”
These puzzled expressions were understandable. They had never seen someone with a cello taped up like this.
If anyone else had done it, people might have laughed.
But this was Bai Junze!
People weren’t used to Bai Junze playing a taped cello or putting lights on it.
So many possibilities…
“Artistic performance?”
“Definitely some big surprise!”
“Ha, if he can do that in a competition, imagine at a concert!”
“Maybe the cello will explode half-way!”
“If it does, I bet Bai Junze has fireworks ready for us.”
“They’ll destroy the harmony, but that’s so like him!”
Thinking about all the chaos to come,
Some were giggling already.
After all, this was Bai Junze, whose reputation preceded him!
Honestly, many were surprised just hearing Bai Junze agree to perform.
Not showing something weird wouldn’t be fitting!
In the midst of whispers,
Bai Junze remained stoic,
as Mao Weiang’s cello finally fell silent. He calmly picked up the baton, pulling the bow.
At the first note, silence fell.
The strings trembled, giving out a hoarse sound, a deep wooden thud, like a dull echo of pain.
“.”
“What the heck?!”
Yao Han jumped from his seat and stared, eyes wide,
“Is Bai Junze’s cello really like that?!”
From the moment the cello came out, Yao Han felt a chill.
This performance was so steady, calm, like a gentle river…
Where was Bai Junze’s wild energy?
“He must have changed a lot.”
He Shu Mo nodded thoughtfully.
“But let’s wait. The show’s only beginning.”
“There could be bigger surprises later.”
He tried to calm Yao Han’s excited emotions.
He understood; after seeing Mao Weiang’s performance, Bai Junze’s odd behavior was unexpected.
“Wait and see…”
Meanwhile,
The climax of the cello performance arrived.
Unexpectedly,
Bai Junze started playing roughly, with subdued, forced notes.
The music rose abruptly, full of deep emotion,
Overwhelming the audience!
Everyone felt a heavy wave of pain and love.
They gasped, hearts aching,
“A fine instrument!”
Zhang Dong exclaimed.
However,
In another office,
Someone lost their cool entirely.
“What the hell? Are you all going soft?!”
Yao Han couldn’t hold back anymore and cursed.
Such heartfelt performance,
could come from anyone.
Except Bai Junze!
Yao Han couldn’t bear it.
What on earth did Lin Tian do to Junze in that foot bath place?!
What exactly did they put in that bathwater?!
This wasn’t the kind of complex sound Bai Junze would normally produce!
“What did Teachers Lin Tian and Gan Yan Yu do?”
Hearing this,
He Shumo couldn’t contain his laughter,
It’s getting better!
Now he regrets not being there in person,
“Miracle! This is a miracle!”
She always did these unnecessary things.
Just then,
Lin Tian, playing piano, smiled,
“I had urgent business to attend.”
Surprisingly, he traveled thousands of miles to Bai Junze’s hometown,
Bringing back a cello.
“In the corridor,” Lin Tian teased Gan Yan Yu,
“Next time, tell me. We can go together. A pretty, young girl traveling alone could be dangerous.”
Gan Yan Yu looked like a scolded child, fingers fidgeting,
“But, you’re too busy… You finish songs, train everyone, you can’t worry about everything.”
“I want to prove I can do things without you.”
She looked up at Lin Tian and crossed her arms,
“Sometimes, I want you to rely on me a bit more.”
Earlier, during their practice session,
Lin Tian understood Bai Junze’s feelings towards his father weren’t simply hatred or anger.
Most times,
his music reflected self-loathing,
matching his chaotic life.
He hated his past so deeply that he wanted to punish his father.
Ten years of hatred,
now had different meanings;
like a child wanting attention through misbehavior.
Deeply connected by emotion,
under his wild facade.
Though ten years and a wandering life aged him into a rough, weary man,
he was still a rebel at heart.
Bai Junze tenderly caressed his cello.
Each note he played was delicate, as if fearing the fragile cello might break.
Familiar melodies,
yet conveyed new warmth and maturity.
A seasoned warrior,
but also with a youthful naivety.
Everyone felt a mixture of a battle-hardened veteran and a fresh young soldier.
He had left with ambitions and fire,
Only to return exhausted and wounded.
Yet, he was here. Back.
Changed, he matured overnight.
But, no one was left to notice.
“Why do I think of my dad…”
someone in the audience sobbed.
Such deep devotion,
buried and painful.
Like a tribute to past wounds.
Many shed tears.
“Never expected Bai Junze’s performance could be so steady.”
“He seems more mature!”
“Did someone pass away?”
“He’s less crazy now but still charming!”
“Aren’t today’s performances all different?”
And with Bai Junze’s cello nearing the end,
the quartet was near completion.
(The End)
