Chapter 67: Li Lao's Praise

  Liu Xiaoting accompanied an elderly man and walked into the restaurant around 6 o'clock, casually choosing a vacant seat in a corner.

  "Professor Li, this is the child I was telling you about. What do you think? I had a hard time finding him." The two of them sat in a corner seat at the restaurant, ordering some food but not eating much. They just sat quietly and listened to Chen Chufan's performance, until after four or five songs, Liu Xiaoting spoke up and asked.

  "Ah!" The old man called Professor Li by Liu Xiaoting shook his head and sighed.

  "What? Doesn't meet your requirements?" Liu Xiaoting asked in surprise, as Chen Chufan had already performed well enough in her opinion.

  "Ah, Xiaoting, you misunderstood. I didn't mean to say that this child isn't good enough! It's just that I'm not capable of teaching him! If he follows me, it will only hold him back and waste his talent!

  Let alone his playing skills, his understanding of music is where he truly excels. Have you noticed that every piece he plays doesn't completely follow the original score? There are many parts where he improvises freely, yet these improvisations aren't inferior to the original score; in fact, some of them are even more perfect than the original! What does this show? It shows that this child has an extremely high talent, rich imagination, and a perfect musical sense! If we really polish him up well, his future prospects will be boundless!"

  Professor Li paused for a moment, then continued: "I think there's really no one in the country who is suitable to be his teacher. If he's willing, I can even try to help him get in touch with schools in M Country and let him go abroad to study. The teaching methods there are more suitable for cultivating pianists with a spiritual nature!"

  Liu Xiaoting was somewhat surprised, although she also highly recognized Chen Chufan's piano level, so she recommended him to Professor Li in front of her. However, she did not expect that Professor Li's evaluation of Chen Chufan would be even higher than hers, and he even humbly admitted that he was not worthy of being Chen Chufan's teacher! Professor Li is one of the top piano masters in the country now.

  "Professor Li, aren't you exaggerating a bit? Is he really that amazing?" So although she was thinking of recommending Chen Chufan to the Professor Li in front of her, she couldn't help but ask a doubting question. This was also because Liu Yuanyuan hadn't met with her yet and hadn't told her about Chen Chufan's astonishing performance when he met with the band today, otherwise she would have been even more surprised.

  "Haha, not a bit of exaggeration, he's just that amazing! I don't know who trained him or if his talent is naturally this astonishing. But I can be sure that his learning process for music definitely didn't follow the rigid domestic routine, his teacher must have discovered his talent and therefore taught in a way that inspired him rather than forcing it down his throat, otherwise he wouldn't have such boundless imagination!" Professor Li said with certainty.

  Professor Li is indeed a master among piano masters, and his analysis is really spot on. Unfortunately, no matter how brilliant he is, he can't guess that Chen Chufan's problem is not that he doesn't have enough musical talent or that he wasn't taught by a master, but rather that he was struck by an alien music gene and passively accepted the music civilization of another world. Of course, this has nothing to do with his musical literacy, it's just that this matter is too science fiction-like, making it impossible for people to imagine.

  "So you're saying I've really struck gold this time?" Liu Xiaoting said with a delighted expression.

  "So I suggest that you go and ask for his opinion, going abroad to systematically study music will be of great help to him." Professor Li nodded and said.

  "What do you think if we invest in him, what's the prospect?" Liu Xiaoting asked closely.

  "Haha, Little Liu, you've asked the wrong person! Your profession is business, while I'm just a teacher. You're asking me about investment, that's like asking a blind man for directions! All I can tell you is that if he really develops his music career, his future achievements will definitely be much higher than mine! As for the return on investment, haha!" Professor Li said with a smile, clearly unwilling to comment on Liu Xiaoting's question.

  "What's more, I heard that he majored in history at Zhongbei Min University. Oh, I really don't know how he ended up choosing to major in history? With his talent, if he had applied to the art department, he would definitely have been accepted by a better university! Look at him now, wasting his potential! His parents didn't even give him proper guidance." Professor Li continued to lament and even began to complain about Chen Chufan's parents.

  It's good that he didn't know Chen Chufan's true nature, otherwise he would have been scared to the point where his eyeballs would have fallen out.

  "So, you're saying that if he focuses on studying music, his future achievements will be better than Li Xiao's?" Liu Xiaoting didn't get the ideal answer and asked in another way. Li Xiao was a student of Professor Li right in front of her, who had just won the first prize in the Chopin International Piano Competition.

  "At least it won't be worse than Xiaoxiao!" Professor Li replied affirmatively.

  "Now that you mention it, I have a plan in mind. However, Professor Li, let's make one thing clear: if I can communicate with him effectively and he agrees to study abroad, then the task of contacting the school will fall on your shoulders!" Liu Xiaoting said with a smile, as if she had already made up her mind about something.

  Professor Li looked at Liu Xiaoting deeply, then continued: "No problem, it's a good seedling. If we don't cultivate it well, it would be a waste. If she really achieves something, and our country produces a top music master in the future, I will also be honored!"

  "It's settled then! Let me toast you first, this meal has been on the table for half a day and we haven't even started yet! Don't you feel hungry?" After finishing the serious talk, Liu Xiaoting elegantly raised her wine glass filled with red wine and gestured to Professor Li before taking a sip.

  Professor Li smiled and they started eating while chatting about some casual topics.

  "Hey, right. You said he's minoring in music, I think it's probably been discovered by Wang Xuhui from Zhongbei Minzu University already. If I rashly encourage him to study abroad, I'm afraid that old Wang will scold me! Snatched his proud disciple, haha!" Professor Li seemed to have suddenly thought of something and spoke up.

  " Wang Xuhui?" Liu Xiaoting apparently had never heard of this name.

  "Ah, the old professor of art at Zhongbei Minzu University, head of teaching. We've been friends for a long time. To think that he discovered such a great talent and didn't even mention it to me! I'll have to give him a call tonight and ask him about it!" Professor Li said with a smile.

  After listening to Professor Li's explanation, Liu Xiaoting smiled and didn't respond, apparently not taking it to heart. The conversation ended there, and the two of them left the restaurant after finishing their meal.

  Chen Chufan was unaware that a prominent figure in the domestic music scene had come to listen to him play, nor did he know that they were even considering suggesting that he study abroad. He was now simply immersed in the joy of playing the piano.

  What's more fortunate is that during the peak dinner hour, four people ordered the designated song. According to the agreement with the club, Chen Chufan would receive a cash reward of 800 yuan. Adding this to his salary of 400 yuan for the 4 hours of work, he would have earned a total of 1200 yuan in one day. This is equivalent to his father's monthly salary after working hard for a month. Thinking about this, Chen Chufan felt a little unsettled, and he even started to seriously consider making money by playing music in the future.

  At 8:30 in the evening, there were not many people left in the restaurant either. The band didn't have anyone come to call him over to collaborate, probably because there wasn't a need for him anywhere. He stopped playing and was about to go check out the situation at the band's place. Coincidentally, just as he was about to get up and head over, a waiter actually called out to him.

  "Hello Mr. Chen, General Manager Liu instructed me to take you to her office for a visit." The waiter said politely to Chen Chufan.

  "Oh? Alright!" Chen Chufan nodded, somewhat unexpectedly. He had been coming here for a while without seeing Liu's wife and thought she wouldn't see him today either. Unexpectedly, just before the end of work, someone came to call him specifically.

  He followed the waiter to Liu Xiaoting's office, where Liu Xiaoting was already sitting upright and waiting for him.

  "Hello, General Manager Liu!" Chen Chufan greeted politely. Deep down, Chen Chufan was very grateful to the woman in front of him, Liu Xiaoting. If it weren't for her, he wouldn't have such a high income, would he?

  "Oh, Little Chen, just call me Aunt Liu, come sit down." Liu Xiaoting gestured for Chen Chufan to sit across from her.

  "Are you still getting used to the work environment?" Liu Xiaoting asked with concern.

  "The environment is quite good and playing the piano feels pretty smooth!" Chen Chufan nodded.

  "That's good! By the way, Xiaochen, have you ever thought of studying abroad?"

  "Study abroad?" Chen Chufan looked at Liu Xiaoting in confusion, he didn't understand why the general manager of Qing Shui Bay Club would suddenly mention this issue that he had never thought about before.

  "What's up, a bit unexpected, right?" Liu Xiaoting smiled and explained to Chen Chufan: "To be honest with you, inviting you to our club as a part-time job also has its reasons. You should know the piano master Li Hande, right?"

  Chen Chufan shook his head in confusion, Li Hande? Who is that? I really don't recognize him!

  Liu Xiaoting was somewhat surprised, Li Lao had such a big name in the music world, and this student who studied music didn't know? Alright, even if you're from the history department, at least you also minored in music, right? You've also learned music with other teachers before, haven't you? Didn't anyone ever tell him about Li Hande's name?

  Putting aside her doubts, Liu Xiaoting had no choice but to introduce this venerable Professor Li to Chen Chufan first.

  "Mr. Li is a renowned piano master in the country and also a very famous music educator, currently serving as a visiting professor of music at W City Tiehan University. You should know that recently won the Chopin International Piano Competition, Li Xiao Xiao, he is one of Mr. Li's students."

  Chen Chufan actually didn't know who Li Xiao was, nor did he understand what the Chopin International Piano Competition was. However, seeing Liu's serious expression, he felt embarrassed to continue saying that he didn't know, so he pretended to be knowledgeable and nodded his head, indicating for Liu to continue speaking.