Chapter Forty-Three: Norma’s Memories

By the time they arrived at the Lantern Woods, Huang Yong was in the basement teaching Wang Ou and Su Yuxi how to play guitar, while Chen Haoran remained as diligent as ever, practicing his double bass drum. Cheng Xiaoyu handed Huang Yong the guitar scores for six songs he’d written the previous night: “Song of Drawing the Sword,” “Huangpu River,” “Snail,” “Courage,” as well as Mayday’s “In the Summer Light Years” and Faye Wong’s “Hypnosis,” both of which he had transcribed just last night.

Having been a resident musician at a bar in his previous life, Cheng Xiaoyu knew well the essential skills one must master: 1) The ability to read functional notation. 2) The skill to improvise along with harmonies. 3) The ability to transcribe music by ear. 4) A large repertoire of popular songs. 5) An understanding and control of timbre. 6) Good sight-reading.

Why are these skills necessary? Because when a bar band introduces new songs, the volume is high and the schedule tight; there’s no time for rehearsals. You get the music, listen to the song a few times, and have to play it straight away. After running through it with the singer twice, as long as the singer is satisfied, you wait for the performance. Both the guitarist and keyboardist must be able to support the entire band alone—if one fails, the other must step up. Keen ears are a must; if there’s no sheet music, you must be able to follow the others, especially the bass.

So, six songs to rehearse over two days really wasn’t much for Huang Yong. He was actually quite excited to get the scores—he’d wanted to learn them for a while but never felt comfortable asking Cheng Xiaoyu.

Cheng Xiaoyu and Chen Haoran had the easiest time. Cheng Xiaoyu could play these pieces with his eyes closed. As for Chen Haoran, the drum parts for these new songs were so simple that he found them almost insulting; as long as he paid some attention to coordination with the band, the playing itself was child’s play.

The real pressure was on Xia Shamo. She had no experience singing in bars, and several of the songs were quite challenging to sing. Yet, one had to admit, Xia Shamo possessed a natural talent for singing. Not only was her technique solid, but her ability to grasp and internalize feedback was remarkable. Every time Cheng Xiaoyu pointed out a shortcoming, her improvement was obvious the very next time she sang.

Two seasoned bar musicians, a genius drummer, and a girl who transformed into an invincible soprano when she sang—watching them, Wang Ou was left utterly dumbfounded. He could only lament that he was still a rookie, unable to join them on stage.

At the end of rehearsal, Wang Ou’s face was a picture of envy and longing. At first, he’d learned guitar for fun, then to fit in; now, he pursued it out of a deep yearning. Such is the power of music. When you can perfectly perform a song on your instrument, there’s a self-satisfying thrill, almost addictive. If, hypothetically, there’s a crowd of wild fans below, that sense of euphoria becomes overwhelming. On stage, you are king of the world; anything you want is yours. Of course, to reach that level requires not only technical mastery but also powerful stage presence and charisma.

Because Xia Shamo had to rush home to cook, rehearsal ended a little after five. The intensity of these sessions was tough on her voice, too. Cheng Xiaoyu offered her some advice on protecting her vocal cords and urged her to take care.

The five agreed to meet for rehearsal after lunch the next day and then parted ways.

Tomorrow would be their debut at Lantern Woods.

So absorbed had Cheng Xiaoyu been in rehearsal that he only noticed the unread messages on his phone once he was on his way home.

One was from Ji Yunyun: “Sorry, I posted your work on the bulletin board today without asking. If it caused you any trouble, I apologize.”

Cheng Xiaoyu casually replied with a smiley face, and added, “No worries. I’d be thrilled to be rumored with a beauty!” But then, thinking better of it, he changed it to a simple, “It’s fine,” making his tone more detached.

The next was from Tang Wenqian: “Hey, what are you up to, girl?” Since he didn’t reply, she followed up with an angry face emoji. The rest of her messages were a string of expressive emojis.

Cheng Xiaoyu replied, “Sorry! I was out winter swimming with my buddies and didn’t have my phone on me.”

Before Ji Yunyun could respond, Tang Wenqian’s reply came in first—a barrage of question marks, shocked faces, and, “Don’t tell me you were in the Huangpu River!”

Cheng Xiaoyu answered, “Haha, no, I was sailing the seas of music! Our little band is performing tomorrow night at a bar near Fudan—are you coming?” He was genuinely curious about this girl, whom he knew only online; she’d never sent a photo, and he’d never had the nerve to ask for one, wanting to keep up the pretense of their roles.

“Which bar? If I have time, I’ll definitely come!” she replied.

“Lantern Woods, in the Fudan bar district. My classmate’s brother owns it. If you come, the drinks are on me!”

“Haha, you’re not trying to get a minor drunk, are you?”

“Come on, just don’t get any funny ideas about me. I see you as my bestie!” replied Cheng Xiaoyu.

“Then perform well! I’ll sneak in and watch—you won’t recognize me anyway.”

“Just wait, if I see you, I’ll know it’s you,” he replied.

“No way, impossible.”

“Wanna bet?”

“Even if you guess right, I won’t admit it. What’s the point?”

“You’re not going to play dirty, are you?”

“Haha, you got me—I’m just that shameless. Still, this could be fun. Tell you what: if you guess right, I’ll agree to one request from you. If you guess wrong, you owe me one.”

“Fine, but you have to tell me you’re coming, or else I’ll be guessing blindly.”

“Agreed! But if you’re sure who I am, you have to give me a rose in front of everyone at the bar. If it’s not me, I’ll stand up and reveal myself. If it is me, no one will stand up.”

“You’re not going to bring a girlfriend to mess with me, are you?”

“I’ll show you my student ID—there’s only one of those!”

Cheng Xiaoyu thought about it and decided no one would go to such lengths to play a prank on him, so he agreed: “Deal.”

He didn’t know that Xu Qinning really was mischievous enough to cook up such a trick. She replied, “Deal,” and immediately contacted the real Tang Wenqian.

Cheng Xiaoyu exchanged a few more casual messages with Ji Yunyun, then drove home.

Xu Qinning, meanwhile, was waging her own campaign at home for her allowance rights, playing the obedient child, which meant she wasn’t staying over at Su Yuxi’s.

This gave Cheng Xiaoyu a real sense of relief; life felt manageable for once. The psychological shadow left by that she-devil was deep and indelible. Little did he know he still wouldn’t escape Xu Qinning’s machinations.

When Cheng Xiaoyu got home, Su Yuxi was practicing piano in the music room. He paused and listened for a moment—it was Liszt’s “Reminiscences de Norma,” one of the ten most difficult piano pieces ever. Liszt had adapted it from Bellini’s opera “Norma.”

The opera’s most renowned aria is “Casta Diva.” The story is set in 50 BC, during the Roman conquest of Gaul. The high priest Oroveso rallies his people to resist the Romans. His daughter, Norma, the chief priestess, has fallen in love with the Roman proconsul Pollione, and has borne him two children. But Pollione has now fallen for the young priestess Adalgisa and intends to elope with her to Rome. Wracked with guilt, Adalgisa confesses to Norma. Enraged, Norma considers killing her children but cannot bring herself to do it, instead asking Adalgisa to take them to Pollione. Moved by Norma’s pain, Adalgisa promises to reject Pollione. But Pollione is resolute—he loves only Adalgisa, driving Norma to fury and a call to arms. Pollione is captured as he tries to rescue Adalgisa; Norma tells him she will save him if he gives up Adalgisa, but he refuses, asking only that Norma forgive her. Norma, in her rage, declares that a woman who has betrayed her homeland must be sacrificed to the gods—only to reveal that the woman is herself. She walks bravely to the pyre, and, at last, Pollione, moved by her love, joins her in death. It’s an epic tragedy of love and destruction, but in the fifteen-minute piano piece, it’s hard to fully sense the agony of love, friendship, betrayal, country, family, and faith all intertwined.

Cheng Xiaoyu didn’t dare linger in the passionate, tragic music and went to the dining room. After a quick meal, he returned to his room, racking his brain for more suitable songs to use. With his thoughts in a jumble, he wrote a bit, then went downstairs to check on the nearly finished recording studio, and finally went to bed. In his dreams, he returned to that familiar time and place, meeting those familiar people once more.

Early the next morning, after breakfast, Cheng Xiaoyu headed to the Fudan practice room for piano practice, not daring to slack off for even a moment—especially after recognizing the gap between his skills and Su Yuxi’s. He practiced with utmost focus until noon, grabbed a quick bite, and made his way to Lantern Woods.

He thought he’d arrived early but found himself the last to show up. Embarrassed, he just smiled, said nothing, and took his place behind the keyboard to signal rehearsal.

Clearly, Xia Shamo had practiced the new songs again the night before. Today, she sang far better than yesterday: her emotional control, breathing, and sense of rhythm were all much improved.

The four rehearsed tirelessly all afternoon. Later, Cheng Xiaoyu had Xia Shamo sing softly, focusing on timing her entries and coordinating with the band.

As dinnertime approached, Xia Shamo hopped on her bike to ride home and cook. Cheng Xiaoyu texted her: “Remember to wear your contacts tonight. I’ve got makeup; I’ll help you out. And make sure to wear your school uniform!”

“School uniform? Why?” she replied, surprised. She’d planned to wear her mother’s old clothes, thinking to look more mature.

Cheng Xiaoyu didn’t want to explain too clearly. After all, barflies love the schoolgirl look—seeing a stunning Xia Shamo in a student uniform, she’d be unbeatable on stage, no matter how she sang! But he couldn’t admit such a base thought, so he replied, “We’re a student band, right? The best way to show that is with school uniforms—keeps the theme clear.”

Xia Shamo, of course, didn’t understand the old-man logic and simply replied, “Okay, see you later.” He didn’t answer again.

Huang Yong took Cheng Xiaoyu, Wang Ou, and Chen Haoran to try the “Number One Rice Bowl” at Jiaotong University. Some departments hadn’t started their vacation yet, so there were still plenty of people around. Other than the oblivious Chen Haoran, the other three rated every pretty girl they spotted. Cheng Xiaoyu found few to his taste; none passed muster. Huang Yong and Wang Ou had much lower standards—if the girl had a nice figure and a big chest, she was a beauty, which left Cheng Xiaoyu speechless. Thinking of his debate with Su Yuxi the night before, he had to admit that most men were as she’d said—creatures ruled by their lower halves.

When the four returned to Lantern Woods after their meal, there were already posters for their performance set up outside the bar. The photo, provided by Wang Ou, was from the New Year’s gala, showing Xia Shamo singing under a spotlight. He’d captured a great moment.

In the photo, Xia Shamo grips the mic stand with both hands, diamond-like tears glinting on her face as she gazes ahead with gentle eyes. Her pearl-white cheongsam accentuates her graceful curves, and the crystal shoes on her feet add an unbeatable queenly flair. Cheng Xiaoyu and Chen Haoran, of course, were barely background details.

Beneath the photo, bold black letters declared: “Shanghai’s Strongest College Band ‘Guilty Crown’—Tonight at 9, don’t miss us at Lantern Woods! For reservations call 021—”

Wang Ou stood at the entrance, grinning proudly at his handiwork.

Cheng Xiaoyu just shook his head with a smile and went with Chen Haoran down to the basement.