Chapter 156: Despicable Outsider
“When I go up to play piano later, you go pull the circuit breaker.”
“Me?”
Qi Luo An pointed at herself in slight surprise, then looked around. In all her life, she had never seen such a request…
“In the sudden silence and darkness, only my piano sound flows out quietly like moonlight. How about it?”
Starlight piercing through the clouds in the darkness—this is the protagonist of an entertainment novel.
“Pretty good, fusion of scenery and emotion makes the audience listen in rapture.” Qi Luo An rolled her eyes at him in annoyance. “Then let me ask you, if I go to jail, can you bail me out?”
“I can… come visit you in prison every year.”
“Then why the hell are you saying that.”
Willing to risk life for program effect, huh? This kid actually came up with it—try it and you’re done for. He wouldn’t even dare think of it himself.
Yu Wei was of course just joking. There’s nothing to say to someone who hasn’t seen Armor Hero…
Inside the venue, the lights gradually dimmed, and the host’s voice rang out in the darkness: “Welcome to the award ceremony closing performance of the 50th Louvain International Film Festival!”
The male host and female host went through the usual nonsense that no one wants to hear but has to be said. Five minutes later, they got to the main topic everyone was happy to see.
A group of dancers silently took the stage and began a modern dance performance titled “Film Whisper.”
Dressed in silver-white costumes, they resembled flickering grains in old movies under the deep blue lights.
Their body language imitated the various stages of movie creation—filming, editing, screening—transforming the abstract process of movie production into concrete dance language, which Yu Wei found very novel.
The artistic atmosphere was thick, but it lacked aesthetics. It could only be appreciated for its novelty.
“Feels not as good as Comrade Xiao Chen’s dancing.”
The Xiao Chen in Qi Luo An’s mouth was naturally her mom Chen Jinyi. Yu Wei only knew Aunt Chen was a host and didn’t expect her to dance too.
“Why don’t you learn?”
“I’m a tough nut.”
“I can tell.”
The two teased each other in perfect harmony, making Lu Zhou and Zhang Yang nearby get goosebumps. They sure had big hearts—international stage performance imminent, and they still had the mind to joke?
Yu Wei’s trend, the other guests naturally saw it too. This was today’s true protagonist in every sense, with everyone’s attention on him.
The others were all familiar faces, people who saw each other often. Everyone knew their standards well, but this outsider—they couldn’t figure him out.
Adapting a classic was just a flash of inspiration. His true level had to be seen with their own eyes.
There’s an ancient Chinese saying: whether it’s a mule or a horse, take it out for a walk.
Logically, someone who dabbles in everything should be half-baked at everything. He writes scripts and plays piano—probably a half-baked one.
But at this moment, he was still joking with his little friend, truly inscrutable…
Following closely was the first special performance: the veteran director of micro-horror psychological shorts took the stage and, unexpectedly, brought a puppet show.
Exquisite puppets recreated classic movie famous scenes on stage, leaving Yu Wei in awe. This year’s filmmakers were truly versatile.
Coming out this time was eye-opening—he even got to see puppet theater.
But soon Yu Wei couldn’t laugh anymore, because the next performance was from the City Symphony team.
“Ladies and gentlemen, we are honored to welcome two stars of the contemporary piano world, Ragvar Hamilton and Alessandro Costa. This will be their first two-piano cooperation on stage!”
Cooperation, huh?
Yu Wei thought Hamilton’s vibe yesterday meant he wanted to spar with him. Didn’t expect a righteous two against one…
Despicable outsider!
The other guests and on-site audience didn’t expect this either. These two were both long-famous piano performers. Not masters yet, but respected seniors.
Sparring with a young arranger—do they need to team up? Won’t they go too hard?
Actually, the audience overthought it. Hamilton and Costa weren’t thinking of competing with Yu Wei. They just wanted to play their own well.
Two-person performance was originally part of the City Symphony plot. As this year’s best short film, they should give their best performance.
As for Yu Wei, they were of course paying attention, but only to check his level. No talk of comparison.
This kid was already impressive. At their age, they were still scrambling in various competitions—where was the chance to take the international stage?
The concert hall lights slowly focused on two Steinway grand pianos. Hamilton in a black suit, expression solemn.
Costa in a silver-gray tuxedo, fingertips lightly touching the piano keys, ready to start anytime.
The opening piece was Liszt’s “Dreary Concerto” two-piano version. Hamilton opened with deep chords, each note carrying the weight of the golden age romantic school.
Costa responded with light arpeggios, like Mediterranean breezes brushing the strings. The two pianos initially kept a clear dialogue distance.
“This top tier?”
Their strength was already outstanding, plus impeccable tacit understanding—even Lu Zhou, a complete layman with no music sense, was drawn in.
Left ear filled with Hamilton’s piano sound like muffled bronze bells, right ear surrounded by Costa’s glazed tile-like clear notes. This impression was refreshing.
In Yu Wei’s eyes, these two musical torrents were colliding, intertwining, destined to merge into one.
With more and more songs mastered, his musical sense had made great progress. Especially after mastering Castle in the Sky, Yu Wei’s piano technique had also improved greatly. This feeling was very wondrous.
Mastering works is a process from line to plane. Predictably, these works intersecting and weaving into a plane was just a matter of time.
Premise: enough works. His current reserves were at most one net…
Just as Yu Wei guessed, as Schubert’s “F Minor Fantasy” unfolded, subtle changes began.
Their body language gradually synchronized: leaning forward together to emphasize beats, heads tilting back in sync to breathe phrases, even pedal rhythms aligning.
The two pianos’ sound waves fused in the air, forming an impenetrable wall of piano sound. The audiovisual experience was very immersive.
Holy combined ultimate skill…
At the piece’s end, the two pianos’ lingering tones blended and faded in the silence. The hall fell into ten seconds of absolute quiet.
This wasn’t polite pause, but utter shock. Only when the two masters exchanged smiles did storm-like applause erupt.
“Don’t you think that eye contact was kinda… you know…”
Under Qi Luo An’s weird gaze, Yu Wei furrowed his brows. How come abroad had Sichuan opera too? No, this seemed to be the origin.
“Nah, not really.”
Musicians appreciating each other was normal. Yu Wei had no mind to overthink—two more acts and it was his turn on stage.
“Despicable outsider, resorting to such tactics to cause you mental damage?”
Qi Luo An spoke righteously. Those who didn’t know would think they actually did something. But Yu Wei could tell she was joking to ease the atmosphere.
The two performances passed in a flash. The rest of the team wisely didn’t disturb Yu Wei, letting him silently adjust his state.
Even on a new map, they still fully trusted this kid.
“Next, please welcome the screenwriter and lead actor of Sound Mixer, also writer and singer Yu Wei, for his piano performance!”
This opening was totally different style from before. The on-site audience even doubted if they heard right—how did one person have more titles than two people…
Could someone really do so many things?
But anyway, the moment had finally come. The whole venue erupted in excitement, greeting the ascending Yu Wei.
They were too expectant of this mysterious Eastern young man’s next performance—goodwill expectations, and of course no shortage of malicious ones.
Yu Wei nodded in acknowledgment. Unlike others’ flashy openings, he just quietly sat down and casually placed hands on the keys.
Compared to Zhang Yang’s flashy master vibe, his quiet appearance seemed like he was taking a piano lesson…
Yu Wei’s fingertips gently fell on the piano keys. Castle in the Sky’s ethereal melody quietly flowed out like spring water.
This piece is actually called “Cloud Sea Under Moonlight,” but due to the movie’s fame, many habitually call it Castle in the Sky.
In the initial section, he deliberately controlled the dynamics, touching the keys softly and delicately, as if a layer of thin gauze separated fingertips from keys.
The opening notes slowly unfolded in the silent hall, as if telling a distant and beautiful story.
The crowd’s gazes, originally expectant with some pickiness, gradually changed. They widened their eyes slightly, involuntarily immersing in this dreamlike piece.
The melody contained ethereal purity, with a touch of faint sorrow, yet always harboring longing for beauty and hope. It instantly captured everyone’s hearts.
They had no time to think if they’d heard it before, soon drawn into the ethereal atmosphere.
If Hamilton and Costa’s piano sound was an impenetrable wall, Yu Wei’s piece was a dream.
No need to defend—can’t block it anyway. This is magic attack…
Domestic viewers staying up late for the live broadcast instantly sobered up. He’s back, all back—the music pastor is back.
No, now his class should be called international pastor, with greatly expanded purification range!
What Yu Wei brought wasn’t just an ear-opening piano piece—his technique was equally outstanding.
His left-hand broken chord accompaniment was stable and fluid, providing perfect harmony support for the right-hand melody without overpowering it.
This piece has simple melody and relaxed rhythm, but left-right hand coordination is tricky. Left-hand main melody and right-hand arpeggio accompaniment need layered practice to complement each other.
Qi Luo An listened quietly below stage, involuntarily recalling Yu Wei’s pre-stage joke: he said his two hands were two people, not counting as one against two.
At the time, Qi Luo An thought he was telling a dirty joke. Who’d think he meant it literally…
Yu Wei’s left-right hand coordination was like two partners with perfect tacit understanding.
Entering the middle section, the melody enriched. Yu Wei’s right hand introduced leaping notes and ornaments, finger dexterity and accuracy rapidly elevating.
Meanwhile, the left-hand accompaniment texture grew more complex, frequent chord changes transitioning swiftly and smoothly.
Piano hand pairing isn’t hard, but this instinctive proficiency without deliberate thought still greatly surprised them.
Yu Wei’s performance showcased exceptional technical control.
The melody held joyful childlike innocence, blended with a touch of compassion. They listened quietly, beautiful scenes unconsciously appearing in their minds.
In this performance, they saw perfect unity of technique and art. The piece was beautiful, technique impeccable.
Yu Wei’s body leaned slightly forward, gaze focused and profound. Through nuanced dynamic control, he kept the right-hand melody clear and prominent.
The left hand sank into the keyboard, present yet unobtrusive to avoid overpowering.
Watching Yu Wei’s hands reach peak coordination on stage, Hamilton and Costa exchanged a glance.
No matter how good their coordination, it couldn’t match his two hands…
As for the piece, their technical style was perfectly countered by Yu Wei’s dreamlike tune. Show off skills paled before emotional resonance.
Moreover, Yu Wei’s technique was also top tier.
No matter how airtight their ensemble wall, it couldn’t match his magic attack…
Whether coordination or musical style, they were perfectly targeted.
Despicable outsider!
