Card Room

Shao Qingge Ye Qi – Extra Three

Shao Qingge and Ye Qi soon arrived at the agreed upon location.

Chen Yu had already arrived and Shao Qingge saw his red sports car as soon as he came. The other relatively low-key car should belong to Teacher Zhao Chen. The place Shao Qingge booked was a private restaurant in Rongcheng and it only accepted insiders with a VIP card. The environment was very quiet and there was no need to worry about being discovered by the paparazzi.

This was the first time Ye Qi had come to such a high-end place and he was very curious. However, he was too embarrassed to look around like a simple person overwhelmed by luxurious surroundings. He obediently followed behind Shao Qingge and didn’t dare speak loudly.

Shao Qingge took him to a private room.

He opened the door and saw Chen Yu and Teacher Zhao sitting there chatting.

Shao Qingge hugged Chen Yu and greeted him. Then he held out a hand to the other middle-aged man. “Teacher Zhao, right? I have long admired your name.”

Zhao Chen responded kindly. “Chief Shao is being too polite. I often hear President Chen mention you. I heard that his assets have almost doubled this year in your hands. I thought that if I have an opportunity, I should also entrust the private house money I saved to you to invest and earn some interest.”

Shao Qingge smiled. “If Teacher Zhao is interested in investment then you can come and find me at any time.”

Then he gently grabbed the arm of Ye Qi behind him and pulled Ye Qi over, introducing him. “This is the Ye Qi I told you about. He is my distant cousin.”

Chen Yu looked up and was surprised that the person Shao Qingge brought was so young! He had grown up with Shao Qingge and never heard that Shao Qingge had such a relative. This little guy looked less than 18 years old. He was young and immature but seemed quite cute and full of energy. His eyes were big and bright. He might be a good seedling to become a star.

Zhao Chen also looked at Ye Qi. Ye Qi’s clothes were simple and neat and his hair was also neat, so his first impression of his teenager wasn’t bad.

Ye Qi politely walked over and greeted them. “Hello Mr Chen, hello Teacher Zhao.”

Chen Yu didn’t expose Shao Qingge’s lies and said with a smile, “Since you are Chief Shao’s ‘brother’, don’t be polite and sit down.” He pressed the bell on the table. “Waiter, it is time to serve.”

The four of them sat at the round table. Ye Qi might be nervous but he had been tempered in the Card World. He had seen many murderers and could still maintain his composure on the surface.

Shao Qingge quickly shifted the topic to music. “My younger brother has liked singing since he was a child and he is very interested in composing and arranging music. Teacher Zhao, you have always been his idol so he pestered me and asked me to find a way to introduce him to you.”

Zhao Chen was happy about being praised but he still responded modestly, “Oh? A lot of people listen to songs and only pay attention to the singers. There are fewer people who go to look at the column of composition and arrangement.”

Ye Qi said seriously, “How come? Without a good composer and arranger, even a strong singer can’t sing a good song. It is just like a strong actor can’t play a good drama without a good screenwriter. Those working behind the scenes might not be as glamorous as the singers and actors standing on the stage but I think their credit is the greatest!”

This passage was extremely useful. Zhao Chen heard it and the expression on his face was obviously much milder. “This little guy still has many ideas. Haha, which song of mine do you like the most?”

Ye Qi’s words weren’t fake. He really liked music and Zhao Chen was a composer he really liked. This meant he had done his homework. He heard this question and immediately listed a few songs. “The recent Sky Realm is well rated and I play it on a loop several times a day. There are also your previous works like Cinnabar Mole, Snowfall Season and Blue Years which I like very much! You are really amazing and can handle all styles of music.”

Zhao Chen, “……”

This little guy’s mouth was very sweet and every sentence that complimented Zhao Chen hit his heart.

Shao Qingge knew Ye Qi’s skills in ‘exaggerated praise’. He heard Ye Qi seriously praising Zhao Chen and knew that this plan of ‘accepting an apprentice’ had some chance of succeeding.

Sure enough, the more Ye Qi and Zhao Chen chatted, the more speculative their topics. Zhao Chen even gave rare praise. “Xiao Ye is young but he has his own opinions. He is a really good seedling. Are you interested in developing in the music industry?”

Ye Qi’s heart was full of excitement and he immediately nodded. “I have loved music since I was a child and I have learned a lot of musical instruments, including the guzheng, pipa and erhu of folk music. I also got the 10th level in piano and I’m pretty good at playing the guitar…”

Zhao Chen’s eyes lit up. “Very powerful! You aren’t even 18 years old yet, right? You actually learned so many instruments.”

Ye Qi scratched his head in embarrassment. “My grades in the cultural classes are very poor and my parents have lost confidence in me going to university. Therefore, they focused on cultivating my hobby in music…”

“Your parents are also very enlightened!”

The two of them chatted non-stop and Shao Qingge and Chen Yu became props on the side.

Chen Yu couldn’t help sending a WeChat message to Shao Qingge: I know all of your relatives. You only have two cousins and they are studying abroad. Tell me honestly, where did this distant cousin come from?

Shao Qingge replied: I recognized him.

Chen Yu almost spat out his tea: You recognized a cousin?

Shao Qingge looked at him with a smile: If you are envious then you should also recognize one.

Chen Yu stared at him blankly. Shao Qingge didn’t tell him the truth which made him even more certain that this teenager was important to Shao Qingge. Shao Qingge wanted to protect the teenager so he used the rotten excuse of a ‘cousin’ to deceive people.

Teacher Zhao didn’t know Shao Qingge so he naturally believed it.

Chief Shao’s cousin was very talented in music, could play a variety of musical instruments and was his own admirer. How could he refuse this type of apprentice? Besides, he really liked this serious and sweet-mouthed teenager.

After a meal, Teacher Zhao Chen and Ye Qi exchanged WeChat contacts with each other.

Zhao Chen smiled and said, “My studio is in Rongcheng and it isn’t far from here. Xiao Ye, if you have a weekend off in the future, you can come to the studio to find me. I will teach you from the basics.”

Ye Qi was so excited that he almost jumped up. “Thank you, Teacher Zhao!”

Zhao Chen told you, “Oh, you should change it to Master.”

Ye Qi hurriedly poured a cup of tea and handed it to him respectfully. “Thank you, Master!”

Zhao Chen happily drank this cup of apprentice tea.

Shao Qingge saw Ye Qi’s shining eyes and he couldn’t help smiling slightly. The road that he was helping to pave for Ye Qi was just beginning today. He believed that with this, Ye Qi’s road would definitely be smoother and smoother. It was because behind Ye Qi, there was him, Shao Qingge.

In the afternoon, Ye Qi was free so Teacher Zhao decided to take him to his studio.

Ye Qi walked into a professional music studio for the first time. He saw what a recording studio looked like and learned how a tuner worked for the first time…

All these new and interesting things made him keep staring.

Zhao Chen saw his little apprentice’s curious appearance and thought it was cute. He suggested that Ye Qi try to record a song in the recording studio.

Ye Qi looked at Shao Qingge nervously.

Shao Qingge patted him on the shoulder in an encouraging manner. “Go and sing a song you like. Don’t be nervous.”

Zhao Chen also said, “That’s right. I’ll record it for you and look at your pitch by the way. Xiao Ye, what song do you want to sing?”

Ye Qi thought about it carefully. “Can I sing Heal the World?”

This was a classic Michael Jackson song. It was in English and the difficulty was quite high. Zhao Chen hadn’t expected his apprentice to actually pick an English song and replied happily, “Of course. Go into the recording studio and I’ll play the accompaniment.”

Ye Qi walked in happily and Zhao Chen signaled for him to put on the headphones. Ye Qi put on the large headphones and adjusted them. A moment later, he saw Teacher Zhao giving him the ‘ok’ gesture and the familiar accompaniment entered his ears.

Ye Qi closed his eyes and threw himself into the music, singing seriously to the rhythm.

The young man’s unique and clear voice came from the recording studio and Zhao Chen couldn’t believe it for a while.

This lasted until Ye Qi finished singing the song seriously. He took off the headphones in an embarrassed manner and told the three people outside, “I really like this song but I don’t sing it very well. Teacher Zhao, don’t laugh at me.”

Zhao Chen looked serious. “Your singing is very good.”

Chen Yu, who was standing beside him, couldn’t help asking Shao Qingge, “Isn’t he a learning scumbag? His English pronunciation is actually so accurate?”

Shao Qingge chuckled softly. “Singing doesn’t involve grammar knowledge or English writing. He should be able to speak it well but I remember he has never passed the exam of the English culture class.”

Chen Yu, “……”

This little guy was also a talent.

Ye Qi came out of the recording studio with slightly red cheeks. He knew that Teacher Zhao had met many famous singers. He was afraid that he had sung too badly just now because Teacher Zhao looked very serious.

Unexpectedly, Zhao Chen actually said, “Ye Qi, in fact, you can develop toward being an original singer.”

Ye Qi’s hands were shaking with excitement. “Teacher? Do you think I can become a good singer?”

“Of course. Your pitch and sense of rhythm are very good, even better than some singers I have seen. In addition…” Zhao Chen paused and carefully considered it before finding an appropriate description. “Your voice is highly recognizable and very catchy. It is easy to remember and this is an innate advantage. I’m just worried about one thing. You are still young and haven’t passed the period of your voice change. Your voice isn’t set and your voice as an adult is uncertain. Still, I think we can watch it as we progress.”

Shao Qingge thought to himself that after Ye Qi turned 18 years old, his voice was still clear and bright. It didn’t become low like many boys. The 18 year old Ye Qi participated in the singing competition with this voice condition and reached the national finals on his own.

Therefore, Zhao Chen’s vision in terms of seeing people was quite accurate.

Being an original singer was indeed Ye Qi’s dream.

The thing that surprised Ye Qi even more was Zhao Chen’s next words. “I haven’t accepted any work recently and I’m relatively free. Come to me next weekend and us master and apprentice will work together on a simple song. Treat it as a gift from your master.”

Ye Qi, “……”

What an immortal master!

There was also the immortal Chief Shao who found such a good master for him!

He was even happier than winning the lottery.

On the way back, Ye Qi kept talking excitedly like he had become a famous singer and was going to hold a concert tour. Shao Qingge saw the passionate little guy and couldn’t help rubbing Ye Qi’s head. “Calm down, you are just starting out. You are still a rookie.”

Ye Qi was optimistic. “I have a famous teacher and will follow Teacher Zhao to study hard. I will definitely be able to write my own songs in the future.” He suddenly looked at Shao Qingge and declared seriously, “Once the time comes, I will give you the first song I created independently.”

Shao Qingge, “……”

His heart seemed to be scratched by a cat’s claws. Shao Qingge’s heart was tickled and he found it unbearable.

The first song would be given to him. This was really the most romantic and heartwarming gift.

Shao Qingge thought with a smile, ‘Not only will you give me your first song but your first time is also mine.’