Learning to Play the Piano

Turning off the main road and walking into the narrow one-way alley, Lin Xia found herself surrounded by small bookstores and little shops selling trinkets. She often bought her books from these stores, and most of the owners knew her by now, offering her favorable prices.

“Melody of Strings,” Lin Xia murmured, stopping in front of a music store.

Standing at the entrance with a bouquet of flowers in her arms, she could hear fragments of piano music drifting from within. After a moment’s thought, she decided to go inside and have a look.

Back in her university days in her previous life, out of boredom, she had enrolled in a guzheng class. She’d only managed to learn the basics, just enough to play “Fishermen Sing at Dusk,” before various distractions led her to abandon her lessons. By the time she had free time again, she no longer had the patience to continue.

Now, with a second chance at life, she found herself in the mood to learn once more.

An elegant purple beaded curtain hung on the door—a touch that made Lin Xia think the shop owner must be quite a character.

She lifted the curtain and stepped inside.

The shop was small, just over a dozen square meters, but tastefully decorated in a way that blended sophistication with modernity. Various instruments were arranged artfully: guzhengs hung on the wall beside calligraphy scrolls, imparting a classical charm; beside the violins, large musical notes added a modern touch without clashing with the overall decor.

“May I help you with something?” A young girl’s voice came from behind.

Lin Xia turned to see a lively-looking girl, about sixteen years old, standing at the doorway to an inner room.

“Um, I wanted to ask if you only sell instruments here, or do you also…”

“We also take students. What would you like to learn?” the girl replied, smiling as she walked over. “Piano, guzheng, or guitar?”

“I’d like to learn the guzheng. And, um, who’s the teacher here?”

“Ah, you’ve just missed today’s guzheng class—the teacher is in the back now, giving a piano lesson. But you’re welcome to sit in and listen.”

“All right.” Lin Xia followed the girl.

The back wasn’t a classroom but a stairwell, with what seemed to be a storeroom below. Following her up the stairs, Lin Xia saw the upper floor—over a hundred square meters—divided into several rooms, each with a sign like “Guzheng” or “Guitar.” This was where the lessons actually took place.

The girl opened the door marked “Guzheng,” and the clear sound of piano music poured out. A woman in her thirties sat at the piano, playing.

Lin Xia had never studied piano, but even as a layperson, she could tell the performance was excellent. The notes flowed smoothly, and there was a subtle emotion woven through the melody.

The piece was the famous “River Flows in You.”

Its pure, clean melancholy calmed Lin Xia’s restless mood, a restlessness caused by her “monthly visitor.”

The piece wasn’t particularly difficult, but the ability to convey such feeling to the audience depended on the performer’s skill.

Sunlight streamed in through the window. Watching this scene, Lin Xia felt her heart soften.

She wanted to study music here.

When the woman finished playing, the girl stepped forward to whisper a few words. The teacher turned, noticed Lin Xia standing with her bouquet, and asked another student to practice alone for fifteen minutes before she’d return to check.

She walked over to Lin Xia with a gentle smile. “You’d like to learn an instrument?”

She wasn’t beautiful—in fact, she was quite plain—but her gentle, elegant bearing made Lin Xia take notice.

Looking at the girl behind her, Lin Xia suddenly realized—they were mother and daughter; their resemblance was clear once she looked closely.

Lin Xia nodded and followed the teacher to a small sitting room.

No sooner had Lin Xia sat down than the girl brought her a cup of hot water in a paper cup. Lin Xia accepted it with a smile and thanked her.

“Have you studied before? At your age, you’d be learning just as a hobby,” the teacher said with a smile.

“I’ve learned a little—just some basics, enough to play simple pieces,” Lin Xia replied. “I’m studying for pleasure, not to become a professional musician.”

“Are you interested in taking the proficiency exams? Guzheng has ten levels—doing well can earn you extra points for high school or college entrance exams,” the teacher asked, smiling. Many students came here with that goal in mind.

Few, she guessed, were as purely interested as Lin Xia.

Lin Xia shook her head. “It’s just an interest. I want to play the pieces I like. If I reach the level for an exam, I’ll take it, but if not, I won’t force it. I just want to go with the flow.”

The teacher looked a bit surprised, then laughed. “Very well. When are you available? Let’s schedule your lessons according to your timetable.”

“How about every Saturday at two in the afternoon? I have time then.” She did her homework on Saturday mornings, wrote her stories on weekends, and Saturday afternoon was just perfect—a good chance for her eyes to rest and her mood to be nourished.

“Great.” They discussed the details, and Lin Xia registered, signed up for a membership card, then left with her bouquet.

“Mom, that girl is so steady for her age. Since we opened this music school, I’ve never seen a child so young come on her own to discuss lessons with an adult,” the girl said to the teacher after Lin Xia had left.

“You haven’t seen much yet. If you visit the big cities, you’ll find that children from well-off families are often very independent,” the teacher replied with a smile. “Look at that child’s clothes and demeanor—she’s not like most children. I’d say her family is quite well-off.”

“That’s true. When she left her contact info, she took out her own phone from her bag,” the girl said enviously. “It was the latest Nokia model—everyone wants one these days. I wish I had one, too.”

“When you turn eighteen…”

“—You’ll buy me one, I know, I know. You’ve said that a hundred times already!” the girl pouted, then stomped upstairs to practice piano.

Watching her daughter’s retreating back, the teacher shook her head. Music was a pursuit fueled by money. She’d walked this path herself and knew all too well how many future expenses lay ahead.

Attending celebrated concerts, cultivating musicality at performances, buying a quality piano—none of it came cheap. And with a family of four to support, her daughter’s request was simply out of reach.

At least her son wouldn’t pursue music, though she’d need to start saving for his university tuition. Her husband was a high school teacher, and his salary just about covered their living expenses.

Still, she was grateful he was a teacher—he could bring in a few students on the side.

With thoughts of household bills and daily necessities, she sighed and went upstairs to teach her next class.

Lin Xia, unaware of their conversation, returned home to find her mother already back and cooking in the kitchen.

A month after moving to their new home, Lin Xia’s parents had grown restless and rented a twenty-square-meter shop to open a small grocery store.

This delighted Lin Hui.

A grocery store meant endless snacks.

Lin Xia herself wasn’t much of an eater, but she appreciated the steady supply of fresh fruit at home. Eating more fruit was good for her health, after all.

She divided the bouquet, placing a few stems in the curio shelf at the entrance, some in the study, and the rest in a vase in her own bedroom.