Linda's face instantly wrinkled up. That 'who' he had mentioned was obviously her!"Teacher David, I may not necessarily drag Maria down..."Seeing that David was about to explode, Maria hurriedly grabbed his hand. "Teacher David, my level is similar to Linda. There's no such thing as holding someone back. Moreover, two people have five minutes to perform, and one person only has two minutes. It's clear that one plus one is greater than two. How can I not take such an advantage?"David originally wanted to say something else, but seeing the eager looks from Maria and Linda, he decided not to say anything further."Alright then."He took his thermos cup and sat down on the nearby couch. "Come, let's discuss the songs you guys want to choose."Seeing his agreement, Linda excitedly linked arms with Maria and hopped over. Andrew and Patrick also followed them with a shared smile.Once they had all sat down, David turned his gaze to Maria and asked directly, "Maria, do you have any though
As soon as Maria left, Linda became a little restless, she was just too curious about what Maria might be up to in the training camp.Finally, when she saw Maria return, she hastily stood and jogged over, "Maria, you're back?"Maria lifted the bag in her hand, "We don't need to go to the canteen for lunch, we can eat here.""Hm?"Linda looked at the big bag that Maria was carrying, curiously asking, "Did you go out to get food?"Maria couldn't help but laugh, "They won't let us leave the training camp, are you silly?""Right."Linda facepalmed and followed Maria to the side of the coffee table. When she saw Maria pulling out each box of food, she suddenly had an epiphany, shocked she cried, "Don't tell me Charles came?"Maria, startled, turned around and covered her mouth, "Lower your voice!""Mm..."Linda nodded vigorously, waiting for Maria to let go of her mouth. She then excitedly but quietly asked, "Did your husband come?""Mm."Maria told Amy about her future plans to date Charl
The following day, at noon.All the camp trainees were eating in a common cafeteria, which was more like a buffet.Most of the food, however, was western-style: mostly bread, cakes, beef, and potatoes.A lot of people, including Mia, were not accustomed to it.But what could she do if she was not accustomed to it? She couldn't possibly starve herself, could she?These few days, she had mixed well with Lucy and the others. Seeing her eating alone at a long table, Lucy and a few girls walked over."Mia, didn't your teacher come with you for the camp?"Mia’s hand, that held the fork, violently jolted. Her eyes instantly dimmed, "He did, but he was busy these past two days.""What could he be so busy with?" Lucy casually observed her while eating, "Accompanying you to this camp is the big deal. Don't you know the first open competition will eliminate half of the participants? If he doesn't guide you at this crucial time, is he planning to do it when you are eliminated?""Hahahaha..."The
Andrew looked at her righteous appearance, a flash of hurt crossing his eyes. He tugged at his lips, letting out a faintly mocking smile. "Is that really the case?""Then what?"Mia crossed her arms over her chest, glaring at Andrew irritably. "My piano skills were not taught by you. I did not accept you as my teacher. Go and teach your students. Why should you care about me?""Ah..."Andrew shook his head. Could he still not understand Mia’s thoughts?She clearly despised him for not being a famous pianist. Forget it.He waved his hand and turned to leave. "Since you don't want me to teach you, I won't force it."As Mia watched his retreating figure, she snorted disdainfully and felt no guilt at all. She turned and entered the practice room.Along the way, Andrew had experienced quite a bumpy journey of emotions. He had never expected his own daughter to despise him.Back in their homeland, she had begged him to help her in the piano industry. Now that she was abroad, she looked d
The last day arrived quickly.On the last day, everyone was training very hard. After all, no one wanted to be eliminated right in the first public competition.Maria and Linda arrived very early. Maria’s hand was fully healed. Once they arrived at the practice room, they started practicing piano.David also got up early today. In the previous days, he would go to other practice rooms every morning to guide students other than Maria and Linda. Today, he walked straight into the practice room of Maria and Linda.As soon as he got to the door, he was so surprised that his eyes widened."What the-!"He walked in incredulously, "When did you guys get a second piano in this practice room?"Indeed, all practice rooms had only one piano, but they had two!Nancy turned around, stood up politely, and respectfully replied, “Linda and I are doing a duet, so I went to William a few days ago and told him the situation. He then had someone prepare a second piano for us.""What!?!"This time, Davi
Tomorrow?Yes, tomorrow is the first public competition of the training camp!The one hundred pianists who had entered the training camp had all got up early and, after carefully dressing up, entered the competition venue hand in hand with their teachers.The public competition is different from other competitions. Participants don't need to prepare backstage. All competitors sit below the stage and perform one by one according to the draw.The piano is already a noble piece of music. The family conditions of these pianists are quite good. After all, the cheapest piano costs several tens of thousands. Not to mention spending money on piano lessons every week. This is not something that ordinary families can afford.So, the public competition does not invite many spectators. But for the people in Brussels, the status of these spectators is either rich or noble.The audience was the first to enter the venue, and then they saw one by one young pianists from various countries entering th
Maria's face finally darkened, and there was anger rolling in her amber eyes."Do you not know that it's rude to point at someone with your finger?" she said. "Even if you don't know my teacher, he is older than you in terms of age. If we were in my country, it would be considered light to hit you once. We would directly cut off your hand, believe it or not!"Rivata was not easily frightened. She had merely pointed at Andrew and then been hit by Maria. How could she possibly be convinced?She raised her hand again, pointing at Andrew, "I'm pointing at him! How about it? If you have the guts, cut off my hand, dare you?"Maria had previously appeared to be pitiable in front of Mia because Andrew had been holding Mia hand at the time, grasping her weakness. But this did not mean that Maria was easy to bully.Without hesitating, she raised her hand and delivered a firm slap.There was another "pa" sound. Rivata's hand immediately began to swell, showing just how hard Maria had hit her.Ri
Maria greeted him with a polite smile and then proceeded to walk inside arm-in-arm with Andrew.Mia had arrived early and coldly observed everything that had just happened. Not only did she not feel bad for Andrew, but she also felt that Maria was humiliating herself.She laughed coldly, waiting to enjoy the ensuing drama.If Maria lost, Andrew would have to admit in front of everyone that he was inferior, and that would be a loss of face not only for him but for the entire Lesser family!To lose face abroad, it will be interesting to see how the old master and madam will deal with Maria!"Burn."After Rivata and her teacher sat down, the man sitting next to Rivata's teacher frowned, "You are a renowned pianist, why would you want to compete with a child? Also, it seems that her teacher is not well-known, why bother making yourself unhappy?"Burn was Rivata's teacher. He glanced at Maria and humphed coldly, "If it weren't for Rivata's mistake, I wouldn't lower my status like this!"Af
After leaving the banquet courtyard, Maria and Charles got into a sightseeing car and headed towards the Lesser family gate.Along the way, Charles remained silent, his thin lips pressed into a straight line, and his face looked terrifyingly solemn.Maria also didn't say anything. She held his hand tightly as if she wanted to give him her strength.Even when they got into their own car, Charles didn't say a word. He just gently rested his head on Maria’s shoulder, like an injured child.**********Back at the villa, Maria fetched a bottle of red wine, opened it, and took out two glasses. She tilted her head at Charles."Let's go and drink in the room."She smiled and raised the wine bottle in her hand. Charles noticed and finally relaxed the corners of his tightly pressed lips.He stood up and laughed softly, "How is one bottle enough? You are never drunk after a thousand cups."Maria looked at him speechlessly, seeing him take out two more bottles of red wine. She felt like things wer
Eva had been with Eric for more than twenty years, and she had no doubt about his feelings for her. Moreover, Eric always took good care of her and loved her deeply. If there was any rift between them, it was Charles.For the past twenty years, she had always been cautious in protecting their relationship, never inquiring about any news about Charles. That's why they had been living in harmony, until Mia came to Beijing. She had started investigating Charles' affairs under the old lady's orders.And since then, she felt that Eric had become more and more distant from her, a distance that she couldn't close no matter what she did.Now that Charles had come to Beijing, she had to make a choice between Eric and Charles. She didn't want to, but she had to…"Eric…"Her voice trembled as she pleaded, looking at him. "Can't you…?""No!"Those two resolute words instantly crushed the only hope in Eva heart.On one side was her husband, and on the other was her biological son, and she owed C
David and Hamya exchanged glances as they heard this. It was as if they had made a decision. They immediately said in unison, "We want to go too!""Huh?"Charles looked at them with confusion.David patted his stomach and smiled at Charles, "Young Master Smith, I wonder if your company is in need of pianists? What do you think of me?"Hamya chuckled and nodded, "I think I can do it too. Young Master Smith, please consider signing both of us. We don't ask for much, just a chance to perform in top music halls."David was worried that Charles would disagree, so he put on an even more sincere smile. "Ah yeah, haha... We just feel that Patrick is not enough on his own. With Hamya and I joining, after all, we have better qualifications than him. When the three great piano masters embark on anglobal tour together, and with Maria and Linda, it will be twice as successful.""Exactly!"Hamya laughed happily, "Young Master Smith, a single concert takes too long, Patrick won't be able to handle i
The two of them walked onto the stage and sat down at the piano. Maria raised her head and exchanged a glance with Linda, who placed her hands on the keys.The young pianists were curious about what music Maria and Linda would play. This was the second round of the training camp's open competition, and they usually wouldn't get to hear it.Suddenly, the piano played a melancholic melody, carrying a touch of elegance in the air, instantly striking at people's hearts!"This is..."Some couldn't remain calm instantly. "Butterfly Lovers?!""Is that possible? Butterfly Lovers arranged as a piano piece?""Yes, everyone knows that Butterfly Lovers is best played on the guqin, or the zheng would also work. It's my first time hearing it played on the piano.""Hey, no, this version of Butterfly Lovers has been adapted for piano. It suits the instrument perfectly while still preserving the essence of the original piece. It's absolutely refreshing!"After a few seconds of discussion, an unexpect
Two days later, Maria and Linda arrive at the venue of the exchange conference in their finest attire.They hand over their invitation cards and wait for the security guard to check them.Suddenly, a mocking voice comes from beside them, "Oh oh, who is this? Linda!? Am I mistaken?"The one speaking is Linda manager, and standing next to her is the pianist signed by Linda economic company."Aria, you're not mistaken, isn't that Linda herself?"Hearing their voices, Linda's face darkens. She turns her head and glares at them, "Aria, your eyesight is really not good, you can't even recognize me. You should go to the hospital to have your eyes checked."Aria originally wanted to embarrass Linda, but she didn't expect her to retort so sharply. She immediately gets furious."Linda, the company didn't give you an invitation card. Tell me, where did you steal it from?""Hehe..."Linda raises her chin triumphantly, holding Maria's arm. "Do I need the company to give me one? Just look at who's
After arriving in Beijing, the feeling of uneasiness never appeared again, and Maria felt an indescribable relief.Charles had sent someone to take Andrew back to the Lesser family, while Patrick and Linda followed Charles and Maria back to their villa.Originally, Andrew had strongly invited Patrick to come back to the Lesser family with him, but Patrick knew that the Lesser family was big and complicated, so he used the excuse of being with Linda and followed Charles.***********On the third day, when Luna returned from Brussels, she went directly to Maria’s place and looked at Linda, her expression becoming more flattering."Linda, I heard that your contract with your previous agency is about to expire, right?"Maria sat next to Linda, holding a big doll in her hands, feeling very angry."Yes, they told me before that if I could achieve good results in the training camp this time, they would sign me for another ten years and give me all the resources. But just when I announced my
At this moment, Maria had already packed up and left the hotel with Charles, Linda, Andrew, and others.On the way to the airport, Linda still couldn't understand and turned back to Maria, "Ria, as long as the misunderstanding is resolved, we can still stay in the training camp, right?"Of course, Maria knew that if she returned to the training camp now, everyone would treat her like a deity.Just kidding, being able to decide the life and death of their teacher, they would definitely flatter and serve Maria obediently.Maria shook her head, "Actually, I have already achieved my goal. Linda, if you want to go back, you can go back, no need to accompany me.""Hey!"Linda casually waved her hand, "Without you here, why should I go back? Besides, I have hugged your thigh, and you have hugged Master Smith's thigh. Am I still afraid of not being able to reach the pinnacle of the international piano world?"She said it so casually, as if she was joking. But Maria could tell that she still f
Maria, so smart, why couldn't she understand what they meant?She smiled and turned to shout inside the house, "Honey, it turns out they are looking for you." Charles was inside, and he had heard everything at the door clearly. The girls had looked down on him before and said he was weak, but now they all came to beg him with a straight face. It was really funny.He remained silent for a while before saying, "Ria, in our home, I make the major decisions and you make the minor ones. But in my eyes, besides you, nothing else is a major matter. So, you make the decisions."The girls outside, "..."Didn't that mean that Maria would be in charge of everything in the house?They felt a toothache and couldn't believe they were caught off guard by this unexpected situation.Maria shrugged and looked at them again.Originally, they came to apologize to Maria as a pretense, hoping that she would persuade Charles, but now, the initiative was completely in her hands, and they had to lower their
Maria was not foolish. Why did her reputation stink so much? Was it only because of the ambiguous relationship between her and Charles at that banquet?Just that one time was not enough to make everyone dislike and envy her.Lucy's face was extremely embarrassed, but at this moment, she had already lost all confidence in front of Maria and could only cry helplessly."Maria, I really know I was wrong. Can you forgive me? Please...""Lucy, your intentions were truly wicked. You even used Rivata as a weapon. Honestly, I admire you for that."Even while saying this, Maria's expression remained calm, her tone as if chatting with a close friend."You, alone, have bewitched the hearts of all the girls in the training camp. You treated others as pawns to sacrifice for your own gain. Wasn't your goal to drive me out of the camp? Congratulations, you achieved your goal. You should be happy, so why are you crying?"When Maria said this, the other girls immediately began pondering.After thinkin