Chapter 109 Choice
That old man is really annoying.

Being old and disrespectful.

He could even snatch the money from his own granddaughter.

Jiuhua had clearly prepared 150,000 to give him, but he snatched the remaining 50,000 away, leaving nothing for his granddaughter.

What's more, this was borrowed from Jiuhuayue.

Fujii Itsuki couldn't help but sigh. There was a reason why the Jiuhua family fell into decline.

Xiao Jiuhua is even more miserable now.

She couldn't even pay back the living expenses I lent her, and now she owes another 200,000 yuan.

If she wasn't such a strong girl, she would probably be crying now.
Fujii Itsuki knew that it was very uncomfortable to have her money taken away by her blood relatives. Seeing that she was lost, he sat beside her and comforted her:
"It's okay. If you can't pay it back, then don't pay it back. I don't need this little money."

"no."

"What is our relationship?"

"I can't owe you, uncle."

"Aren't we good friends?"

"Then I can't spend the money of your good friend, uncle."

"Then just treat me as your father. I'm giving the flowers to my daughter! It's only natural!"

Jiu Huayue was almost amused by him, but soon she straightened her face and answered seriously: "No means no. I can't eat and drink for free, uncle!"

"Sorry? Don't be sorry. Jiuhua is facing difficulties now. It won't be too late to return it to me when you grow up. Just consider it my investment."

"That's half a month's salary for you!"

"What about half a month's salary? You are still my landlord. I have never paid you rent. Just treat that money as my rent."

Jiuhuayue could feel that he was comforting himself.
The girl couldn't help comparing him with her grandfather.

Who are their relatives?

Obviously the uncle is not that rich.

Uncle Mingming still has to donate to the welfare home every month.
But she
Now I use my uncle’s money, pay for the water and electricity bills he pays, and eat the meals he cooks.

Jiuhuayue really felt so embarrassed.

That night she said she liked uncles, and before that she said she lived alone in Otaru.

But after her parents cut off her money, she couldn't even become financially independent.

Always relying on uncle for help
Even food, clothing and housing depend on the uncle.

How can I like him when I have nothing?
No matter how you look at it, it's just a blood-sucking worm clinging on him.

Jiuhuayue was determined not to be that kind of woman.

"Still thinking about your grandpa? Okay, okay, your grandpa has passed away a long time ago, Xiao Jiuhua, just stop thinking about that guy, okay? I bought some beef and potatoes today, and I'll make you your favorite potato stew, okay?"

"."

Is the uncle trying to comfort himself?

Just like coaxing a child.
Jiu Huayue hates it most when someone treats her like a child.

But in front of him, I just don’t hate him.

Instead, I hope he can talk to me more.

"Nine flowers?"

"Um"

"'Hmm' means you want to eat meat and potatoes?"

"want"

"Row."

Fujii Itsuki didn't say much. After seeing Jiuhuayue nod, he put on an apron and went to the kitchen to cook.

Jiu Huayue could never have imagined that he was really that good.

Just do it.

Jiuhuayue sat on the sofa and looked at his back.

A sense of guilt arose in my heart.

She was not the kind of girl who only thought but did not take action. She immediately adjusted her mindset, stood up and went to help.

"You go and rest, let me take care of it." Fujii Itsuki turned his head.

"I'll help you."

Jiuhuayue just silently started to help Fujii Shu peel potatoes.

"Why are you so serious? Isn't it better to accept other people's kindness sometimes?"

"If you accept too much kindness, you will just take it for granted, and over time, the other person will get tired of it. I don't want you to hate me, uncle."

This is what makes Jiuhuayue so likable.

Gratitude is gratitude, and she will never forget it.

It's good that she came to help me. The child was already feeling embarrassed because I lent her money.

The two men were peeling potatoes.

“I didn’t expect it to turn out like this.”

"Ok?"

"I mean, when you first moved in, uncle." Jiu Huayue said in a low voice, "I originally thought you were just a perverted uncle who liked to tease little girls, but I didn't expect you to be such a good person."

"What happened suddenly? What's going on?"

"Uncle, you ate the strawberry scrambled eggs I made a few days ago, right?"

"."

Jiu Huayue reached out her hand and handed him the peeled potatoes. She looked at him and asked, "I know that what I made tastes terrible. Why did you tell me that it tastes good?"

Fujii Itsuki took it from her and replied in a calm tone:
"I'm afraid you'll be sad."

".Why are you afraid that I will be sad?"

"I can't bear to see a girl sad. Is this a reasonable reason?"

"It sounds like a perfunctory response."

"Then I'll add one more condition. Especially for a good girl like you who never lets out her emotions and always holds it in to make herself feel uncomfortable, I can't bear it."

Good girl
Jiuhuayue couldn't help but think after hearing this.

Am I a good girl to him?

If I am considered a good girl, does that mean he likes me?

As Jiuhuayue thought about it, she felt sad.

She knew that she was just a little prettier than the average girl, and that would not make the uncle like her.
The ages and identities of the two people are all problems.

he.
I would never have such feelings towards myself.

At least for now.

Fujii Itsuki went to wash potatoes, and Jiuhuayue got up too.

He is busy.

Jiuhuayue stood beside him and looked at his profile.

A cold night, a big house, and a small kitchen.

This kind of atmosphere of a world for two people made Jiuhuayue happy.

I just felt that the outline of his face, his facial features and his nose were so clear.

I can't help wanting to get closer to him
Now he is by my side
But why don’t I dare to say the word “I like” to him?

Even when she wanted him to watch a movie with her in the evening, she was too scared to say it out loud?

"Jiuka, Daohuh? What's wrong with you?"

"No, it's nothing."

Jiu Huayue slowly lowered her eyes. After pausing for two or three seconds, she handed him the kitchen knife hanging on the closet.

Fujii Itsuki looked strange: "Nothing? Nothing. Why are you avoiding me? And your reaction is so slow?"

“I’m thinking about something.”

"And blushed."

"No, no, you are wrong."

"You don't like me, do you?"

"Yes, yes! I quite like you, uncle!"

Fujii Itsuki smiled and said, "Thank you."

"."

Jiuhuayue saw that he was cutting potatoes again. She sighed in her heart and pursed her lips unhappily.

Such a nasty feeling
wood!

Like dead wood!
No wonder you call Fujii Itsuki a blockhead!
Jiu Huayue thought so in her heart, but she also hoped that he was a piece of wood now.

Because if the uncle knew that I really liked him.
Will he deliberately distance himself from me?
Just like the spring of the past two days, the spring of the past day obviously backfired.

"Still thinking about your grandfather? Don't pay attention to him. You can tell what kind of person he is from what happened just now."

I was thinking about you——!
I want to hold your hand!
I want you to kiss me! The kind where you stick out your tongue!

No.

No.

Kissing is fine, but kissing is a bit embarrassing.

".Um."

Jiuhuayue answered softly, somewhat unhappily and absentmindedly.

The girl was wondering if she could forcefully kiss the old man?
If I force a kiss, will he enjoy it?
It doesn’t seem to work.

I can't kiss
I don’t know if I can make the other person feel comfortable when kissing me.

And kissing is really embarrassing.

The kind that makes people feel restless just thinking about it.

Fujii Itsuki started to stew the meat, and Jiuhuayue followed him all the time.

She thought she had to take the initiative.

After all, he is so good to me. If I don’t take the initiative and appear in his field of vision more often, I will regret it in the future!
Xinchun is probably thinking about the uncle.
So annoying!

Uncle is mine!

"Today, uncle, do you want to watch a movie with me?"

"Watch a movie? Do you still have time to watch a movie? Isn't there a selection tomorrow?"

“I know I just…”

"Or have you been training hard for so many days and are ready to relax tonight?" "About the same."

Jiu Huayue suddenly understood, "Uncle, how about you give me some guidance tonight? I can play it for you first to see how good I am."

Fujii Itsuki refused categorically, "No."

".Why?"

"I'm coaching you now, what will Chitose do? Is this fair to Chitose? I'll still be a judge tomorrow. Jiuhua, do you think it's appropriate for me to give you special treatment and favor you now?"

"Uncle is right"

Fujii Itsuki smiled, "I understand."

Jiuhuayue came here and put away her little thoughts.

What’s important right now is tomorrow’s selection.

Everything else should be put aside.

I can't let Qiansui look down on me.

"Who do you actually support, uncle?"

"I don't support anyone, I only look at the results. If you fail, one of you will miss the Nakajima Festival this time, and you will not be able to keep up with the training in the future, and it is very likely that you will miss the entire national competition."

"Um"

Knowing this, she worked hard to make progress during the holidays.

If it stops here.

All the promises she made to the uncle would come to nothing.

Her new goal, which was born because of the uncle, also failed.

So she has a reason not to lose.

"But it's okay for me to ask you this. Are you confident about tomorrow's selection, Jiuhua?"

Jiuhuayue stood up straight, met Fujii Shu's gaze, and nodded firmly and neatly:
"Of course!"

"That's good. After dinner, go wash up and go to bed early. I wish you a good performance tomorrow."

"Ok!"

*
The selection is conducted over two days, with the first day being for the brass group.

On the day of the selection, those who were assigned took turns to enter the music classroom, while those who were waiting lined up outside.

Although the music classroom has a certain degree of sound insulation, the music of the brass section cannot be completely blocked in any way.

Just hearing the lingering sound of other people's music inside can make people nervous.

Jiuhuayue didn't expect that she would have such a stressful day.

She had been on a stage as big as the Takarazuka before, yet she was actually nervous at this moment.

Why is that?
Because you are afraid of failure?

In Takarazuka, failure doesn't matter to her, so she is fearless?

"I'm next."

Jiuhuayue whispered as she saw Yang Kui Chitose walk out of the music classroom.

The other party looked at Jiu Huayue first.

There was no emotional expression on his face, but that indifferent look clearly conveyed a message to Jiu Huayue - you are bound to lose!
"Xiaoyue! Come on!"

Hiiragi Rinka's weak voice came from behind.

"Rinka."

Perhaps Hiiragi Rinka felt that this was not enough, so she waved her hand, signaling Jiuhuayue to bend down so that she could lean over and whisper in her ear:
".For Mr. Fujii, and for yourself, Satsuki."

Jiuhuayue looked at Rinka Hiiragi in surprise, only to see this weak girl smiling shyly in front of her.

Jiuhuayue felt much better when she saw her friends encouraging her like this.

"Thank you."

"Jiuhuayue! Is Jiuhuayue here? It's your turn!"

"It's your turn, Xiaoyue. Come on!"

"Well, I'm leaving."

After Jiuhuayue finished speaking, she walked into the music classroom holding her trumpet.

There are three desks in the music classroom now, two of which are occupied by Fujii Itsuki and Akai Muko, and she is in the middle, facing the other two.

"Teacher Fujii, Teacher Akai."

"Well, please sit down." Fujii Itsuki smiled.

Jiuhuayue takes her seat.

The first thing she did after sitting down was to flip through the music on the music stand and turn to the chapter of "Cold Wave Symphony" that she was going to play.

"Are you ready?" asked Akai Muzi.

"Ready."

Sudden silence.

"Before we begin, please tell me your grade, name, and instrument." Fujii Itsuki couldn't help but remind him that the child was still a little too nervous.

Jiuhuayue quickly calmed down and replied:

"Second grade, Class A, Jiuhuayue, is in charge of the trumpet in the brass section."

While answering, the girl stared at the music score with all her might, as if she wanted to review the piece she practiced every day at the last moment.

"Great, are you ready for the tuning?"

“It’s been adjusted in advance.”

"Well."

Fujii Itsuki turned on the metronome.

The whole classroom was so quiet that the only sound could be heard: "tick-tick, tick-tick".

"Start at measure 53. Pay attention to the beat. You can start playing at any time. When I say stop, remember to stop immediately. You don't have to answer me."

"."

Jiu Huayue finally looked away from the music score. Her back felt hot. She had just taken a shower yesterday and the temperature was not high today, but she still felt like she was in summer.

"start the timer."

Jiuhuayue felt the rhythm of the metronome and put the reed of the trumpet to her lips. She placed her fingers on the top cap of the trumpet, took a shallow breath, and blew it out slowly.

A soft, sad and lively tune was played.

The song is called "Cold Wave Symphony" and it talks about the century-long snowstorm in northern Michigan in the United States in 1938.

The prelude just now represents the slow arrival of a cold wave on an ordinary autumn day.

Jiuhuayue moved her fingers, the bass switched to high notes, and the music became short, which meant that people realized that a cold wave was coming and everything happened so suddenly.

The crowd was busy preparing food, clothes, firewood and everything for the winter.

But the wind and snow grew stronger and stronger, (the music) became more and more violent, and everything was developing towards the most terrifying situation.

The music score was right in front of her, but Jiu Huayue had no time to look at it. She could only play according to her feelings, letting the passionate and rapid music drive her emotions. Her breath was trembling, her heart was beating fast, and the passionate music made her eardrums throb.

She was afraid of failure, afraid of losing this most important opportunity due to mistakes. But she could only keep moving forward, encouraging herself to keep a steady mind, and try her best to find the terrifying movement of the coming winter.

Fujii Itsuki listened to this with his eyes closed, knowing that in four more beats, there would be another turning point.

This is the most difficult part of this piece.

Because the wind and snow blew, it covered everything and destroyed everything.

After the frost, the world becomes quiet.

"Okay! That's it."

Jiuhuayue played with all her might, and only when she heard Fujii Itsuki's stop did she let go of the reed and take a deep breath.

She was holding the trumpet, with beads of sweat on her forehead. Maybe it was because she was nervous and scared?
The girl could only see Fujii Itsuki making rustling sounds on the workbook.

"Well, it's good. It's an excellent performance. Jiuhua-san will stop here for now. Next student!"

Jiuhuayue felt relieved.

My performance should be pretty good, right?
She thought she felt better than she had in practice.

After standing up and bowing to Fujii Itsuki and Akai Muko, Jiuhuayue left the classroom holding the trumpet and music score.

She felt inexplicably dizzy.

"Xiaoyue, how are you? I see you look a little pale."

"It's OK. I didn't make any mistakes."

"That's good, that's good."

Hiiragi Rinka breathed a sigh of relief. "When I heard you playing the middle part outside just now, I was so nervous. This piece of music is difficult to begin with, and Mr. Fujii chose this part of the piece as the solo. It's a bit embarrassing. Xiaoyue, you have only been playing the trumpet for less than a year."

"Teacher Fujii didn't do anything wrong. He was just doing his job. Isn't it natural that he was eliminated if he couldn't do the job? And if we don't choose a harder piece, how can we enter the national competition in the future?"

"Um"

"Rinhua, there's nothing to worry about. I've finished the exam, right? Now I'm just waiting for the results." Jiuhuayue adjusted her mentality and tried to smile.

"Yeah. Waiting for the results."

Rinka Hiiragi looked at Chitose Haruki who was communicating with other classmates in the distance, and she really didn't know what to do.

*
At the same time, in the music classroom.

Fujii Itsuki shook his head when he saw the corresponding results of Jiuhuayue and Yangkui Chitose.

Akai Muzi glanced sideways and said with a smile:
"Is it difficult?"

".If it wasn't difficult for me, I wouldn't have such a headache."

"Choose Chitose. Hasn't that kid been waiting for you for almost ten years just for this opportunity?"

"It was seven years. She had the idea when I was a freshman."

"That's long enough. As for Jiuhua, she still has a chance next year."

There is basically nothing wrong with what Akai Muzi said.

But she didn't know much about Jiuhuayue's family situation.

Fujii Itsuki doesn't think that next year, Jiuhua's parents will still ignore Jiuhua silently.

When her parents realized that it was useless to cut off her money, they would come and bring her back to Tokyo.

There's a good chance she won't get the chance next year.

Whoever you choose will hurt the other one.

This is also what really makes Fujii Itsuki embarrassed.

"So, Fujii, who are you going to choose as the trumpet player?"

"."

Fujii Itsuki looked for a long time, and finally set his sights on the name Yang Kui Chitose.

(End of this chapter)