Chapter Thirty-Two Success and Failure

  Summer went and autumn came, but then the cold wind swept away the refreshing autumn, covering the mountain forest and the village with a layer of silver. The wisteria outside the house was bare, with a thick layer of ice wrapping around it. It's been almost a year since Li Qiu's voice change period entered its final stage. December 1st is the day of the examination, which is today...

  A black and white image appeared before Tōno Katsu's eyes, gazing at this image, Tōno Katsu had no expression, silently staring at Li Qiu, his eyes without a hint of change, the wrinkles on his brow and eye corners etched with the solemnity that came from years of sedimentation.

  "Grandpa Teng, how's it going? Has your voice changed, has that period passed?"

  "Ah, it's over!" The warm voice of Tōnoki Masaru was as usual, and now Li Qiu's voice was similar to his, with the warmth of the morning sun, only lacking a bit of the sedimentation of years, but having an extra share of clarity and emptiness like the small hill behind the house. Actually, according to Li Qiu's speaking voice, things should be fine, but Tōnoki Masaru knew that this little thing called vocal cords was too hard to control, he himself had also tried to change it before, in the end, only managing to fix his speaking voice into its current state, singing was still not possible.

  "Is it over? Then... " Did I succeed, or did I fail?

  "Can't see..." Tōgi Shō had no grasp at all, not even a bit. From the start, he was hesitant about whether to do it or not. In the end, he still went ahead and did the experiment in secret from Li Qiū. Now that it's complete, he himself is the first to be afraid.

  "Grandpa Tōmoku..."

  "Go out first." Tōgi Shō was the first to step out of the laboratory, leaving behind a back that gave no hint of any information.

  In the living room, Yamaguchi Mireiko sat quietly in front of the tea table, holding a cup of steaming hot tea and savoring the delicate fragrance. Seeing the two come out of the laboratory, she only glanced at them without much movement. It wasn't until Fujiki Masaru sat down that she put down her teacup and poured him a cup of fragrant tea, the rising steam misting over his eyes.

  Looking at the fragrant tea, Tongmu Sheng didn't speak up, picked up the teacup, blew off the hot air, furrowed his brow, and took a small sip. This year, success or failure was just one step away, but Tongmu Sheng couldn't open his mouth. Li Qiu's success or failure would verify whether his research for most of his life was correct or not. If it was correct, he could die without regret; if it was wrong, he wouldn't only ruin his own life but also destroy Li Qiu's future...

  "Little Autumn, sing a song for me, use your best voice, pour out all your emotions, and sing one." Tōdai Masaru didn't say a word, after a long time, Yamaguchi Mirei was the first to speak up, her calm eyes stared at Li Qiu who was standing beside her, her expression still as stern as ever.

  "Yes, Mrs. Yamaguchi." Li Qiu's heart was also very disturbed, Fujimoto Katsu didn't say a word, he didn't know what to do either, his heart felt like it had been covered with a layer of ice outside the house, but Yamaguchi Mirei's words pulled him out from the chill.

  "Wait, Xiao Qiu!" Fujiwara Shou, who had been silent for a long time, finally spoke up and stopped Li Qiu from singing.

  "Grandpa Tōgi?"

  "Little Autumn, before you start singing, I have to tell you something." Whether successful or not, Tōmoku Shō felt that he should tell the truth to Li Qiu. If they succeeded, it would be fine, but if they failed, he wouldn't forgive himself either.

  "You said."

  Tong Kai lifted his head, glanced at Li Qiu, and drank the scalding hot tea in one gulp. Only then did he blow out a faint mist of white air and speak slowly, "Little Autumn, to be honest, from the very beginning, I didn't have any confidence that I could change your voice. This small thing called vocal cords, I've studied for half my life, but it wasn't until I met you that I discovered an error. Moreover, I'm not even sure if this error is truly an error. So, I'm very sorry, Little Autumn. At the beginning, I didn't have any confidence in myself, yet I still had you undergo my training."

  "Grandpa Fujiki......" So that's it. But is this important? Not really, right? If we succeed, then Grandpa Fujiki's efforts won't be in vain. If we fail...

  "Uncle Teng, no, you don't have anything to apologize for. Your help to me is the greatest kindness to Xia Qiu, regardless of success or failure. Xia Qiu will always be grateful for your guidance! What's the big deal? If I fail, I'll still be the same old tone-deaf Li Qiu. And if I succeed, then I'll thank him with three kneels and nine knocks!"

  "Then, sing! Let me see what I've been doing for half my life!" Li Qiu's words immediately ignited Fujimori Shou's determination to face the final outcome, and his weathered yet warm voice kept echoing in the room.

  "Like a Fool", this song is one of the slower, funkier tracks from Lee Hyori's first solo album, Lee chose this one:

  Enduring the painful memories of sorrowful longing

  Only you forever treasure the end, today is also like a fool

  ……

  Two sentences, two lines of lyrics later, Li Qiu's tears had already fallen silently. The song continued to play, her voice still shaking, but the tears couldn't help falling, and Li Qiu's tone had indeed changed...

  "Indeed, the vocal cords are not something that can be changed by human effort. Do I really have to resort to surgery?" Tonomori sighed, thinking that a year's worth of hard work had been for nothing... no, it wasn't that it was for nothing, but rather that it had been wasted.

  Li Qiu's singing voice was surprisingly similar to that of Teng Yuke, possibly because he started earlier and got rid of all the noise in his voice. However, without any noise, this voice is still extremely unpleasant to listen to - it's thin and sharp, like a wide and thick roar being compressed into a straight line...

  "Alright, Xia Qiu, stop it..." Tengmu Sheng rubbed his chest, and Li Qiu's singing voice was like a heavy hammer, pounding heavily on his chest...

  "Win, you seem to have forgotten something." Yamauchi Mireiko's face only darkened for a moment when Li Qiu sang the first line of the lyrics, and then there was no change. Li Qiu sang with tears in her eyes, Fujiki Shou hung his head and sighed, but only she remained sober.

  "I, forgot something?" The teapot in his hand still held the steaming hot water, but Tōmoku Shō had forgotten to put it down. The tea cup on the table was finally full, and the scalding hot water rotated a circle on the tea table before slowly cooling down. Next to him, Li Qiu also stopped speaking when she heard Yamaguchi Mirei's words, staring blankly at the two elderly people facing each other...

  "His voice, unlike yours, still has residual noise, his voice is now completely pure, that means you succeeded. So, Sheng, why did you have him practice throat exercises for over a year?"

  Yamaguchi Mireiko's gentle and soothing voice was like a beacon in the labyrinth, guiding Fujiki Masaru out of his predicament. Just as Fujiki Masaru's dull eyes suddenly sparkled with an unusual light, like the warm sunlight outside shining on the ice and refracting into a brilliant glow, "Ah! How could I have overlooked it?! Mireiko, thank you so much for reminding me! Haha! I was too focused on this small thing called vocal cords and forgot what I had him do from the start!"

  "Xiao Qiu, I'll teach you how to control your vocal cords and produce a good sound. Since we can't change it, let's go control it! We'll definitely find a way to make your voice sound better! Haha!"

  "Really? Wasn't there a failure? Or should I say, did we succeed?" Li Qiu couldn't believe it, this mountain was heavy and the water was complicated, this willow was dark and the flower was bright.

  "No, we didn't succeed, but we also didn't fail! Your voice has gotten rid of the extra noise, in other words, we succeeded in opening up your vocal cords, but we also failed, your tone hasn't improved because of it." Tōnokizuki stood up, heavily patted Li Qiu's shoulder, and his facial wrinkles relaxed a bit, his voice still warm...

  Li Qiu also smiled, "As long as there's no failure, it's good, as long as there's no failure, it's good..."

  "Win, my training, has to start soon too!" Yamaguchi Mireiko stood up, adjusted the hem of her kimono, and rarely, a smile appeared on her face.