Chapter One Hundred and Twelve: What is Love?

  "Nie Ge!" Lu Feng was still very excited even though it was his second time seeing Nie Zhong.

  Nie Zhong smiled and nodded at him, turning his gaze to Xiao Xiao and Lin Yi: "They are the classmates you mentioned, right?"

  "Ah, Xiao Mogui and Xiao Pangniu."

  "Haha!" Nie Zhong patted Xiao Xiao's explosive hair with his hand: "You're the little demon." He also patted Lin Yi's shoulder, "Little fatty, hehe." He thought Lin Yi's nickname was very cute, and in the midst of laughter, he suddenly felt several years younger.

  Xiao Xiao and Lin Yi saw Nie Zhong being so polite, as if they were close friends, the two immediately put on a good student's appearance, respectfully shouting: "Brother Nie."

  Nie Zhong nodded and smiled.

  He hastily poured out the words he had prepared last night, saying: "Nie brother, my dad and I both love listening to your songs. Your songs have been lingering in my mind and can't be dispersed. I didn't expect to see you in person today, it's really a blessing of three lives. If there is really a time-travel now, I will definitely go back twenty years ago and say what, I will create the glory of rock music with you guys together. Haha." He said, his mind was full of fantasies.

  "Twenty years ago, I also wanted to go back twenty years ago, after all, that was the most glorious era of rock and roll." Nie Zhong's memories were stirred up by Xiao Xiao, his expression drifting aimlessly.

  The two little brats in the store heard that the owner had a guest coming and knowingly left.

  Nie Zhong saw that the two little ones had gone out and closed the shop door, then waved his hand at Xiao Xiao and the three of them to follow him inside.

  Xiao Xiao and three others followed Nie Zhong to the storefront, then went down a staircase at the back, entering an underground room.

  Nie Cong pushed open the door of the basement and turned on the fluorescent lamp.

  This basement has an area of about twenty square meters, with a ventilation window inside, the temperature is cool and comfortable, warm in winter and cool in summer.

  The floor was covered with good wooden flooring, but it had not been swept for a long time and a layer of dust had accumulated. In the four corners were placed all sorts of old musical instruments.

  Lin Yi saw that the whole room was full of dust and she frowned and covered her mouth.

  Nie Zhongchong pointed at a red and white electric guitar covered in dust, as well as a set of red rock drum stands.

  That's the second-hand goods worth 4,000 yuan.

  "This? Isn't it too old?" Xiao Xiao gazed at the pile of objects that seemed to have been unearthed, and involuntarily spoke out.

  Nie Zhong smiled calmly and did not argue or explain.

  Lu Pengma lowered his waist, pulled the electric guitar out of the pile of miscellaneous items, grabbed the neck of the guitar with his hand, and blew against it with his mouth. Dust flew everywhere, and dirt choked people.

  Lin Yi covered her nose and nudged Xiao Xiao's chest with her elbow, indicating that it was too unbearable here.

  Xiao Xiao touched her own nose and looked at Lu Feng's next move.

  Lu Peng wiped the electric guitar clean, adjusted the strings, plugged in the audio cable, and slung the guitar over his back. He reached into his pocket and pulled out a blue pick, strumming the strings lightly as a flowing sound of music began to play.

  Lin Yi covered her nose, and for the first time, she heard Lu Feng's pleasant and harmonious zither music. Her eyes widened as she glanced at Xiao Xiao, full of praise for Lu Feng's zither music.

  Xiao Xiao smiled and said: "I didn't lie, I came to find you absolutely not for nothing, we're going to make a big move."

  As soon as Lu Deng touched the guitar, his mind and body entered a state of frenzy. His left hand slithered like a snake on the neck of the guitar, while his right hand plucked the strings with lightning speed. The movements became faster and faster, his wrist driving his forearm, his forearm driving his upper body, until his entire body was trembling as if electrified, resembling madness. The sound of the guitar was like thunder and lightning, shouting and roaring, stormy and rainy, almost sweeping away the dust in this storage room.

  Xiao Xiao had never heard such a wanton sound of the zither before, and the blood vessels in his body were all boiling with the sound, wanting to burst through the embankment made of flesh and blood.

  Lin Yi was also bewildered by the sound of the guqin, and he lowered his hand from covering his nose, a smile spreading across his face.

  Nie Cong leaned against the door, listening to Lu Feng's piano sound. It was as if he had returned to his own youthful era, when he too was so arrogant and indignant. But now, he no longer had such feelings.

  Lu Deng finished playing a song, exhausted and covered in sweat, turned his head to Nie Zhong with a smile.

  Nie Zhong asked: "You three formed a band, right?"

  Lu Peng wiped the sweat from his forehead with a dusty hand, but stuck a few strands of red hair on it. Hearing Nie Zhong ask himself, he said directly: "Yes, I play guitar. Want to let Xiao Xiao be the lead singer and Lin Yi be the drummer?"

  He originally planned to buy a second-hand instrument and teach the drummer himself. However, now that he has met NIE Zhong, he wants him to buy one and give one away, and also serve as a teacher for Xiao Xiao and Lin Yi, and as an advisor and instructor for his own band.

  Nie Zhong was no longer young, and he had long wanted to pass on his experience and skills to a band. Now that Lu Feng and the other three had appeared, they were just what he had in mind. He touched the tip of his tongue to the roof of his mouth and said, "I just heard you guys talking, your voices aren't bad, any one of you can be the lead singer. Xiao Mo Guai and Xiao Pang Niang both learn to play drums, so they can take turns performing."

  Lu Feng thought this was a good idea and asked Xiao Xiao and Lin Yi about it.

  Xiao Xiao and Lin Yi were enticed by Lu Feng's piano sound, now they are filled with passion, hot-blooded, feeling good about it.

  "Can we learn to play the drums now?" Xiao Xiao waved his hands, making a drumming gesture. He thought he could go on stage and perform right away.

  Nie Zhong took out two large towels from one side and threw them to Xiao Xiao and Lin Yi, saying: "First wipe your drums clean."

  Xiao Xiao and Lin Yi took the rags, thinking that they were going to clean up. Alright, let's get to work! The two of them held the rags and first tidied up the things in the basement, putting everything in order.

  Lu Peng pulled Nie Zhong out of the basement and into the store, took out the 4,000 yuan and handed it to Nie Zhong.

  Nie Zhong and Lu Feng had already discussed it beforehand, so he couldn't decline at this point, and simply accepted it generously.

  Lu Peng said to Nie Zhong with a hint of apology, "To be honest, thank you so much for selling it to us. We don't have anywhere to put the instruments right now, can we leave them here with you for the time being?"

  Nie Zhong said, "Forget it, this store is our family's own house and doesn't even need to pay rent. The basement was originally used for storage, and the soundproofing is good, so you can practice your band there. It's just that your school is too far from here."

  Lu Teng heard that not only was the place to put the instrument solved, but also the contact place was solved. With Nie Zhong, this legendary teacher, everything is ready, and all that's left is practice. He can now appear on the stage in Tianjing City. Lu Teng immediately thanked Nie Zhong repeatedly.

  Xiao Xiao and Lin Yi were in the basement, each holding a rag. They walked to the drum set, looking for the screws on the drum body, carefully disassembling them, and gently wiping the drum body and drumhead clean. They also wiped the cymbals clean. After cleaning each part, they carefully reassembled everything back to its original state.

  Under the lamp light, the drum body is blood red and radiant with a sharp light, the cymbals are shiny, it really looks like new.

  Xiao Xiao and Lin Yi looked at each other with joy, then found a mop to sweep the floor clean.

  The floor of the basement is wooden, and after being wiped clean, it's smooth and flat, reflecting the light, giving a sense of home.

  The two saw that everything was all right in the basement and sat down on the ground to rest.

  Lin Yi sat on the ground, her long hair draped over her shoulders, a pink light gauze skirt spread out, with two legs stretched out, turning her head to gaze at that bright drum rack, which was the result of her own labor, and she felt very pleased in her heart.

  Xiao Xiao saw Lin Yi's snow-white thighs from the side, as delicate as tofu, and couldn't help but get excited, reaching out to touch them.

  Nie Zhong walked in.

  Lin Yi suddenly turned her head.

  Xiao Xiao quickly pulled her hand back.

  Nie looked at the clean floor and the newly polished drum set, smiling at them: "You, do you know what love is?"

  "Love?" Lin Yi heard this word and felt his face flush slightly.

  "Want to make love?" Xiao Xiao said softly as she sat on the ground.

  Lin Yi glared at him with great disgust.

  "Love, what we call love, is selfless and continuous devotion. If you want to be a drummer, you must love your drums, devote yourself to them unconditionally, and keep them spotless. You respect them, they will respect you. You love them, they will love you back. Only then can you play the most powerful and moving drumbeats."

  Xiao Xiao and Lin Yiru suddenly woke up from their dream-like state, understanding what was going on.

  Nie Zhong had them stand over, himself sitting in the drummer's position, holding drumsticks. He taught Xiao Xiao and Lin Yi the basic way of drumming, how to maintain a correct posture, a calm mind, how to hold the drumsticks, how to control wrist strength, relax fingers, striking angle and details. Footwork techniques, practicing one beat per note.

  Xiao Xiao and Lin Yi watched videos of other bands online, seeing how cool they were at drumming, but when they first started themselves, they kept repeating the same action over and over, getting bored after a short while.

  Nie Zhong saw the two of them and smiled, saying: "Learning to play drums is like being a person, it's a process of hard work and self-cultivation. Only by persevering can you succeed. Your task today is to get familiar with the personality of the drum." After he finished speaking, he walked out of the basement and into the store.

  Lu Peng saw Nie Zhong coming, and he switched with him, coming to the basement himself. His right hand stroked the clean drum skin as he said to Xiao Xiao and Lin Yi: "Starting today, we'll begin our band career here. I thought about it earlier, and it's basically impossible for us to come here every day. So, as the leader, I won't make excessive demands on you guys either. We'll aim to come here at least twice a week, and if we persist in practicing like this, we'll definitely see some progress after a year. As for other times, we can arrange them according to actual circumstances. What do you think?"

  "Good." Xiao Xiao and Lin Yi both thought that this schedule was very reasonable, Lu Feng was a good captain.

  Lu Deng heard Xiao Xiao and Lin Yi agree so readily, excitedly grabbed the electric guitar beside him, and tuned the strings.

  Xiao Xiao and Lin Yi started practicing drumming.

  In the basement, there is only lamp light, no sun or moon, and the passage of time cannot be seen.

  At five o'clock in the afternoon, Nie Zhong walked into the basement and said to the three people who were suffocating here: "Let's go, I'll invite you to dinner. Let's have a good drink."

  Lu Peng put his electric guitar on the clean floor, clapped his hands and let Xiao Xiao and Lin Yi stop to eat.

  Lin Yi glanced at the cartoon watch on her wrist and said to Xiao Xiao: "Ah! It's so late, I want to go back to school to see the welcome party." Her intention was naturally for Xiao Xiao to go with her.

  Xiao Xiao originally wanted to have a big drink with Nie Zhong, but it was not good for Lin Yi to go back by herself, so she said to Nie Zhong: "Nie brother, I'll take her back to school first. We'll drink to death another day."

  Lu Peng originally wanted to let Xiao Xiao and Nie Zhong drink more today, but unexpectedly Little Pangzi appeared with a problem, immediately turned back and swept a glance at Xiao Xiao, unwilling in ten thousand ways.

  Nie Zhong knew that things had changed and said to Xiao Xiao: "You all go back first, I'll have an in-depth discussion with Lu Feng about the future of the band."

  "Thank you, Nie Ge." Xiao Xiao apologized to Nie Zhong and then walked out of the underground room with Lin Yi onto the main street.

  The sun has set, but the sky is still not dark. The heat has hidden without a trace, and the cool breeze waves layer by layer.

  Xiao Xiao and Lin Yi breathed in the air on the ground, feeling physically and mentally exhausted.

  They practiced drumming for half a day and now walking on the main street, still feeling the buzzing sound of drum skin vibrations in their ears, hands and feet can't help but keep tapping and stomping.

  "Ah! I'm exhausted." Lin Yi twisted his plump shoulders and complained to Xiao Xiao.

  "It can practice drums and lose weight at the same time, isn't that a happy thing?" Xiao Xiao looked at her with a smile.

  "Ah! Although it's a good thing, just...?" Lin Yi frowned and said: "When will I be able to learn?" She really couldn't see the day when she would master drumming.

  Two people took the bus and arrived at the subway station.

  They already knew online that at this time in the evening, a large wave of commuters was rushing to the subway station near Tianjing City. Once the subway is occupied by these crowds, Lin Wei's bread-like body will be squeezed into a pancake, and it's possible that he'll even be squeezed out.

  Xiao Xiao's heart was filled with this worry, causing Lin Yi to quicken his pace, and he finally rushed into the subway car just before a large wave of people surged in.

  There were only twenty-odd people in the carriage, and the air conditioning was just right, making it extremely comfortable.

  Xiao Xiao and Lin Yi found a row of empty seats and sat down together side by side.

  Lin Yi sat down, suddenly feeling drowsy, closed his eyes and fell asleep unknowingly. His body slid down, his head leaning on Xiao Xiao's shoulder, sleeping soundly and peacefully.

  The slender shoulders felt her raven-black hair, as if the black waves had flowed into his own body. He gazed at the reflection of the two people in the opposite car window, calm in his heart.

  Next to them, a couple of fifteen or sixteen years old were snuggled up together.

  The boy saw the girl chatting with a WeChat number with a handsome guy's avatar, and immediately snatched the phone from her hand, shouting angrily: "You this bitch."

  "What's the point of still licking?" The girl retorted frankly and defiantly.

  Xiao Xiao couldn't help but burst out laughing.