Mr. Lizard Outside the Window - Chapter 13
Chapter 13: Misty Forest
Absorbed in Old He's story and the new insights it offered, Banxia completely forgot about dinner.
When she finally returned home late at night, she was starving. Fortunately, a bowl of steaming hot misua1 was waiting for her on the stove.
The misua had a rich pork bone broth base, with dried scallops, conch meat, pig's blood, oysters, bamboo shoots, and celery, seasoned with black pepper and topped with freshly made scallion oil. It was savory, sweet, and incredibly comforting.
Banxia devoured the delicious meal, sighing contentedly. "What a lifesaver! Whoever made this is a true angel."
The "angel" who had saved her was nowhere to be seen. The apartment was empty.
The soundproofing in the building was terrible. It was full of young people, mostly night owls. At night, the building came alive with a cacophony of sounds, mixing with the constant clatter of mahjong tiles from Ying Jie's all-night games on the first floor.
The tenant across from Banxia was an online novelist who wrote late into the night. The clatter of his keyboard was almost louder than a musical instrument. The sound of a toilet flushing from the apartment upstairs echoed clearly through the pipes.
Faint electronic music drifted from the next room, a short demo played repeatedly on an electric keyboard with the volume turned down low.
As she washed the dishes, noticing the bits of scallop, conch, and bamboo shoots in the sink, a thought occurred to her. Wait a minute… did we even have these ingredients?
She finished washing the dishes, tidied up the kitchen, meticulously wiped the bathroom floor dry, and folded a stack of absorbent paper towels by the bathroom door.
Xiao Lian was very particular about cleanliness. Every time he used the bathroom, he would carefully dry himself on a paper towel before returning to his terrarium. Even a small puddle of water on the floor could be a hazard for his tiny body.
Finished with her chores, Banxia lay in bed, staring at the dark window. The little black gecko was nowhere to be seen. He hadn't even poked his head out from the windowsill. Lately, Xiao Lian had been sneaking out at night, often returning only in the morning to curl up in his terrarium and sleep.
Well, anyone cooped up in a tiny box all day, doing nothing but cooking and cleaning, would get bored.
Maybe I should come back during the day and take Xiao Lian out for some fresh air?
Lost in thought, Banxia drifted off to sleep. Her bed was against the wall, and in her dreams, the faint melody from next door continued to play, echoing in her ears.
As the music played on repeat, she found herself dreaming again.
In the same hazy dreamscape, she was a child again, perched on the windowsill, talking to the boy playing the piano inside. "What piece were you just playing?"
Startled by her sudden appearance, the boy quickly tucked a handwritten score under the music book on the piano and began playing a Czerny etude.
"Why did you stop? I wanted to hear more," Banxia complained, her small hands gripping the windowsill.
The piano music stopped. The boy turned to her, his voice hesitant. "Really? You…liked it?"
"Yes, it was beautiful," Banxia nodded, discarding the caterpillar she had been holding. She rested her chin on the windowsill, her eyes half-closed, her dirty little hands miming the world she heard in the music. "I heard a forest… grass sprouting from the earth, leaves rustling in the wind. Lots and lots of colors. So beautiful."
Her description was childish and nonsensical, but the boy's eyes lit up. After a moment of hesitation, he pulled out the handwritten score again, his voice filled with excitement. "I'll play it for you again. But…don't tell anyone."
Banxia, nimble as a monkey, climbed in through the window, her slightly dirty skirt fluttering in the breeze.
"Why can't I tell anyone?"
"It's a piece I wrote myself," the boy confessed, his face flushing slightly. "My teacher and my parents don't think I should be wasting my time on composing."
It was a simple, childish melody, the notes echoing in the sunlit room.
The two children squeezed onto the piano bench, one playing, one listening.
"It's so beautiful!" Banxia clapped enthusiastically, her small hands turning red. "I don't understand. What's wrong with composing?"
Banxia, still new to the world of music, couldn't comprehend it.
"Composing… it's not a respectable profession," the boy explained, using simple terms. "They think I should focus on playing, on becoming a performer."
"But why does it have to be respectable?" Banxia's focus shifted again.
The boy faltered. "If it's not respectable…then you won't earn enough money. It's hard to survive in this world."
Banxia laughed. "That's just grown-up talk. There are plenty of people in our village who don't have 'respectable' jobs, and they're not starving. Everyone is happy."
She leaned closer to the boy, their heads touching as they looked at the handwritten score, their eyes shining.
"It's such a beautiful piece. It's a shame they don't want to hear it. But you can always play your music for me. I love it!"
The boy, having found his first appreciative listener, clutched the neatly copied score, his ears red, and nodded earnestly. "As long as you promise not to throw any more caterpillars in here, I'll play for you often."
"Deal! Promise!"
"And you have to promise to keep it a secret."
"I promise! Do we need to pinky swear?"
"No, I don't think so. Your hands were just holding a caterpillar, weren't they?"
When Banxia was woken by her alarm at 6:00 AM, the faint music from next door had already stopped. The entire building was silent, bathed in the cool morning light.
Strange, why have I been dreaming about my childhood so much lately?
Banxia rubbed her sleepy eyes and sat up, noticing Xiao Lian sleeping in his terrarium.
Xiao Lian, who knows what he had been up to all night, seemed exhausted, curled up in his towel, fast asleep. His little paws poked out from under the towel, and even the loud alarm hadn't woken him.
Banxia crouched beside him, gently stroked his gemstone-like head, and tucked the towel around him more securely.
Then, she quietly gathered her backpack and violin case, slipped out the door, and left the hardworking little gecko to sleep peacefully in the morning sun.
At that very moment, on a popular independent music website called Red Orange, a song uploaded the previous night was starting to gain some traction.
The song was titled "Misty Forest."
The artist was an unknown independent musician. The song had very few plays, but the comments were surprisingly positive.
【OMG, what a hidden gem! Red Lotus, I'm going to remember this name!】
【This song gave me chills! I can almost see a real misty forest, filled with mysterious creatures.】
【Yes! The backing vocals sound like a monster howling in the mist. I fell asleep listening to this on repeat and had strange dreams all night.】
【This is amazing! "Misty Forest"? More like "Forest of Love"! My ears are in love with this song!】
【Lyrics, composition, arrangement, mixing, production… all by the same person? This guy is seriously talented.】
【I predict a new star is born on Red Orange. Marking this post so I can come back and gloat later.】
【Definitely a future legend in the making. Calling it now.】
In the office building of a well-known music company, Xiao Xiao, a music producer, excitedly called out to his boss, Bai Yaoming, who was walking past with a cup of coffee. "Bai Ge, come quick! I found an amazing song on Red Orange! You have to hear this!"
Bai Yaoming rubbed his temples, his face creased with fatigue.
He had been up all night, listening to demos for a new project, and his head was still buzzing with the mediocre tunes. The last thing he wanted to hear was more music.
Xiao Xiao is talented and hardworking, but he has no sense of timing, Bai Yaoming thought irritably.
It's the middle of the night! And he wants me to listen to some random song from the internet.
"Hurry, hurry! This guy is a genius, a true genius! It's incredible! Lyrics, music, vocals, beats, arrangement… all done by one person!" Xiao Xiao, oblivious to his boss's mood, continued to rave.
His excitement over some supposedly amazing song he had discovered was a regular occurrence. His colleagues, having worked all night, were used to it. They walked past, too tired to even give him a second glance.
Only Bai Yaoming, his direct supervisor, humored him, walking over to his computer with a yawn and watching as Xiao Xiao clicked on the song titled "Misty Forest."
As soon as the intro started, Bai Yaoming raised an eyebrow. "Interesting motif. Using a classical music style for the intro, huh?"
Halfway through the song, his casual demeanor vanished. He turned serious, holding out his hand to Xiao Xiao. "Give me the headphones. Rewind that part."
"What do you think? What do you think?" Xiao Xiao couldn't contain his excitement. "The layering is so rich, the melody unique, and the underlying emotion is so profound. It's dubstep with a traditional Chinese music core. He used a lot of traditional instruments in the arrangement, besides the strings. I heard castanets, a wooden fish, a guzheng, cymbals, a hulusi… and that…what's that called?"
"A qudi2. And cowbells and tanggu drums3," Bai Yaoming took off the headphones, finishing Xiao Xiao's sentence. "The most unique part is the vocal accompaniment. It gave me chills. It sounds like a monster singing in the mist. I wonder how he created that electronic sound."
His gaze fell on the artist's name, his finger tapping the screen. "Red Lotus."
"Misty Forest, Red Lotus blooming in fire… This guy is intriguing."
Xiao Xiao's eyes widened. "Red as in 'fire,' not 'naked,' right? I thought it meant 'naked lotus flower.' Such a cool name!"
Bai Yaoming flicked him on the head. "If you're going to make a fool of yourself, at least try not to sound so uneducated."
Then, he gave his assessment. "It's a good song, but too niche. I doubt it will be commercially successful. But this guy has serious arranging skills. Contact him. See if we can recruit him as an arranger."
"Okay, I'll email him right away," Xiao Xiao said, slightly disappointed that they weren't acquiring the song itself, but still eager to follow his boss's instructions. "What if he doesn't want to join us?"
"You're still too young," Bai Yaoming took a sip of his coffee. "Listen carefully. Besides the electric piano and vocals, which are live recordings, everything else is synthesized. Even with noise reduction, you can still hear a lot of background noise. That tells me his equipment is basic, and his recording environment isn't ideal."
"There aren't many truly talented people in this world, but even the most talented need to eat."
1. ^ Misua (面线糊): A thin noodle dish popular in Fujian province, often served in a thick broth with various toppings.
2. ^ Qudi (曲笛): A type of Chinese transverse flute, often used in traditional music.
3. ^ Tanggu drums (唐鼓): A type of traditional Chinese drum.
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