Chapter 143: Tit for Tat

"Tenth, the principals of each section played wrong notes, went out of tune, and even cracked notes during their solos."

"Hmm... this must be due to nervousness. It shows your psychological resilience is lacking. For a symphony orchestra to participate in an international exchange meeting with such poor mental fortitude fully demonstrates your lack of seriousness toward this event, as well as your disrespect for all the masters and audience members present!"

Yang Qing’s voice was deafening. After stating the tenth error, he glanced at the Japanese orchestra on stage with a hint of disdain and said coolly:

"I’ll stop at these ten points for now; I’m afraid you wouldn’t be able to handle any more. Well... I’ve finished my critique. If you wish to refute, you may begin!"

After speaking, Yang Qing took a sip of water. Honestly, speaking so much at once really made his throat a bit dry.

At this moment, the entire venue fell silent. The audience was stunned by him. Regardless of whether his critique was correct or not, the sheer audacity of these "ten points" was undeniably impressive, not to mention he was single-handedly taking on the Japanese delegation.

As for the Japanese orchestra on stage, they looked as miserable as if they had just swallowed excrement.

Refute? Refute what? You threw out "ten points" all at once—how are we supposed to start a rebuttal!

The atmosphere remained eerily quiet for nearly thirty seconds, until a sudden burst of applause rang out.

Everyone looked over abruptly to see an elderly foreign man sitting in the middle of the front row, standing up and clapping with a smile directed at Yang Qing.

"Holy cow! It’s one of the world’s most prestigious Italian master instrumentalists, Franchest!"

"My goodness, my goodness, a second big shot is clapping! That’s... Willow Cotton from the British Empire!"

As people recognized the two masters who had taken the lead in applauding Yang Qing, exclamations erupted continuously.

Following them, thunderous applause broke out, accompanied by wild cheers. The crowd was overwhelmed with excitement and fervor.

"Thank you... thank you all for your recognition, and thank you for your applause."

Yang Qing appeared very humble, continuously expressing his gratitude to the masters who were applauding.

The applause lasted nearly a minute before dying down, and the venue became quiet again. At this moment, the first master to applaud, the Italian instrumentalist Franchest, gave Yang Qing a thumbs-up and said:

"Young, excellent!"

"Thank you!"

As the brief exchange between Franchest and Yang Qing concluded, the Japanese orchestra on stage looked completely ashen.

They had been recognized by internationally renowned masters, and Yang Qing had won. They had lost, and lost thoroughly!

"Phew!"

Lu Baiwu couldn't help but let out a sigh of relief. To be honest, he had been breaking into a cold sweat for Yang Qing just a moment ago, but fortunately... he hadn't let him down!

The Japanese orchestra retreated, and the symphony orchestras from other countries continued to take the stage, but their moods were significantly more strained than those of the previous groups.

All because of Yang Qing!

As the symphonies played on stage, the atmosphere in the venue became lively again, but the members of the Japanese orchestra, having retreated to the backstage rest area, were seething with rage.

"Kimura-kun! We must win the upcoming traditional instrument segment!"

"Hai! Inoue-kun, please rest assured, victory will certainly be ours! You can contact Master Kitahara and have him target the Chinese musicians!"

"Yosh!"

...

Nearly an hour later, the symphony orchestras from over a dozen countries had finished their performances. After the Japanese group, Yang Qing hadn't offered another critique, yet no other musician dared to underestimate him again.

Following the symphonies, the second round—the exchange of traditional instruments—began. There were no restrictions on the format for traditional instruments; it could be a group or an individual performance, but each country was limited to a maximum of four pieces.

China was the first to take the stage.

Led by Zhuo Yi, the Chinese traditional instrument group stepped onto the stage, consisting of the xun, flute, zither, and drums.

"Boom, boom, boom..."

When the vigorous and magnificent sound of the drums rang out, the performance officially began.

Following the "boom, boom" of the drums came the "tseng, tseng" of the zither, sounding like a sharp sword unsheathed, followed immediately by the melodious and soulful sound of the flute, which washed over the soul, and finally, the low, reverberating echo of the xun.

The four sounds intertwined and echoed, instantly pulling the entire venue into an ancient battlefield of gold and iron horses, stirring everyone's hearts.

A few minutes later, the performance ended, and the critique session began.

Because this was a performance of traditional instruments, many masters were not very familiar with the traditional instruments of other countries, and being unfamiliar, they did not easily offer critiques.

Master Kitahara of the Japanese delegation saw that no one was speaking, and he smiled—a very arrogant smile.

He had already received orders to target Chinese music, and although he didn't understand the tonal characteristics of Chinese traditional instruments, what did that matter?

After a moment of silence, he chuckled and was the first to speak, rattling off a string of nonsense in his native tongue before turning to look at Yang Qing with a sneer.

"Pfft!"

Yang Qing gave a disdainful snort. Through the simultaneous translation, he understood the Japanese master's critique.

The gist of it was that the piece performed by the Chinese traditional group was chaotic, lacked a clear theme, and was merely a jumble of instruments mixed together with no musicality to speak of.

This was no longer a critique; it was a direct attack on the Chinese orchestra, and it all stemmed from Yang Qing.

If the wind won't stop, why should the trees be still?

"Heh..."

Yang Qing chuckled and retorted directly: "Can master certifications be bought with money these days? I’d like to ask this old man from the Japanese delegation: where did you buy your master’s certificate? Do share the contact info."

As soon as Yang Qing said this, the Chinese audience in the venue was stunned. This was... a direct confrontation!

Damn! Suddenly, it was so exciting and thrilling.

Qin Hao, holding little Qiu'er, also opened his mouth, speechless.

His only thought at that moment was: My brother-in-law is ferocious!

"You..."

Kitahara was also so angered by Yang Qing's words that he couldn't speak.

"What about 'you'?"

Yang Qing coldly interrupted him: "If you don't understand, don't talk nonsense, or you'll only show everyone how ignorant you are!"

"Starting with the drums, followed by the zither and flute, and ending with the xun—this piece expresses the iron-blooded tenderness of my Chinese people defending our home and country!"

Yang Qing said in a deep voice: "The drum sound represents the soul of soldiers marching to war, and the clanging zither represents our unyielding determination to slay every enemy!"

"If the invaders do not die, how can we protect our homeland? We Chinese people have hot blood, but we also have tenderness! The flute transmits longing: mothers waiting for their sons to return, wives waiting for their husbands!"

"The xun sound is deep, sorrowful, and continuous, as if praying to the heavens to let the souls of our heroic Chinese blood-stained warriors return home!"

"This is the charm of Chinese traditional instruments: to praise with sound, and to speak with sound! Praise: The heroes of China, even in death, remain legends! Speak: Those who offend China, no matter how far, shall be punished!"

"Boom!"

As Yang Qing finished, all the Chinese audience members in the venue erupted, standing up excitedly as applause swept through like a tsunami.

The officials sitting in the first row also stood up to applaud Yang Qing, their eyes filled with admiration.

"Music knows no borders," "Science knows no borders"—what nonsense!

When music and science are determined by who they serve, they carry a deep national brand!

"Thank you, thank you all."

Yang Qing bowed to express his gratitude to the applauding crowd. Although he didn't particularly like the traditional instrument group led by Zhuo Yi, that was only relative!

When the Japanese master spoke up to mock and question them, he, as a Chinese, had to step up to defend them, especially since this storm had started because of him!

Amidst the thunderous applause, no one cared about Master Kitahara of Japan anymore. Yang Qing had once again conquered the audience and the masters present with his words and his profound mastery of instrumental music.

It was just as Lu Baiwu had said: conquer them, and you—are the master!

"Brother is amazing, so amazing!"

Little Qiu'er, in Qin Hao's arms, kept clapping her little hands and squeaking, asking several times:

"Brother Hao, can I video call Xi'er? Xi'er must want to clap for brother too!"

"We can't, we can't make video calls here," Qin Hao laughed. "But tonight, Xi'er and the others can see your brother on TV. Then, baby Qiu'er can video call them and let them clap for your brother."

"Really? Will brother be on TV?" Little Qiu'er's big eyes brightened with excitement.

"Yes, really!"

"Hee hee... then Qiu'er will call Dudu and Niannian to watch together."

Qin Hao was confused: "Who are Dudu and Niannian?"

Little Qiu'er looked at him steadily and said: "Dudu and Niannian are just Dudu and Niannian. They aren't 'who'."

Qin Hao: ...