Nie Anni stood aside, fearing that she completely lacked this sense of surprise. Moreover, she didn’t understand why Yu Zexiao suddenly became so agitated.
Even Yin Maohui and Nie Anni immediately came over to smooth things over: "Hahaha, Yu Zexiao has been rushing to shoot every day, getting less than five hours of sleep each day, working tirelessly for the final brilliance of ’Rock Youth.’ We hope everyone will definitely come to watch!"
"Yes, yes." Director Li also stepped up. Today’s "press conference" was a waste, with all the attention focused on Yu Zexiao and Nie Anni! Everyone else collectively became a backdrop! Starlight Entertainment truly had a clever strategy!
Very soon, an assistant handed the mic to Nie Anni, and a reporter asked, "Miss Nie, may I ask why you chose to play this piece? Does this piece hold any special significance for you?"
After hesitating for a moment, Nie Anni said, "This is the piece with which I won the championship at the World Youth Competition ten years ago, and it was because of this piece that I became a disciple of my mentor. Over the years, I’ve been practicing this piece under my mentor’s guidance."
The one thing she didn’t say was that—this was the piece she selected for the final of the World Youth Piano Competition at that time, and it was also the piece chosen by the hot favorite to win, Ma Yiyi from Vancouver, Canada!
She remembers vividly that back then, Ma Yiyi played this piece in the semifinals and astounded everyone! Even Master John Gruber, who was initially listening absent-mindedly from the front row, couldn’t help but stand up and be the first to applaud and cheer: "Bravo!"
In fact, after the performance, John Gruber couldn’t resist going on stage, looking at Ma Yiyi several times, nodding more and more as he spoke repeatedly, "Good!"
Ma Yiyi’s score was far ahead. As long as she continued to participate in the finals and didn’t play haphazardly, winning first place would undoubtedly be hers!
At the time, in the semifinals, her badge and Ma Yiyi’s badge were positioned one at the front of the queue and one at the back, so she didn’t know at all who Ma Yiyi really was.
Until later, on the day of the finals, that hot favorite for the championship didn’t show up for the match! And she, though she had been second in the semifinals, was called a "dark horse" upon winning the championship, which was an insult to the proud Nie Anni!
For her, being able to be accepted by the piano master John Gruber whom she had dreamed of was naturally a joy. But what she couldn’t accept was being merely a substitute!
Even in the early days of apprenticeship, when she occasionally didn’t do well, Master John Gruber would shake his head and say to her: "Your technique is flawless, but what about your soul? I can’t find your soul in your performance! Your playing doesn’t have something that shocks and stirs the soul!"
The soul of music? Such an elusive concept, how was she supposed to understand it? To feel it?
She also knew that for a long time, Master John Gruber would look at her and shake his head. Shaking his head, he sighed that he lost the best student, the one good student who could carry on his musical dreams!