Chapter 51: Happily Ever After the Breakup

Chapter 51: Happy Breakup

"(Laughing and crying) Teacher, I've been dumped again."

Shortly after Gao Yun sent the message, Li Xiao's voice message popped up. His accent carried a rich, old Beijing flavor, leisurely saying, "Tell me about it. I'm having a little drink by myself, and your story will be the perfect accompaniment."

Li Xiao loved wine, especially drinking alone. Every few days, he would pour himself a drink, reading a book as he sipped, often until the early hours of the morning.

The two had been friends for three or four years, so Gao Yun was naturally familiar with this habit of his.

"Here is what happened..."

It took Gao Yun ten minutes to recount the entire process of reuniting with Daria and then breaking up with her.

"Ah～"

During those ten minutes, Li Xiao took three large gulps, finished off a bowl of wine, and said with great satisfaction, "Great accompaniment! Excellent wine accompaniment! Your story is even more thrilling than the *Strange Tales from a Chinese Studio* I was just reading!"

Gao Yun laughed out loud. "Glad to hear it."

"Hoo～" Li Xiao exhaled the alcohol fumes on the other end and said, "I knew you two wouldn't last the moment you posted that WeChat Moments update. You've been studying romantic psychology with me for so long; you should know that yourself."

Gao Yun let out an "mm."

Li Xiao asked, "Since you knew it wouldn't last, do you know the exact reason why?"

After waiting a few seconds and seeing no reply, Li Xiao used his alcohol-induced confidence to launch into a lengthy analysis: "Let me help you dissect yourself. When getting back together, you must find the initial problem that caused the breakup and solve it for the relationship to progress smoothly. If you don't solve that problem, breaking up again is just a matter of time."

"Problems fall into two categories. First are matters of principle, which cannot be resolved; cheating, gambling, drugs, violence, and so on—these are matters of principle."

"The remaining are non-principled issues; misunderstandings, emotions, a decrease in perceived value, and so forth. These are non-principled and can be solved."

"Your first breakup with Daria was non-principled. On the surface, it seemed like neither of you could endure a long-distance relationship, but the reality was that your material foundation wasn't strong enough, and you lacked the inner confidence to keep her."

"The second breakup was also non-principled. The surface reason was the same as last time—long distance—but the underlying reason had changed. The previous problem was resolved; you had money."

"Judging from the emotions you revealed while narrating the whole thing just now, if I'm not mistaken, it's that you didn't want to date her anymore. All that nonsense about not being able to see each other is just an excuse. Her career is flourishing, and instead of supporting her as a boyfriend, you expected her to quit her job. Isn't that forcing her to bring up a breakup? What? Do you really want to marry a full-time housewife?"

"I didn't, I wasn't, I was the one who got dumped..."

"Hold it right there."

Li Xiao used the tone of a veteran: "I understand. Men are fickle, after all; once you get your hands on something, you get tired of it. Genetics dictate the male's instinct to scatter seed everywhere and walk away unburdened after reproduction."

Gao Yun still wanted to defend himself: "Teacher, is it possible that my material foundation still wasn't enough? You have to understand, Daria's net worth has skyrocketed now. A single studio shoot can pay her half a million, and it's bound to get higher in the future. I've stopped trading futures too, and my fifty million is only dwindling. It's completely normal for her to look down on me."

"Is that so..." Li Xiao pondered for a few seconds, then slowly said, "That's a possibility, but based on my understanding of you, the probability is low. At least ninety percent of the reason is still that you didn't want to date her anymore. Don't try to pull the wool over my eyes!"

Gao Yun chose to remain silent. Li Xiao asked, "What relationship number is this?"

"The sixth."

"Too few. Tsk～"

The sound of Li Xiao drinking came through the phone, followed by a clear gulp as he swallowed. Only then did he speak, slightly intoxicated: "For you, it's way too few. You're different from others; you're practically half a disciple of mine. Date more! If you don't go through a hundred relationships in your lifetime, you'll be letting down my teachings."

After a pause, Li Xiao continued, "Socrates asked Plato to go into a wheat field and find the largest ear of wheat. How many ears of wheat do you think there are in a field?"

"...I don't know."

"Tens of thousands, hundreds of thousands, millions, too many to count. You say you've only dated six so far—you haven't even stepped into the wheat field yet. How can you expect to find the largest ear of wheat?"

"As long as you are dedicated during a relationship, don't commit principled errors, and earnestly fulfill a man's responsibilities, it doesn't matter how many relationships you have."

"However, certain worldly people harbor prejudices against those with extensive romantic histories. They'll think you're fickle, falling in love with everyone you meet. Don't mind their views; they don't matter."

"Only by dating more will you truly understand women, figure out what you want, accumulate experience, and lay the foundation for your next relationship."

"There's a good saying: women are books that help men grow."

Li Xiao's tone turned earnest: "You need to read more books, Xiaoyun. I spent the first forty years of my life reading, and finally, I met your teacher's wife. We might not be the absolute only perfect match, but we're pretty close. Why? Isn't it because I read a lot in the past?"

"...Yeah, I understand."

In the past, Gao Yun had been influenced by his own failed relationships and the emotional experiences of his friends, subconsciously feeling that the more one dated, the more disillusioned with love one would become. Now, after hearing Li Xiao's words, he realized things didn't seem to be that way at all.

Gao Yun hesitated for a few seconds, then voiced a thought he had harbored for a while: "Teacher, once I finish handling things here in Hushi, I'll come to the capital to visit you."

Li Xiao expressed his warm welcome without a second thought: "That would be wonderful! Come on over. By then, I'll introduce you to some pretty female students from Peking University. The wheat field in Hushi is too small; you need to experience a bigger one."

After that, the two chatted for a while longer, mostly consisting of Li Xiao's earnest guidance on romantic relationships. Just as he hung up the phone, Gao Yun suddenly noticed a system prompt pop up.

"【The 'Dating' skill has been upgraded from Professional to Expert level!】"

"【You can claim a reward of 100 million RMB. Do you wish to claim it?】"

"Claim it!"

Gao Yun operated his phone, checked the incoming transfer text message and his bank balance, and chuckled dryly, "This really is a 'Happy Breakup'."

He was already accustomed to breakups and being dumped. The slight feeling of melancholy he had felt was completely wiped away by Li Xiao's enlightenment and the newly acquired reward of 100 million RMB.

In fact, he even began to faintly look forward to his next new romance.

"It's just a breakup, not a physical cold; nothing to make a fuss about."

"So what if I got dumped? Will getting dumped cause me constipation? No? Then it's fine!"

The next day, even without fitness training, Gao Yun stuck to his schedule, practicing his three skills: guitar, singing, and street dance. He still carried his camera around to document his daily life.

Arriving at Wang Xiaole's music store, the two exchanged greetings and headed straight to the vocal practice room upstairs.

It started with some basic guitar finger exercises, followed by Gao Yun playing a newly learned fingerstyle piece. Wang Xiaole listened with his eyes closed, nodding silently. "Your guitar is at this level now. Let's move on to singing."

"Okay."

Before starting, Gao Yun did some vocal warm-ups, then turned on the sound system in the practice room and sang Liang Bo's "Boy."

"Once upon a time~ accidentally~"

"He and she fell in love~"

...

"Can't forget your love~"

"But the ending is hard to change~"

"I couldn't make you stay~"

...

"All regrets are not the future~"

"All love in the end inevitably~"

"Cannot escape the hurt~"

"No need to start over again~"

From a vocal technique standpoint, the entire song was very standard. But perhaps because Gao Yun had just broken up, he had a strong sense of immersion while singing, and his emotional delivery was spot on. It could be called an over-performance.

When the song finished, Wang Xiaole was moved to tears. Heaven knows how much effort and heartache he had expended to drag Gao Yun—who initially had terrible musical talent and couldn't even hit the right scale—up to the level of a KTV powerhouse.

"You're good, younger brother. You've fucking graduated."

Wang Xiaole shook Gao Yun's hands back and forth, looking extremely emotional. "You've crossed the threshold of fingerstyle guitar; whatever is left can only be improved slowly on your own."

"As for singing, I've taught you the basic music theory. You've also understood and mastered pitch, rhythm, breath control, and vocalization methods. As for the advanced techniques, while I know them myself, I honestly don't know how to teach them to you. If push comes to shove, you'll just have to hire a professional teacher at a music conservatory."

As soon as those words fell, a system prompt popped up.

"【The 'Singing' skill has been upgraded from Intermediate to Advanced!】"

"【You can claim a reward of 5 million RMB. Do you wish to claim it?】"

Gao Yun was also very happy. He pulled his hand back, gave Wang Xiaole a hug, and said sincerely, "Thank you, Brother Wang."

"Hey, what are you thanking me for?" Wang Xiaole wore the expression of someone finally liberated. Suddenly remembering something, he said, "Our tavern is opening in three days. Let's all go check it out together then."

"Heh, truly one happy event after another," Gao Yun laughed. "Must go, let's have a drink together!"

Wang Xiaole laughed heartily. "Yeah, we gotta drink!"

(End of this chapter)