Chapter 61: The Prospective Son-in-law! (Please keep reading!)

Liu Yifei slowly shook her head and said in a low voice, "Neither of them."
She didn't know how to explain to her mother that the piece she was going to perform wasn't composed by some world-renowned master, but by a classmate about her own age.
While Liu Xiaoli was still puzzled, a voice came from the living room television:
"Hello everyone, let me sing 'Ode to Young China' for you!"
The instant she heard that voice, Liu Yifei was stunned.
She immediately put down her chopsticks, stood up, and walked into the living room, her eyes fixed intently on the TV.
Because of the stage lighting, only a vague silhouette could be seen on the screen, but Liu Yifei instantly recognized him as Xu Ze, the boy she had met in the piano room.
She had only seen him once, yet his figure had already left a deep impression in her mind.
At that moment, Liu Yifei's delicate face was filled with confusion.
"Why is Xu Ze singing?"
"And in a children's music competition?"
She suddenly hesitated—had she recognized the wrong person?
Just then, the stage lights brightened on the television, revealing Xu Ze's handsome face.
"So it really is him!"
Liu Yifei was shocked.
Liu Xiaoli walked over, puzzled. "What is it? Do you like this singer? I thought you didn't chase after celebrities."
Liu Yifei shook her head vigorously at the TV, then nodded, then shook her head again.
Liu Xiaoli was speechless. "Do you like him that much? You're so excited you can't even speak."
"No, that's not it!" Liu Yifei exclaimed, "He's from our university! He's also a sophomore like me!"
"Oh? He's your classmate?" Liu Xiaoli grew interested and stopped eating, sitting with Liu Yifei on the sofa to watch.
"Is he in your class?"
"No," Liu Yifei shook her head. "I met him when I was practicing in the piano room. He plays beautifully, and then..."
Liu Yifei lowered her voice. "Then we exchanged contact information and chatted a bit afterward."
"Oh?"
Liu Xiaoli saw right through her daughter's expression—it seemed the boy her daughter liked was this young man on TV.

With that in mind, she watched the program intently. She wanted to see what made this young man so appealing.
Just judging by his looks, he was certainly handsome, but to be a son-in-law of the Liu family, looks alone weren't enough.
At that moment, the song information appeared on the stage's big screen.
"So his name is Xu Ze," Liu Xiaoli murmured. "I've read Liang Qichao's 'Ode to Young China' before. Did he set it to music?"
Liu Xiaoli became genuinely interested.
"With this song, I dedicate it to the youth of China who are growing and to the rising young nation of China!"
"When the youth are wise, the nation is wise!"
...
The singing began, and Liu Xiaoli immediately raised her eyebrows.
This melody, paired with Liang Qichao's words, was actually quite pleasant.
This Xu Ze seemed to have some talent.
Meanwhile, Liu Yifei's eyes sparkled as she gazed at Xu Ze on the screen.
She had always thought Xu Ze was just someone gifted at the piano, but she hadn't expected him to compose and sing so well, too.
Could there really be such a versatile genius in the world?
How did he manage it all?
When Xu Ze's song reached the climax with his original lyrics, Liu Xiaoli, an intellectual herself, immediately realized those lines weren't in the original text.
She was visibly surprised.
Those lines—were they really his own?
Liu Xiaoli felt a shiver run through her, her blood surging with excitement.
When the program ended, Liu Xiaoli finally returned to her senses.
She couldn't help but sigh softly, "Yifei, your classmate is truly talented."
Hearing her mother's praise, Liu Yifei was a little surprised. She hadn't expected Xu Ze could win her mother's approval.
Before, when a senior of hers had won the title of Outstanding Young International Pianist, her mother had only commented indifferently that it was just a title.
Thinking of this, Liu Yifei hugged Liu Xiaoli's shoulder and ventured, "Mom, since Xu Ze writes such good songs, would you be interested in hearing one of his piano pieces?"
"Oh? He composes piano music as well?" Liu Xiaoli asked curiously. "Have you heard it?"
"Yes!" Liu Yifei nodded vigorously, excited. "I can play it! Do you want to hear?"

Until now, she hadn't dared to play Xu Ze's piece when practicing at home in front of Liu Xiaoli.
Liu Xiaoli seemed gentle but was actually very strong-willed—her own father always deferred to her.
She wasn't sure how Liu Xiaoli would react when she told her that at the upcoming concert in the Golden Hall, she wouldn't be performing a famous piece, but rather a piano piece composed by a classmate.
So she had been worrying about how to bring it up.
Hearing Liu Yifei's words, Liu Xiaoli grew interested and stood up at once. "Come on, let's go to your room—you play it for me."
In her room, after Liu Yifei finished playing Xu Ze's "Wedding in the Dream," Liu Xiaoli could no longer hide her astonishment.
Her face was full of disbelief. "Yifei, did Xu Ze really compose this?"
"Yes," Liu Yifei confirmed. "I heard him play it in the piano room that day, and he admitted he wrote it. He even gave me the sheet music and said I could perform it in the Golden Hall."
"Can I see your chat with him?" Liu Xiaoli asked gently, her curiosity about Xu Ze growing stronger.
So young, yet able to compose such a stunning piano piece—
Many pianists spend their whole lives without composing anything like this.
And Xu Ze—how old was he? Not even twenty, just like Liu Yifei. She had never met someone like this in real life.
Liu Yifei hesitated for a moment but then opened her WeChat and handed her phone over, since she and Xu Ze hadn't chatted much, just exchanged a few words about the music.
Liu Xiaoli browsed through their conversation—it was brief. Xu Ze seemed polite and generous.
Such a masterpiece, not yet known to the world, and he simply gave the sheet music to her daughter.
Wasn't he worried someone might claim it as their own?
She couldn't tell if the boy was simply naïve or what.
But his trust toward her daughter made Liu Xiaoli's opinion of Xu Ze rise sharply.
She then glanced through Xu Ze's social media and found he hadn't posted much.
"Hmm, he seems like a reserved young man."
At this moment, Xu Ze had already reached the standard in Liu Xiaoli's mind for a prospective son-in-law—
A top student from Tsinghua or Peking, talented, capable, pure-hearted, modest, and so handsome—he was practically perfect.
If she were twenty years younger... she might even have been moved herself.
Thinking of this, she became eager to learn more about Xu Ze. She asked curiously,
"Do you know anything else about him? How did a student like him end up on CCTV's program?"