Chapter 21: You Remind Me of My Sister

“Mr. Song?” Arli hadn’t expected Song Qisheng to be so attentive, so considerate to someone he’d just met by chance.

Since he had gone out of his way to say such kind words, Arli felt she couldn’t let his good intentions go to waste, so she stepped back into the piano shop.

This time, the sales assistant was well prepared, holding several books of sheet music in her hands. “Miss, which piece would you like to play?”

Arli grabbed one at random. “This one will do.”

“Wow, Miss, you want to play Mozart? Honestly, I think Mozart suits you perfectly.”

Feeling the other girl’s enthusiasm, Arli blinked and said, “We’re about the same age, so you don’t need to be so formal. My name is Arli—just call me Arli.”

“Alright, I’m Qin Caiyi, I’m twenty-five. How old are you, Arli?”

“I…”

Arli hesitated.

As someone who’d lost her memory, how could she know her own age? She looked quite young—when Grandma Lu had found her, everyone said she barely looked like an adult. Later, for convenience in registering her, they’d declared her to be twenty last year, so now her ID said she was twenty-one.

Qin Caiyi had already sensed from the previous dispute that Arli’s background was complicated. She didn’t want to pry, so she just smiled and said, “You definitely look younger than I am. Just call me Sister Caiyi.”

“Okay, Sister Caiyi.”

Qin Caiyi was a very chatty person.

After Arli finished playing, Caiyi would chat with her, and in just one afternoon, Arli learned a lot about her. For instance, Qin Caiyi also studied piano. Her family was well-off, but she worked at the piano shop because of someone she liked. However, she didn’t share who that was.

Arli wasn’t one to poke into others’ private matters—if others didn’t say, she didn’t ask.

As dusk began to fall, Arli prepared to leave.

Qin Caiyi grasped her hand warmly. “Arli, come over and hang out whenever you have time.”

Arli had no friends her own age. There were a few relatives in the Lu family around her age, but none of them thought much of her. Especially after she’d married Lu Jinyan, that crowd had grown outright hostile toward her.

Now, finally, she had someone she could chat with. Naturally, Arli was delighted, and she nodded with a smile. “I will.”

When Arli returned home, Lu Jinyan was already there.

“Uncle,” she greeted him.

Lu Jinyan’s dark eyes flickered slightly. After all these days, this girl had always been distant and indifferent to him. Today, for the first time, she’d greeted him on her own.

He strode over, gently wrapped his arm around her, affectionately rubbed her earlobe, and asked, “Did something good happen today?”

“…,” Arli hesitated.

Normally, she would have shared her joy with Lu Jinyan at once—that she’d made a friend. But Qin Caiyi worked at the piano shop; if Uncle decided to look into it, she might lose even this friend.

So Arli’s eyes darted, and she made something up: “Nothing special. I just went out to clear my head, breathed in some fresh air, and suddenly felt much better.”

Lu Jinyan didn’t doubt her. Holding Arli, he tenderly kissed her cheek and said, “As long as you’re happy. When I get the chance, I’ll take you traveling.”

“Alright.”

Arli didn’t refuse.

It was as if their earlier quarrels had never happened; the two were as close as ever.

But every few days, Arli would slip away to the piano shop, where she could play piano and talk to Qin Caiyi. Being there made her happier than staying at home.

One day, after finishing a piece, Qin Caiyi looked at her with adoring eyes. “Arli, you’re amazing! You only glanced at the sheet music once, listened to the piece twice, and you played Schubert so beautifully! If you had a master to guide you, you’d definitely be a world-class pianist!”

“Hehe, Sister Caiyi, you’re exaggerating,” Arli replied shyly, scratching her head.

“I mean it! Maestro, remember to give me free tickets in the future!”

“Is someone putting on a concert?”

At that moment, a gentle, warm voice drifted in from outside.

Arli turned her head.

It was Song Qisheng!

“Mr. Song!” Qin Caiyi immediately hurried over to him, smiling. “It’s Arli! She plays so well—this girl is a musical prodigy, with perfect pitch!”

“Is that so?” Song Qisheng turned his gaze to Arli, smiling warmly. “Arli, it’s been a while.”

“Hello, Mr. Song!” Arli immediately stood up to greet him. She thanked him, saying, “Sister Caiyi told me—it was you who said I could play here whenever I like. Thank you so much!”

“You’re welcome. It was nothing.”

Song Qisheng smiled.

But Arli didn’t quite see it that way.

No one else was allowed to play here at will, yet Song Qisheng had granted her this special privilege after meeting her just once. She hesitated, but couldn’t hold back her curiosity. “Mr. Song, why are you so kind to me?”

Was she really such a rare talent, and he couldn’t bear to see her gifts go to waste?

“Well…” Song Qisheng hadn’t expected Arli to ask so directly.

He paused for a second, then smiled faintly. “Perhaps it’s because you remind me so much of my little sister…”

Arli was stunned by his answer.

His little sister?

A thought sprang uncontrollably to mind, and before she knew it, Arli blurted out, “Do you have a sister who’s missing, or who was separated from you when you were young?”