People in Tokyo, the world is clear

Originally, this kind of store that sounds a bit forced is obviously not something that working people like Lin Sen are qualified to consume, but this year the owner of a teahouse did a great job.

It added a "self-service" label to its chain of stores.

After deducting labor costs, the store's operating costs naturally dropped significantly.

The goods sold there naturally became cheaper.

At current prices, a cup of self-service coffee costs less than a bus ticket.

As a result, in addition to bored housewives, college students and even idle office workers, this self-service coffee shop now has another source of customers - manual laborers who have some requirements for quality of life.

After a busy morning, taking off your work clothes and having a drink here is truly the ultimate bliss.

Lin Sen even entered the store with a senior civil engineer wearing a hard hat. Before entering, he wiped his face and hands with a clean handkerchief, took off his hat and placed it in the store's storage area, and then chatted and laughed as he began to enjoy the decadent atmosphere of capitalism.

I followed suit, picked up the red tray, put the hot coffee I bought on it, took the sugar packet, milk packet and spoon, found a seat and sat down, and refused to leave.

Two words: comfortable.

I finally felt like I was in the bustling Tokyo.

The shop was relatively quiet, with no disturbing noises. Even the customers who did chat kept their voices low, as if not wanting to disturb the long-lost tranquility.

From the small attic on the second floor leading to the stairs, you can faintly hear the white noise of plucking guitar strings.

Judging from the rhythm and frequency of the playing, he should be practicing a certain song.

It even sounded a little familiar, so Lin Sen listened carefully and even hummed along with the melody.

About two or three sentences.

Then Lin Sen stood up suddenly.

"Wait, there's a question."

"Is this song something that can be played in this era?"

Chapter 22: Copying the music, right?

If Lin Sen remembered correctly, the song that someone upstairs was playing on the guitar would be released thirty years in the future.

To hear the same music in 1986 was simply shocking.

Even if he was currently in a parallel world, the appearance of this advanced music was a bit too shocking and did not make sense at first glance.

Therefore, in order to decipher the unsolved mystery of whether there is another time traveler in this world, Lin Sen took small steps up the stairs without stopping and headed straight for the source of the sound.

Then I couldn't help but knock my thigh.

"It turns out to be your boy."

Sitting in front of a small round table with a guitar in her arms, the girl with a ponytail looked completely immersed in the music.

She relaxed, closing her eyes and using a soft hum to help her play the correct pitch. She didn't open her eyes until she was sure there was no problem with the current sentence. She picked up the pen on the table and wrote something on a flat piece of white paper.

Without disturbing her, Lin Sen walked quietly to her back and took a look.

It is an unfinished musical notation.

Only then did he remember that he had hummed this little ballad on the night he first entered the Dragon and Tiger House, and the girl named Qingshan Xiazhi was the listener who secretly came up to him at that time.

I remember she said that this song left a deep impression on her. She even made people wet themselves when she was explaining the background story.

The kind of liquid on the face that can't be wiped off even with a piece of paper.

So, perhaps this girl was impressed by the talent of the composer Mr. Yonezu, who lives in another world.

That's why I came to this kind of place to do this kind of operation.

It's about copying the music, right?

But I'm happy to see this.

Lin Sen had a good impression of this girl who called herself a dream chaser and a beast.

Anyway, I don't know how to read music, so I can't be a song copyist in this era. If I can give a little gift to this enthusiastic girl who is also a worker, it will be a good deed.

After looking at it for a while, he prepared to quietly retreat and leave.

Then he lost control and bumped into the vase stand behind him.

He quickly turned around to help, but something went wrong when he turned back.

He ran face to face with the orc girl who came following the sound.

She opened her mouth slightly.

After a brief moment of shock, a panicked explanation followed:

"Ah! Kobayashi-san! I, I didn't mean to steal your song, I just really liked it, so..."

"Of course I know this, that's why I didn't bother you."

It seems the girl was a bit too afraid of being misunderstood. She must have realized that this behavior might offend herself, who she considered the original author of the song.

But the real creator of this song hasn't even been born yet. Even in this possibly parallel world, it's uncertain whether such a person will exist in the future.

Therefore, Lin Sen, who had no psychological burden, did not have any emotional fluctuations at all.

But this calmness seemed to scare someone a little.

She rarely showed any fear, her whole body slightly curled up, and she tilted her head back to carefully observe the micro-expressions of the person in front of her.

Finally, Lin Sen couldn't hold it anymore.

"Why are you so nervous? What I said is true."

There was no other choice but to pull out a chair and sit at the same table with her, explaining:

"I told you before, this song came to me in a dream. I don't know any music theory and can't even write out the score. I'm actually very happy that you can reproduce the score."

Qingshan Xiazhi was stunned by what he said.

"seriously."

"It's true. The only few guitar songs I know in my life were all taught to me by others, don't you think?"

"Eh~"

The girl stretched out her voice, still looking unconvinced.

But she finally understood Lin Sen's attitude. She breathed a sigh of relief, then attentively picked up the half-opened music sheet on the table and said, "Then, Lin Sen, can you help me check if the tune is correct?"

"You're not making things difficult for me. Didn't you say I don't know music?"

"Humph~"

Qingshan Xiazhi stretched out his voice again, tilted his head, and had a strange expression on his face.

"So, Kobayashi-san has decided to maintain this character?"

"Yeah, yeah, yeah, it's all character settings. I lied to you and got candy or something."

The repeated denials finally stopped the girl from asking more questions.

She had no choice but to purse her lips and pick up the guitar in her hand.

"Then I'll play it for you. Is Kobayashi-san free now?"

"An idler."

"Then I'll start."

After hearing this instruction, the girl sat up straight and took a deep breath solemnly.

He gently stroked the string with his right hand, then pressed the string tightly with his left hand.

The melodious guitar sound began to echo on the empty second floor in the afternoon.

Qingshan Xiazhi couldn't help but lower his head and began to silently recite the lyrics that were echoing in his heart along with the tune.

[Long sleeves in late summer...]

[A nostalgic scenery...]

[My face is reflected in the window...]

[Are you also like that time...]

As the tone gradually sinks, the chorus of the song is ready to unfold.

The girl nervously steadied her trembling hands, then followed the lyrics in her mind and played the first three notes.

That should be fine. Play until the end of the chorus.

She couldn't help but think so.

Then her fantasy was shattered the next second.

“This isn’t right.”

"what?"

The music stopped instantly. Qingshan Xiazhi raised his head and looked at the frowning young man.

"Hmm... How should I put it? The first three notes seem a bit low." He gestured and began to describe, "After the lyrical part of the verse, the chorus suddenly rises. So, here it suddenly rises half an octave... I don't know much about music, but this is how I should describe it, right?"

He even hummed it for demonstration.

"Even if we've grown taller, it's probably around this range, not what you played back then."

"I see. Let me try again."

After tapping the resonance box twice with the palm of her wrist to indicate that she was done, the girl stepped back a few sentences and began to perform again.

This time it was very successful. When the first chorus was finished and he put down the piano, the young man sitting next to him snapped his fingers.

"That's right! That's it."

Joy naturally appeared on the girl's face.

"Then I'll play the first verse and chorus again. Kobayashi-san, please listen and see if you have any questions, okay?"

"can."

Seeing the person next to him nod, Qingshan Xiazhi hurriedly adjusted his sitting position.

The bright eyes closed and opened again.

Her expression of serious concentration returned. She tapped the instrument twice more out of habit and plucked the strings.

From the second floor of the teahouse, whose windows and doors were painted dark red, came the continuous and melodious sound of the piano and the rhythmic tapping of the drums.

The rich, warm aroma of beans mingled with the fragrance of leaves, lingering, trying to wrap the song in a bittersweet finish. The girl quietly raised her head, her gaze fixed on the young man in the evening sun.

A warm light shone upon him. His profile, a mixture of light and dark, was sharply defined. He gazed gently at the music sheet before him, his body swaying ever so slightly, imperceptibly, to the rhythm of the piano.

Be the best listener without saying a word.

Suddenly, an inexplicable warm current flowed in my heart.

Along with it comes a leisurely mood:

Just like that, let time go slower.

The girl with a ponytail lowered her eyes again and focused her attention on the string in her hand.

Without even realizing it, she curled the corners of her mouth.

In the bright light, she smiled lightly.

Chapter 23: Pear Soup is Here

It was almost evening when the echoes of the guitar stopped lingering.

With the help of the so-called "original author", the girl's work of transcribing the music became much easier.

By the time Lin Sen was ready to leave, the simple musical notation on the table was almost complete.

"Thanks so much, Kobayashi-san! Don't worry, I won't share the music with anyone else!"

"I've always said I'm not the composer. If you're happy, go ahead and release it yourself."

"Kobayashi-san is joking again!"