When Xiao Fengtai returned home, the gala had already ended. Only a few servants were busy in the silent, orderly hall, removing floral arrangements, velvet drapes, and the crystal goblets guests had left scattered about.
"The Master has already retired to his room," the butler informed him, his smile as kind and respectful as ever. "If you haven't eaten yet, the kitchen has late-night snacks prepared at any time."
Xiao Fengtai breathed a sigh of relief inwardly, unwilling to admit that he had been planning how to face his father the entire way back. For a few minutes, his fear of the impending storm had even outweighed the dejection of his failed confession.
With the alarm cleared, Jiang Tong’s face surfaced in his mind again—that gentle, knowing smile and that look of forgiveness, as if Xiao Fengtai were merely an ignorant child, and the words of a child were always to be excused.
Xiao Fengtai thought he should have a good cry, or perhaps tear up all the lesson plans Jiang Tong had left behind and throw them out the window. But he was too tired. In the span of a few short hours, he had climbed over a wall to escape with his violin, wandered the campus with Jiang Tong all night on an empty stomach, and experienced both a moment of intense heartbeat and the crushing disappointment of rejection. Xiao Fengtai suddenly found his mind a total blank; aside from hunger and exhaustion, he could feel nothing at all.
Sleepiness won out over hunger. He set down his violin case and collapsed onto the bed. He had a dreamless night.
Over the next few days, Xiao Fengtai made an effort to pack his schedule so tightly that he had no time to think of Jiang Tong. Things had reached a point where the Chinese lessons could no longer continue; he knew he should terminate the contract with Jiang Tong as soon as possible. If he continued to miss classes frequently, it would eventually catch his father’s attention.
Yet, that single piece of paper was the only and final connection between him and Jiang Tong.
When a person is distracted, they often become careless, oblivious to the subtle changes in the world around them. It wasn't until the day of the school orchestra rehearsal that Xiao Fengtai discovered his violin was missing.
It wasn't in his bedroom, it wasn't in the study—it was nowhere. The violin his mother had left him had simply evaporated from the house.
"Where is my violin?" He rushed downstairs and found the servant responsible for cleaning his bedroom. "I left it in my room and haven't moved it. Where did you put it?"
"I... I don't know." The young girl lowered her head and muttered, her guilt plain to see.
Xiao Fengtai’s handsome face contorted in extreme anger and anxiety. "Tell the truth! Do you think Xiao Zhizhong is the only one who can fire you?"
"That is a violin played by Paganini! If anything happens to it, you won't be able to repay it in a lifetime," he threatened.
"It was taken to the Master's study," the girl said hurriedly, her eyes turning red with fright. "The Master told me to take it; he said there was no need to tell you."
The blood seemed to rush to his brain in an instant. Xiao Fengtai stood frozen, his hands and feet cold. He finally realized he had made a catastrophic mistake, one more foolish and serious than his flight from the gala.
Xiao Zhizhong hadn't lashed out at him on the spot, not because he was uncharacteristically letting him off easy, but because he was so angry and disappointed that he didn't deign to waste energy scolding him. Xiao Zhizhong was determined to teach him a lesson.
With the leverage in someone else's hands, a head-on collision would only result in total loss. Xiao Fengtai suppressed his emotions as best as he could and dialed Xiao Zhizhong’s number.
No one answered.
He took a deep breath and called Xiao Zhizhong’s secretary instead.
"I want to speak with President Xiao," he said curtly.
"Hello, Kenneth! I'm so sorry, President Xiao is in a meeting right now." The female secretary’s voice was an octave higher than usual, fully expressing her attempt to please Xiao Fengtai while remaining powerless to help. "If it's convenient, would you like to leave a message? I'll pass it on to him."
"I have something to say to him," Xiao Fengtai said, enunciating every word. "I know he’s ignoring me on purpose. Tell him I know I was wrong, and I hope he can give me a chance to apologize."
"If he still refuses to talk to me—" He paused, hardening his heart. "If I could run away once, I can do it a second time."
There was a moment of silence on the other end. After a faint rustling sound, Xiao Fengtai held his breath.
"So this is how you apologize." Xiao Zhizhong’s deep, resonant voice was laced with irony.
"I know I was wrong," Xiao Fengtai said softly. "I shouldn't have promised to attend the gala and then disappeared at the last minute. I've realized that on such a major occasion, my extremely irresponsible behavior caused a terrible impact on you, the Xiao family, and the Group. I give you my word of honor that nothing like this will ever happen again."
"I'm sorry, Father. I was wrong."
Before making the call, Xiao Fengtai knew very well that breaking his rule to bow his head and admit fault to Xiao Zhizhong was merely a tactical, temporary move. However, by the time he finished speaking, he was surprised to find his eyes stinging and his voice choking up.
"If only you had this realization on the day of the gala," Xiao Zhizhong said flatly after a silence. "You've realized it too late."
"I know why you're calling, and my answer is no."
"Why?" Xiao Fengtai asked reflexively.
"Because the violin is no longer in Singapore. A performer friend of mine is organizing a world tour and needs a good instrument. I promised to lend it to her for a year."
"You should have told me sooner." He even sounded somewhat regretful. "If I had known earlier that it was a Guarneri, I would have put it to better use."
"How could you do that!" Xiao Fengtai shouted in anger. "That is the only thing my mother left me!"
"And you are the only son she left me!" Xiao Zhizhong snapped. "Look at what you've done! You are a massive disappointment."
"I'm going to tell Grandmother!" Grievance, shock, and resentment flooded Xiao Fengtai’s mind, and he began to speak without thinking. "That was the violin Grandmother left for Mom, and Mom left for me... She won't allow you to treat me like this."
"Your grandmother will only stand on the same front as me and berate you," Xiao Zhizhong sneered. "I have no doubt that if I produced a second heir to threaten your position, your grandmother would find every possible way to assassinate both me and that poor little thing. But a violin? Forget it. I can bet you that if Madam Xiao knew of the foolish thing you did, she would sell the violin directly and ground you for a month."
"I don't know why, but you've been getting far too carried away lately," Xiao Zhizhong said coldly. "Think clearly about your identity and your responsibilities. Yes, my seat will be yours sooner or later. But while you might sit in that seat for a moment, you won't necessarily hold it for a lifetime."
With a click, the cold female automated voice signaled that Xiao Zhizhong had hung up the phone.
| Chinese | English | Notes/Explanation |
| :--- | :--- | :--- |
| 肖致中 | Xiao Zhizhong | Xiao Fengtai's father. |
| 帕格尼尼 | Paganini | Niccolò Paganini, the famous Italian violinist and composer. |
| 瓜纳里 | Guarneri | Refers to violins made by the Guarneri family, rivaling Stradivarius in quality and value. |
| 肖夫人 | Madam Xiao | Refers to Xiao Fengtai's grandmother. |
