Chapter 3: The Same Time, A Different State of Mind

Chapter 3: The Same Time, A Different State of Mind

At 7 PM the next evening, Xinhua Bookstore.

Chen Feng appeared in the reference book section.

During the day at work, he had already looked up online what books a complete beginner with zero foundation should read to start learning music composition from scratch.

He had to start from the very beginning.

For an ordinary person to learn composition, they first need a considerable study of theoretical systems like music theory, harmony, rhythm, and musical form, developing a cognitive understanding in their mind that blends rationality and sensibility. Only then can they have an understanding of music deep inside, and only then is it possible to write a complete piece of work.

Even with understanding, one still needs emotion, melody, structure…

These later stages were too distant for Chen Feng. Right now, he couldn’t even read sheet music; independent creation was still a long way off.

But he wasn’t anxious either. Tall buildings rise from the ground; things have to be done step by step.

He didn’t plan to become a real composer; he was working backwards from the standard answer to figure out the process, which was much simpler than actual creation.

He didn’t need inspiration; he just needed to be a porter.

He stayed at the bookstore for two hours. Only when a clerk reminded him they were closing did Chen Feng leave, carrying reference books like “Basic Music Theory,” “Start Composing with the Three-String,” “Learn Guitar from Zero,” and “Reading Sheet Music” to build his foundational knowledge.

He had also bought a poor-quality guitar online for three hundred yuan; it would probably arrive in two or three days.

By the time he got home, it was already after nine at night. Zhong Lei upstairs had already gone out.

Chen Feng temporarily gave up on the idea of getting closer to Zhong Lei. Since he couldn’t get close anyway, he might as well rely on himself.

Before he knew it, a month had passed.

At 8:30 PM this night, Chen Feng was gnashing his teeth while plucking the guitar strings in his room.

Thwack, thwack, thwack… The intermittent sounds were completely out of tune, let alone rhythmic.

Beads of sweat dripped from Chen Feng’s forehead, sliding down his cheeks and dripping onto the floor.

He was gritting his teeth, his expression slightly fierce.

He really hadn’t expected learning an instrument to be so difficult.

He could basically recognize the notes on the basic sheet music and could barely memorize them in his mind, but what he played was simply unbearable.

After persisting for a few more minutes, Chen Feng threw the guitar onto the bed, fell back against the headboard, his gaze vacant and his mood downcast.

This was the fiftieth time in nearly thirty days that he wanted to give up.

An adult’s thinking pattern was already set, with no artistic sense of smell; it was too hard to start learning music from scratch.

Without talent, even if the eyes understood, the ears remembered, and the mind believed it could do it, the hands just couldn’t perform well.

During these days, Chen Feng slept only four or five hours each night.

He had to work during the day and had no money to hire a teacher. He could only barely teach himself with extremely low efficiency during his spare time in the evenings.

Too little sleep left him listless and fatigued throughout the day.

Chen Feng felt that if things continued this way, he might overwork himself to death before he even managed to copy any songs.

What was more discouraging was that, as time passed, those classic melodies and lyrics he had barely memorized were gradually fading from his memory.

Apart from “Dullness,” for which he had written down a few lines of lyrics at the very beginning, he could hardly recall a single complete line from any other song.

What was worse, even for the song “Dullness,” he couldn’t recall the entire tune, remembering only the most catchy chorus part.

The harder he tried to remember, the faster the memories seemed to flee.

The more he racked his brains, the less he gained.

Memories were like sand in his hand; the harder he tried to grip it, the more it slipped through his fingers.

He blamed himself for not considering, while listening to the songs in his dream, that he might one day need to copy them.

If only he had hummed along a few more lines back then.

“Sigh, I’m afraid I’ll forget everything before I even learn how to do it, right?”

If he could turn back time and get another chance to “dream,” Chen Feng felt he would definitely cherish it properly.

From the very beginning, he would have put in all his effort, studying and practicing diligently, striving to copy at least a few songs within a year, even if just by rote memorization.

Unfortunately, now the dream was not only over but even shattered.

Chen Feng let out a bitter laugh and muttered to himself, “Forget it, forget it. What is meant to be will be; what isn’t meant to be can’t be forced. I’m done practicing!”

He abruptly sat up straight, grabbed the guitar, and strummed it wildly, wishing he could snap the strings.

After all, Zhong Lei definitely wasn’t home right now; no one would be disturbed by him.

If their sleep schedules weren’t completely opposite, Chen Feng really wouldn’t dare to practice in his room.

Unexpectedly, just thirty seconds later, heavy footsteps came down the stairs from outside.

Thump, thump, thump.

Chen Feng’s door was knocked on heavily.

He opened the door. Zhong Lei, wearing light blue pajamas, stood at the doorway with messy hair, her beautiful, sleepy eyes glaring angrily at Chen Feng.

The collar of her pajamas was slightly low; Chen Feng didn’t dare to look too closely.

Darn it, why was she still home?

“What are you doing in the middle of the night! Are you going to let anyone sleep or not?”

Chen Feng waved his hands awkwardly. “I… I’m learning to play the guitar.”

“Learn my foot! I can tell you clearly, after listening for just five minutes, I know you have no sense of music! To put it bluntly, you’re someone who can’t even sing in tune and has a terrible sense of rhythm!”

After a month of diligent study and practice, Chen Feng knew every word Zhong Lei said was correct.

But even though Zhong Lei was speaking the truth, hitting where it hurts felt too infuriating to be criticized so bluntly to his face like this.

He wanted to say something to save face, but moving his lips, he found it hard to speak.

Zhong Lei spoke again, her tone softening, even carrying a hint of pleading. “I’m begging you, okay? Please stop playing. I finally got a break to sleep well; please spare me.”

Seeing her tone improve slightly, Chen Feng was about to agree casually, since he planned to give up anyway.

But then she added, “I’m also begging you on behalf of your guitar; stop playing it. Even though it’s just a cheap thing, it’s too miserable being played like that. Why don’t you just use it as firewood? Consider it a release for the guitar, okay?”

Hiss…

Chen Feng almost couldn’t catch his breath. “Wh… what…”

That was too vicious.

Even knowing she could become the modern Beethoven, Chen Feng really wanted to slap her face.

Zhong Lei didn’t give him a chance to explode. She turned and headed back upstairs. “Anyway, don’t say I didn’t warn you. If I hear that noise again, I’ll definitely file a complaint against you!”

She slammed her door shut again.

Downstairs, Chen Feng was furious, filled with resentment.

But he really had no choice. After all, his job was apartment manager; handling noise complaints between neighbors was part of his duty, let alone when the noise came from the manager himself.

If Zhong Lei filed a complaint, he’d probably lose at least half a month’s performance bonus.

Chen Feng initially wanted to say something like, fortunes change over time; don’t bully the young and poor; you’ll beg for me sooner or later.

But then he thought of his miserable self-study experience over the past month and felt discouraged again.

It seemed there was no chance to redeem his pride.

Forget it; let it be.

That night, Chen Feng tossed and turned in bed for nearly two hours before finally falling into a deep, difficult sleep.

“Private Chen Feng! Fall out!”

Chen Feng’s eyes snapped open.

The hazy sunlight seemed unusually harsh.

Looking around, he saw a vast square that stretched as far as the eye could see.

In the distant sky, some cone-shaped aircraft were taking off, sometimes quickly, sometimes slowly.

Nearby, there was a stern, square-jawed face that felt both unfamiliar and familiar.

The owner of that face was glaring at him with a look that could eat a person alive.

The same place, the same person, the same furious, wide-eyed glare.

Exactly the same as the beginning of the dream a month ago.

Chen Feng felt dazed and lost focus again.

Am I… dreaming again?

A full month later, have I entered that dream again?

And I’m still just a reserve private?

Even Instructor Ding Hu’s first words to wake me up were completely identical!

What… what is going on!

“Still daydreaming? Go run ten laps around the field!”

Ding Hu’s deafening roar echoed in Chen Feng’s ears.

Chen Feng shuddered. Even the line about making him run laps was the same.

In the last dream, Chen Feng hadn’t started running immediately. Instead, he had stood there dumbly asking who he was, where he was, what was happening, and why he had to run laps.

The result was that ten laps turned into twenty, nearly exhausting him to death on the field.

This time, Chen Feng was smarter. He saluted briskly, turned, and sprinted toward the running track.

At the same time, he glanced far off at the digital clock on the distant tower.

October 26, 3019 AD, 8:00 AM.

It really was this day again, back to the beginning of the dream.

He was still utterly confused about what was happening.

Why did he have the same dream exactly one month later?

Why were the beginnings of the two dreams exactly the same?

What was the meaning of this dream?

Zhong Lei’s existence had already proven the dream was a real world. So what did the ending, where everyone died, mean?

Was he really dreaming?

Or had his soul traveled across a thousand years to arrive here?

But then why could he go back?

Why was the second dream a fresh start all over again?

Had time reversed itself?

He still had a million unanswered questions swirling in his mind, but that didn’t stop Chen Feng from quickly organizing his thoughts.

If something couldn’t be figured out, don’t dwell on it. Focus on what needs to be grasped right now.

At least this meant he truly got a second chance. This time, he would not waste this opportunity!

In his much-improved mood, his steps as he ran the laps felt much lighter.

That’s right, this time he was going to learn music properly!

After practicing hard for a month, he was still a hopeless amateur.

But what about practicing hard for a year?

As a person receiving a subsistence allowance, he didn’t even have to work a job. He could focus entirely on his own pursuits without any distractions!

And he could look up the original songs anytime for reference.

This dream came at the perfect time.