At that moment — Liyue.
The last of the twilight faded, and night descended.
Liyue Harbor blazed with lantern-light, alive with noise and color.
Near the harbor's edge, a performance stage had drawn quite a crowd.
On the stage, a girl with a slightly sun-darkened complexion had her fingers flying ceaselessly across the strings. Passionate, surging music poured in an unending torrent from the oddly shaped instrument cradled in her arms.
Fierce as a raging fire.
Spurred on by the roar of the crowd below, Xinyan played faster and faster, the strings of her handmade guitar screaming at a pitch that sounded ready to snap.
"Sing out against it all!"
At her rallying cry, her hands hit their absolute limit — and the music, wild as a crashing wave of flame, crashed over the entire concert venue.
The tail of her guitar erupted with a thunderous boom. Searing flames burst forth in a blazing column.
The sight ignited the crowd completely. Everyone erupted in cheers and shouts.
Watching Xinyan pour herself out on that stage, Fang Qiu joined in the applause from below.
She had promised Xinyan the last time they ran into each other — promised she'd come to the concert. Xinyan had prepared several new pieces especially for it.
And it wasn't just her.
Hu Tao, Yun Jin, and Xiangling had all come too.
When they'd gathered, Yun Jin had given Fang Qiu a look laden with grievance — and Fang Qiu had, naturally, acted as though absolutely nothing had happened and smoothly changed the subject.
Beidou and Kazuha were stationed at the sides of the stage, keeping the peace.
It had to be said — Xinyan's skill was genuinely impressive. Her ability to work a crowd in particular was in a class of its own.
They had already heard her play at the gathering on the ship, of course. But a real concert was something else entirely — the full audio and visual experience far surpassed what they'd heard back then.
No wonder even the composed and measured Master Zhongli had invited Xinyan to perform a trial set at the entrance of Wangsheng Funeral Parlor. Word was, he'd even mentioned the possibility of having her as a permanent resident act, if it suited both parties.
She hadn't met him in person yet, but in Liyue Harbor, that consultant was a name everyone knew. Rumor had it that even Tianquan Ningguang knew him personally.
He was also famously particular about things.
So earning the approval of that mysterious consultant was proof enough of Xinyan's artistry.
Though according to Hu Tao, Master Zhongli had something come up and couldn't make it to the concert today.
A real shame. She'd been hoping to meet the man who'd become something of a legend around Liyue Harbor.
"Not bad. Really not bad at all," Hu Tao said with a grin, standing at Fang Qiu's side.
Then her expression shifted, and she asked, "Although — I do have one question."
"What question?" Xiangling and Yun Jin both asked from beside her.
"What exactly is Xinyan singing out against?" Hu Tao asked.
Fang Qiu found herself equally curious.
In her past life, she hadn't had much interest in rock music, though she had listened to some. She'd always preferred slow, lyrical songs — especially on rainy days, when she'd put on her earphones, sink into the beanbag chair she'd dragged to the windowsill, and simply sit there listening to the rain outside.
So she didn't know much about the rock that had drifted over from America.
Let alone whatever it was Xinyan was singing out against.
Surely it wasn't about resisting oppression? Liyue Harbor didn't really have much oppression to speak of — it was quite prosperous, all things considered. Even the dock workers at Liyue Harbor pulled in over ten thousand Mora a month.
The greatest act of oppression she'd personally witnessed in Liyue Harbor had been a few days ago, when she'd gone out to buy snacks and spotted a boy's mother in the process of apprehending her truant son, who'd sneaked out to play.
The oppressive atmosphere of that moment had been absolutely maxed out.
It was exactly the same kind of pressure she'd felt in her past life, visiting relatives and watching their kid get caught red-handed sneaking time on the computer by his mom.
"Actually, I once went with Xinyan to visit her home, and I asked her about this very thing," Yun Jin said gently, seeing their puzzled expressions. "She told me that what she wants to fight against isn't anything tangible. It's a kind of shackle — the shackle of prejudice."
"Prejudice?" Fang Qiu blinked.
"Yes." Yun Jin nodded, and shared everything Xinyan had told her.
Xinyan was considerably taller and broader than the average girl, and her looks had little to do with the soft, adorable type. The things a proper girl was supposed to know — cooking, housework, needlework and the like — she couldn't manage a single one.
It was because the most cutting prejudice had ruled over her childhood that Xinyan understood just how terrifying prejudice could be.
And yet even after becoming a rock musician, she hadn't given up on training herself in those very skills.
Not just out of stubbornness — but because she felt that giving up on something simply because you lacked talent for it was its own kind of prejudice.
"I see," Fang Qiu said softly.
She lifted her gaze to Xinyan on the stage, pouring herself into the next song, and something in her eyes shifted. She murmured, "The prejudice in people's hearts is a mountain. No matter how hard you push, you cannot move it. What Xinyan is trying to say through her music is this: even if you can never move that mountain, don't stop fighting."
In her past life, she too had endured no shortage of cold mockery from relatives, classmates, and seniors over her writing.
"You don't have what it takes — stop struggling."
"How much are you even making from those novels? Two thousand? Maybe you should just go find a factory job."
"With your education level, don't waste your time — it won't last."
"Four hours of grinding and you only wrote two thousand words? Give it up. This line of work isn't for you."
She had heard so much of that kind of talk, she'd grown calluses on her ears.
It was just a shame that, in the end, after fighting so hard to finally get results — right on the cusp of breaking through — she never got to see it published. She died before she could ever prove herself with her work.
She was still lost in those unpleasant memories from her past life when she suddenly felt her hand being grabbed. She looked down.
It was Hu Tao.
"?"
Fang Qiu was momentarily taken aback — and before she could say anything, Hu Tao smiled and said, "It's alright. That's all behind you now."
"Mm." Fang Qiu smiled softly and nodded, squeezing Hu Tao's hand in return.
The rock music surged back like a crashing tide.
Sing out against it all.
Time drifted slowly by.
The noise and splendor came to its close. The concert ended. Fang Qiu and Hu Tao let go of each other's hands as naturally as they had taken them.
Beidou and Kazuha came out from backstage.
Greetings were exchanged all around.
"So? How was my concert? Did it set you all on fire?" Xinyan leapt down from the stage and grinned.
"An excellent concert. I think I've got a whole new appreciation for rock music," Fang Qiu said with a light smile.
"Glad to hear it — I was worried you all might not enjoy it," Xinyan laughed.
"Not at all, not at all — you were brilliant. I'm actually wondering if I should do what that Zhongli fellow did and hire you as our permanent house musician," Hu Tao said.
"Please don't. That feels very strange to me," Xinyan immediately shook her head.
After chatting for a while, to celebrate the grand success of the concert, they all headed to Wanmin Restaurant together.
Beidou's treat.
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