Chapter 27

Time flies, and four years have passed.

During this time, many things have happened. Ngoc Lam was able to meet the criteria to study abroad as expected after completing the 11th-grade program and is currently in a second year of college.

The Moreau couple continued to develop their careers. M became a conductor three years ago. Ngoc Lam learned about this through her family. After meeting her four years ago, the couple contacted her parents again. During the holidays, they usually talk to each other.

Mr Woods was lucky not to be transferred to the mountainous area. Since Ngoc Lam retired, he has continuously promoted his reputation and built his power, secretly opposing Mrs Phuong and her husband. Besides the supporters in the Conservatory of Music, Luyen's and Thuyen's parents were able to capture the recording of the teacher confronting Mrs Phuong. They decided not to let Mrs Phuong and her husband continue to rampage, resolutely protesting the decision to push Mr Woods away.

Ms Phuong's career was also affected after that. The application to renew the title of Meritorious Artist was rejected. There are some suspicions of her grafting some officials, just no evidence of bribery. The two families of Luyen and Thuyen realized that letting the Rector and Mrs Phuong cause more violations would negatively affect the development of their sons, so they asked to withdraw their transcripts early and arrange for both of them to develop their careers abroad.

As for Thac, under the direction and help of K and M, he made rapid progress. Not only did he become well-known as a trumpeter, but also as a composer for competitions. The name Van Thac often appears in the list of re-compiled orchestral concertos by the Moreau couple. He also cooperated with filmmakers and wrote instrumental background music. As for trumpet, his achievements and awards have increased in the past four years. Most recently, Thac won first prize for Trumpet at the International Music Competition in Austria.

Winter in Europe often has short days and long nights. It's not five o'clock in the afternoon yet, but the street lights are already bright. Ngoc Lam passes through brightly lit windows, splendidly decorated for Christmas. On her shoulder-length hair, there are a few first snowflakes of the season. Through the years, Ngoc Lam seems to have never changed.

Walking to a crowded street, looking up at the surrounding advertising panels, Ngoc Lam is startled to see the familiar face there, Van Thac. On those panels, it is written that Van Thac will perform with the orchestra on a special program during Christmas, in the city where Ngoc Lam lives. Tickets for the live performance are on sale now.

Ngoc Lam realizes her heart was beating harder than usual at the image of Van Thac. Four years have passed, and the teenager has become much more mature. The boy chasing her music has become a man shining on the stage. Ngoc Lam wants to walk, but her feet seem glued to the ground, in front of the advertising board. A part of her mind is yelling that a parade will pass here in a few minutes. If she doesn't hurry, she will have to wait for the procession to pass so that she can cross the street to get home.

Ngoc Lam steps back. When she takes her eyes off Van Thac's image, she suddenly sees the real one standing on the other side of the street. It takes a long time for her to fully recognize that the person standing opposite her is Van Thac. The man cannot believe his eyes either. He smiles at Ngoc Lam and is about to cross the street to meet her when a stream of people pours towards them. The parade is coming. The sound of trumpets, drums, and music is so loud that Ngoc Lam's ears tingle. Through the parade, she can see Van Thac, who is standing on his tiptoe, looking at her. Both of them say nothing, but as if urged by an invisible force, they simultaneously run in the opposite direction of the parade. Ngoc Lam tries to squeeze past people, and on the other side, Van Thac is also walking and leaning up to look at her. When Ngoc Lam almost reaches the intersection, a row of large carriages pass by, blocking both of their sights. Ngoc Lam can't help but persistently walk in the initial direction, but when her vision returns, she can no longer see him. The crowd is bustling with movement leaving Ngoc Lam standing on her feet looking around, trying to find a familiar figure.

At night, Ngoc Lam returns to her familiar room. She looks at her reflection in the glass window. The snow is falling more heavily. Groups of people outside are laughing and talking to each other. Ngoc Lam has never felt so lonely like this before.

The phone vibrates, it's her dad calling. The family often calls Ngoc Lam at this time, for they are afraid that their daughter will feel sorry for herself in a foreign land. Through the conversation with her family, apart from regular regards, her father also informs her that Mr Woods is in the same city as her. The teacher got his father to ask Ngoc Lam if she agreed to give him his contact information. Ngoc Lam spends a few minutes considering before she accepts. Less than ten minutes later, Mr Woods calls her.

The next morning, at 9 a.m., it is still not quite dawn, Ngoc Lam meets Mr Woods at a roadside cafe as scheduled. Through conversation, it turned out that the reason he is here is because of the request of the Rector. Many years have passed, but the vanity of that bald man is the same. In the past, he looked down on Van Thac, thinking he was just an ordinary student who learned trumpet as an extra subject. Van Thac had been studying for a long time, but he had not yet found a reserve position in the Orchestra. Who would have thought that recently, his reputation has skyrocketed, and the Recto started to reveal his greed, requiring Mr Woods to meet Van Thac and persuade him to do artistic activities as a student at the Conservatory of Music? The bald man used the excuse that Thac had previously studied privately with Mr Woods as a 'preparatory student', and he would now be 'specialized' as an official student with many opportunities to perform on big stages. The teacher sarcastically says that as if Van Thac is still unfamiliar with the 'big stages' that the contemptible man thought he could use the same trick.

The teacher asks Ngoc Lam if she has ever met Van Thac. She honestly replies that she has, but she did not have time to talk to him. Mr Woods immediately gives her a violin box and a concert ticket.

"M asked me to send the violin to you," the teacher says. "And this ticket was asked by Van Thac."

After the conversation with Mr Woods, Ngoc Lam walks to the University. Her mind is focused on the lecture, but her heart keeps fluttering.

The performance date is a few days before Christmas. The two-hour-long concert will be recorded, and some of the best parts will be shown on TV. Ngoc Lam has to struggle fiercely with herself before deciding to go. She consoles herself that she will only come to watch and support her old classmate, that's all. Ngoc Lam intentionally leaves the violin in her room, storing it in the deepest corner of the closet. It will be best if she 'accidentally' leaves it there on graduation day and then checks out.

Outside, snow is falling in thick layers on the road. Pedestrians must walk carefully to avoid slipping and falling. Snowflakes fall on earth, making the busy streets less noisy. Ngoc Lam follows the crowd and walks to a long-standing theatre in the city. The ticket she is given is VIP, so quickly, a theatre staff member leads her to the area with the best view and helps her find her seat.

Around Ngoc Lam, there are also many famous musicians, artists, music critics, and journalists. A few people in designed outfits curiously look at her, a young girl with a slightly gloomy appearance and simple clothes. Some people are interested, and some have scrutinizing eyes. From the left, she heard someone gasp. They whisper to the person next to them "Sapphire?". Some older artists hear this word, so they startle and look towards her. Four years ago, a photo of Ngoc Lam with her class's drama team members and the Moreau couple along with a video of the play Romeo and Juliet was secretly spread in the music world, sparking rumours that The Little Sapphire would return with K and M. But when the other two returned, that was Van Thac with them, the child who was completely overwhelmed by Ngoc Lam on the theatre stage. Today, they see her again in the audience.

"Long time no see." The elderly guest sitting next to her starts talking to her

"Long time no see, Mr Conductor." Ngoc Lam recognizes the person next to her and greets him back

The Austrian Conductor is happy that Ngoc Lam remembers him.

"I heard rumours that you wanted to retire forever. I didn't expect you to be here."

"I was invited. Is Fabian still in your orchestra now?

Fabian is the head violinist who talked to Luyen and Thuyen abroad.

"It's still there," the Conductor replies, "The year you defeated him, his ability was not enough, so he was so scared of your level that your name has haunted him until now. Over the years, Fabian has never been negligent. His skills have improved to a very high level, but every time your name is mentioned, he is horrified. Haha."

Close to performance time, the lights in the stands turn off, and the lights in the stage area are on.

Before the stage curtain raises, Ngoc Lam hears the Austrian Conductor say, "When will you compete with Fabian again? Even though he's scared of you, he'll be happy to meet you, for sure!"

Ngoc Lam is about to say something to the Conductor, but he calmly points at the stage, "It's starting."