CHAPTER 1389: CHAPTER 1389: BETTER TO KEEP A LOW PROFILE

Time flew by, and soon it was the end of June—school was out for summer vacation.

While other kids were busy planning ways to goof off on break, Yanyan spoke up on her own initiative: "Mom, we want to learn some new instruments over the summer."

Luo Qiao looked at her daughter with a smile: "Which ones are you planning to learn?"

Yanyan grinned and replied, "Drums, saxophone, and maybe some others—I’d like to try them all."

Luo Qiao hadn’t expected her daughter to bring this up: "What made you want to start learning these?"

Yanyan took a bite out of a peach she had in hand and said, "Last time, after watching a band performance, I really liked it. So I thought, why not? Besides, we’ve already finished about half of our summer homework—it won’t take us much longer to finish the rest. Sitting around doing nothing feels wasteful."

Hearing this, Luo Qiao nodded and said, "Alright. I’ll take you both over to check things out later. You can decide then what to learn. Remember not to bite off more than you can chew."

Yanyan and Yueyue had already planned everything out. They each signed up for two instruments and agreed to teach each other what they learned.

In the afternoon, after the weather cooled a bit, the three of them stepped out of the house.

Yanyan chose the accordion and bass, while Yueyue opted for the saxophone and guzheng. After both had made their selections, Luo Qiao spoke with the instructor, trying to arrange their lesson times to coincide for easier transport.

After some adjustment, the schedule could only be set for the mornings, but the girls’ lesson times couldn’t be aligned completely. The two sisters discussed briefly: "Mom, how about we each pick up one more instrument? That way, we won’t waste any extra time in between."

Luo Qiao replied, "But that would make things pretty tiring for you both."

Yanyan blinked with determination: "We don’t think it will."

This time Yueyue chimed in as well: "Mom, it’s not worth going back home during the in-between time—it’s too rushed. Instead of sitting here waiting around, we’d rather pick up another instrument."

Luo Qiao reached out to gently smooth her daughters’ hair: "Alright then. As long as you don’t feel overwhelmed, Mom will support you."

The instructor had been worried earlier that an inconvenient schedule might cause the family to cancel entirely or scale back their plans, but instead, the kids doubled down on their decision—and shockingly, the mother didn’t object, even readily agreeing.

Afterward, Yanyan chose the drums, while Yueyue settled on the harp.

Seeing her daughters finalize their choices, Luo Qiao swiftly paid the fees and took them straight to the music shop.

Upon hearing the girls’ plans, Luo Qiao decided to buy two drum kits directly—one to keep at home and the other at the training center, so they wouldn’t have to move them back and forth.

Watching her daughters’ excitement, Luo Qiao couldn’t help but smile. They’d already passed Grade Nine exams for both piano and violin, with skills that surpassed their levels, but they were waiting until they were a bit older to tackle Grade Ten.

Their passion for music wasn’t about exams or certifications—it was simply about loving it and enjoying the instruments.

As they parked the car, Stone and Taifeng came out of the courtyard.

Luo Qiao stepped out and called over to them: "Hey, Stone, you’re looking much darker these days!"

Stone laughed and walked up: "Spending every day training under the sun—how could I not get tanned?"

Luo Qiao turned to Taifeng: "When are you planning to head back home?"

Taifeng took the items from Luo Qiao’s hands and replied, "Day after tomorrow. I’ll head to the station later to buy tickets."

Stone followed Luo Qiao toward the trunk and asked, "Why did you buy so many instruments?"

Luo Qiao gestured toward Yanyan and Yueyue, who had just gotten out of the car: "The two of them are planning to learn—they’ve each picked three instruments for the summer."

The music store’s delivery vehicle pulled up just then, and the assembled drum sets were unloaded from the truck and carried into the courtyard.

Once everything was settled, they rinsed off, sat down under the tree in the yard, and began chatting.

Stone, you’ve got your driver’s license now, right? Since you’ll already be accompanying Taifeng, and the trip involves changing buses several times, why not drive back instead?

Taifeng shook his head: "Auntie, I know you mean well, but it’s better to keep things low-key."

Hearing this, Luo Qiao smiled at Taifeng: "Hmm, that makes sense. Alright, we’ll go with your idea."

After they finished their conversation, Stone finally spoke up: "Sis, after Taifeng and I get back, I want to take a trip to Qingshan Village."

Luo Qiao turned to Stone: "When the time comes, we’ll go with you."

Stone nodded: "The Ning Family somehow got wind of my return date. They even showed up at my school to block me."