Chapter Summaries

Lin Tian asked He Zhichen to use big data to plan a confession to Gan Yan Yu, while Pu Yidan helped Gan Yan Yu reflect on the self she was searching for. Gan Yan Yu left the decision to Lin Tian, who entrusted He Zhichen with their debut album and music video after hearing his sales forecast.

• He Zhichen offered to calculate a personalized confession plan for Lin Tian, who eagerly accepted his help.
• Pu Yidan told Gan Yan Yu how her team’s expectations had shaped her into a confident leader and asked what self Gan Yan Yu was trying to find.
• Gan Yan Yu recalled the withdrawn, asthmatic girl she had once been, then told Lin Tian they could leave and let him decide what to do.
• He Zhichen estimated that adding Gan Yan Yu and Lin Tian’s debut music video would raise first-month album sales to at least 180,000 copies.
• Lin Tian entrusted He Zhichen with their debut album and music video.

Lin Tian and Gan Yan Yu decided to keep the Moonlight and Cat name and wait until after winning the Parrot Qin Cup to reveal their identities. As the competition approached, Gan Yan Yu said she felt ready, while media rankings made Bai Xi the favorite and placed Gan Yan Yu second.

• Lin Tian and Gan Yan Yu discussed their stage name and chose to remain Moonlight and Cat, postponing their identity reveal until after the Parrot Qin Cup.
• Gan Yan Yu told Lin Tian that she felt in great condition for the competition, and he agreed to trust her confidence.
• Lin Tian received encouragement from Zhang Juan, Xu Yong, Gao Zhenyang, He Zhichen, and Su Ran as the competition neared.
• Music media outlets previewed the Parrot Qin Cup and ranked Bai Xi first, Gan Yan Yu second, and Christina Nana Li third.

Lin Tian and Gan Yan Yu arrived at the Parrot Qin Cup preliminaries, determined to make up for her previous loss. As the judges took their seats, Lin Tian identified Tuoba Jianhui as the main uncertainty.

• Lin Tian reviewed the unofficial rankings, noting Bai Xi's top placement and treating the list as no more than a reference.
• Tian Rui asked Tuoba Jianhui about criticism of his harsh interview with Gan Yan Yu, and Tuoba said he had spoken that way to make her abandon music; he vowed to protect her for Old Gan's sake.
• On December 20, Lin Tian and Gan Yan Yu arrived at Qingtian Concert Hall, where cheering fans welcomed them.
• Gan Yan Yu flashed the crowd a victory sign, and Lin Tian recalled how deeply she had taken her previous Star Cup defeat before resolving to fight alongside her for revenge.
• Backstage, Lin Tian discussed the judges' backgrounds with Gan Yan Yu as she prepared for the competition, then noticed Tuoba Jianhui taking the central judges' seat.

Lin Tian and Gan Yan Yu attended the Parrot Qin Cup preliminaries, where Bai Xi greeted them and discussed the competitors. Bai Xi left to perform, while the waiting room watched the stern judge Tuoba Jianhui react angrily to earlier contestants.

• Lin Tian and Gan Yan Yu joined the morning session of the Parrot Qin Cup professional division and encountered Bai Xi in the waiting room.
• Bai Xi said she expected to perform first and teased that Lin Tian was Gan Yan Yu's outstanding partner.
• Bai Xi pointed out Yun Qiuqiu, the Yongguang Cup champion whom she considered as strong as herself.
• Bai Xi left to perform after wishing Lin Tian and Gan Yan Yu good luck.
• The contestants saw Tuoba Jianhui scowl and sigh at the judges' table after earlier performances.

Bai Xi impressed the judges with a forceful cello performance of The Unbelievable Overture, easing Tuoba Jianhui’s anger and the contestants’ nerves. Gan Yan Yu then prepared to perform with Lin Tian, leaving the chapter as they took the stage under a wave of cheers.

• He Shumo and Yao Han criticized the early contestants while Tuoba Jianhui watched in silence.
• Bai Xi performed The Unbelievable Overture on cello and won strong praise from the judges and audience.
• Bai Xi’s performance eased Tuoba Jianhui’s expression and lifted the younger contestants’ spirits.
• Gan Yan Yu told Lin Tian she would accept the result calmly and perform at her best despite her anxiety.
• Gan Yan Yu and Lin Tian took the stage to loud cheers, and Lin Tian felt that Gan Yan Yu seemed more imposing than before.

Gan Yan Yu overcame her doubts and delivered an immersive cello performance at the Parrot Qin Cup, drawing Lin Tian and the audience into the piece’s story. After the judges praised her, Tuoba Jianhui called the performance dangerous and asked Lin Tian if he had noticed.

• A childhood memory reminded Gan Yan Yu how her grandfather taught her to enter the emotions of a piece while remembering who she was.
• Gan Yan Yu forced herself to believe she could perform confidently and began playing on the Parrot Qin Cup stage.
• Her music made Lin Tian imagine dancing with her onstage, while Yao Han and the audience were swept up in the performance.
• The judges praised Gan Yan Yu’s emotional expression, and the audience erupted in applause and cheers.
• Tuoba Jianhui rejected the performance as dangerous and asked Lin Tian if he had noticed.

During the competition intermission, Lin Tian confronted Tuoba Jianhui for declaring that Gan Yan Yu should abandon music, then defended her efforts and vowed they would continue together. On the ride home, Gan Yan Yu asked Lin Tian whether Tuoba Jianhui had been right.

• Lin Tian confronted Tuoba Jianhui, who warned that Gan Yan Yu’s dangerous performances could harm her and everyone around her.
• Tuoba Jianhui said he would use his influence to make Gan Yan Yu quit music because he believed it was best for her.
• Lin Tian defended Gan Yan Yu’s efforts to overcome her asthma and psychological problems, and said they would keep pursuing music even if they were expelled.
• Lin Tian left Tuoba Jianhui’s office, leaving the judges and staff stunned and Tuoba Jianhui silent.
• Gan Yan Yu told Lin Tian they had received three A+, four A, three B+, and two B ratings, including a B from Tuoba Jianhui.
• On the drive home, Gan Yan Yu asked Lin Tian whether Tuoba Jianhui’s warning was true.

After Tuoba Jianhui warned that Gan Yan Yu's intense performances were dangerous, Lin Tian reassured her while privately worrying about her health and the contest. Gan Yan Yu ranked eighth in the preliminary media scores, and pianist Yao Han, one of the judges, contacted Lin Tian to invite him to a meal.

• Gan Yan Yu asked Lin Tian whether her performances were dangerous, and he told her to keep performing as she had.
• The preliminary rankings placed Bai Xi first and Gan Yan Yu eighth, putting Gan Yan Yu's semifinal chances in doubt.
• Lin Tian worried that his confrontation with Tuoba Jianhui might affect the judges' decision about Gan Yan Yu.
• He Zhichen told Lin Tian that preparations for the MV shoot were nearly complete.
• Yao Han sent Lin Tian a friend request and invited him to a meal alone.

Lin Tian met pianist Yao Han, who praised his performance with Gan Yan Yu and urged him to protect her by overpowering her with his piano. Yao Han left Lin Tian with a plan for their next competition and the challenge of proving Tuoba Jianhui wrong.

• Lin Tian traveled to a remote restaurant to meet Yao Han, who explained that he wanted to discuss Lin Tian and Gan Yan Yu's performance.
• Yao Han praised their performance but acknowledged that Tuoba Jianhui had a point about Gan Yan Yu's dangerous cello playing.
• Yao Han admitted that he wanted Lin Tian and Gan Yan Yu to keep performing together because he longed to hear more of their music.
• Yao Han correctly guessed that Lin Tian was worried about keeping Gan Yan Yu within safe limits during performances.
• Yao Han told Lin Tian to suppress Gan Yan Yu with powerful piano playing and get ahead of her, then urged him to prove Tuoba Jianhui wrong.

Lin Tian accepted Yao Han’s advice to take the lead in his musical exchanges with Gan Yan Yu and began considering how to challenge her performance. As filming for their masked café MV began, Lin Tian still worried about the gap between them and the events that might affect his competition chances.

• Yao Han urged Lin Tian to surpass Gan Yan Yu’s performance, protect her, and humiliate the arrogant old man, then answered a call from Teacher Tuoba about the judges’ meeting.
• Lin Tian returned to Grandpa Gan’s café and weighed his musical and emotional strengths against Gan Yan Yu’s immense skill, doubting that he could defeat her.
• On December 26, He Zhichen’s crew began filming the MV at Lin Tian’s café, and He Zhichen reassured Lin Tian about confidentiality and his chances of reaching the semifinals.
• He Zhichen gave Lin Tian two custom silver half masks for the simple MV concept, which would show Lin Tian and Gan Yan Yu dancing together at a ball.

Lin Tian greeted the enthusiastic trainees who admired Moonlight, then prepared to use a risky plan against Gan Yan Yu during the shoot. When Gan Yan Yu arrived smiling, the two caught each other smiling and Lin Tian suggested they dance together before filming.

• Lin Tian approached the trainee musicians and received their excited pledges to take the filming seriously.
• Lin Tian returned to his piano and considered using a risky method to defeat Gan Yan Yu during the shoot.
• Gan Yan Yu arrived at the café looking elegant and smiling, and Lin Tian pointed out that she had been smiling the whole time.
• Gan Yan Yu noticed Lin Tian was smiling too, and they laughed together without understanding why.
• Lin Tian offered his hand and asked Gan Yan Yu to try dancing with him before filming began.

Lin Tian and Gan Yan Yu held hands and danced together for the first time while preparing to film the MV, drawing the attention of the trainees and crew. Their dance ended when Lin Tian stepped on Gan Yan Yu’s heel, and they moved on to record the live ensemble performance.

• Lin Tian corrected their awkward hand positions and clasped Gan Yan Yu’s hand, placing his other arm around her waist.
• Lin Tian and Gan Yan Yu danced together as the trainees watched and commented on their chemistry.
• Gan Yan Yu spun away, and Lin Tian pulled her back before they danced toward the center of the café to the song’s faster melody.
• He Zhichen urged the crew to film their dance, but Lin Tian stepped on Gan Yan Yu’s heel and stopped them.
• He Zhichen redirected everyone to record the music first, while Lin Tian and Gan Yan Yu went to the cameras with their hands still damp from dancing.

Zhang Dong apologized to Lin Tian and joined the musicians filming an ensemble performance of “Por una Cabeza.” As the piece began, Lin Tian and Gan Yan Yu prepared to dance, and their piano and cello entered with the variation.

• Zhang Dong arrived at the café, apologized to Lin Tian for failing to recognize him before, and promised to play well for the shoot.
• Lin Tian reassured Zhang Dong and said they needed his violin, while a photographer captured their handshake.
• He Zhichen explained that the crew would film a live-performance bonus version, with Lin Tian and Gan Yan Yu appearing as both musicians and dancers.
• While waiting to perform, Lin Tian nervously asked Gan Yan Yu whether she took the initiative in relationships, and she said she would need to experience one to know.
• Zhang Dong and the trainee ensemble began playing “Por una Cabeza,” then Lin Tian’s piano and Gan Yan Yu’s cello entered with the variation.

Lin Tian and Gan Yan Yu pushed their tango performance to an intense level, overwhelming the trainees playing alongside them. Lin Tian then poured his romantic feelings into the piano to test whether Gan Yan Yu liked him, and He Zhichen noticed that her cello was being suppressed by his accompaniment.

• Lin Tian and Gan Yan Yu intensified the tango until the trainees struggled to keep up, while Zhang Dong played desperately to honor Lin Tian's trust.
• Gan Yan Yu closed her eyes and entered the performance, and Lin Tian became serious when he recognized her focus.
• Lin Tian wondered whether Gan Yan Yu saw him as more than a partner and shifted his piano playing to express his affection.
• Gan Yan Yu furrowed her brows in response to Lin Tian's playing, and He Zhichen was astonished that Lin Tian's accompaniment seemed to suppress her cello.

During the MV shoot, Lin Tian’s piano drew a tender response from Gan Yan Yu’s cello, convincing him that she had feelings for him. After filming wrapped, Lin Tian decided to confess after winning the Parrot Qin Cup championship, but Gan Yan Yu’s sudden departure during dinner left the moment unresolved.

• Lin Tian and Gan Yan Yu performed together, and He Zhichen realized Lin Tian’s piano was guiding Gan Yan Yu’s cello through their shared emotions.
• The accompanying trainees struggled to keep up, while He Zhichen told the director to keep recording the chaotic performance as bonus footage.
• Lin Tian took Gan Yan Yu’s hand, and the pair danced as the trainees joined them to create a ballroom scene.
• Lin Tian decided to confess to Gan Yan Yu outside the concert hall after they won the Parrot Qin Cup championship.
• The MV shoot wrapped in one day, and the cast and crew gathered at BBY for dinner, where the trainees introduced themselves to Lin Tian.
• After Hu Dongdong held Lin Tian’s hand and praised him, Gan Yan Yu stood up and said she was going to the restroom.

After performing a dance with Lin Tian, Gan Yan Yu wondered about the unfamiliar emotion his piano playing had stirred in her and waited for him to explain it. At dinner, she decided to ask him herself, then casually took his hair tie in front of everyone, leaving the table stunned.

• In the restroom, Gan Yan Yu reenacted parts of her dance and wondered why Lin Tian’s piano had made her feel an unfamiliar sense of safety and comfort.
• Gan Yan Yu recalled other moments with Lin Tian that had stirred similar feelings and decided she would ask him about them after dinner.
• At the dinner gathering, the trainees eagerly talked with Lin Tian while the older crew members joked about his popularity.
• Gan Yan Yu returned to the table, held out her hand, and Lin Tian automatically gave her the red hair tie from his wrist.
• Gan Yan Yu tied her hair into a ponytail with Lin Tian’s hair tie, and everyone at the table stared at them in shock.

At a wrap-party dinner, Lin Tian dodged questions about the red hair tie Gan Yan Yu had given him, while the trainees speculated about their relationship. After everyone left, Gan Yan Yu asked Lin Tian to let her experience the emotion from his performance again.

• Zhou Xia asked whether the red band on Lin Tian's wrist belonged to Gan Yan Yu, and Lin Tian said she had given it to him.
• He Zhichen shouted that Lin Tian and Gan Yan Yu should get together, prompting the trainees to wonder whether they were already dating.
• When a trainee asked what a girl's hair tie meant, Lin Tian nearly explained but was interrupted when Gan Yan Yu asked him to get her another beer.
• Lin Tian used the table's talk about Gan Yan Yu's drinking to shift attention away from their relationship and felt relieved that she was not wearing the necklace he had given her.
• After the wrap-party guests parted ways, Gan Yan Yu asked Lin Tian to let her experience the emotion from his performance again.

Lin Tian and Gan Yan Yu discussed the unfamiliar emotion in his performance, and Gan Yan Yu decided to discover how to recreate it herself. Later, Le Yun announced that Moonlight and Cat had signed as professional musicians, sparking an online frenzy and fans’ hopes for new music and a recital.

• Lin Tian asked Gan Yan Yu what emotion she had sensed in his performance, and she described it as warm, comforting, and different from the piece itself.
• Gan Yan Yu wondered where the emotion had come from, while Lin Tian urged her to recognize that she might possess it too.
• Gan Yan Yu decided not to hear Lin Tian’s explanation yet and promised to find the answer and recreate the feeling in a future performance with him.
• On December 28, Le Yun announced on Weibo that Moonlight and Cat had signed with the company as a musical duo.
• Fans celebrated the announcement, treated it as proof that Moonlight and Cat made their own music, and mocked SYC for failing to sign them.
• Fans looked forward to the promised CDs, additional movements of the Pathétique, a rearranged Spanish Bullfight Music, and a solo recital.

Lin Tian reassured fans that Moonlight and Cat would keep releasing free versions of their music while preparing their debut album and MV. On New Year's Day, Nana Li arrived at the café and insisted she had come to scout Lin Tian before their upcoming semifinal, not to train with him.

• Lin Tian read fans' concerns about paid music and slower updates, then decided to address them publicly.
• Moonlight and Cat posted that their music would remain available for free on Douyin and Bilibili, with official studio versions available through music-platform VIPs and the free versions delayed by one week.
• Fans praised the promise and tipped Moonlight and Cat nearly a hundred thousand yuan within hours.
• Leyun announced that Moonlight and Cat's album would release the following week, including studio recordings of earlier works and unreleased movements, alongside the public release of the MV for "The Dance of a Lifetime."
• Lin Tian researched the HX-board rankings and saw that Chinese musicians were scarce among its top composite-index positions.
• On New Year's Day, Gan Yan Yu went with Lin Tian to a café, where Nana Li arrived and declared that she had come to scout him before their semifinal.

After learning the Parrot Qin Cup semifinalists, Lin Tian invited Nana Li to practice with him and Gan Yan Yu. Lin Tian guided Gan Yan Yu through “Salut d'Amour,” leaving her stirred and Nana Li wondering whether he had put personal feelings into the music.

• Lin Tian and Gan Yan Yu learned that they had advanced to the Parrot Qin Cup semifinals in different groups, while Nana Li had also qualified.
• Lin Tian suggested inviting Nana Li to practice, and Nana Li arrived the next day and congratulated Gan Yan Yu while criticizing Tuoba Jianhui.
• Lin Tian chose “Salut d'Amour” to practice guiding Gan Yan Yu's cello performance and keeping it under control.
• After the run-through, Gan Yan Yu felt the emotion of their previous performance even more strongly, and Nana Li asked Lin Tian whether he had mixed personal feelings into the music.