199: Chapter 197 She is My Girlfriend 199: Chapter 197 She is My Girlfriend Since they were going to visit Glolov’s house, Bob and the others also needed to buy some small gifts.
Although they just needed to be thoughtful, they still had to take it seriously.
In order not to delay their plans to buy presents for the spring, they all unanimously asked to split up from Gao Yang and emphatically requested that Gao Yang hurry up.
Near every school, there are always many snack stands and hourly hotels, and guarding the Lincoln Center for the Performing Arts, which is located on Broadway, there are plenty of music instrument stores.
Gao Yang walked for about ten minutes and found at least four or five music stores, but he remembered a piece of advice from Morgan, which was that if you want to buy a top-tier instrument, you must go to a store that specializes in that particular instrument.
Gao Yang wanted to buy a violin, so he was looking for a store that specialized in violins.
After casually stopping someone who was hurrying along carrying a violin case and asking where he could find a specialized violin store, he quickly found one very close to the Lincoln Center for the Performing Arts.
Pushing open the glass door of the store, Gao Yang scanned the interior and noticed that indeed, there were only strings, and although the storefront wasn’t very large, the violins displayed on the walls and stands were relatively few.
There were also just a handful of cellos, not the full shelves of violins that Gao Yang had imagined, but this scenario suggested that the violin specialty store did not carry commonplace goods.
There weren’t many people in the shop, only two very old men who were having a conversation, and then two clerks wearing suits and white gloves—the clerks were also quite old.
Gao Yang had just entered and stood briefly when a clerk with graying hair approached him with a smile, “Welcome, sir.
How may I assist you today?”
Gao Yang gestured around the store and said, “I’d like to buy a violin.
Could you introduce me to some?”
The old man smiled and nodded, “Of course, do you have any particular requirements?”
Gao Yang shook his head, “I don’t know anything about violins, so I can’t really specify any requirements.”
After a brief pause, the old man still smiling explained, “My apologies, sir, but may I ask what you intend to do with the violin?
I don’t mean to be offensive or intrusive, it’s just that our violins here are all handmade and quite pricey.
If you are a beginner, then these instruments would not be suitable; it would be a waste for both you and the violin.”
Gao Yang, who was encountering such customer-level discernment in sales for the first time, was not angered by the statement, knowing it was well-intentioned.
He promptly responded, “Oh, I’m buying it as a gift for my girlfriend, who is a student at the Juilliard School.
I want to gift her with a violin.”
“Ah, a Juilliard School student; in that case, there’s no problem.
Sir, your girlfriend is very lucky.
Please follow me.
For a young student, I think this violin would be appropriate.
This violin was crafted by an Italian violin maker, and although his name isn’t yet well-known, his instruments have a deep and rich sound, very suitable for ensemble playing and can certainly be used as a performance violin.
If your girlfriend is still a student, I believe this would be suitable for her.
The asking price is eight thousand US dollars, which I personally think is quite reasonable.”
Gao Yang had no understanding of violins, but Yelena had played for him once, and he at least remembered the sound of her violin when she played.
“Could I hear this violin played?
I’d like to listen to see if it matches my girlfriend’s style.
Sorry, since I don’t understand violins, this is the only way I can tell if it’s suitable for her or not.”
“Certainly, it would be my pleasure to assist you.”
Without any fuss, the clerk picked up the bow and played a passage, but Gao Yang shook his head continuously as he listened, and upon seeing Gao Yang’s reaction, the clerk quickly stopped playing.
“Sorry, the sound of my girlfriend’s violin, how should I put it, seems lighter, um, it has a more resonant and bright quality to it.”
The clerk smiled, “More resonant and bright?
That’s a violin suited for solo performance.
Sir, the fact that you can discern the difference in the sound as a layperson is surprising to me.
It seems your girlfriend plays for you often.” As he spoke, the clerk paused in front of a row of violins on the wall, looked left and right, and was about to take down one of the violins when Gao Yang said, “Please wait a moment.
Could you play that violin for me?”
Not understanding violins, Gao Yang operated on the principle that more expensive meant better; it was his only method of discernment.
When he saw the clerk pick up a violin priced at fourteen thousand US dollars, he noticed the most expensive one in the row was eighty thousand US dollars, and Gao Yang thought that a violin selling for eighty thousand must be better than one for fourteen thousand, so he stopped the clerk’s movement and pointed towards the most expensive violin on display.
The clerk chuckled softly, “This violin is a work of German violin maker Peter Gläser, and indeed, this violin is suitable for solo performance.
However, I must clarify that if you were to order directly from Gläser, his work would normally cost between forty-seven thousand and fifty-seven thousand US dollars, but you would have to wait a very long time for it.
This violin was ordered by a customer who later resold it to our store, which is why the price is a bit high.
Still, I must say the price is reasonable because Gläser’s work usually has a significant increase in price on the secondary market.”
Gao Yang nodded and said, “Price is not a problem, please play it for a bit.”
After the clerk played the violin worth eighty thousand US Dollars again, although he still could not fully understand, at least this violin sounded similar to the one Gao Yang had in mind.
“I’ll take this one, I’m buying it.”
The clerk smiled and said, “You must really love your girlfriend.
Please come this way, sir.
Since it’s a valuable item, I have to issue a certificate of authenticity, which will take a little time.
You may take a seat and have a cup of coffee.”
Gao Yang followed the clerk into a lounge in the shop, sat down on a chair, and waited while the clerk served him a cup of coffee.
Then, sitting across from Gao Yang, the clerk pulled out a form and said with a smile, “Sir, would you like to pay by card or by check?”
Just as Gao Yang was about to say that he needed to pay in cash, he was shocked to see a very familiar figure entering the store, and he stood up excitedly, staring dumbfounded at the person walking in.
The person was none other than Yelena.
Although Gao Yang did not know why Yelena would appear near the school at this time, he made a quick decision in a brief moment — not to meet Yelena just yet.
Although Gao Yang really wanted to go out and greet Yelena, by doing so, he could give Yelena a big surprise, but the surprise for Glolov would be ruined.
Yelena was dressed very simply, but even her cheap clothes could not hide her beauty.
As Yelena walked into the shop carrying her violin case, even the two old men stopped chatting and stared at Yelena without blinking.
After seeing the two old men, Yelena looked surprised and excited.
Then, after a few words of conversation with the old men, filled with admiration, she reluctantly handed her violin case to one of the clerks and then the two old men resumed their discussion while Yelena stood aside, staring intently at a violin locked inside a glass cabinet.
Although Gao Yang could see Yelena, he couldn’t hear what she was saying.
At this moment, he was extremely excited and had to forcefully calm himself down, struggling to resist the urge to rush to Yelena’s side.
Gao Yang was watching Yelena, and Yelena was looking at the violin with a face full of longing.
She maintained the same posture, watching that violin for a full two minutes.
During this time, not even the expression on her face changed; she was just engrossed in looking at the locked-up violin.
Only after the clerk who had taken Yelena’s violin case came back with a card and called her several times did Yelena snap out of it, her face flushing slightly as she took the card from the clerk.
After speaking a few words to the two old men, she hurriedly left the shop.
Watching Yelena leave, Gao Yang finally let out a long breath and then sat back down on the chair.
It was then that the clerk in front of him asked with a curious look, “Sir, shall we continue?”
Gao Yang immediately shook his head, “No, no, I don’t want this violin anymore.
Please come with me; let’s talk about that violin.”
Gao Yang hurried out of the room and stood where Yelena had been standing, looking at the violin locked in the glass cabinet.
The violin in the glass cabinet did not have a price tag.
Gao Yang immediately asked the clerk who had attended Yelena, “Sorry, could you tell me what that girl was here for?”
The clerk who had served Yelena looked at Gao Yang with a strange look and said solemnly, “She came to have her violin repaired and tuned.”
Gao Yang exclaimed excitedly, “Great, can you tell me how much her violin costs?
Oh, no, what I meant to ask was not how much it costs.
I was wondering if this locked-up violin has a style that matches hers?
Would this violin be suitable for her?”
The clerk who had been serving Gao Yang now looked at him weirdly and said, “Sir, if you are planning to buy this violin for the lady who just left, I’m afraid I have to disappoint you.
First, we cannot sell this violin to you, and second, I have a deep impression of that beautiful lady.
She once declared to an admirer of hers right outside our shop that she already had a boyfriend.
That admirer, not wanting to give up, insisted on publicly professing his love for the beautiful girl, which resulted in him being sent to the hospital by the very beautiful girl herself, and I witnessed the whole process.
So, I think it would be better for you to stick to your original plan of buying a violin for your girlfriend.
That is, of course, assuming you didn’t decide just now to turn your girlfriend into an ex-girlfriend.”
Understanding why the clerk looked so odd, Gao Yang smiled humbly and then said in as calm a voice as possible, “Sorry, you might have misunderstood.
I must tell you that I am buying the violin as a gift for her.
Yes, the girl who was just here is my girlfriend.” (To be continued.
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