The Guide to Rising to Power: The Ultimate Schemes of a Green Tea Beauty

The noise startled the people in the private room.

The door was suddenly pulled open from the inside, and Xiang Yuchuan walked out, cigarette in hand, looking impatient: "Who is it?!"

Then his gaze fell on Shen Yao, who was standing in the shadows, tears streaming down her face and trembling all over.

Time seemed to stand still at that moment.

Xiang Yuchuan dropped the cigarette he had been playing with on the ground.

His impatience and nonchalance froze instantly, then shattered like broken glass, leaving only inexplicable astonishment and panic.

She heard it!

She heard it all!

Xiang Yuchuan looked at Shen Yao's pale, bloodless face and watched the large tears rolling down her cheeks.

"Yao Yao?" He called her name subconsciously, his voice dry and tight.

Shen Yao seemed to snap out of her daze, abruptly taking a step back as if he were some kind of monster. She fiercely wiped away her tears with the back of her hand, but the more she wiped, the more tears flowed. She said nothing, only giving him a deep, heartbroken look before turning and running away.

"Shen Yao! You stop right there!" Xiang Yuchuan chased after her without thinking.

Shen Yao wasn't running fast, or rather, she never really intended to run away. Xiang Yuchuan grabbed her wrist at the club's entrance.

"Let me explain!" Xiang Yuchuan said urgently, tightening his grip to prevent her from breaking free.

"explain?"

Shen Yao turned around abruptly, her face streaked with tears, and forced a smile that looked even more like a grimace, her voice trembling with sobs and despair.

"Xiang Yuchuan, what else do you want to explain? Just playing around? You broke up when you got bored? I heard everything! I heard it all clearly!"

Her voice drew a few scattered glances from those around her.

Xiang Yuchuan's face burned, a mixture of embarrassment at being scolded in public as a young master and anxiety: "No, Yao Yao, I was just joking with them, bragging! It wasn't true!"

"A joke?" Shen Yao cried even harder, as if she'd heard the funniest joke in the world. "In your heart, am I just someone you use to brag and joke with your friends? To you, am I just someone you 'play' with?"

She became more and more agitated as she spoke, and the pent-up "grievances" she had been holding back—well, Shen Yao admitted that she had her own agenda—she used all her strength to forcefully shake off Xiang Yuchuan's hand and raise her hand.

"Snapped!"

A crisp slap landed squarely on Xiang Yuchuan's face.

The world is quiet.

Xiang Yuchuan's head was turned to the side after being hit, and clear finger marks instantly appeared on his face.

He was stunned. He had never been slapped in the face before, not even in front of his ruthless grandfather.

His cronies also chased after him, and when they saw this scene, they were all dumbfounded.

The expected outburst of rage did not materialize.

Xiang Yuchuan touched his cheek and looked at Shen Yao, who looked like a small beast driven to the brink of despair and covered in thorns. The panic and heartache in his heart actually overwhelmed his anger.

"Well done," he said in a low voice, looking at her with a complicated expression, "if this makes you feel better."

Shen Yao seemed to have all her strength drained away. She staggered back a step, shaking her head, "Xiang Yuchuan, let's break up."

"No! Impossible." Xiang Yuchuan refused without even thinking. He couldn't break up, at least not now.

He took a deep breath and stepped forward, ignoring Shen Yao's struggles, he gripped her shoulders tightly, forcing her to look into his eyes, his tone serious:

"Yaoyao, I was a bastard this time, I spoke without thinking. But you can't just sentence me to death like this."

He paused, searching for a way to reassure her:

"I know you'll find it hard to believe anything I say right now. How about this, give me some time, and I'll prove it to you with my actions, okay?"

Shen Yao just shed tears and didn't speak, as if her heart had already died.

He offered Yuchuan the most direct "sincerity" he could think of—money:

"Didn't you always feel that the school dormitories were inconvenient and wanted a quiet place to study? I have an apartment in Luxelakes International. It's not big, but the environment is okay. You can move in there first."

"Also, it's too tiring for you to take the subway every day. You can take a driving test for my white Panamera in the garage and drive it for now."

Luxelakes International is a well-known luxury apartment complex in Shanghai, and its Porsche Panamera is particularly valuable.

Shen Yao's heart skipped a beat. Just how much money did Xiang Yuchuan have to squander?

This far exceeded her expectations.

But her face remained deathly sorrowful as she shook her head: "Xiang Yuchuan, I'm not after your money."

"I know you're not," Xiang Yuchuan interrupted her. At this moment, he would rather she was after money, at least then he could use money to solve this troublesome matter.

"This is just a small token of my appreciation, a sincere apology for my outrageous words. It has nothing to do with whether you forgive me or not. Please accept it. Even if you ultimately decide to break up, these things are yours as compensation."

Shen Yao raised her tearful eyes and looked at him intently for a long time, as if trying to gauge the truthfulness of his words.

But she knew that Xiang Yuchuan had the temper of a spoiled young master and limited patience.

If this continues, his patience will probably wear thin.

Finally, she nodded slightly: "I'll keep the things for now. But Xiang Yuchuan, we need to calm down."

She neither suggested making up nor insisted on breaking up, leaving room for ambiguity.

This is already a concession for Xiang Yuchuan.

If she keeps making a scene, he'll probably just give up: "Okay, calm down, I'll listen to you."

Xiang Yuchuan held Shen Yao's cold hand tightly and almost half-embraced her as he led her away from the club.

His face was still somewhat gloomy as he turned back to look at the group of dumbfounded friends behind him.

Only after their figures disappeared at the elevator entrance did the suppressed murmurs erupt in the corridor.

"Holy crap! Am I seeing things? Young Master Xiang got slapped and didn't even get angry?"

"You even chased after him to coax him? You even apologized?"

"This is just playing around? You call this just playing around?!" The chestnut-haired man looked like he'd seen a ghost.

"Breaking a record? Judging by this, this woman is probably going to be a legend!" another person clicked their tongue. "When has Xiang Yuchuan ever been so subservient to a woman?"

"Be more careful in the future, and don't joke about Shen Yao anymore. Didn't you see the way Young Master Xiang looked at you? He looked like he wanted to eat you alive." Someone reminded him with lingering fear.

"Sigh, what a pity." A man who hadn't said much sighed regretfully as he looked in the direction Shen Yao had disappeared.

"I was thinking of giving it a try once I got tired of Xiang Shao, but it looks like I'm out of luck with such a beauty."

Xiang Yuchuan took Shen Yao directly back to his villa.

Once inside, Xiang Yuchuan gently laid her down on the soft sofa in the living room and poured her a glass of warm water.

Shen Yao didn't answer; instead, she hugged her knees, buried her face in her hands, and her shoulders trembled slightly, as if she were crying silently.

Xiang Yuchuan squatted down and looked up at Shen Yao:

"Yaoyao, don't cry. Your eyes will look swollen."

Shen Yao remained still.

Xiang Yuchuan took a deep breath, suppressing his impatience. He got up and strode towards the study, returning shortly with a file folder and a car key.

He gently placed the items on the coffee table in front of Shen Yao.

"Here," his voice was deep, "the property certificate for that apartment in Luhu International, and the keys to the white car in the garage. Tomorrow I'll have the lawyer handle the paperwork and transfer the property to your name."

Shen Yao's body stiffened for a moment, but she still didn't look up.

"Don't be angry, okay?" he said, almost as if he were coaxing her.

"You know me, I'm a smart aleck, I care a lot about my image, and I like to talk nonsense in front of my friends. But you know how I treat you, right?"

He paused, then said, "It won't happen again. I promise."

Shen Yao finally slowly raised her head. She didn't look at the property certificate and car keys on the coffee table, but just looked at Xiang Yuchuan: "Xiang Yuchuan, these are not what I want."

"I know," Xiang Yuchuan quickly interrupted, "This is just my way of sincerely apologizing. I made you sad, and I need to make it up to you. Please accept it; it will make me feel better, okay?"

Shen Yao looked at him and remained silent for a long time before finally nodding reluctantly.

"I'm tired, I want to rest." Shen Yao stood up.

"I'll take you back to your room." Xiang Yuchuan quickly stepped forward to help her.