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

Shen Yao raised her head, without forcing a smile or trying to hide her true feelings as usual.

The sense of failure was too intense for her; she simply wasn't in the mood to act.

Her eyes were slightly red-rimmed, her gaze was dim, and her voice was thick with nasal tone and disappointment.

"Yeah, they weren't selected. Their spoken English was just too good."

Her pitiful, rain-soaked appearance instantly captivated Xiang Yuchuan.

His brows furrowed, and a strange mix of irritation and heartache welled up inside him.

He couldn't bear to see her so upset.

Without much thought, his usual problem-solving method came out:

"It's no big deal. Don't be sad, it's just a lowly volunteer job. If you want to go, I'll give you a call and let you in."

He spoke as if it were perfectly natural.

In his more than 20 years of life, there were very few things he wanted but could not get; most obstacles could be overcome with money or family connections.

What's wrong with the BBC bureau? He can just make a phone call and get someone in there easily, right?

Upon hearing his words, Shen Yao's heart skipped a beat, but then a stronger emotion, a mixture of pride and reason, overwhelmed it.

She shook her head, grabbed Xiang Yuchuan's hand as he reached for his phone, her voice still trembling with tears, but her tone was firm: "No."

Xiang Yuchuan asked, puzzled, "Why? Didn't you want to go?"

Shen Yao looked at him, her eyes filled with complex emotions:

"I want to go, but I want to get in based on my own merit. Now that I wasn't selected, what does it mean to force me in? Wouldn't that be blatantly telling everyone that I, Shen Yao, got in through connections and back channels?"

She paused, her voice lowering, tinged with stubbornness, "I don't want that."

Xiang Yuchuan was stunned.

He looked at Shen Yao's stubborn yet sad expression, opened his mouth as if to say something, but found himself unable to refute her.

He was used to solving problems with money and power, but never considered issues like "reputation" and "method".

Shen Yao's words opened up a new perspective in his simple and straightforward worldview.

Yes, it's easy to slip it in, but then what? What will others think of her? It seems like it lowers her value a bit.

He was a little irritated and a little helpless.

When it comes to coaxing her, it seems he really has no other tricks besides showering her with money, gifts, and making a scene in bed.

Seeing Shen Yao still looking sullen, Xiang Yuchuan felt a pang of unease.

He racked his brains trying to figure out how to make her happy.

Spend money on things? She's probably not in the mood right now. Say nice things? He just repeats the same few phrases over and over again.

Suddenly, a brilliant idea struck him.

Xiang Yuchuan hugged Shen Yao tightly and said in a tone that sounded a bit like coaxing a child:

"Hey, Yao Yao, don't think about it anymore. When you have your long vacation later, I'll take you on a trip abroad, how about that? You can experience the language environment firsthand, consider it a reward for all your hard work lately, okay?"

Go abroad?

These two words instantly unlocked a long-forgotten corner of Shen Yao's memory.

She was reminded of her childhood.

In that dilapidated little courtyard, she often sat on the threshold, resting her chin on her hand, gazing at the endless mountains in the distance and the blue sky above that was divided into squares by the mountains.

At that time, her biggest fantasy was what the world outside the mountains was like.

What are those "foreign countries" described in books and on TV really like?

Are there really such tall buildings, such blue seas, and so many blond-haired, blue-eyed people?

It was a yearning and curiosity about the unknown and vast world that stemmed from the instinct of life, and it was one of the few bright spots in her barren childhood.

She never imagined that years later, the little girl who sat on the doorstep daydreaming would actually have the chance to be promised by a man in such a relaxed tone to see the "outside world" with her own eyes.

Although Xiang Yuchuan's words of comfort were simple and direct, they unexpectedly touched the soft spot and longing in Shen Yao's heart.

She looked up and saw Xiang Yuchuan's expectant and ingratiating gaze, and the gloom in her heart did indeed dissipate a lot.

She forced a fairly genuine smile and nodded:

"Okay, thank you, Yuchuan."

Seeing that her mood had improved, Xiang Yuchuan breathed a sigh of relief and, seizing the opportunity, offered a more specific solution:

"You want to learn English well, right? Leave it to me. In a couple of days I'll find you a professional female teacher to teach you one-on-one. I guarantee it'll be much better than practicing on your own. Just focus on your studies, you don't need to worry about anything else."

Shen Yao leaned against him, listening to his strong heartbeat, and gradually calmed down completely.

The next day, during a break at school, Shen Yao chatted with several of her classmates.

The conversation naturally turned to the selection of volunteers for yesterday's BBC salon.

A well-informed girl lowered her voice and said with a mysterious expression, "Hey, have you heard? At yesterday's BBC auditions, it seems like one of the guys got in through connections..."

"Huh? Really?" Another girl covered her mouth in surprise. "Didn't they say it was all about ability?"

"Who knows? Anyway, there was an extra spot at the last minute, so we added him in. I heard his spoken English is just so-so."

Shen Yao stood to the side, listening quietly, and occasionally showed surprise on her face: "Really? There's such a thing?"

A girl noticed her and asked with concern, "Shen Yao, you went for your interview yesterday too, right? How did it go?"

Shen Yao lowered her head slightly, a wry smile tinged with embarrassment on her face, her tone frank:

"I wasn't selected. My spoken English isn't very good; I'm far behind those excellent students, so it's normal that I wasn't selected."

Her candid self-deprecation actually won her the sympathy and goodwill of the girls around her.

Everyone comforted her:

"Oh, it's okay, Shen Yao. You're only a freshman; you'll have plenty of opportunities in the future!"

"Yeah, yeah, the requirements this time are too high, none of us dared to go."

"You're so beautiful and professionally competent, you'll definitely do well next time!"

Shen Yao listened to everyone's words of comfort, a grateful smile on her face.

The additional slots were added, but no one was replaced.

This means that the boy's actions were relatively "mild" and did not directly harm the interests of other competitors, so although people discussed it privately, it did not cause too much public outrage.

But Shen Yao asked herself honestly, if Xiang Yuchuan had really forced her in yesterday, would she have been willing?

the answer is negative.

She can accept that Xiang Yuchuan provides her with material benefits, such as hiring the best teachers and taking her abroad to broaden her horizons, because these are private resource allocations that can help her improve her inner strength.

But she deeply resented obtaining opportunities in such a public and overtly rule-breaking manner, especially such "hard currency" that concerns academic performance and future resume.

She didn't want to be labeled as someone who "got in through connections" or "got in through back channels" in such a blatant way.

That would make her feel like all her efforts had become a joke, and she would be unable to hold her head up in front of her classmates and teachers.

She craves success, but hopes that recognition will at least superficially be earned through her own abilities, even if those abilities are backed by resources.

At this time, although Shen Yao was ambitious and used every means possible, she still retained something that young students might call "aloofness" or "bottom line" in certain aspects involving academic and professional dignity.

Many years later, after witnessing more ruthless ways to rise to the top in the world of fame and fortune, when Shen Yao looked back on this incident, she only felt that she was too naive at the time and could have been easily manipulated and destroyed in the capital.

When faced with real benefits and opportunities, that pitiful sense of self-respect and arrogance are sometimes the least valuable things.

As long as the goal is achieved, what does it matter whether the means are virtuous or not? It's all about the victor and the vanquished.

But that's another story.

At least for now, eighteen-year-old Shen Yao is still carefully protecting her fragile self-esteem, which is a mixture of inferiority and pride.