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

Xie Yunzhou's eyes swept lightly over his younger sister's face, which was filled with the words "lovestruck".

He hadn't paid much attention to what Xie Yuanzhu was chattering about earlier, but now he asked in a deep voice:

"How did you meet?"

Xie Yuanzhu immediately pouted in dissatisfaction:

"Brother! Didn't I just tell you? You weren't even listening! We met at the mall! Sister Shen Yao is super nice, and she has amazing taste. She helped me pick out clothes!"

She leaned closer to Xie Yunzhou as if presenting a treasure, lowering her voice but unable to hide her excitement as she asked:

"How is it? Isn't Sister Shen Yao super pretty? Don't you like her too?"

Upon hearing the word "like," Xie Yunzhou subconsciously looked up, his gaze falling once again on Shen Yao sitting opposite him.

She was looking down slightly, her slender, white fingers unconsciously stroking the rim of the water glass, her long eyelashes casting a small shadow under her eyes, making her look both quiet and obedient.

But the combination of light purple and white in her outfit today, along with the faint, lingering fragrance, added an indescribable allure to her pure and innocent appearance.

Both innocent and alluring.

The word inexplicably flashed through Xie Yunzhou's mind.

Perhaps it was because of her decisive and calm rescue of herself in the economic summit lounge that she broke the initial stereotype she had of Xiang Yuchuan.

Looking at her more closely now, Xie Yunzhou suddenly felt that the girl in front of him seemed to become more and more attractive the more he looked at her.

He certainly wouldn't care about "liking" anything; that's absurd.

But undeniably, Shen Yao did leave a mark on his heart that was different from that of ordinary people.

He looked away, not answering his sister's childish question, but simply picked up his water glass and took a sip: "Let's eat."

Dinner took place in a wonderful atmosphere.

Xie Yuanzhu is a lively chatterbox, while Shen Yao is a perfect listener and conversationalist.

The two chatted about their shopping spoils, fun places in Shanghai, and some trivial anecdotes from school.

Fortunately, Shen Yao doesn't only associate with men in her daily life.

In the School of Journalism and Communication, although everyone was secretly a future competitor, she knew the importance of female friendship and had accumulated a lot of popular topics and conversations among the girls.

Talking to Xie Yuanzhu at this moment will not seem like showing off, but will allow me to demonstrate my knowledge and interests, while also revealing a charming innocence appropriate to my age.

When Xie Yuanzhu teased her about whether many boys were pursuing her, Shen Yao didn't answer directly, but instead drew out her words:

"Yuanzhu! If you keep talking nonsense, I'm not talking to you anymore!"

The voice was soft and sweet, with a hint of threat, but it sounded more like she was being coquettish.

Xie Yuanzhu giggled at the sound, finding Shen Yao incredibly adorable.

Even Xie Yunzhou, who had been eating in silence and seemed completely uninterested in the topic of girls, paused for a moment while holding his knife and fork.

His Adam's apple bobbed unconsciously, as if the soft, sweet ending of the voice had gently tickled his heart.

Just then, Shen Yao seemed embarrassed by her sister's teasing, and her eyes darted away as she "inadvertently" glanced at Xie Yunzhou across from her.

Eyes facing each other.

The air seemed to freeze for a moment.

Shen Yao's face quickly showed the panic of being caught red-handed.

She immediately lowered her eyelashes, two blushes rising on her cheeks, like a startled fawn, timidly avoiding his gaze.

Her appearance was exactly the same as when she acted coquettishly in front of Xiang Yuchuan, and because the object of her affection was the more aloof Xie Yunzhou, she seemed even more pitiful.

Just as Xie Yunzhou thought she would continue to avoid him and was about to look away—

Shen Yao suddenly raised her eyelids and quickly glanced at him furtively.

Seeing that he was still looking at her, she seemed to have mustered up her courage and gave him a very faint and brief smile.

That smile held a hint of shyness, a touch of cunning, and a dash of ingratiation.

It was as if it were saying, "Don't laugh at me."

Before Xie Yunzhou could react, she quickly lowered her head, picked up a knife and fork, and pretended to be focused on cutting the food on her plate, leaving only her pink earlobe facing him.

Xie Yunzhou was stunned.

When he came to his senses, Shen Yao had already returned to the state she was in when she was talking to Xie Yuanzhu, as if that brief eye contact and smile had never happened.

Xie Yunzhou calmly withdrew his gaze and continued eating.

Xie Yuanzhu was still there, chattering and complaining:

"Thank goodness I ran into you, Sister Shen Yao, otherwise eating with my brother would have been so boring! He's the kind of person you can't get a word out of!

As Shen Yao listened, she felt the time was right. She shifted her gaze from Xie Yuanzhu and, for the first time, actively turned her attention to Xie Yunzhou opposite her.

She turned her head slightly, her already affectionate eyes now brimming with pure concern, and asked softly:

"Mr. Xie, how have you been feeling since last time? Have you felt unwell again?"

Xie Yunzhou was slowly cutting the steak on his plate when he heard the sound. He looked up and met her clear, soft eyes.

For some reason, his usually cold and hard tone softened unconsciously when he opened his mouth:

"It's alright, thank you for your concern."

Although still brief, this was a rather "mild" response compared to his usual sparing use of words.

"Wow!" Xie Yuanzhu immediately caught the unusual atmosphere, her eyes widened, and she looked excitedly at Shen Yao, then at her own brother.

She asked excitedly, "So you two knew each other before? Brother! Why didn't you tell me?!"

Xie Yunzhou glanced at his sister indifferently and explained succinctly, "She helped me at the summit last time."

"You helped me?" Xie Yuanzhu's curiosity was completely piqued. "How did you help me? Sister Shen Yao, tell me quickly!"

Shen Yao smiled, pursing her lips, not taking credit, but simply saying:

"It's nothing, I just happened to run into Mr. Xie who wasn't feeling well, and I helped him out a little."

The more casually she spoke, the more Xie Yuanzhu felt that Sister Shen Yao was beautiful, kind-hearted, and never sought credit, and her affection for her skyrocketed.

She wasn't one to keep secrets to herself, and now she was spilling information about Xie Yunzhou like beans:

"I see. Sister Shen Yao, you're so kind! My brother is the same way. He looks tall and strong, and all the elders in his family are healthy, but he himself has asthma, and it flares up from time to time."

She wrinkled her nose, looking disappointed in him.

"You have no idea, he was even worse when he was little! When he was sick and in pain, he would just tough it out and not say a word, keeping it all bottled up inside. He was so aloof! His parents were almost driven crazy with worry!"

"Xie Yuanzhu." Xie Yunzhou frowned slightly, trying to stop his sister from revealing his past without thinking.

He has never liked to talk to outsiders about matters involving personal health and privacy.

However, when his gaze inadvertently swept over Shen Yao, he saw that she was listening intently with her eyes slightly wide open.

Her face held a mixture of surprise and perhaps pity, as if she were filled with curiosity about his unknown past.

For some reason, Xie Yunzhou swallowed back the rebuke that was already on the tip of his tongue.

He tacitly approved of his sister's revelations.

Shen Yao took in everything and secretly memorized these key pieces of information.

Her face showed understanding, and she said softly, "I see. Then we need to be careful."

Seeing that her brother did not refute her, Xie Yuanzhu became even more enthusiastic and went on and on about Xie Yunzhou's embarrassing moments and quirks when he was a child.

Shen Yao listened with a smile, occasionally adding a few words of agreement.

Xie Yuanzhu, that little megaphone, is practically a godsend assist!