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

With this matter resolved, Shen Yao breathed a sigh of relief.

First, win over the younger men, then use them as leverage to deal with the more cunning ones.

That's called strategy.

As for Liang Zhenghe's matter, she has done everything she could. The rest depends on these men pushing forward.

Xue Huaiqing also kept in touch, telling her from time to time not to worry or fret, and that she should just focus on living her life steadily.

Shen Yao stopped asking questions and focused on running back and forth between the school and the Youth Association.

When I'm busy, I don't have time to think about things that are out of reach or people that I can't see.

_

The late spring breeze, carrying a cool dampness, swept over the layers of pines and cypresses in the cemetery.

Rainwater splashed onto the black tombstone, leaving faint watermarks.

The surroundings were so quiet that the only sounds were the soft patter of raindrops on the umbrella and the occasional low chirping of birds.

Today is Qingming Festival.

"Uncle Xue, Aunt Manchun, I'm Yaoyao. My brother Aqing and I have come to see you."

Shen Yao stood in front of the tombstone.

She knelt down and gently placed the bouquet.

Shen Yao's eyes held both respect and guilt.

Only now can Xue Huaiqing and she openly erect a monument for the two of them.

"Yaoyao is doing very well now," she said softly, as if chatting with the two gentle adults from the past.

"They've found her grandparents too. Aunt Manchun, you don't need to worry anymore. Mom...she's found her family."

The wind rustled through the pine branches, creating a soft sound, as if someone had responded gently from afar.

Two once close friends have both left this world, leaving behind their child standing in the rain, watching over the remaining scenes of this world for them.

"Will they be doing well?" Shen Yao asked.

Xue Huaiqing stood beside her, put his arm around her shoulder, his palm warm and steady: "I will."

The two stood in front of the tombstone for a long time, and then went to visit Shen Yao's mother, Qin Yueqiu.

After finding her maternal grandparents, the family moved Shen Yao's mother's tombstone to Yanjing.

On the day the monument was moved, the maternal grandparents cried until they fainted in front of it with red eyes. Shen Yao stood beside them, her eyes also stinging.

Shen Yao still remembers that scene clearly.

Xue Huaiqing stood before Qin Yueqiu's grave for a moment, then knelt down without hesitation. The man's knees landed on the wet stone slabs, but his back remained ramrod straight.

He kowtowed three times, and as his forehead touched the ground, his voice, deep and hoarse, escaped from his lowered eyes:

"sorry."

Shen Yao thought he was apologizing, apologizing for not taking good care of her all those years, for not taking her and her mother away with him.

What she didn't know was that Xue Huaiqing harbored another, deeper sense of guilt: he had failed Qin Yueqiu's expectations.

Xue Huaiqing felt he was a failed fiancé.

He promised to protect Shen Yao for life, yet he still let her face so many storms in the world alone.

"It won't happen again." Xue Huaiqing's gaze fell on the name on the tombstone, his expression somber and solemn.

Seeing that he seemed determined to remain kneeling, Shen Yao, both amused and exasperated, bent down to pull him up.

"Okay, anyone who didn't know better would think my mom is fierce. She's so kind and loves you so much, she won't blame you."

Xue Huaiqing was pulled up by her, his knees covered in a layer of wet mud.

He didn't swat it away; instead, he bent down and placed the flowers in front of the monument, the white lilies against the dark stone surface.

May you all be happy.

The two of them said the same thing at the same time.

_

In the car.

Shen Yao hugged Xue Huaiqing's arm and rested her head on his shoulder: "I hope you can bring better news next time you come."

They both knew exactly what she was referring to.

Xue Huaiqing lowered his head and kissed the back of her hand, his thin lips touching her skin, and softly murmured "Mmm".

Shen Yao felt a little ticklish from his kiss, laughed, withdrew her hand, and turned to tease him:

"I remember what you looked like when I first met you."

"You acted so convincingly back then, you couldn't tell at all from how you were when you were little. You sounded frivolous and venomous, and you even offered me your hand to bite."

Xue Huaiqing did not refute, but quietly extended his well-defined hand in front of her, palm facing up:

"You can bite now."

Shen Yao lowered her head without hesitation and bit down on the web of his hand.

When she opened her mouth, a tooth mark was clearly visible, exactly the same spot as when they first met in Yanjing.

The girl looked up at him with satisfaction and a smile:

"So you really have this side to your personality? How come I never realized Ah Qing was such a bad boy before?"

Xue Huaiqing didn't answer. He just looked down at the teeth mark, something darkening in his eyes for a moment.

The car suddenly stopped.

Caught off guard, Shen Yao leaned forward slightly. Before she could even ask a question, the sunshade was folded down.

The rain pattered outside the car window, and the path was deserted.

In the shadows, which were even darker than before, Xue Huaiqing suddenly leaned over, pressed her down onto the car seat, and kissed her.

It was very intense.

His breathing was rapid and heavy, and his burning tongue pried into her lips, entwining with her tongue and pulling it outwards.

After only a few seconds of contact with the cool air, he lowered his eyes and rolled her into his mouth.

He kissed her hard, and her mouth and tongue ached.

The hand with the teeth marks gently stroked her hair, one stroke at a time, as if to soothe her.

Actually, there's no need to reassure her; Shen Yao isn't afraid of him.

The kiss ended.

Shen Yao leaned back in her seat, her lips slightly red. After hesitating for a while, she asked in a low voice:

Do you have any other enemies?

Xue Huaiqing shook his head: "Only Liang Zhenghe."

He has dealt with most of the people who hurt his parents.

Shen Yao then asked, "What about Liang Xiheng?"

Xue Huaiqing did not answer immediately.

His hand slid down from her hair and landed on her face, his fingertips gently caressing her slightly flushed cheeks.

Do you want me to hate him?

Looking into his captivating eyes, Shen Yao replied dryly, "Can I really make that decision?"

Xue Huaiqing's lowered eyelashes fluttered slightly, his voice soft and steady:

"Okay. As long as you tell me, I won't hate him."

Shen Yao also raised her hand and touched his face:

"What? Why do you immediately assume I'd advise you not to hate him? It makes it sound like I'm biased towards Xiheng."

"Yes, Xiheng."

Shen Yao was stunned for a moment, then burst into laughter.

Is she complaining that she doesn't use her surname when she calls Liang Xiheng?

She sighed, placed her palm against his cheek, and said earnestly, "Qing, I respect you."

Whether he hates or not is his choice.

She wouldn't impose it on him.

Just like how he knew that so many people came and went around her, but he never cared.

Xue Huaiqing didn't respond. He just looked at her quietly, his eyes deep and burning in the dim light of the carriage.

"As long as you're here, as long as you don't leave."

Perhaps one day, he will truly forgive Liang Xiheng.

Those humiliating days, those resentments chewed over in the dark of night, may all be erased, one by one, over the long course of time.

He didn't know when forgiveness would come, but he knew that his soul was no longer trapped in the same place.

_

Perhaps it was the heavens that finally took pity on us, or perhaps fate had finally turned its back after a long tug-of-war.

The year Shen Yao graduated with her master's degree, Liang Zhenghe was arrested.

The news came unexpectedly.

Shen Yao had just finished listening to the call when another call came in. Before she could even process her emotions, another call came in.

"Ms. Shen, do you have a moment?"

A string of fluent Italian flowed from the receiver.

Shen Yao was momentarily dazed.

"...I have it," she replied in fluent Italian.

"Ms. Shen, we need to read out the will of the trustee, Mr. Liang Xiheng. You need to be present."