Green Tea? She's Clearly a Hidden Gem!

Jiang Linyuan’s impression of high-society gatherings was limited to what he’d seen on TV.

Men in elegant suits, women dragging brilliant gowns, laughing softly as they stepped across the red carpet into the venue, where a waiter with a perpetual smile stood at the door, a towel over his arm and invitations on his tray, gently reminding all unauthorized personnel and dogs to stay out.

But he figured the gap between the rich and the poor wasn’t that big anyway.

Poor people had tighter pockets, which felt better to squeeze, while the rich were practically dripping with oil—smoother after some lube, and still nice to touch.

Each had their own merits, no one was superior or inferior. Everyone was human, no reason to feel inferior, no justification for arrogance.

At least, that’s how Jiang Linyuan saw it.

But the Vice Principal didn’t think the same way.

After the Student Union’s graduate exam support preparation meeting ended, Jiang Linyuan received a request from the Vice Principal for an audience.

“Come to my office. There’s a banquet you need to attend right away, and I’ve specially found you an etiquette teacher to help you prepare.”

Got it. Private tutoring! The Vice Principal sure knew how to live it up.

Jiang Linyuan got the message, headed to the office, and checked out his private instructor.

As soon as he walked in, he saw the Vice Principal sitting at his desk, and on the sofa next to him sat a middle-aged woman with a ramrod-straight back.

“Teacher Yun, this is the guy. Just teach him some basic etiquette and dance steps.”

The Vice Principal didn’t even want to look at Jiang Linyuan, just pointed at him by the door and said to the woman beside him.

“You’re too kind, Mr. Chen.”

Teacher Yun smiled, stood up, and gave Jiang Linyuan a once-over. She nodded with satisfaction and asked:

“Great physique, great presence. Have you worked as a model or something?”

Jiang Linyuan glanced at Teacher Yun and asked hesitantly:

“The legal kind?”

Teacher Yun let out an awkward but polite smile.

Looks like this guy is just as free-spirited as Miss Su. No problem—I’ve dealt with people like this before.

“My name is Yun Qiao. As Mr. Chen said, I’ll be teaching you some basic banquet etiquette and dance steps over the next few days. Since time is tight, I hope we can cooperate well.”

She completely ignored Jiang Linyuan’s response and introduced herself.

Jiang Linyuan turned to the Vice Principal:

“Uncle, is this banquet really that demanding? Can’t I just squat in a corner and eat?”

“Eat?”

The Vice Principal snorted coldly:

“This banquet is specially prepared for you. You’ll be the star of the show, so don’t even think about running. Study hard with Teacher Yun.”

The protagonist always shines brightly, especially in adult films, because gold glitters everywhere!

They put in a lot of effort to lie in front of the camera.

With that kind of dedication from them, he had to step it up too!

Jiang Linyuan put on a serious expression:

“Uncle, don’t worry. I’ll be the protagonist.”

Something felt off. The Vice Principal looked at his unusually solemn demeanor and felt a bit uncomfortable.

“Excellent. That confidence is great—confident and poised, plus your outstanding looks. I believe you’ll absolutely shine at this banquet.”

Teacher Yun clapped and praised Jiang Linyuan’s performance.

This Teacher Yun really had an eye for talent.

Jiang Linyuan thought.

The Vice Principal gave Teacher Yun a strange look. Wasn’t this exactly how she used to coax little Muzhi into attending banquets back in the day?

Jiang Linyuan and Teacher Yun exchanged contact information and found a dance studio to practice. 𝓯𝙧𝓮𝓮𝒘𝓮𝙗𝙣𝒐𝒗𝒆𝓵.𝓬𝓸𝒎

Inside the studio, Teacher Yun explained many rules about dining at banquets.

Always put shared utensils back after picking food, no more than four items on a plate, and the order should be cold dishes, soup, hot dishes, pastries, desserts, and fruits...

Jiang Linyuan’s head was spinning. He immediately activated [Overclocked Single-Jump Brain] and memorized it all.

People from Shanghai were way too particular!

“That’s all I have to say about dining etiquette. I’ll give you a booklet later—make sure you study and memorize it.”

Teacher Yun reminded him, her expression relaxed:

“Next up, the rules for inviting a dance partner.”

“Inviting a dance partner? The banquet has that part too?”

Jiang Linyuan asked.

Teacher Yun smiled and said:

“This is a Western-style banquet—it might be more accurate to call it a ball. Of course, there’s a dance partner invitation segment.”

“You don’t need to worry too much about this part. Your dance partner is probably already decided. I’m just responsible for teaching you some basic steps.”

This Teacher Yun seemed to have a good relationship with Xiao Su’s family. Time to test the waters.

“Teacher Yun, are you close with the Vice Principal?”

Jiang Linyuan threw out a low-EQ question right off the bat.

Teacher Yun gave a polite smile:

“Strictly speaking, I’m closer to Ms. Su. I taught Miss Su her etiquette when she was a child.”

Guess I’ll have to doubt your professional skills then. Xiao Su didn’t exactly turn out very polite.

Jiang Linyuan thought to himself.

They didn’t chat long before starting the dance step lessons.

Waltz, tango, samba, salsa... a whole series of dance moves was engraved into Jiang Linyuan’s brain.

“Teacher Yun, why do I need to learn so many?”

Jiang Linyuan’s [Overclocked Single-Jump Brain] was almost out of time, and he couldn’t help asking.

“Because I think Miss Su will deliberately mess with you later.”

Teacher Yun smiled:

“Besides, since you learn so fast, I accidentally taught you a lot.”

“Xiao Su learned all this too?”

Jiang Linyuan asked.

“Xiao Su?”

Teacher Yun paused at the nickname, then said:

“Miss Su used to learn this stuff a lot when she was little.”

“Could her personality really handle something this annoying?”

Jiang Linyuan asked curiously.

Learning banquet etiquette—Xiao Su must have found it unbearably dull.

“Yes, indeed. Miss Su used to defy me every day. At first, she’d even pretend to be sick to skip class.”

Teacher Yun seemed to recall something funny and covered her mouth with a laugh.

What a little kid—faking illness to skip class! Add one to Xiao Su’s list of embarrassing moments.

“But later, Ms. Su would personally escort her here every time, and even during practice, she’d stand right there watching Miss Su.”

Teacher Yun sighed:

“What a strict mother. Many times I saw Miss Su so exhausted she could barely stand, and I wanted to give her a day off, but Ms. Su would forcefully shut that down. Sigh.”

Jiang Linyuan just shrugged. Auntie Shaqima could only bully young Xiao Su back then.

If anything, the Xiao Su of today was entirely her creation.

“Alright, let’s keep practicing.”

Teacher Yun got back to business and called out:

“Raise your arm, kick your leg. Do it like this...”

After about an hour of practice, Jiang Linyuan was dead tired. Activated [Refreshed and Renewed]!

Ah, that hit the spot!

Over the next few days, whenever Jiang Linyuan had free time, he’d go practice with Teacher Yun and casually fish for stories about Xiao Su’s childhood.

From her account, Auntie Shaqima had been incredibly strict with Xiao Su, as if every second of her life was meticulously scheduled.

Spartan-style elite education, pouring all her effort into shaping Xiao Su into the most outstanding version in her mind.

Another day of practice came to an end.

Teacher Yun looked at Jiang Linyuan and said:

“That’s all I know about Miss Su. But thankfully, Ms. Su isn’t as hard on her as before, and Miss Su has grown up now.”

“I guess it’s a good outcome.”

Jiang Linyuan glanced at her and said nothing.

This wasn’t a good outcome at all.

Xiao Su’s current trollish personality was entirely Auntie Shaqima’s doing.

She used to be a little girl who faked illness to run away, but now she’d turned out like this.

He really couldn’t understand. With such a family background, why did Auntie Shaqima still treat Xiao Su this way?

Jiang Linyuan looked at the lights in the dance studio and thought quietly.

Tomorrow was the banquet.