The most important thing in life is to have principles. Her principle is: never forget about making money.

Dai Shuo invited Song Yunxi to give an elective course on tea ceremony, which was scheduled for every Wednesday evening.

Although the school hasn't agreed to reduce the management fee for interns, Song Yunxi felt she should show some sincerity. She should start with a trial lecture; if both the school and students are satisfied, the terms will be easier to negotiate.

Not many students attended the first class. Song Yunxi put her book aside, walked to the podium, and spoke softly: "Today we won't be discussing knowledge points. Let's wait for those of you who are still observing. Today, I'll demonstrate the steps for making tea."

After saying that, she asked two classmates to help her move a lower table over, and then placed the Kung Fu tea set that she had borrowed from the tea room of the Platinum Hotel on the table.

As the pre-prepared guzheng music began to play, Song Yunxi first rinsed the teaware with boiling water, then took out a tea canister and used a tea scoop to put some Tieguanyin tea into the Yixing teapot. After that, she poured boiling water into the teapot, gently shook it to rinse the tea, poured the water out again, and then opened the lid of the teapot once more.

When pouring boiling water into the teapot for the second time, Song Yunxi lifted the kettle high and then lowered it three times in succession, so that the water flowing into the teapot was thin but continuous. When he lowered the kettle for the last time, the teapot was just full.

"This is called 'Phoenix Three Nods,' also known as 'High Pour from Suspended Pot.' It's a way to express welcome and respect to guests. At the same time, the water flowing down from a height allows the tea leaves to tumble in the pot, ensuring that each leaf fully absorbs water and unfurls."

Song Yunxi gently pushed the lid of the Zisha teapot a few times at the mouth to remove the foam that had been washed up by the water flow before putting the lid back on. Afterwards, she rinsed the lid and the outside of the Zisha teapot with hot water again.

"This is called sealing the pot, which allows the teapot to be heated evenly inside and out, and allows the tea leaves to better release their aroma."

After waiting for about ten seconds, Song Yunxi lifted the handle of the purple clay teapot with one hand, gently touched the lid with the other, and with a slight bend in her wrist and a slight upward flick of her fingertips, poured the brewed tea into the fairness cup.

Then, while pouring the tea from the fairness cup into each aroma cup in turn, he said, "This is called Guan Gong's Patrol of the City, which ensures that the tea in each cup has a uniform taste and color."

When each cup was filled to seven-tenths full, Song Yunxi spoke again: "China is a land of etiquette, and it is customary to fill tea to seven-tenths full, leaving three-tenths for sentiment."

Finally, the remaining tea in the fairness cup was poured drop by drop into each cup. "This is called Han Xin's troop deployment."

After setting down the fairness cup, Song Yunxi inverted the tea tasting cups one by one onto the aroma-smelling cups before looking up at the students below the stage.

"After the tea is brewed, you can first pour it into an aroma cup to smell the aroma, and then pour it into a tasting cup to observe the color of the tea and taste its flavor. Which student would like to come up and try?"

The audience was completely silent.

Song Yunxi tilted her head slightly and asked with a smile, "None of you are willing?"

The students below the stage seemed to suddenly realize something and eagerly raised their hands.

Song Yunxi called a few students up to the stage and taught them to use their index and middle fingers to hold the bottom of the aroma cup from both sides, while pressing their thumbs against the bottom of the inverted tea cup above. They then used both hands to lift the two cups together, and then flipped their wrists inward to turn the two cups upside down.

The students gently lifted the smelling cups and brought them to their noses to inhale the fragrance. "It smells so good!"

A girl looked at Song Yunxi with admiration. "Teacher Song, I was stunned when you were talking just now, you are so beautiful."

Song Yunxi smiled. It seemed that the skills she had painstakingly practiced to avoid being exposed as a Korean girl in front of Mu Chen, such as speaking gently and moving softly, came in handy in another situation.

Another girl said, "Teacher, you're so pretty. If I were a boy, I would definitely pursue you."

Song Yunxi smiled and refused, "How could I compete with my male classmates for a girlfriend?"

The classroom atmosphere became lively. Students eagerly raised their hands to ask questions:

"Teacher Song, will you be giving us lectures from now on?"

"Yes. I'll speak as long as you come to listen."

"Teacher Song, after learning tea ceremony, will I be able to find a job related to it?"

"Of course. There is still a significant shortage of tea masters in the market, especially professional tea masters who have both skills and certificates. If you want to pursue a career in the tea industry, I suggest you first learn and practice systematically, and then obtain a professional tea certificate."

"After we learn tea ceremony, can we get a job at Platinum Hotel?"

"As an employee of Platinum Hotel..." Song Yunxi smiled and paused for a moment before continuing, "If I work a little harder, I might even become the boss's wife..."

As soon as he finished speaking, a chorus of "Wow!" erupted from the audience.

Sitting in the last row, Mu Chen looked at Song Yunxi with gentle eyes and a smile on his lips.

Unaffected by the cheers from the audience, Song Yunxi continued, "Of course, I welcome everyone to intern and work at Platinum Hotel. We offer not only tea ceremony positions, but also many other roles that we can provide for you."

The first lesson concluded successfully. Seeing the leaders sitting in the front row of the classroom with Dai Shuo nodding in agreement, Song Yunxi knew that the matter of reducing management fees was easy to discuss.

As the students left one by one, Mu Chen walked over from the back row of the classroom.

He smiled and asked, "Boss lady?"

Song Yunxi laughed as she tidied up the tea set, saying, "I was just teasing them."

Mu Chen grabbed Song Yunxi's arm, making her stop and look at him. "You can tease them, but you can't tease me. You have to keep your word."

Song Yunxi readily put her arms around Mu Chen's waist. "That depends on President Mu. After all, the boss is certain, but the boss's wife is not."

Mu Chen lowered his head and kissed Song Yunxi on the lips. "The boss lady has also confirmed it."

Dai Shuo saw several leaders off and returned to find this scene. "Could you please stop showing affection in public?"

Song Yunxi asked with a smile, "Where is the public?"

“I can represent the masses on my own.” Dai Shuo said, and then started to help Song Yunxi tidy up the tea set.

Song Yunxi advised her, "You should save your energy for talking to the leaders about reducing management fees instead of being so talkative."

The most important thing in life is to have principles. And her principle is: never forget about making money.

After saying goodbye to Dai Shuo, Mu Chen drove directly back to Song Yunxi's house.

Recently, he's no longer the General Manager Mu who stays at the hotel all the time; he's now Song Yunxi's new boyfriend who hangs out at her house every night, begging for kisses, hugs, and exercise.

If I don't have some sex with her in bed on a certain day, that day feels incomplete.

Mu Chen took Song Yunxi's hand as they exited the elevator, and asked as they walked towards her home, "Why don't you come home with me to meet my parents during your vacation in a few days?"

"Let's wait a bit longer, I want to wait until the new brand is launched."

Mu Chen understood her concerns, so he spoke again: "The things you're worried about won't happen in my family."

Song Yunxi smiled at him and said, "After all, I was kicked out of Korea because I wasn't good enough for a rich man. I still have such a big psychological trauma." As she spoke, she exaggeratedly made a half-circle in the air with her hand.

Mu Chen turned around and pinned her against the wall, placing his hands on either side of her. "Our family doesn't care about social status, we only care about people."

But she didn't seem like a good person either. However, Song Yunxi only thought this to herself and didn't say it aloud.

She simply said, "I'll think about it."

"Okay. Tell me when you've thought it through, just like last time." Mu Chen said, pressing the code on the door and then putting his arm around her waist to lead her into the room.

Last time? Hehe, last time.

*

The alarm clock ticked for half a minute before Song Yunxi reluctantly sat up in bed and stretched languidly. She felt that exercising so late every night had seriously affected her sleep.

But, I can't stop.

Mu Chen, on the other hand, was unaffected and remained energetic every day. When Song Yunxi got up, he had already collected the plastic wrappers of the exercise toys that had been scattered all over the floor the night before and put them in the trash can, and had gone out to buy breakfast.

Mu Chen pushed the door open and came in. Seeing that she was still sitting on the bed yawning, he smiled and called to her, "Go wash up and have dinner."

Song Yunxi stretched out her hands, waiting for him to pull her up from the bed.

Mu Chen stepped forward and picked her up from the bed, then casually pulled a robe over her shoulders. "Shall we ride to the hotel in my car today?"

"No need. I'll walk."

Ever since Song Yunxi started working at the Platinum Hotel, she's been walking to and from work every day, a half-hour commute, just to get some exercise. After all, she does too much mental work and not enough physical work every day.

No, she's been doing a lot of physical labor lately.

Song Yunxi simply didn't want her colleagues to see her coming and going with Mu Chen every day. After all, this was a crucial time, with the new brand about to launch, and she couldn't afford to give anyone leverage against her. It was their business if others noticed anything amiss, but she herself couldn't make it too obvious.

In her words: "As long as I don't admit it, we're not dating."

*

Shortly after arriving at the hotel, Jiang Hailang went to Song Yunxi's desk.

"The chairman is here and wants to inform you to go to the large conference room on the tenth floor in half an hour for a meeting."

After saying that, he turned around and asked Lin Xiaoran with a smile, "Baby, want to come to my house for crayfish tonight?"

Cooking is out of the question, but we can order takeout. Besides, Lin Xiaoran likes to eat crayfish.

Lin Xiaoran said, "No, I have plans with my boyfriend tonight."

Song Yunxi glanced at Jiang Hailang. Although she couldn't figure out what kind of complicated relationship they had, the sudden dimming in Jiang Hailang's eyes made her think that he was plotting to seduce Lin Xiaoran into having an affair.

Otherwise, why would it be his responsibility as a senior director to notify her of any meeting? Besides, who is the chairman? Isn't Platinum Hotel the most powerful company in Mu Chen's company?

Later, Lin Xiaoran answered her question: "Isn't the chairman President Mu's father?"

Jiang Hailang nodded in agreement with this statement.

Before leaving, he still couldn't give up and asked Lin Xiaoran, "Baby, I want to attend your graduation ceremony tomorrow."

Sitting in her chair, Song Yunxi thought about meeting the chairman in half an hour. Her current psychological trauma was probably twice as great as the one she had shown Mu Chen yesterday. Even if she and Mu Chen were usually very careful, surely some rumors would eventually reach the chairman's ears?

She took her makeup bag from the cabinet and headed straight to the bathroom to touch up her makeup. Even if the chairman killed her later, she wanted to die gracefully.

Several senior executives were already seated in the conference room, but fortunately, shareholders like President Jiang, who weren't often at the hotel, weren't there. Otherwise, if they had joined forces to destroy her, she really wouldn't have been able to handle it.

As soon as Song Yunxi took her seat at the end of the table, Mu Chen accompanied a middle-aged man in his fifties into the conference room.

Everyone stood up and greeted, "Hello, Chairman."

"Please sit down, everyone."

Mu Guozhang smiled and waved his hand, gesturing for everyone to sit down. He himself took the head seat at the rectangular conference table.

After Mu Chen sat down to his right, he turned to look in Song Yunxi's direction.

I told her last night that I would give her time to think about when to meet his parents, and his father came today. I wonder if she will feel a little uncomfortable.

"This isn't a formal meeting; I just wanted to drop by and chat for a bit," Mu Guozhang said, then turned to Mu Chen. "I heard the hotel is working on a new project recently. Could you tell me about it?"

Mu Chen met Mu Guozhang's gaze. Sure enough, the older the ginger, the spicier it gets; the older the fox, the more cunning it becomes—no, the smarter it gets.

He understood what Mu Guozhang meant, but Mu Guozhang had come under the guise of work, and the question was also work-related. He couldn't very well embarrass him in front of his subordinates.

Mu Chen could only turn to look at Song Yunxi: "Then please let President Song introduce herself?"

Song Yunxi rose from her seat at the farthest point of the conference table and bowed deeply to Mu Guozhang. "Good morning, Chairman. I am Song Yunxi, in charge of the new brand project."

Mu Guozhang still smiled and waved to her, "Sit down, don't be shy, just give a brief introduction to the project's progress."

"Thank you, Chairman." Song Yunxi sat back down before speaking again: "The decoration work for Miss Chi's afternoon tea shop is nearing completion in a dust-free and noise-free environment without disturbing customers. It is expected to be completed next week."

The joint venture established by Platinum Hotels and Chi's Group has been registered with the Administration for Industry and Commerce, and all projects requiring separate approval from relevant departments, such as the sale of food and beverages, have been approved.

The trademark registration for "Miss Chi's Afternoon Tea" has been submitted to the Trademark Office and passed the preliminary examination, entering the public notice period. It is expected to be completed in four months.

The new brand's beverage and food catalog has been finalized and submitted to the Food and Beverage Director and General Manager Mu for review. Promotional materials for the launch are currently being prepared and produced; this afternoon, we also invited General Manager Mu and Ms. Chi Li to take promotional photos together…”

Mu Guozhang nodded repeatedly as he listened; the explanation was clear and detailed.

After listening to reports from various departments on their recent work, this impromptu informal meeting drew to a close, and the attending executives left the meeting room one by one.

Song Yunxi, who always yielded to others and sat at the last seat, was the last to leave. Before he even reached the door, Mu Guozhang called him back.

"I heard that Director Song is a representative sent by the Korean ST Group. He's really young and capable. I've been busy with company matters recently and haven't had a chance to welcome him..."

Before Mu Guozhang could even invite Song Yunxi to lunch, Mu Chen ruthlessly interrupted him. "The chairman is busy with official business, so I won't bother you any longer."