The Elegant Secretary-General’s Proposition

Her elegance was truly striking, especially combined with such beauty, leaving Xi Yao momentarily at a loss for how to respond.

Had it been the girls from the bathhouse last night, Xi Yao would have confidently greeted them with a familiar, “Hey, sisters!”

Yet, confronted by the graceful Aileen, she pondered for a long moment before speaking in a hushed tone:

“Hello.”

Politeness, above all else, was the primary trait of Xiangxiangzi (TL Note: A playful nickname for Xi Yao, often implying cuteness or fragrance).

Jiang Li merely offered a curt nod, her silence betraying a foul mood and an unwillingness to engage.

Aileen, unfazed, gracefully drew up a chair. “This conversation might take a while,” she proposed with an airy tone, “perhaps we should sit?”

“Yes, please do sit,” Xi Yao urged.

Feeling it her duty to be a good host, Xi Yao proactively poured a cup of hot water and placed it before Aileen before finally settling into her own seat.

“You mentioned earlier that you’re with the student council… a secretary of some sort, wasn’t it?” she inquired.

“I am the Permanent Secretary-General,” Aileen clarified, gracefully lifting her cup. Just as she prepared to take a sip, she noticed the rising steam, signaling its heat, and quietly set it back down.

‘Boiling water, then?’

“Permanent Secretary-General?” Xi Yao blinked in bewilderment. “That sounds rather odd.”

Aileen offered a soft chuckle. “Previously, the position was known as Permanent Clerk (TL Note: A ‘shujiguan’, or secretary/clerk official). However, the school later decided that having the character ‘guan’ (官), meaning ‘official,’ in a student council title sounded too bureaucratic, so they opted for the current designation.”

“It’s certainly not bureaucratic anymore, but it’s become… a bit ‘se’ (TL Note: ‘Se’ (涩) can mean astringent or awkward, but in modern slang, it can also playfully imply something risqué or alluring, adding a layer of subtle humor to Xi Yao’s comment),” Xi Yao murmured under her breath.

Aileen maintained her serene smile, though a barely perceptible twitch played at the corner of her lips.

“So, what exactly distinguishes the Permanent Secretary-General from other roles within the student council?” Xi Yao asked, her curiosity piqued.

Aileen once again lifted the cup, only to find it still too hot, and promptly set it down again.

“As its former title suggested, I oversee the student council’s clerks—the individuals responsible for the actual work. While the President and various department heads formulate decisions and issue directives, our secretarial team is tasked with their concrete implementation.”

Xi Yao nodded, grasping the concept readily. ‘It’s essentially the dynamic between political officials and administrative officers,’ she thought.

“The key distinction lies in how positions are filled,” Aileen continued. “The President and department heads are elected, with new elections held each semester. Our roles, however, do not require campaigning; we are instead selected through internal deliberation and appointment within the secretarial team.”

An elegant smile perpetually graced Aileen’s beautiful face. “Before the last Secretary-General graduated,” she explained, “they personally entrusted this position to me. For the next two years, I will continue to serve the student council in this capacity.”

This implied that for the next two years, regardless of how frequently student council presidents might change, her role as Secretary-General remained fixed and unyielding.

At this juncture, Jiang Li finally broke her silence. “What business brings you to us?” she asked.

“To be precise,” Aileen said, turning her gaze directly to Jiang Li, “I’m here for you.”

“For me?” Jiang Li’s brow furrowed slightly.

Xi Yao, equally perplexed, turned to look at her roommate.

“The student council’s secretarial team is far more than mere enforcers,” Aileen elaborated. “We are the true implementers of the student council’s decisions, and, crucially, a failsafe.”

Aileen’s slender fingers idly twirled a strand of her golden hair. “Elected presidents, prone to sudden whims, often make highly impactful, ill-advised decisions. For instance, one former president once mandated an additional four evening study periods every single night. This provoked such widespread outrage across the entire school that they were ultimately impeached by a joint petition of all students, dragging the student council’s reputation down with them.”

“That’s truly awful,” Xi Yao remarked. “They deserved every bit of misfortune that came their way.”

Having endured such a fate in her previous life, she harbored no desire to relive the experience in this one.

“Didn’t you just state that you serve as a failsafe?” Jiang Li interjected, “Why, then, did you not prevent him?”

Aileen offered a knowing smile. “The secretarial team serves the President, and the President wields the ultimate decision-making authority. Naturally, we cannot forcibly obstruct their actions; we can only attempt to influence them through persuasion and similar means.”

She paused briefly, then added, “Of course, after that particular incident, we grew wiser. Our ‘failsafe’ now encompasses a broader range of strategies. If a decision cannot be prevented from being issued, we then seek opportunities for mitigation during the actual execution process.”

Aileen’s speaking pace was perfectly measured, neither rushed nor sluggish, her words crisp and clear, imbued with a subtle, melodic cadence that mirrored the very elegance of her appearance.

Yet, with her very next sentence, her delivery abruptly accelerated:

“According to the stipulations outlined in Chapter 3, Page 4, Section 12 of the ‘Student Council Member Handbook’,” Aileen recited rapidly, “the student council’s secretarial team is obligated to fully assist the Student Council President in executing all correct decisions they promulgate. Therefore, conversely, if a President’s decision proves less than ideal, we, as the secretarial team, are naturally forbidden from exacerbating its erroneous impact during implementation. It is incumbent upon us to retain sufficient latitude in the execution process, not only to contain the detrimental effects of incorrect decisions but also to proactively create avenues for subsequent rectification…”

Jiang Li felt her head spinning; long before Aileen had even finished, she had already lost the thread of the conversation.

It was then that Xi Yao abruptly interjected, “So, you’re essentially saying ‘outward obedience, inward defiance,’ aren’t you?”

Aileen raised an eyebrow, then settled back into her elegant smile. “Merely adhering to the student council’s charter,” she replied smoothly.

“Still, you haven’t actually told me the real reason you sought me out,” Jiang Li pressed.

The realization finally dawned on her.

This golden-haired beauty before her was truly formidable; after a lengthy discourse, Jiang Li had not only failed to receive a direct answer but had also been subtly led astray.

“Actually, we…”

Aileen was about to continue her circuitous explanation when her gaze fell upon the ‘white, long, straight-haired, big-chested girl’ (TL Note: A common Chinese web novel trope for a character with long straight hair and large breasts) opposite her, whose ‘tuan tuan’ (TL Note: A playful, often euphemistic term for breasts) seemed even more substantial than her own. After a brief hesitation, she changed tack. “To be direct,” she stated, “I want to invite you to run in the election and defeat Yun Caiyi.”

There was little point in further prevarication. The big-chested girl surnamed Xi (Xi Yao) was clearly no pushover, not easily deceived, and, moreover, seemed to possess a rather sharp edge.

‘The boiling water she poured for me is still scalding!’

“An election? I have no intention of participating,” Jiang Li promptly declined.

She had never been interested in the first place, deeming it unsuitable for her temperament. Now, having witnessed the formidable presence of a Secretary-General like Aileen, she knew that if she were to genuinely get involved, she would likely be stripped of all power within minutes.

Navigating social intricacies and human relations was, after all, Jiang Li’s greatest weakness.

Her ‘big-chested’ roommate, on the other hand, appeared remarkably adept in such matters.

“May I inquire as to the reason?” Xi Yao asked, propping her ‘fragrant cheek’ (TL Note: A poetic way to describe a beautiful face) with a small hand, her ‘tuan tuan’ (TL Note: Playful term for breasts) resting casually on the table. “For the Permanent Secretary-General of the student council to interfere in an election seems rather… unusual.”

“According to Chapter 2, Page 9, Section 17 of the student council charter,” Aileen began, “the secretarial team bears the responsibility of assisting the Student Council President in becoming more effective. This ‘President’ can refer to a specific individual or the position itself. Therefore, selecting the most suitable person for this role perfectly aligns with the charter’s intent.”

Having first established the unimpeachable legality of her actions, Aileen continued:

“According to intelligence from my colleagues in the university division, it is already a foregone conclusion that a certain senior member of the Yun family will assume the position of University Division Student Council President. Should her cousin, Yun Caiyi, succeed in her own election bid, having two members of the Yun family simultaneously control both student councils would present an unacceptable risk.”

Xi Yao nodded her small head in understanding. She recalled her sister Xi Ruo mentioning that any significant decisions required the unanimous consent of both presidents.

“Furthermore,” Aileen continued, once more lifting her water cup and speaking with a measured cadence, “Yun Caiyi has invested considerable… effort and other resources in her quest for the Student Council President’s position. How far she might go to sate her ‘official addiction’ (TL Note: A desire for power or official status) remains unknown to us, but it is highly probable she would engage in undesirable actions.”

‘Damn it, this water is still scalding hot; I can’t drink it.’

****