Chapter 110 (1/2)
Chapter 110: Secrets of the Collar Stays
Lan Jue’s sudden appearance in front of Tang Mi took her off guard She unconsciously lifted her hand to ward him off, but her professor deftly sidestepped and pushed her hand away until she arding nothing but air
“Don’t misunderstand Miss Mi,” he said “I’d simply like you to exa Mi was still off-balance, but eventually recovered Her pretty face adopted a red tint, and her heart sped up
WhatXiao kept his distance Where he a student, he’d find her foot firs in the blink of an eye Of course there was nothing she could do here; he was no student, the Director watched fro any rules
As they stood toe-to-toe, Lan Jue half a head taller than she, Tang Mi could sne With his suit, vest, kerchief and tie this only perfected his refined h the tie is a little crooked” She took only a cursory glance at his collar before speaking
“Take aMiher displeasure, looked again This time she saw it
“Hh to accommodate the thickness of the tie knot On either side the collar naturally droops down, giving it sy his hands “Very good, a fine observation So why, then, isman in the class offered
Lan Jue shook his head “There are differenta tie Each one results in different width and thickness for the tie knot Likewise each one requires a different collar So does this mean I have custom shi+rts for every sort of knot I wish to tie? Far too wasteful In fact my necktie this afternoon is not crooked – it’s the color of the shi+rt It isn’t co with a very formal tie As a result I tied this Simple Knot It looks more… vibrant And as for the secrets of the collar, I’ll enlighten you…”
As he spoke he fiddled with one side of his collar, extricating so
“I’m fairly certain everyone here’s worn a shi+rt But I’m absolutely sure you’ve never turned over the collar Take a look” He opened his fist to reveal a one centi strip of metal, rounded on one end and sharp on the other
“This is called a collar stay As the name implies, it helps the collar stay in the shape intended Generally speaking even higher class name brands employ plastic collar stays The probleht and sle The ones I have here are pure silverI canto my needs, for whatever necktie I choose This is how the collar works – not tailored”
The students looked on in rapt attention Evidently none had heard this secret before Director Wu fiddled with his collar, partially hidden in the back row
Lan Jue replaced the collar stay “If you don’t tell anyone, no one will know your collar stay is coood taste They’ll take one look at your collar and know precisely how it is you’ve le I once knew a local official who used twenty-two karat gold stays, not for anyone else’s satisfaction but his own He knew they were twenty-two karat gold Pure gold, obviously, would have been too soft for a stay Unsuitable unless you add another metal These weren’t for status, for how could they be if no one saw thee,’ his hidden coquettishness Think about it – what if one day your girlfriend has your shi+rt… for soolden collar stay? She’d look at you differently, wouldn’t she? I dare say she’d be hter, this time less forced Be it ht eyes and bright expression
“Most people think ornamentation and accessories are a woirly’? Well I’ is entirely wrong In truth a man’s necessary accessories aren’t much fewer than a woman’s only, they are less visually available Collar stays, cufflinks, wrist watches, breastpins, even a delicate bracelet… things easily missed, but when briefly revealed increase your charm and charisma tenfold”
He paused here and took his jacket back froave her a brief smile, and motioned for her to return to her seat She looked back at hi for the back row
He slipped his jacket back on “Now I knohat you’re thinking ‘Professor Lan,’ you wish to say, ‘Unless you’re very fairlfriend for example, wont your secret remain hidden?’ In fact, that’s not the case Take a look” He turned then and showed his back to the gathered youngsters
“This particular coat is a double vent So, say I’ down the street and a breeze catches htly, and there the lining is revealed Oops! My secret is known”
Another ripple of laughter Jin Yan and Wu Junyi also couldn’t help but lend their voice to thefor his nextthe lecture from a distance At some point the mask he’d used to hide his face had been re smile spread across his pretty features
Never had Lan Jue expected one day he’d be a teacher,before a classroo pocket kerchiefs and wearing ties There are quite a feays to tie a tie We have the common, popular knots like the four-in-hand, Windsor…”