Love Burned, She Rose Unscathed

A certificate was carefully taken out by her.

The cover bore the words "Professional Tea Sommelier Certificate" in both English and large, bold letters. What else could it denote if not a high-level mastery in the art of tea?

"Is this sufficient? Or shall I bring it closer for you to see clearly?" Roseanne lifted her gaze, looking indifferently at Millie.NôvelDrama.Org content.

Millie's eyes widened in disbelief. She actually had it?!

Despite the evidence right before her eyes, she stubbornly refused to admit defeat, retorting, "Certificates can be faked, you know."

Roseanne chuckled, "Certificates have a unique number. You can easily verify it on the official website."

Someone eager to join in the fun quickly checked the number on Roseanne's certificate with their smartphone and then announced loudly, "Wow! It's true! The information matches up perfectly. No forgery here."

Grinding her teeth, Millie desperately tried to save face, "So what if you have a certificate? That doesn't prove your tea skills are actually good. Nowadays, it's easy for mediocrity to hide behind a title. Buying your way to a high-level tea sommelier certification must have been quite simple, right?"

Roseanne seemed to have anticipated this response, lifting her gaze slightly with a cool tone, "Then watch closely now, as I show you exactly how I earned my certificate."

With that, Roseanne began her demonstration.

She turned on the tea machine, poured water into the reservoir, and explained, "Making tea involves several critical steps, starting with the water. The quality of the water is key. Ideally, you'd use clear, filtered water, bringing it to a boil." "Next up is pre-warming the pot. Rinse the tea cup with boiling water to increase the temperature. This helps release the aroma of the tea and also ensures the tea equipment is clean."

"Then, we move on to the third step - adding the tea. The amount of tea must be carefully measured. Too much, and your brew will be overly bitter; too little, and it'll taste weak. So, getting the right balance is crucial."

"The fourth step is pouring the water into the pot, ensuring the tea leaves are fully soaked."

Pausing for a moment, Roseanne added, "One important tip here is to pour the water slowly along the edge of the pot, to avoid directly hitting the tea, which could affect the

taste."

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"By this point, the tea is essentially brewing, and we're over halfway through the process. Next comes the infusion."

Roseanne swiftly covered the pot and looked up at her audience.

"The time for infusing depends on the type of tea, usually ranging from thirty seconds to a minute. This is when the tea leaves expand, releasing their full aroma." After precisely forty seconds, she lifted the lid.

"Finally, pour the tea into a carafe,

then into individual cups," Roseanne demonstrated, "Remember, pour evenly to prevent the first cups from being stronger than the last.

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"Now, we can pick up our cups, smell the rich aroma, and slowly taste the tea."

Roseanne raised her cup to her lips and took a gentle sip.

"When tasting, focus on appreciating the beauty of the tea's color, aroma, flavor, and form. Only then can you truly grasp the essence of tea artistry." Throughout the demonstration, Roseanne's movements were smooth and her explanations clear.

By this time, Millie's palms were sweating. She was ready to back down but, with everyone watching she found it impossible to retract her challenge and could only

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continue to put on a brave face.

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Roseanne concluded with a touch of literary grace, "Let's appreciate the moment and the tea, transcending beyond mere competition."