Hua Xiaomo suddenly realized something. She hadn’t discussed it with him before but had simply agreed after Qi Longbing invited her.
"I’m sorry, I didn’t know what you were thinking. I should have asked your thoughts. So, you...?" Hua Xiaomo looked at Zi Yunsui and asked, somewhat embarrassed.
"I’m afraid I won’t have time to come over tonight. I need to visit my mentor. It has already been five years since I last saw him, and I miss him very much," Zi Yunsui said, a hidden gleam in his eyes. Actually, he had intended to invite Hua Xiaomo to join him in visiting Qi Lingfeng tonight. However, this wish ultimately had to be abandoned. After all, Hua Xiaomo had to attend the welcome party Qi Longbing had prepared for her, right?
"Oh, I see. In that case, I’ll call right now to cancel! I’ll accompany you tonight to visit Qi Lingfeng; I miss him too," Hua Xiaomo said, pulling out her phone, ready to dial the eight-digit number.
Zi Yunsui quickly pressed down on her phone. His eyes fixed on her face as he said calmly, "Xiao Mo, we’re not children anymore. This cooperation project is crucial to the company’s future operations and, moreover, its listing. You must attend this welcome party as the Director. And we must secure the cooperation project with Qi Imperial Court."
Zi Yunsui spoke to Hua Xiaomo with such solemnity, his earnest gaze conveying the gravity of the matter, making her feel as if it were an incredibly important and heavy responsibility.
Hua Xiaomo looked at him and smiled. "Alright then, I’ll go alone tonight. And, please give my regards to Qi Lingfeng. I’ll visit him personally in a couple of days."
"Sure, no problem. Let’s settle it for tonight: you attend the welcome party, and I’ll visit my mentor," Zi Yunsui said. He then quickly started the car and sped away, soon leaving.
Hua Xiaomo arrived promptly at the party venue at the appointed time.
Looking at the extremely lively scene, Hua Xiaomo felt a little dazzled. Although she used to be uncomfortable with such social events, she was now adept at handling them.
When it came time to speak on stage, she was confident and composed, commanding a strong presence and presenting herself as a female entrepreneur.
Qi Longbing watched all of this carefully. He smiled slowly. He hadn’t imagined she would look after five years.
Five years ago, he’d never even considered the possibility of her becoming a female entrepreneur.
He thought of her in the past, including their first encounter when she was still an undergraduate. He remembered she used to enjoy painting. He had even asked her to create some very special paintings for him—memories that remained vivid to this day.
Qi Longbing looked at her. She was dressed impeccably in a very elegant gown, without a single fault. Probably because she was an entrepreneur now, she always maintained such a noble and elegant image!
Qi Longbing watched as she came down from the stage, then he picked up two glasses of wine and walked towards her. "Xiao Mo, it’s great to have you back." He handed her one of the glasses.
Hua Xiaomo graciously accepted it and, looking at Qi Longbing, said, "President Qi, thank you for the welcome party you hosted for me."
"Why mention thanks? Is there a need for that between us?" Qi Longbing said, clinking his glass against hers.
Hua Xiaomo also lifted her glass toward his. CLINK! The two glasses met, emitting a delicate ringing sound and igniting an aura of mysterious, unfathomable ambiguity.
Soon, the lights in the venue dimmed. Soft music filled the hall, and everyone’s spirits lifted as the dance began.
Suddenly, a passionate emcee announced loudly, "Now, may I have the pleasure of inviting Mr. Qi Longbing from the Qi Imperial Court and Miss Hua Xiaomo from Purple Demon Immortal Inquiry to open the dance for us!"
Hua Xiaomo’s gaze turned towards the emcee on stage. In an instant, her eyes lit up. The female emcee on stage was none other than Jiang Shuying!
Wow, this world is too coincidental, too small! I just got back and I’ve already run into a friend! ɴᴇᴡ ɴᴏᴠᴇʟ ᴄʜᴀᴘᴛᴇʀs ᴀʀᴇ ᴘᴜʙʟɪsʜᴇᴅ ᴏɴ 𝗇𝗈𝗏𝖾𝗅✦𝖿𝗂𝗋𝖾✦𝗇𝖾𝗍
Qi Longbing looked at Hua Xiaomo, gave a slight smile, and quickly extended his arm. "Would Director Hua honor me with this dance?"
Hua Xiaomo laughed awkwardly, then without hesitation, extended her arm. Qi Longbing’s arm went around her waist, and he gently led her as their footsteps glided onto the dance floor.
A wave of stunned admiration rippled through the hall as everyone watched the two of them open the dance on the floor. Such grace, such excellence—it seemed only these two could embody it.
"What a perfect match of talent and beauty!"
"Isn’t that the truth? Back when Hua Xiaomo was a secretary at the company, it seemed the two of them were already quite close."
"Yes, who would have thought Hua Xiaomo would become a Director today?"
"Alas, our President Qi is still just President Qi."
"Hey, that’s a strange thing to say. The Qi Imperial Court doesn’t have a Chairman position to begin with, so President Qi is effectively the Chairman. He’s already the top executive of the company. Who could rank higher than him?"
"That’s true. No matter how big Hua Xiaomo’s company gets, it can’t compare to the Qi Imperial Court. So her ’Director Hua’ title doesn’t carry as much weight as our ’President Qi’."
"Exactly. Her gaming company purely makes profit from games, while our Qi Imperial Court is involved in global business. We’re in all the most profitable industries."
"So, Hua Xiaomo’s company definitely can’t compare to our Qi Imperial Court."
"Actually, that’s not necessarily true. Hua Xiaomo’s company is very professional in its field, while our company is genuinely lacking in the gaming department!"
"Otherwise, why would we be cooperating with them on a game development project?"
As the pair danced on the floor, these whispered discussions floated to their ears.
Hua Xiaomo looked at Qi Longbing and said somewhat awkwardly, "I didn’t expect your employees to still be gossiping ."
Qi Longbing looked at her and responded with a smile, "People have mouths; they’ll say what they want. As the president, how could I possibly control what they say?"
Suddenly, Qi Longbing’s hand on her waist tightened slightly. His face drew closer to her ear. "Besides, what they’re saying does have some merit. Director Hua’s gaming company really isn’t on par with the Qi Imperial Court. However, your company excels in its specific project areas, and that’s precisely why I value you."