Su Moshi suddenly brought up the topic of marriage, and Li Qiao slowly raised her head, involuntarily furrowing her brows.
Suddenly, the warm palm of Shang Yu landed on the top of her head.
With a glass in one hand and caressing her hair with the other, his voice was low and magnetic, "As long as she is willing, I can at any time."
Li Qiao bit her chopsticks and looked at him, the distance between them just right, allowing her to easily read the resolute seriousness in his deep eyes.
And he never joked around.
Li Qiao took the chopsticks out her mouth and suppressed the inexplicably stirring emotions in her heart, glancing at Su Moshi, "When did I ever realize you were such a gossip?"
Su Moshi raised his glass towards Shang Yu, wine sliding down his throat, and smiled, "You’re not so easy to fall in love, I naturally have to help Mr. Shang tie you down."
The perceptive Su Lao Si, his words were undoubtedly meant for Shang Yu’s ears.
The man’s gaze deepened, his thin lips curving as he watched Li Qiao lower her head to eat, his eyelids drooping to hide the smile in his eyes.
At one-thirty in the afternoon, the group left Crystal Garden separately.
Shang Yu bent over to get into the car, watching the receding Mercedes Big G, his eyes narrowing as he spoke in a deep voice, "Who is in charge of the Medical Alliance?"
Liuyun, sitting in front of the steering wheel, turned to answer, "It’s Su Zhenhong, Su Moshi’s father."
So, it’s the crown prince of the Medical Alliance.
The man bent his head to roll up his cuffs, his expression inscrutable, "Find a way to contact Su Zhenhong and establish cooperation with the Medical Alliance as soon as possible."
Liuyun settled back into the driving seat, and as he withdrew his gaze, it intersected with Luoyu’s.
It seemed the boss had a favorable impression of Su Moshi. Establishing cooperation with the Medical Alliance was tantamount to sending them benefits.
Meanwhile, Li Qiao and Su Moshi hurried back to the research institute and quickly immersed themselves in the bustling inspection work.
During the afternoon tea break, she went alone to the pantry, flipping through messages on her phone, when the sound of footsteps accompanied by an unfamiliar presence entered.
"Li Qiao, can we talk?"
At this moment, Li Ru stood next to the sink, her gaze somewhat nervously fixated on Li Qiao’s back, devoid of her usual proud fighting spirit, and even the light in her eyes had dimmed.
Li Qiao didn’t turn around, leaning against the tea counter, tapping on the screen, she asked coolly, "What do we have to talk about?"
Li Ru choked, her eyes shifting as she threatened with insufficient confidence, "Let’s talk about your relationship with Su Moshi."
"My relationship with him?" Li Qiao gripped her phone, slowly turned her head to glance at Li Ru, the corners of her lips curling up in a mocking arc.
Seeing this, Li Ru pursed her lips, folded her arms across her chest and faced Li Qiao, lifting her chin in an attempt to appear confident.
Her behavior, from a psychological perspective, clearly belonged to a defensive state of insecurity.
"Li Qiao, you know how you got into the Medical Alliance, and I don’t want to speak unpleasantly, out of consideration for our being colleagues, see that the HR department revokes my transfer."
As Li Ru said this, her eyes drifted to the hickey on Li Qiao’s collarbone, with undisguised mockery shining through.
That morning, everyone was speculating about the relationship between Su Moshi and Li Qiao, and it was probably these rumors that had reached the parties concerned.
So when they both came back in the afternoon, someone noticed that Su Moshi’s ring finger now sported a ring, whereas Li Qiao did not.
What that implied was clear without words.
As for the transfer order mentioned by Li Ru, it was because she had embarrassed herself at the inspection meeting yesterday, and this morning the HR department issued her a notice, transferring her from the project team to the drug inspection department.
The drug inspection department was filled with older lab technicians who had led unremarkable careers, eventually being relegated to the inspection department to live out their twilight years.
Li Ru was only thirty-seven years old, and she couldn’t let her many decades of career prospects be squandered just like that.
At that moment, Li Qiao was staring at her with a self-righteous expression, running her fingers across the screen and lazily said a few words, "Are you dreaming?"
In the past, she couldn’t be bothered to contend with Li Ru’s provocations and targeting, but it seemed... her indolence had been interpreted as concession?
Li Ru knew Li Qiao’s temper, and wasn’t bothered at all by her sarcasm, "It seems you really think Su Moshi can protect you for a lifetime?
Are you sure after the inspection team leaves, you’ll still have the confidence to say such things?"
"Why wouldn’t I?" Li Qiao faced Li Ru, leaning back against the tea station, her gaze sweeping over her, "Before the inspection team arrived, did I seem to lack confidence?"
Li Ru didn’t speak, because she suddenly remembered the scene where she arrogantly smashed the testing machine.
Li Qiao looked at Li Ru askance, a flash of obvious disgust crossing her eyes.
She took a few steps forward, and as she passed by Li Ru, her lashes lifted languidly, and she said in an even tone, "I hope this is the last time you act so recklessly.
Otherwise... it’s not just the research institute, I can make it so you can’t get by in the entire medical field, understand?"
Li Ru opened her mouth to scoff, but upon meeting Li Qiao’s deep black eyes, all the words got stuck in her throat, and she was unable to utter a single one.
Those eyes had no excess color, and yet that deep black seemed to imprison her very soul.
Without emotion, without warmth, unfathomably deep and dauntingly serene.
Nearing the end of the workday, Su Moshi was flipping through the inspection report materials in the conference room, while Li Qiao sat beside him, slouching in the chair, appearing indifferent yet exuding lethargy.
"What’s the matter? Not happy about those rumors?" Su Moshi turned his head to look at her and asked in a low voice.
Li Qiao raised her eyelids slightly, "I’m thinking about what to eat tonight."
Gossip, that kind of thing, would dissolve on its own given enough time.
She wasn’t so delicate to concern herself with such trivial matters.
Su Moshi raised an eyebrow at her, closed the materials at hand, leaned back on the chair, and said, "About Li Ru, do you plan to just let her be?"
"Why bring her up all of a sudden?" Li Qiao raised an eyebrow.
Su Moshi smiled slightly, his fingers playing with his ring, "I heard your conversation in the tea room, is Fourth Brother handling it for you?"
Li Qiao stuffed her hands in her lab coat pockets, tilting her head back against the chair, "I can handle it."
She glanced sidelong at Su Moshi and curled her lip dismissively, "Suit yourself then, just don’t kill her, it’s a society of laws."
Su Moshi couldn’t help but laugh, elbowing her gently, "Shall we go? Weren’t you going to take me to gamble a couple of rounds?"
Li Qiao’s brows relaxed, and she stood up bending her knees, "Hmm."
As dusk crept over the willow tips, it was past eight o’clock; Li Qiao and Su Moshi arrived at the Portuguese Silver Underground Casino located in West City.
The two headed straight for the VIP Hall upon entering, exchanged for chips, and she looked around, "Ten billion, shall we have a competition?"