MLROCSHR Chapter 57

Chapter 57: A Stolen Kiss

Two seconds later, more messages popped up in the group chat:

[Wow, thanks, CEO Qi!]

[CEO Qi is so generous.]

[Yay, more free food.]

[When is CEO Lian treating?]

[Where are we going for the celebratory banquet? I know a restaurant with amazing reviews, but it’s a bit pricey. I wonder if CEO Qi would be willing to splurge and let us see the world?]

[Which one are you talking about? Send it over.]

[…]

Everyone was excitedly discussing, looking forward to the celebratory banquet.

When Qi Luzhi saw the group messages, he was initially confused. He scrolled up through the chat history to understand what was going on. He looked at Lian Xun, who was sitting on the sofa with his legs crossed, drinking tea, and said in a playful tone, “How come I don’t know I’m treating?”

Lian Xun chuckled, “I’m treating, you’re paying. Rounding it up, it’s you treating.”

Qi Luzhi raised an eyebrow, “So I should thank you for leaving this good reputation to me?”

Lian Xun waved his hand, “No need to be polite.”

Ling Yu was still on leave, and for some reason, Li Yang had also gone to Ling Yu’s hometown for the past two days. Apart from the two of them, everyone else from the project team was present.

The celebratory banquet was held at a quaint five-star hotel.

Inside the private room, there were wooden tables and chairs, red lanterns, and exquisite murals decorating the surrounding walls, creating a rich Chinese atmosphere.

Lian Xun was in a good mood today. As soon as the dishes were served, he stood up and spoke with excitement and gratification.

“Thank you all for your hard work on this project. Without you, we wouldn’t have achieved today’s success. Everyone has worked hard these past few months, especially Xiao Lin from the programming team and Xiao Jin from the planning team. They practically lived at the company. I’m truly touched to have such good employees…”

A warm round of applause broke out below the stage, and the employees cheered, their faces filled with the joy of success.

Lian Xun’s gaze swept across the crowd, finally landing on Qi Luzhi. Qi Luzhi crossed his arms, watching him intently, with a slight smile on his lips.

“CEO Lian, a raise!”

Someone shouted, instantly igniting the enthusiasm of the entire room.

“CEO Qi, we want a raise too!”

The employees chimed in, chanting “Raise,” “Raise!”

Lian Xun was amused by this sudden surge of enthusiasm. He waved his hand and responded loudly, “Once the game is officially launched and makes big money, you’ll all get your share!”

“Alright!” The cheers from below the stage grew even louder.

Feng Nuo: “Today’s treat is on CEO Qi, CEO Qi, say a few words too.”

Qi Luzhi raised the wine glass on the table, gesturing briefly, “I won’t say much, everyone has worked hard, just have fun today.”

Halfway through the banquet, an employee from Xun Qi Technologies suddenly asked, “CEO Lian, now that the internal testing is over, can we move back to our company? It’s so far to commute these past few months at Sheng Shao Group.”

“Yeah, yeah, my rented apartment is near Heng Feng Building. Originally, it only took five minutes to walk to work. These past few months at Sheng Shao Group, I’ve had to take the subway for two hours every day.”

“Me too, an hour and a half on the subway.”

The employees echoed, complaining about the inconvenience of the past few months.

“This…” Lian Xun pondered for a moment, then said seriously, “Move, of course, we’re moving. We’ll move back in a few days, everyone has worked hard.”

Having gotten used to staying at Sheng Shao Group recently, Lian Xun had almost forgotten about this.

The thought of not being able to see Qi Luzhi during the day and not being able to eat lunch with him after moving back made Lian Xun feel down.

Qi Luzhi, who was sitting next to him, was no less disappointed. The moment Lian Xun said he was moving back, his expression changed, and he secretly reached out and pinched Lian Xun’s waist behind everyone’s back.

Lian Xun looked at Qi Luzhi with a mournful gaze.

He couldn’t help it. He had promised before that they would move back after the internal testing was over. As the boss, he couldn’t break his word.

What’s more, the employees’ commute was indeed a problem.

Qi Luzhi was unhappy, but he couldn’t say anything, and his face was long.

After the meal, everyone was still in high spirits, and the group moved to a nearby KTV to start the second round.

Xiao Lin from the programming team passionately sang into the microphone. His singing was actually not bad, eliciting cheers from the crowd. Lian Xun couldn’t help but cast an admiring glance and applaud frequently.

Qi Luzhi followed Lian Xun’s gaze and saw a dangerous glint in his eyes.

He moved silently to Lian Xun’s side, leaned close to his ear, and whispered, covering his lips, full of jealousy, “Don’t look at others.”

Lian Xun was taken aback, turned to look at Qi Luzhi, and teased with a smile, “You’re jealous of this too?”

“You haven’t paid attention to me for half an hour.”

“Alright, alright, I won’t look.” Lian Xun smiled, “I’m going to the restroom, is that okay?”

With that, Lian Xun got up and walked towards the door.

“I’ll go too.” Qi Luzhi immediately stood up, following behind him.

The two left the private room one after the other. In a corner that no one noticed, Feng Nuo’s eyes sparkled, going crazy from all the sweetness.

They thought they were hiding it well, but in fact, their secret little actions from earlier during the meal had been captured by Feng Nuo.

She silently ate dog food while nervously worrying that someone in the room would see through the clues and expose the relationship between the two bosses in public.

The restroom was empty. Lian Xun stood in front of the mirror, straightened his tie, glanced at Qi Luzhi, who was leaning against the wall with a gloomy expression, and asked softly, “What’s wrong, still unhappy?”

Qi Luzhi lowered his eyes, still thinking about Lian Xun moving back to the company.

He didn’t want Lian Xun to leave, but he didn’t want to make things difficult for him either.

Lian Xun thought Qi Luzhi was still jealous about what had happened earlier, so he tiptoed and gently kissed him on the lips, coaxing, “Don’t be angry, okay?”

“Bang!”

The restroom door was suddenly opened.

An employee stumbled in, drunk, and happened to witness Lian Xun and Qi Luzhi’s actions. A look of horror flashed across his face, and his eyes widened instantly.

“CEO Lian, you, you, did you just kiss CEO Qi?”

Lian Xun and Qi Luzhi’s ears both turned slightly red. Lian Xun quickly denied, “No, you saw it wrong. It’s a hallucination caused by your drunkenness.”

“I didn’t see it wrong, I clearly saw it.” The employee persisted, swaying as he approached, asking curiously, “CEO Lian, why did you kiss CEO Qi? Aren’t you two both men? Can two men kiss?”

This guy, drunk, has gotten bold. He doesn’t even look at who’s in front of him and dares to ask these questions.

Qi Luzhi’s expression was a bit ugly. He glared at the employee coldly, “Get out, don’t talk nonsense here.”

The employee was startled by Qi Luzhi’s gaze, and his drunkenness sobered up a bit. He immediately apologized, “Sorry, CEO Qi, I’ll leave right away.”

After speaking, he ran out in a panic, not even using the restroom.

Lian Xun looked at the employee’s retreating figure and shook his head helplessly, “It’s not easy to have an underground relationship.”

Qi Luzhi then gently took his hand and said softly, “Let’s go, we’ll go somewhere else, I have something to discuss with you.”