We moved to Golden Courtyard

"Are there any other illustrators in the company besides Seele who are more skilled than me?! Oh right, that Liu Qi! That old woman! What tier is she?!"

Xu Qi looked puzzled.

“You two aren’t even in the same league. She’s an animation supervisor, oh, but even so, she holds the highest rank among animation supervisors.”

That's practically saying outright that no matter which track she's on, she's at a higher level than you.

"This is outrageous!" Xilin was like a little girl with her hair standing on end, jumping around in Xu Qi's office! It was quite amusing to watch.

"She's even taller than me?! Has the person who's doing the job ranking been kicked in the head by a donkey?!"

Xu Qi pointed to his head.

Come on, kick me.

Sirin: ?

"In short, that's the situation. I'm just explaining it to you."

"Wait a minute!" A dangerous glint flashed in Celine's eyes. "I want to be evaluated too! Why am I only in the sixth rank? How dare those lousy nobodys rank above me!? Oh, except for Seele."

What a true best friend, forever...

Thinking about this, I can't help but think of Aponia and Eden...

Thinking of his two older sisters, Xu Qi couldn't help but bend over and straighten up to cover it up.

"You want to get the job too? Oh dear, that's not so easy."

Xilin first looked suspicious, then retreated in terror, clutching her chest. "You...you...you! I'm warning you! You...you're not allowed to sexually harass me!"

Xu Qi: ?

No? Has my reputation really gotten this bad?

Xu Qi said irritably, "Don't worry, I'm not interested in girls who aren't curvy or shapely."

"what!?"

"Let's get down to business. You're not a contract worker with our company, you're just on secondment, so... this promotion is indeed not so easy."

Sirin was speechless. This...it does seem true...

The little girl seemed a bit hesitant; did these words mean she wanted...?

Before the girl could think it over, Xu Qi said, "However, what kind of relationship do we have, right? After much deliberation, I've decided to give you a sixth-tier rating, which is really an insult to our Xilin."

Xilin raised an eyebrow. "Who's yours?"

"Oh, oh, oh, slip of the tongue," Xu Qi continued, "Anyway, we're friends now. So I'll definitely help you sort this out."

"Really!?" Sirin's eyes seemed to be sparkling.

"Hmm, you don't trust me to handle this?"

“No, I… I mean…” Sirin lowered her head shyly, “I mean… the previous sentence…”

The previous sentence?

"friend?"

Xilin quickly nodded.

"Is there a problem? Aren't we friends?"

"Oh...oh..." A sheepish smile crept onto Celine's face. "No...nothing, right! We're friends! Hehe..."

Xu Qi's expression was extremely strange—this kid, he seems... kind of cute, huh?

"That's settled then. Oh, and by the way! Don't tell anyone about this, not even Seele! Understand?"

"Mmm!" Celine nodded emphatically, and before leaving, she even made a funny face at him with a grin, leaving behind a "thank you" before departing.

This brat...

······

At her workstation, Xi'er saw that Xilin had gone to Xu Qi's office, and her face was flushed with a smile that she couldn't hide.

She lowered her head deeply, her short hair obscuring her eyes, which should not be seen by others at this moment. After Xilin sat down, she asked in her usual calm and gentle voice.

"Xilin, Mr. Xu Qi is looking for you...what's the matter?"

796. Durandal and I are just friends!

Upon hearing Xier's question, Xilin was about to answer when she suddenly remembered that Manager Xu seemed to have said not to tell anyone, including Xier.

This made the little girl panic. She had no experience in lying, especially not in front of her best friend, Seele.

But... but that annoying guy, he seems to be my friend too...

"No!...It's nothing! We just talked about work, hehe..."

Xilin gave a rather reluctant explanation, while also letting out a few awkward laughs.

Honestly, anyone could see that she was lying.

However, Seele raised her head, a very gentle smile on her face, as if she hadn't noticed anything, and softly spoke to Sirin.

"I see... Then you must not let Mr. Xu Qi down."

"Ah...that's right! Of course! I'm Sirin!"

Seeing that Seele didn't ask any more questions, Sirin breathed a long sigh of relief.

What? It seems that when I get serious, there's nothing I can't do?

However, she didn't notice that as Seele was drawing with her head down, the crimson in her eyes became increasingly noticeable...

······

"Miss Bronya asked me to come and ask you something—how is it?"

In the office, Rita made Xu Qi a cup of goji berry tea.

Xu Qi has been drinking this stuff for almost two months now, and he's gotten used to it. However, people who occasionally come into his office and see the cup of goji berries on his desk will look thoughtful.

No? I'm fine!

"It's not exactly resistance, but it's clear that Miss Sirin doesn't want to leave MH. Maybe... she really likes that animation company..."

Xu Qi tapped on the table.

"If that's the case, what if Miss Sirin knew that MH is now planning to sell her off..."

"She might be sad, but it's hard to say exactly how sad." Rita noticed a hint of hesitation in Xu Qi's expression.

“If Miss Eden were here, she would definitely tell Sirin this news without hesitation.”

Xu Qi looked at Rita with a wry smile.

"Have you all had a grudge against my sister lately?"

Rita smiled, gracefully put down the documents in her hand, and sat down on Xu Qi's lap naturally and calmly, half-embracing Xu Qi as she spoke.

"After all, we're all quite afraid that once you have your older sister, you'll forget about us. What will we do then?"

Am I that kind of person?

"You were lingering in Bronya's office this morning."

Isn't it because it's someone's birthday today?

Just as Xu Qi was about to speak, he noticed that Rita's gaze wasn't on him, but rather on the cup of goji berry tea on the table.

Xu Qi patted Rita's pert buttocks, leaving him both amused and exasperated.

"Alright, my little succubi, do you really want to drain me dry?"

Rita chuckled, but since she was already entangled with Xu Qi, she naturally didn't want to get off him.

"But you're right about that. If it really was my sister, she would have already told Sirin the news."

Xu Qi took the cup of tea and drank it all down under Rita's satisfied gaze.

Actually, the effect of these goji berries is minimal; it's better than nothing.

What truly sustained Xu Qi's inhuman body was the medicinal soup prepared by Su and Fu Xian'er.

Drink a bowl of this in the morning to ensure you have energy for the whole day.

Otherwise, given Xu Qi's frequency and intensity, even if he were a new human plus a superhuman, no matter how good his foundation was, his body would collapse before the age of thirty-five.

I have so many girlfriends... and most of them are older women, each one as fierce as a wolf.

Not to mention that when Xu Qi is thirty-five, Mei and the others who are younger will also be thirty!

Good heavens... a den of demons...

Actually, ever since Mei started trying to conceive, she's been in a really good mood... you could say she's obsessed with Xu Qi every single day.

A true juicer.

They had many different styles, and on several occasions they even brought out the wedding dress they wore on their birthday.

It tastes wonderful...

"But this is also a consequence of the business market environment; people are not treated as people, but as commodities. I consider Miss Celine a friend, but for the company..."

"She is just a rare commodity."

Xu Qi looked at Rita in his arms with a hint of helplessness.

"Don't be so cruel..."

“You know, I’ve been through much more.”

Xu Qi remained silent, then hugged Miss Rita tightly in his arms with pity.

“Before, we were cut off from news and couldn’t hear anything from Europe, but recently Kafka brought me some news. She said that Destiny has been too busy to take care of itself, which is why it lost contact with you.”

You could clearly feel that Rita's body seemed to tremble slightly.

She appeared calm and collected on the surface, but a sense of worry lingered in her heart.

Destiny...

The rare peace we enjoy now could be shattered at any moment by a single task.

"Logically, in this situation, she should be recalled, but Durandal refused from the beginning, citing the incomplete mission and the lack of discovery of Cocolia's whereabouts."

Rita was stunned—she had absolutely no idea!

"At that time, it was always Durandal who was in contact with Destiny. She was protecting you and protecting your hard-won happiness."

"Why didn't she tell me!...And you are..."

"What do you think I talk about with Yulandel every day? Is it really just about burning?" Xu Qi raised her eyes. "You're always checking my phone."

Rita awkwardly turned her head away.

"Don't worry... I will ensure that you stay safely by my side and truly break free from the shackles of fate."

"Um……"

Rita was about to comfortably lie on Xu Qi's shoulder when she suddenly froze.

"You? Who do you mean?"

Xu Qi's expression stiffened for a moment, then he forced a smile and said, "Ah... what do you mean 'you guys'? I mean you? You, of course, I mean Rita."

Rita stood up, and the poor chair, now bearing the weight of two people, involuntarily slumped forward.

Rita straddled Xu Qi, leaned close to his face, and looked suspicious.

"I?"

"Yes, yes, you misheard. Where did you come from?"

Miss Rita narrowed her eyes, and a captivating smile appeared on her lips.

"Actually... if you really fall for Lady Durandal and want to pursue her, I won't object, after all, we're best friends..."

Xu Qi is a seasoned veteran; he wouldn't give himself away in this area.