CHAPTER 218: CHAPTER 205: I PLAN TO PURSUE YOU

The noon sunlight was bright and blinding, filtering through the colorful stained glass onto the face of the approaching man, shrouding his facial features in a mix of vague and clear shadows, as if he was stepping out of the illusions created by the glass, ethereal and somewhat surreal.

It was not until he approached that Guo Jun nervously exclaimed, "President."

Mu Shuoqian did not look at him but slowly set his gaze on Gu Qili, then glanced at Reynolds who was smiling.

Only then did he turn to the man in the black hat who was obviously attempting to sneak away. The two security guards who came up behind him immediately grabbed the man in the black hat and dragged him outside.

"Hey, I’m your customer, I’m your god, and you treat your customers like this? I’m going to sue you...," the man in the black hat was cut off mid-sentence, his mouth blocked, his face turned red, unable to make another sound, and soon he was taken away by the security guards.

Mu Shuoqian gave Reynolds a light nod, then addressed the seated guests, "To express the hotel’s apologies, each table will receive a special dessert from our restaurant, and in addition, all your expenses today—on the house."

On the house?

It was clear to the discerning eye that this

was not only a complimentary dessert but also a waiver of the bill? The incident was purely someone causing trouble; the hotel was not at fault at all, but to show sincerity, this person, who seemed like a major boss, waived their meal charges completely.

Those who understood his words immediately cheered and clapped, while foreigners who couldn’t understand, seeing the excitement around them, quickly turned their expectant eyes to Gu Qili, remembering that this lady spoke fluent foreign languages.

Gu Qili smiled and translated what Mu Shuoqian had said, stealing a glance at him. After Mu Shuoqian finished speaking, he walked towards the office of the restaurant, and Guo Jun immediately followed, but was stopped by Xiao Ran outside the office.

"Assistant Xiao, the handling of today’s matter was not smooth. Please let me explain to the president." Guo Jun, trapped outside the door, anxiously blurted out, a sheen of sweat on his forehead, "Actually, this matter is..."

Xiao Ran, with a cool demeanor, interrupted him, "You’re Supervisor Guo, right?"

He was just a restaurant supervisor, and it was a privilege to be remembered by the president’s assistant, but he did not ponder why Xiao Ran would remember him, a minor employee.

"Assistant Xiao, could you let me in to explain to the president?"

"No need." Xiao Ran looked at his wristwatch with an impatient expression, "From now on, you are no longer an employee here. You are dismissed."

Guo Jun looked at him in shock.

"An employee who cannot protect the company’s interests is unnecessary. Your salary will be settled by the finance department. You can leave now."

"No no, Assistant Xiao, I did indeed make a mistake this time, but this isn’t a capital crime, right? Please let me see the president." Guo Jun’s salary at the French Restaurant was very substantial, and his relatives were very envious knowing he was a minor leader in such a big hotel, and he felt somewhat superior; now to be dismissed so suddenly, he couldn’t easily accept it.

Xiao Ran stared at him coldly, chuckled, it appeared that Guo Jun still didn’t realize the real mistake he had made; he had already ’moved the earth under Tai Sui’s head’, and was completely unaware.

Not wanting to be entangled by him anymore, Xiao Ran coldly stated, "Since that’s the case, I might as well make myself clear."

He lowered his voice and whispered something in Guo Jun’s ear. It wasn’t much, just a few simple words, but upon hearing them, Guo Jun’s face turned ashen, as if struck by acupuncture, motionless. Xiao Ran glanced at his pallid face, pushed open the office door, and walked in.

The words Xiao Ran had said were simple; he said, "Miss Gu is the president’s woman."

He only mentioned Miss Gu without specifying a name, but in the French Restaurant, there was only one Miss Gu, and the Miss Gu who Guo Jun had always disliked and caused trouble for was also the only one.

Even an assistant like Xiao Ran referred to her as Miss Gu instead of using her first name; who this Miss Gu really was, probably even a fool would understand.

Only at this moment did Guo Jun truly realize, through all these days, just how foolishly inexcusable his actions had been,

The president’s woman?

Everyone knew that their president was pure-hearted and self-disciplined, having never been associated with a woman after taking this position because no woman could come near him; they all said he was allergic to women, and everyone believed it.

Now that Xiao Ran suddenly mentioned the president’s woman, how should he interpret it?

Guo Jun started to regret; he shouldn’t have initially listened to Qi Meihui’s words to target Gu Qili. At that time, he only thought about ingratiating himself with Qi Meihui, never intending to investigate Gu Qili’s background. If he hadn’t been so profit-driven and sycophantic, perhaps, he could have kept his position.

"Right." Xiao Ran, who had just entered, suddenly pushed the door open again, half showing his face.

Guo Jun was momentarily elated, thinking he had changed his mind, but Xiao Ran added a sentence directly plunging him into despair, "Supervisor Guo, you might consider changing your career soon, this industry probably can’t accommodate you anymore."

Hearing the door shutting noise, Guo Jun’s legs gave out, and he collapsed to the floor. He had thought about finding a better job, relying on his hotel supervisor status, and managing another hotel at least, but hearing Xiao Ran’s words, his legs completely weakened. It seemed he really needed to find that better job elsewhere now.

Guo Jun was summoned for a scolding, and everyone was speculating about his outcome, despite the presence of customers, their curiosity couldn’t be stopped.

Gu Qili exchanged a few words with Zhu Ping before heading to Reynold’s table.

In fact, she never thought about taking the lead today, but she knew that if she didn’t stand up, letting Guo Jun continue his reckless blabbering could indeed tarnish the French Restaurant’s reputation. Thus, she stepped up despite everything. As for the decision to give every table a dessert, it was a spontaneous decision, not without considering that the restaurant couldn’t bear the cost. She was already prepared to pay out of her pocket, as desserts at the French Restaurant aren’t cheap.

Unexpectedly, in the end, Mu Shuoqian arrived, and all her troubles were swiftly resolved. He not only offered desserts but also promised to cover the costs. She felt truly radiant.

Standing before Reynolds, Gu Qili extended her hand seriously and said, "Thank you."

"No, the restaurant rules do not allow the staff to dine with customers."

"You guys sure have a lot of quirky rules," Reynolds replied, adjusting to local customs without insisting further, his blue eyes intently gazing at the vibrant girl in front of him, hand propped against his chin as he curiously lifted his face, "I remember you mentioned you were working in translation before, how come you became a waitress upon returning? How do these two connect?"

Reynolds paused for a moment and then seemed to grasp something, admiration shimmering in his gaze, yet he said nothing but shook his head: "In your words, should I be ’apologizing with a Jing branch’ now?"

"You’ve gotten pretty good at Chinese idioms!"

"It’s just a piece of cake," Reynolds said and then laughed at his own words. After his laughter, he suddenly asked, "And the gentleman just now was?"

"Our boss." Thinking of Mu Shuoqian, Gu Qili’s smile softened even more.

Reynolds nodded.

Taking advantage of the moment, Gu Qili aimed to probe for some information, as this project was very important to both her and Mu Shuoqian.

"Reynolds, can you share your decision from a personal perspective?"

Reynolds spoke very straightforwardly, "Your presentation that day was impressive, almost making us decide right then and there. However, the general manager is very meticulous, so he specifically asked me to personally visit your restaurant, and then this incident occurred."

As Reynolds mentioned the earlier event, Gu Qili couldn’t help but feel anxious; regardless of how things ended up, it was not a good thing.

Reynolds tapped on the tabletop lightly with his long fingers, his beautiful eyes curved in a pleasing arc, nearly breathless, he said, "With such a dedicated employee and a shrewd boss like that, I think, we shouldn’t have any reason to decline your invitation."

Was he hinting that their choice was them?

Still, Reynolds persisted, "I heard that in your-

Gu Qili sighed helplessly. It seemed he was getting to know too much about things, and she was losing control over what he knew.

"Alright, you set the time, I’ll host," she said.

Reynolds gestured an OK sign, utterly satisfied.

"Oh, Qili," Reynolds suddenly stopped her as she was about to return to work, "are you and your boss...?"

As he spoke, he brought his thumbs together, winking his blue eyes at her.

Gu Qili laughed: "Good observational skills."

"Oh, no!" Reynolds expressed his disappointment by shrugging. "I was planning to pursue you."

"That’s unfortunate, you no longer have a chance," Gu Qili winked at him as she walked away, waving her hand towards him, "but you still have a chance to dine."

Gu Qili knew that Mu Shuoqian was in the office but didn’t disturb him. She’s just a waitress; it would be too flashy to visit the CEO’s office openly, even though she really missed him, having just seen him. Is this some kind of illness?

"Qili, Supervisor Guo has been fired," Zhu Ping whispered to her as they cleared the tables together.

"When?" Gu Qili was taken aback, but even then, firing him seemed too severe. Maybe...