Seeing Mo Xiaoran walking towards him, Hao Jun asked with a smile, "Xiaoran, are you here to toast?"

Although Hao Jun's smile was somewhat forced, and the question was obviously rhetorical, with a hint of sarcasm in his tone, it was flawless enough that Mo Xiaoran couldn't ignore it.

Mo Xiaoran smiled and nodded at Hao Jun, responded with an "Mm," and wanted to pass by him to toast Chu Ge, but felt a bit embarrassed.

After asking that question, Hao Jun felt awkward and regretful. He just saw Mo Xiaoran wanting to toast Chu Ge, and it made him really upset, so he stood up without thinking, not sure what he should do.

He was indeed unhappy, but showing obvious discontent and jealousy towards Chu Ge wouldn't be suitable for this occasion, would it?

After all, the chairman and the general manager were sitting next to Chu Ge, and he certainly didn't want to leave a bad impression on his superiors.

But, with so many eyes on him now, he was in a bind. Since he had already called out to Mo Xiaoran, he couldn't just awkwardly sit back down, could he? That would still be a joke to others and equally embarrassing in front of everyone.

Hao Jun quickly pondered how he could avoid being criticized, not lose face, and somehow vent a bit of his anger towards Chu Ge.

His eyes darted around and then he got an idea, grinning as he said, "Xiaoran, since you mean so well, I'll have a drink with you, thank you."

Mo Xiaoran was taken aback, blinked, and almost let out an "Ah?" Hearing Hao Jun's words, it seemed like she was there specifically to toast him?

She clearly just wanted to have a drink with Chu Ge, so why was Hao Jun suddenly stirring things up?

How could someone be so shameless?

Sensing Mo Xiaoran's embarrassment, Hao Jun felt rather pleased. Although his words might draw some disdain, it wasn't entirely unacceptable; such things were fairly common at drinking tables, at most it was a harmless misunderstanding of Mo Xiaoran's intentions.

More importantly, he was the manager of an important department like the advertising department, while Mo Xiaoran had just recently been promoted to a deputy position in the logistics department. Given Mo Xiaoran's usual gentle and mild temperament, he believed that even if Mo Xiaoran felt a bit wronged, she wouldn't possibly refuse.

If it were a more assertive person, like Xia Feifei, he wouldn't have thought up this plan on the spot.

This way, he basically stole the spotlight from Chu Ge, and even if Mo Xiaoran went on to toast Chu Ge, she would drink with him first and then with Chu Ge, and the difference between being first and second was significant.

It felt as though he was putting a cuckold hat on Chu Ge, turning Mo Xiaoran into someone secondhand by the time she reached Chu Ge. Although the metaphor wasn't quite appropriate, this was exactly how he felt.

I'm such a freaking genius, wahahaha!

Feeling more and more pleased with himself, Hao Jun picked up his glass with a broad smile and gestured towards Mo Xiaoran, whose face looked slightly uncomfortable and whose gaze was fixed on Chu Ge from the corner of her eye.

"Xiaoran, I've already raised my glass; you can't say you're not here to toast me, can you? That would hurt my feelings."

Hao Jun jokingly teased Mo Xiaoran, fully expecting her to drink with him. He believed that even if she didn't want to, she wouldn't possibly refuse him in public, given how far he'd taken things.

It's just a drink, not a big deal; harming relationships with colleagues, especially when the other person is of a higher rank, wouldn't be worth it.

Any reasonable person would make a rational assessment, especially someone like Mo Xiaoran who rarely says "no" to others.

Seeing Hao Jun's smug expression, Qin Ruojing found it somewhat amusing. As Chu Ge's wife sitting right there, she didn't see any issue, yet this goateed manager was the one who couldn't sit still?

Luo Suyun snorted disdainfully, finding Hao Jun more and more disgusting; wasn't it clear he was bullying a young girl?

However, she didn't have a close relationship with Mo Xiaoran, and especially in this superficially harmonious atmosphere, she couldn't say much.

But Xia Feifei couldn't stand it. Ever since the Tianjiao Film and Television Administration Department, she had always been the closest to Mo Xiaoran, not just colleagues but also like sisters.

Besides, she and Luo Suyun were just teasing Chu Ge together, and it was Hao Jun who disrupted things, causing a bit of silence at this table. To lighten the mood, she had encouraged Mo Xiaoran to come toast Chu Ge from another table.

Hao Jun blocking Mo Xiaoran and insisting she drink with him was just too disgusting, wasn't it?

"Manager Hao, are you feeling a bit too good about yourself? How do you know Xiaoran came to toast you?"

When Xia Feifei gets fired up, she doesn't care so much. Although she had a smile on her face and the tone was joking, anyone could hear the edgy undercurrent in her words.

"Hehe, whether she's here to drink with me or not, you have to ask Sister Xiaoran about that." Hao Jun raised his eyebrows with a cheeky grin, glanced at Xia Feifei, and then turned his gaze back to Mo Xiaoran's face, "Isn't that right, Sister Xiaoran?"

Xia Feifei felt even more disgusted. The words "Sister Xiaoran" coming out of Hao Jun's mouth made her skin crawl, yet his words left her almost speechless, with no way to retort.

Of course, Xia Feifei wasn't willing to give up. She glanced at Mo Xiaoran and then signaled to Chu Ge with her eyes. She knew that although Chu Ge was usually easygoing, if his bottom line was crossed, he wouldn't care about the occasion before turning confrontational.

Rationally, she didn't want Chu Ge to disrupt the atmosphere of the celebration party, but emotionally, she hoped Chu Ge would stand up to help Mo Xiaoran out of the situation and give that self-righteous and sleazy Hao Jun a good dose of embarrassment.

Yet, despite Xia Feifei's constant signaling, her dissatisfaction was far from subtle—in fact, it was quite obvious—Chu Ge kept watching Mo Xiaoran and Hao Jun with a smile, showing no intention of stepping in.

Of course, Chu Ge knew exactly what kind of trick Hao Jun was playing, but he indeed had no intention to respond.

It wasn't that he didn't resent Hao Jun's petty behavior, but rather, he didn't have the standing to intervene, and he also wanted to see the choice Mo Xiaoran would make.

Whether Mo Xiaoran drank the glass or not was Mo Xiaoran's business. She was a mentally sound adult and naturally had her own considerations and ability to handle matters.

But if Mo Xiaoran showed that she didn't want to drink and Hao Jun still shamelessly pressured her, that would be a line he wouldn't let Hao Jun cross.

Under varying gazes, some overt, some covert, Hao Jun's smile widened a bit more.

However, just when he thought Mo Xiaoran would inevitably drink with him, Mo Xiaoran smiled gently, "Manager Hao, I'm sorry, but I didn't come to toast you, my apologies."

Having said that, Mo Xiaoran, holding her wine glass, walked past the dumbfounded Hao Jun, whose expression turned extremely ugly in an instant, and his mouth twitched fiercely a few times, heading towards Chu Ge.

At that moment, Hao Jun felt like a complete joke. Even without looking around, he could imagine the dozens of people in the room staring at him with schadenfreude. That feeling was like needles on his back.

He couldn't understand it at all—it's just a glass of wine, right? Mo Xiaoran actually refused? Even uncharacteristically, she refused so straightforwardly? Didn't even leave him a shred of face?

Hao Jun's face turned from blue to white, instinctively clenching his fist, sitting silently in his seat. He felt an impulse to leave immediately, but he knew that would make his embarrassment even more complete, turning into an even bigger joke.

He cast a venomous glance at Mo Xiaoran's back and Chu Ge's smile. The scene felt so glaring, how could it be like this?

Damn it, what on earth was Mo Xiaoran thinking? Why, while Chu Ge was merely a manager in the Human Resources Department, did he seem to steal all the spotlight at this celebration?

Although Mo Xiaoran now appeared outwardly calm, her heart was beating faster and faster. She hadn't even realized herself that she would so straightforwardly and directly refuse Hao Jun's not particularly unreasonable request on such an occasion.

Especially being watched by Chu Ge like that, Mo Xiaoran couldn't help but wonder if she was being too audacious, too arrogant?

However, when she realized Chu Ge's gaze was full of approval, and his smile was as warm as spring, the unease in her heart evaporated. A genuine smile with a touch of shyness naturally appeared on her elegant face.

"Manager Chu, I also toast you."

Standing in front of Chu Ge, Mo Xiaoran intended to say something, like Xia Feifei, to start with the camaraderie from working in the same office in the past, but the words she had prepared and were already at her mouth couldn't come out for some reason.

"Thank you."

Chu Ge smiled brightly, raised his glass, and clinked it lightly against the rim of Mo Xiaoran's glass with a "ding," then drank it all down.

Between Mo Xiaoran and him, words weren't needed much, it was all in the drink. Thinking back to when he first joined the Tianjiao Film and Television Administration Department, Mo Xiaoran was like a mentor to him.

It may have been just a smile and a thank you, but it wasn't perfunctory. He truly felt happy for Mo Xiaoran's transformation; this girl really had grown a lot and learned how to say "no" to others.

Mo Xiaoran blushed slightly, finished her drink, and was about to return to her table when she turned around and found her way blocked.

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